
How Ginni Thomas jockeyed for influence in Trump's orbit
CNN
One week after the 2018 midterms, President Donald Trump hosted a private lunch with Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and his wife, conservative activist Virginia "Ginni" Thomas.
She used her face time with Trump to cajole him about her floundering efforts to install friends and allies into plum administration positions, two former senior White House officials told CNN, one of whom said Trump encouraged her to get in touch with his staff about the matter.
But when Ginni Thomas contacted Trump's aides inside the Presidential Personnel Office, her requests were slow-walked, former officials said. Fearful that she might turn Trump against his own criminal justice reform bill, which she fervently opposed, they delayed granting her ask for a sit-down meeting with Trump, while the legislation made its way through Congress.

Janet Mills and her allies are counting on a gender gap to narrow Platner’s wide lead ahead of the June 9 primary to decide who will face incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins. They are betting that the unfiltered style that has brought Platner widespread attention as someone who could help Democrats reach young men will backfire with women.

As a shrinking number of Transportation Security Administration agents work to keep hourslong security lines moving despite not being paid, President Donald Trump stepped into the fray Saturday, announcing he will send Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to airports by Monday if Congress doesn’t agree to a plan to end the partial government shutdown.











