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Rep. Mike Quigley has introduced the "COVFEFE Act" to amend the Presidential Records Act so that President Trump's social media posts are preserved after he leaves the White House.

The bill name stands for Communications Over Various Feeds Electronically for Engagement, or COVFEFE.

"In order to maintain public trust in government, elected officials must answer for what they do and say; this includes 140-character tweets," Quigley, D-Ill., said in a statement. "President Trump's frequent, unfiltered use of his personal Twitter account as a means of official communication is unprecedented. If the president is going to take to social media to make sudden public policy proclamations, we must ensure that these statements are documented and preserved for future reference. Tweets are powerful, and the president must be held accountable for every post."

Quigley's act clarifies that Trump's personal Twitter account should be archived in the same manner as the official @POTUS account. Quigley's legislation would also ensure that deleted tweets are kept.

It was from Trump's personal account that the president coined the term, "covfefe," an apparent misspelling of "coverage" in a tweet he used to complain about the press.

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Illinois Democrat introduces 'Covfefe Act' to preserve Trump's social media posts - Washington Examiner

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich sparked a mini-meltdown in the media Monday with a tweet challenging the fairness of the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Gingrich, who alsoappeared on The Laura Ingraham Show, pointed to the early hires special counsel Robert Mueller has made.

Republicans are delusional if they think the special counsel is going to be fair, he tweeted. Look who he is hiring.check fec [sic] reports. Time to rethink.

He's not wrong about the donations. Four top lawyers hired by Mueller have contributed tens of thousands of dollars over the years to the Democratic Party and Democratic candidates, including former President Barack Obama and President Donald Trump's 2016 opponent, Hillary Clinton.

One of the hires, Jeannie Rhee, also worked as a lawyer for the Clinton Foundation and helped persuade a federal judge to block a conservative activist's attempts to force Bill and Hillary Clinton to answer questions under oath about operations of the family-run charity.

Campaign-finance reports show that Rhee gave Clinton the maximum contributions of $2,700 in 2015 and again last year to support her presidential campaign. She also donated $2,300 to Obama in 2008 and $2,500 in 2011. While still at the Justice Department, she gave $250 to the Democratic National Committee Services Corp.

Rhee also has contributed to a trio of Democratic senators: Mark Udall of New Mexico, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island.

James Quarles, who worked on the Watergate investigation as a young prosecutor, has an even longer history of supporting Democratic politicians. He gave $1,300 to Obama in 2007 and $2,300 in 2008. He also gave $2,700 to Clinton last year.

He has supported a numberof other Democratic candidates, including Van Hollen, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), former Rep. John Spratt (D-S.C.), former Vice President Al Gore, 2004 presidential candidate John Kerry, former Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), and Colorado congressional candidate Gail Schwartz.

In addition, Quarles gave money to former Sen. John Walsh (D-Mont.) and three current Democratic senators Ron Wyden of Oregon, Ed Markey of Massachusetts, and Robert Menendez of New Jersey. He chipped in $300 to the DNC Services Corp. $300 in 2012.

Quarles did donate toa couple of GOP politicians $250 to then-Sen. George Allen (R-Va.) in 2006 and $2,500 to Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) in 2015.

Andrew Weissmann, a former Justice Department lawyer who now is at Jenner & Block, contributed $2,300 to Obama in 2008 and $2,000 to the DNC Services Corp. in 2006. Weissmann served as chief of the Justice Department's criminal fraud section and worked on the Enron fraud case.

A fourth lawyer on Mueller's staff, Michael Dreeben, donated $1,000 to Clinton 2006 and $250 to Obama in both 2007 and 2008. He was deputy solicitor general and has appeared many times before the Supreme Court.

Media pundits generally dismissed concerns over the Democratic Party ties of the staff Mueller is building. Several Trump critics noted that Gingrich previously had tweeted that Mueller was a "superb choice to be special counsel" and that his reputation was "impeccable for honesty and integrity."

Journalist Paul Vale, who has written for the Huffington Post and The Times of London, tweeted, "Boiled cabbage Gingrich lays out the White House plan to discredit career lawman Mueller all in the service of his babbling paymaster."

CNN anchor John King on Monday asked the network's chief congressional correspondent, Manu Raju, if it should be a concern.

