Top Items:


Congress votes to end shutdown — In a dramatic turnaround, Senate Democrats voted to reopen the government on Monday after receiving a commitment from Republicans to hold a vote on immigration legislation — paving the way to end the three-day shutdown. — The Senate voted 81-18 …
RELATED:


Dems Fold on This Shutdown, But the Next One Could Be Worse — Dems Fold on This Shutdown, But the Next One Could Be Worse — Chuck Schumer accepted Mitch McConnell's promise to vote on Dreamers in exchange for reopening the government. If he breaks that promise, all hell will break loose.
Discussion:
Politico, ABC News, National Review, Shareblue Media, Washington Post, The Atlantic, NBC News, Talking Points Memo and Raw Story


Democrats' Bold Fold Shifts the Pressure onto Trump and His GOP Enablers … Well, the #TrumpShutdown ended Monday with no DACA deal, and the Democratic base is understandably furious. But this is the beginning of the fight for immigration fairness and the DREAMers, not the end.
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon


Trump is facing a big moment of truth. And no amount of spin and lies can change it. — THE MORNING PLUM: — Once you get past all the finger-pointing, spin and lies, there is no escaping a basic fact about the government shutdown. President Trump and Republicans are soon …
Discussion:
New Republic, CNN, Breitbart, The Federalist, Vox, New York Times, New York Magazine and No More Mister Nice Blog


'It's Morally Reprehensible': Liberals Livid With Senate Dems Over Shutdown Deal
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money and The Week

DEMOCRATS ARE ALLOWING REPUBLICANS TO HAVE IT BOTH WAYS ON THE DREAMERS
Discussion:
CNN, Vox, Politico, The Mahablog and Eschaton

House votes to end government shutdown, sending legislation to Trump

'We're Back at Square One' — Pro-immigrant activists reacted …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Politico and Mother Jones

Left says Dems caved on shutdown
Discussion:
NewsBusters, Townhall.com, The Rush Limbaugh Show, Washington Times and IJR


“I've Got Another Nut Job Here Who Thinks He's Running Things”: Are Trump and Kelly Heading for Divorce? — With the president and his chief of staff arguing in public, Ivanka Trump takes charge of finding a replacement. — Donald Trump's relationship with John Kelly, his chief of staff …
Discussion:
Shareblue Media, Little Green Footballs, The Root, The Week, VICE, Raw Story, Mediaite and AOL


Susan Collins had senators in bipartisan meetings use talking stick — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — Washington (CNN)During bipartisan talks between senators to discuss passing a funding bill to end the government shutdown, Sen. Susan Collins whose office was being used for the negotiations, figured out a civil way to create discussion.


Pennsylvania Supreme Court Strikes Down State's Congressional Map, Saying It Illegally Benefits GOP — Republicans had consistently received a 13-5 advantage in the state's congressional delegation since 2012. — The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Monday ruled that the state's congressional map went …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress and New York Magazine
RELATED:

Pennsylvania court throws out congressional boundaries
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Booman Tribune and The Week

Pennsylvania's Supreme Court just gave Democrats a big win on redistricting
Discussion:
New York Times and IJR


The immigration negotiations Congress just gave itself 3 weeks to do, explained — Democrats know what they want. Republicans have no idea. — Congress just gave itself three weeks to solve US immigration policy. — Ostensibly, they agreed to a deal that would reopen the federal government and keep it funded through February 8.
RELATED:


Are Democrats becoming more like Republicans?
Discussion:
ABC News, The Daily Signal, Townhall.com, Washington Post and Politico


The Latest: Pence calls report on Trump affair baseless — JERUSALEM (AP) — The Latest on Vice President Mike Pence's interview with The Associated Press (all times local): — Vice President Mike Pence says reports that an adult film star had an alleged affair with President Donald Trump are “baseless allegations.”
RELATED:


Trump voting commission bought Texas election data flagging Hispanic voters — President Trump's voting commission asked every state and the District for detailed voter registration data, but in Texas's case it took an additional step: It asked to see Texas records that identify all voters …
Discussion:
Mother Jones, Axios, New York Magazine, IJR, Talking Points Memo, Splinter and Raw Story


George Papadopoulos is the ‘John Dean’ of the Russia investigation, his fiancee says — He has been mocked by President Trump as a “low level volunteer” and “proven to be a liar.” — But the fiancee of George Papadopoulos, the former Trump campaign adviser who pleaded guilty in October …
Discussion:
Axios, Mediaite and Political Wire


