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Michael Cohen’s big day may not be about Russia

Washington (CNN)The congressional testimony of President Donald Trump's ex-lawyer Michael Cohen is already set to be one of the most highly anticipated moments of the new Democratic-controlled House, but those expecting significant public insights into the Russia investigation could be disappointed.

That doesn't mean Cohen's testimony won't have dramatic reveals.

Cohen is prepared to discuss topics related to hush money payments and aspects of the Trump Organization, including the roles of the President and his children, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Cohen is willing to detail -- if asked -- then-candidate Trump's role in directing payments to two women who have claimed they had affairs with Trump and how his election played a role in that, according to the source. Trump has denied affairs with the women. Cohen may also talk about how he thinks his incarceration for tax evasion is unfair, the source said.

Cohen's testimony has raised questions about what he can say publicly given that the Mueller probe continues.

House Oversight Chairman Elijah Cummings said his staff has been consulting with Mueller about Cohen's appearance and will continue to do so ahead of his February 7 hearing.

"We will not interfere with the Mueller investigation," the Maryland Democrat said Friday. "Those discussions (with the special counsel) may very well go on until the day before ... because Mueller is ongoing."

Cohen is appearing before Congress next month after he pleaded guilty in December to multiple charges and was sentenced to three years in prison. Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance crimes that included payments during the campaign to silence the women alleging affairs -- crimes that prosecutors say Trump directed Cohen to commit. Trump has denied he directed Cohen to make the payments.

Cohen also pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about how long the proposed Trump Tower Moscow project discussions extended into the 2016 campaign when he testified before the congressional intelligence committees in 2017.

It's not yet clear what specific topics might be off limits. Cummings declined to say, for example, whether Cohen would be allowed to talk about Trump Tower Moscow.

Asked if hush money payments would be part of the hearing, Cummings said his committee was "in search of the truth."

"The American people will have an opportunity to hear from him, Mr. Cohen," Cummings said. "And their representatives, that is representatives on the Republican side and the Democratic side, will have an opportunity to ask him questions, and I think the American people would see that it did matter, their votes did matter, and we opened it up for transparency."

One Democratic member of the panel cautioned fellow Democrats not to give Republicans what they want -- turning the hearing into a "circus" by asking intimate questions about Trump's alleged affairs.

Cohen's testimony before the oversight panel is public, so he won't talk about the Russia investigation there, but he could have those discussions with Congress behind closed doors before other panels. Both the House and Senate intelligence panels are seeking to bring back Cohen before he reports to prison in March.

"It's my understanding that he doesn't intend to address the Russia investigation in his open testimony. He is going to need to answer questions about it and we're in contact with the attorney," House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff of California told CNN on Thursday. "We hope that he will come in voluntarily to testify before the Intel Committee in closed session."

According to a source familiar with the matter, Cohen has not yet committed to testify to either of the intelligence committees.

Even if Mueller does not want Cohen answering questions that touch on the Russia investigation, that doesn't mean they won't be asked at his public hearing. Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, the top Republican on the oversight committee, didn't rule out pressing Cohen on questions related to any topic.

"It seems to me if he comes in there, we should be able to ask him about whatever we want to ask him about," Jordan said Friday.

On Friday, Jordan sent a letter to Cummings asking him to include Republican staffers in discussions with Cohen's lawyers and Mueller's team about Cohen's testimony. Jordan also asked Cummings to seek a host of records from the Justice Department and the FBI about Cohen, including notes of their interviews with Cohen, investigative reports and cooperation agreements.

"I hope you will work with me and the minority members to avoid an unproductive and chaotic hearing," Jordan wrote. "If you are going to provide a platform for this convicted felon and perjurer, we ought to ensure we have the necessary information to prepare to question him."

Jordan was frequently frustrated when Republicans were investigating FBI and Justice Department conduct in 2016 that his questions about the origins of the Russia investigation and a foreign intelligence surveillance warrant were rebuffed by DOJ lawyers.

"I've tried to ask all kinds of questions in every one of these depositions and I've had like 15 lawyers sitting in there telling the witness they couldn't answer the question," he said.

"For a year and a half (the Democrats) said we don't want to do anything to disrupt the Mueller investigation, but we're going to bring in their star witness before the Mueller investigation is done."

Rep. Mark Meadows of North Carolina, the House Freedom Caucus chairman and a close GOP ally of Trump on the oversight panel, hinted at the acrimony Cohen should expect from the Republican questioners.

"I think it's strange that the very first big hearing, the witness is a convicted felon who's going to prison because he lied to Congress," Meadows said.

Cohen could use his willingness to testify as a way to appeal for a more reduced sentence, though there is no agreement with prosecutors to consider that. He is due to start his three-year sentence on March 6.

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How Michael Cohen’s testimony could complicate life for President Trump

(CNN)On Thursday, we learned that Michael Cohen, President Trump's former personal lawyer, is scheduled to testify publicly on February 7 before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

While Cohen did not provide any details about the subjects of his testimony, saying only that he wanted to "cooperate and provide the American people with answers" by providing a "full and credible account of the events which have transpired," there are at least three avenues of inquiry that could be pursued by committee members or volunteered by Cohen that could potentially cause President Trump and his three eldest children a whole heap of trouble.

None of these likely areas relates to topics in the heartland of Mueller's Russia probe, which will be handled by a different committee, likely in secret session, because of the ongoing nature of that investigation. So we likely won't be hearing additional details about the Trump Tower Moscow negotiations, the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting, and Cohen's role and knowledge of negotiations about the so-called "Ukrainian peace plan."

But we will likely hear a lot more than we now know about the hush-money payments made by Cohen at Trump's behest to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal to buy their silence in the run-up to the 2016 election.

To date, Cohen has said only that Trump directed him to make the payments and that he made the payments for the principal purpose of influencing the election. I expect that we will hear much more specific testimony about how Trump ordered Cohen to pay off these women in exchange for their silence, and Trump's comments establishing the reason behind the payoffs. And we also are likely to learn who else was in on the scheme, both at the Trump Organization and in the campaign.

All of this information is important because it provides the evidence behind the accusation that Trump was involved. First, Cohen may identify other witnesses to Trump's actions in addition to the two we know have already received immunity for their testimony, namely Allen Weisselberg, Trump Organization CFO, and David Pecker, CEO of AMI, the media company involved in the McDougal payoff.

Cohen may also reveal the existence of other corroborating evidence in addition to what we already know, like the tape recording he famously made of his and Trump's conversations. So, on February 7 we should all have a much fuller picture of the evidence to support the notion that President Trump has committed a felony campaign finance offense. Trump has denied violating the law, though his version of events has changed repeatedly and dramatically since the payoff allegations surfaced.

Second, there is a whole category of evidence that Cohen could provide to Congress regarding possible wrongdoing at the Trump Organization which could spell trouble not only for Trump, but for three of his children who are or have been Trump Organization executives.

Cohen is in the position, having been a high-level Trump Organization executive for 10 years, acting as a lawyer and a fixer, to provide testimony about a whole host of areas, to include tax and accounting matters, issues relating to immigration (note the recent reporting that Trump employees at a New Jersey golf property allegedly provided false documents to illegal workers) and more.

To be clear, there is not currently in the public realm solid proof of misconduct along these lines by Trump Organization officials, but to the extent such misconduct has occurred, Cohen would almost certainly know about it. President Trump's claims otherwise, for example his statement that Cohen did "very low-level" work at the Trump Organization, are inconsistent with Cohen's longevity and role in the organization, and with his significant access to Trump.

