Axios

WSJ has an inside look at Trump's first week in the White House. It tells the story of an "easily bored" president casually upending well-established DC norms. The most interesting bits:

• Biting the hand…: Trump told a group of congressional leaders that he was intrigued by the idea of doing away with the Electoral College. Mitch McConnell talked him down by asking him to imagine the insanity of a nationwide popular vote recount.
• Consolidation of power: Steve Bannon and Jared Kushner are developing an internal team to strategize Trump's long-term goals. The Strategic Development Group is being called an "internal McKinsey."
• Trouble in Trump-adise?: Rumors of a power struggle are starting to emerge amongst the inner circle as the Bannon/Kushner faction try to minimize Kellyanne Conway.
• Easy access: Trump often calls up Republican senators himself. "I know many of these people."

Paul Ryan is a master avoider when asked about Donald Trump's latest controversies. On Friday afternoon, however, House Speaker reinforced several strong positions in an interview with Politico reporters Jake Sherman and Anna Palmer.

1. He disagreed with Trump on Russia: Despite Trump's fondness for Vladimir Putin — and the possibility that the President will remove sanctions on Russia — Ryan made clear he's sticking with the hawkish wing of his party. Asked about McCain's suggestion that sanctions on Russia be codified into law, Ryan said Obama's latest wave of sanctions were long overdue and "should stay."

2. And said he'll keep pushing criminal justice reform: Despite Trump's push for 1960s-style law-and-order — and the President's appointment of hardliner Jeff Sessions as Attorney General — Ryan insists criminal justice reform is a priority this year. He said he's spoken to House Judiciary chair Bob Goodlatte and asked him to pick up where he left off last Congress.

3. On torture, he dismissed Trump comments saying torture works: For the second day running, Ryan forcefully emphasized that torture was illegal and would remain so. "The president says things like this," Ryan said. "And I think you and I and everyone else needs to get used to that. We are not going to change the law on torture." (Notable: POTUS said earlier today that he'll defer to Defense Secretary Mattis and not push for torture.)

Anthony Scaramucci received a lucrative deal on the way out of Wall Street and into the Trump White House.

Scaramucci recently disclosed an agreement to sell off his 45% stake in SkyBridge Capital, a hedge fund-of-funds he founded in 2005, in order to join the Trump Administration as a director in the Office of Public Liaison. The announcement didn't contain a price, but Bloomberg today reports the deal is worth around $180 million:

The transaction values SkyBridge at 7.2 times normalized Ebitda, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, Scaramucci said. "That's a rich valuation for a fund-of-funds transaction," said Karl D'Cunha, managing director at CBIZ Valuation Group in Chicago, who said buyers typically pay three to five times earnings.

The deal also includes a performance-based earn-out that could bring it closer to $230 million, although a source close to Scaramucci tells Axios that he isn't eligible to pocket any of that upside. The source adds that Scaramucci received two bids higher than the one he picked ― led by Chinese conglomerate HNA Group ― but that neither of those prospective buyers would promise not to lay off current SkyBridge staffers.

As for the actual price, it's complicated. On the one hand, everyone knew Scaramucci had to sell. That should have depressed the price. On the other, Scaramucci's omnipresence on TV and his annual Skybridge conference gave the brand more cachet than that of a typical hedge fund-of-funds.

Both the Mexican and U.S. governments released statements about the talk between Trump and President Nieto. While both releases generally said the same thing, Mexico's version included one extra takeaway:

"Los Presidentes también convinieron por ahora ya no hablar públicamente de este controversial tema."

Translation: The Presidents also agreed not to talk publicly about the controversial issue for now.

Can Trump refrain from boasting about making Mexico pay for the wall?

Trump and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto spoke for an hour over the phone today, according to the AP.

Why this matters: Trump and Peña Nieto were supposed to meet at the White House next week, but the Mexican president canceled the meeting yesterday amid rising tensions over who will fund Trump's proposed border wall.

Following the cancellation, Sean Spicer said the White House would pay for the border wall by imposing a 20% tax on all imports from Mexico. He's since walked back on those comments.

British PM Theresa May and Trump met in the Oval Office to discuss U.S.-U.K. relations before giving a joint press conference at 1p.m. this afternoon.

