TRNS News Notes is brought to you by Victoria Jones. Victoria Jones is the Chief White House correspondent and global analyst of the Washington DC based Talk Radio News Service, where her insight and analysis are made available to over 400 news talk radio stations around the country and internationally.

In the News

  • Iran nuke talks extended to today
  • Arkansas: Religious freedom bill
  • Indiana: Business resistance/Anti-gay groups
  • Differences with 1993 federal law
  • Lufthansa: We knew of severe depression
  • Executive order: Spying in cyberspace
  • Benghazi panel wants Clinton to talk: Emails
  • WH climate plan: GOP opposition
  • Nigeria election: Incumbent president defeated
  • Comedy Central: Trevor Noah tweets – backlash
Iran Nuke Talks Extended to Today
The U.S. and its negotiating partners extended their deadline for reaching a preliminary accord with Iran on its nuclear program until today. But the extension came with a WH warning: “I actually would say that if we’re not able to reach a political agreement in the timeline that we’ve described that we would walk away from the negotiating table,” – WH spox Josh Earnest (NYT, AP, WSJ, TRNS, me)

• The Obama admin has approached the talks as a two-phase process. The preliminary accord is intended to lay the foundation for a more detailed accord that would be fleshed out by the end of June. There have been signs that some of the most difficult issues will be deferred for a final agreement in three months

• Officials had hoped to wrap up Tuesday night with a joint general statement agreeing to start a new phase. That statement would be accompanied by more detailed docs including technical info. Those docs would allow the sides to claim that the new phase of talks would not simply be a continuation of negotiations – already twice extended

The softening of the language from a framework “agreement” to a framework “understanding” appeared due in part to opposition to a two-stage agreement from Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Khameini. Earlier this year, he demanded only one deal that would nail down specifics (he keeps popping up at awkward moments for his team in the talks)

But if the parties agree only to a broad framework that leaves key details unresolved, President Obama can expect stiff opposition at home from members of Congress who want to move forward with new, stiffer Iran sanctions. (he can anyway) Lawmakers had agreed to hold off on such a measure through March while the parties negotiated

• Handy graphic: Simple guide to the nuclear negotiations with Iran (NYT)

Arkansas: Religious Freedom Bill
• Despite intensifying criticism from business leaders both within and outside of Arkansas, the state legislature Tuesday passed its version of a measure billed as a religious freedom law, joining Indiana in a swirl of controversy that shows little sign of calming (NYT, TRNS, me)

• The bill now goes to Gov Asa Hutchinson (R) who has recently said he would sign it. While there were several attempts up until the last minute to add a clause to the bill that would explicitly bar discrimination of gays and lesbians, the sponsors of the bill rejected such moves

• Earlier in Indiana, Gov Mike Pence (R), said that he wanted his state’s measure changed by week’s end, even as he stepped up a vigorous defense of the law, rejecting the argument that it would allow business to deny services to gays and lesbians. At a presser, he was clearly exasperated and sighing audibly in response to questions

• “We’ve got a perception problem,” not one of substance, the former talk show host said. He referred to “gross mischaracterizations,” “reckless reporting by some in the media,” “completely false and baseless” accounts of the law, and “the smear that’s been leveled against this law and against the people of Indiana.”

• Like the Republican legislative leaders who said on Monday that they intended to clarify the law, the governor said he couldn’t say what form that clarification might take. “The language is still being worked out,” he said. Lawmakers are expected to go to a conference committee as early as this morning
Indiana: Business Resistance / Anti-Gay Groups
• Gap and Levi Strauss joined Walmart, Apple, Yelp, Angie’s List and other major corporations in expressing disapproval The state Chamber of Commerce has called on pols to change the law. Gov Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) on Tuesday became the latest governor to impose a ban on state-funded travel to Indiana, joining his counterparts in Connecticut and Washington

• Pence said: “I don’t believe for a minute that it was the intention of the General Assembly to create a license to discriminate, or a right to deny services to gays, lesbians or anyone else in this state, and that was not my intent, but I appreciate that that’s become the perception.” (course not)

• But some of Indiana’s and the nation’s most prominent anti-gay rights groups have been among the most prominent supporters of the bill, including the American Family Assn, the Family Research Council, the Indiana Family Institute and Advance America

• Micah Clark, exec director of American Family Assn of Indiana, said he feared “a capitulation that enshrines homosexual behavior as a special right in Indiana.” Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council said “the govt shouldn’t force religious businesses and churches to participate in wedding ceremonies contrary to their owners’ beliefs.”
• Mike Pence in 2000: “Congress should support the reauthorization of the Ryan White Care Act only after completion of an audit to ensure that federal dollars were no longer being given to organizations that facilitate and encourage the types of behaviors that facilitate the spreading of the HIV virus. Resources should be given toward those institutions which provide assistance to those seeking to change their sexual behavior.” (so, no issues at all…)
Indiana: Differences with 1993 Federal Law
• The Indiana law has some differences with the 1993 federal law, and most of the state laws, that critics say are significant, including a provision explicitly stating that it applies to the exercise of religious beliefs by businesses as well as individuals and religious groups (NYT, me)

