President Trump and the White House took full advantage of center stage with Congress out of town for the week, including repeated twists and turns concerning the president’s legal team and the Russia investigation, along with the near-universal condemnation of Michelle Wolf’s performance at the White House Correspondents’ dinner.
Along with those items, here’s a recap of what you may or may not have missed this week as we entered May:
1. Michelle Wolf becomes a household name in Washington
For the second year in a row, Trump decided against going to the White House Correspondents’ dinner and chose to hold a rally instead. While the president rallied supporters in Michigan, Wolf, a correspondent for “The Daily Show,” made jokes about White House press secretary Sarah Sanders’s appearance as she sat only feet away – infuriating the press corps and bringing unease to the room in the process. She also infuriated conservatives who took issue with her joke about abortion.
Wolf’s performance also brought about questions about the future of the dinner, which the president lambasted in the aftermath and believes is “DEAD as we know it.”
2. Rod Rosenstein feuds with House conservatives
Throughout recent weeks, House conservatives have become fed up with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and the Justice Department over their inability to produce documents related to multiple probes, including special counsel Robert Mueller’s ongoing investigation.
Led by Reps. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., and Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, House conservatives are floating the possibility of impeaching Rosenstein, which the DOJ’s No. 2 fired back at this week. It’s setting up for a collision course as both side seems unlikely to back down.
On a totally separate note, Rosenstein finally addressed how to pronounce his last name.
3. Trump dumps on Jon Tester
Republicans believe the 2018 Senate map expanded ever so slightly this week as the president and the White House leveled their opening attacks against Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., who is one of six vulnerable Senate Democrats up for re-election this year. The attacks came after Tester aired allegations against Ronny Jackson, Trump’s nominee for the Department of Veterans Affairs, some of which have been disputed by the Secret Service.
Nevertheless, Republicans have gone on offense throughout the past week against Tester, including from Trump in a series of tweets and public remarks. The White House also said that Trump could be in the state sometime soon. All of this brings attention to a race that Republicans have not focused a ton on recently.
4. The most famous chaplain in Washington stays put
Congress might not have been in town this week, but the ever-enveloping situation involving the House chaplain came to a head Thursday when Rev. Patrick Conroy revoked his resignation and announced his plan to serve out the remainder of his two-year term. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., relented soon after, avoiding a protracted fight over a congressional position intended to unite politicians and staffers of all stripes.
5. Trump for Nobel Peace Prize?
Perhaps no one supports Trump with the voracity of House conservatives. That was on display Thursday as 18 House Republicans signed a letter nominating the president for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work toward a deal with the North Koreans . Not ironically, the letter was penned by Rep. Luke Messer, R-Ind., who is fighting for the GOP Senate nomination in Indiana. Among those who signed the letter are ardent supporters of the president, including Meadows and Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, along with a host of candidates for higher office. Those include Reps. Evan Jenkins, R-W.Va., Jim Renacci, R-Ohio, Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Kevin Cramer, R-N.D.
The president revealed Friday that a date and location have been set for the president’s historic summit with Kim Jong Un, which is rumored to take place in the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea.