Trump showed May the new bust of Winston Churchill, and said "it's a great honor" to have the famous leader back, according to White House pool reporters. Trump made a point to get the perfect picture with the bust, asking to move a lamp that obscured the shot.

"It's a great honor to be here," May replied.

May started her day in Washington with a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Ceremony before making her way to the White House. The PM gave the first lady a hamper treats from Chequers, and gave Trump an engraved Quaich — an Irish cup that serves as a symbol of friendship — before leaving tonight for Turkey.

POTUS and the PM reaffirmed the special relationship with a joint press conference this afternoon. (Its start was delayed because the White House was confused by British date formatting.)

1. Brexit at center stage: POTUS said that "a free and independent Britain is a blessing to the world" while making sure to mention Turnberry, his golf course in Scotland. May agreed that both governments would "work for ordinary people."
2. POTUS defers to Mattis on torture: Trump reaffirmed that he'd adhere to the recommendations of Sec. Mattis even if he personally believes in the efficacy of torture.
3. Russian sanctions: Trump said it's "very early" to talk about lifting sanctions, but restated his desire for positive relationships with all countries.
4. Reciprocal state visits: May announced that Trump has accepted an invitation to visit the U.K. later this year.
5. Mexico: Trump says that May has "other things to worry about" than U.S.-Mexican relations; May demurred on commenting.

In the week since Trump's inauguration, a new organization, Run for Something, says it has recruited more than 1,200 millennials to run for local office. The organization — co-founded by Amanda Litman, Hillary Clinton's former email director (the other emails, she points out); and Ross Morales Rocketta, a former management consultant at Deloitte — recruits Democrats under 35 to run for office, and promises to provide them with the resources they need to get their names on the ballot.

Litman told Axios that the Women's March on Saturday has been great for engagement, not only encouraging more recruits but also leading over 600 people to donate to their non-profit. When asked if interest was concentrated to certain states in particular, Litman said that surprisingly they've seen applicants from both blue and red states alike.

Why this matters: Movements like Run for Something have been gaining traction ever since the November election, thanks to fired-up progressives angered by Trump's win. These organizations have garnered support from all different sides of the Democratic party to achieve a common goal: resist Trump.

Facebook's chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg acted as an emissary to Donald Trump in December when Silicon Valley leaders met with the then President-elect. Now, she's holding his feet to the fire.

Here's what she had to say on Facebook about Trump's decision to reinstitute a policy that bans US aid from going to health programs that discuss abortion as a family planning option with patients (taxpayer money already can't fund abortions anywhere):

"We don't have to guess -- we know what this will do. The last time the global gag rule was in effect, research showed more women who lost access to contraception had unwanted pregnancies and abortion rates doubled."

Key context: Sandberg's Democratic personal politics are well known. She worked for the Clinton-era Treasury Department, was a supporter of Hillary Clinton's presidential run and has been talked about as someone who could run for office. She also has spoken for years about women's empowerment, including in her book Lean In.

What we're watching: Silicon Valley executives are toeing a line with Trump. No company in America wants to be on the receiving end of one of the President's value-destroy tweets. But tech is also largely opposed to many of Trump's policy positions. Will major executives speak out loudly when they disagree with the White House?

Trump and Putin are scheduled to speak over the phone tomorrow in a first step towards what Trump has called the normalization of U.S.-Russia relations. White House press secretary Sean Spicer has confirmed that the call will take place.

Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday that the Russian president intends to congratulate Trump on taking office. He added that the two leaders are also planning to "exchange views about main parameters of current bilateral relations."

"Following the difficult relations we had under Barack Obama, President Putin is ready to meet in the interests of global security and stability," said Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, earlier this week.

A group linked to billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch sent a letter to House Ways and Means chair Kevin Brady, urging Republicans to reverse their support for the border adjustment tax. Americans for Prosperity President Tim Phillips summarizes the Koch network position:

"Border adjustability is nothing more than a tax on American consumers. We are against this approach because in the end, it is making life more expensive for all Americans, especially low-and middle-income families. Instead of picking winners and losers, Congress should pursue a simple, pro-growth approach that lowers rates, eliminates loopholes, simplifies the tax code, and above all, protects consumers from new tax increases."

Why this matters: The border adjustment plan — which would cut taxes on exports but raise them substantially on imports — is central to Paul Ryan's ambitious plans for tax reform. Republicans believe it could raise more than $1 trillion in revenue, helping to pay for Trump's expensive promises like the wall and his massive infrastructure stimulus.