• The idea that a for-profit business has religious rights, and can cite them in contesting govt action, wasn’t widely considered until recently. But last year the Supreme Court upheld that principle in the case Burwell v. Hobby Lobby

• Another difference between Indiana’s law and most similar ones is that it says businesses can use religious freedom as a defense against lawsuits brought by individuals, not just those filed by the govt

• In some states, concerns like those raised in Indiana have been addressed with laws that specifically prohibit discrimination based on sexual discrimination. Pence was asked Tuesday if he would consider taking that step. “I’ve never supported that, and I want to be clear, it’s not on my agenda,” he said. “I think it’s a completely separate question.”  (he was clear)

• On Tuesday, President Obama commuted the sentences of 22 prisoners who were convicted of federal nonviolent drug offenses, doubling the number of commutations he’s issued since taking office (HuffPo, TRNS)
Lufthansa: We Knew of Severe Depression
• Andreas Lubitz, the co-pilot at the controls of the German jetliner that crashed in the French Alps last week informed Lufthansa in 2009 that he had suffered from severe depression, the company said Tuesday. Lufthansa said it had now turned the info over to the German prosecutor investigating the crash (NYT, WSJ, CNN, Bild, Paris Match, me)

• It was the first acknowledgement  by Lufthansa that it knew of Lubitz’s mental health issues before the crash last Tuesday and raised further questions about why the airline had allowed Lubitz to complete his training and go on to fly passenger jets. Prosecutors said Monday he had been treated for suicidal tendencies but didn’t say when

• The families of some, if not all, of the victims are likely to sue the airline over the deaths of their loved ones. Tuesday’s revelation would most likely play a role in the ensuing legal battle

• The revelation could also spur outrage in Germany toward one of the country’s signature companies. Nearly half of the victims were Germans and the plane included 16 high school students from a single town north of Dusseldorf

• Paris Match and Bild said their reporters have been shown a video they say was taken by someone inside the cabin of the doomed plane shortly before it crashed, found on a memory chip “among the wreckage.” A high-ranking official involved in the recovery operation categorically denied that any cell phone footage had been found by investigators at the site

• The indictment of Sen Robert Menendez (D-NJ) on federal corruption charges is expected as soon as today, according to sources familiar with the case. The FBI and DoJ have been investigating Menendez’s ties to Dr Salomon Melgen, a close friend and financial backer of the senator, for months (Politico)

Executive Order: Spying in Cyberspace
• President Obama today will sign an executive order establishing the first sanctions program to allow the admin to impose penalties on individuals overseas who engage in destructive attacks or commercial espionage in cyberspace (WaPo, me)

• The order declares “significant malicious cyber-enabled activities” a “national emergency” and enables the treasury secretary to target foreign individuals and entities that take part in the illicit cyberactivity for sanctions that could include freezing their financial assets and barring commercial transactions with them

• The move expands the set of legal tools available to the admin to punish and deter activities including the theft of large quantities of credit card data, espionage conducted for commercial gain and cyberattacks aimed at damaging critical computer systems

• “Part of the message it will send is if you think you can just hide behind borders and leap laws and carry out your activities, that’s just not going to be the case,” said an anonymous senior admin official. “We have other ways of getting at you, and we can hit where it hurts in terms of a financial impact.”

• For sanctions, a malicious activity will have to be harmful to national security or the nation’s economic health of foreign policy. And it will have to meet one of four “harms”: attacking critical infrastructure such as a power grid; disrupting major computer networks; stealing intellectual property or trade secrets; or benefiting from the stolen secrets and property
• The UN’ human rights chief warned on Tuesday that Yemen was on the brink of collapse, as his office said that heavy fighting in the southern port city of Aden had left its streets lined with bodies and its hospitals full of corpses. Shiite Houthi rebels are pressing an offensive against fighters loyal to exiled President Hadi, who’s backed by Saudi Arabia and Arab states (NYT, me)
Benghazi Panel Wants Clinton Talk: Email
• Rep Trey Gowdy (R-SC), chair of the House Benghazi select committee, on Tuesday asked Hillary Clinton to appear for a private interview at any time before 1 May about her exclusive use of a personal email account when she was SecState. He called the email arrangement “with herself” “highly unusual, if not unprecedented.” (NYT, TRNS, me)

• The emails were housed on a server at her home in Chappaqua NY. Gowdy had asked Clinton to turn over that server to a neutral third party, like State Dept’s IG, to determine which emails were personal and which were govt records

• But Clinton’s lawyer wrote to Gowdy on Friday that there was no need for her to turn over the server because an examination of it showed it had no copies of emails she sent during her time in office – wiped “clean”

• Gowdy has sought to prevent his Benghazi inquiry from being dismissed as a strictly partisan effort to embarrass a likely Democratic candidate for president. (good luck) But the time frame in which he’s asking Clinton to submit to questioning coincides with the period in which she is widely expected to make her candidacy official

