On Politics A.M.: Trump’s Legal Team Asks for a Speedy Trial

The president’s lawyers said he did nothing wrong and urged the Senate to “swiftly reject” charges.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story January 21, 2020

Good Tuesday morning. Here are some of the stories making news in Washington and politics today.

Senator Mitch McConnell, the majority leader, unveiled ground rules on Monday for President Trump’s impeachment trial that would try to speed the proceeding along and restrict evidence against the president unearthed by the House without a separate vote.

Mr. Trump’s aggressive trade approach with China has accelerated a technology arms race between the two countries, putting American tech companies at risk as the two nations try to decouple their economies. James Mitchell, a psychologist who helped carry out waterboarding for the C.I.A., will be the first witness to describe the torture of detainees in secret prisons — some at his own hands — in the trial of the men accused of plotting the Sept. 11 attacks.

Democratic presidential candidates briefly put aside their recent sparring and marched arm in arm through the streets of South Carolina’s capital to honor the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whom they later invoked in speeches about America’s past and future that were rich with election-year overtones. The Democratic hopefuls for 2020 are trying to win over older black voters with policy, but they are finding that trust is hard-earned among people all too familiar with legal discrimination and unequal access to public services. Joseph R. Biden Jr. paid a visit to a black congregation in South Carolina on Sunday and condemned Mr. Trump in some of his strongest language yet for heightening racial divisions in the country.

Want to understand how Iowa politics works? Three organizers from three presidential campaigns share one Iowa farmhouse that reflects the state’s uncommon brand of grass-roots politics.

The Trump administration is giving states billions of dollars to conservative-leaning states preparing for worsening natural disasters. Just don’t call it climate change.

Thousands of people descended on the Virginia State Capitol to show support for the rights of gun owners. A push for gun control measures by newly empowered Democrats has put the state at the center of a national debate over gun violence and the Second Amendment.

Today’s On Politics briefing was compiled by Isabella Grullón Paz in New York.

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Breaking News: "Our house is still on fire. Your inaction is fueling the flames by the hour." Read Greta Thunberg's prepared speech for the World Economic Forum.

View in browser | nytimes.com   BREAKING NEWS "Our house is still on fire. Your inaction is fueling the flames by the hour." Read Greta Thunberg's prepared speech for the World Economic Forum. Tuesday, January 21, 2020 6:01 AM EST Greta Thunberg planned a speech to the world’s business and political leaders accusing them of “empty words and promises” that will do little to avert a climate change crisis. Read the latest   ADVERTISEMENT You received this email because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Breaking News Alerts. To stop receiving these emails, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences. Subscribe to the Times Get the NYT app Change Your Email Privacy Policy Contact Advertise The New York Times Company, 620 Eighth Avenue, New York, NY 10018