Axios

As Trump experienced this week, part of the perks of being POTUS include lavish gifts from foreign leaders. Unfortunately, presidents don't get to just keep those gifts.

• The rules: In 1966, Congress instated a rule that prevents the president, from accepting gifts worth more than a certain amount from foreign governments. As of 2014, that amount is $375. Gifts worth more than that go to the National Archives.
• The catch: The president or any diplomats are able to keep gifts worth more than $375 if they pay the market price for it, which is rarely done, although Hillary Clinton paid $970 for a black pearl necklace given to her by the Myanmar opposition leader. With Trump being the richest U.S. president yet, he could easily afford to buy some of the foreign gifts presented to him if he chooses to.
• The most extravagant giver: Saudi Arabia by far has given the most costly gifts, sometimes costing more than half a million dollars.

The Washington Post reports that Jared Kushner wanted to set up a secret communications channel between President Trump's transition team and the Kremlin that would be free of monitoring. He wanted the secret channel to discuss policy issues and Syria with Russia, according to three officials who spoke with the NYT.

What we know: Kushner requested on Dec. 1 or 2 that the secret channel be set up during a meeting with Kislyak at Trump Tower — a meeting also attended by Michael Flynn, Trump's first national security adviser. Kushner wanted to use Russian diplomatic facilities for the proposed meetings. They also discussed setting up a meeting between a Trump associate and a Russian contact in a third country.

Update: Once Rex Tillerson was confirmed as Secretary of State, Trump's team felt there was no need for a backchannel, per an AP report, which confirmed Kushner made the request. The AP, like the NYT, reports that the channel was meant to connect Flynn with military leaders.

The Senate Intelligence Committee has requested all documents, emails, and phone records dating back to the start of President Trump's campaign in June 2015, according to a new report from The Washington Post.

The reach: WaPo says that "dozens" of former Trump campaign staffers will be contacted in the days ahead to produce any records that they might hold.

Why it matters: Senate Intel's Russia investigation had previously been focused on peripheral Trump campaign associates like Carter Page and Roger Stone, but this expansive request marks the first time that the official campaign apparatus has been drawn into the Senate's formal investigation.

Hillary Clinton returned to her alma mater on Friday to deliver this year's commencement address, where took a few jabs at the president, being careful not to mention his name.

"When people in power invent their own facts and attack those who question them, it can mark the beginning of the end of a free society," she said. "That is not hyperbole, it is what authoritarian regimes throughout history have done... They attempt to control reality."

She also drew comparisons between Trump and Richard Nixon, noting that her 1969 graduating class was furious about "the election of a man whose whose presidency would eventually end in disgrace with his impeachment for obstruction of justice after firing the person running the investigation into him at the Department of Justice."

Vice President Mike Pence while delivering the commencement speech at the U.S. Naval Academy's graduation and commissioning ceremony Friday:

• "President Trump is the best friend of the armed forces the United States will ever have. I promise, no matter where you're called to serve, no matter what the mission, this commander in chief will always have your back."
• "Let me be clear, the era of budget cuts of the Armed Forces of the United States is over... let our adversaries and enemies know that America is prepared to lead, and fight and win any contest, any struggle, anywhere, on behalf of freedom."
• "As the proud parents of a first lieutenant in the Marine Corps, my wife [who Pence referred to as "my commanding officer"] and I know that this graduation is an important moment for your loved ones."