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Republicans Rewrite Portions Of Tax Bill Hours Before Vote
HP | Matt Fuller | 11/30/17

Senate Republicans avoided the most embarrassing scenario for their tax bill Thursday ? an unexpected floor defeat that would have sent the legislation back to committee ? but they are still facing a significant stumbling block and, hours before a vote, are still changing portions of their bill.

The "trigger" proposal from Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), which would have set off certain tax increases if Republicans didn't hit revenue targets, was struck down by the Senate parliamentarian on Thursday afternoon. (Because of the restrictions that allow Republicans to pass their tax plan with a simple majority, provisions that don't materially affect fiscal policies could be ruled subject to 60 votes.)

So when the parliamentarian informed Corker that his trigger proposal wouldn't fly, the GOP bill suddenly faced a problem. Without that provision, Corker didn't feel comfortable voting for the bill, and he had reinforcements. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who has also been concerned about how much debt the bill would produce, as well as Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), who has concerns about pass-through business tax provisions, both refused to vote against a Democratic motion to send the legislation back to committee until a fix could be worked out. ... Read more

Cotton cements his rise under Trump
Politico | Eliana Johnson | 11/30/17

The Arkansas senator, under consideration as a potential successor to Mike Pompeo as CIA director, has chosen to shape the president rather than railing against him.

Now a freshman senator, Cotton is expected to head to Langley if President Donald Trump decides to nominate current CIA director Mike Pompeo to replace Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, according to two senior administration officials.

Cotton's appointment would cement his meteoric rise in Republican politics, the result of qualities that have taken him, in a matter of years, from freshman congressman to the youngest serving U.S. senator to, potentially, the youngest CIA director in American history: loyalty, brains and raw ambition. He also embodies one of the GOP's responses to Trump. Having already shared some of the president's populist leanings, he has worked to co-opt and shape the president rather than rail against him. ... Read more

The CIA could be permanently damaged
WashingtonPost | Jennifer Rubin | 12/01/17

The White House has readied a plan to oust embattled Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and replace him with CIA Director Mike Pompeo, who has become one of the most personally loyal and politically savvy members of President Trump's national security team, two administration officials confirmed Thursday ...

Under the plan, Pompeo would probably be replaced at the CIA by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), one of Trump's most steadfast defenders and a confidant to some leading members of the foreign policy team, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the White House has not publicly announced the moves.

While Pompeo may or may not do better than Tillerson, it is far from clear that any star player would be asked or would take a job in the three-ring Trump circus. The much more problematic part of this is Pompeo's replacement. ... Read more

Trump tells confidants that a government shutdown might be good for him politically
WashingtonPost | Josh Dawsey | 12/01/17

The president's mixed messages on a partial shutdown has hampered Republicans ability to negotiate with Democrats on spending legislation. Trump also is said to be focusing on his hard-line immigration stance as a way to win back supporters unhappy with his past outreach to Democrats. ... Read more

*Truthdig Editor in Chief Robert Scheer Outrage: Dumping Tillerson Would Remove the Adult in Trump's Administration | truthdig | 11/30/17 | 2:56