Tipsheet: Murmurs of Trump dissent in GOP

View in your browser     The Memo: Murmurs of Trump dissent in GOP By Niall Stanage   Senior Republicans are becoming more emboldened in speaking out against President Trump, giving voice to the growing frustrations in the party over his tenure. But the floodgates of criticism are far from open. Many political observers say the fierce loyalty that Trump enjoys among the party grassroots remains a powerful disincentive for Republican figures to question him publicly. Read the full story here     Financial industry worried GOP tax plan will change 401(k)s By Naomi Jagoda Financial industry groups and Democratic lawmakers are concerned that Republicans’ forthcoming tax-reform bill could make a big change to the taxing of retirement funds. Read the full story here     Conservatives drop demands for bigger spending cuts to get to tax reform By Niv Elis   Conservatives are dropping their demands for billions in mandatory spending cuts as GOP House leaders ready to take up the Senate-passed budget next week, a key step for tax reform. Read the full story here     GOP eyes move to lower premiums right before 2018 elections By Alexander Bolton and Peter Sullivan   Mixed signals from President Trump and opposition from House Republicans will make it difficult to pass a stand-alone bill to fund ObamaCare subsidies before December, Senate Republican sources say. But Republican leaders are looking at attaching a bipartisan health-care deal to a major bill, likely a package funding the federal government beyond Dec. 8 or an end-of year spending deal. Read the full story here       Trump: 'I don't know' if I'll talk with Mueller for Russia probe By Jesse Byrnes   President Trump declined to commit to interviewing with special counsel Robert Mueller amid the federal Russia probe, saying in comments released Friday that he has not been asked to do so. Read the full story here     White House defends John Kelly as above reproach By Jordan Fabian   The White House on Friday vociferously defended President Trump’s chief of staff after he mischaracterized remarks made by a Democratic congresswoman who criticized Trump’s condolence call to a widow of a fallen U.S. solider.  Read the full story here     Trump: Lawmakers should forego Christmas for tax reform By Julia Manchester President Trump said in an interview released Friday that lawmakers should forego Christmas break if they do not pass tax reform before then. Read the full story here     Boom times: Lobbyists riding high in the Trump era By Megan R. Wilson The first year of the Trump presidency has been a boon for lobbyists, with many of the top shops in Washington seeing a handsome boost in revenue. Lobbyists say the frenzy of activity shows no signs of slowing down. Read the full story here     Mattis, McCain meet a day after subpoena threat By Rebecca Kheel Defense Secretary James Mattis pledged to do a better job communicating with Congress on Friday, a day after Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) raised the possibility of a subpoena to get answers from the Trump administration on the deadly attack in Niger. Read the full story here     Soldier's body found almost a mile from Niger attack scene By Julia Manchester The body of Sgt. La David Johnson was found nearly a mile from the scene of the ambush in Niger that left Johnson and three other U.S. soldiers dead, CNN reported Friday. Read the full story here     Gen. Kelly has been hacked by the president By Maria Cardona OPINION | Gen. John Kelly was just hacked. Not by Russian trolls, but by President Donald Trump’s pernicious and voracious need to be vindicated. It was a disappointing turn of events to see a Marine-turned-chief-of-staff take the White House lectern and complete his transformation from the adult in the room to a political attack dog. Read the full story here     Trump's approval on US nuclear posture will usher in new age for nuclear weapons By Robert R. Monroe, former director of the Defense Nuclear Agency OPINION | For the past six months, a few of the nation’s top military strategists have been closeted in the Pentagon writing the most important military document of our era: the Nuclear Posture Review (NPR). Once President Trump approves it, key strategic decisions on nuclear weapons will all have been made for the duration of his presidency. Read the full story here     CNN: Trump on his tweets: 'You have to keep people interested' By Sophie Tatum President Donald Trump shared insight into his personal tweeting habits during an interview with Fox Business Network's Maria Bartiromo. Read the full story here     The Wall Street Journal: Trump signals Yellen still a top candidate for Fed job after meeting this week By Peter Nicholas and  Kate Davidson President Donald Trump signaled Friday that Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen remains a strong candidate to be renominated for the job after the two met this week, saying he liked her “a lot,” while also highlighting two other candidates as front-runners. Read the full story here     The New York Times: Conflicting accounts in Niger ambush are subject of Pentagon investigation By Dionne Searcey, Helene Cooper and Eric Schmitt The Pentagon is trying to determine whether American forces involved in a deadly ambush in Niger this month diverted from their routine patrol to embark on an unapproved mission, military officials said on Friday. Read the full story here     Reuters: Trump's Obamacare shift complicates ability to work with Democrats By Richard Cowan President Donald Trump’s disavowal this week of a bipartisan agreement to stabilize Obamacare has further eroded the already minimal trust congressional Democrats had in him, complicating prospects for gaining their cooperation on a range of issues. Read the full story here     The Associated Press: Q&A on the GOP effort to overhaul the nation’s tax system By Marcy Gordon Divided Republicans in Congress are tackling an ambitious overhaul of the nation’s tax system that would deeply cut levies for corporations and double the standard deduction used by most average Americans. 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.