"No, because Bob Mueller is the one who's in charge of this investigation and will ultimately decide how to proceed, and there is some oversight over him by [Deputy Attorney General] Rod Rosenstein, even though there is a special counsel," he said.

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Robert Mueller Stocks Staff with Democrat Donors - LifeZette

WASHINGTON Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), the highest-ranking Democrat in the Senate, will vote to block President Donald Trumps plan to ship over $500 million of precision-guided munitions to Saudi Arabia, his office told HuffPost Monday.

Schumers decision makes him the most powerful supporter of a resolution of disapproval from Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.) that isdesigned to show U.S. condemnation for the Saudis controversial role in a bloody civil war in Yemen.

I will support Senator Murphys resolution of disapproval.The human rights and humanitarian concerns have been well documented and are important, Schumer said Monday. Of equal concern to me is that the Saudi government continues to aid and abet terrorism via its relationship with [a hard-line school of Islam known as] Wahhabism and the funding of schools that spread extremist propaganda throughout the world.

Schumers announcement is the clearest sign yet that senators may successfully push back on the sale, after afailed attemptto block a U.S.-Saudi tank sale last fall. Schumer did notsupportthat effort by Murphy and his partners. (In an email to HuffPost, an aide said that previous deal did not cover weapons to be used in Yemen.)

Two other top Democrats who opposed last years motion are also on board this year: Sens. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), the ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the ranking member on the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The Obama administration initially approved the Saudi weapons transfer, but then put it on hold. Last month, Trump lifted the hold as part of a planned $110 billion package for Saudi Arabia. While the Trump administration can green-light such a shipment, senators also have an opportunity to vote to disapprove of it. If they do so, the deal would likely be delayed as the House considers whether to vote as well. Trump could eventually have to use his presidential veto to ensure the sale goes through.

General Democratic unity against the sale now seems likely. Its a win-win: a way for legislators to show opposition to Trump, who has pulled the Saudis close, and to burnish their humanitarian credentials.

The key for activists trying to pressure Saudi Arabia will now be convincing more red-state Democrats, like Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.), and Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), and Iran hawk Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) to join the cause. They also hope to win over some Republicans who have been willing to take stances on human rights issues, like Sens. Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)

Senators are expected to vote Tuesday afternoon on the resolution to disapprove of the sale, a congressional aide told HuffPost.Activists say even gaining one more vote than they did on last years motion would be a win because it would send a powerful signal to the Saudis.The U.S. relationship with the country rarely faces serious official criticism.

The resolution comes as the Saudis continue to fight in Yemen, where they and allies in a U.S.-backed coalition, including the United Arab Emirates, are responsible for thousands of civilian deaths and a worsening cholera outbreak.

All the while, the Saudis, the U.A.E. and others are isolating Qatar, a U.S. partner nation that hosts the biggest American base in the region. Tuesdays vote would give the Senate a rare chance to weigh in on the actions of the U.S.-dependent kingdom.

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Top Democrat Joins Push Against Trump's Saudi Arms Deal - HuffPost

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Updated: Monday, June 12, 2017, 2:05 PM

In a recent poll from the health insurance industry, only 8% of Americans actually want the United States Senate to pass the terrible Trumpcare bill, also known as the Affordable Health Care Act, that the House passed a few weeks ago.

That's about as bad as it gets not just for a health care poll, but for anything. Have you ever seen a movie on Rotten Tomatoes with a score of 8%? Hell, even the new Baywatch movie has a 20% on Rotten Tomatoes. In fact, there's not a major movie out in theaters right now with a Rotten Tomatoes score of less than 10%. Nobody likes Trumpcare. Tens of millions of everyday people will lose their health insurance, rates will skyrocket for America's seniors, and pre-existing conditions will become a problem again.

Republicans, so hell-bent on destroying Obamacare for the past eight years, never really bothered to do the hard work of coming up with a better plan that lowers costs and insures more people. They've got nothing. In fact, what they are proposing is worse than nothing.

So it's great that Democrats are blasting it every chance they get, but constantly criticizing it isn't enough. We have a health care crisis in America. Everyday people are struggling to afford good coverage, and premiums and co-pays are kicking our butts. That's why smart, compassionate local Democrats across the country aren't just blasting Trumpcare, they are proposing Medicare for All.

