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01/31/2018 07:57 AM EDT


By Nolan D. McCaskill (nmccaskill@politico.com or @NolanDMcCaskill)

TRUMP'S SOTU DRAWS MIXED REVIEWS FROM CONGRESS \u2015 So much for unity. While President Donald Trump largely stuck to the script throughout his 80-minute State of the Union address Tuesday night, Democrats were furious with his immigration rhetoric. "After Trump and his White House team teased a bipartisan theme, the minority party was waiting to hear something conciliatory about how to protect hundreds of thousands of young immigrants facing deportation," Burgess, Seung Min and Elana report. "Instead, Democrats booed Trump's reference to 'chain migration' and fumed afterward that his remarks conflated immigrants with gang members and did little to give so-called Dreamers any reassurance at
all."

Trump reiterated the four pillars of the White House's immigration framework, which includes a pathway to citizenship for nearly 2 million undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children and dramatic cuts to legal immigration. Democrats rejected the framework last week, and the president's only mention of "Dreamers" last night was the line, "Americans are dreamers, too." Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas), however, said the speech was "good" and "consistent" with the president's past comments.

"If Democrats don't figure out a way to negotiate then the DACA program will end," Cornyn warned, adding that Democrats would shoulder the blame. But Republicans aren't exactly on board, either. "You could tell by the number of sit-ups and sit-downs that went with different portions of the immigration portion of the speech that there's still strong division," Rep. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.), a Freedom Caucus member, told POLITICO. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875f8a4cef0b9ebe7704b267c1f5fa60fd2b141afe28ac41cf79bad5711c9fef0a893a2e31327faf52c

Both sides did agree on something: Neither heard enough about the president's infrastructure plan, including how to pay for it: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875e4e5ef0884f53cb8027d2113fd20d0804b9d528c1e7058d1662ca23366a7dad26cbd65242f9ef3c0

Related reads: "From 'American carnage' to 'American heart': How Trump toned it down," via Andrew Restuccia: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875b347b68904ece86b917453955398005ddc876975ebb5c85ffddd5b9f283ab846b1e8d134c35e9783 "Trump's what-if presidency," by John F. Harris and Matthew Nussbaum: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea35509414587540cb697f50b0b3fc339129ec40b23c4e1e7ca2ad48005a21acbeae0ad071b3e011dde57a42e1defb and "Trump Took a Victory Lap. Here's What He Didn't Mention," from Michael Grunwald: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875cc1b585ea2a1e6063ab3098b6b57855c48d31f3492274887bd8f2707c21adcea73169e51adcfa636

OFFICIAL DEM RESPONSE AVOIDS SAYING 'TRUMP' \u2015 House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told her caucus the State of the Union should focus on the president's "slobbering self." But it was Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-Mass.), who delivered the minority party's official rebuttal, who appeared to drool Tuesday night. Kennedy suggested Trump is a bully without mentioning him by name. But bullies, he said, "have never, not once, in the history of our United States, managed to match the strength and spirit of a people united in defense of their future." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875af8d2be74e5546b4dc86c707ee5b34e6638d4afab915c4ec1111f5a25ad42b2fa8fba7c642d4fb4f

Kennedy was far from the only Democrat to issue a response. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who caucuses with Democrats and ran for the party's presidential nomination in 2016, called Trump a "bully" and "compulsively dishonest." Rep. Maxine Waters' (D-Calif.) response is expected to air on BET tonight. According to The Washington Post, at least eight current and former Democratic legislators planned to deliver rebuttals.

REPUBLICANS HEAD TO W.VA. FOR ANNUAL RETREAT \u2015 Despite outstanding legislative issues and a looming Feb. 8 deadline to fund the government, Republicans will head to White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, this morning for their annual retreat. There, they "will talk about how to sell their tax law and fix the nation's infrastructure, while dining with President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence," according to Burgess and Heather, who obtained a copy of the party's retreat agenda. "But the party will sidestep an explicit discussion of the divisive issue of immigration," instead focusing on the 2018 midterms and participating in sessions with Cabinet officials. More:
http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875297ee1f359cf85f4dc7ea84e01cd95a010e3126736485b2c2a996f059c5cf8ed4a226562a16bdf36

Gotta jet? An Embraer Phenom 300 is flying from Manassas this morning into Greenbrier Valley at noon. The jet's tail number includes the initials VB, which suggests it could belong to Rep. Vern Buchanan, a wealthy Florida Republican from Sarasota. According to the Playbook team, "the aircraft is owned by an LLC for which he's a managing partner."

WE'VE ALMOST MADE IT TO FEBRUARY. Thanks for reading Huddle, the play-by-play guide to all things Capitol Hill, on this Wednesday, Jan. 31.

