Video of the Day
White House Press Briefing


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Today’s Hill Action
Senate Floor Schedule
The Senate reconvenes at 9:30 a.m. and will be in a period of morning business. At 10 a.m., the Senate is expected to vote on a motion to proceed to a joint resolution (H J Res 36) that would nullify a Bureau of Land Management rule that requires oil operators on public lands to reduce gas burning.
H J Res 36 – A joint resolution Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the final rule of the Bureau of Land Management relating to “Waste Prevention, Production Subject to Royalties, and Resource Conservation”.
Committee Hearings
10:00am: Cybersecurity Threat Landscape
10:00am: Family Caregiver Support/FDA Reauthorization (postponed)
10:00am: Chinese Institution Secondary Sanctions/Constraining North Korea
10:00am: Western Hemisphere External Influences
10:00am: Pending Nominations
10:00am: Countering Russia’s Eastern Europe Influence
10:30am: Endangered Species Act Modernization
10:30am: Administration’s Economic Growth Policies
02:30pm: Aging With Community
02:30pm: Pending Legislation
02:30pm: Law Enforcement Access to Data Across Borders
02:30pm: Veterans Choice Program
02:30pm: Pending Legislation
02:30pm: Native Educator Support/Virginia Tribal Recognition
03:00pm: Coetzee Nomination
House Floor Schedule
House is not in session
Committee Hearings
None

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F.BI Director James Comey Is Fired by Trump
President Trump on Tuesday fired the director of the F.B.I., James B. Comey, abruptly terminating the top official leading a criminal investigation into whether Mr. Trump’s advisers colluded with the Russian government to steer the outcome of the 2016 presidential election.
The stunning development in Mr. Trump’s presidency raised the specter of political interference by a sitting president into an existing investigation by the nation’s leading law enforcement agency. It immediately ignited Democratic calls for a special counsel to lead the Russia inquiry.
Mr. Trump explained the firing by citing Mr. Comey’s handling of the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server, even though the president was widely seen to have benefited politically from that inquiry and had once praised Mr. Comey for his “guts” in his pursuit of Mrs. Clinton during the campaign. But in his letter to Mr. Comey, released to reporters by the White House, the president betrayed his focus on the continuing inquiry into Russia and his aides.
“While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur with the judgment of the Department of Justice that you are not able to effectively lead the bureau,” Mr. Trump said in a letter to Mr. Comey dated Tuesday. White House officials refused to say anything more about the three occasions Mr. Trump cited.
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High tensions as Russian diplomat visits Washington
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will meet with his Russian counterpart on Wednesday in Washington amid high tensions over Russian interference in the U.S. presidential election. Adding to the drama: the meeting will take place a day after President Trump’s firing of FBI Director James Comey, who was overseeing an investigation into any ties between Russia and Team Trump.
The trip is Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov’s first to Washington since 2013, and comes at what Tillerson has described as a low point in U.S.-Russia relationship. The White House announced Wednesday morning that Trump would meet with Lavrov at 10:30 a.m. in the Oval Office. The meeting is closed to the press. As Tillerson and Lavrov appeared on camera Wednesday to begin their visit, Lavrov was peppered with questions about Comey’s firing.
He responded with a joke about the firing. “You’re kidding, you’re kidding,” he said, feigning surprise at the news.
Trump assumed office hoping to develop better ties with Moscow despite Russia’s disinformation and hacking efforts in the
election.

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Support for GOP’s ObamaCare repeal drops after House passage
Support for the Republican legislation to repeal and replace ObamaCare has declined since the House of Representatives
narrowly passed the bill last week. A Morning Consult/Politico poll published Wednesday morning found just 38 percent of voters
support the Republican healthcare bill, down 4 points from 42 percent of voters last week.
The poll found 44 of voters disapprove of the bill, a jump from 37 percent in April.The House narrowly passed the American Health
Care Act last week by a 217-213 vote.  A healthcare working group is expecting to make several changes to the bill in the Senate.
The new poll also found mixed support on which party can best handle healthcare. Forty five percent now support Democrats,
while 36 percent say they trust Republicans in Congress on the issue.

The new Morning Consult/Politico poll was conducted May 4 to 6 from a survey of 1,996 registered voters. It has a margin of error
of 2 points.

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