Donald Trump has appointed television producer Mark Burnett as his special envoy to the United Kingdom, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
What the Spending Fight Tells Us About the Next 4 Years
“After days of threats and demands, Donald Trump had little to show for it once lawmakers passed a budget deal in the early hours of Saturday, narrowly averting a pre-Christmas government shutdown,” the AP reports.
“The president-elect successfully pushed House Republicans to jettison some spending, but he failed to achieve his central goal of raising the debt limit. It demonstrated that despite his decisive election victory and frequent promises of retribution, many members of his party are still willing to openly defy him.”
“Trump’s decision to inject himself into the budget debate a month before his inauguration also showed that he remains more adept at blowing up deals than making them, and it foreshadowed that his second term will likely be marked by the same infighting, chaos and brinksmanship that characterized his first.”
Top Cop in New York City Abruptly Resigns
Former Adviser Calls Nancy Mace a ‘Pitiful Embarrassment’
A Republican strategist is lashing out at Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) months after he says he fired her as a client, dubbing the far-right lawmaker a “pitiful embarrassment,” the Daily Beast reports.
Said Wesley Donehue: “I fired Nancy Mace as client a few months back because I’m a political consultant and not a babysitter, a sex therapist or a doctor who can prescribe fixes for chemical imbalances. I don’t have time for her constant egotistical bullshit and drama in my life.”
He added: “I’ve been worried about Nancy Mace for a while now. Mental health is a serious issue. I want her to get better and seek treatment.”
Mike Johnson Concludes 118th Congress as it Began
“The 118th Congress ended almost exactly as it began: with chaos in the House of Representatives that threatened to consume its GOP leader and shut down the government,” the Washington Post reports.
“While he avoided the ignominious event of a government shutdown, with just hours to spare, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) still faces a daunting vote at the start of the next Congress, on Jan. 3, to win a full term atop the House.”
“Johnson’s dilemma is the same one that bedeviled his predecessor, Kevin McCarthy (R-California), the always-smiling speaker who proved so ineffective he didn’t last nine months in the job. Both found themselves in a predicament in which the House GOP held a majority in principle but in practice could not come together to govern.”
“This cycle of political faceplants threatens to derail president-elect Donald Trump’s agenda, as well as Johnson’s hold on power.”
CNN: Johnson joked about his fate as speaker throughout spending negotiations.
Clarence Thomas Did Not Disclose Additional Trips
“Justice Clarence Thomas failed to disclose two additional trips from a billionaire patron that had not previously come to light, Senate Democrats revealed on Saturday after conducting a 20-month investigation into ethics practices at the Supreme Court,” the New York Times reports.
Romney Says His Final Vote Was a ‘Protest’
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) said he voted against the stopgap spending bill in “protest” of how the government is run, CNN reports.
Said Romney: “While I support keeping government open, I voted no on the CR—a simple protest of the absurd way this is to run government.”
Jeffries Wants to Kill the Debt Ceiling Forever
“House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) has privately floated embracing the wholesale elimination of the debt limit next year rather than simply raising it,” Axios reports.
“President-elect Trump will almost certainly need Democratic votes when the debt limit’s ‘X-date’ is reached — which experts say could be as soon as mid-June.”
“Republicans have a significant bloc of debt and deficit hawks who will likely vote against raising the debt ceiling under any circumstances.
That gives the Democratic leader considerable leverage to use the debt limit to force concessions.”
This Week Was a Reminder for Republicans
Playbook: “The whole saga is a reminder, especially for Republican leadership, of what things will be like with Trump back in office. For the last few years, Congress has gotten used to a fairly hands-off approach from the president in their negotiations.”
“It’s clear that’s all over…”
“At the same time, the spectacle raises new doubts about all the talk of complete GOP unity after the election, as intraparty squabbles burst directly into view. Dozens of GOP lawmakers defied the incoming president, and roughly three dozen House Republicans voted against the bill, which was backed by more Democrats than members of the GOP.”
New York Times: “The episode demonstrated a well-established pattern by Mr. Trump. He often purposely blew up congressional negotiations during his first term, often with a tweet, only to be forced to retreat or give up his position in the face of an angry reaction from both allies and adversaries.”
Trump’s IRS Nominee Touts a Dubious Credential
“Former U.S. Rep. Billy Long of Missouri, whom President-elect Donald Trump has named his nominee to head the IRS, touts his expertise in tax matters,” ProPublica reports.
“He advertises his credential as a certified tax and business advisor, and he adds CTBA to his name on his X profile. That profile encourages people to message him to ‘save 40% on your taxes.'”
“But tax experts told ProPublica that they have never heard of CTBA as a credential in the tax profession.”
Biden Gets His 235th Judge Confirmed
“President Joe Biden secured his 235th appointment to the federal judiciary on Friday, narrowly surpassing President-elect Donald Trump’s first-term tally by one with a record number of women and people of color named to the bench,” Reuters reports.
“The Democratic-led U.S. Senate voted to confirm two of Biden’s nominees to serve as life-tenured federal trial court judges in California, capping off a four-year effort by the White House to reshape a federal judiciary that shifted ideologically to the right during the first presidential term of Trump, a Republican.”
The Farm Recession Is Here
Wall Street Journal: “The U.S. farm sector finds itself in another rough patch. Net farm income declined 4% this year to $141 billion after falling about 20% last year, according to the Agriculture Department. … Some of the world’s largest grain shippers and pesticide suppliers are girding for a shrinking farm economy by cutting costs or laying off workers.”
“Agriculture trade groups are circulating lists of requests to lawmakers extending beyond direct payments that could buffet against the current market slump.”
The Limits of the MAGA-Verse
“The MAGA-verse, with President-elect Trump and Elon Musk at the helm, continues to wield unprecedented power over Congress — but it has also found its limits,” Axios reports.
“Three times now, the influential voices surrounding Trump — often organizing on X — have failed to get exactly what they want.”
Trump’s Claims of a Mandate Run Into Reality
“President-elect Donald Trump’s last-minute demands for a congressional funding package were rejected by dozens of Republicans this week, foreshadowing the legislative challenges he could face next year — even with unified GOP control,” the Washington Post reports.
“Trump’s role in sinking a bipartisan deal to fund the government — and his public insistence that any spending bill lift the debt ceiling — led to a failed vote on the House floor Thursday evening. More than three dozen members of his own party voted against the deal he’d endorsed hours earlier. The Senate passed a new bill to avert a government shutdown early Saturday; the bill did not include Trump’s debt limit demand.”
“The drama highlighted the limits Trump faces in bending his entire party to his will, as Republicans hold a narrow margin in the House and remain ideologically split over government spending.”
Wall Street Journal: How a routine spending bill turned Washington upside down.
Politico: Trump’s wake-up call: Republicans are willing to defy him.
Mike Johnson Loses a Vote for Speaker
After the week of drama around a short term spending bill, Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) said: “I am now undecided on what House leadership should look like in the 119th Congress.”
Trump Wanted Shutdown to Happen on Biden’s Watch
“President-elect Donald Trump, who derailed a bipartisan spending deal in Congress, tried on Friday to escape responsibility for the consequences, saying it would be better to let the government shut down under President Biden’s watch than to allow a politically damaging stalemate once he takes office next month,” the New York Times reports.
Biden May Commute Sentences of Death Row Inmates
“President Biden is considering commuting the sentences of most, if not all, of the 40 men on the federal government’s death row, a move that would frustrate President-elect Donald Trump’s ability to resume the rapid pace of executions that marked his first term,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Elon Musk Offers Support to Mike Johnson
In a complete reversal, Elon Musk, who barraged the initial spending deal with a torrent of criticism on X, just posted on the platform that Johnson “did a good job here, given the circumstances,” the New York Times reports.
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