The White House News

THE WHITE HOUSE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 3, 2017

President Donald J. Trump Announces Sixth Wave of Judicial Candidates and Fifth Wave of U.S. Attorney Candidates

The President today announced that he has nominated ten individuals to the following Federal judgeships and four individuals to the following U.S. Attorney positions. 

If confirmed, Michael B. Brennan of Wisconsin will serve as a Circuit Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.  Mr. Brennan currently serves as a partner in the Milwaukee law firm Gass Weber Mullins LLC, where he tries cases and handles appeals in Federal and state courts involving commercial and tort disputes, and he serves as a mediator and an arbitrator.  Before that, Mr. Brennan served for nine years as a judge on the Milwaukee County Circuit Court, where he presided over hundreds of trials and motions in criminal and civil cases. During that time, he served as the presiding judge of the civil division of that court.  Before his service on the bench, Mr. Brennan prosecuted cases as an assistant district attorney in Milwaukee County where he first-chaired numerous trials, and spent four years as a litigation associate in the Milwaukee office of Foley & Lardner LLP.  Mr. Brennan served as a law clerk to Judge Daniel A. Manion of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, and as a law clerk to Chief Judge Robert W. Warren of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.  Mr. Brennan received his B.A. in government and philosophy, cum laude, from the University of Notre Dame, and his J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law, where he served as the coordinating note and comment editor of the Northwestern University Law Review and he won the Julius H. Miner Moot Court Competition.

If confirmed, L. Steven Grasz of Nebraska will serve as a Circuit Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.  Mr. Grasz currently serves as a senior counsel in the Omaha office of Husch Blackwell LLP, where he handles business, appellate, public policy, regulatory law, and governmental affairs matters. Before joining the firm, Mr. Grasz spent over eleven years as the state of Nebraska’s Chief Deputy Attorney General, where he oversaw the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office’s civil and appellate practice in state and Federal courts, the state’s official Attorney General’s Opinions, and the representation of state constitutional officers and legislators. Before joining the Attorney General’s Office, Mr. Grasz spent two years as an associate at Kutak Rock and one year as a legislative assistant to Congresswoman Virginia Smith. Mr. Grasz received his B.S., cum laude, in agriculture from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and his J.D. from the University of Nebraska College of Law, where he was inducted into the Order of the Coif, served as the executive editor of the Nebraska Law Review, and received the Roscoe Pound Award for his selection as top oral advocate in his class.

If confirmed, Donald C. Coggins, Jr., of South Carolina will serve as a District Judge on the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina.  Mr. Coggins is currently a shareholder in the Spartanburg, South Carolina law firm of Harrison, White, Smith & Coggins, P.C.  His law practice focuses on general civil litigation in state and Federal courts.  Before that, Mr. Coggins was a partner in the Spartanburg law firm of Cummings, Smith and Coggins, where he had started his legal career as an associate.  Mr. Coggins received his B.A. from Clemson University and his J.D. from the University of South Carolina School of Law.

If confirmed, Terry A. Doughty of Louisiana will serve as a District Judge on the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.  Judge Terry Doughty serves as a District Judge for the Fifth Judicial District Court, where he presides over criminal, civil, and juvenile cases arising in the parishes of Franklin, Richland, and West Carroll, and where he has served since assuming office on January 1, 2009. In 2015, Judge Doughty was re-elected to the court and received the Citizen Lawyer Award from the Louisiana State Bar Association. From 1985 through 2008, Judge Doughty served as an assistant district attorney for the Fifth Judicial District. During that period, he prosecuted misdemeanor and felony cases, and litigated post-conviction proceedings and juvenile cases. Prior to joining the district attorney’s office, Judge Doughty practiced at the Rayville, Louisiana, firm of Cotton, Bolton, Hoychick & Doughty. Judge Doughty received his B.S., in finance, from Louisiana Tech University and his J.D. from the Louisiana State University Law School.

