2 F.B.I. Officials, Once Key Advisers to Comey, Leave the Bureau

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WASHINGTON — Two top F.B.I. aides who worked alongside the former director James B. Comey as he navigated one of the most politically tumultuous periods in the bureau’s history resigned on Friday.

One of them, James A. Baker, was one of Mr. Comey’s closest confidants. He served as the F.B.I.’s top lawyer until December when he was reassigned as the new director, Christopher A. Wray, began installing his own advisers. Mr. Baker had been investigated by the Justice Department on suspicion of sharing classified information with reporters. He has not been charged.

The other aide, Lisa Page, advised Mr. Comey while serving directly under his deputy, Andrew G. McCabe. She was assailed by conservatives after texts that she had exchanged with the agent overseeing the investigation into links between President Trump’s campaign and Russia were made public. In the messages, they expressed anti-Trump views but took aim at Hillary Clinton and other political figures as well.

The decisions by Mr. Baker and Ms. Page to leave the bureau were unrelated. Mr. Baker said in a telephone interview that he would be joining the Brookings Institution to write for Lawfare, its blog focused on national security law.

“I love the F.B.I.,” he said. “I have tremendous respect for the bureau — the F.B.I. was great, is great and will be great.”

Mr. Comey relied heavily on Mr. Baker as he oversaw the politically charged investigations into Mrs. Clinton’s private email server and Mr. Trump’s campaign. After the president pressed Mr. Comey to say publicly that he was not under investigation, Mr. Baker cautioned against it because he anticipated that the F.B.I. would eventually have to examine Mr. Trump’s ties to Russia.

The president abruptly fired Mr. Comey a year ago and has cited a variety of rationales. His lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani said this week that Mr. Comey was ousted because he declined to say publicly that Mr. Trump was not under scrutiny at the time in the Russia investigation.

Ms. Page advised F.B.I. leadership on one of Mr. Comey’s most consequential decisions in the investigation into Mrs. Clinton: his move to hold a news conference to announce that the bureau was recommending that she face no charges.

House Republicans have also accused Mr. Baker of being the source of the leaks about a salacious dossier of information about Mr. Trump compiled by a former British spy.

Mr. Comey said in a statement that Mr. Baker “represents the best of the Department of Justice and the F.B.I.”

“He has protected the country and the rule of law throughout his career and leaves an inspiring legacy of service,” Mr. Comey said. “He is what we should all hope our kids become, a person of integrity.”

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Lawmakers demand answers over FEMA’s omission of climate change from key document – ThinkProgress

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The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) says its decision to omit any mention of climate change from the agency’s strategic plan was essentially an oversight. Lawmakers want to know if any experts were consulted in drawing up the document itself, which is meant to guide the agency’s work over the next four years.

In a letter sent Wednesday to FEMA Director Brock Long, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) asked for more information regarding the agency’s 2018-2022 Strategic Plan. FEMA has come under fire for the document, which did not contain a single reference to climate change despite the agency being responsible for overseeing recovery from hurricanes and wildfires, both of which are being affected more and more by rising temperatures.

“What statistical, scientific, or mathematical analyses were used in formulating the plan?” asked Ellison. “What scientific frameworks were used to identify the strategic goals and strategic objectives?”

“What individuals or offices within FEMA or the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) were involved in the plan?” he continued, going on to inquire about White House involvement as well as any input from outside organizations or other individuals who may have consulted on the document.

“Did FEMA consult with any scientists or climate experts on the strategic plan?” he underscored.

The congressman requested a response to the queries by May 14.

Ellison’s Wednesday letter is the latest move in an ongoing back-and-forth. FEMA released its strategic plan on March 15 with no mention of climate change contained anywhere in the 37-page document. In an initial March 29 letter to FEMA, Ellison queried the agency tasked with coordinating disaster responses and mitigating such occurrences about why references to climate change did not appear in its strategic plan.

“Given the extraordinary devastation caused by natural disasters last year, I was surprised to find that FEMA removed all mentions of climate change from its 2018-2022 Strategic Plan,” Ellison wrote, going on to call the shift “inexplicable” in light of devastating catastrophes linked to climate change in 2017.

“It is puzzling to understand how FEMA could meet the emerging challenges of 21st century disasters while ignoring the mounting evidence of the link between climate change and weather events,” he continued.

FEMA director Long responded on April 12, essentially informing the congressman that the agency had simply forgotten to include any mention of the phenomenon, according to the Huffington Post.

“There was no decision, and no direction, to deliberately avoid or omit any particular term in the writing of the 2018-2022 Strategic Plan,” Long replied to Ellison.

Last year was the most expensive year on record for U.S. natural disasters since the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) first began monitoring such trends in 1980. In 2017, natural disasters racked up $306 billion in costs across the country.

