• Former President Donald Trump warned of “potential death & destruction” in a post-midnight post on his social media platform, marking his latest allusion to violence as he faces potential criminal charges related to alleged hush-money payments to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels by a New York grand jury that is set to meet again as soon as Monday. (The Washington Post) Meanwhile, the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg slammed House Republicans for their probe of his investigation, saying they lack a “legitimate basis for congressional inquiry” and suggesting New York courts are a better venue for challenging him. (CNN)
• During President Joe Biden’s visit to Canada, he and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are said to have struck a deal that allows the two countries to turn back asylum seekers who cross the border between the two countries without authorization. (Los Angeles Times)
• TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew’s testimony to the House Energy and Commerce Committee did nothing to appease lawmakers’ bipartisan concerns about his companies ties to China, data privacy and dangers to children as Washington considers banning the social video app. Chew’s efforts were undercut after China’s Commerce Ministry preempted his testimony by saying it would oppose the Biden administration’s proposal to decouple TikTok from its Chinese-based parent, ByteDance Ltd. (Roll Call)
• A group of House Republicans are urging House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) to include demands for energy permitting reform in his opening offer to Democrats for raising the debt limit. (Politico) With House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) drafting a “deal sheet” that the White House must agree to before House Republicans agree to raise the debt limit, a number of Senate Republicans are worried there is no backup plan if Biden and McCarthy cannot reach an agreement soon. (Punchbowl News)

Happening today (all in ET):

• 9 a.m. House in session to consider the GOP’s “Parents Bill of Rights” legislation.

• 9 a.m. U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai testifies to House Ways and Means Committee.

• 2 p.m. Biden addresses Canadian Parliament in Ottawa. 
• 3:45 p.m. Biden, Trudeau hold joint press conference.

Meet ‘the five families’ that wield power in McCarthy’s House majority
The Washington Post

Biden, Cabinet to Tout New Investments with Three-Week Blitz
Akayla Gardner and Jennifer Jacobs, Bloomberg

President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and cabinet officers are planning a three-week blitz across the country to promote his economic agenda, starting with a visit to Wolfspeed Inc., a North Carolina chipmaker.

Trump Inquiries Present a Stress Test for Justice in a Polarized Nation
Glenn Thrush and Adam Goldman, The New York Times

Attorney General Merrick Garland and other prosecutors have sought to demonstrate that politics should not infect the justice system. Those efforts face a steep challenge as the Trump investigations move ahead.

U.S. flies migrants caught at Canada border to Texas in deterrence effort
Ted Hesson and Jose Luis Gonzalez, Reuters

U.S. authorities have been flying migrants caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Canada border to Texas as part of a deterrence effort to tackle a rise in crossings, according to authorities, flight records and a Reuters witness.

Court blocks COVID-19 vaccine mandate for US gov’t workers
Kevin McGill, The Associated Press

President Joe Biden’s order that federal employees get vaccinated against COVID-19 was blocked Thursday by a federal appeals court.

US Strikes Iranian-Linked Groups in Syria After Drone Attack
John Harney, Bloomberg

The US military carried out air strikes in Syria after an American contractor was killed and five service members wounded when a drone it said was of Iranian origin crashed into a coalition base.

From Rockets to Ball Bearings, Pentagon Struggles to Feed War Machine
Eric Lipton, The New York Times

The flow of arms to Ukraine has exposed a worrisome lack of production capacity in the United States that has its roots in the end of the Cold War.

The Surreal Post-Trump Embrace of Mark Milley
Michael Schaffer, Politico

Washington’s unusual embrace of the Pentagon’s top general.

Pentagon Probes Why Boeing Staff Worked on Air Force One Planes Without Security Credentials
Andrew Tangel, The Wall Street Journal

About 250 Boeing workers had expired credentials that are needed to work on highly classified presidential jets.

House fails to override Biden’s first veto
Zoë Richards, NBC News

The vote paves the way for implementing an administration rule that lets some retirement plans take into account environmental, social and corporate governance factors.

GOP senators see impact if McConnell’s not back soon
Andrew Solender, Axios

Some of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-Ky.) Republican colleagues say his absence from the Senate could be a problem if he doesn’t return in the coming weeks.

Two House Dems to attend visit to D.C. jail housing Jan. 6 defendants
Andrew Solender, Axios

Two freshman House Democrats will be part of a congressional delegation led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to the D.C. jail — where Jan. 6 riot defendants are being held.

Kevin McCarthy met Ashli Babbitt’s mom ahead of GOP visit with Jan. 6 prisoners
Ryan J. Reilly et al., NBC News

Micki Witthoeft said the House speaker “was delightful” in a meeting a day before congressional Republicans will visit Jan. 6 defendants at the D.C. jail.

Ethics Committee admonishes Graham for fundraising in Senate building
Niels Lesniewski, Roll Call

The Senate Ethics Committee has admonished Sen. Lindsey Graham for soliciting campaign contributions for Georgia Senate candidate Herschel Walker from a Senate office building.

Trump, Pence lawyers go before judge in dispute with DOJ over testimony
Dareh Gregorian et al., NBC News

A hearing was held in a Washington, D.C. federal court Thursday to consider arguments about whether former Vice President Mike Pence must testify before a federal grand jury about his dealings with then-President Donald Trump around Jan. 6.