From the President of the United States of America this morning:

Look forward to seeing final results of VoteStand. Gregg Phillips and crew say at least 3,000,000 votes were illegal. We must do better!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 27, 2017

The Daily Beast has a deep dive on Gregg Phillips, who seems to be the primary source for Trump's voter fraud claims. His tweets have gone viral via Alex Jones' Infowars, and he claims to have collected 184 million voter records with the help of his app, VoteStand, and a band of volunteers.

The problem?: VoteStand has been downloaded less than 5,000 times via Google Play. (And we can assume one of those was likely to Trump's famous Android.)

And don't forget: there is almost no fraudulent voting.

Republicans are going wild over Kim Strassel's "Potomac Watch" column in the WSJ, "A GOP Regulatory Game Changer." The piece discusses how legal experts are arguing that Congress can use the Congressional Review Act to overrule and dismantle Obama regulations going back to 2009.

Why this matters: The accepted understanding in Washington is that the CRA can only used against new regulations, specifically those finalized in the past 60 legislative days.

"This is aggressive, sure, and would take intestinal fortitude. Some Republicans briefed on the plan are already fretting that Democrats will howl. They will," said Strassel.

Reaction: Conservative radio show host Hugh Hewitt this morning tweeted that he hopes the Drudge Report "puts a red siren" on Strassel's column, adding that it may be the most significant column he's read in years.

What's next: A Republican source says conservative staff and think tanks throughout D.C. are starting to dig into the legality of this. "[I]t's a novel idea, but would be a game changer if true. I think the procedural hurdles in the Senate might be messier than this piece states, but opens up all kinds of doors if it works."

Democrats will almost certainly block Trump's Supreme Court nominee — regardless of who it is, as payback for Republicans tanking Obama's pick, Merrick Garland — and Republicans will almost certainly will push the nuclear-option button.

This will set a new precedent of 50 votes for Supreme Court confirmation, just like Republicans set precedent that you now can refuse to fill a slot in a presidential election year.

Why this matters: just when you thought it couldn't get more divisive, Supreme Court fights are going to likely get nastier and more partisan.

What's next: Trump says he'll name his nominee on Thursday, and he told Hannity last night that he's almost certain on the person. The current short list, per multiple media reports, is William Pryor, Neil Gorsuch and Thomas Hardiman.

Every election, liberals threaten to move to Canada if a conservative wins the White House, and right-wing talk-show hosts offer to gladly pick up the tab. This past election year was no different, and if anything, social media has made these calls seem even louder. The Economist breaks down this year's surge in interest:

• The Canadian immigration department's website crashed on election night.
• Royal LePage, Canada's largest realtor, said the number of Americans looking at homes on its website rose 40% in the last three months of 2016, compared with the same period the previous year.
• Applications from American students to study at Canadian universities have jumped, at some schools by as much as 80%.

Reality check: It's actually complex, time-consuming and costly to head north — and there's no fast-track for Americans — so few follow through on the threat.

White House and Hill GOP leaders are astonished by the unambiguous, far-reaching power of Steve Bannon and policy guru Stephen Miller over, well, just about everything.

With full control of Congress, and soon control of the Supreme Court, conservatives are planning a number of moves to reduce the number of abortions.

Here are the top targets:

• Appoint an anti-abortion judge to Supreme Court
• Restrict or eliminate funding for Planned Parenthood
• Ban all abortions after 20 weeks
• Permanently outlaw any abortion-related services for Medicaid recipients

Important today: Vice President Pence's speech at the March for Life in DC.

Below is the president's exchange with Sean Hannity on his response to (now-suspended) SNL writer Katie Rich tweeting "Barron [Trump] will be this country's first homeschool shooter."

HANNITY: "Your 10-year-old…What a wonderful, smart, charming kid. And then, they attack him; that's got to hurt you and Melania."

TRUMP: "Well, Saturday Night Live – a person from Saturday Night Live was terrible. It's a failing show, it's not funny. Alec Baldwin's a disaster. He's terrible on the show and, by the way, I don't mind some humor but it's terrible. But for them to attack, for NBC to attack my 10-year-old son."

HANNITY: "Horrible."

TRUMP: "It's a disgrace. He's a great boy. And it's not an easy thing for him. Believe me."