What Washington is Talking About:
Lawmakers are considering proposals to prevent shutdowns from happening again; Senate Democrats are holding their retreat at the Library of Congress; and Minority Leader Schumer announced former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams will give Democrats' response to President Trump's State of the Union.
What America is Talking About:
It's so cold in parts of the Midwest that mail delivery is canceled in 10 states; Hollywood stars, politicians and others have sent well wishes to "Empire" star Jussie Smollett after he reported getting attacked in Chicago; and R&B singer James Ingram died at the age of 66.
Not On The Same Page:
It turns out we haven't yet beaten ISIS badly, North Korea is unlikely to give up its nuclear capabilities, and climate change is real and poses security challenges, America's intel heads said. Yesterday's Senate intelligence committee hearing with US intelligence chiefs revealed one issue after another on which Trump's own administration disagrees with him. Trump's claim of a crisis on the US-Mexico border was not a threat they brought up. You can read more from our Zachary Cohen and Kevin Liptak here.
Election Interference Expected to Continue:
Regarding next year's presidential election, a Worldwide Threat Assessment report put out yesterday by Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats stated American adversaries are "probably already are looking to the 2020 US elections as an opportunity to advance their interests." Russia, in particular "will continue to focus on aggravating social and racial tensions, undermining trust in authorities, and criticizing perceived anti-Russia politicians."
The report also found that Russia and China are more aligned than at any time since the 1950s and are seeking to expand their influence as some US allies and partners are moving away from Washington due to US policies on security and trade. You can read the full report here.
Venezuela Gets Travel Advisory:
Hope you didn't have any upcoming trips to Caracas planned. The State Department yesterday issued an advisory, citing "crime, civil unrest, poor health infrastructure, and arbitrary arrest and detention of US citizens."
Trump today had a call with "Venezuelan Interim President Juan Guaido." Per the readout, the two leaders agreed to maintain regular communication and rebuild their countries' bilateral relationship.
Garcetti Out:
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has been considering a possible 2020 presidential run going back more than a year now, but he announced yesterday he will not run.
"I realized that this is what I am meant to do, this is where I want to be and this is a place where we have so much exciting work to finish," he said.
Schultz Wants to Fix Obamacare:
In an interview with our Poppy Harlow, former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz defended his criticism of Sen. Kamala Harris' Medicare-for-all proposal, calling it unaffordable. He said he believes every American deserves affordable health care but said the way to make that happen is to fix the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare.
He also said the Democratic Party has shifted left and some of its progressive policies are as "false as President Trump telling the American people when he was running for president that the Mexicans were going to pay for the wall." | |
