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02/01/2019 08:06 AM EDT

By MELANIE ZANONA (mzanona@politico.com; @MZanona)


BORDER TALKS HIT A WALL -- Trump and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) are at an impasse over the border wall. Pelosi reiterated that Democrats would not support a single dollar for the wall, putting it rather bluntly: "There's not going to be any wall money in the legislation." She did, however, leave the door open to supporting some sort of physical barrier along the border. "Is there a place where enhanced fencing, Normandy fencing would work? Let them have that discussion," Pelosi said of the conference committee. "If the president wants to call that a wall, he can call it a wall."

But Trump is shooting down the idea that he would accept anything less than a wall, even though he previously said he would be open to fencing or a steel slat barrier. "Lets just call them WALLS from now on and stop playing political games! A WALL is a WALL!," he tweeted Thursday. And in an interview with The New York Times, Trump called the congressional talks a "waste of time," suggesting he's given up hope on Congress and is preparing to declare a national emergency to bypass lawmakers. More from Heather: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e0278a559861c3c666abe1964ff629e857fa7a3e1694d805317ae4c2ad7cc64f7618d8fc5ffa54cf26250cd7c5730d6f

Related: "Progressive Dems: 'Not Another Dollar' More in DHS Funding," by Gideon Resnick and Sam Brodey at The Daily Beast: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e0278a559861c3c6b6e599114d30a1b375bafa657ec2df078650fa13fb253e296cbfb0eb80601c7ecac8c369d058929a

TRUMP ON THE SIDELINES -- Even with Trump throwing cold water on the border wall talks, congressional negotiators are determined to reach an agreement. Part of their recipe for success? Keeping Trump on the sidelines. Republicans are encouraging the president to back off so they can keep their heads down and focus on negotiating a border security package with Democrats. A group of Republicans even nixed a plan to meet with Trump at the White House this week. The concern is that Trump's close involvement in the talks could hamstring the work of the bipartisan conference committee. More from Burgess, Caitlin Oprysko and Eliana Johnson: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e0278a559861c3c680eeea49e8dc4b1509353f4e2d5e317308f98795fdd7d794bd9a356cb52355d0112e73d8262a5565

THEY'RE RUNNING -- Two more Democratic senators are officially jumping into the presidential ring this month. Sen. Cory Booker (N.J.) released an official announcement video this morning - the first day of Black History month. And Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) is expected to make a 2020 announcement on Feb. 9, reports Natasha Korecki. They will join a burgeoning field, which already includes two of their Senate colleagues: Kamala Harris of California and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e0278a559861c3c621c145bf530f13ec5473c1f6b5cf8788cc9a023e70a18683ffabc0a2defcff8aa3d59fc84ab00a6e

T.G.I.F.! Welcome to Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Feb. 1. It's finally Friday, which makes your host as happy as Sen. Tim Scott's (R-S.C.) office on moving day.

THURSDAY'S MOST CLICKED: The report from Axios on Democrats finalizing their "Green New Deal" legislation was the big winner.


** A message from Freight Rail Works: The Department of Transportation expects total freight demand to grow 37% by 2040 - and only one industry is spending billions of dollars annually to build the freight transportation network of the future. Learn how freight rail's private investments are creating a safer, cleaner and cost-effective solution for today and tomorrow. www.aar.org/freight-rails-investments **


DEMS READY TO RUMBLE -- After a month of threats, it looks like House Democrats are ready to pull the trigger on their newfound subpoena power. Their first target? Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Democrats have requested information on the Trump administration's decision to lift sanctions on an oligarch closely tied to Russian President Vladimir Putin, giving the Treasury Department until Feb. 5 to fork over the documents. But lawmakers are not expecting the Treasury Department to comply, teeing up what one senior lawmaker expects to be their first subpoena of the new Congress. Much more from Andrew: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e0278a559861c3c69220dd4c79dfb976bdad0258e32f71f57cca14ba8329fa1f18d3e22848056994775964f659615eee

Meanwhile, the House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing next Thursday on Trump's tax returns - another top priority for Democrats. The announcement comes on the heels of a POLITICO report that progressives were growing impatient with Chairman Richard Neal (D-Mass.) for taking a "go-slow" approach to obtaining the president's tax filings. Neal wants to make a public case for the effort first, and the hearing is the first step in that process.

Related: "New Democrats launch task forces to help craft the House majority's policy agenda," via Roll Call's Lindsey McPherson: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e0278a559861c3c6b4cbf37e9198b311d5e03631bacaeacf506cd6c4c146056840b18db3a2ef45bf9455e000af0ffc7e

SENATE SPLITS FROM TRUMP ON SYRIA -- In the Senate's most public rebuke of Trump to date, senators agreed to move forward with an amendment to a Middle East policy bill that expresses opposition to the president's decision to withdraw troops from Syria and Afghanistan. It's the strongest sign yet that Republicans are willing to defy Trump on certain foreign policy issues. The Syria amendment, however, put Democrats in a tough spot, with many 2020 contenders voting against it. More from The New York Times: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=e0278a559861c3c641a10573d1358821e286bde146ea1ea6b06816c60c7d6c6155b5eb4043afc07b052f715c7703a5d7