Virtually every region in the United States suffered some form of natural disaster in 2017, ranging from hailstorms and drought in the Midwest to blazing fires on the West Coast. A series of devastating hurricanes also left numerous islands and the Gulf Coast reeling last fall.

Texas is still recovering from Hurricane Harvey and the island of Puerto Rico has endured the longest blackout in U.S. history. Puerto Ricans still do not have full access to electricity or many basic necessities following Hurricane Maria, which struck the island as a Category 4 hurricane on September 20 last year.

Scientists and climate experts have said that hurricanes like Maria and Harvey were likely made worse by climate change. They say warming waters allowed for the storms to gain power quickly, exacerbating the damage they caused. An onslaught of pouring rain, flooding cities, and destroying dams, has also been directly linked to climate change.

“While hurricanes are a natural part of our climate system, recent research suggests that there has been an increase in intense hurricane activity in the North Atlantic since the 1970s,” wrote the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) last December. “In the future, there may not necessarily be more hurricanes, but there will likely be more intense hurricanes that carry higher wind speeds and more precipitation as a result of global warming.”

The White House has downplayed the extent of the damage caused by hurricanes last fall, especially with regards to Puerto Rico. Before a month had even passed after Hurricane Maria, President Trump emphasized that FEMA’s workers could not stay “forever” to help the island recover. Traditionally, parts of the United States far more equipped to deal with hurricanes than Puerto Rico have taken many years to rebound after hurricanes less powerful than Maria.

FEMA has already faced considerable criticism over its handling of post-disaster relief in Puerto Rico. Island residents have slammed FEMA over food shortages as well as back-and-forth over food and water aid, which the agency indicated it would end in January only to walk back that decision after public outcry. In March, Puerto Ricans rallied at FEMA headquarters demanding increased aid to the island and accountability over the agency’s failures.

But the agency does seem to have acknowledged that flooding is a national problem. In April, FEMA asked Congress to make national flood insurance more affordable, addressing a large income gap prevalent in communities vulnerable to flooding. Of those areas in Texas hardest hit by Harvey, upwards of 80 percent of residents lacked flood insurance.

FEMA’s flood insurance request to Congress notably contained no reference to climate change, going only so far as to note that disaster costs are expected to rise in coming years due to “rising natural hazard risk, decaying critical infrastructure, and economic pressures that limit investments in risk resilience.”

Climate change skepticism is a theme which runs deep throughout the Trump administration. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) head Scott Pruitt has repeatedly denied and downplayed climate science, as has Sec. of the Interior Ryan Zinke. Newly-appointed Sec. of State Mike Pompeo has called the Paris climate agreement a “costly burden” and is himself a climate skeptic.

References to climate change have also disappeared from a number of government websites. A report released last month indicated that one EPA website has removed mentions of the phenomenon from its international priorities page. An EPA spokesperson told ThinkProgress at the time that the move was in keeping with “the current administration’s priorities” and that information from prior presidencies is still available through an archive on the website.

Congressional Democrats have also called on the Department of the Interior’s inspector general to look into whether the National Park Service (NPS) has violated its scientific integrity in removing mentions of climate change from a report on sea level rise. Zinke has claimed his department does not change so much as “a comma” in such reports.

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Tariff Impact Colors a Key House Race in Boeing Country

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The district’s quirky boundary, which encompasses the vast airplane-making ecosystem to the west and thousands of acres of cherry and apple farms on the other side of the Cascade Mountains, makes the territory uniquely vulnerable to the president’s actions on trade. Boeing is probably the American company with the most riding on a healthy relationship with Beijing.

China is projected to buy more than 7,000 planes worth almost $1 trillion in the next 20 years, more than Boeing’s current backlog for the entire world. Most commercial aircraft in China are made by Boeing, the company says, but if the trade pressures escalate, China could choose to award more work to Europe’s Airbus.

For now, Beijing has threatened to retaliate with tariffs on some airplanes, including older 737 models made in the Renton factory where Mr. Cesmat works, which is just outside the district.

“China knew exactly where to target,” said Kim Schrier, the Democratic candidate who has built the biggest campaign war chest ahead of the Aug. 7 primary. “They’re targeting districts where this could be problematic for Republicans.”

Ms. Schrier is among half a dozen or so Democrats gunning for a seat that became catnip for the party the moment that the seven-term Republican incumbent, Dave Reichert, announced his retirement in September. Despite Mr. Reichert’s success, the district favored Hillary Clinton by three percentage points over Mr. Trump, and it went twice for Barack Obama. Ms. Schrier, a pediatrician and first-time candidate, has been hammering Dino Rossi, the likely Republican nominee, on the tariff issue.

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“These tariffs are a direct response to the policies of a president you helped elect. Don’t you have anything to say?” she tweeted to Mr. Rossi last month.

