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By Anna Palmer, Jake Sherman and Daniel Lippman

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DRIVING THE DAY
NEW ... PELOSI'S UNITY PLEA -- NANCY PELOSI sent a "Dear Colleague" letter last night calling for Democratic unity. Following several of her top allies, Pelosi wrote that "Respectful of the views of all Members, I request that we all support the nominee of our Caucus for Speaker on the Floor of the House. Our diversity is our strength and our unity is our power." This call reflects a party rule, which mandates all members vote for the Democratic candidate on the House floor.

SHE ALSO highlighted her support of a select committee to "improve the operation of Congress," a pet cause of the New Dems and Blue Dogs that could attract some members of the Problem Solvers Caucus to vote for her. The letter

WELCOME TO THE NEW MAJORITY -- "Democrats going nuclear to rein in Trump's arms buildup," by Bryan Bender: "Democrats preparing to take over the House are aiming to roll back what they see as President Donald Trump's overly aggressive nuclear strategy. Their goals include eliminating money for Trump's planned expansion of the U.S. atomic arsenal, including a new long-range ballistic missile and development of a smaller, battlefield nuclear bomb that critics say is more likely than a traditional nuke to be used in combat.

"They also want to stymie the administration's efforts to unravel arms control pacts with Russia. And they even aim to dilute Trump's sole authority to order the use of nuclear arms, following the president's threats to unleash 'fire and fury' on North Korea and other loose talk about doomsday weapons.

"The incoming House majority will have lots of leverage, even with control of only one chamber in the Capitol, veterans of nuclear policy say. They point to precedents in which a Democratic-controlled House cut funding for Ronald Reagan's MX nuclear missile and a Democratic-led Congress canceled the development of a new atomic warhead under George W. Bush." POLITICO

-- ON THE EDUCATION FRONT -- "House Democrats pile on to scrutinize DeVos," by Michael Stratford: "For two years, Democrats watched with fury as Education Secretary Betsy DeVos sought to dismantle nearly every significant Obama administration education policy. Now, they're gearing up to fight back. Lots of them.

"As many as five Democratic-led House committees next year could take on DeVos over a range of issues such as her rollback of regulations aimed at predatory for-profit colleges, the stalled processing of student loan forgiveness and a rewrite of campus sexual assault policies." POLITICO

-- ON OBAMACARE: "Can House Democrats really protect Obamacare?" by Alice Miranda Ollstein and Adam Cancryn

WHO TO WATCH ... HEATHER CAYGLE: "It's not just Ocasio-Cortez: Here are 7 freshman Democrats to watch": "1. Colin Allred: A former NFL linebacker and civil rights attorney ... 2. Chrissy Houlahan: As the first woman to ever represent Pennsylvania's sixth district ... 3. Sharice Davids: An Ivy League-educated lawyer and mixed martial arts fighter ... 4. Harley Rouda: California businessman Rouda defeated GOP Rep. Dana Rohrabacher.

... 5. Ayanna Pressley: Like Ocasio-Cortez, Pressley shocked the Democratic establishment after beating Massachusetts Rep. Mike Capuano ... 6. Ben McAdams: McAdams victory over GOP Rep. Mia Love in Utah is symbolic of the blue wave that washed over the House ...7. Lucy McBath: A former flight attendant turned activist." POLITICO

HOT TAKE -- WAPO'S PAUL KANE: "Want Congress to look more like the people it serves? Provide member housing, pay staff more"

Good morning. Happy Small Business Saturday!

TRUMP'S NEW FALL GUY? -- "Trump Faults Treasury Secretary Over Fed Pick," by WSJ's Peter Nicholas, Nick Timiraos and Bob Davis: "President Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, blaming him for the appointment of a Federal Reserve chairman who has been raising interest rates, a move Mr. Trump worries will jeopardize economic gains as his 2020 re-election campaign approaches, people familiar with the matter said.

"In conversations with advisers in recent weeks, Mr. Trump also has voiced displeasure with Mr. Mnuchin over the turbulent stock market and the Treasury chief's skepticism toward the sort of punitive trade actions the White House has taken against China, the people said.

"Looking back to his appointment of Mr. Mnuchin in 2016, Mr. Trump has mused to advisers about whether he should have tapped someone else, mentioning JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive James Dimon as an alternative. ... After this article was published online, Mr. Trump tweeted that he was 'extremely happy and proud' of Mr. Mnuchin's performance. He attributed reports to the contrary to 'phony sources or jealous people' and incorrectly implied The Wall Street Journal didn't seek his comment for the article.

"'They never like to ask me for a quote b/c it would kill their story,' he said. The Journal made repeated requests for comment this week, including a request for comment from Mr. Trump. The Journal sent the White House a detailed list of questions Friday morning. After initially declining comment, the White House issued statements Friday afternoon, followed by the president's tweet." WSJ

THE PRESIDENT has nothing on his public schedule. Trump arrived at Trump International Golf Course at 9:02 a.m., according to Daily Mail's Emily Goodin, who is serving as W.H. pooler.