Trump brings 'victims' of Obamacare to talk to Senate Republicans

With a groundswell of grassroots support from unions like National Nurses United, the California State Senate has passed a Medicare for All bill that is now awaiting a signature from Gov. Jerry Brown. An astounding 70% of Californians, including 53% of Republicans there, support the bill. Other polls show 60% of all Americans now support health care coverage for all Americans. That's what this country wants not Trumpcare.

Every single Democrat in the country would be smart to divert at least half of their energy away from blasting Trumpcare to fighting for Medicare for All. If it becomes law in California, that will change the game for the entire country. For the third year in a row, a similar Medicare for All bill has passed the New York State Assembly. Nevada is getting closer to its own plan to open up Medicare for All there.

Many wealthy developed nations in the world have universal health care with 100% enrollment. We can have that. We should have that. And don't believe the lie about how we can't afford universal health care no nation in the world spends more money on health care and prescription drugs than we do right now. The United States spends nearly 20% of its entire GDP on health care also the highest rate in the developed world.

Now is the time to propose bold solutions. Donald Trump and every single conservative who supports him should be roundly criticized, but Americans need hope. Americans don't just need a villain to fight against, they need a cause to fight for and Medicare for All can and should be a principled part of that fight.

New York's Obamacare insurers call for 16% rate increase

More than 110 Democrats in the House are currently co-sponsoring a Medicare for All bill created by Congressman John Conyers. That's the most ever to support Medicare for All in the House, and represents a majority of 193 members of the House Democratic Caucus, but it begs the question what about the other Democrats in the House who aren't yet on record as supporting Medicare for All? What are they waiting on? And what about the Democrats in the Senate?

I'd like to see how much money the Democrats who are holding out their support for Medicare for All are receiving from the health insurance and prescription drug industries and lobbies. The reform is about as popular as it gets among rank and file Democrats so the lack of support from some elected officials is puzzling at best.

As Trump's approval ratings continue to tank and the country unites around our desire to see him leave office, we must use this rare moment in time where people are deeply hungry for systemic change to make our fight not just about personalities, but about policies. Medicare for All is the biggest, boldest, best idea we've got right now. Rallying behind it just makes sense.

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KING: Every Democrat in America should support Medicare for All - New York Daily News

religious left By Mark I. Pinsky | 4 hours ago

Chris King, left, and Bishop Allen T.D. Wiggins interact during a fundraiser in Orlando, Fla., on May 10, 2017. Photo courtesy of Sarah M. Brown

ORLANDO, Fla. (RNS) A few days after the Pulse nightclub shootings, in which most of the 49 patrons who were killed were gay and Latino, a local businessman and active Christian layman contributed a guest column to the Orlando Sentineltitled Christian to LGBTs: We are sorry.

I believe one source of hope may come from the Christian church, an institution I have loved and been a part of since I was a little boy, wrote Chris King. Historically, I see a church that has often gotten it wrong really wrong when it comes to serving the needs of the LGBTQ community.

Our job as Christians, straight or gay, is first to create a society in which the voices of fear, shame and hate do not go unchallenged.

King is no latecomer on this issue. His views and his deep commitment to the LGBTQ community were shaped by his gay older brothers suicide in the 1990s, an event that shook his family.

Florida gubernatorial candidate Chris King. Photo courtesy of Chris King

Kings sentiments were not unique, even for straight white believers like himself.What is unique is that they came from a candidate for governorof Floridawho is running as both an evangelical Christiananda progressive Democrat.

The 38-year-old fits the classic profile of an evangelical whose political ambitions are fueled by his faith. He was raised in a congregation that left the Presbyterian Church (USA) for the more conservative Evangelical Presbyterian Church. He credits his prominent role in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes with helping him win election after election for high school student government. As a teenager, he had a transformative experience at a Christian leadership summer camp in Georgia.

I was inspired to live in a way that was not just for me but was glorifying my God, he recalled.

While a Harvard undergraduate, he claimed that support from a group affiliated with Campus Crusade for Christ cost him a close student election.

After graduating from the University of Florida Law School, he joined a nondenominational evangelical church, where he is now an elder. His wife, Kristen, his high school sweetheart, appears regularly on a daily Christian television show, Welcome Home, hosted by her mother. The programs mission is to point the way to a better life in Christ, according to its website.

Although it makes some of his allies and campaign staff anxious, King has not been bashful discussing the role faith has played in shaping his life on the campaign trail.