That said, there are two possible reasons why Cohen may not testify about Trump Organization misdeeds on February 7. It appears that, at least as of the date of his sentencing in December, Cohen refused to cooperate on matters other than the campaign finance crimes with prosecutors in the Southern District of New York, according to SDNY's sentencing submission. This would presumably include information related to potential criminal conduct at the Trump Organization aside from the campaign finance crime.

If the reason for this is that describing such conduct exposes Cohen to additional criminal liability, he may refuse to answer questions about it. There is also a less likely scenario under which Cohen has since sentencing decided to cooperate with an SDNY investigation into the Trump Organization, and that SDNY has asked him not to discuss this ongoing investigation in a public setting.

A final way in which Cohen's testimony could be valuable is in adding evidence to civil actions that are ongoing or anticipated. He may provide more public information on the alleged violations of law committed by the Trump Foundation, currently the subject of a civil action by the New York Attorney General as well as the factual basis for numerous suspected conflicts of interest.

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In that regard, good government watchdogs have been concerned since the election about Trump making policy decisions to benefit his company, but there has been very little transparency about the details of deals or prospective deals in places like Russia, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. Information on what deals the Trump Organization was pursuing in these countries could be very enlightening and helpful to the state attorneys general and good government groups seeking to shine a light on these potential conflicts. Cohen should know; he was still working for Trump, according to Trump, as recently as April 2018.

So, despite President Trump's claim to the contrary Thursday, there is a lot for him — and his three eldest children who were Trump Organization executives at the relevant times — to be worried about when Cohen testifies on February 7.

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Scripted Trump does little to convince skeptics on border wall

Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump delivered his scripted response to the deepening Washington stalemate over his border wall on Tuesday night. But when he's free to tweet and with cameras rolling during a Wednesday morning appearance, America could find out what he really thinks.

But Trump's behavior in the wake of a big set piece moment is often dictated by his reaction to how everybody else scores his performance.

His impulsive political instincts can go into overdrive after appearances in which he put on a calm presidential demeanor, for instance, in his State of the Union address last year. A subsequent torrent of tweet storms or off-the-cuff remarks to reporters often give a more authentic glimpse into the President's mind.

So, Trump's Twitter feed and a photo op as he signs anti-human trafficking legislation at the White House Wednesday could make compelling viewing -- especially if the President is in a sour mood over morning television coverage of his big speech.

The President hinted that Tuesday night's Oval Office show, his most aggressive move yet in a government shutdown now into its third week, was out of his normal comfort zone of rallies and spontaneous appearances.

"Thank you for soooo many nice comments regarding my Oval Office speech. A very interesting experience!" he tweeted just before midnight.

The stakes

Trump had four urgent goals heading into the prime-time address on Tuesday that summoned the symbolic might of the presidency and was beamed into millions of homes and onto mobile devices.

He had to convince those Americans who are prone not to trust him that there is a genuine crisis at the border. He had to prove the wall is the way to address it. And he had to bolster a weak personal position and change the political equation as the shutdown begins to bite.

Finally, with signs of cracks appearing in Republican ranks on Capitol Hill, the President had to produce a tour-de-force that would stiffen his own party's resolve and ease pressure on wavering lawmakers from angry constituents.

"This is a choice between right and wrong, justice and injustice. This is about whether we fulfill our sacred duty to the American citizens we serve," Trump said, seeking to elevate the dispute above the narrow focus on a border wall -- a state of affairs that he has done more than anyone to foster.

But at the end of the night it seemed possible that the emotional, symbolic aspiration of building a wall that did so much to inflame Trump's political career will become an increasing drag on an administration beset by political challenges.

One thing Trump did not do was show any sign of caving to Democrats who are refusing his demands for more than $5 billion in wall funding -- though the formality of the setting drained much of the trademark fire and passion from his delivery.

There was also no game changing moment that could help Trump deliver a desperately needed win, at a time of extreme peril exacerbated by threatening new developments in Robert Mueller's probe on Tuesday.

Trump's speech lacked the emotional impact of many previous presidential orations from the Oval Office desk -- or new material that could unpick the Washington deadlock.

"The speech had a hurried quality to it. It was thrown together. It didn't move you, it didn't move the audience, I think, emotionally or rationally," said David Gergen, an adviser to Republican and Democratic presidents, on "CNN Tonight."

"I don't think he made the sale," he added.

Texas Republican Rep. Will Hurd, who represents a vast Texas border district told CNN's Don Lemon: "Tonight we didn't see anything new that we haven't already seen. Unfortunately, I don't think any side put forward any initiatives that are going to move the ball forward."

If the President wanted to coax the Democrats to the negotiating table, he offered them little new cover to engage or incentive to bargain. He also failed to land a killer blow that could erode what they feel is their strong position.

'Manufactured' crisis

Democratic leaders respond to Trump's address

Part of the problem was the dynamic Trump faced going into the speech. The President accused Democrats of keeping the government shut because they will not finance border security.

But that is not true, since House Democrats have already passed a measure that provides $1.3 billion for border security through February 8 but no wall funding. The measure was modeled on a Republican bill that passed the Senate last year.

Before Christmas, Trump said he would be "proud" to shut down the government over border security, a remark that undercuts the version of events he laid in his Oval Office address.

In their response Tuesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer put on an exaggerated show of calm meant to show they -- and not Trump -- offer responsible government.

"President Trump must stop holding the American people hostage, must stop manufacturing a crisis and must reopen the government," Pelosi said.

The President's warning that America was facing "a crisis of the heart and a crisis of the soul" represented a change of tone, as he opened his remarks by bemoaning a "humanitarian and security crisis at our southern border."

That appeared to be an effort to take some heat out of the debate to appeal to more moderate voters. The President didn't mention the wall -- the issue at the center of the shutdown -- until late in his address.

Still, his dark portrait of out-of-control border crossings, a torrent of drug trafficking from Mexico and of assaults, sex crimes and killings perpetrated by "aliens" will have won approval from his most loyal supporters.

Trump's base rallied to his warnings of a border crisis in his campaign, and still sincerely believes the situation is out of control.

But for anyone not already in his camp, Trump is an imperfect messenger since he has long demagogued immigration for political gain. His speech was sprinkled with falsehoods. For instance, he falsely implied that most heroin trafficking comes over the porous southern border and a wall would fix the problem. In fact, most of the drug is seized at legal points of entry -- a wall may do little to solve that situation.

The President also sought to wiggle out of his famous promise that Mexico would pay for the wall by arguing that the cost would be recouped in a new trade deal, willfully misinterpreting how such agreements work.

Trump's depiction of undocumented migrants as crazed criminals, when many are desperate asylum seekers fleeing persecution and economic deprivation, was meanwhile deeply offensive to Trump's opponents.

The President also ignored the plight of hundreds of thousands of government workers who have been without a paycheck since he reversed course on a short term funding deal before Christmas fearing a backlash from conservative pundits and his political base if he failed to secure wall funding.

And there were signs on Tuesday night that Republican anxiety about the political impact of the shutdown is growing -- a fact that the President's lack of empathy for locked out workers will have done little to alleviate.

Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a moderate Republican who has bucked the President before, said she was receptive to a process that would reopen the government even if the fight over the wall is not resolved.

"I think we can walk and chew gum," she said.

A fight Trump needs to have

Acosta: Trump address hazardous to the truth

Trump's first public appearance Wednesday is a signing ceremony for anti-human trafficking legislation, which could result in some extemporaneous remarks if he chooses to respond to a morning of potentially critical news coverage. The President will then head to Capitol Hill to rally Republicans and then meet congressional leaders in the White House Situation Room -- a venue chosen to suggest a moment of crisis.

The President's next big set piece event is a journey to the border on Thursday.

If that fails to move the political needle, Trump may be tempted to follow through on his threat to declare a national emergency as a way to redirect Pentagon funding from other projects to wall construction.

