Summary
This blog is winding down. Here’s a look at some of today’s developments:
Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Donald Trump’s labor secretary, resigned from her role with the administration. She said it was “an honor and a privilege to serve” to serve and that she would take on a job in the private sector. The departure came after she became entangled in a string of political and personal controversies. Democrats celebrated, writing “this administration is imploding”.
Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, called for Kash Patel’s immediate resignation following a report from the Atlantic detailing the FBI director’s alleged excessive drinking and absences. Patel has sued the magazine for defamation with his attorneys calling the article a “sweeping, malicious, and defamatory hit piece”.
Donald Trump signed memorandums related to coal supply chains, natural gas and grid infrastructure on Monday. The president invoked the Defense Production Act in the energy-related memos, writing that increasing energy production is “essential to United States national defense”.
The crowded field of Democratic candidates in the California’s governor’s race appears to be narrowing as Betty Yee — a former state controller— announced Monday she planned to end her campaign. Meanwhile, the California Democratic party chair Rusty Hicks continued to urge candidates trailing in the polls to exit the race.
Lori Chavez-DeRemer’s exit comes after she became entangled in a string of political and personal controversies. The labor secretary and her close aides are currently under investigation by the department’s inspector general over allegations of professional misconduct.
These include claims that Chavez-DeRemer had an affair with a member of her security detail, kept a “stash” of alcohol in her office and used government resources for personal travel, while her aides allegedly sought to channel grants towards politically connected figures, the New York Times reported in March.
The inspector general is also reviewing material showing Chavez-DeRemer and her top aides and family members routinely sent personal messages and requests to young staff members, another Times report said last week. Chavez-DeRemer’s husband and father exchanged text messages with young female staff members, according to the newspaper.
The scandals did not end there. The secretary’s husband, Shawn DeRemer, an anesthesiologist, was barred from the department’s headquarters after allegations by at least two female staff members that he had sexually assaulted them. The women told department officials that Shawn DeRemer had touched them inappropriately at the department’s building on Constitution Avenue in Washington.
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