As a lifelong believer, he says at campaign gatherings, Faith has been a sustaining part of my life.(He studiously avoids the term evangelical, implicitly acknowledging its negative baggage among many in his partys base.)

King is running mainly on the basisof his success as a private-sector entrepreneur rehabilitating affordable housing. His family company says it tithes its profits.

Tall and handsome, with anincandescentsmile, he supports a varietyof issues:

He opposes a raft of other issues, such as the states voter ID law as well as capital punishment.

He also opposes both fracking and offshore drilling and pledges to refuse contributions from Floridas powerful sugar industry, which he refers to derisively as Big Sugar.

Yet unlike most evangelicals, King unequivocally supports abortion rights.

I think we have an argument we can win, he said, arguing that he is an electable Democrat in a key swing state.

Is King a political unicorn, an oddity, or the answer to the Democrats prayers?

Hes got the goods, said Margaret Altman, 63, a lawyer with the federal government. He has appeal, theres no question. Hes nice-looking, well-spoken, and advocates the same issues that she supports.

Democrats around the country are desperate to find a way to eat into the evangelical constituency that elected Donald Trump, if only incrementally. Nowhere is this truer than in big swing states such asFlorida, where exit polls reported an even wider margin of white evangelicals, 86-14, voted for Trump than the national average (81-19). Just over 20 percent of Trumps Florida vote total came from white evangelicals, according to exit polling.

Kings campaign strategists concede his evangelical faith would only be an asset to be emphasized if he wins the nomination. There is considerable debate, inside and outside the campaign, about whether King or a more experienced, better-known candidate could attract the votes of white evangelicals in a general election.

Shaving the margin of defeat among white evangelicals, in swing states like Florida and nationally, could be the difference between victory and defeat.

Its highly unlikely Democrats will be able to rebrand themselves as the Party of God, but by rejecting candidates who are strong in their faith they are leaving money and votes on the table.

In close elections, being friendly to religion and religious people would change the outcomes, said Jim Wallis, the nations best-known liberal evangelical. These include voters who oppose abortion but might be attracted to the Democrats economic platform, as well as to abortion-rights candidates, although that is the source of fierce debate within the party.

And there is likely to be some secular blowback against candidates like King. But, Wallisadded, If you dont take the concerns of religious people seriously, you lose elections.

But even among Kings admirers in Central Floridas religious community and there are many white evangelical leaders are doubtful about his political appeal.

The Rev. Jim Henry

The Rev. Jim Henry, former president of the Southern Baptist Convention, counts himself among the skeptics.

It seems like it would be hard for a practicing evangelical to vote for a Democrat, said Henry, who now pastors the Downtown Baptist Church in Orlando. Icouldnt do it.

Yet at the same time, Henry thinks an attractive Democrat with evangelical credentials could win the support of as much as 30 percent of white evangelicals, including those who are now, in his words, wobbly supporters of the GOP.

Henry compares Kings charisma with that of a young Bill Clinton, and is impressed with the young man.

I like him personally. Hes very polished, polite, carries himself well, he speaks well. If he gets through the primary hell be a formidable candidate for the Democrats. He has stood up for the faith. I think evangelicals will be impressed with that.

But Kings biggest barrier with a majority of evangelicals will be his support for reproductive choice.

Abortion is the litmus test, Henry said. Thats a line in the sand.

The Democratic primary is not until August 2018 and the field is already crowded. At this early point in the race, King making his first run at public office is both a dark horse and a long shot. However, he has raised more than $2 million so far half his own money.

Aubrey Jewett, a political scientist at the University of Central Florida, sees hope for Kings candidacy, if a faint one.

The Democratic Party is often perceived as anti-Christian, he said. Some in the base of the Democratic Party are not anti-Christian, but are very uncomfortable with evangelical Christianity.

Regardless, Kingscandidacy raises another key question for Democrats in the Sunbelt and the heartland: In the wake of the 2016 presidential election, can a party dominated by devout secularists accept an evangelical Christian, even one who is also ideologically center-left?

Im the case study, King acknowledges, of whether faith is a deal killer in the modern Democratic Party.

(Mark I. Pinsky is author of A Jew Among the Evangelicals: A Guide for the Perplexed)

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Can an evangelical, progressive Democrat succeed in Florida? - Religion News Service