CNN's Jim Acosta reported on Tuesday that some of Trump's friends have told him that such a move would likely not work out legally for the President.

But it could offer Trump a way out of his dead end over the wall in one way. A court battle over the order would position Trump as waging a fight that would be popular with his base, as his re-election bid gets under way.

An adverse judgment could offer an opening for a face saving flaying of the justice system and the perceived unfairness of the political establishment, who Trump has long blamed for seeking to thwart his presidency.

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50 years later Woodstock is coming back and its mission is more relevant than ever.

Photo by Henry Diltz used with permission.

In 1969, America was fiercely divided by war and politics that fractured relationships between the genders, races, and generations. People took to the streets to push back against a ruling class who blocked the halls to progress. Sound familiar?

Fashion, technology, music and how they felt at a specific moment can never truly be replicated. But there are eras that share undeniable similarities because they are animated by similar passions and challenges.

1969 and 2019 are both times when social upheaval inflamed people's passions for justice, understanding, and togetherness.

Fifty years later, Americans are making their voices heard in even greater numbers to bring attention to similar struggles. That's why it's the perfect time for Woodstock to return.

People of color, women and those who live outside the outdated confines of gender are fighting for true equality and children increasingly no longer feel safe in the school yard with the constant threat of gun violence.

The planet is on fire. In America alone, we are up against political forces that deny the very existence of climate change, while the rest of the world is working to implement new standards and laws that could give our planet a chance for survival. Even those young people who aren't currently engaged in environmental issues can no longer stay silent as climate change is literally taking money out of their wallets.

The powers that be are doing everything in their power to not just block progress, but wall it off completely.

"Woodstock’s influence on culture was epic," the festival’s founder, Michael Lang, said. "In a time of conflict and upheaval, it was an invitation to come together… to prove that it is possible to live together in harmony and with compassion. Live with only our best selves represented. To give people around the world hope. And that’s why Woodstock is still relevant today."

The key to creating lasting change is through civic engagement. Only when people, especially younger people, become involved in their communities and vote, will our elected leaders listen to demands for change. Voter turnout in the 2018 midterm elections reached a 50-year-high, but real civic engagement means being part of our communities, society and planet on a daily basis.

Moved by the uncanny echoes of a movement he first experienced fifty years ago, Lang realized there’s never been a better time to invite everyone back for a mission of civic engagement.

“Woodstock 1969 was a reaction by the youth of its time to the conditions they faced,” Lang said. “And the Woodstock founders are intent on bringing that passion to life again – and give as many people as possible the chance to be a part of a new Woodstock moment.”

via Montecruz Foto/Flickr

A new home to bring back a timeless message.

This year's Woodstock 50th anniversary celebration will take place in Watkins Glen, a small village in New York. Michael Lang toured Watkins Glen while looking for the ideal place to host this year's celebration and said the experience reminded him of the first time he visited Max Yasgur's farm.

Describing it as having an "immediate spiritual connection" to the original site, Lang says the new location meets a number of important benchmarks: it keeps the festival in New York, is surrounded by pristine greenfield, is equipped to host a large gathering and has its own musical legacy.

Lang hopes to bring together people from all generations to hear the sounds of today’s artists playing alongside the legends who first graced the Woodstock stage in 1969.

Photo via Mobilus in Mobili/Flickr

The passion of the 1960s reached its apex with America’s youth letting out a primal scream that manifested in a physical and spiritual place called Woodstock.

In August of 1969, half a million people were guided to Max Yasgur’s farm by the sounds of revolution: Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, The Grateful Dead, Sly and the Family Stone, The Who, Santana, Joan Baez and The Band.

On that farm they came in contact with a power that transcended music, creating a feeling of peace, love, and togetherness.

Lang and his team believe that good times and good vibes can lead to outrageously good outcomes.

The Woodstock 50th Anniversary Celebration will be an opportunity to focus on the issues that ignite the passions of America’s youth including the environment and civic engagement.

“Woodstock could not be coming back at a more important moment in history,” Lang said. “It’s not just about the place. It’s about the vibe. It’s about peace, love and music. And it’s about time.”

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FOX NEWS FIRST: Trump mulls ‘right’ to declare emergency at border; Questions surround missing girl found alive

President Donald Trump tours the U.S. border with Mexico at the Rio Grande on the southern border, Thursday, Jan. 10, 2019, in McAllen, Texas. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

Welcome to FOX News First. Not signed up yet? Click here.   Developing now, Friday, Jan. 11, 2019

TRUMP'S 'ABSOLUTE RIGHT' AS PRESIDENT: In an exclusive interview with FOX News' Sean Hannity, President Trump said he has "the absolute right to declare a national emergency" if he can't reach an agreement with congressional Democrats to provide funding for his promised wall along the U.S.-Mexico border ... "The law is very clear. I mean, we have the absolute right to declare a national emergency," Trump said. "This is a national emergency, if you look what's happening."

Trump did not lay out a specific timetable for when he might take such a step, saying: "I think we're going to see what happens over the next few days."

The president spoke to FOX News in Texas, on the banks of the Rio Grande, where he visited the border region to argue that a barrier would deter drug and human trafficking into the United States. Back in Washington, Democrats in the Senate on Thursday failed to proceed with House-passed spending bills that would fund the government and end the partial shutdown without new border-wall money.

White House directs Army Corps of Engineers to look at ways to fund border security

Lindsey Graham: It's time for Trump ‘to use emergency powers to fund’ border wall

Chad Pergram: Democrats and many Republicans will explode if Trump bypasses Congress with emergency order

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

SHUTDOWN REALITY SETS IN: Approximately 8,000 federal workers on Friday will face their first payday without a paycheck due to the ongoing government shutdown ... Roughly 420,000 employees have been deemed essential and are working unpaid. An additional 380,000 are staying home without pay. Democratic senators and union leaders led federal workers in rallies at the White House and across the country on Thursday to end the shutdown.

On Thursday afternoon, the Senate passed legislation to provide back pay for federal workers furloughed during the shutdown. According to statistics provided by the Department of Labor, 4,760 federal employees filed for unemployment benefits in the last week of December, an increase of 3,831 from the 929 who applied the week before.

The shutdown, which enters its 21st day Friday, will be the longest in history by this weekend. Most of the government workers received their last paycheck two weeks ago.

Patrick Walsh: The Democratic Party is running on fumes (and Trump knows it)

CNN's Jim Acosta tries to show that walls don't work - and it backfires on him

MISSING WISCONSIN TEEN FOUND ALIVE: Jayme Closs, a teenager who hadn’t been seen since her parents were found dead last October, has been discovered alive and a suspect has been taken into custody, officials said ... Many questions surround Closs, 13, who was found about 70 miles north of where she was last seen. She was discovered Thursday in the town of Gordon in Douglas County, Wis., after she approached a woman who was out walking her dog.

Authorities are planning a news briefing for approximately 10 a.m. local time Friday.

TRUMP'S EX-'FIXER' TO TESTIFY: Michael Cohen, President Trump's former personal attorney, has agreed to testify before the House Oversight and Reform Committee on Feb. 7, almost exactly one month before he starts serving prison time for campaign finance violations, tax evasion and lying to Congress about Trump’s past business dealings in Russia ... In a statement, Cohen said he accepted the invitation to appear from Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., the committee's chairman, "[i]n furtherance of my commitment to cooperate and provide the American people with answers." Cummings said the committee was "in the process of consulting with Special Counsel [Robert] Mueller's office" to ensure that Cohen's scheduled testimony would not interfere with the ongoing investigation into interactions between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.