TUESDAY'S MOST CLICKED: Heather's report on the "State of the Uniom" blunder was the winner.

TRUMP SAYS HE'LL RELEASE THE MEMO \u2015 Cameras captured President Donald Trump telling Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.) he'll "100 percent" allow the release of a classified memo drafted by Republicans alleging surveillance abuses by the FBI and Justice Department. "Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee voted Monday to release [the memo] to the public, starting a five-day clock for the administration to block their plans," Karoun Demirjian reports for The Washington Post. "Trump had already indicated an interest in making the memo public." Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and FBI Director Christopher Wray made an appeal to the White House on Monday, warning chief of staff John Kelly
of the potential dangers of releasing the memo.

The White House received the document Monday night. Lawyers have reviewed it, and the National Security Council is now examining it. And, according to The New York Times, the FBI and DOJ are already bracing for its release. "Even without having seen it, Mr. Trump, whose preferred cable channel, Fox News, has focused on the memo extensively, has told people close to him that he feels strongly that the memo makes the case that F.B.I. and Justice Department officials acted inappropriately when they sought the highly classified warrant in October 2016 on the campaign adviser, Carter Page," Adam Goldman and Nicholas Fandos report. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875d9a2046587ffdb222c330128dfa8c4d6589c6c5060256518ffbdaf70daa8ca07d63eee8bf00097db

TRUMP'S NSA PICK \u2015 The president is expected to tap Lt. Gen. Paul Nakasone, the head of the Army's digital warfare branch, to lead the NSA. Adm. Mike Rogers, its current director, is retiring this spring. "Picking Nakasone - who took the reins at Army Cyber Command in late 2016 - would place someone deeply versed in cyberspace operations atop the country's premier intelligence-gathering service," Martin Matishak reports. "It's unclear when the administration might formally announce the choice, but it's believed the announcement could come in the next week or two, which means the Senate Armed Services Committee would hold a confirmation hearing in early March. The Senate Intelligence
Committee may also hold a hearing." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea3550941458752eaf08e75b5f9886f620344c155aa8876df74e8b99db9aa9440b5989e24345c88f82019a34a34dc7

CDC DIRECTOR BOUGHT TOBACCO SHARES AFTER TAKING OVER AGENCY \u2015 Trump's CDC director purchased shares in a tobacco company one month after taking over the agency, which is charged with reducing tobacco use. "The stock was one of about a dozen new investments that Brenda Fitzgerald ... made after she took over the agency's top job, according to documents obtained by POLITICO," Sarah Karlin-Smith and Brianna Ehley report. "Fitzgerald has since come under congressional scrutiny for slow walking divestment from older holdings that government officials said posed potential conflicts of interest." Fitzgerald's tobacco shares raise more red flags than her trading "because it stands in such stark
contrast to the CDC's mission to persuade smokers to quit and keep children from becoming addicted." Much more: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea3550941458758f1e7e33056184da99efbbe53e36582ffca3b808637648580da2e3d5495fd7ddefdba9a42e7af47b

GOSAR CALLED THE COPS ON DREAMERS \u2015 Democrats invited Dreamers as their guests for the State of the Union, but Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) wanted to lock them up. Gosar tweeted that he asked Capitol Police and Attorney General Jeff Sessions to consider IDing all attendees "and arresting any illegal aliens in attendance." He added that "illegal aliens attempting to go through security" should also be deported. "The powers that be on Capitol Hill did not appear to take Mr. Gosar as seriously as he took himself," Sheryl Gay Stolberg writes for The New York Times.

A spokeswoman for House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said the speaker "clearly" doesn't agree with Gosar's statements. Retiring Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) also spoke up, tweeting at Gosar, "This is why we can't have nice things..." Gosar responded, "This is why you got forced out of office." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875466d82f1b153a81a73176e6a85d97c1d8b0b8d386ab679d5aeb67cd0ac79c9f07565a74cb5e927a5

BILL ADDRESSING SEX ABUSE IN SPORTS HEADS TO TRUMP \u2015 The Senate on Tuesday passed a bill requiring amateur sports governing bodies to report sexual abuse allegations to law enforcement. The House passed the legislation on Monday, so it now heads to the president's desk. "The legislative push comes after Larry Nassar, a former USA Gymnastics national team doctor and physician at Michigan State University, pleaded guilty to criminal sexual conduct and was sentenced on Jan. 24 to up to 175 years in prison," Elizabeth Castillo reports. "More than 150 women and girls accused Nassar of assault." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875686b2a5e0da9a0489cbd7a0dc5e8c68593e95c91091d0383ea5ed6d1ec7dc12be3e32edbb502e490

THE DIMMING ALLURE OF CHAIRMANSHIPS \u2015 Being a committee chairman apparently isn't what it used to be. "Hemmed in by term limits, a domineering party leadership, bitter partisan feuds and a GOP base that automatically loathes anyone in power, seven Republican committee chairs have decided to leave office at the end of this Congress," Bres writes, acknowledging one Republican who gave up her chair to run for governor and another who left Congress entirely last year. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich's (R-Ga.) reforms to rein in chairmen's power and create a steering committee were well received by the GOP at the time more than two decades ago.

