Today's Headlines and Commentary

In a letter to House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, White House Counsel Pat Cipollone said that the White House would not participate in Wednesday’s impeachment hearing, reports the New York Times. According to the letter, lawyers for the president have not ruled out participation in future hearings, but the House Judiciary Committee has said the White House must make that decision by Friday.

In an act of retaliation against President Trump’s signing of a bill in support of Hong Kong, China has suspended visits by U.S. military vessels to Hong Kong and sanctioned some U.S. nongovernmental organizations who are accused of encouraging violence in Hong Kong, reports the Wall Street Journal.

The Iraqi Parliament accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi. According to the Washington Post, the parliament faces challenges in trying to pick their next leader while addressing the demands of protesters from ongoing demonstrations.

After President Trump claimed that the Taliban wants a ceasefire with the United States in Afghanistan, statements from both the Taliban and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani indicated that a ceasefire was not being discussed at this stage of negotiations, according to the Post.

In a pair of Monday morning tweets, President Trump said he is reimposing tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from both Brazil and Argentina. The Times reports that Trump felt the countries were hurting U.S. farmers and manipulating their currencies.

ICYMI: Last Weekend on Lawfare

Jen Patja Howell shared the latest episode of The Lawfare Podcast, featuring Tamara Cofman Wittes and Brian Egan in a panel discussion on U.S. law and policy in the Middle East.

Shashi Jayakumar explored the motivations of individuals who traveled to Iraq and Syria to fight against the Islamic State.

Email the Roundup Team noteworthy law and security-related articles to include, and follow us on Twitter and Facebook for additional commentary on these issues. Sign up to receive Lawfare in your inbox. Visit our Events Calendar to learn about upcoming national security events, and check out relevant job opening on our Job Board.