Over the past few weeks — especially since Roy Moore's defeat — sources close to Trump say he's finally recognizing a harsh reality: If Republicans lose the House in 2018, it will pose an existential threat to his presidency, with endless investigations, legislative obstruction and a likely move toward impeachment.
"Oh, he gets it," a source who's recently spoke to Trump told me.
Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith, who was tapped by Gov. Mark Dayton earlier month to replace the embattled Sen. Al Franken after his resignation amid a string of sexual misconduct allegations, is set to take office this week. She will fill the seat until the November 2018 midterm elections.
Background: Franken's resignation takes effect on Tuesday and Smith will be sworn in by former Vice President Walter Mondale the next day, per the AP. Smith, who served as Dayton's chief of staff prior to becoming his running mate in 2014, was the likely frontrunner.
Iran criticized President Trump's tweet in support of a series of economic protests in major Iranian cities over issues including unemployment, corruption and unbalanced government spending, per The Associated Press.
Key quote: "Iranian people give no credit to the deceitful and opportunist remarks of U.S. officials or Mr. Trump," Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Bahram Ghasemi said, according to the AP.
N.Y. Times' Michael Schmidt gives a behind-the-scenes around of his impromptu Trump interview:\
"I spent the past week in Florida covering the president's Christmas vacation to give my colleagues on the White House beat the chance to take some time off ... Until Thursday, my time in Florida had been quiet. But that afternoon, I went to Mr. Trump's golf club with his longtime confidant Christopher Ruddy, who had invited me for lunch."
The White House issued a warning to the Iranian government on Friday night regarding the protests taking place around the country.
"There are many reports of peaceful protests by Iranian citizens fed up with the regime's corruption and its squandering of the nation's wealth to fund terrorism abroad. The Iranian government should respect their people's rights, including their right to express themselves. The world is watching." -- White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders
The latest: Thousands of Iranian citizens have taken part in the biggest protests since 2009. In what originally started as a protest against the state of the economy, citizens began shouting out against government policies, and President Hassan Rouhani. Some protesters have been arrested in Tehran, which the State Department criticized, per the Australian Broadcasting Corporation: "We urge all nations to publicly support the Iranian people and their demands for basic rights and an end to corruption."
At Mar-a-Lago, President Trump can "be Trump," former campaign adviser Roger Stone told the Washington Post.
"Nobody tells Donald Trump where he can and cannot go...The president is able to get a lot of information that is normally blocked from getting to him...You don't have the minders. There is no doubt that he makes more calls."
Why it matters: Per the Post, aides view Trump's Florida golf club as "a respite...for him to recharge." He handles comments made on cable news better, and tweets a little less. But, it's also more difficult for his staff to control who he speaks to, as seen on Thursday when a New York Times reporter was able to sit with Trump for a 30 minute interview without any aides or advisers having a say.
