As President Donald Trump prepares to address the nation from the Oval Office on the situation on the U.S. southern border, Democrats are demanding equal time to give their “side” of the issue. This is not normal.

The State of the Union has an official response, not a presidential address to the nation. But liberals are so afraid of the possibility of the president making an effective case to the country that they want to be able to undo the damage immediately. CNN’s Don Lemon wondered if the address should run only on a delay, so the media could edit out lies. Listen to the podcast at The Daily Caller

• The Hill: Schumer, Pelosi to Deliver Joint Response to Trump Speech
• Washington Examiner: House Republicans Ask US Attorney for Update on DOJ Review of FBI’s Clinton, Russia Investigations
• The Washington Times: Trey Gowdy Blasts Elizabeth Warren’s Lobbying Claim: ‘Demonstrably and Factually Untrue’
• The Washington Free Beacon: Pompeo: 99 Percent of ISIS Caliphate Now Defeated
  The Wall Street Journal: Tax Refunds Will Be Paid During Shutdown, White House Says

When President Donald Trump took to Twitter last weekend to blame Democrats for the government shutdown, he notably bypassed his party’s favorite foil: Nancy Pelosi.

And when Fox News teed up a chance for the president to unload on Pelosi in a New Year’s Eve interview, noting that the Democratic leader was vacationing in Hawaii during the shutdown while Trump stayed in Washington, he didn’t take the bait.

His decision so far not to go after Pelosi personally, even as his top aides have blamed her for the shutdown, hasn’t gone unnoticed in the Capitol. Pelosi’s allies have viewed Trump’s restraint toward the incoming speaker as a sign that he’s looking beyond the shutdown in the hopes of notching some bipartisan wins this year — on infrastructure, perhaps, or prescription drug pricing.

Trump’s allies said his tack represents not some grand negotiating strategy but a sign of genuine regard for her. Read Full Story at Politico

• Washington Examiner: Rand Paul Hits ‘Big Government’ Romney, Trump an ‘Actual Conservative’
• The Hill: RNC Chair Slams Her Uncle Mitt Romney for Trump Criticism
• The Daily Caller: Liberals Are Off to a Bad Start in 2019
• Mediaite: Rep. Matt Gaetz: Are Democrats Seriously Negotiating for Illegal Immigrants During the Shutdown?
• The Washington Times: White House Rejects Dems’ Shutdown Bill

A left-wing billionaire gave $100,000 towards an online misinformation campaign that mimicked Russian interference operations — but if you only get your news from CNN, then you have no idea that happened.

LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, an early investor in Facebook, was behind a six-figure misinformation campaign that involved falsely linking Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore to Russian influence operations during Alabama’s December 2017 special election.

Hoffman funded Democratic operatives who staged a “false flag” — in their own words — meant to falsely link Moore’s campaign to Russian bots in order to boost Democratic candidate Doug Jones’ Senate campaign. Jones ultimately won the election.

But CNN’s readers and viewers have been kept in the dark about the domestic misinformation campaign. Read Full Story at The Daily Caller

• The Hill: Trump: ‘Most of the People Not Getting Paid’ in Shutdown Are Democrats
• Washington Examiner: Jerome Corsi: FBI, Mueller ‘Harassing’ My Family
• Townhall: CNN Anchor: Trump Is the Grinch Who Stole Christmas by Visiting Troops in Iraq
• The Washington Times: Trump Lawyer Giuliani Wants Mueller Investigated for Destruction of Evidence
• Mediaite: Pete Hegseth Defends Troops Asking Trump to Sign MAGA Hats: It’s ‘Insane’ How the Media Nitpicks This President