Good morning, Her Campus! With a break-neck news cycle, there is no possible way for you to stay on top of every story that comes across your feeds—we’re all only human, after all.
But, life comes at you fast. So grab a cup of coffee and settle in for this quick and dirty guide to stories you might’ve been sleeping on (like, literally. It’s early.)
Trump’s Next Summit With Russian Vladimir Putin Has Been Postponed
President Donald Trump’s national security adviser John Bolton announced on Wednesday that the next summit between Trump and the Russian president won’t take place until 2019, when the “Russia witch hunt is over,” ABC News reports.
“The President believes that the next bilateral meeting with President Putin should take place after the Russia witch hunt is over, so we’ve agreed that it will be after the first of the year,” Bolton said in a statement.
After his meeting with Putin in Helsinki, Trump instructed Bolton to invite the Russian president to Washington D.C. for a second bilateral meeting.
In Helsinki, @POTUS agreed to ongoing working level dialogue between the two security council staffs. President Trump asked @Ambjohnbolton to invite President Putin to Washington in the fall and those discussions are already underway.
— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) July 19, 2018
Trump had tweeted at the time that he looked forward to a second meeting so the two leaders could discuss and implement solutions for issues, such as nuclear weapons, counterterrorism and Israel’s security.
The Summit with Russia was a great success, except with the real enemy of the people, the Fake News Media. I look forward to our second meeting so that we can start implementing some of the many things discussed, including stopping terrorism, security for Israel, nuclear……..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 19, 2018
Trump, however, drew sharp criticism from both Republicans and Democrats for his performance in Helsinki and his failure to confront Russia for their interference in the 2016 presidential election.
Putin has described the two leaders’ first meeting as “successful,” but said there were “forces” in the U.S. that were preventing improvement in U.S.-Russia relations. In regards to whether or not relations between the two countries would develop further, Putin alluded to the existence of a “path to positive change” but ultimately said, “We will see how things develop further.”
Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov told reporters on Tuesday that Trump and Putin may meet on the sidelines of the G20 in Argentina in November, ABC News reports.
Trump Responds to Release of Michael Cohen Tapes
President Donald Trump responded on Wednesday to the newly released audio tapes that appear to feature Trump and his personal attorney Michael Cohen discussing payment to former Playboy model Karen McDougal, The Huffington Post reports.
“What kind of a lawyer would tape a client? So sad! Is this a first, never heard of it before?” Trump wrote on Twitter. “Why was the tape so abruptly terminated (cut) while I was presumably saying positive things? I hear there are other clients and many reporters that are taped – can this be so? Too bad!”
What kind of a lawyer would tape a client? So sad! Is this a first, never heard of it before? Why was the tape so abruptly terminated (cut) while I was presumably saying positive things? I hear there are other clients and many reporters that are taped – can this be so? Too bad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 25, 2018
Trump’s response comes after CNN broadcast the audio tape secretly recorded by Cohen in September 2016. The tape was one of several confiscated during an FBI raid of Cohen’s home and office.
In the recording, then-presidential candidate Trump can be heard discussing setting up a company to finance a $150,000 payment to silence McDougal after she claimed that she and Trump had a months-long affair, HuffPost reports.
In a tweet on Saturday, Trump expressed surprise that an attorney would secretly record a client, calling it “inconceivable” and “totally unheard of and perhaps illegal.”
Inconceivable that the government would break into a lawyer’s office (early in the morning) – almost unheard of. Even more inconceivable that a lawyer would tape a client – totally unheard of & perhaps illegal. The good news is that your favorite President did nothing wrong!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 21, 2018
It was reported over the weekend that Trump’s legal team lifted all claims relating to attorney-client privilege. Giuliani told CNN it showed that there was no wrongdoing by Trump.
Trump’s Hollywood Star Was Vandalized — Again
President Donald Trump has faced a lot of dissent since entering office. And in the most recent protest against the president, Trump’s Hollywood Walk of Fame has been vandalized — again.
So this just happened again… somebody used a pick axe to destroy Donald Trump’s star on the Walk of Fame. Still trying to learn more, but we know it’s been vandalized multiple times, just never on this level. @NBCLA ?: Victor Park/Loudlabs pic.twitter.com/lzq7YrsSRV
— Jonathan Gonzalez (@JonathanNBCLA) July 25, 2018
Los Angeles Police Officer Ray Brown told CNN that a man took a pickaxe to the star early Wednesday morning. Officers got the call for the vandalism at 3:30 am local time. According to Los Angeles CBS affiliate KCBS, only a hole in the shape of a star remained, and graffiti was later added.
Patricia Cox, who reportedly witnessed the incident, told KCBS that she saw the man “going to town on” the star.
The Los Angeles Times reported that 24-year-old Austin Clay turned himself in to Beverly Hills police at 4:30 a.m., claiming responsibility for the vandalism. Clay was arrested for suspected felony vandalism.
Leron Gubler, president and executive of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, which is responsible for maintaining the Walk of Fame, said in a statement to USA Today that the “Hollywood Walk of Fame is an institution celebrating the positive contributions of the inductees.”
“When people are unhappy with one of our honorees, we would hope that they would project their anger in more positive ways than to vandalize a California State landmark,” Gubler told USA Today.
This was the second time that Trump’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame had been vandalized.
What to look out for…
You can write to immigrants in detention centers, and offer words of hope, with these pen-pal programs.