Tipsheet: Top Supreme Court cases to watch in 2019

View in your browser     Top Supreme Court cases to watch in 2019 BY LYDIA WHEELER The Supreme Court's 2018-2019 term got off to a sleepy start, but there are a number of potential blockbusters on the docket for the new year. The justices are scheduled to wade into a dispute over a WWI memorial in Maryland that ignited the age-old debate over the separation of church and state, and they’ll hear a case involving a controversial citizenship question in the 2020 Census. Read the full story here     Trump tells Dems to ‘come on over and make a deal’ BY TAL AXELROD President Trump on Saturday called on Democrats to "come on over and make a deal" as the partial government shutdown entered its eighth day with no agreement in sight. Read the full story here     No signs of talks as shutdown moves into second week BY NAOMI JAGODA President Trump is hunkered down at the White House as the partial government shutdown enters its second week, with little signs of a deal on the horizon. Read the full story here     The Mueller investigation: What to watch for in 2019 BY MORGAN CHALFANT The next year is promising to be a pivotal one for special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, which closed 2018 with the sentencing of President Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen and the surprise delay of Michael Flynn’s sentencing.   Read the full story here       Trump claims Dems are to blame for deaths of migrant children in US custody BY CHRIS MILLS RODRIGO President Trump on Saturday blamed Democrats for the death of two migrant children in U.S. custody. Read the full story here     Trump issues order freezing pay rate for federal workers BY TAL AXELROD President Trump issued an executive order Friday freezing federal workers’ pay for 2019, following through on a pledge earlier this year to nix an across-the-board pay increase. Read the full story here     Poll finds 33 percent would definitely or likely back Trump for reelection BY MAX GREENWOOD   President Trump would start his reelection bid with just 33 percent of voters planning to "definitely" or "likely" vote for him, according to a Harvard CAPS/Harris poll released exclusively to The Hill. Read the full story here     Meet Trump's pick to take over the Joint Chiefs of Staff BY ELLEN MITCHELL Army Gen. Mark Milley, President Trump’s pick for the next Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, has always been blunt.  Read the full story here     Five challenges awaiting Mattis's successor BY REBECCA KHEEL Patrick Shanahan, who will become acting Defense secretary on Jan. 1, will immediately find himself with a full plate of challenges. Read the full story here     Trump says ‘progress being made’ after call with Chinese leader BY TAL AXELROD President Trump declared Saturday that progress is being made in the trade dispute between Washington and Beijing after a call with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Read the full story here     Dershowitz: A defense that might have freed Flynn — and still could BY ALAN DERSHOWITZ Opinion | Ever since former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn was arrested for lying to FBI agents, I have argued that he had a strong defense to that charge: namely, that his lies were not material because the FBI questioned him for an illegitimate purpose — to give him an opportunity to lie, rather than to obtain information it did not already have. Read the full story here     Donald Trump is completely transforming the Democrats BY JONATHAN TURLEY Opinion | In this age of rage, voters seem to have no patience, let alone need, for leaders speaking of abstract principles. They want immediate unequivocal action in supporting or opposing President Trump. For Democrats, that all-consuming purpose has led to the abandonment of core unifying values, including many that first drew me to the Democratic Party. While they would vehemently deny it, Trump is remaking the party in his inverse image. This past month shows how far that transformation has gone. Read the full story here     The Washington Post: Trump’s focus on pleasing his base puts him on a risky path BY ROBERT COSTA AND MICHAEL SCHERER In the midst of a partial government shutdown, President Trump has rejected the advice of GOP pollsters and strategists to declare that he holds a winning hand, predicting in a series of tweets that even losing the clash over border-wall funding will lead him to reelection. Read the full story here     The New York Times: Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren and other Democrats shift into high gear for 2020 BY JLISA LERER AND ALEXANDER BURNS Senator Kamala Harris of California is eyeing Baltimore or Atlanta as a possible base of operations for her likely 2020 presidential bid and is close to bringing on a top aide to run her campaign. Read the full story here     The Associated Press: Military women, female veterans are shifting away from GOP BY HOPE YEN AND JENNIFER McDERMOTT It had been months since retired Lt. Cmdr. Michele Fitzpatrick paid attention to news coverage. She was turned off by President Donald Trump’s tweetstorms and attacks on critics such as the late Republican Sen. John McCain, a war hero. But as the November midterm elections approached, she fired up her laptop. Read the full story here     The Wall Street Journal: US and China fleshing out trade deal BY BOB DAVIS Trump administration wants to increase U.S. exports and ease Chinese regulations; president claims ‘big progress’ in talks. Read the full story here     Reuters: Putin, in New Year letter to Trump, says Moscow is open for dialogue BY VLADIMIR SOLDATKIN Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a New Year letter to his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump, said on Sunday that Moscow was ready for dialogue on a “wide-ranging agenda”, the Kremlin said. Read the full story here   Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for The Hill Tipsheet       Forward this Tipsheet     You might like         Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.