Trump Taxes Solar Imports in Biggest Blow to Renewables Yet — President approves four years of tariffs starting at 30% — Tariffs set to gradually decline to 15 percent in fourth year — In the biggest blow he's dealt to the renewable energy industry yet, President Donald Trump decided …
Discussion:
Political Wire and Axios
RELATED:


There's a Surprise in the Government Funding Bill: More Tax Cuts — WASHINGTON — Congress is apparently not done cutting taxes, even after passing a $1.5 trillion tax overhaul last year. — The deal struck by Democrats and Republicans on Monday to end a brief government shutdown contains $31 billion …
Discussion:
twitchy.com
RELATED:

CHIP is finally getting funded — after 114 days without a budget
Discussion:
VICE, NBC News and Modern Healthcare


‘Defiance Disorder’: Another new book describes chaos in Trump's White House — In late July, the White House had just finished an official policy review on transgender individuals serving in the military and President Trump and his then-chief of staff, Reince Priebus, had agreed to meet …
Discussion:
Politico, ABC News, Hullabaloo, Salon, Raw Story, The Daily Beast, Mediaite and Joe.My.God., more at Mediagazer »
RELATED:

Howard Kurtz book to offer another look at White House “disorder”
Discussion:
RedState and Washington Post


At Davos, 6 Feet of Snow Brings Limousines to a Crawl — DAVOS, Switzerland — It may be tempting fate to try to gather 60 heads of state and hundreds of global business leaders in the dead of winter in a Swiss mountain valley. This year, the World Economic Forum's luck seems to have run out.
Discussion:
thecut
RELATED:

IMF Says Global Growth Picking Up as U.S. Tax Cuts Take Hold
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and NTK Network


ICE detains a Polish doctor and green-card holder who has lived in the U.S. for nearly 40 years — Lukasz Niec was 5 years old when his parents brought him and his sister to the United States from Poland. With two suitcases in tow, his parents — both doctors — left behind a country on the verge of social turmoil.

A Jewish journalist is confronting Trump's immigration advisers with their own immigrant histories — NEW YORK (JTA) — During a combative news conference in early August, White House adviser Stephen Miller told reporters that the United States should prioritize immigrants who speak English.


Bank of America: No More Free Checking for Customers With Low Balances — eBanking customers switched into accounts that typically require direct deposit or a minimum balance to avoid $12 monthly fee — Bank of America Corp. BAC .69% has eliminated a free checking account popular …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress and The Charlotte Observer


Budweiser falls off the list of America's three favorite beers — Tapping into craft beer's online potential — Budweiser is no longer one of America's three most popular beers. — Before 2001, Budweiser was the top-selling U.S. beer, but it relinquished that crown to Bud Light.
Discussion:
Business Insider


Scoop: Read the draft White House infrastructure plan — Below is a leaked draft document with plans for the White House infrastructure plan, a key campaign priority of President Trump. — Comment from White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters: “We are not going to comment on the contents …

Statement of Rupert Murdoch, Executive Chairman of News Corp, on a Carriage Fee for Trusted Publishers — News Corp today issued the following statement from Executive Chairman, Rupert Murdoch: — “Facebook and Google have popularized scurrilous news sources through algorithms that are profitable …
Discussion:
NBC News, The Verge, The Daily Caller, Mashable and Engadget, more at Mediagazer »


Montana Governor Signs Order to Force Net Neutrality — WASHINGTON — Most efforts underway to restore so-called net neutrality face big obstacles and would take many months, if not years, to succeed. — But in Montana, the governor has used the stroke of a pen to bring the rules to broad parts of his state.
Discussion:
Governor Steve Bullock …, Engadget, The Verge and Mashable, more at Techmeme »


Inside The Fight For The Soul Of Kaspersky Lab — Kaspersky Lab is under fire in the US over concerns that it could provide its clients' private — and at times secret — information to the Russian government. A new investigation by Russian news site Meduza, published here exclusively in English …


Democrats solidify their lead in midterm elections matchup (POLL) — Democrats have solidified their position in the November midterm elections in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll, maintaining a 12-point lead among registered voters while improving to a wide 14-point advantage among likely voters in congressional preference.
Discussion:
Politico, Washington Post, Hit & Run, Shareblue Media and Taylor Marsh