The Hill’s 12:30 Report

SIGN UP! If you’d like to continue receiving this daily newsletter, SUBSCRIBE HERE: http://bit.ly/1MzSr96

 

The Hill’s 12:30 Report: Ryan shells out the cash | Cue the Trump reaction monsoon | Can you identify every senator?

NEW THIS MORNING — A GLIMPSE INTO RYAN’S OPERATION: Via Politico’s Jake Sherman, Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) told his colleagues today he is transferring $2 million in cash to his party’s campaign arm (bringing his total to $3 million) and has confirmed Mitt Romney as the speaker for a major March fundraiser. Why this is important: It shows that despite not traveling as much to fundraise like former Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) did, he has the ability to keep the National Republican Congressional Committee well funded for the 2016 elections. http://politi.co/1NTw6cr

{mosads}DEAR ISIS, GAME ON. LOVE, ANONYMOUS: Via The Hill’s Cory Bennett, the hacker group Anonymous is planning a day of trolling as part of its ongoing cyber war with ISIS. I just hope they know what they’re doing… http://bit.ly/1TYmhsF

It’s Tuesday. I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of what you missed this morning — and what’s on tap for the rest of the day. Send story ideas, comments and what you think about Donald Trump’s new policy toward Muslims to cmartel@digital-release.thehill.com and @CateMartel.

‘SO, IS THIS GONNA BE THE END FOR TRUMP?’ — TAKE 43-ISH: Pundits keep saying the next big offensive statement will knock Trump out of front-runner status. Could calling for a blanket ban on all Muslims entering the U.S. be that? Probably not, but watch for polls in the coming days. And it wasn’t just the slip of the tongue ­­ — it was a clear, planned out press release. And note the timing: Trump released his statement soon after a poll was released showing Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) grabbing the lead in Iowa.

Asked by The Hill whether that would include American Muslims currently abroad (i.e. U.S. military, study abroad students, tourists), a Trump representative replied, “Mr. Trump says, ‘everyone.’ ” http://bit.ly/1QbkdyJ. Trump walked that back on Tuesday. 

REAX:

ABC’s Ali Weinberg: Trump says he would have supported the idea of Japanese internment camps, says FDR was popular despite it: “They named highways after him!” http://bit.ly/1jLT3QQ

HUFFPOST MOVES TRUMP NEWS BACK TO POLITICS: The Huffington Post, who previously moved Trump news from the Politics section to the Entertainment section, has moved him back. Arianna Huffington wrote that while he fits the bill of entertainment, “today’s vicious pronouncement makes abundantly clear, [Trump’s campaign] also morphed into something else: an ugly and dangerous force in American politics.” http://bit.ly/1YWgiaG

The Daily Beast’s Tim Mak has perfectly described the Hillary Clinton campaign’s reaction in a single gif: http://bit.ly/1TV1giD But actually, here is Clinton adviser Huma Abedin blasting Trump’s ‘Islamophobia.’ http://bit.ly/1XZ2Q3i

J.K. Rowling tweeted: How horrible. Voldemort was nowhere near as bad. http://bit.ly/1NDyd20

The New York Times’s Maggie Haberman: As Trump calls into two morning shows, his aides abruptly canceled a long-scheduled interview with Katie Couric http://bit.ly/1NfABbC

GO FUND ME… US, PLEASE: Via The Hill’s Scott Wong and Mike Lillis, an update on the government funding deadline Friday: Ryan said Monday “it might take us more than just this week” to finish the omnibus spending bill. Sorry, staffers 🙁 Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) raised the possibility of a rare weekend session to wrap up its end-of-the year business. http://bit.ly/1XYFMBY

SANDERS AIDE INSTRUCTS REPORTERS NOT TO ASK ABOUT ISIS: Symone Sanders, spokeswoman for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) asked reporters not to ask the 2016 contender questions about the terrorist group ISIS. Why this is big: Press aides regularly outline topics of meetings, but it’s very unusual for them to specify what reporters can and can’t ask. FLASHBACK to the last debate: A Sanders aide reportedly “threw a fit” before the last Democratic debate (which was the day after the Paris attacks) because CBS changed the debate format to add more foreign policy. http://bit.ly/1jMmK47

TWITTER MIGHT HAVE TO MONITOR #TERRORISM #ISIS: Via The Hill’s Katie Bo Williams, this week, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) plans to reintroduce legislation to force social media companies to notify federal authorities of terrorist activity on their sites. http://bit.ly/1OfK1DW

OBAMA IS EVEN CONCERNING DEMOCRATS: Via The Hill’s Niall Stanage, Democrats are increasingly fearful that President Obama’s handling of the ISIS threat is becoming a liability for their party. What HRC is doing: Hillary Clinton is trying to distance herself from the commander in chief. “We are not winning” against ISIS, she said on ABC’s “This Week.” http://bit.ly/1IREfGQ

JEB AHEAD! (IN ENDORSEMENTS): Sen. Thad Cochran, (R-Miss.) has endorsed Jeb Bush’s presidential bid. Here’s the most recent list of congressional endorsements: http://bit.ly/1STLS5y

HARDY HAR HAR: JebBush.com redirects to Donald Trump’s campaign website. It isn’t clear who did this, but well done. My take: How in the world did Bush’s campaign not own JebBush.com?