• The committee’s ranking member, Elijah Cummings (D-MD), said, “Rather than drag out this political charade into 2016 and selectively leak portions of a closed-door interview, the committee should schedule the public hearing, make her records public, and refocus its efforts on the attacks in Benghazi.” Clinton has said she’d like to testify publicly
• The House Oversight Committee has subpoenaed two Secret Service agents in connection with a recent incident where agents drove over or right next to a suspicious package under investigation outside of the WH. News reports claim the agents had been drinking (Hill, me)
WH Climate Plan: GOP Opposition
• The Obama admin’s plan for UN climate change talks encountered swift opposition after its release Tuesday, with Republican leaders warning other countries to “proceed with caution” in negotiations with Washington because any deal could be later undone – echoes of the 47 GOP senators’ letter to Iran (Reuters, me)

• The WH plan calls for cutting greenhouse gas emissions by close to 28% from 2005 levels within a decade, using a host of existing laws and executive actions targeting power plants, vehicles, oil and gas production and buildings. WH seeks to enshrine its pledge in a global climate deal to be negotiated in Dec in Paris

• “Considering that two-thirds of the U.S. federal govt haven’t even signed off on the Clean Power Plan and 13 states have already pledged to fight it, our international partners should proceed with caution before entering into a binding, unattainable deal,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said

• Elements of the admin’s climate policy already face legal challenges. On 16 April, a federal appeals court in DC will hear arguments from 13 states opposed to as-yet-unfinalized regs from the EPA that target emissions in existing power plants

• Monday, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy said the agency had designed power plant rules under the authority of the Clean Air Act – and insisted that they can withstand Supreme Court scrutiny. “We don’t need a plan B if we are solid on Plan A,” she said

 

• Vid: New York city cop tried on Monday to humiliate Uber cab driver about speaking English. NYPD is investigating. This cop is hideously horrible – the driver is polite and attempting to agree with him (NYDN, TPM, me)

Nigeria Election: Incumbent President Defeated

• Former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress party has become the first opposition candidate to win a presidential election in Nigeria. “We have proven to the world that we are people who have embraced democracy.” He praised outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan as a “worthy opponent.” (BBC, TRNS, me)

• Observers have generally praised the election but there have been allegations of fraud, which some fear could lead to protests and violence. Jonathan said in a statement, “I promised the country free and fair elections. I have kept my word.”

• Buhari’s supporters took to the streets in the northern cities of Kano and Kaduna, singing and dancing in celebration. It’s the fourth time Buhari, 72, has sought the presidency. He ruled Nigeria from Jan 1984 until Aug 1985, taking charge after a military coup in Dec 1983

• Nigeria has suffered from several attacks by Islamist group Boko Haram, which has killed thousands of people in its drive to establish an Islamic state. Many people have said they believe Buhari is better positioned to defeat Boko Haram. The verdict on Buhari’s 20 months as military ruler is mixed

• He’s a Muslim from northern Nigeria. He was deposed in a coup. He has a poor human rights record. He’s seen as incorruptible. He’s a disciplinarian – govt workers who were late for work had to do leap frog jumps. He has survived an apparent Boko Haram assassination attempt

• President Obama on Tuesday released military aid to Egypt that was suspended after the 2013 overthrow of the govt, in an effort to boost Cairo’s ability to combat the extremist threat in the region (AP, TRNS)

Comedy Central: Trevor Noah Tweets Backlash

• Trevor Noah, the newly announced host of The Daily Show, on Tuesday rejected the backlash over his graphic tweets targeting Jews and women. “To reduce my views to a handful of jokes that didn’t land is not a true reflection of my character, nor my evolution as a comedian,” Noah tweeted (AP, me)

• Comedy Central also came to his defense, calling Noah a “provocative” comedian who “spares no one, including himself.” “To judge him or his comedy based on a handful of jokes is unfair,” the network said in a statement, adding that he has “a bright future at Comedy Central.” Noah was announced as Jon Stewart’s successor on Monday

• Noah’s tweets were posted between 2009 and 2014. 2009: “Almost bumped a Jewish kid crossing the road. He didn’t look b4 crossing but I still would hav felt so bad in my german car!” 2011: “Oh yeah the weekend. People are gonna get drunk & think that I’m sexy!” He attributed the joke to “fat chicks everywhere.”

• Noah, the son of a black South African mother and white European father who speaks six languages, was being pitched by Comedy Central as reflecting a new age of global multiculturalism, “a citizen of the world,” in the words of Michele Ganeless, the network’s president

• Monday, Ganeless said: “They will get to discover him, and form their opinions of him, as they watch him host.” But by Tuesday, some opinions were already forming. A Slate column compared his vetting to that of Sarah Palin as a running mate for presidential candidate John McCain

• Singer Joni Mitchell has been hospitalized and is in intensive care after being found unconscious in her Los Angeles home. A statement released on her website said she “regained consciousness on the ambulance ride to the hospital.” The statement said she is “undergoing tests and is awake and in good spirits.” (BBC)

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___________________

Victoria Jones – Editor

TRNS’ James Cullum, Loretta Lewis, William McDonald and Midori Nishida contributed to this report

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