President Donald Trump called Sen. John McCain's wife Cindy on Friday to check on the couple and send his best wishes, according to the Associated Press. McCain is undergoing treatments for glioblastoma, an aggressive kind of brain cancer.
Why it matters: Trump and McCain have had a rocky relationship to say the least, especially when the Arizona senator voted against Republican efforts to appeal the Affordable Care Act this summer.
Despite President Trump's tough-on-immigration rhetoric, there were around 177,000 fewer deportations this year than in 2009, Obama's first year in office. That number is lower than any year during Obama's presidency, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) data.
House and Senate Republicans have released their tax conference report. (There's also a two-page summary.) It looks like it's on track to pass next week, now that key Senate holdouts — Sens. Marco Rubio and Bob Corker — have announced their support for the bill.
What's next: The House will vote on the bill on Tuesday, according to House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and then the Senate will follow. House Republicans will meet on Monday night and Tuesday morning.
Sen. Marco Rubio's office has confirmed to reporters that the senator will be voting for the GOP tax cuts bill now that the child tax credit has been enhanced to meet his standards.
The number of people planning to attend law schools next fall has increased by 12%, there have been 14% more law school applications and 23 law schools reported 40% increases in applications, according to data from the Law School Admission Council.
Why it matters: Interest in law school has been declining since before the recession, Wall Street Journal reports. Law school deans and advisors told WSJ that the upturn is at least in part due to the legal issues arising from Trump's administration, better discounts at law schools and a revived economy.
The House Ethics Committee announced today that it has opened an investigation into allegations of sexual harassment against Democratic Rep. Ruben Kihuen of Nevada. A female staffer claimed earlier this month that Kihuen made inappropriate advances toward her during his 2016 House campaign.
President Trump received a warm welcome at the FBI National Academy graduation ceremony Friday, less than an hour after continuing to make claims about how angry the American public is with the bureau and his Justice Department, calling it "a shame." But Trump took on a more optimistic tune during his speech to the academy:
"Know, with me as your president, America's police will have a true friend and loyal champion in the White House – more loyal than anyone else can be...The president of the United States has your back 100 percent."
A Democratic woman who was running for Congress in Kansas' 3rd district dropped out of the race today after it was revealed a former male employee filed a sexual harassment lawsuit about her in 2005. She denies his allegations.
Why it matters: Andrea Ramsey is the first female candidate accused of sexual harassment in a time when these allegations are hitting nearly every industry. And her resignation from the race reflects the zero-tolerance policy the Democratic Party is implementing for such instances and for candidates at every level.
"When you look at what's gone on with the FBI and this Justice Department — people are very, very angry... the level of anger with this FBI is certainly very sad." — President Trump on his way to Quantico to participate in the FBI graduation
He also lamented how "it's a shame" what's happened with the Bureau, but added "we're going to rebuild the FBI, it'll be bigger and better than ever."
We constantly have to remind ourselves how not-normal these times are, and The Washington Post today finds a fresh way to illuminate President Trump's anomalous and inexplicable views on Russia.
Be smart: "His position has alienated close American allies and often undercut members of his Cabinet ... against the backdrop of a criminal probe into possible ties between [his] campaign and the Kremlin."
The Trump administration is planning a push to convince the American public that the current U.S. immigration system is "bad for American workers" and "bad for American security," White House spokesman Hogan Gidley told AP.
Between the lines: In exchange for a legislative fix for DACA recipients, the White House wants funding for a border wall and a switch from the existing family-based immigration system to a merit-based one. They plan to use data on chain migration and the number of immigrants in U.S. jails to make the case that the current immigration system is an economic and national security threat.
