| | | | | |  | | By Anna Palmer and Jake Sherman | Presented by Facebook | |  | DRIVING THE DAY | | WITH 27 DAYS LEFT IN HIS PRESIDENCY, and the nation on the doorstep of Christmas, DONALD JOHN TRUMP has sucked Americans into a violent cyclone of uncertainty and chaos. HE IS PARDONING CRIMINALS at a breakneck clip. Last night it was PAUL MANAFORT, who was in prison on tax charges, ROGER STONE and CHARLES KUSHNER, IVANKA TRUMP'S father in law. Earlier this week crooked politicians and other unseemly actors. Josh Gerstein and Kyle Cheney on the latest pardons … SEN. BEN SASSE (R-Neb.) called the pardons "rotten to the core." NYT'S MAGGIE HABERMAN and MIKE SCHMIDT put it this way: TRUMP "is at perhaps his most unleashed." TRUMP -- as he has so many times before -- has thrown the government he is supposed to be leading into an intractable crisis. WE SPOKE TO A FEW PEOPLE IN TOUCH with the president and they say this: he has come to think that this fight he has pitched -- teasing a veto on a covid/funding bill that his administration negotiated -- is playing well with Americans, these people said. He's highlighting what he considers to be wasteful foreign spending -- never mind he proposed much of it -- and is pushing for $2,000 checks in place of the $600 checks his underlings and party agreed to. BUT HERE'S WHAT WON'T PLAY WELL WITH THE BASE: the social safety net our country is supposed to provide is about to be ripped away in the middle of the holiday season. On Saturday, pandemic unemployment assistance -- used by gig workers -- runs out. On Dec. 31, pandemic emergency unemployment compensation -- which lengthened UI -- runs out, as does the eviction moratorium and the medical expense deduction. All gone unexpectedly unless the president signs the $2-trillion package. OF ALL THE LEGISLATIVE BATTLES TRUMP has pitched, this is the most dangerous and befuddling. Here's what's on deck: -- THERE'S THE UNCERTAINTY about whether he will sign the Covid-bus package to avoid a government shutdown next week. -- IF TRUMP DOESN'T SIGN IT, how will they avoid a government shutdown Monday night? Will he sign anything? -- SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI will force a Monday, full-House, up-or-down vote on $2,000 checks. Will Republicans vote for it? Because we know Senate Majority Leader MITCH MCCONNELL and Senate Republicans are likely to ignore it. -- WILL CONGRESS BE ABLE to override TRUMP'S NDAA veto? IN HIS FINAL INTERVIEW IN 1973, LYNDON BAINES JOHNSON told WALTER CRONKITE that antagonizing Congress is never a good idea because it's like a pilot having a co-pilot flying in different directions. TRUMP HAS taken it a step further. He has pressed the ejection seat on his allies. HE'S PUBLICLY TURNED ON MCCONNELL and JOHN THUNE, the top two Republicans in the Senate. The only ally he has left in the leadership is KEVIN MCCARTHY, who sent a letter to House Republicans last night criticizing a deal he was a party to and voted for. MCCONNELL, who was elected a few weeks ago with his largest margin in 18 years, has practically no political incentive to pacify TRUMP at this point. If worse comes to worst, he'll have a better hand in a few weeks with JOE BIDEN in the White House. BIDEN'S a Democrat, but at least you know his administration's word is likely to be good. AS WE SAID WEDNESDAY, pretty much all of the president's allies recognize this fit is mostly about TRUMP'S frustration with lawmakers who have been publicly acknowledging his time in the White House is drawing to a close. Trump's remaining Hill allies -- all in the House -- are convincing TRUMP that he has a chance of overturning electoral results Jan. 6, and that he should veto this bill -- both deep rabbit holes without exit paths. WE'RE STARING DOWN THE POSSIBILITY OF A SHUTDOWN. Make no mistake about that. The hope in some corners of the Capitol is that the House and Senate come back Monday -- the House will be, but who knows if the Senate will be back -- and they pass a stopgap to keep the government funded into January. But why would the president sign that if this truly has little to do with the policy? RIGHT NOW, Republicans tell us they have one goal: keep TRUMP calm and hope he changes his mind and signs the bill. Happy Thursday, and Merry Christmas Eve. HERE'S WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TODAY: House Democrats -- likely House Majority Leader STENY HOYER -- are going to offer the $2,000 check bill on the floor. That will be blocked by Republicans. Republicans are going to offer to strip all the foreign money out of the bill they just passed, and replace it with a stopgap measure. Democrats will block that. We'll then be back at square one. THIS CONGRESS STARTED SHUT DOWN, and it could end shut down. In between, we've had an impeachment and a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. | | | | A message from Facebook: It's time to update internet regulations
