House to release all Russia probe transcripts: Schiff

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House Intelligence Committee will release all transcripts of interviews in its probe of Russian election interference to the special counsel’s office, its Democratic chairman said on Friday after Roger Stone, a longtime ally of President Donald Trump, was charged with lying to Congress.

“This is now the second witness who has been indicted for or plead guilty to making false statements in testimony before our Committee,” Rep. Adam Schiff said in a statement. “The first order of business for the Committee will be to release all remaining transcripts to the Special Counsel’s Office, and we will continue to follow the facts wherever they lead.”

Schiff and Elijah Cummings, the chairman of the House oversight committee, said on Wednesday they expect Trump’s longtime personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, to testify before both panels, despite his decision to postpone his Feb. 7 appearance, citing threats against his family from Trump. The chairmen said they understood Cohen’s security concerns, but added in a statement: “This will not stop us from getting to the truth. We expect Mr. Cohen to appear before both committees, and we remain engaged with his counsel about his upcoming appearances.” Cohen is scheduled to begin a three-year prison sentence in March after pleading guilty to charges including lying to Congress.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia-collusion/after-stone-arrest-trump-says-russia-probe-greatest-witch-hunt-in-history-idUSKCN1PJ203?il=0

Trump to speak on shutdown as Senate eyes stop-gap funding bill

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump will deliver remarks on the government shutdown at 1:30 p.m. EST (1830 GMT), the White House said on Friday, as senators eyed a possible stop-gap bill to reopen the government.

CBS News reported Trump was expected to endorse a temporary funding bill that would offer time for lawmakers and the White House to continue debating his demand for border wall funds, while assuring federal workers get their pay. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said on Twitter that Trump would address the shutdown in a Rose Garden address.

A Senate Republican aide said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell was expected to press for passage of a three-week funding bill on Friday.

The government has been partially shut since Dec. 22 as lawmakers and the White House fought over how to address illegal immigration at the U.S. border with Mexico. Trump has insisted on $5.7 billion to fund a wall along the border to fulfill an oft-repeated campaign promise but Democrats, who now control the House of Representatives, have rejected his demand. The lapse in funding, the longest in U.S. history, has shuttered about one-quarter of federal agencies, with about 800,000 workers either furloughed or required to work without pay.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-shutdown/trump-to-speak-on-shutdown-as-senate-eyes-stop-gap-funding-bill-idUSKCN1PJ126?il=0

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Corsi, 'Person 1' in Roger Stone indictment, says he's done nothing wrong

(Reuters) - Jerome Corsi, a right-wing political commentator and conspiracy theorist, confirmed on Friday he is “Person 1” cited in the indictment of Roger Stone and said he no longer believed he would be charged as part of the U.S. special counsel’s Russia probe.

Stone, a self-proclaimed “dirty trickster” and ally of U.S. President Donald Trump for 40 years, was arrested on Friday on charges of lying to Congress about the release of stolen Democratic Party emails during the 2016 campaign. The indictment details multiple communications about the emails and WikiLeaks’ plans to release them to the public between Stone and “Person 1” and “Person 2”, who are described in broad terms but not identified by name.

Corsi confirmed to Reuters that he was “Person 1”. “I can confirm everything they report in the indictment about ‘Person 1’,” Corsi said. “I don’t see that I am being charged with any wrongdoing of any kind. I think that’s appropriate because I’ve done nothing wrong.” Among other communications, the indictment references an email from Stone in late July 2016 in which he urged Corsi to go to see Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks who is living in Ecuador’s embassy in London, and to “get the pending… emails”. Corsi, who was in Europe at the time, responded to Stone in an email on Aug. 2: “Word is friend in embassy plans 2 more dumps. One shortly after I’m back. 2nd in Oct. Impact planned to be very damaging,” Corsi wrote, according to the indictment. Corsi has said he did not receive any inside knowledge or advance notice of the planned email releases from Wikileaks and figured it out on his own based on his own research. Corsi said in November that he had received a plea offer from Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office under which they were asking him to plead guilty to one felony count of providing false information to them in return for a lighter sentence.

Corsi, who said he rejected the deal because he never intentionally lied during his 40 hours of interviews with Mueller’s team, expressed concerns at the time that he would be indicted as part of the special counsel’s probe. Corsi said he would advise Stone not to underestimate the amount of information already in Mueller’s possession. “The Special Counsel has everything and they are extremely thorough,” said Corsi, who has filed a lawsuit against Mueller, the FBI and other agencies, claiming the government violated his Fourth Amendment due process rights.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-russia-corsi/corsi-person-1-in-roger-stone-indictment-says-hes-done-nothing-wrong-idUSKCN1PJ28C?il=0

Republic Steel to Reopen Production at Ohio Mill

American steel manufacturer Republic Steel announced that the company is planning to restart production at its Lorain, Ohio, rolling mill by the 2nd quarter of 2019. Initially, the steel company had planned to start production in December 2018 before the date was pushed back. “Republic had expected the 232 Steel Tariffs to create additional demand for domestic production, allowing production to begin in December 2018, however, imports remain at historically high levels for products produced on this mill,” a news release said.

More than 60 employees will be hired after the rolling mill underwent a complete refurbishment. The Lorain mill has a capacity of 35,000 tons per month and expects orders to come in soon. The reopening of the mill will expand Republic’s size range down to 7.5mm for carbon, free machining and alloy grades, including 12L14 and other leaded steels. “We have successfully run internal production trials, and now anticipate receiving sufficient orders to support moving to a production mode in the 2nd Quarter of this year,” the company said. Republic, the nation’s leading provider of special bar quality (SBQ) steel, had about 200 employees working in the Lorain Mill in 2016 before it was idled due to a drop in demand.

Trump’s tariffs on imported steel and other efforts to boost American manufacturing have helped to revitalize a steel industry that has been in decline for decades. Tens of thousands of American workers have faced layoffs and dozens of factories have been shut since 2000 due to imports, according to the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), a nonprofit organization formed by manufacturers and United Steelworkers. With the recent tariffs on imports, the steel industry is starting to seeing some positive signs. Over the past few years, steel imports have steadily increased, comprising nearly 33 percent of the U.S. steel market in 2017. The majority of U.S. steel producers have been taking losses since 2009, losing their ability to invest in new technologies and labor. In December alone, 32,000 manufacturing jobs were added. Since Trump’s election, 20,000 new manufacturing jobs were being created per month compared to 8,000 per month in the four years prior, according to the White House.

The reopening of the Lorain Mill is one of the latest in a long list of optimistic industry news. On Jan. 7, Nucor Corp announced they would build a $1.35 billion steel-plate mill in the United States that would create approximately 400 new jobs. Mark Glyptis, the president of a steelworkers union, attributed the positive steel news to Trump. “The president’s probably been the biggest supporter of steel that we’ve had in many decades,”Glyptis of United Steelworkers Local 2911 told “Fox & Friends” on Jan. 8. “When he imposed the tariffs, when President Trump imposed the tariffs, that was a shot in the arm for the steel industry. It created thousands of jobs. We’re the most efficient steelworks in the world today,” he said. Glyptis said that previous administrations ignored the steel industry while it suffered enormous job losses. “So, when the tariffs were imposed, it gave us an opportunity to compete against the rest of the world on a fairer basis. So it’s created jobs and the industry right now is doing very, very well,” Glyptis said.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/republic-steel-to-reopen-production-in-lorain-mill_2778945.html