WILL BEZOS’ DIVORCE AFFECT AMAZON? - The divorce of the world’s richest man, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and his wife of 25 years, MacKenzie Bezos, could leave the fate of the pair’s massive fortune - and Amazon itself - potentially in the hands of Washington state courts ... TMZ reported Thursday that the couple did not have a prenuptial agreement detailing terms of a possible split. That does not preclude the possibility there was some type of post-nuptial agreement put in place.

Washington state – where the pair live and where Amazon is based – is a community property state, as opposed to an equitable distribution state, like New York. In a community property state, all assets acquired during the marriage are considered marital property and subject to a 50-50 split. That means MacKenzie Bezos could be entitled to half of the entrepreneur’s $137 billion fortune.

Bezos' most prized asset is Amazon. He is Amazon’s largest shareholder with a 16.3 percent stake. If his wife gets half of that ownership, it could change the company’s dynamics.

Stu Varney: Amazon shareholders deserve to know now what happens to their money

Here's how much property Jeff Bezos owns in the U.S.

Bezos divorce subject to tax changes

Will Bezos' divorce impact Blue Origin $1B funding pledge?

THE SOUNDBITE

BORDER SWING - "The number one reason they will vote 'for' him is because of his stance on border security" – Brad Parscale, President Trump's 2020 campaign manager, on "The Story with Martha MacCallum," arguing that swing voters are inclined to vote for Trump in the next presidential election because of his crusade for strengthened border security and construction of a wall. WATCH

TODAY'S MUST-READS  James Jay Carafano: America's progressives are so busy extolling virtues of socialism that they want you to ignore THIS. California church draws backlash for sign: 'Bruce Jenner is still a man.' Mysterious blue pigment in medieval woman's teeth gives scientists 'bombshell' clue.

MINDING YOUR BUSINESS Carlos Ghosn indicted on two new charges. Stocks book five straight days of gains, exit correction territory. Tax season: Top three changes that may affect you. Amazon launches ad-supported streaming-video service. 2019 a buyer's market for real estate as millennials buckle down: Trulia.

STAY TUNED

On FOX News: 

FOX & Friends, 6 a.m. ET: Special guests include: Paul Blair, director of strategic initiatives at Americans for Tax Reform, talks about tax hikes to expect from Dems; Tomi Lahren, FOX Nation host, talks border wall; Christian Whiton, former State Department adviser, talks about Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s policy speech in Cairo; Diamond & Silk, FOX Nation hosts; Dan Henniger, deputy editor at the Wall Street Journal, on Trump’s chances in 2020.

The Story With Martha MacCallum, 7 p.m. ET: Lawrence Jones, CampusReform.org editor-in-chief and FOX News contributor; Lisa Boothe, FOX News contributor.

Hannity, 9 p.m. ET: A special "Hannity" town hall on border security featuring: Tom Homan, former acting ICE director; Gregg Jarrett, FOX News legal analyst; Mary Ann Mendoza, an "Angel Mom," whose son was killed by an illegal immigrant.

FOX News @ Night, 11 p.m. ET: U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas.

On FOX Business:

Mornings with Maria, 6 a.m. ET: Special guests include: Neil Dhar, partner and head of financial services at PwC; Marta Tellado, president and CEO of Consumer Reports; Newt Gingrich, former House speaker; U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas.

Varney & Co., 9 a.m. ET: David McIntosh, president of Club for Growth; Bradley Tusk, CEO and founder of Tusk Holdings; Curtis Ellis, former Trump trade and jobs adviser; Matthew Shay, president and CEO of the National Retail Federation

Cavuto: Coast to Coast, Noon ET: Desmond Lachman, former International Monetary Fund official; Ed Conard, former Bain Capital partner.

Making Money with Charles Payne, 2 p.m. ET: Paul Meeks, Wireless Fund portfolio manager; Gene Munster, Loup Ventures managing Partner and tech analyst; Ken Mahoney, Mahoney Asset Management president; Eddie Ghabour, Key Advisers Group co-owner.

Countdown to the Closing Bell with Liz Claman, 3 p.m. ET: Luke Tilley, chief economist at Wilmington Trust; Ken Rogoff, Harvard economics professor.

On FOX News Radio:

The FOX News Rundown podcast: Jared Halpern, FOX News Radio Capitol Hill correspondent, on President Trump's trip to the southern border, and U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., on the government shutdown standoff and the border crisis debate. Don't miss some good news with FOX News' Tonya J. Powers. Plus, commentary by Chris Wallace, host of "FOX News Sunday."

Want the FOX News Rundown sent straight to your mobile device? Subscribe through Apple Podcasts, Google Play, and Stitcher.

The Brian Kilmeade Show, 9 a.m. ET: Guests will include: Radio host Sergio Sanchez on the latest in the border crisis; Dana Perino, host of "The Daily Briefing," on the top news of the day; FOX News 24/7 Headlines' Carley Shimkus on what's trending; Geraldo Rivera on President Trump's visit to the southern border and the shutdown's consequences; U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., on the shutdown standoff; former NFL running back Merril Hoge and Dr. Peter Cummings discuss their new book "Brainwashed: The Bad Science Behind CTE and the Plot to Destroy Football."

The Tom Shillue Show, 3 p.m. ET: Britt McHenry, co-host of FOX Nation's "UN-PC," and comedian Jimmy Failla join Tom Shillue to look back at the week's biggest stories.

Benson & Harf, 6 p.m. ET: Scott Lincicome, international trade attorney and Scholar at the Cato Institute, talks trade wars and this week's talks between the U.S. and China.

On FOX News Weekend:

Cavuto Live, Saturday, 10 a.m. ET: U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., on what it will take to reopen the government; Mark Morgan, former U.S. Border Patrol chief under President Obama, will tell President Trump to "stay the course" on his fight for a border wall; a live announcement from Julian Castro, former HUD secretary during Obama administration, on his decision about whether he will run for president in 2020.

Justice with Judge Jeanine, Saturday, 9 p.m. ET: Special guests include: Acting ICE Director Ron Vitiello.

Life, Liberty & Levin, Sunday, 10 p.m. ET: Mark Levin is joined by Professor Paul Kengor, executive director of the Center for Vision & Values, to expose media hypocrisy on Russian collusion.

#TheFlashback 2003: Calling the death penalty process "arbitrary and capricious, and therefore immoral," Illinois Gov. George Ryan commutes the sentences of 167 condemned inmates, clearing his state's death row two days before leaving office. 1989: Nine days before leaving the White House, President Ronald Reagan bids the nation farewell in a prime-time address, saying of his eight years in office: "We meant to change a nation and instead we changed a world." 1963: The Beatles' single "Please Please Me" (B side "Ask Me Why") is released in Britain by Parlophone.

FOX News First is compiled by FOX News' Bryan Robinson. Thank you for joining us! Have a good day and weekend! We'll see you in your inbox first thing Monday morning.

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Yes, there’s been a stock market correction but that doesn’t mean our economy is headed for a recession

FILE - The New York Stock Exchange (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report released last Friday showed that the economy added 312,000 in December, and it's validation that the current economic expansion is still on track to become the longest expansion in post-war history during President Trump's first term, despite volatility in financial markets.

While many liberal commentators like to depict the recent stock market correction as a death knell for the Trump economy, such commentators should know that financial markets and the broader economy aren't always in lock-step.

As the late Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Samuelson famously said long ago, "The stock market has forecast nine of the last five recessions." Indeed, that adage applies in the modern age. While the stock market may have sold off close to 20 percent at the end of 2018 – similar to the equity sell-off of 2008 during the Great Recession – there were similar U.S. stock market sell-offs in the summer of 2011 and in late 2015, neither of which were followed by recessions in the U.S.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON THIS TOPIC

There are several reasons why the recent contraction in the stock market could be disjointed from the U.S. economy and the Trump administration's economic policies.