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THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION -- "The Trump Administration Just Asked The Supreme Court To Let It Enforce Its Transgender Military Ban," by BuzzFeed's Chris Geidner: "The Trump administration on Friday asked the Supreme Court to take up three cases challenging the administration's repeated efforts to bar transgender people from serving in the military. The move is the latest unusual filing at the high court by an administration that appears eager to leapfrog over appeals courts that have previously sided with challengers to the administration's policies." BuzzFeed

KNOWING NICK AYERS -- "Young, rich and loyal: Nick Ayers could be Trump's next chief of staff," by CNN's Jeremy Diamond and Elizabeth Landers: "As President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence prepared to gather for their weekly lunch in August 2017, the President told his staff to add two more plates. Both men had just welcomed new chiefs of staff -- retired Marine Corps Gen. John Kelly and Nick Ayers, a then-34-year-old Republican political consultant from Georgia -- and Trump decided to wave the pair into his private dining room off the Oval Office. ...

"For Ayers ... they were useful in another, perhaps more important way: he now had regular face-time with the President. With each passing lunch, Trump grew to know and like Ayers more, two sources close to the President said, allowing Ayers to build a strong personal rapport that could end up paying dividends. ... Several of Trump's top advisers have voiced concerns to him about Ayers, with some threatening to quit if he is tapped for the job.

"One of Ayers' top West Wing detractors during the process has been Kellyanne Conway, the combative counselor to the President who vehemently opposed Ayers' hire as Pence's chief of staff last year, two former White House officials and a source familiar with the matter said. Conway disputes those allegations, telling CNN: 'I have zero beef with Nick Ayers.'" CNN


TRUMP INC. -- "New York state judge allows suit against Trump and his personal charity to proceed," by WaPo's Jonathan O'Connell and David A. Fahrenthold: "A New York state judge on Friday denied a request by attorneys for President Trump to throw out a lawsuit alleging that Trump and his family violated charity laws with the management of their personal foundation.

"Justice Saliann Scarpulla sided with New York Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood in allowing the case to continue, saying it was fair for the attorney general to argue that the president used the Donald J. Trump Foundation to advance his campaign." WaPo

THE INVESTIGATIONS ...

-- "Stone associate Jerome Corsi is in plea negotiations with special counsel," by WaPo's Ros Helderman, Josh Dawsey and Manuel Roig-Franzia: "Conservative writer and conspiracy theorist Jerome Corsi is in plea negotiations with special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, according to Corsi and another person with knowledge of the talks. The talks with Corsi - an associate of GOP operative Roger Stone - could bring Mueller's team closer to determining whether Trump or his advisers were linked to WikiLeaks' release of hacked Democratic emails in 2016, a key part of his long-running inquiry. ...

"Corsi confirmed the plea negotiations after they were first reported by The Washington Post on Friday. 'It's true. Your story is accurate,' he said, declining to comment further except to say there may be further developments next week." WaPo

CLICKER - "The nation's cartoonists on the week in politics," edited by Matt Wuerker - 11 keepers

PLAYBOOK READS


PHOTO DU JOUR: Crowds walk past a large store sign displaying a Black Friday discount in midtown Manhattan on Friday. | Bebeto Matthews/AP Photo

YIKES -- "U.S. Climate Report Warns of Damaged Environment and Shrinking Economy," by NYT's Coral Davenport and Kendra Pierre-Louis: "A major scientific report issued by 13 federal agencies on Friday presents the starkest warnings to date of the consequences of climate change for the United States, predicting that if significant steps are not taken to rein in global warming, the damage will knock as much as 10 percent off the size of the American economy by century's end. ...

"[In] direct language, the 1,656-page assessment lays out the devastating effects of a changing climate on the economy, health and environment, including record wildfires in California, crop failures in the Midwest and crumbling infrastructure in the South. Going forward, American exports and supply chains could be disrupted, agricultural yields could fall to 1980s levels by midcentury and fire season could spread to the Southeast, the report finds." NYT ... The report

FOR YOUR RADAR -- "Former CIA director Michael Hayden hospitalized after suffering a stroke," by WaPo's Deanna Paul: "'He is receiving expert medical care for which the family is grateful,' according to a statement issued by his namesake organization. 'The General and his family greatly appreciate the warm wishes and prayers of his friends, colleagues, and supporters.'" WaPo

TOP-ED -- NOHA KHASHOGGI and RAZAN JAMAL KHASHOGGI in WaPo, "We are Jamal Khashoggi's daughters. We promise his light will never fade."

