On Politics: Another Whistle-Blower

2019年10月7日星期一

OCTOBER 7, 2019

Good Monday morning. Here are some of the stories making news in Washington and politics today.

Attorney General William P. Barr and a veteran prosecutor, John H. Durham, have charted an unusual course that could bolster President Trump's pet theories about the Russia investigation. Glimpses of the review around the Russia investigation are emerging, showing that Mr. Barr is taking an active role and personally overseeing it.

A second whistle-blower said to have direct knowledge of Mr. Trump's Ukraine dealings is using the same legal team as the first complainant.

Across New York, Democratic lawmakers are trying to balance the impeachment inquiry with more local concerns. In three distinct enclaves of New York, lawmakers found that voters were curious about impeachment, but far more preoccupied with regional issues.
Mr. Trump, in a major policy shift, approved a Turkish military operation to clear United States-backed Kurdish forces from the border in Syria.

African-American voters were essential to Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton winning the competitive primaries that Senator Elizabeth Warren faces in 2020. For now, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. has far deeper support among that electorate.

Senator Kamala Harris has had trouble stringing together individual moments and converting them into sustained support in her campaign. Recent interviews with voters revealed that even some who support her are yearning to see a more consistent political vision.

Mr. Biden this weekend met behind closed doors with his biggest donors in Philadelphia to plot his path forward now that he has found himself in fourth place in the 2020 money chase.

The Supreme Court returns to the bench on Monday to start a term that will be studded with major cases on gay and transgender rights, immigration, abortion, guns and religion. The rulings will arrive by June, in the midst of an already divisive presidential campaign.

Today's On Politics briefing was compiled by Isabella Grullón Paz in New York.

Is there anything you think we're missing? Anything you want to see more of? We'd love to hear from you. Email us at onpolitics@nytimes.com.