First, U.S. stock indices like the S&P 500 largely include multinational companies with substantial profits coming from overseas markets. Recently the International Monetary Fund (IMF) downgraded global economic growth forecasts, which largely have been driven by slowing economies outside the U.S., namely China.

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Such concerns, in part, have caused companies like Apple to revise their sales forecasts downwards, which has a direct impact on their stock prices, even though there aren’t immediate implications for U.S. economic growth.

Second, the study of behavioral finance – the intersection of psychology and finance – tells us that individuals are not perfectly rational actors, and that they can often overreact to situations, leading to asset prices that are not based on economic fundamentals.

Just because it's been nearly 10 years since the last recession, doesn't make it any more likely that a recession will occur now compared to, say, five years ago.

At its worst, very poor sentiment and panic can lead to market crashes much like what happened on October 19, 1987 – commonly referred to as "Black Monday" – when the S&P 500 crashed more than 20 percent in a single day. Yet no recession in the U.S. economy immediately followed.

Finally, it's often a fallacy that macroeconomic expansions get "long in the tooth" or "die of old age." Last week at the American Economic Association conference, former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said she believes expansions "don't die of old age" and that there are generally only two things that can end them: "financial imbalances" or aggressively tight monetary policy set by the Federal Reserve.

In today’s economy, it's hard to see any financial imbalances (like a housing bubble), and hard to argue that the Fed has aggressively tight monetary policy, since it set short-term interest rates between 2.25 and 2.5 percent. (In the early 1980s interest rates nearly reached 20 percent and helped put the U.S. economy in recession.)

Former Fed Chair Ben Bernanke echoed a similar belief at the 2017 SALT Conference, saying that there is a roughly 15 percent probability of a recession happening in any given year, uncorrelated and independent from whether a recession did or did not happen in the previous year.

In other words, just because it's been nearly 10 years since the last recession, doesn't make it any more likely that a recession will occur now compared to, say, five years ago.

This insight also suggests that recessions are very difficult to predict – something which has borne out in practice (very few individuals forecasted the Great Recession of 2008).

With unemployment insurance claims near historic lows, GDP growth close to 3 percent, and the unemployment rate below 4 percent, there seems to be almost no indication from hard macroeconomic data that the U.S. economy is heading for recession.

The stock market may have undergone a correction, but no one should bet that means the economy is about the fail.

Jon Hartley is an economic policy analyst, researcher and writer based in New York and is a regular economics contributor at Forbes among other outlets. @Jon_Hartley_

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5 things to know for January 11: Jayme Closs, shutdown, Cohen, China, fertility

(CNN)

Want to wield the world's most powerful passport? Then you better head east. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door. (You can also get "5 Things You Need to Know Today" delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.)

1. Jayme Closs

Jayme Closs is alive. The missing Wisconsin teen was found yesterday in a town about 66 miles north of where she was last seen 87 days ago. Jayme, 13, vanished in October after her parents were found shot to death in their home. A suspect is in custody. We expect more details when authorities hold a news conference this morning. A woman out walking her dog said Jayme, with unkempt hair and oversized shoes, walked right up to her and asked for help, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. The woman said she recognized Jayme immediately. They rushed to a nearby home and called police. While they waited, Jayme declined an offer of food and played with a puppy instead.

Closs' aunt: I just cannot believe this

2. Government shutdown

The partial government shutdown is now three weeks old and, if it lasts into tomorrow, would be the longest shutdown in US history. Here's where things stand:

• Shutdown pain hits home for many federal employees, who will experience their first missed paycheck today.

• Federal employees have protested the shutdown in Washington, Atlanta, Utah and other places.

• Miami's airport will close one terminal early for three days because of TSA absences.

• A deal GOP senators worked on to end the shutdown fell apart.

• President Trump says he's close to declaring an emergency over the border, which would allow him to use Defense Department funds to build the border wall. Those funds might come from disaster aid money meant for Puerto Rico, Texas and other areas.

• Before heading yesterday to the southern border, Trump told reporters he never said Mexico was going to pay for the wall. (Spoiler alert: He did.)

Where can't you travel during the shutdown?

3. Michael Cohen

Go ahead and mark down this date: February 7. That's when Michael Cohen, President Trump's former lawyer and ex-fixer, will testify publicly before the House oversight committee. This will be must-see TV. Will Cohen divulge any new info on the hush-money payments made on Trump's behalf to women who allege affairs with him? Don't forget, those payments became the basis for the campaign finance violations that Cohen pleaded guilty to. Cohen goes to prison in March for these crimes, which prosecutors say Trump told Cohen to commit. And, of course, we'll want to hear what Cohen has to say about the Russia investigation.

Bash on Cohen to testify: This is Shakespearean

4. China

One of America's largest universities warns students and faculty not to use social media and messaging apps while in China. The University of California specifically says not to use WhatsApp and WeChat over fear Chinese authorities might use what's in those communications against them. There have been several cases in recent weeks of Western travelers being detained in China on what some consider politically motivated allegations and charges. The moves could be China's way of striking back at the West after the December arrest of Chinese tech executive Meng Wanzhou. Meng, who was detained in Canada at the request of US authorities, still faces possible extradition to the US on suspicion of violating US sanctions against Iran.

Why the arrest of Huawei's CFO matters

5. Fertility rate

We're not having enough babies here in the US to replace the population. That's the finding of a new report from the National Center for Health Statistics, which found that the fertility rate for the US in 2017 continued to dip below what's needed for the population to replace itself. The rate in 2017 was 1,765.5 per 1,000 women -- 16% below what's needed for population replacement, the report said. South Dakota and Utah were the only states that had rates above replacement level. About 3.8 million babies were born in the US in 2017, the lowest number of births in 30 years. 

5 myths about getting pregnant

BREAKFAST BROWSE

Guess their divorce was really amicable

Gwyneth Paltrow went on her honeymoon with husband Brad Falchuk -- and ex-husband Chris Martin tagged along, because celebs ARE NOT like the rest of us.

We're doomed

That irritating "Baby Shark" song is now a Top 40 hit, and Western civilization is officially over.

Video goes viral of toddler frustrated with Alexa

Safe and sound

A barefoot baby walking around Milwaukee in the freezing cold was rescued by a bus driver.

Watch bus driver rescue lost baby near freeway

But of course

Football great Tim Tebow is engaged to an ex-Miss Universe because, well, he's Tim Tebow.

'Veggie' Bell

Taco Bell will start testing out a vegetarian menu, and the rest of us meat-eaters are left to wonder why.

Taco Bell testing out veggie options

TOTAL RECALL

Quiz time

Actress Emma Stone yelled out this when Sandra Oh made a joke about "whitewashing" at the Golden Globes.

A. "Don't worry about it!"

B. "I had no idea!"

C. "I'm sorry!"

D. "Let's do lunch!"

Play "Total Recall: The CNN news quiz" to see if you're right. And don't forget, you can also find a version of the quiz on your Amazon devices. Just say, "Alexa, ask CNN for a quiz."

TODAY'S NUMBER

277

The number of passengers and crew aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship who got sick with a gastrointestinal illness. The ship returns to Florida on Saturday, a day earlier than expected.

TODAY'S QUOTE

"We wish they had confiscated her phone instead of her passport."

Saudi Arabian official Abdalelah Mohammed A. al-Shuaibi, after Saudi teen Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun fled to Thailand to escape her allegedly abusive family. Qunun used her phone to post about her plight on social media, and now she's been granted asylum in Australia.