If confirmed, Michael J. Juneau of Louisiana will serve as a District Judge on the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana.  Mr. Juneau is a founding member and shareholder of Juneau David, APLC, a Lafayette-based litigation firm that handles a broad range of civil litigation in state and Federal courts across Louisiana. Mr. Juneau also has extensive experience administering mass tort settlements as a court-appointed neutral in significant mass tort and nationwide class action matters. In this capacity, he has managed some of the largest multidistrict litigation in the United States, including In Re: Vioxx Products Liability Litigation and In Re: Oil Spill by the Rig “Deepwater Horizon” in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010. Mr. Juneau received his B.S., magna cum laude, from Louisiana State University and his J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School, where he was selected as the best oralist in the Ames Moot Court Competition.

If confirmed, A. Marvin Quattlebaum, Jr., of South Carolina will serve as a District Judge on the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina.  Mr. Quattlebaum is currently a partner in the Greenville, South Carolina, office of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP, the same firm where he started his legal career as an associate.  Mr. Quattlebaum’s nationwide trial practice focuses on complex civil litigation in federal courts. On the basis of this expertise, he was invited to serve as a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers.  From 2011-12, Mr. Quattlebaum served as the President of the South Carolina Bar.  Mr. Quattlebaum received his B.A., cum laude, from Rhodes College and his J.D. from the University of South Carolina School of Law, where he served as a member of the South Carolina Law Review.

If confirmed, Holly Lou Teeter of Kansas will serve as a District Judge on the United States District Court for the District of Kansas.  Mrs. Teeter is currently an Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri.  Earlier in her career, Mrs. Teeter practiced patent law at Shook, Hardy & Bacon, LLP, and was a patent law clerk at Los Alamos National Security, LLC.  She served as a law clerk to Judge Brian C. Wimes of the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri and to Judge Carlos Murguia of the United States District Court for the District of Kansas.  Mrs. Teeter received her B.S. with highest distinction from the University of Kansas School of Engineering, and her J.D. from the University of Kansas, where she was a member of the Kansas Law Review and graduated first in her class.  She also holds a Diploma in Legal Studies from the University of Oxford.

If confirmed, Robert E. Wier of Kentucky will serve as a District Judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.  Judge Robert Wier currently serves as a Magistrate Judge on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky, a position to which he was first appointed in 2006 and reappointed in 2014.  Before his judicial service, Judge Wier worked in private practice as a member of the law firm Ransdell & Wier PLLC and, before that, as an associate with the Lexington, Kentucky, law firm Stoll, Keenon & Park LLP.  Judge Wier started his legal career serving as a law clerk to the Honorable Eugene E. Siler, Jr., of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.  Judge Wier received his B.A., with high distinction and departmental honors, from the University of Kentucky, and his J.D., with high distinction, from the University of Kentucky College of Law, where he was valedictorian, and served as Editor-in-Chief of the Kentucky Law Journal.

If confirmed, Elizabeth Ann Copeland of Texas will serve as a Judge on the United States Tax Court.  Ms. Copeland serves as a tax litigation partner in the San Antonio law firm of Strasburger & Price, LLP. Before joining Strasburger, Ms. Copeland spent nineteen years as an associate and then shareholder in with the law firm of Oppenheimer, Blend, Harrison & Tate, Inc., where her principal area of practice focused on resolving taxation controversies. Ms. Copeland has been Board Certified in Tax Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization since 2002.   Upon graduation from law school, Ms. Copeland served as an Attorney Advisor to Judge Mary Ann Cohen of the United States Tax Court. Before enrolling in law school, Ms. Copeland spent four three years as a senior accountant at Ernst & Young rising to the rank of Senior Accountant. Ms. Copeland received her B.B.A., in Accounting with Honors, from the University of Texas at Austin, and her J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law. Tax Analysts® named her a 2012 Tax Person of the Year in its national edition of Tax Notes.  Best Lawyers® selected her as its Lawyer of the Year in Tax Law for 2017.  She served as Chair of the State Bar of Texas Tax Section from 2013 to 2014.  In addition to her J.D., Ms. Copeland holds an active Certified Public Accountant’s license.