THE NEW GOP ALLIANCE -- The House Freedom Caucus made life hell for GOP leaders in the majority. Now, Republican leadership is taking a page out of the HFC playbook to make life miserable for Democrats. Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) and Freedom Caucus chief Mark Meadows (N.C.) have begun to jointly plot their attack lines and political stunts, while GOP Conference Chair Liz Cheney (Wyo.) has been reaching out to HFC co-founder Jim Jordan (Ohio) to coordinate their messaging ahead of a likely onslaught of Democratic investigations into Trump. But with no power to stop legislation, they may be little more than a nuisance with their tactics. More from Sarah and your Huddle host:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=db0ed658304e25e355e2b2cb14ffd250797a483806e5b728c223b43b38acf48fb8331919c805d8a2d15efedc9b17702c

KUSHNER IN THE CROSSHAIRS -- Democrats are calling on the White House to revoke Jared Kushner's top secret security clearance, the latest salvo in their rigorous oversight of the Trump administration. The move comes in the wake of a recent NBC News report that Kushner's clearance was initially rejected by two officials after his FBI background check raised concerns about potential foreign influence, but the officials were overruled by a supervisor. Last month, the House Oversight Committee launched a probe into the White House's security clearance process. The letter from Reps. Don Beyer (Va.) and Ted Lieu (Calif.): http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=db0ed658304e25e39f4b6d8e4b94e6949dd966e5780d1bafd97b35f12b99a1d9296b1d24aced990358d19ffdd25e00da

THE DON JR. CALL MYSTERY -- Senate investigators were told that the blocked calls made by Donald Trump Jr. before and after the infamous Trump Tower meeting in 2016 were not from his father, reports CNN. The calls have been one of the biggest question marks in the Russia probe, with Democrats suspecting that then-candidate Trump was in communication with his son about the meeting with a Russian lawyer, which would contradict his public statements. According to records provided to senators, however, the calls were from business associates. More from Pamela Brown, Manu Raju and Jeremy Herb: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=db0ed658304e25e3e49f0ad64e1a97e90461816258f65af3fe9216bf70492429dc84737f7a74baa04dba1a21d069e164

FILIBUSTER SPLITS 2020 DEMS -- There's a new potential litmus test for 2020 that could put Democratic presidential hopefuls in a tough spot: whether to nuke the Senate filibuster. A debate is already heating up in the party over whether to support a controversial revamp of the Senate rules in order to help enact their agenda. But not everyone is likely to be on board. Warren said "everything stays on the table," while Booker said "we should not be doing anything to mess with the strength of the filibuster." More from Burgess and Marianne: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=db0ed658304e25e394f441ec31c2abbdd0fd6959419a6f410265b9ff0c25046c401bb3d4b75933c1b5fadd3b914b3073

BERNIE HITS THE ULTRA-WEALTHY -- Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has rolled out new legislation to vastly expand the federal estate tax. The bill would apply the tax to those who inherit more than $3.5 million, down significantly from the current $11 million threshold. According to Sanders' office, it would affect the "the top 0.02 percent of Americans." Sanders, on the cusp of a likely 2020 bid, has made railing against economic inequality a cornerstone of his political brand for decades. More from Holly Otterbein: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=db0ed658304e25e3d1c406567f114c26e61d89102b1f06b0ae5e43e64c8e70dc488950af315c4eacbc0b5d72a942dab1

SPOTTED -- Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who was eating SmashBurger, on a JetBlue flight from DCA to Ft. Lauderdale. Kamala Harris was also seen at DCA on her way to SFO. Pic.

Get "Freezin' for a Reason" on Saturday with Special Olympics DC. POLITICO is thrilled to partner with the "Polar Plunge," an annual event that supports more than 1,600 Special Olympics DC athletes on Saturday, Feb. 2. Attendees will enjoy ICE YARDS festivities, including icy cocktails and local D.C. brews, fun activities, live music, an ice bar, food from neighborhood restaurants, D.C.'s largest group shotski attempt and so much more! Visit dcpolarplunge.org to register as an individual, as a team or join an existing team and take the plunge.
TRANSITIONS
Kevin Boland has joined The National Propane Gas Association as director of communications and media relations. He was previously communications director for Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas).

Anthony DeAngelo will join the office of Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) as communications director. He was previously a director at APCO Worldwide, and press secretary at the AFL-CIO.
TODAY IN CONGRESS
The House is out until Tuesday. The Senate is out until Monday.
AROUND THE HILL
A quiet day around here, finally.
TRIVIA
THURSDAY'S WINNER -- Colleen Shogan was the first person to correctly guess that President Gerald Ford once worked as a fashion model, appearing in both Cosmo and Look magazine.

TODAY'S QUESTION -- From Colleen: In 1982, President Reagan started the tradition of seating American citizens who have performed heroic acts with the First Lady at the State of the Union address. Who was the first guest and why were they notable? First person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your best guess my way: mzanona@politico.com.

GET HUDDLE emailed to your phone each morning.

** A message from Freight Rail Works: America's freight railroads spend an average of $25 billion a year on infrastructure, equipment and innovation - all at no cost to taxpayers. What does America get out of it? A cleaner environment, a cost-effective solution to get American goods to market nationally and beyond, and a boost in economic activity that amounted to $220 billion in 2017 alone. Learn how the future of freight transportation is working for America today. www.aar.org/freight-rails-investments **

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