HC Wake-Up Call: Russia Investigation Documents Declassified, Trump Admin Cuts Number of Refugees for Next Year & Clinton Dropped from Texas Curriculum

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.)

President Trump Order Russia Investigation Documents to be Declassified

President Donald Trump ordered the declassification of various Russian investigation related documents that the House Intelligence and House Oversight Committees have requested.

via Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

According to a statement on Monday from White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, Trump’s order included parts of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) application on Carter Page and “all FBI reports” prepared in connection with the FISA warrant request.

Trump also ordered the release of all text messages concerning the Russia investigation from former FBI Director James Comey, former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, former FBI agent Peter Strzok, former FBI lawyer Lisa Page and Bruce Ohr, a Justice Department official, CNN reports.

“When the President issues such an order, it triggers a declassification review process that is conducted by various agencies within the intelligence community, in conjunction with the White House Counsel, to seek to ensure the safety of America's national security interests. The Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are already working with the Director of National Intelligence to comply with the President's order,” a spokesperson for the Justice Department said in a statement.

Republicans in the House of Representatives have previously called on Trump to declassify these Russian investigation documents to bolster their argument that the FBI and the Justice Department wrongfully obtained a surveillance order on Page, a Trump campaign foreign policy aide. Conservatives, however, have acknowledged that they are unsure of whether or not these documents will assist them in their investigation on improper document within the Russia probe.

“We don't know, which is why we need to see them,” said Rep. Jim Jordan, a leading critic of the Russia probe, said when asked what these documents would show. “Transparency is a good thing, and the American people need to know what's in there.”

Democrats, on the other hand, denounced the order.

“President Trump, in a clear abuse of power, has decided to intervene in a pending law enforcement investigation by ordering the selective release of materials he believes are helpful to his defense team and thinks will advance a false narrative,” Adam Schiff, the House Intelligence Committee ranking member, said in a statement.

“With respect to some of these materials, I have been previously informed by the FBI and Justice Department that they would consider their release a red line that must not be crossed as they may compromise sources and methods,” Schiff added.

Trump Administration Cuts Number of Refugees Allowed into the U.S. Next Year

The Trump administration has announced that it will cut the total number of refugees allowed into the United States next year to 30,000.

According to the Associated Press, the announcement comes despite humanitarian groups arguing that this year’s cap of 45,000 was too low.

The 30,000 cap announced on Monday by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is the total amount of refugees that will be let into the country during the fiscal year that starts on October 1. The actual number, however could be lower.

In the final year of the Obama administration, 85,000 refugees were let into the U.S., according to the AP.

The Trump administration has cracked down on limiting the total number of refugees and immigration allowed into the country, causing refugee admissions to hit their lowest level in a decade.

Hillary Clinton Has Been Dropped from Texas Curriculum

In order to “streamline” their social studies curriculum, the Texas Board of Education voted on Friday, September 14 to remove certain individuals from the state’s mandatory curriculum, and it appears that Hillary Clinton is one of those individuals.

According to the Dallas Morning News, this decision does not mean that teachers have to remove Clinton from their class curriculum, but rather that it is no longer mandatory.

Clinton was not the other notable figure to be given the axe; according to Hello Giggles, Helen Keller was also cut from the curriculum based on recommendations from board-nominated volunteers, all of whom are Texas teachers.

The volunteers came up with a grading rubric to determine the significance of each historical figure. The rubric included questions such as: “Did the person trigger a watershed change?”; “Was the person from an underrepresented group?”; and “Will their impact stand the test of time?”

In case you’re wondering how Clinton held up to all of the other notable figures, she only scored five points out of a possible 20 points, according to Dallas Morning News.

However, figures such as Baptist pastor Billy Graham, the “heroic” defenders of the Alamo, and Moses, who, according to the volunteers, “informed the American founding documents,” all made the cut.

One volunteer told the Dallas Morning News that the group did “not want to offend anyone” with their choice of which figures to include in the curriculum, “but there’s too many [figures].”

“Our task was to simplify. We tried to make it as objective as possible,” another volunteer said.

But don’t give up all hope just yet. This vote was only a preliminary one, so the volunteers can always reevaluate the curriculum changes and adjust them before the final vote in November.  

What to look out for…

It’s National Cheeseburger Day today! As a California girl, I’m partial to In-N-Out, so that’s where you’ll find me!