Saudi teen granted stay in Thailand

AND FINALLY

Ring my bell

Cuteness alert! This little pup just keeps tapping this bell to get food, but no one minds because she's so adorable. (Click to view.)

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Email error ‘like handing over your keys’

Image copyright Getty Images

An expert has warned that errors made when signing up to online services could mean people are "handing over the keys to their digital life".

Prof Alan Woodward, from the University of Surrey, said valuable data was being put at risk by people inputting the wrong email address.

Such an error allowed BBC News to see details of a stranger's credit report.

The personal details, listed on credit scoring site ClearScore, were accessed by someone of the same name.

Data revealed

In this case, it appears that somebody applied to sign up to the credit service, but entered a slightly incorrect email address, which doubles as the account's username.

An email was then sent to the actual owner of that email address, who had the same name. That person was then able to change the password, access the account and see a range of personal details.

This included date of birth, previous addresses and - most significantly - historical information of a host of previous applications for credit, such as loans and betting.

Want to shop online? Best have a mobile signal

Dating site scam victims lose £2,000 to fraudsters

Can companies ever keep our data safe?

Such information would be extremely valuable to a fraudster, who could use it to apply for loans and other financial services in the stranger's name.

After being alerted to the case, a ClearScore spokesman said: "When something like this happens, ClearScore makes the worst-case assumption that it is fraud and locks everything down."

The website carries a reminder at the sign-up stage urging the applicant to ensure the correct email address is used. There is also information on the site about staying safe from fraud.

'Not only passwords'

Prof Woodward said that a great deal of attention was paid to choosing secure passwords for web-based services and regularly changing them.

However, he said that email addresses were an important gateway to people's digital information and should always be entered with care.

"An email address is the key to your digital life," he said, pointing out that dots and underscores could easily be missed when entering an email address in a hurry.

He said that online services should use two-factor authentication - such as a code to a mobile phone - and ensure that applicants entered their email correctly twice to cut out mistakes.

Banks are also being urged to find other ways to check a customer's identity.

It is impossible to tell how often errors lead to details being revealed, but the similarities between email addresses - which may only differ with a dot or a dash - make mistakes a regular occurrence.

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Related Topics

Personal finance

Personal debt

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New York Dem shutting down terrorism committee to create Trump investigation panel

House Foreign Relations Committee Democratic Ranking member Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY) speaks with reporters after a closed intelligence briefing with CIA Director Gina Haspel on the death of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., December 12, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC1BF7613400 (Reuters)

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel is reportedly planning to dissolve the panel’s terrorism subcommittee and instead create a panel to focus on investigating matters related to President Trump -- a move prompting criticism from Republicans.

Engel, a New York Democrat who just took over as committee chairman, first floated the idea in December, eyeing an investigative subcommittee to replace the terrorism panel that was launched after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. He has since confirmed the plans in an interview with The New Yorker.

WHITE HOUSE REBUFFS RUSSIA BID TO QUESTION US OFFICIALS, AMID NEW DC FIRESTORM

“We just thought, if we’re going to do something relevant in this era where Congress is going to reassert itself, where there are so many questionable activities of this Administration vis-à-vis foreign policy, that it made sense to have this,” Engel told The New Yorker in a sit-down interview this week.

TRUMP FACES BIPARTISAN CRITICISM OVER PRESS CONFERENCE WITH PUTIN 

House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows, R-N.C., also a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, blasted the proposal.

“The government is shut down, our border remains vulnerable, and instead of negotiating, Democrats want to establish another committee to investigate President Trump,” Meadows said in a statement to Fox News on Friday. “We’re barely a week into the Democrat majority and already we’re seeing a disturbing, myopic focus on targeting the President rather than solutions to help American families.”

He added: “It seems the President keeps his focus on defeating ISIS while Democrats keep their focus on defeating Donald Trump.”

Engel, who has been in Congress for nearly three decades representing areas of the Bronx and Westchester County, added that there “wasn’t a great clamor” from lawmakers to keep the terrorism panel, formally called the Terrorism, Nonproliferation and Trade subcommittee. Some of those responsibilities are expected to be redistributed to other subcommittees.

Engel, though, pointed to the need for more Trump scrutiny, for instance pertaining to Trump’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland last summer.

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“It’s been many months since Helskini, and we still don’t know what Putin and Trump talked about,” he said, adding that a new panel could also look at “the business interests of the president” and how his financial dealings with certain countries in the Middle East and Russia have “affected what he’s done in foreign policy.”

Yet such a panel would be far from the only one scrutinizing the president. Investigations and hearings already are being pursued on other Democratic-led House committees.

This week, House Oversight Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings, D-Md., announced that he had invited Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen to testify publicly before the panel next month. Cohen accepted, and said he was looking forward to “having the privilege of being afforded a platform with which to give a full and credible account of the events which have transpired.”

MICHAEL COHEN TO TESTIFY BEFORE HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE

A federal judge last month sentenced Cohen to three years in prison, following a dramatic hearing at which Cohen said he felt it was his duty to cover up Trump’s “dirty deeds.” In August, Cohen pleaded guilty to breaking campaign-finance laws by helping orchestrate payments to silence former Playboy model Karen McDougal and adult-film star Stormy Daniels, who claimed they had sexual encounters with Trump while he was married.

Meanwhile, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is also investigating the president, after the panel, formerly led by Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., probed allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 election as well as the law enforcement and intelligence community's handling.

Brooke Singman is a Politics Reporter for Fox News. Follow her on Twitter at @brookefoxnews.

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Brexit ‘in danger’ unless MPs back deal – PM

Media playback is unsupported on your device

Media captionTheresa May: "The danger... is we actually end up with no Brexit at all"

Theresa May has warned the UK faces "uncharted territory" if Parliament rejects her Brexit deal as she vowed to redouble her efforts to win MPs round.

Next week's vote would "definitely" go ahead, she told the BBC, as she promised new safeguards for Northern Ireland and to look at giving MPs more say in shaping future EU negotiations.

The UK's March exit was "in danger" if MPs did not back the deal, she said.

But one Tory Brexiteer said support for leaving without a deal was "hardening".

And one senior Labour figure said she believed a general election may be inevitable "within months" if there was deadlock in Parliament and Mrs May could not get her deal through.

The UK is due to leave the EU on 29 March 2019.

A deal on the terms of the UK's divorce and the framework of future relations has been agreed between the prime minister and the EU - but it needs to pass a vote by MPs in Parliament before it is accepted.

MPs are expected to be asked to vote on it on either the 14 or 15 of January.

Can Theresa May unblock her Brexit deal?

Brexit vote: What could happen next?

A really simple guide to Brexit

Could Channel Ports cope with no deal?

The crunch vote was due to take place in December but was postponed at the last minute as Mrs May faced almost certain defeat amid opposition from many of her MPs, as well as Labour and other parties.

Asked by the BBC's Andrew Marr if the vote would "definitely" go ahead in the second week of January, she replied "yes, we are going to hold the vote".

She said she truly believed hers was a "good deal" for the country and that it was up to its opponents to spell out the alternatives to it.

Media playback is unsupported on your device

Media captionTheresa May on Brexit vote timing and her political future

Asked what had changed since last month, she said the EU had agreed to some "changes" and she was continuing to talk to European leaders as she tried to give MPs the "confidence" to support the deal.

She promised to give more detail in three areas in the coming days:

Specific measures for Northern Ireland

A greater role for Parliament in negotiations on the next stage of future UK-EU relations

Further assurances from the EU to address concerns over the Irish border backstop

She said there were a "number of ways" of giving MPs more input in the next phase of the Brexit process, including allowing them a real say in shaping the "mandate for the negotiations for the future relationship".