If confirmed, Patrick J. Urda of Indiana will serve as a Judge on the United States Tax Court.  Mr. Urda currently serves as Counsel to the Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the United States Department of Justice’s Tax Division, where he advises the Deputy Assistant Attorney General and Tax Division front office on legal and administrative issues facing the Division, particularly regarding appellate and settlement matters.  In addition to acting as Counsel, Mr. Urda is a member of the Tax Division’s Appellate Section, which he joined in 2006.  During his time in the Appellate Section, he has litigated more than eighty appeals from the United States Tax Court and the United States District Courts and has presented oral argument on behalf of the United States in more than forty-five appeals, including arguments in each of the United States Courts of Appeals.  Mr. Urda also was one of the principal drafters of the United States’ successful brief in Hall v. United States, 566 U.S. 506 (2012).  Mr. Urda is a five-time recipient of the Tax Division’s Outstanding Attorney Award, and has received the IRS’s Mitchell Rogovan Award.  Prior to his government service, Mr. Urda spent three years in private practice, and served as a law clerk to Judge Daniel A. Manion of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.  He received his B.A. in Classics, summa cum laude, from the University of Notre Dame, where he was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, and his J.D. from Harvard Law School.

If confirmed, Scott C. Blader of Wisconsin will serve as the United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin.  Mr. Blader is currently the elected District Attorney for Waushara County, Wisconsin and has been serving in that capacity since 2007.  Prior to 2007, Mr. Blader was an associate attorney with Blader Law Office, where he focused on criminal litigation.  He received his B.S. from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and his J.D. from Marquette Law School.

If confirmed, Robert M. (Rob) Duncan, Jr. of Kentucky will serve as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky.  Since 2005, Mr. Duncan has served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of Kentucky, where he has prosecuted a variety of criminal cases, including complex drug trafficking, money laundering, firearms offenses, and violent crime.  Mr. Duncan clerked for the Honorable Henry R. Wilhoit, Jr., of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.  Mr. Duncan received his B.A. from Centre College, and his J.D. from the University of Kentucky College of Law.

If confirmed, John R. Lausch Jr. of Illinois will serve as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. Mr. Lausch is currently a partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, where his practice focuses on corporate investigations and other complex litigation matters.  Previously, he served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Northern District of Illinois from 1999 to 2010.  During his time in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Lausch served as a Deputy Chief in the Narcotics and Gangs Section for several years, where he helped lead the District’s Anti-Gang and Project Safe Neighborhoods programs.  Mr. Lausch clerked for the Honorable Michael S. Kanne of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.  He received his A.B., cum laude, from Harvard University and his J.D., cum laude, from Northwestern University School of Law.

If confirmed, William J. Powell will serve as the United States Attorney for the Northern District of West Virginia.  Mr. Powell is currently serving as the Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for the Jefferson County West Virginia Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.  He previously was a member at the law firm of Jackson Kelly PLLC in Martinsburg, West Virginia, where his practice focused on civil litigation and white-collar criminal law.  He also previously served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of West Virginia, where he prosecuted major fraud and violent crimes.  Mr. Powell received his B.A. from Salem College, and his J.D. from West Virginia University College of Law.

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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

________________________________________________________________

For Immediate Release                             August 4, 2017

REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP

AT FEMA HEADQUARTERS

FEMA Headquarters

Washington, D.C.

10:04 A.M. EDT

     THE PRESIDENT:  Okay, thank you very much.  I just want to congratulate Acting Secretary — this is really a big — this is a big position — Elaine Duke.  A terrific person.  She has done an amazing job for the Trump administration and everywhere she preceded.  So congratulations.  This is a very important thing you’re doing.

     We are very strong on homeland security and we are very strong with respect to FEMA.  FEMA is something that I’ve been very much involved in already.  We’ve had some things during the last six months, including the highway in Atlanta, where I have to say the Governor and all concerned did a fantastic job of rebuilding that stretch of highway that ended up burning so badly.  We found the reasons why, and it wasn’t for a good reason.  But nevertheless, they did it in record time.  I’m a builder and I understand they did it ahead of schedule and under budget, and that was very nice to see. 