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Learn More | | | NYT FRONT: "REPUBLICANS SPLIT AND AID IMPERILED BY TRUMP THREATS: Demands for Changes to Relief Bill Ripple From Capitol Hill to Georgia … A Lame Duck On the Loose And on a Tear" WSJ EDITORIAL BOARD: "President Trump is leaving office as he entered, with a whirlwind of action that gets more attention than it accomplishes. He may also take down his party's chances of winning the Senate runoffs on Jan. 5. Does he care? … Losing control of the Senate would let Democrats take a machete to his legacy, but only one man knows what is really going on in the head of Donald J. Trump." "ECONOMY IS SPUTTERING" … NYT'S BEN CASSELMAN: "Personal income fell in November for the second straight month, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, and consumer spending declined for the first time since April, as waning government aid and a worsening pandemic continued to take a toll on the U.S. economy. "Separate data from the Labor Department showed that applications for unemployment benefits remained high last week and have risen since early November. Taken together, the reports are the latest evidence that the once-promising economic recovery is sputtering." MEANWHILE, THE CORONAVIRUS IS RAGING … 18.4 MILLION Americans have tested positive for the coronavirus … 326,217 Americans have died. -- BY THE NUMBERS: "CDC: More than 1 million Americans got Covid shots," by Rachel Roubein: "More than 1 million Americans have received Covid shots, but the government isn't likely to make good on the goal of vaccinating 20 million people by the end of this month, federal officials said Wednesday. "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention touted breaking the 1 million mark 10 days after the start of the most ambitious immunization program in U.S. history. But agency Director Robert Redfield acknowledged limited supply of vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna present 'a challenging path ahead.' 'Supply will increase in the weeks and months to come,' Redfield said. "Also on Wednesday, the head of the government's Operation Warp Speed vaccine accelerator, Moncef Slaoui, conceded that it likely won't be possible to vaccinate 20 million people by year's end — a benchmark that he and other Trump administration officials had set for the effort." -- AP: "Nurses fear what's to come: 'Walk down our unit for a day'" by Stefanie Dazio | | | |   | | | TRUMP'S THURSDAY -- The president -- who is at his Palm Beach resort -- has nothing on his public schedule. The daily guidance included this note: "As the Holiday season approaches, President Trump will continue to work tirelessly for the American People. His schedule includes many meetings and calls." VP MIKE PENCE has nothing on his schedule. BIDEN and VP-ELECT KAMALA HARRIS will meet with transition advisers. | | | | EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT TRANSITION PLAYBOOK, SUBSCRIBE TODAY: A new year is quickly approaching. Inauguration Day is right around the corner. President-elect Joe Biden's staffing decisions are sending clear-cut signals about his priorities. What do these signals foretell? Transition Playbook is the definitive guide to the new administration and one of the most consequential transfers of power in American history. Written for political insiders, this scoop-filled newsletter breaks big news daily and analyzes the appointments, people and emerging power centers of the new administration. Track the transition and the first 100 days of the incoming Biden administration. Subscribe today. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOK READS | | | 
PHOTO DU JOUR: A demonstrator wears a face shield with a red handprint mimicking blood to protest Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's handling of the coronavirus in Brasilia, Brazil, on Wednesday, Dec. 23. | Eraldo Peres/AP Photo | LARA SELIGMAN, BRYAN BENDER and CONNOR O'BRIEN: "New cracks emerge among Democrats over Biden's Pentagon pick": "President-elect Joe Biden's historic choice for secretary of defense is running into hurdles on Capitol Hill, as key Democrats express concerns publicly and privately about whether installing a retired four-star general at the helm of the Pentagon further erodes civilian oversight of the military. "Rep. Seth Moulton, an influential member of the House Armed Services Committee, on Wednesday became the most prominent House Democrat to say he will not vote to grant retired Gen. Lloyd Austin a waiver to the law barring recently retired military officers from serving as defense secretary. 'Civilian control of the military is fundamental to our democracy so I don't think this is the time to make an exception,' Moulton, a Marine veteran of the Iraq War who also ran for president, told POLITICO on Wednesday. 'I am taking a vote on principle.' "'Almost by definition a recently retired general is by all intents and purposes thinking like a general,' he added. Moulton, who has publicly supported former Pentagon policy chief Michèle Flournoy for the job, said the Pentagon needs 'a strong, reform-minded leader who is not afraid to tell the military what they may not want to hear.'" BIG READ … NYT'S JEANNA SMIALEK: "The Year the Fed Changed Forever: Jerome H. Powell's central bank slashed rates, bought bonds in huge sums and rolled out never-before-tried loan programs that shifted its identity. The backlash is already beginning." BREXIT LATEST -- "EU officials prepare for Brexit deal as talks head into Thursday," by Jacopo Barigazzi and Hans Von Der Burchard: "EU diplomats have begun the process of preparing member countries to sign off on a Brexit deal, indicating an agreement with the U.K. could be imminent. "Hopes of reaching a deal governing future EU-U.K. relations once the Brexit transition period ends increased significantly on Wednesday, EU diplomats said, adding that both sides have made important progress since Tuesday afternoon when EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier offered a rather negative outlook on the talks. "In a sign that a deal could be clinched in the coming hours, EU ambassadors are on standby for a potential briefing on Thursday morning, several EU diplomats said. A spokesperson for the German presidency of the Council of the EU said on Twitter that no such meeting had been scheduled yet." POLITICO | | | | A message from Facebook: Internet regulations need an update