"The idea was designed to make the committees more accountable to leadership, and ultimately, to the American public," Bres reports. "Yet Gingrich's well-intentioned reform has contributed to the paralysis now gripping the House. Committee chairs are influential and they get on TV. But they have no real deal-making authority, especially on high-profile legislation." Much more: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875383c9959dfcadc3b4370277311d2ac9a2208e3de85d0ed857f2333dd77459a1ad77c295cb5deb020

Related: "Womack removes Budget Committee staff director," by Rachael and Sarah Ferris: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875a54482dc291df7e9da9b66cb5cbc2d2cbc5cbc87a8be6bbf633bd85338d173f5347f3c96c2ae668d

DNC FUNDRAISING LAGS BEHIND RNC \u2015 The DNC will report raising $5.2 million in December, bringing its 2017 haul to $67 million. "The total is slightly ahead of the party's haul in 2013 and 2015, the previous off-years when Democrats had the benefit of a president from their party in the White House. It's far behind the behind the $108 million that the DNC raised in 2011, however," Edward-Isaac Dovere reports. "It also badly trails the Republican National Committee, which raised $11.1 million in December for a 2017 total of $132.5 million." More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea3550941458756dc2ebefd44042e5f11c94c8b079a0283e696a7f149b3f8117470a7a452d80c8e0d4f070795cb02c

The RNC is expected to name Todd Ricketts as its new finance chairman. Ricketts is a major GOP donor whose family owns the Chicago Cubs. Steve Wynn, the Las Vegas casino mogul and former finance chairman, resigned over the weekend following reports of sexual misconduct, allegations he denies. "The news is expected to be made official this week, when the RNC holds its annual winter meeting in Washington," according to Alex Isenstadt and Andrew Restuccia. More: http://go.politicoemail.com/?qs=30ea355094145875ff124dde531a0f0f5a5a199cb852f07f52abe0a00dc2cd21bd96f6e05256ea6beb989ad2fe9f3571

HAPPENING TONIGHT: Michael Crowley, POLITICO's national security editor, will moderate a debate focused on America's role in the world and the future of the transatlantic relationship, convened by the Brookings Institution's foreign policy program and the Charles Koch Institute. Barry Posen of MIT, Joshua Shifrinson of Texas A&M, Victoria Nuland of the Center for a New American Security and Thomas Wright of the Foreign Policy Project on International Order and Strategy will engage in a thoughtful and lively discussion, debating how the United States should engage diplomatically, militarily and economically in Europe in the 21st century. Doors open at 6 p.m. ET at The Academy of Medicine at
the Georgia Institute of Technology. Follow along on Twitter via #AmericaInTheWorld. Livestream HERE or register HERE.

ARRIVAL LOUNGE - Caitlin Peruccio has been hired as a legislative assistant focused on health care and taxes for Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Ct.). She previously served as a legislative assistant for Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Ct.).

TODAY IN CONGRESS - The House and Senate are out for the remainder of the week.

AROUND THE HILL - House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Democratic Caucus Chairman Joseph Crowley (D-N.Y.), Vice Chairman Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.) and Reps. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) and Ben Ray Lujan (D-N.M.) will hold a news conference following a closed House Democratic Caucus meeting at 10 a.m. in HVC-Studio A.

Reps. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), John Delaney (D-Md.), Elizabeth Esty (D-Conn.), Stacey Plaskett (D-V.I.) and Norma Torres (D-Calif.) will hold a press conference to respond to President Donald Trump's State of the Union address and outline infrastructure priorities for 2018 at 10:15 a.m. in the House Triangle.

TUESDAY'S TRIVIA WINNER - Bob Bissen was first to correctly guess that former Commerce Secretary Donald Evans is the only person to serve as the official designated survivor twice for State of the Union addresses. He was the designated survivor in 2004 and 2005.

TODAY'S TRIVIA - The Constitution calls upon the president to "from time give to the Congress information on the State of the Union." While this has been generally accepted to be an annual obligation, some presidents have given more than one in a calendar year. Which president was the first to do so, and what major policy goal did he set out in that speech? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Huddle. Send your best guess my way: nmccaskill@politico.com.

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