Iowa slaying divides the discussion
BROOKLYN,Iowa — Mollie Tibbetts’ killing by an undocumented man has reinvigorated the debate on border security.
The White House on its Twitter Wednesday released a video of the families of victims of violence committed by undocumented immigrants.
But several members of the Tibbetts family have rejected being used as a political rallying point and have pushed back against the anti-immigrant narrative.
Ms. Tibbetts’ cousin sparred with a conservative activist on Twitter, slamming her for putting a political spin on her family’s tragedy.
Trump on his removal
WASHINGTON— President Donald Trump warned during a TV interview Thursday that his removal from office would hurt the economy.
“If I ever got impeached, I think the market would crash,” Mr. Trump said in an interview with “Fox and Friends” that was broadcast Thursday morning.
It was recorded before press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders insisted Mr. Trump “did nothing wrong” regarding the events of Tuesday when Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to felonies and implicated the president. Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was convicted of fraud and tax evasion.
Enquirer’s story stash
WASHINGTON — The Associated Press reported the National Enquirer kept a safe for documents on hush payments and damaging stories it killed about Donald Trump before the 2016 presidential election.
Media outlets reported Thursday that federal prosecutors had granted immunity to Enquirer chief David Pecker, potentially laying bare his efforts to protect his longtime friend, Mr. Trump.
Mr. Trump’s ex-lawyer Michael Cohen has pleaded guilty to allegations that he, Mr. Trump and the tabloid bought the silence of a porn actress and a Playboy model who alleged affairs with Mr. Trump.
Lawyers wary of pardon
WASHINGTON— Mr. Trump’s personal lawyers cautioned against considering clemency for former aides under investigation until the inquiry is over, Rudy Giuliani said Thursday.
Mr. Trump agreed with their advice, Mr. Giuliani said. The special counsel, Robert Mueller, is investigating possible pardon offers to former aides, and Mr. Trump’s current lawyers were concerned that debating clemency could invite accusations of trying to interfere with the investigation.
Knights call for reform
HARTFORD,Conn. — The leader of the world’s largest Roman Catholic fraternal group is condemning clergy sex abuse and calling for reforms in the church, including a renewed commitment to celibacy by priests.
But the Knights of Columbus hasn’t been inoculated from the sex abuse scandal that’s rocked the global Catholic Church in recent years.
The organization was sued in 2010 by two men who said a former leader of the Columbian Squires — the Knights’ official youth program — abused them in Texas in the 1970s and 1980s.