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Learn More | | | FOR YOUR RADAR -- "Rocket Attack on U.S. Embassy in Baghdad Largest in a Decade, General Says," by WSJ's Michael R. Gordon and Gordon Lubold: "The barrage of rockets launched at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad Sunday was the largest attack on the capital's Green Zone since 2010, numbering 21 missiles, the top U.S. military commander for the Middle East said. "Iraq's president has denounced the rocket firings as a 'terrorist act' and said that the targeting of diplomatic missions had tarnished the nation's reputation. An after-action review by the U.S. Central Command, however, indicated the attack was much larger than the eight rockets the Iraqis initially reported. The rocket attack appears to have been countered by the American C-RAM radar-guided defensive systems that the U.S. has deployed to protect the embassy, American officials say, and other rockets missed their mark. "No Americans were hurt in the attack, which damaged two buildings and a gym which troops and embassy personnel use for exercise. It wasn't yet clear if any personnel were inside the gym at the time of the attack, about 8:30 p.m. local time. Several cars parked nearby in the embassy compound were also damaged." WSJ -- "Trump administration pushes forward on $500 million weapons deal with Saudi Arabia," by WaPo's Missy Ryan and Karen DeYoung: "The Trump administration has formally notified Congress that it intends to sell nearly $500 million in precision bombs to Saudi Arabia, a transaction that is likely to fuel criticism from lawmakers who object to arming the Persian Gulf nation over its record of human rights abuses and stifling dissent and role in the war in Yemen. "An individual familiar with the sale, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment to the news media, said the deal includes 7,500 "Paveway IV" precision-guided bombs, worth $478 million, which under the terms of the agreement would be produced in the kingdom." WaPo | | | | KEEP UP WITH THE PEOPLE AND POLITICS DRIVING GLOBAL HEALTH IN 2021: The pandemic revealed just how critical it is to keep up with the politics, policy and people driving global health. The Covid-19 vaccine is here — now what? What will the distribution look like globally? Our Global Pulse newsletter connects leaders, policymakers and advocates to the politics impacting our global health. Join the conversation and subscribe today. | | | | | | | PLAYBOOKERS | | Send tips to Eli Okun and Garrett Ross at politicoplaybook@politico.com. SPOTTED: Paul and Janna Ryan at Dick's Sporting Goods in Wheaton, Md., on Wednesday afternoon. TRANSITION -- Harry Fones has been hired as comms director for Rep.-elect Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.). He most recently was assistant press secretary at DHS. … Darlene Caprio will be an area director for Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.). She previously was area director for Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.). BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, is 8-0. A fun fact about him: "That, before I got too busy, I used to love to dance, particularly with my wife. So, nobody knows that Tony Fauci really likes to dance, but I do. Just go back to the 50s and the 60s, Lindy type of dances, and actually my wife is very good in Latin-American dances, you know mambo, tango, that kind of thing." Playbook Q&A BIRTHDAYS: MSNBC anchor Stephanie Ruhle … former A.G. Jeff Sessions is 74 … Sabrina Singh, press secretary for VP-elect Kamala Harris … Evan Osnos … Dan Pfeiffer, co-host of "Pod Save America," is 45 … Dennis Cheng … Marsha (Catron) Espinosa, COS for Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.) … Brian Marriott … French Ambassador Philippe Etienne is 65 … Walter Pincus is 88 … CNBC's Ylan Mui … Mark Kornblau, EVP of comms at NBCU News Group … Richard Schlackman … Emory Cox of the White House is 25 … Atif Harden … Ellen Ochs … David Leavy, chief corporate operating officer at Discovery (h/ts Jon Haber) … Charlie Liebschutz, partner at SRCPmedia, is 37 … Perry Thompson, director of bar admissions at the Supreme Court … Gabrielle Schirmer, executive assistant and program coordinator at Heritage Action … CBS' Anna Sugg … GM CEO Mary Barra is 59 … … Samir Kapadia, principal and COO of the Vogel Group … Gene Sperling is 62 … NYT's Brian Zittel is 48 … former Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-Texas) is 71 … Mark Prentice … Mike Curb is 76 … Lou Gerig … Nolan Wein … Jonathan Zittrain … Kathy Kiely, professor at the Missouri School of Journalism … Damon Marx is 31 … Harry Baumgarten, VP at Grundy Commons … Jordan Valdés … Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is 59 … Nizar Manek … former Afghan President Hamid Karzai is 63 … Ed Miliband is 51 … Alix Montes ... William Ward Wyatt ... Dorinda Moss Verhoff ... Lindsay McGarity … Nathan Carleton ... Corry Schiermeyer … New York state Assemblymember Deborah Glick is 7-0 … Jeremy Broggi ... Sarah Penny Smith ... Sharon Williams ... Jodi Ochstein ... Grace O'Meara ... Ken Biberaj ... AJ Sugarman ... Roger Lempke ... Kim Caldwell ... 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