“If we don’t pass a short-term CR there is no way of getting anything done to do the things they want to… We’re not going to do anything until we get government open.”
— Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD), quoted by Semafor.
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The Modern GOP Is Inherently Authoritarian
Paul Krugman: “Nixon, who was a piker by comparison to Donald Trump, was repudiated by his own party. Not only is Donald Trump a wannabe dictator, surely the worst person on multiple dimensions ever to occupy the White House, but he made his intentions clear in the January 6th insurrection and his promises of retribution if re-elected.”
“But unlike Nixon, Trump is backed by a Republican party that has become so extreme, so unwilling to acknowledge that opposition is even legitimate that none of his actions matter. Today’s Republicans show no hesitation whatsoever in adopting the Führerprinzip, the ‘leader principle’, in which Trump’s diktats override all written law and democratic norms.”
“Is calling the modern GOP an extremist party just my subjective assessment? No, it’s an assertion backed by solid evidence.”
Trump Halts Transit Funding in Chicago
The Trump administration has put on hold $2.1 billion in Chicago infrastructure projects, primarily two efforts to improve the city’s transit system, CNBC reports.
A Shutdown With No Clear Exit Ramp
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Lewandowski Mulls Bid for New Hampshire Governor
Corey Lewandowski “is considering a run for New Hampshire governor — as the White House weighs primarying GOP Gov. Kelly Ayotte over her resistance to redistricting,” Politico reports.
Democrats Fret Over Shutdown Messaging
Playbook: “When Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) dropped their three-minute video on Wednesday explaining the stakes of the shutdown, it instantly set ablaze Democratic group chats and X accounts, inspiring no small amount of wishcasting that these two figures could be the voice of the Democratic Party at this moment.”
“But on a deeper level, it revealed that the party — as represented by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer — is pinioned by two competing pressures on the shutdown: the demand to fight, and the pressure to be responsible governing partners. The former comes from the party’s base; the latter, from its establishment.”
“The challenge for leadership is this: At this moment, they are fighting. But it’s still not landing with the Democratic base, much of which believes Schumer is prosecuting the case all wrong.”
Shutdown Showdown
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Macron Laughs as Trump Mocked
French president Emmanuel Macron was seen laughing as the leaders of Albania and Azerbaijan mocked President Donald Trump for claiming to have ended wars involving their countries, the Daily Mail reports.
‘Your Neighbors Are Watching’
“As the race for Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District heats up, some Tennessee residents have expressed concerns after getting a political postcard in the mail,” WKRN reports.
Said the postcard: “Your neighbors are watching and will know if you miss this critical special election. The TN Republican party HQ will see whether you have voted… We are compiling an official list of Republicans who fail to vote.”
‘Naked Bike Ride’ Planned to Protest Troops in Portland
After President Trump announced plans to deploy the Oregon National Guard to Portland, organizers are planning an “emergency” naked bike ride in protest, KOIN reports.
Jeanne Shaheen Is Democrats’ Shutdown Whisperer
“If Republicans want to quickly bring the government shutdown to an end, they will need to get one particularly formidable Senate Democrat on board,” Politico reports.
“New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen has emerged as a central player in the bipartisan back-channeling that has ramped up this week as congressional leaders and President Donald Trump remain locked in a bitter stalemate.”
Putin Warns of ‘New Stage of Escalation’
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the potential supply of long-range missiles to Ukraine would mark a “completely new stage of escalation” between Washington and Moscow, CNBC reports.
His comments come after a series of reported incursions into European airspace in recent weeks.
Trump Says Democrats Are the Party of Satan
President Trump called Democrats the party of “Hate, Evil, and Satan” amid the ongoing shutdown of the federal government.
Apple Removes ICE Tracking Apps from App Store
“Apple on Thursday night said that it was removing ICEBlock and other apps from its App Store that can be used to anonymously report sightings of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents,” CNBC reports.
“The move came after pressure on Apple from Attorney General Pam Bondi, and amid controversy over the Trump administration’s aggressive enforcement of immigration law with ICE agents and other authorities.”
White House Senses Political Risk on Healthcare
“President Trump has projected unwavering confidence that he is winning the messaging war over the government shutdown. But behind the scenes, his team is increasingly concerned that the issue at the center of the debate will create political vulnerabilities for Republicans,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Advisers are worried that the GOP will take the blame for allowing healthcare subsidies to expire, raising costs for millions of Americans ahead of next year’s midterm elections, according to administration officials.”
Newsom Threatens Colleges That Sign Trump’s Compact
“Gov. Gavin Newsom threatened to cut ‘billions’ in state funding, including to USC, from any California campus that signs a Trump administration compact to agree to sweeping and largely conservative campus policies in exchange for priority access to federal funding,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
Donald Trump’s Shutdown Power Play
Susan Glasser: “During Donald Trump’s first term, the President’s demand that Congress fund his proposed wall on the Mexican border led to the longest shutdown in history—thirty-five days, from December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019. In the end, Trump caved, agreeing to reopen the government even without the nearly six billion dollars in border-wall funding that he had demanded.”
“This capitulation was initially portrayed as a triumph for the new Democratic majority under House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a stinging defeat for Trump… but it was not. It was, in fact, a moment of revelation in which he realized that he could do just about anything he wanted. In the end, Trump got his border-wall money. He simply went ahead and took it. The history of the Presidency may never be the same.”
