Impeachment, Iowa and beyond

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VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE FRI, FEB 07, 2020 CNBC POLITICS EDITOR'S NOTE Hello,     This week felt like it could have been over on Wednesday evening.   The Iowa caucuses Monday were a fiasco. President Trump delivered his third State of the Union address on Tuesday night. By Wednesday evening, Trump had been acquitted on two articles of impeachment.    But there was more to come. Trump slammed his enemies – including Mitt Romney, the only GOP senator to vote for the president's removal from office – and reveled in the Democrats' mess in Iowa.   Even as vote totals in Iowa were reported after the initial snafu Monday night, analyses from a variety of news outlets, including CNBC and NBC News, found irregularities in the count. That didn't stop either Pete Buttigieg or Bernie Sanders, who were essentially tied in the apparently tainted results, from claiming victory. NBC News has not called a winner in the contest.   Lest you think things will get better with our election process this year, there were two reports released this week that should give you pause.   A long-awaited Senate Intelligence Committee report found that the Obama administration was ill-prepared to respond to Russia's interference in the 2016 election. Then, the GAO, a watchdog that reports to Congress, found that the Department of Homeland Security had yet to complete its election cybersecurity plans.   The election season is already under way, and it's not going to stop. The New Hampshire primary is Tuesday. Super Tuesday, which is home to 14 states' primaries, is March 3. It's shaping up to be a tight race for the Democratic nomination, and it could well be another squeaker in November. Every vote will count. The question is, will every vote be counted the right way?    Thanks for reading.   Thoughts? Email me at CNBCPolitics@nbcuni.com.     Have friends or colleagues who might like this newsletter? They can sign up here.  Mike Calia @Michael_Calia KEY STORIES  Iowa caucus: Here's a map of precincts where the data appear to be irregular The Iowa caucuses were marred by technical difficulties that forced the Iowa Democratic Party to count votes by hand and delay the release of results, producing data that in many cases are confounding. 'It was hell': Trump celebrates impeachment acquittal, while ripping Democrats and Romney The president aired new and old grievances against the Democrats who impeached him. Google antitrust probe expands as bipartisan state AGs beef up staff and resources A bipartisan group of state attorneys general is taking on Google in an election year when scrutiny of Big Tech will be more intense than ever. Vice President Pence defends deficit expansion under Trump as necessary for economic growth Vice President Pence spoke to CNBC two days after the GOP-led Senate acquitted President Donald Trump on two articles of impeachment. Bernie Sanders raises a staggering $25 million in January to fuel Super Tuesday push Bernie Sanders raised the most money of any month in his 2020 campaign, which will help to fuel a $5.5 million ad buy in advance of Super Tuesday. Congressional watchdog slams Homeland Security over election security prep A leading federal watchdog agency has admonished the Department of Homeland Security for its lack of election security preparation, with the 2020 presidential primary season already underway. Pence: 'We'll see' if UK decision on Huawei is a deal breaker for a trade pact "We are profoundly disappointed," Pence told CNBC's Wilfred Frost in an interview, referring to the UK's decision to allow Huawei a limited role in 5G development. Democratic presidential candidates take aim at a tax break for small businesses Democratic contenders for the presidency are taking aim at the 20% qualified business income deduction — a tax break for "pass-through" entities. Obama response to 2016 Russian election meddling had 'many flaws,' Senate report finds The Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday issued its long-awaited report on how former President Barack Obama handled Russian meddling in the 2016 election. Trump wins appeal in case where Democrats sued him for allegedly violating emoluments clause The case, filed by 215 members of Congress is just one of several lawsuits challenging President Trump with a claim he violated the emoluments clause by accepting foreign government money paid to his businesses.       Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2020 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS