“Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners raised an additional $1.5 billion from the Qatar Investment Authority and Abu Dhabi-based asset manager Lunate, and extended the investment period of its debut fund to 2029,” Bloomberg reports.
It’s Shutdown Day
“It’s not a happy Friday morning for Speaker Mike Johnson. This has been an absolutely disastrous week for the speaker, President-elect Donald Trump and Republicans on Capitol Hill,” Punchbowl News reports.
“It got so bad that during a meeting with lawmakers in his office Thursday, Johnson said ‘If anyone else can get 218 votes, God bless them,’ according to three lawmakers present. Meaning they can become speaker other than him. Some in the room took it as a joke. But it seems clear Johnson is aware of his plight.”
“The federal government will shut down at midnight tonight. And the House Republican leadership — as divided, back-biting and leak-obsessed as ever — has to figure out how they’re going to keep federal employees on the job.”
Johnson on Shaky Ground with Trump
“The collapse of Speaker Mike Johnson’s spending plan illustrates a painful lesson that other politicians have already learned: Absolute loyalty to Donald Trump is a one-way street,” Politico reports.
“As the U.S. teeters on the edge of a government shutdown, bitterly divided Republicans are struggling to find a way forward and Johnson’s hold on his job is in Trump’s mercurial hands.”
Washington Post: With speakership on the line, Johnson is ever more reliant on Trump.
CNN: 24 hours that exposed a schism between Trump and Johnson and sent the government hurtling toward a shutdown.
A Shutdown Won’t Get Trump What He Wants
Playbook: “In every single shutdown we can remember, the party that makes the demands not only pays politically, but never gets what it wants. Never.”
“Trump didn’t get a dollar for his wall during the 35-day shutdown in 2018-2019, and he paid a political price for it. Democrats didn’t get protections for Dreamers during the shutdown fight they stoked when Trump was in office, either.”
“So what makes Republicans think that once in a shutdown, that Democrats will give them what they want and that the GOP won’t get politically crushed?”
Putin Says Russia Is Ready to Compromise with Trump
“Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that he was ready to compromise over Ukraine in possible talks with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on ending the war and had no conditions for starting talks with the Ukrainian authorities,” Reuters reports.
Trump’s Honeymoon
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Troops Won’t Get Paid Over Holidays if There’s a Shutdown
“Republicans’ decision to abandon a congressional spending plan will cost troops their paychecks over the holidays unless some agreement is reached before Friday’s deadline to prevent a government shutdown,” the AP reports.
Republicans Scramble for a Path Forward
“House Republican leaders planned to work through the night and into Friday on a Plan C for funding the government, after abandoning their deal with Democrats and failing to pass an alternative backed by President-elect Donald Trump,” Politico reports.
“Facing a government shutdown deadline at midnight Friday, Speaker Mike Johnson is under pressure to patch together a third proposal to avert a shutdown — while enacting other priorities that include more than $100 billion in disaster aid, retaining support from Trump along with a majority of House Republicans and enough Democrats to secure passage.”
Elon Musk Flexes His Political Strength
New York Times: “It was a remarkable moment for Mr. Musk, who has never been elected to public office but now appears to be the largest megaphone for the man about to retake the Oval Office. Larger, in fact, than Mr. Trump himself, whose own vaunted social media presence is dwarfed by that of Mr. Musk. The president-elect has 96.2 million followers on X, while Mr. Musk has 207.9 million. (Mr. Musk is also far richer than Mr. Trump. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, he is worth $458 billion, while the president-elect is worth a mere $6.61 billion.)”
This week also marked the first time Mr. Musk has been able to use his website as a digital whip, driving lawmakers to support his desired outcome.”
“His actions had prompted a backlash from some lawmakers who recoiled at his interference in the legislative process. Some even accused him of acting more like the president or vice president than a billionaire executive.”
Washington Post: “Co-president” Elon Musk? Trump ally tests influence in spending fight.
Government Shutdown Looms
“The federal government moved closer to a weekend shutdown Thursday, after the House overwhelmingly voted down Speaker Mike Johnson’s new plan to extend the deadline despite support from President-elect Donald Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk,” the Washington Post reports.
Politico: “With government funding set to expire at midnight Friday, Elon Musk and Trump lured Congress into a power struggle, demanding that Johnson abandon the bipartisan accord he struck with top Democrats this week and instead craft a bill favored by Republicans. By defeating that Trump-backed alternative, Democrats demonstrated that they won’t help him pass bills if they don’t have a seat at the negotiating table.”
Axios: “The level of GOP opposition signals that Republican leaders will have difficulty trying to bring it up under another process.”
“The final vote was 235 members voting against the bill and 174 voting in favor — with 38 Republicans voting against the measure and two Democrats voting in support.”
Pelosi Says Trump Is Elon Musk’s ‘Puppet’
Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) joined a growing chorus of Democrats asserting that Elon Musk is directing Donald Trump, after the president-elect came out in opposition to a stopgap spending deal hours after his billionaire adviser heavily criticized it, the Washington Post reports.
Said Pelosi: “Elon Musk ordered his puppet President-elect and House Republicans to break the bipartisan agreement reached to keep government open. House Republicans are abdicating their responsibility to the American people and siding with billionaires and special interests.”
Daily Beast: Trump is pretty defensive about “President Elon Musk” jabs.
Extra Bonus Quote of the Day
“Is Elon Musk the new dictator of the Republican Party?”
— Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), quoted by the New York Times.
What the Next Few Hours Will Look Like
Punchbowl News: “House Republican leadership is going to put the bill on the floor on suspension of the rules. Any legislation considered in this manner requires a two-thirds majority for passage. With Democrats opposed, the bill will fail.”
“The GOP leadership will then try to get a rule reported out of the Rules Committee and hold a floor vote under a simple-majority threshold. It’s not clear if the Rules Committee will be able to report a rule, given its rightward membership.”
“House Democrats predict they will lose only a handful of members. But it might be enough to help Johnson pass the bill. That’s how close this vote will be. In short, a lot is up in the air.”
“If this bill fails under a rule, Johnson is in big trouble and the federal government will lurch closer to a shutdown.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“I’m not just a no, I’m a hell no.”
— House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), speaking to Democrats about the new Republican government funding proposal.
Debacle Threatens Johnson’s Tenuous Hold on His Job
“Speaker Mike Johnson spent months doing everything he could to hang on to his job come January, most notably a concerted charm offensive to keep President-elect Donald J. Trump placated and in his corner. It took just a few hours on Wednesday for it to all go bad,” the New York Times reports.
“The Louisiana Republican this week got a taste of what life could be like in the second Trump era beginning next month as he was mercilessly undercut on his complex year-end legislation by Mr. Trump and the president-elect’s exceedingly influential ally Elon Musk — that is, if Mr. Johnson is the speaker at all.”
When Trump was asked about his confidence in Johnson, he said: “We’ll see.”
Government Shutdown Would Threaten Trump’s Transition
“The collapse of Congress’ spending negotiations is throwing the presidential transition and preparations for President-elect Donald Trump’s second inauguration into chaos as Washington stares down the prospect of a government shutdown just after midnight Friday,” Politico reports.
Republicans Announce New Funding Bill
House Republicans are eyeing a bill to extend government funding for three months while suspending the debt limit until January 2027, Punchbowl News reports.
The legislation would also extend the farm bill, send $110 billion to disaster-stricken areas and extend a number of health care provisions.
CNN reports a House vote is expected around 6 p.m. but it’s still uncertain it will pass.
GOP Lawmakers Prepare to Carry Out Gaetz’s Revenge
“Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, the focus of a House Ethics Committee report that may soon become public, is planning to inflict fresh pain on some of his old colleagues,” Politico reports.
“Gaetz this week floated a plan that would force the disclosure of House members who were the subject of sexual harassment settlements paid with public funds. The effort is inching toward reality, with GOP lawmakers passing around a resolution that would execute the effort.”
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