NAME THAT SENATOR: National Journal has a quiz to see if you can match all 100 U.S. Senators with their photos. This seems like a D.C. happy hour trivia night topic if I’ve ever heard one. http://bit.ly/1XWhOqN

A TAXING EVENT: Representatives from the GOP presidential campaigns debated tax policy this morning during a Conservative Reform Network/Americans for Tax Reform event. Heritage Foundation’s Steve Moore, adviser for Sen. Rand Paul’s  (R-Ky.) presidential campaign, summed up the event well in a single quote: “We’ve been talking about tax reform for 20-25 years and here we are in 2015 and we have one of the worst possible systems that anyone could imagine today.” Moore then said they could sit around a table for a few minutes and could come up with a better plan. 

NEW THIS A.M. – BEN CARSON AD PULLS ON THE HEARTSTRINGS: Carson has released an ad showing Americans holding up their hands explaining what they do for a living. Spoiler alert: To remind voters he’s a doctor, it ends with Carson’s hands saying, “These hands are working to heal America.” http://bit.ly/1NIqgo2

 

CATCH-UP ON SOCIAL

Time magazine’s Zeke Miller
.@POTUS and @HillaryClinton had lunch [yesterday] at the White House. (sorry, @BernieSanders) http://bit.ly/1PRJtdx

The Hill’s Timothy Cama: Can’t remember the last time lunch took 90 minutes, but it definitely wasn’t informal http://bit.ly/1PRJYUX 

CNN’s Elizabeth Landers
“We actually did a study. If I say TedCruz.org 3 times, our donations go through the roof,” @tedcruz to a laughing audience. http://bit.ly/1m7dSb7

Erick Erickson
Growing up, I remember my parents never letting us have Asian food on December 7th. They were children of WWII. http://bit.ly/21JZJkB

Former FCC Commissioner Robert M. McDowell
Nice chatting with @SpeakerRyan just now @ Reagan Airport. He’s the best person for what is the worst job in DC. God bless him! http://bit.ly/1lJHwCP

 

ON TAP

12:30 p.m. EST: Dr. David J. Skorton, Secretary, Smithsonian Institution is speaking at the National Press Club. More info: http://bit.ly/1lpa6d7

2:30–3:30 p.m. EST: The House is voting on several suspensions including reforms to the via waiver program.

3:05 p.m. EST: Obama meets with Secretary of Defense Ash Carter

4:40 p.m. EST: Obama speaks at a Democratic National Committee fundraiser at the Jefferson Hotel in Washington, D.C.

5 p.m. EST: Former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel is speaking at The Atlantic Council to reflect on his tenure. Live stream: http://bit.ly/1Oez0Tt

6:45 p.m. EST: Clinton is holding a town hall in Salem, N.H. 

 

SHOWS TO WATCH

9 p.m. EST: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will speak with MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow.

11:35 p.m. EST: Sanders joins Jimmy Fallon on Fallon Tonight.

7 a.m. EST tomorrow: Gen. Ray Odierno (Ret.) will join MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” in-studio to discuss Trump’s recent comments about Muslims and the war on ISIS.

 

Now for the fun stuff…

NO IDEA WHAT TO GET YOUR COLLEAGUE FOR THE OFFICE SECRET SANTA?: That’s normal because these things are always awkward. Anyway, I’m here to help. For $20, the Indie Coffee Passport is good for a free coffee drink from 17 local coffee shops across Washington, D.C. http://bit.ly/1PRwh8x

Side note: If you do go to Bakehouse (included on the list), don’t leave without getting the Nutella-filled peanut butter cookie sandwich. I wouldn’t lead you astray.

Today is National Brownie Day!

WHAT EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT ON SOCIAL: The Victoria’s Secret Fashion show airs tonight at 10 p.m. EST. http://bit.ly/1ONAEzY

Sometimes, we just need to step back from the circus and watch a heart-warming video of a family surprising their children with an adopted brother under their Christmas tree. http://bzfd.it/1PUwEiw

 

To receive The Hill’s 12:30 Report in your inbox, sign up here: http://bit.ly/1MzSr96