Trump defends Arpaio pardon, pushes back on questions over timing

Provided the opportunity to defend his pardon of Joe Arpaio, President Donald Trump on Monday claimed the controversial former Arizona sheriff was treated "unbelievably unfairly," called attention to the controversial pardons of former presidents and refuted the suggestion that the timing of the action was intended to bury the news beneath coverage of Hurricane Harvey. "I thought [Arpaio] was treated unbelievably unfairly when they came down with their big decision to go get him right before the election voting started," the president said.

MSNBC’s Joy Reid: Trump Doesn’t Have ‘Compassion’ You Normally See…

MSNBC's Joy Reid appeared on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Tuesday and spoke about President Trump's response to Hurricane Harvey, calling it "disturbing," and claiming Trump can't "connect with the sort of compassion that you normally have when you see a disaster like this." "He sees everything in terms of ratings and crowd size," Reid said of Trump.

House Dems call for hearing on Trump’s Arpaio pardon

In a letter signed by ranking member Rep. John Conyers and 16 other members, Democrats argued that "although the President has wide constitutional authority to issue pardons, there is also ample precedent for our Committee to review pardons as controversial as this one." Hurricane Harvey moved toward the Texas Gulf Coast.

Chris Christie’s Attack on Ted Cruz

New Jersey governor Chris Christie attacked Texas senator Ted Cruz on CNN today for his supposed hypocrisy in opposing relief for Hurricane Sandy yet requesting relief as Harvey devastates the Gulf Coast. Christie said: Senator Cruz was playing politics in 2012, trying to make himself look like the biggest conservative in the world.

How the Storms of “The Scottish Play” Inform Your Compliance Program

In honor of fellow Houstonians, fellow Texans and now our neighbors to the east in Louisiana, who have been impacted by Hurricane Harvey, I continue my weather themed week by considering how Shakespeare used weather as a metaphor and what the compliance practitioner can learn from this going forward. It occurred to me that if weather is a metaphor in fiction, it is based on some reality which I think can be used to instruct on a best practices compliance program.

John McCain’s family celebrates his 81st birthday

Hassebrook, the Democr... -- Thousands of people likely remain stranded and an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 homes have been destroyed in the Houston area as Hurricane Harvey, now a tropical sto... -- North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has said that his country's most recent missile launch is "a meaningful prelude to containing Guam," North Korea's state-run news ag... Some types of Salmonella cause disease in food animals, like pigs. Others cause foodborne illness in humans.

Ted Cruz Calls Chris Christie A ‘Desparate Politician’ [VIDEO]

Sen. Ted Cruz didn't respond kindly to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's criticism of his decision to vote no on a relief bill for Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Cruz has been accused of hypocrisy for voting against the Sandy bill - which he claims was "filled with pork" - while asking for federal aid to help Texas with Hurricane Harvey.

Relief package for Texas reignites bitter feud with the north

Republicans from New York and New Jersey have pledged unconditional support for those devastated by Hurricane Harvey , despite lingering resentment. As historic floods wreaked havoc across the Gulf Coast, north-eastern Republicans recalled the days after Superstorm Sandy ravaged their region in 2012.

Why Approving Emergency Funding For Harvey Might Not Be Easy For Congress

A helicopter carries an evacuee during the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey on Tuesday in Houston. Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images hide caption The cleanup bill will likely be hefty - possibly topping $100 billion - and the vast majority of those efforts will be funded by the federal government.

Trump’s Texas trip: As critics carp, he looks to be in charge

Donald Trump did what a president is supposed to do yesterday, visiting Corpus Christi for a briefing on hurricane relief efforts, talking up Texas and praising those on the front lines of the catastrophic flooding. As a levee was breached, reservoirs overflowed and Harvey dumped more rain on the battered Houston region, the president and his FEMA director demonstrated that the feds are coordinating with state and local officials in trying to aid the tens of thousands of displaced residents.

Federal Immigration Resources Assisting In Hurricane Response In Texas

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is deploying staff and equipment for search and rescue efforts and to work at local, state, and federal emergency operations centers in Texas in response to Hurricane Harvey. To encourage undocumented workers in need of assistance to come into shelters, FEMA issued a statement, "Hurricane Harvey Rumor Control," asking " all persons to follow the guidance of local officials and seek shelter regardless of their immigration status ."

Exploiting Hurricane Harvey: Fiscal hawks fear big spenders will capitalize on Harvey relief bill

A $100 steak knife, a $600 filing cabinet, $300,000 in sports equipment and an $88,000 tactical combat vehicle may have nothing to do with Hurricane Katrina, but those items were paid for as part of a multibillion-dollar spending bill that Congress quickly passed after the 2005 storm, which has prompted lawmakers to become skeptical of disaster-relief bills. Twelve years later, with Hurricane Harvey still dumping water on flood-ravaged Houston, some are already worried that the next relief bill will pose the same problem: millions of dollars spent on wasteful or unrelated projects.

Lawyers Gear Up to Help Victims of Hurricane Harvey

Residents from Bayou Parc at Oak Forest carry their belongings while evacuating the apartment complex during the Tropical Storm Harvey, Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017, in Houston. With Hurricane Harvey rains continuing to drench Houston, bar associations and legal aid organizations are gearing up to provide legal help to hurricane victims, and firms have pledged money to support aid even as their Houston offices remain closed .

The Latest: Town scrubs game; football players clean school

Flooding in Houston coupled with Tropical Storm Harvey's outer rain bands heading east had emotions running high in New Orleans, especially among those whose homes flooded during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz says he won't second-guess the decision not to ask Houston residents to evacuate before Harvey hit the city with heavy rain and wind.

Harvey breaks rainfall records, spreads more disaster

People evacuate a neighborhood in west Houston inundated by floodwaters after a release from nearby Addicks Reservoir when it reached capacity Tuesday. more > Hurricane Harvey's rainfall topped 50 inches in some spots, setting a record for the continental U.S., as flooding reached more neighborhoods in Texas on Tuesday, forced further evacuations, spurred thousands of heroic rescues and stranded many more people.