Today in one sentence: Pro-Trump activists circulated a 17-page draft executive order urging Trump to declare an election emergency and use it to impose federal voting rules, including limits on mail ballots and voting machines; the Trump administration believes “the politics are a lot better if the Israelis” attack Iran first, thinking Tehran’s retaliation would build U.S. support for American attacks; the FBI subpoenaed phone “toll records” for Kash Patel and Susie Wiles in 2022 and 2023 during Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigating into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his mishandling of classified documents; Hillary Clinton’s closed-door deposition before the House Oversight Committee’s Jeffrey Epstein investigation was briefly paused after an unauthorized photo from inside the room was posted on social media; a federal judge ruled that the IRS violated federal privacy law “approximately 42,695 times” by sharing taxpayer addresses with ICE; the U.S. recorded net negative migration in 2025 for the first time since the Great Depression; 61% of Americans say they support deporting unauthorized immigrants, but 60% say ICE agents have “gone too far”; and 56% of Americans say they don’t trust Trump to make the right decisions about using military force overseas.

1/ Pro-Trump activists circulated a 17-page draft executive order urging Trump to declare an election emergency and use it to impose federal voting rules, including limits on mail ballots and voting machines. The draft, promoted by activists who said they had “certain coordination” with the White House, cited alleged Chinese interference in 2020 as the basis to declare a national emergency. Trump has said he’ll act by executive order on voter ID and mail voting if Congress doesn’t pass the SAVE Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register. A U.S. intelligence review found China considered influence efforts in 2020, but didn’t carry them out, and courts have already blocked parts of Trump’s earlier election order. (Washington Post / New York Times)

2/ The Trump administration believes “the politics are a lot better if the Israelis” attack Iran first, thinking Tehran’s retaliation would build U.S. support for American attacks. The U.S. deployed F-22 Raptor fighter jets to an Israeli air base for a potential wartime mission, positioning forces to help defend Israel and U.S. assets if Iran strikes back. The buildup came as U.S. and Iranian negotiators held indirect talks in Geneva that ended without a deal, but Oman and Iran reported “significant progress.” Meanwhile, Democrats and some Republicans moved to force votes next week requiring congressional authorization before any Iran attack. (Politico / Wall Street Journal / New York Times / Reuters / NBC News / Politico / CNBC / Axios)

3/ The FBI subpoenaed phone “toll records” for Kash Patel and Susie Wiles in 2022 and 2023 during Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigating into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his mishandling of classified documents. Both were private citizens at the time. The scope, timing, and purpose of the subpoenas, as well as whether Patel, now FBI director, or Wiles, now White House chief of staff, were targets of the investigation is unclear. Patel claimed the records were placed in “Prohibited” case files that made them hard to locate after Trump officials took over the bureau. After Patel disclosed the records, at least 10 FBI employees tied to the Mar-a-Lago documents case were fired. The FBI Agents Association called the terminations unlawful and a violation of due process. (Reuters / Associated Press / Axios / New York Times / The Guardian / ABC News / NBC News / CNN / CBS News / The Hill)

4/ Hillary Clinton’s closed-door deposition before the House Oversight Committee’s Jeffrey Epstein investigation was briefly paused after an unauthorized photo from inside the room was posted on social media. Rep. Lauren Boebert reportedly took the photo and shared it with conservative influencer Benny Johnson. In prepared remarks, Clinton said she didn’t recall ever meeting Epstein, never flew on his plane, and had “nothing to add,” accusing Republicans of using her testimony as “partisan political theater” to deflect from Trump’s ties to Epstein. The deposition resumed after about 30 minutes, with Bill Clinton scheduled to testify Friday. (New York Times / Washington Post / Axios / Reuters / Wall Street Journal / NBC News / ABC News)

5/ A federal judge ruled that the IRS violated federal privacy law “approximately 42,695 times” by sharing taxpayer addresses with ICE. U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said the IRS shared the addresses in August under a data-sharing agreement with the Department of Homeland Security without confirming that ICE had provided a valid address for the taxpayer it was seeking, a statutory requirement meant to limit access to already-identified individuals. The judge said the government’s verification standard was so weak that ICE could have submitted placeholder entries like “00000” and still received a taxpayer’s home address. (Washington Post)

  • ICE officers entered Columbia University housing and detained an undergraduate, using a “missing person” story to get inside. Columbia said officers lacked a judicial warrant for nonpublic areas and tightened rules on letting law enforcement into housing. Hours later, Elmina Aghayeva was released, while DHS claimed her 2016 visa termination made her removable. (New York Times / Washington Post)

  • A nearly blind refugee was found dead in Buffalo days after U.S. Border Patrol took custody of him at his release from jail and dropped him at a coffee shop miles from his home. Authorities said homicide detectives were reviewing the timeline even as local reporting said the medical examiner deemed the death health-related. CBP said agents saw no distress and left him at a “warm, safe” coffee shop near his last known address. The mayor and his family said he was released without notice or adequate help in below-freezing weather. (WIVB / CBS News / Reuters)

6/ The U.S. recorded net negative migration in 2025 for the first time since the Great Depression. The U.S. population lost an estimated 150,000 people last year with total in-migration falling to about 2.6 to 2.7 million – down from almost 6 million in 2023. (Wall Street Journal)

poll/ 61% of Americans say they support deporting unauthorized immigrants, but 60% say ICE agents have “gone too far.” 39% approve of Trump’s handling of deportations. (Reuters)

poll/ 56% of Americans say they don’t trust Trump to make the right decisions about using military force overseas. 59% say they have little to no trust in Trump’s ability to make the right decisions on the use of nuclear weapons. (AP-NORC)

The 2026 midterms are in 250 days; the 2028 presidential election is in 985 days.