China's tariffs will be devastating for our farmers in eastern WA. @DinoRossiWA - these tariffs are a direct response to the policies of a president you helped elect. Don't you have anything to say? #WheresRossi https://t.co/GntgSl0g0D

—
Dr. Kim Schrier (@DrKimSchrier)
April 2, 2018

Mr. Rossi, a former state senator, is careful to note that the bluster could be part of Mr. Trump’s negotiating style. But he said he understood why everyone was so worried. “You really can’t get down to a trade war. In the end it will be very disruptive,” he said in an interview. “Hopefully this is more posturing than anything.”

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Schilling Cider has grown quickly since it was founded five years ago. But with tariffs raising the cost of aluminum, it may have to pay $100,000 a year more for cans.

Credit
Kyle Johnson for The New York Times

But voters in the district say the escalating trade drama has already begun to complicate their daily lives. Companies that supply construction materials have suspended orders, waiting to see what happens to metal prices. Employees at a builder of truck components say managers have been hastily reassessing supply chains that run through China and Mexico. A local hard-cider brewer is reconsidering an expansion after the steel and aluminum tariffs made new tanks and cans more expensive.

And at Boeing, a company that employs grandfathers next to granddaughters and has introduced generations of Washingtonians to their spouses, the unease has been evident from the executive suite to the factory floor.

Mr. Trump’s hard line on trade didn’t used to inspire so much teeth-grinding among Boeing workers. A lot of union mechanics were happy last year when he pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which would have reinforced the nation’s embrace of free trade. And the president earned a lot of fans in Washington when he criticized the company on the campaign trail in 2015 for setting up a new plant outside Shanghai, saying it would “end up taking a tremendous number of jobs away from the United States.”

Jim McKenzie, a union machinery repairman, remembered that comment when, several months ago, he came across a package of dorsal-fin parts at the Boeing plant in Auburn where he works. Mr. McKenzie pulled back the Bubble Wrap and saw a label that made him feel as if he were sinking into quicksand: Boeing China.

“We drill it and assemble it, but they ship the parts in from China,” Mr. McKenzie said. “There are people who have worked here for 25 years making those parts, and they’re proud of that.”

But Mr. McKenzie, 56, isn’t eager to blow up the Beijing relationship. “China will just buy all their planes from Airbus,” he said, leaning his chair back against a wall in the machinists’ union hall in Auburn.

He doesn’t have much hope that Mr. Trump will do anything to stop Boeing from setting up shop in China — he saw how Carrier shipped work from Indianapolis to Mexico even though the president had railed against the move. In Boeing’s case, Mr. McKenzie said, hiring some Chinese workers might be unavoidable. “You have to provide them jobs to sell them airplanes,” he said.

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“Stirring the pot unnecessarily doesn’t help business whatsoever,” Mark Kornei, a co-founder of Schilling Cider, said of President Trump’s trade moves. “Give us a steady set of rules.”

Credit
Kyle Johnson for The New York Times

Ms. Schrier recently won the endorsement of the machinists’ union, which represents more than 26,000 Boeing workers. Mr. Cesmat, 27, plans to volunteer for her campaign. “She pledged to support our jobs,” he said.

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Boeing’s “super PAC” donated $2,000 to Mr. Reichert’s campaign, but hasn’t contributed to any candidates vying to succeed him, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan research group. It did donate $8,000 to Cathy McMorris Rodgers, who is facing a strong Democratic challenge in her quest for re-election in Washington’s Fifth District.

The fear over trade tensions has spread beyond Boeing’s hulking factories, all the way to Schilling Cider, a hard-cider company founded here five years ago by two friends, Mark Kornei and Colin Schilling. The business grew quickly, thanks in part to the state’s abundant apple orchards, but now it’s staring down an uncomfortable new reality.

The company that sells Mr. Kornei stainless-steel tanks told him recently that prices for its raw materials might rise by 20 percent. A single tank costs around $50,000. He has also heard from the manufacturer of his aluminum cans that prices could increase by 10 percent. Mr. Kornei will buy 11 million of them this year, so that uptick alone could cost him more than $100,000, he said.

“Stirring the pot unnecessarily doesn’t help business whatsoever,” Mr. Kornei said. “Give us a steady set of rules so we can figure out what we are going to do.”

Mr. Rossi acknowledged that some of what the president says and does “can at times” make it harder for him on the campaign trail. But he has raised more than $2 million, about twice as much as Ms. Schrier.

The Republican tax cuts are a big selling point for Mr. Rossi, who has a ready figure for exactly how much a typical household will save because of the law (“$3,357 — that’s real money”). He’s also counting on a personal bond with Republican voters east of the Cascades.

“I have a connection with folks that certainly precedes the president,” Mr. Rossi said. He was referring to his campaigns for the governorship in 2004 and 2008, the first of which he lost by fewer than 200 votes in a third recount. “They know I’ll advocate for trade,” he said. “They know me.”

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