Spiegel Stuff: The Hill's 12:30 Report: Trump’s flushed papers raise questions

TALK OF THE MORNING

In The New York Times’s Maggie Haberman’s upcoming book, she reports that wads of discarded paper occasionally clogged the toilet in then-President Trump’s residence. Residence staff believes Trump flushed papers of some kind.

Why this matters — from Axios’s Mike Allen: “While in office, the former president blithely flouted the Presidential Records Act, which required him to preserve written communications concerning his official duties. Trump routinely tore up documents and after leaving office brought substantial written materials back to Mar-a-Lago.”

Another tidbit — Trump has kept in touch with North Korea: “Haberman reports Trump has told people that since leaving office, he has remained in contact with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un — whose ‘love letters,’ as Trump once called them, were among documents the National Archives retrieved from Mar-a-Lago.”

Axios’s Mike Allen published a few snippets from Haberman’s new book — see them here: https://bit.ly/3HGMfQl

The cover of her new book: https://bit.ly/3gE0zx7

When it will be published: Oct. 4, 2022

Why this should be a very interesting read: The New York Times’s Peter Baker tweeted, “No one has covered [Trump] better for longer and this is sure to be full of the kind of jaw-dropping reporting that she has delivered so consistently. Can't wait.”

WATCH MAGGIE HABERMAN DISCUSS HER REPORTING ON THE FLUSHED PAPER:

On CNN’s “New Day” this morning: https://bit.ly/3GAcRBr

OH MAN, I FORGOT ABOUT THIS:

The Huffington Post’s Arthur Delaney found a quote from former President Trump in 2019 talking about low water pressure. https://bit.ly/3uClKI7

The quote from Trump from Dec. 2019: “People are flushing toilets 10 times, 15 times, as opposed to once.” The article from 2019: https://cnn.it/3uGuUDI

It’s Thursday. I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Send comments, story ideas and events for our radar to cmartel@thehill.com — and follow along on Twitter @CateMartel and Facebook.

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NEWS THIS MORNING

Woooof:

Consumer prices rose 7.5 percent from January 2021 to January 2022, according to new data from the Labor Department.

For context: That is the fastest rate since February 1982

What this means: https://bit.ly/3gA5UFZ

See for yourself — here’s the Labor Department data released this morning: https://bit.ly/3oE4kr3

REACTION FROM SEN. JOE MANCHIN (D-W.VA.):

“It’s beyond time for the Federal Reserve to tackle this issue head on, and Congress and the Administration must proceed with caution before adding more fuel to an economy already on fire.”

^ That sure sounds like Manchin is referring to the $2 trillion social and climate spending package. https://bit.ly/3uGaiv7

Coming soon to a galaxy near you:

A new limited original series, “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” is coming out on Disney+. Read the Star Wars announcement: https://bit.ly/3BbMVuE

The release date: May 25

If you were disappointed it won’t be released on May the Fourth: Twitter user @GarrrettNaber pointed out that the first Star Wars movie was released on May 25, 1977. https://bit.ly/3BbMVuE

IN THE WHITE HOUSE

The truck driver protests could be coming to the US:

Via The Hill’s Alex Gangitano, “President Biden is facing the possibility of truck driver protests mirroring those in Canada over vaccine mandates that would come as the administration works to combat supply chain disruptions, vaccinate more Americans and strengthen the U.S. economy.” https://bit.ly/3suYedA

‘MULTIPLE BLOCKADES AT U.S.-CANADA BORDER DISRUPT AUTO INDUSTRY’:

Via The New York Times’s Dan Bilefsky and Ana Swanson: https://nyti.ms/3uC1VAV

TIDBIT — JOE BIDEN GOT A LITTLE COOLER TODAY:

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins tweeted that singer and songwriter Billie Eilish, who performed in Washington, D.C., last night, met with President Biden yesterday before her show. https://bit.ly/3stC6Ah

Photo of Biden with Billie Eilish and Finneas (Eilish’s brother and fellow musician): https://bit.ly/3B9Z5Ex

IN CONGRESS

Lawmaker by day, stock trader by night:

Via The Hill’s Alexander Bolton, “Proposals to ban members of Congress from trading individual stocks are gaining major momentum in the House, but some Republicans in the Senate are raising early red flags, arguing that some of the leading proposals go too far or would be too difficult to implement.” https://bit.ly/3uESLDC

More possible effects: “Senate Republicans are also voicing concerns that restricting stock ownership will put the most burden on colleagues with less money and could dissuade otherwise well-qualified candidates from running for office.”

More on the debate: https://bit.ly/3uESLDC

‘GOP BILL HIGHLIGHTS REPUBLICAN RIFT ON IMMIGRATION’:

Via The Hill’s Rafael Bernal and Mike Lillis: https://bit.ly/3Loo5fI

LATEST WITH THE CORONAVIRUS

‘Why Liberal Suburbs Face a New Round of School Mask Battles’:

Via The New York Times’s Dana Goldstein, “The battle over mask mandates may be moving to liberal-leaning communities that had been largely in agreement on the need for masking — and bound by statewide mask requirements.” The debate: https://nyti.ms/3LrHs7S

CASE NUMBERS:

Coronavirus cases in the U.S.: 77,268,991

U.S. death toll: 912,260

Breakdown of the numbers: https://cnn.it/2UAgW3y

VACCINATION NUMBERS:

Total number of vaccinations administered in the U.S.: 545 million shots have been given.

Seven-day average of doses administered: An average of 267,906 doses

For context: The U.S. population is roughly 331 million.

Breakdown of the numbers: https://bloom.bg/3iVTPLH

NOTABLE TWEETS:

Dating in DC:

Overheard District tweeted a tidbit heard on the metro: “Guy on the phone at Foggy Bottom Metro stop: ‘The date went really well! But I think our countries might have competing geopolitical interests that would make something long-term difficult.’ ” https://bit.ly/33cdcwv

I feel so sorry for this guy:

The Daily Beast’s Matt Lewis tweeted, “I just discovered that there’s a college football player named Cruz Rubio.” https://bit.ly/3Ba6R0U

Here is Cruz Rubio’s info and bio: https://bit.ly/3HKFI7w

ON TAP:

The House is out. The Senate is in. President Biden and Vice President Harris are in Washington, D.C. Biden travels to Culpeper, Va., to deliver remarks.

9:30 a.m. EST: President Biden received the President’s Daily Brief.

10:45 a.m. EST: President Biden leaves for Culpeper, Va.

3:25 p.m. EST: President Biden returns to the White House.

4:45 p.m. EST: President Biden and Vice President Harris host Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee at the White House to discuss the Supreme Court nomination process.

WHAT TO WATCH:

12:30 p.m. EST: President Biden and Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra deliver remarks in Culpeper, Va., on lowering health care costs. Livestream: https://bit.ly/3uGYnNI

IN LIGHTER NEWS:

Today is National Cream Cheese Brownie Day.

Dolly Parton is a national treasure:

Via NPR’s Rina Torchinsky, “Dollywood employees looking to further their education will soon be eligible for free tuition, books and fees for select programs.”

Who is eligible for the new benefit?: Full-time, part-time and seasonal employees of the Dollywood resort.

When this starts: Feb. 24 for the company’s 11,000 employees

Details: https://n.pr/3Jg5tgb

And to give you something to laugh about, here’s a squirrel who likes stealing food from a bird feeder. To fix the problem, the owner of the bird feeder oiled the pole. The result is pretty funny: https://bit.ly/3Lr0ScK