Trump Signs Bill Allowing States To Strip Family Planning Funds From Abortion Providers and More in Politics Today

It’s difficult to stay up-to-date on what’s happening in this country and to break through the clutter, so we’re here to make it easier. Here’s what we at Countable are reading today:

1. Behind closed doors, Trump signs bill allowing states to strip federal family planning funds from abortion providers

President Trump signed legislation Thursday allowing states to withhold federal family planning dollars from clinics that provide abortion services, a move that effectively deprives Planned Parenthood and several other family groups of a significant source of funding.

While GOP congressional leaders face some resistance in their efforts to completely defund Planned Parenthood, House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) called reversing the rule the Obama administration issued in December "a major pro-life victory."

Read more at the Washington Post.

Read more about the bill at Countable.

2. Government Office Investigating Trump’s Transition Process

The Government Accountability Office agreed this month to probe the matter at the request of several Democratic lawmakers. The office told those lawmakers it will have a draft of its report ready by June.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland initially reached out to the GAO in late November, saying they were alarmed by reports of "chaos" and "disarray" in the early weeks of the transition between Trump and President Barack Obama. Their Nov. 26 letter noted concerns that Trump's meetings with foreign leaders would benefit his Trump Organization, a global business empire that he led until stepping aside in January. He retains a financial interest in the company.

In its April 5 response to Cummings and Warren, the GAO outlined its investigation objectives. They include: a review of what ethics guidelines apply to the transition process; how was the Trump team using public money provided for the transition, and how much did it raise in private funds; what guidance did the Office of Government Ethics provide about conflicts of interest during transition; and how, if at all, did the government work with the incoming Trump team to communicate with foreign governments.

Read more at the Bellefontaine Examiner.

3. Trump Plan Would Curtail Protections for Detained Immigrants

For more than 15 years, jails that hold immigrants facing deportation have had to follow a growing list of requirements:

Notify immigration officials if a detainee spends two weeks or longer in solitary confinement. Check on suicidal inmates every 15 minutes, and evaluate their mental health every day. Inform detainees, in languages they can understand, how to obtain medical care. In disciplinary hearings, provide a staff member who can advocate in English on the detainee’s behalf.

But as the Trump administration seeks to quickly find jail space for its crackdown on illegal immigration, it is moving to curtail these rules as a way to entice more sheriffs and local officials to make their correctional facilities available.

Read more at the New York Times.

4. Syria: US coalition admits killing 18 allied Kurdish fighters in 'misdirected' air strike

A US-led coalition air strike killed 18 of its allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) troops fighting against Isis in Syria, the US military has confirmed.

Coalition aircraft were given the wrong coordinates for a strike on 11 April, US Central Command said on Thursday, resulting in a strike on an SDF position and the deaths of 18 partnered fighters in the north of the country.

The inaccurate coordinates reportedly came from the SDF itself.

Read more at the Independent.

5. Here's how a 21,000-pound bomb like the one just dropped on ISIS in Afghanistan would affect your city

The US has deployed the largest nonnuclear bomb in its inventory on an ISIS target in a remote part of far northeast Afghanistan, the Pentagon confirmed on Thursday.

Based on the simulator's calculations, the effects of the bomb would be felt as far as a mile in each direction, and "most glass surfaces, such as windows, will shatter ... some with enough force to cause injury," according to the simulator.

Read more at Business Insider

Read more about U.S. military actions at Countable.

— Asha Sanaker

(Photo Credit: pasa47 via Flickr / Creative Commons)