     So I just — we have many, many things like that.  We’ve already taken care of many of the situations that really needed emergency funds.  We did it quickly.  We did it effectively.  We have an incredible team.  And I just want to thank, Elaine, all of your people and your representatives.  They have really done a fantastic job.

     Thank you very much.  Thank you very much, everybody.

                             END                10:06 A.M. EDT 

THE WHITE HOUSE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 4, 2017

INVESTOR’S BUSINESS DAILY EDITORIAL BOARD PRAISES THE RAISE ACT: “A REASONED RETURN TO POLICY SANITY”

“President Trump’s backing of a proposed Senate immigration reform bill isn’t an attack on immigrants, as you might have heard, but a reasoned return to policy sanity.”

Can ‘Raise Act’ Make Immigration Work For America Again?

Editorial

Investor’s Business Daily

August 3, 2017

Immigration: President Trump’s backing of a proposed Senate immigration reform bill isn’t an attack on immigrants, as you might have heard, but a reasoned return to policy sanity.

…

Today, because of the confusion on our border and a nonsensical policy based on “diversity” and family criteria, U.S. immigration policy no longer serves the American people to do what it should: Bring in the best and the brightest who can immediately fit in and contribute to our extraordinarily advanced economy.

Sadly, today our immigration policy seems directed at the exact opposite, bringing in millions of people who don’t speak English, have no First World skills or education, and are almost certain to end up on welfare. Our policy of tolerating illegal immigration has likewise been a disaster, with estimates for those here illegally ranging from 12 million to as many as 30 million.

The new law, dubbed the “Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy Act,” or the “Raise Act,” focuses on the legal side of the immigration equation. Right now, our system for handing out green cards makes no sense.

…

Britain, Canada and Australia have all moved to a point-based system and had success. No reason that can’t be the case here, too.

1965’s Teddy Kennedy-authored immigration reform — which destroyed the U.S.’ old system in favor of the current family-based immigration law — led to a surge of poor immigrants. We let in too many people who shouldn’t be here, and kept out too many who should.

While economists largely agree that immigration is overall a net benefit, low-skilled immigration has a devastating impact on U.S. minority communities, pushing down wages and job opportunities for unskilled and untrained American workers.

…

The Raise Act will work in tandem with Trump’s other policies on reducing illegal immigration, including cracking down on the illegal Sanctuary City movement, deporting illegal aliens who commit crimes, and turning away more illegal entrants at the border.

By focusing on letting in mostly those who are highly qualified to work in our high-tech economy, and keeping out those who shouldn’t be here, the pressure at the low end of the labor force should be eased.

…

We have always supported immigration as good for the U.S. We still do. And we’d like to see even more high-skilled immigration, if possible, as we’ve argued before. This new policy, along with the others pursued by the Trump administration, isn’t perfect. But it goes a long way toward fixing an immigration system that has been broken for decades.

Read the full editorial here.

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THE WHITE HOUSE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 4, 2017

Spring 2018 White House Internship Program

The Spring 2018 White House Internship Program application is now open.

The application portal will remain open until 11:59PM EDT on September 8, 2017.  Any applications received after the deadline will not be considered. 

The Spring 2018 White House Internship Program term runs from January 10, 2018 to April 27, 2018.  All applicants must be at least 18 years of age by the program start date, and must be able to commit to the full internship term to be eligible.  Additionally, applicants must be U.S. citizens and meet at least one of the following criteria to apply:

– Are currently enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate degree program at a college, community college, or university (two-to-four year institution).

– Have graduated from an undergraduate or graduate degree program at a college, community college, or university (two-to-four year institution) no more than two years before the internship program start date.

– Are a veteran of the United States Armed Forces who possesses a high school diploma or its equivalent and has served on active duty—for any length of time—in the two years preceding the internship program start date.

The White House Internship Program is highly competitive.  Applicants are selected based on their demonstrated commitment to public service, leadership in their community, and commitment to the Trump Administration.  Questions about the White House Internship Program application can be directed to intern_application@who.eop.gov. More information, including details about placement in the White House Internship Program and answers to frequently asked questions, can be found on the White House website.

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