Today's Headlines and Commentary

The Supreme Court granted a partial stay of the preliminary injunctions suspending enforcement of President Trump’s executive order, which temporarily banned travelers from six majority Muslim nations and refugees from entering the U.S; the Court will hear argument in the fall, the Washington Post reports. In its per curiam opinion, the Court said that those who had a “bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the United States” could not be prevented from entering. The court said examples could include those with family members in the U.S., those who have been accepted to an American university, or those who have taken a job with an American company. Additionally, the relationship cannot have been entered into for the purpose of avoiding the ban.

Justice Thomas, joined by Alito and Gorsuch, concurred in part but would have stayed the preliminary injunctions in full and allowed the executive order to go into effect as written. Thomas wrote that the Court’s “compromise” would lead to excessive litigation to determine the exact bounds of the bona fide relationship and the true motivations behind entering into such relationships.

President Trump issued a series of four tweets this morning attacking former President Obama for his handling of CIA revelations of Russian interference in the 2016 elections, Reuters reports. "The reason that President Obama did NOTHING about Russia after being notified by the CIA of meddling is that he expected Clinton would win... and did not want to 'rock the boat.' He didn't 'choke,' he colluded or obstructed, and it did the Dems and Crooked Hillary no good,” wrote Trump. The President seemed to be reacting to a Friday Washington Post story that provided a detailed timeline of when the Obama administration was made aware of various details of Russian interference. Up until now, Trump has been unwilling to definitively acknowledge the Russian hacking, frustrating even his allies, according to the New York Times.

While various U.S. agencies explore how to respond to Russian interference, officials in Europe have worked to address the issue for years, reports the Post. Extensive experience with Russian attempts to weaponize information has led to active approaches in countries like Sweden, Germany, France and others to combat and suppress Russian subversion.

Jared Kushner’s real estate firm received a $285 million loan from Deutsche Bank as part of a refinancing deal for one of its properties, right as the bank was in negotiations to settle a federal mortgage fraud case and charges from New York state regulators that it participated in a Russian money-laundering operation, the Post reports. Robert Mueller, the special counsel investigating ties between Russia and Trump’s associates, could include the Kushner-Deutsche Bank relationship within the scope of his current inquiry.

Russian Ambassador to the U.S. Sergey Kislyak will leave his post at the end of summer, NBC reports. The diplomat has been closely linked to the investigation into Trump associates’ ties with Russia — he had conversations with former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, which contributed to Flynn’s termination, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions, which led to Sessions’ recusal from the Russia investigation. Perceived-hardliner Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Anatoly Antonov is set to take over the position in what U.S. officials have described as a long-planned swap.

The Federal Reserve accesses account information of foreign central banks with assets held in the system on a “need to know” basis and uses that information for intelligence purposes, Reuters reports. Twelve current and former officials at the Fed confirmed the practice, which has been used several times a year to examine the holdings of the central banks of Russia, China, Iraq, Turkey, Yemen, Libya and others. Frequently, investigators seek information related to sanctions, terrorism financing, and money laundering.

The U.S. has officially sworn charges against Guantanamo detainee Hambali, who the government says directed three simultaneous bombings on the Indonesian island of Bali in 2002, the Miami Herald reports. Hambali is the first Guantanamo detainee to face charges under the Trump administration and has been held at the camp for over a decade. The “Senate Torture Report” revealed that Hambali had been previously detained at a CIA blacksite and subjected to enhanced interrogation techniques prior to his transfer to the base at Guantanamo.

In a letter to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) threatened to block a vote on arms sales to members of the Gulf Cooperation Council until they resolve their present dispute with Qatar, CNN reports. The nations presented Qatar with a list of 13 demands and a 10-day deadline for compliance. Corker’s move could hold up Trump’s recently touted $110 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia, which is still in the works and would require congressional approval.

ICYMI: This Weekend, on Lawfare

Matthew Kahn posted the Lawfare Podcast, featuring Benjamin Wittes’ conversations in Israel about the television show Fauda.

Prior to today’s ruling, Josh Blackman previewed six possible resolutions to the Supreme Court’s travel ban review.

Loren DeJonge Schulman and Amy Schafer examined the impact of a high number of serving and retired military leaders in the Trump administration.

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