ALEX ISENSTADT: "Romney's first duty in Washington? Fundraising": "Utah Republican Mitt Romney hasn't yet been sworn in to the Senate, but he's already flexing his fundraising muscle. The senator-elect is hosting a donor event Tuesday evening in Washington for Believe in America PAC, his newly-formed political action committee, according to an invitation obtained by POLITICO. The fundraiser will be the PAC's first." POLITICO

THE GOLDEN STATE -- "Jennifer Siebel Newsom will be California's 'first partner.' Her agenda is cultural change," by L.A. Times' Melanie Mason: L.A. Times ... Women Rule podcast with Siebel Newsom

PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION - "Complaints about noise from Washington-area airports skyrocket," by WaPo's Lori Aratani: "Residents filed more than 96,000 noise complaints linked to flights at Baltimore-Washington International Marshall, Reagan National and Dulles International airports in 2017 - more than double the number filed the previous year. The dramatic increase comes as the state of Maryland pursues legal action against the Federal Aviation Administration over changes to flight paths at BWI and National." WaPo


MEDIAWATCH - "Bill Shine's Massive Fox News Severance Package Revealed," by Hollywood Reporter's Jeremy Barr: "Bill Shine received an $8.4 million severance package upon leaving his post as co-president of Fox News Channel in May 2017, according to a financial disclosure form he filed upon entering Donald Trump's White House as deputy chief of staff for communications.

"The document was released to The Hollywood Reporter on Friday, a day after Thanksgiving. Shine, who officially began working in the White House on July 5, will also receive a bonus and options of about $3.5 million from 21st Century Fox both this year and next year." THR

GREAT HOLIDAY WEEKEND READS, curated by Daniel Lippman, filing from Lima, Peru:

-- "Divided We Stand," by Sasha Issenberg in NY Mag: "The country is hopelessly split. So why not make it official and break up?" NY Mag

-- "'I Hereby Confess Judgment,'" by Zachary R. Mider and Zeke Faux in Bloomberg Businessweek: "How an obscure legal document turned New York's court system into a debt-collection machine that's chewing up small businesses across America." Bloomberg (h/t Longform.org)

-- "A Boundless Battlefield," by Danielle Mackey in The Intercept - per Longreads.com's description: "Gang members in El Salvador are considered ruined, beyond redemption. So what's life like for a gang member who manages to get out?" The Intercept

-- "Sen. Chris Murphy's Lonely Quest to End the War in Yemen," by Seth Harp in Rolling Stone: "The Connecticut senator on the U.S. role in yet another disastrous war in the Middle East, our 'head-scratching' ties with Saudi Arabia, and the Khashoggi case." RS

-- "The Future of Aging," by Kim Tingley in the NYT Magazine: "The future of aging just might be in Margaritaville at the Jimmy Buffett-branded community, a hint at how an increasingly long-lived species might choose to spend its extra decades." NYT

-- "An American killing: Why did the U.S. Park Police fatally shoot Bijan Ghaisar?" by Yahoo News' Alexander Nazaryan: "The U.S. Park Police, which is part of the Department of the Interior, is one of 105 federal law enforcement agencies in the nation, at least according to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (the number gets smaller if inspectors general offices are excluded). ... The National Zoo in Washington, D.C., has its own police force ... The Tennessee Valley Authority has a federal police force. So does the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing." Yahoo News

-- "Do You Even Bake, Bro?" by Dayna Evans in Eater: "How the Silicon Valley set fell in love with sourdough and decided to disrupt the 6,000-year-old craft of making bread, one crumbshot at a time." Eater (h/t Longreads.com)

-- "Chardon, Ohio," by Libby Copeland in Esquire: "The people of this tiny town have had six years to reflect on what a seventeen-year-old boy with a gun did, and how his terrible act has affected them." Esquire (h/t Longform.org)

-- "Tossing a Bird That Does Not Fly Out of a Plane," by The Atlantic's Annie Lowrey: "When you drop a turkey from hundreds of feet in the air, the panicked animals try to right themselves. Some catch a gust. Others do not. Some die when they hit the ground. Others survive with broken bones. Yet others are grievously injured when they are fought over by local kids. Some perish of apparent shock. A few, it is fair to note, are rattled, but physically unharmed." The Atlantic (h/t TheBrowser.com)

-- "Degrees of Freedom," by New Yorker's Raffi Khatchadourian: "A scientist's work linking minds and machines helps a paralyzed woman escape her body." New Yorker

PLAYBOOKERS
BIRTHDAYS: Jared Cohen ... Sally Susman, EVP for corporate affairs at Pfizer (hat tip: Hilary Rosen) ... Dan Glickman is 74 (h/t Doug Farrar) ... Krystal Ball is 37 ... Marlin Fitzwater, former press secretary for Presidents Reagan and George H.W. Bush, is 76 ... Politico's Shia Kapos, Kelsey Miller, Darius Tahir and Katie Davis ... Cristina Cox ... Mark Steitz ... Rachel Kriegsman ... NYT's Marc Santora ... Obama Treasury alum Lepi Jha Fishman (hubby tip: Eddie) ... Meaghan Smith, VP at SKDKnickerbocker (h/t Kelley McCormick) ... Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at Penn ... Ginger Stanley ... Ben Burger ... Tom LoBianco ... AP's Nasser Karimi ... Chris
Putala ... former Rep. Chet Edwards (D-Texas) is 67 ... Ted Sorrell (h/t Lauren French) ...

