1/ “At this moment,� Trump won’t sign the Senate-passed funding measure that would avoid a partial government shutdown if it doesn’t include his border wall money, Sarah Huckabee Sanders said. Paul Ryan added that Trump has “concerns for border security.� Trump previously told Democrats he would be “proud� to shut down the government if they refused to give him $5 billion for his border wall. Democrats held firm and GOP leaders were forced to instead pursue a short-term spending bill that would avoid a shutdown, which the Senate unanimously passed Wednesday night to fund federal agencies through February 8th. The Senate-passed bill does not include funding for Trump’s wall. Hours after the Senate passed its bill, House Republicans revolted over concerns that they were punting the border wall fight to next year, when Democrats take control of the House. Trump’s opposition dramatically increases the chances of a government shutdown starting Friday night. (Politico / CNN / Washington Post / New York Times / Wall Street Journal / NBC News)

A Florida man started a GoFundMe campaign to raise money to pay for Trump’s border wall. The campaign has raised over $5.5 million in the three days since it started, with an overall goal of $1 billion. Brian Kolfage believes that if the 63 million Americans who voted for Trump donated $80 each, they would be able to raise the $5 billion Trump is asking Congress for. (Politico)

Fox & Friends called Trump’s defeat on border wall funding “a stunning turn of events.� (Daily Beast)

2/ Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker declined to recuse himself from the Russia investigation despite a Justice Department ethics official advising him to step aside out of an “abundance of caution.� The ethics official said that while a recusal was “a close call,� there was no actual legal conflict of interest that would require Whitaker to recuse himself. Members of Congress are concerned about Whitaker’s previous criticism of Robert Mueller’s investigation. (CNN / ABC News / Politico)

3/ Trump’s pick for attorney general criticized Mueller’s obstruction of justice investigation in an unsolicited memo he sent to the Justice Department in June. William Barr said “Mueller’s obstruction theory is fatally misconceived,� claiming that Trump’s interactions with James Comey would not constitute obstruction of justice, because Trump was using his “complete authority to start or stop a law enforcement proceeding.� If confirmed as attorney general, Barr would oversee Mueller’s work. (<...