memeorandum: GOP discord on wall prolongs shutdown fight (The Hill)

9:35 AM ET, December 23, 2018

Top Items:

Kris Schneider / ABC News:

Mick Mulvaney says DHS can't ‘spend money from Mexico’ for wall: ‘We have to get it from the treasury’ — The president's incoming chief of staff said Sunday that any money for the border wall would have to come from the Treasury Department, saying “the Department of Homeland Security can't actually spend money from Mexico.”

Discussion: Axios and CNN

The Hill:

GOP discord on wall prolongs shutdown fight — The government shutdown fight is increasingly shaping up as a battle among Republicans for the president's ear. — President Trump summoned a group of Republicans to lunch at the White House Saturday afternoon as negotiators struggled to reach an agreement to reopen the government.

New York Times:
Government Shutdown to Continue for Days as Senate Adjourns Until Thursday

Discussion: Politico, Mother Jones and Outside the Beltway

Washington Post:
Shutdown to stretch on until at least Thursday as Senate adjourns with no deal over budget, Trump's border wall

Discussion: Daily Kos and Splinter

CBS News:
Senate adjourns through Christmas with government partially shut down — live updates

Discussion: Roll Call, USA Today, ABC News, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Week

New York Times:

For Trump, ‘a War Every Day,’ Waged Increasingly Alone — At the midpoint of his term, the president has grown more sure of his own judgment and more isolated from anyone else's than at any point since he took office. — WASHINGTON — When President Trump grows frustrated with advisers during meetings …

Discussion: Axios, Althouse, Mediaite, Raw Story and Mother Jones

The Times of Israel:

Departing Mattis said to cancel Israel trip, as Israel feels ‘betrayed’ on Syria — TV report says US defense secretary was set to hold talks with in Israel next week on Iran and Syria; senior Israeli officials said to harshly criticize Syria pullout decision

Josh Lederman / NBC News: White House says Erdogan promised Trump he'd finish off ISIS in Syria

BBC:
US envoy Brett McGurk quits over Trump Syria pullout

Discussion: The Week, Breitbart, The Guardian, ThinkProgress, Daily Kos, CNN and New York Times

Washington Post:
U.S. envoy to coalition fighting ISIS resigns in protest of Trump's Syria decision

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, The Week, Axios, Joe.My.God., Splinter and Associated Press

Greg Stohr / Bloomberg:

Mystery Filing Appears to Ask High Court to Act in Mueller Probe — Grand jury dispute has been long been shrouded in mystery — Special counsel is investigating Russian election meddling — A new legal filing appears to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene …

Discussion: Raw Story

Katelyn Polantz / CNN: Mystery company involved in Mueller investigation appeals to Supreme Court

Josh Gerstein / Politico: Mystery firm takes Mueller-linked subpoena fight to Supreme Court

Paul Sperry / RealClearInvestigations:

John Huber, Justice Dept. Sheriff Who Never Quite Rode Into Town — John Huber has developed almost mythical status among pro-Trump tweeters since former Attorney General Jeff Sessions directed him to investigate why the FBI spied on Trump's aides and whether they protected Hillary Clinton and her foundation over alleged misdeeds.

Josh Campbell / CNN:
Trump's relationship with Whitaker imperils the rule of law

Discussion: Mother Jones, Hullabaloo and Hot Air

Salena Zito / Washington Examiner:

Trump forgets his base is populists and conservatives — When candidate Donald J. Trump steamrolled American politics in 2016, he seemed to understand the coalition available to him was an eclectic bunch that felt its issues had been ignored. — They were both populists and conservatives, and they placed him in office.

HuffPost: The GOP Ends Its One-Party Rule In Shambles

Philip Rucker / Washington Post:

‘A rogue presidency’: The era of containing Trump is over — For two years, they tried to tutor and confine him. They taught him history, explained nuances and gamed out reverberations. They urged careful deliberation, counseled restraint and prepared talking points to try …

Discussion: The Atlantic

Beto O'Rourke / Beto O'Rourke:

Closed until further notice — The government of the greatest country the world has ever known, the wealthiest, most powerful nation on the planet: closed until further notice. — This shutdown - hundreds of thousands of our fellow Americans working without pay during the holidays …

Stanley Widianto / Washington Post:

Indonesia tsunami kills at least 222 after striking without warning — JAKARTA — At least 222 deaths have been reported in Indonesia on Sunday after a tsunami struck the Sunda Strait without warning, the latest disaster to befall a Pacific nation repeatedly stricken this year.

Cleve R. Wootson Jr / Washington Post:

Laura Ingraham taunted David Hogg over college rejections. He just said he got into Harvard. — In mid-December, Harvard's early-entry candidates began logging on to the application status portal to learn whether they'd been accepted to one of the world's most prestigious universities.

Discussion: New York Post, The Daily Caller and Associated Press

Ashe Schow / Daily Wire:

Here's Everything That's Wrong With The Vanity Fair Hit Job On Brett Kavanaugh's Alma Mater — Months after Judge Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed to the Supreme Court, Vanity Fair decided to run yet another hit piece on him by going after his alma mater, Georgetown Prep.

Kelly Weill / The Daily Beast:

Christmas Is the Loneliest Time for Qanon Fans — The Daily Beast spoke to four Q believers who claim to have been isolated from loved ones, as well as a former Q believer who thinks the isolation helps reinforce QAnon support. — Kimberly's boyfriend was tired of hearing the QAnon videos she watched around their small apartment.

Discussion: Raw Story

The Times of Israel:

Simcha Rotem, last surviving fighter in Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, dies at 94 — Rotem fought Nazis in city streets, later helped rebels flee through sewers; Netanyahu says, ‘His story will forever be with our people’ — Simcha Rotem, last surviving fighter in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943 …

Nancy Cook / Politico:

‘Bushies’ creep into Trump's administration — President Donald Trump uses the term “Bushie” as shorthand for anyone he considers too establishment, thinks too conventionally, or is just, in the president's mind, a pain. — But a strange thing has been happening within his administration lately.

Discussion: Raw Story