... Alejandro Mayorkas, former DHS deputy secretary now a partner at WilmerHale, is 59 (h/t Todd Breasseale) ... Simcha Lyons ... Steven Lowy is 56 ... Kavya Balaraman ... Matt Chisholm ... Jordana Merran ... Sherry Ettleson ... GM's Lee Godown (h/ts Jon Haber) Brent Swander ... Benjamin Deitchman ... Patrick Burchette is 42 ... Hugh Grindstaff ... Suzy DeFrancis ... Richard Metzler ... MSNBC's Rachel Witkin ... Terry Walsh ... Cullen White ... Maria Ory ... Marceline White ... Lindsey Schulte ... Susan Lyon ... Patrick Reimherr ... Jonathan Lang ... Jed Link ... Amanda Anderson ... Jim Landry ... Dave Rapallo ... Meghan Graf ... Jeremy Pevner ... Jonathan Black ... former NFL Commissioner
Paul Tagliabue is 78 ... Brooke Jamison ... Ned McCann ... John Kamis ... Gordon Fischer (h/ts Teresa Vilmain)

THE SHOWS, by @MattMackowiak, filing from Austin:


NBC

"Meet the Press": Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) ... Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) ... Tom Steyer. Panel: Helene Cooper, Elise Jordan, Doris Kearns Goodwin and Danielle Pletka

CNN

"State of the Union": Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) ... Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). Panel: Rick Santorum, Symone Sanders, Jen Psaki and Bill Kristol (guest host: Dana Bash)

ABC

"This Week": Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) ... Ohio Gov. John Kasich ... Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) ... Alan Dershowitz. Panel: Michelle Cottle, Jason Riley, Cokie Roberts and Amanda Carpenter

CBS

"Face the Nation": Author and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) ("Where We Go from Here: Two Years in the Resistance") ... Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) ... Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.). Panel: Jamelle Bouie, Susan Page, Ramesh Ponnuru and Matt Viser

Fox

"Fox News Sunday": Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) ... Corey Lewandowski and David Bossie. Panel: Jonah Goldberg, Adrienne Elrod, Matt Continetti and Mo Elleithee

Fox News

Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures": Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) ... Christian Whiton ("Smart Power: Between Diplomacy and War") ... Alan Dershowitz. Panel: Ed Rollins and former Sen. Al D'Amato (R-N.Y.)

Fox News

"MediaBuzz": Sara Fischer ... Mollie Hemingway... Capri Cafaro ... Frank Luntz ... Carley Shimkus

CNN

"Inside Politics": Panel: Margaret Talev, Karoun Demirjian, Michael Warren and Catherine Lucey (guest host: Nia-Malika Henderson).

CNN

"Fareed Zakaria GPS": Special episode: Global lessons on guns, featuring interviews with the University of California-Davis' Amy Barnhorst, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Jeffrey Toobin and NYU's Michael Waldman

CNN

"Reliable Sources": Panel: Noah Shachtman, Sabrina Siddiqui and David Zurawik ... Karen Tumulty ... Olivia Nuzzi and Cenk Uygur ... StoryCorps founder Dave Irsay

Univision

"Al Punto": Jésica Zermeño ... Tijuana mayor Juan Manuel Gastelum ... former Honduran presidential candidate Luis Zelaya ... panel: Adolfo Franco and Jorge Silva... Mexican Ambassador to the U.S. Gerónimo Gutiérrez ... Calibre 50's Edén Muñoz and Armando Ramos

C-SPAN

"The Communicators": author and NYU's Scott Galloway ("The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google") ... "Newsmakers": Mark Green, questioned by Carol Morello and Ben Kesling ... "Q&A": author Ted Widmer discusses his biography of President Martin Van Buren

MSNBC

"Kasie DC": Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.) ... Rep.-elect Joe Neguse (D-Fla.) ... Michael Beschloss ... Robert Draper ... Jonathan Swan ... Karine Jean-Pierre ... Rick Tyler... Katie Benner ... Erica Werner ... Paul Kane

Washington Times

"Mack on Politics" weekly politics podcast with Matt Mackowiak (download on iTunes, Google Play, or Stitcher or listen at MackOnPolitics.com): Operation Turkey founder Richard Bagdonas.

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