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Jeff Merkley has the Police called on him
Jeff Merkley has the Police called on him Jeff Merkley Facebook Live

Good Morning Portland! This week we’re continuing that hot new trend of kinda cloudy, kinda warm weather with a high of 75 today. Oh, and it’s going to rain on the weekend, so say goodbye to your barbecue plans. Anyway, let’s get to the news!

Paul Manafort has been naughty: while on pre-trial house arrest, Manafort allegedly tampered with two different witnesses, harassing them with phone calls and encrypted text messages that say, “This is Paul, we should talk.” Prosecutors now want to bring Manafort in for real detention instead of house arrest.

But what does that mean for the presidential toupee? Well, he says he can pardon himself, but he also said he did nothing wrong. If he were to pardon himself, even Republicans would be forced to impeach him.

Trump’s tariffs are causing a backlash: Mexico has already put tariffs on numerous American goods, and Canada and the European Union may soon follow suit. American billionaires are also pushing back: the Koch brothers are dumping millions into an ad campaign against Trump’s tariffs. But don’t cheer them on for it: previous targets of their ire include the concept of climate change and worker’s rights. RIP, Citizens United.

The U.S. Supreme Court voted yesterday on an anti-gay bakery case, deciding in favor of the discriminating baker in a 7-2 decision. The Colorado baker had refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple in 2012 due to his religion, and the couple sued. But SCOTUS didn’t give a blanket ruling in favor of discrimination, with some justices instead focusing on how previous governing bodies had gone too far in their language about the baker. But Oregon LGBTQ advocates say the ruling won’t hinder civil rights here.

Trump cancelled a traditional post-Superbowl visit to the White House by the Philadelphia Eagles because he heard they were planning to boycott. Players of the champion team said they intended to skip the ceremony due to Trump’s criticism of player protests during the national anthem.

It seems like cancelling the Iran Deal didn’t work. Iran is planning to boost uranium enrichment over a period of several years, but leaders there say they’ll speed up the timeline to just a few months and increase the level of enrichment if the deal falls apart completely. European leaders and allies are trying desperately to salvage the deal which Trump pulled out of it last month.

The conflict between Qatar and Saudi Arabia is continuing to escalate, with the Saudis threatening military action if Qatar buys military equipment. Qatar has been stuck behind a blockade as other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council have cancelled diplomatic and economic ties for over a year.

Oregon is getting its first ever woman chief justice of the supreme court. The court voted 7-0 to make Martha Lee Walters the new chief justice of the Oregon Supreme Court. The court currently has five women and two men—maybe the national court can get a similar makeup someday.

Senator Jeff Merkley was denied access to a border patrol detention center Sunday in Brownsville, Texas. He even had the cops called on him. So what’s going on in those facilities that even our highest representatives in government aren’t allowed to see?

There was a fire late last night at the McMenamins Raleigh Hills Pub in Southwest Portland—luckily no one was injured, but the roof was damaged.

That’s all folks! Here’s an awkward Australian newscast that goes terribly wrong.