News Roundup: Lawsuit Against IRS, Post-Midterms Election Denial

Donald Trump’s belief that the federal government was his personal weapon against his perceived enemies was a hallmark of his presidency, from security clearance revocations and loyalty lists to his efforts to politicize the Justice Department with investigations of his rivals.
 
Now, former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly has told the New York Times that the former president repeatedly told Kelly that he wanted the IRS to investigate several of his foes — including former FBI Director James Comey and his deputy Andrew McCabe.

• Kelly’s account comes after revelations this summer that both Comey and McCabe had been subjected to rare and highly invasive IRS audits in 2019 and 2021, respectively.

• The lawsuit is part of our ongoing effort to shed light on Trump administration abuses of power — you can read more about our past and present Trump Accountability work here.

• The Atlantic took a look at the longevity of “Stop the Steal” even after the loss of several election deniers running high-profile races, particularly in Arizona. “[T]he election-fraud fires that Trump and his allies have fanned for so long will not be easily extinguished,” wrote Elaine Godfrey. “If repeated audits and cold evidence haven’t done enough to deter conspiracists these past two years, then a disappointing midterm cycle won’t dissuade them either.”
• From the Washington Post: “Voters rejected election deniers across the country last week. But they did so with particular verve along the Great Lakes.” But as the Post noted, “a more mixed picture emerged in the Great Lakes state of Ohio.”
• Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake has, as of Friday afternoon, refused to concede her loss, saying she was “exploring every avenue to correct the many wrongs that have been done this past week.”
• In Wisconsin, state Rep. Janel Brandtjen — another vocal proponent of election conspiracy theories who was increasingly at odds with Speaker Robin Vos in recent months — has been kicked out of the Assembly’s Republican caucus. “Removing me from caucus will not stop the ongoing voting issues that plague our state,” she said.
• While several Trump-backed election deniers in statewide races lost their elections, the new Congress will include two new members who attended the pro-Trump rallies on Jan. 6, 2021. Their arrival “underscores the extent to which the House Republican caucus remains a haven for election deniers,” reported the Washington Post.

• Harris County District Attorney asks Texas Rangers to assist with elections investigation (Houston Chronicle)
• A rare loss for voter ID cements ugly 2022 for election deniers (Washington Post)
• Nevada high court rejects plea to stop county’s hand-count (Associated Press)
• Georgia election audit begins with dice roll to review random ballots (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• Democrats sue over lack of Saturday early voting in Georgia’s U.S. Senate runoff (GPB News)

 
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On the Records

Stephen Miller Communications
We obtained more emails of former White House adviser Stephen Miller. The emails, exchanged in 2017 and 2018 with top congressional staffers as well as senior officials at the Department of Homeland Security and the Justice Department, include discussions of immigration legislation and other topics. 

• In a January 2018 email to DHS officials, Miller discouraged sending letters regarding “border investment strategy” to ranking members of congressional committees (at the time, Democrats).
• Previously, we obtained emails that showed Miller spearheaded the implementation of Title 42, the order that expelled undocumented migrants at the border under the guise of fighting the pandemic. This week, a federal judge struck down the order. 

 
Virginia’s New ‘Election Integrity Unit’
In September, the Virginia attorney general’s office created an “Election Integrity Unit,” a move that was criticized for further lending false credence to baseless claims of election fraud despite the lack of any issues with widespread voter fraud or other irregularities in Virginia — or in any other state. We obtained a memo outlining the structure and goals of the unit. 
 

Other Stories We're Following

The Jan. 6 Investigations

• January 6 committee pushes back on Pence ‘closing the door’ on his potential testimony (CNN)
• Trump sues to block subpoena from House Jan. 6 committee (Politico)
• January 6 committee says Trump ‘failed to comply’ with subpoena (CNN)
• Supreme Court says House January 6 committee can get Kelli Ward’s phone and text records (CNN)
• January 6 panel brushes off Trump 2024 in critical final sprint (Politico)

• Attorney General Garland to announce special counsel for Mar-a-Lago and parts of January 6 investigation (CNN)
• Trump, who lost money running for president before, might get richer this time (Forbes)
• Trump organization finance chief details the birth of tax-fraud scheme (New York Times)
• Trump family signs deal with Saudi real estate developer (New York Times)
• GOP operative found guilty of funneling Russian money to Donald Trump (Washington Post)

• Federal judge blocks Title 42 rule that allowed expulsion of migrants at U.S.-Mexico border, puts order on hold for 5 weeks (CNN)
• Texas Governor Abbott raised $400,000 to bus migrants to Democratic cities (Bloomberg)
• DeSantis aides celebrated success luring migrants onto flights. Then the law stepped in (Miami Herald)
• Florida judge dismisses lawsuit against DeSantis migrant flights on technical grounds (Politico)
• Detained immigrants faced invasive medical care, Senate finds (Bloomberg Law)

• ‘Positively dystopian’: Florida judge blocks DeSantis’ anti-woke law for colleges (Politico)
• Kentucky Supreme Court wrestles with the state’s abortion laws after midterms upset (Politico)
• ‘We need to defend this law’: Inside an anti-abortion meeting with Tennessee’s GOP lawmakers (ProPublica)

• Same-sex marriage bill advances in the Senate with bipartisan support (NPR)
• Amazon plans to cut thousands of corporate workers (Washington Post)
• Speaker Pelosi says she will step down as party leader after two decades at the top (NPR)
• Dozens of kids were cleaning Midwest meatpacking plants, Labor Department finds (HuffPost)
• U.S. moves to shield Saudi crown prince in journalist killing (Associated Press)