Mrs May suggested that if her deal was rejected it would embolden both supporters of a no-deal exit and those who want to remain in the EU via another referendum.

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Your guide to Brexit jargon

"If the deal is not voted on, then we are going to be in uncharted territory," she said. "I don't think anyone can say what will happen in terms of the reaction we see in Parliament.

"What you have is a Labour leadership... which is opposing any deal to create the greatest chaos possible, people who are promoting a second referendum in order to stop Brexit and people who want to see their perfect Brexit... the danger there is we end up with no Brexit at all."

Asked whether she was prepared to stand down as PM and let someone else take over talks over the future relations if Tory MPs demanded it, Mrs May - who survived a vote of no confidence last month - said the party had made it clear they wanted her to "deliver on Brexit and that is what I am working on doing".

'Poison' backstop

However, the DUP, which props up the government, said the fundamental problems with Mrs May's deal had not changed.

Deputy leader Nigel Dodds said: "The backstop remains the poison which makes any vote for the withdrawal agreement so toxic."

The backstop is a position of last resort, to maintain an open border on the island of Ireland in the event that the UK leaves the EU without securing an all-encompassing deal.

Many Conservative MPs continue to believe the deal does not represent the Brexit the country voted for in 2016.

Peter Bone told Sky News the best way to "get on" with Brexit was to leave without a deal,

"If there has been a change it is a hardening of attitudes among MPs to a no deal," he told Sophy Ridge, adding that there was increasing evidence that a no deal outcome was "absolutely OK".

And a succession of other Tory Brexiteers have taken to social media to say "nothing has changed" during the Christmas recess and they remain opposed to the deal.

Image Copyright @Jacob_Rees_Mogg @Jacob_Rees_Mogg

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Image Copyright @Jacob_Rees_Mogg @Jacob_Rees_Mogg

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Image Copyright @Lee4NED @Lee4NED

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Image Copyright @MarcusFysh @MarcusFysh

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But opponents of a no-deal exit have given notice they are determined to effectively rule the prospect out.

A cross-party group of Conservative, Labour and Lib Dem MPs are proposing amending the government's Finance Bill, to be debated on Tuesday, so that ministers would only be able to make tax changes in the event of a no-deal exit if Parliament had explicitly authorised them.

Labour MP Yvette Cooper said if the government "would not rule out no deal, Parliament must act".

As part of the government's preparations for a no-deal Brexit, the company Seaborne Freight had been given a contract to run a freight service between Ramsgate and Ostend in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

However the councillor for the harbour area has said the Port of Ramsgate "cannot be ready" for extra ferry services should a no-deal Brexit happen.

Skip Twitter post by @YvetteCooperMP

Time is running out. There is now a real danger of Britain drifting into No Deal. If Govt won’t rule out No Deal, then Parliament must act. That is why we’ve tabled amendment 7 to the Finance Bill to provide parliamentary safeguards against No Deal pic.twitter.com/204a0dd2mx

— Yvette Cooper (@YvetteCooperMP) January 6, 2019

Report

End of Twitter post by @YvetteCooperMP

Analysis: New year, same problems

By political correspondent Nick Eardley

A new year is about to start at Westminster, but the political battleground feels very familiar.

The PM's message hasn't changed. She still thinks her deal is only one that delivers and rejecting it would lead to uncharted territory.

That's a warning to both sides; those who want another referendum could end up with no deal; those who want no deal could end up with no Brexit at all.

Her critics, though, don't appear to have had any New Year changes of heart either. The DUP and many Tories are still unhappy and as things stand won't back her.

Theresa May is promising to try and win more reassurances from Brussels. But for now it remains hard to see what she could secure that would win enough support for her to win the meaningful vote.

Labour's next move

Media playback is unsupported on your device

Media captionJon Ashworth: "We're not enabling Brexit. This country had a referendum"

A poll of more than 25,000 Britons published on Sunday suggests Labour would be punished by voters if the party either ends up backing the government's deal or does not actively oppose it.

The YouGov poll, carried out for the People's Vote campaign which is demanding another referendum, suggests 75% of Labour supporters would prefer a final say on Brexit.

But the Labour leadership rejected claims that they were "enabling" Brexit by refusing, at this stage, to explicitly call for another referendum.

Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry said the People's Vote campaign should focus on "changing people's minds" about whether to stay in the EU rather "smacking Labour around the head".

She told the BBC that Labour's focus was getting into power in a general election she now expected to take place "within months"

"If you are a government that does not have the support of Parliament and does not have the support of the people, you cannot drive us over a cliff and think you are going to get away with it," she told BBC Radio 4's The World This Weekend.

"Our democracy is about whether you have the permission of the public and... whether you can justify what you are doing to our country."

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable said another referendum was the "least worst option", but he added that "it was going to be very messy whatever happens".

Related Topics

Theresa May

Brexit

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Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer, to testify publicly before Congress

(CNN)President Donald Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen will testify before the House Oversight Committee, the first major move by House Democrats to haul in a member of Trump's team connected to special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, according to a schedule published by the committee.

"I thank Michael Cohen for agreeing to testify before the Oversight Committee voluntarily," said Oversight Chairman Elijah Cummings, a Democrat from Maryland, in a statement. "I want to make clear that we have no interest in inappropriately interfering with any ongoing criminal investigations, and to that end, we are in the process of consulting with Special Counsel Mueller's office."

Cohen is coming to Capitol Hill after he pleaded guilty and was sentenced in December to three years in prison on multiple charges, including two campaign finance crimes tied to illicit payments made to silence women during the presidential campaign — crimes that prosecutors say Trump directed Cohen to commit.

Cohen cooperated with Mueller's investigation after his August guilty plea, and his congressional testimony could thrust some of those still-private details he provided into the public sphere. Mueller's team in court filings wrote that Cohen provided "useful information concerning certain discrete Russia-related matters core to its investigation."

In a statement to CNN, Cohen said he agreed to testify "in furtherance of my commitment to cooperate and provide the American people with answers."

"I look forward to having the privilege of being afforded a platform with which to give a full and credible account of the events which have transpired," Cohen said.

Cohen's cooperation with Mueller prompted a falling out with his former client, with Trump attacking Cohen on Twitter, including accusing him of lying to try to lessen his jail sentence. Trump has denied directing Cohen to pay women who alleged affairs with Trump.

Cohen addressed his relationship with Trump at his sentencing, saying he had "blind loyalty to this man that led me to choose a path of darkness over light."

"Recently, the President tweeted a statement calling me 'weak,' and he was correct, but for a much different reason than he was implying," Cohen said at the time. "It was because time and time again I felt it was my duty to cover up his dirty deeds rather than to listen to my own inner voice and my moral compass."

As Trump's longtime lawyer and "fixer," Cohen had connections to a number of the key questions surrounding the President, the Mueller probe and now the Democratic congressional investigations.

One issue is Trump Tower Moscow. Cohen worked on the Moscow project during the 2016 presidential campaign, which included outreach to Russian officials. Cohen initially lied and said the Trump Tower Moscow talks ended in January 2016, but he admitted last month those conversations extended through June 2016 when he pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about the project.

Mueller's court filings revealed that Cohen had spoken to a Russian in 2015 who had offered "political synergy" with the Trump campaign while discussing Trump Tower Moscow.

The payments made or orchestrated to women during the campaign -- to adult-film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal -- to stay silent about alleged sexual encounters with Trump are also sure to be a hot topic at the congressional hearing.

Cohen is likely to face questions about the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting between senior members of the Trump campaign and a Russian lawyer as well.

The announcement of Cohen's testimony is the latest sign that House Democrats plan to make oversight of every aspect of Trump's life a key part of their control of the House.

