1/ An intelligence official in charge of election security warned the House Intelligence Committee last week that Russia was interfering in the 2020 campaign to try to get Trump re-elected. Trump’s allies challenged the conclusions by Shelby Pierson during the meeting, arguing that Trump has been tough on Russia and strengthened European security. Trump reportedly “erupted� and “berated� his acting director of national intelligence, Joseph Maguire, in the Oval Office following the meeting over what he perceived as disloyalty. Trump also erroneously believed that Pierson had given information exclusively to Rep. Adam Schiff, complaining that Democrats would “weaponize� the disclosure. Yesterday, Trump announced that he was replacing Maguire with Richard Grenell, the ambassador to Germany and a vocal Trump supporter. (Washington Post / New York Times)

2/ Trump’s reelection campaign and the Republican National Committee will spend more than $10 million to challenge Democratic voting-related lawsuits. The Democratic super PAC, Priorities USA, has filed multiple lawsuits against states they believe are unconstitutionally suppressing participation in elections. The super PAC is challenging state laws that restrict organizers from helping voters submit absentee ballots and make it a misdemeanor to organize vehicles to transport voters to their polling places unless the voters are “physically unable to walk.� RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said the Republican Party will “aggressively defend� its stake in the November elections, accusing Democrats of “trying to rig the game with frivolous lawsuits that do nothing but create electoral chaos, waste taxpayer money, and distract election officials in an attempt to advance the Democrats’ voter suppression myth because they know they can’t beat President Trump at the ballot box.� (Politico / New York Times)

3/ Roger Stone was sentenced to three years and four months in prison for obstructing a congressional investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Stone was convicted in November on seven counts of lying to congressional investigators and tampering with a witness about his efforts to obtain damaging emails related to Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign that were stolen by Russian agents. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said Stone had shown “flagrant disrespect� for Congress and the court and that Stone “was not prosecuted for standing up for the president; he was prosecuted ...