Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ) is declaring war on New Jersey’s Democratic bosses, announcing in a video Wednesday that he plans to recruit challengers to elected officials who protect “machine politics,” Politico reports.
Republicans Not Likely to Extend Obamacare Subsidies
Playbook: “It’s looking all but certain that the Affordable Care Act subsidies — which have emerged as a campaign cudgel for Democrats and health care headache for Republicans — will expire at the end of the month. Though lawmakers have devised multiple solutions, none have brought real consensus.”
Kamala Harris Extends Her Book Tour
“Kamala Harris is extending her book tour into 2026 – but now it’s going to be about more than selling books,” CNN reports.
“The former vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee on Wednesday morning announced a slate of stops starting in January and going every week through April, taking her beyond the bluest areas she focused on for most of the tour that started at the end of September.”
U.S. Seizes Oil Tanker Off the Coast of Venezuela
“U.S. forces have intercepted and seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, a move that marks a serious escalation of tensions between the two countries,” Bloomberg reports.
Fed Cuts Rates Again, Signals It May Be Done for Now
“Federal Reserve officials cut interest rates at their third consecutive meeting but signaled little appetite for more amid unusual internal divisions over whether inflation or the job market should be their bigger worry,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Public comments from Fed officials in recent weeks revealed a committee so fractured that the decision likely came down to how Fed Chair Jerome Powell wanted to proceed.”
The Trump Show That Never Ends
“On paper, President Trump’s speech in Pennsylvania was supposed to be the opening night of a speaking tour on the economy, but spiritually, the rambling set felt more like the kickoff of a past-their-prime band’s farewell tour,” National Journal reports.
“There was no set list, he played the hits when he could, and did crowd work with MAGA’s version of the Parrotheads, decked out in their finest Trump swag after following him around for years.”
New York Republican Defied Trump
“Bruce Blakeman’s announcement that he is running for governor against fellow Republican Elise Stefanik caught many by surprise, not least of which was the White House,” New York Magazine reports.
“Days before the Nassau County executive said he would challenge Stefanik, President Donald Trump called Blakeman to discourage him from running…”
“On Tuesday morning, Blakeman announced he was running anyway, complicating what Stefanik believed would be a cakewalk to the nomination. The result leaves Trump with two of his allies running against each other in his home state.”
GOP Moderates to Force Vote on Obamacare Subsidies
“A group of House Republicans will file a discharge petition this week on a bill to extend enhanced Obamacare subsidies for two years,” Punchbowl News reports.
“And they have enough support to force a vote if all House Democrats sign on.”
What Explains Trump’s Aggression Against Venezuela?
Jonathan Chait: “The buildup to a possible conflict with Venezuela, which has included attacks on boats and a gathering of forces in the Caribbean, is unusual, even surreal, in its lack of a coherent public rationale. Not only has the administration failed to seek authorization for continued operations from Congress—as the Constitution requires for any military action longer than 60 days—it is barely engaging in the kind of jingoistic rhetoric that usually prefigures a conflict.”
“The administration has doubled the reward for anything that might help lead to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s capture, but Trump hasn’t convincingly explained why.”
Trump to End Student Loan Forgiveness Plan
The Department of Education has moved to terminate one of former President Joe Biden’s most popular student loan forgiveness plans — impacting millions of Americans, ABC News reports.
U.S. to Screen Foreign Visitors’ Social Media History
“Citizens of countries including the U.K. and France will have to disclose five years of their social-media history to visit the U.S., even though they are covered by a visa waiver program, under a proposal by the Trump administration,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Homeland Security Buys Jets for Deportations
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed Wednesday that it has agreed to buy six Boeing 737 planes at a cost of $140 million to be used for deportations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, CNBC reports.
Politicians Embrace Swearing
“As he shook President Barack Obama’s hand and pulled him in for what he thought was a private aside, Vice President Joe Biden delivered an explicit message: ‘This is a big fucking deal.’ The remark, overheard on live microphones at a 2010 ceremony for the Affordable Care Act, caused a sensation because open profanity from a national leader was unusual at the time,” the AP reports.
“More than 15 years later, vulgarity is now in vogue… Leaders in both parties are seemingly in a race now to the verbal gutter.”
U.S. Showing Signs of ‘Rapid Authoritarian Shift’
A civil liberties group says the U.S. is showing signs of undergoing a “rapid authoritarian shift” as civic freedoms in the country decline following President Trump’s return to the White House, Time reports.
House GOP Erupts Over Health Care
“House Republican leaders presented no firm plan Tuesday for advancing health care legislation as anxiety rises in the GOP ranks over the impending expiration of key Obamacare subsidies at the end of the year,” Politico reports.
“Instead, Speaker Mike Johnson presented attendees of a closed-door conference meeting with list of 10 possible policies that could get votes in the coming weeks or months.”
Said one Republican: “There was a general uneasiness because nothing is coming together.”
Said another: “We wasted so much time.”
Quote of the Day
“You can give up certain products. You could give up pencils. Because under the China policy, every child can get 37 pencils. They only need one or two. They don’t need that many. You always need steel. You don’t need 37 dolls for your daughter. Two or three is nice. So we’re doing things right.”
— Donald Trump, at a rally in Pennsylvania last night.
Justice Department Rolls Back Anti-Discrimination Rules
“The Justice Department on Tuesday moved to end long-standing civil rights policies that prohibit local governments and organizations that receive federal funding from maintaining policies that disproportionately harm people of color,” Politico reports.
Pentagon Weighed Sending Survivors to El Salvador Prison
“The Pentagon was in a bind. The military had plucked two survivors from the Caribbean Sea in mid-October after striking a boat that U.S. officials said was carrying drugs, and it needed to figure out what to do with them,” the New York Times reports.
“On a call with counterparts at the State Department, Pentagon lawyers floated an idea. They asked whether the two survivors could be put into a notorious prison in El Salvador to which the Trump administration had sent hundreds of Venezuelan deportees.”
“The State Department lawyers were stunned and rejected the idea.”
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