Top Trump attorney appeared before grand jury last December in classified docs probe: Sources
Katherine Faulders and Alexander Mallin, ABC News

Timothy Parlatore testified about documents found at Mar-a-Lago, sources said.

In Trump Rape Case, Jurors Will Be Kept Anonymous to Protect Them
Benjamin Weiser, The New York Times

A judge said that they could become victims of “harassment or worse” from supporters of the former president as he faces a lawsuit by the writer E. Jean Carroll.

Melania Trump Remains ‘Angry’ at Donald over Stormy Daniels Drama, Is Focused on Her Son and Herself: Sources
Linda Marx, People

As Donald Trump awaits a possible indictment over an alleged hush money payment he made to adult film star Stormy Daniels in 2016, there’s one person who allegedly isn’t interested in talking about the drama at all: the former president’s wife, Melania Trump.

Justice for Manchin: Senate Republicans closing in on 2024 recruit
Burgess Everett and Ally Mutnick, Politico

If the popular governor jumps in, Republicans would break their losing streak in recruiting popular governors and reshape next year’s battleground map in one fell swoop.

Ron DeSantis’ Book Tour Looks Like ‘Amateur Hour’
Jake Lahut, The Daily Beast

The Florida governor’s soft launch for a likely presidential campaign just lost its top event coordinator, and some Republicans are saying his armor is already starting to crack.

DeSantis’ Culture Warrior: ‘We Are Now Over the Walls’
Michael Kruse, Politico

In Chris Rufo, the Florida governor has found the perfect weapon for the multi-front culture war he hopes will launch his presidential run.

Ron DeSantis has one very big problem: Donald Trump
Sally Goldenberg, Politico

He hasn’t declared his candidacy yet — but some Republicans fear that their non-Trump savior is showing signs of faltering.

Trump to GOP firms: Stop using my image or your clients will suffer
Alex Isenstadt, Politico

A memo sent on Thursday makes clear, the Trump campaign wants the digital dollars going to them.

New Hampshire Gov. Sununu tells Biden, Democrats to ‘pound sand,’ state not moving 2024 primary
Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner

A defiant New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) said he will not allow a change in his state’s first-in-the-nation presidential primary, telling Democrats and President Joe Biden to “pound sand.”

Florida Republicans hand DeSantis first major legislative win
Gary Fineout, Politico

Republican lawmakers, who hold supermajorities in the Legislature, are moving rapidly to carry out the governor’s wish list.

NC approves Medicaid expansion, reversing long opposition
Gary D. Robertson, The Associated Press

A Medicaid expansion deal in North Carolina received final legislative approval on Thursday, capping a decade of debate over whether the closely politically divided state should accept the federal government’s coverage for hundreds of thousands of low-income adults.

Georgia’s governor signs ban on certain gender-affirming care for minors
Maxime Tamsett et al., CNN

Georgia’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp signed a bill Thursday to ban certain gender-affirming care for minors, joining a growing number of GOP-led states looking to restrict the treatments across the country.

Iowa governor signs transgender bathroom bill, bans gender-affirming care for youth
Brooke Migdon, The Hill

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) on Wednesday signed into law two bills that will restrict the rights of transgender young people in the state.

Utah Gov. signs laws requiring parental consent for minors to use social media
Ben Goggin, NBC News

Utah’s regulations come amid ongoing debates about the impact of social media on young people’s mental health. Four other states are considering similar measures.

Erin Morrow Hawley Is Leading the Charge to Ban Abortion Medication. She’s Also Josh Hawley’s Wife
Abigail Tracy, Vanity Fair

As a Texas federal judge deliberates his decision in a high-profile case that could impose a nationwide ban on a leading abortion drug, reproductive rights activists are now raising scrutiny about a member of the plaintiffs’ legal team: Erin Morrow Hawley, an attorney and the wife of Missouri senator Josh Hawley. 

TikTok Stars Go On a D.C. Field Trip
Madison Malone Kircher, The New York Times

On the bus, off the bus and all over Capitol Hill with creators turned temporary lobbyists. Wait, does anybody need a bathroom break?

U.S. Executives to Keep Low Profile at China Forum Amid Tensions
Lingling Wei, The Wall Street Journal

Apple’s Tim Cook is among dozens of foreign CEOs set to attend the Beijing meeting with Chinese officials as relations fray between world’s top economic powers

Biden Plan to Cut Billions in Medicare Fraud Ignites Lobbying Frenzy
Reed Abelson and Margot Sanger-Katz, The New York Times

The Biden administration has proposed changes to how it would pay private Medicare Advantage plans.

What’s ‘Woke’ and Why It Matters
Nate Cohn, The New York Times

Believe it or not, the term woke wasn’t uttered even once in the Republican debates back in 2015 and 2016. Now, I’d be surprised if we make it out of the opening statements of the first primary debate without hearing the term.

The Wrong Indictment Against Trump
Peggy Noonan, The Wall Street Journal

Stormy Daniels wasn’t an offense against America. Focus on Georgia and the Jan. 6 riots instead.

Biden moves to undo Trump’s political play on the Space Command
David Ignatius, The Washington Post

The aftershocks from Donald Trump’s presidency reach even to outer space, but the Biden administration is quietly moving to repair one piece of the damage that could affect national security.