It's not yet clear whether Cohen will agree to speak to any other committees. Cohen spoke in 2017 to the House and Senate Intelligence Committees — and later pleaded guilty to lying to them about the Trump Tower Moscow timeline — and both have indicated they want to speak to him again before he begins his jail sentence in March.

Others in Trump's personal orbit are also facing scrutiny, and House Democrats, having retaken the majority earlier this month, now have subpoena power. On the House Intelligence Committee, for instance, Chairman Adam Schiff of California has said he will issue a subpoena if necessary to obtain Donald Trump Jr.'s phone records to find out who Trump's son called when Trump Jr. called a number blocked in phone records while setting up the June 2016 Trump Tower meeting.

Trump's administration officials are likely to be summoned to Capitol Hill, too. House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler of New York is demanding acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker testify this month, and he's threatening a subpoena if Whitaker won't voluntarily appear.

This story has been updated with additional developments Thursday.

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Pension cold-calling ban takes effect

Image copyright Getty Images

A ban on nuisance calls, texts and emails about pensions has now come into force but people are still being urged to be on their guard.

Cold-calling has been used by fraudsters trying to steal life savings or persuade people to invest in high-risk schemes.

Some 10.9 million unsolicited pension calls and messages are made a year.

Any firm found flouting the rules faces a fine of up to £500,000, but experts suggest fraudsters may ignore the ban.

John Glen, economic secretary to the Treasury, said: "Pension scammers are the lowest of the low. They rob savers of their hard-earned retirement and devastate lives. We know that cold-calling is the pension scammers' main tactic, which is why we've made them illegal."

The government has faced criticism over the time taken to introduce the ban, which was first announced nearly two years ago.

How do the fraudsters operate?

Pension scams start with an unexpected call, text, social media approach or email - offering a free pension review, or a way to make attractive returns on pension savings.

But the money may be simply stolen or transferred into a high-risk scheme completely inappropriate for retirement savings.

Many offer eye-catching returns or high-rolling investments in hotels or green energy schemes that never materialise, or instead lead to losses.

Research by the City regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), found that pension scam victims lose an average of £91,000 each.

Scammer 'told the perfect story'

In August, Jennifer Ringstead told the BBC about how she and her husband, from the Vale of Glamorgan, invested - and lost - their pension pots. Together, the losses totalled more than £50,000. They were tricked when their finances were already overstretched.

She said that the story the fraudster told was convincing and came when they were at their most financially vulnerable.

"He was just perfect. I did not think for a second that anything was amiss. I asked questions, he had the answers to everything," she said.

It is thought that only a minority of pension scams are ever reported.

How do the new rules work?

Certain types of cold calls, including those involving mortgages, are already banned.

Now, the new ban prohibits cold-calling in relation to pensions, except where the caller is authorised by the FCA, or is the trustee or manager of an occupational or personal pension scheme, and the recipient of the call consents to calls, or has an existing relationship with the caller.

Lesley Titcomb, chief executive of the Pensions Regulator, said: "The cold calling ban sends a very clear message - if anyone calls you about your pension, it's an attempt to steal your savings.

"The ban draws a line in the sand for scammers. Cross it and you should expect to be prosecuted."

Will it be effective?

Tom Selby, of pensions firm AJ Bell, said: "Prohibiting cold-calling is only part of the solution and will by no means eradicate the threat of scam activity altogether. Pensions remain a juicy target for fraudsters and some will inevitably look to circumvent the ban or simply ignore it altogether."

He urged anyone who received a call out of the blue about pensions to simply hang up the phone.

Kay Ingram, director of public policy at financial adviser LEBC, was one of a number of commentators who said the cold calling ban of itself would not deter determined criminals.

"Success will depend upon the public having confidence that no legitimate adviser or pension provider would approach them in this way. The government, pension providers and the regulatory bodies will need to do more to stamp out this crime," she said.

Related Topics

Personal finance

Fraud

Pensions

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Minister talks down Brexit delay claim

Image copyright Reuters

Image caption Stephen Barclay and Amber Rudd head in to the first cabinet meeting of the new year

The Brexit Secretary has cast doubt on claims UK and EU officials are talking about delaying Brexit if MPs reject Theresa May's withdrawal agreement.

Stephen Barclay said the UK remained committed to leaving on 29 March.

According to the Telegraph UK officials had been "putting out feelers" about extending Article 50, the mechanism taking the UK out of the EU.

Mr Barclay said he had not spoken to the EU about that and any delay would cause "some very practical issues".

His remarks came the day after Digital Minister Margot James suggesting Article 50 might have to be extended in order to stop a no-deal Brexit if Mrs May's deal is rejected by Parliament.

PM 'working to get more EU assurances'

Is the EU about to rescue Theresa May?

Kuenssberg: What has changed?

According to the Telegraph, UK officials have been "testing the waters" about an Article 50 extension, to allow time for more talks.

But Mr Barclay told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "It's not a unilateral decision for the UK. That is not a decision the UK government could take, it would require the consent of all 27 member states.

"It would also generate some very practical issues, for example EU parliamentary elections at the end of May."

Media playback is unsupported on your device

Media captionMargot James: "We might have to extend Article 50”, but would not give a timescale.

Mr Barclay said the "real question" facing MPs when they vote on Mrs May's deal next Tuesday was between leaving with Mrs May's deal or "no deal".

But David Davis, one of Mr Barclay's predecessors as Brexit secretary, said: "The very fact they (EU officials) are talking about it tells you that Mr Barclay's assertion that this is the only deal on the table is not, actually, entirely accurate.

"Because what actually is going on, is the Europeans are thinking about the next stage, and the next stage is another round of negotiation."

Image copyright EPA

Image caption Theresa May hosted Boris Johnson and other Tory MPs for drinks on Monday - but none said their minds had changed

He said delaying Brexit for more talks would be a "bad idea" - and the UK should hold its nerve and force the EU back to the negotiating table to get legal assurances and "some sort of undertaking on a free trade deal".

He was speaking after Irish premier Leo Varadkar said the EU would offer the UK government fresh assurances on the Withdrawal Agreement to help Theresa May get her deal through Parliament.

Speaking to reporters during a trip to Mali, Mr Varadkar said: "What's happening at the moment is there is close contact between the UK and EU institutions as to whether a further set of written guarantees, explanations and assurances could make a difference."

He added: "We don't want to trap the UK into anything - we want to get on to the talks about the future relationship right away.

"I think it's those kind of assurances we are happy to give."

Image copyright Getty Images

Image caption Yvette Cooper says her amendment has support from Remain and Leave MPs

Mrs May needs to convince many of her own MPs and Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party, which keeps her minority government in power, that the UK will not end up in a permanent customs arrangement with the EU as a consequence of her deal.

Leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg, who led a failed attempt to remove Mrs May as Conservative leader, said opposition to her deal had hardened over the Christmas break and she was heading for defeat next Tuesday.

Meanwhile, a cross-party group of MPs, headed by Labour's Yvette Cooper and Conservative Nicky Morgan, will later attempt to make it harder for the UK to leave the EU without a deal.

The MPs have tabled an amendment to the Finance Bill in the hope of stopping the government raising money to implement a no-deal Brexit, without the explicit consent of Parliament.

The technical changes to a crucial piece of government legislation are intended to demonstrate to the government the strength of opposition to a no-deal Brexit in the Commons.

Government sources warned over the weekend of "paralysis" and an effective "shutdown" if the Treasury was stripped of the power to pass regulations relating to "no-deal financial provisions" without parliamentary approval.

Can Theresa May unblock her Brexit deal?

Bid to limit tax powers if no-deal Brexit

Brexit vote: What could happen next?

A really simple guide to Brexit

Could Channel Ports cope with no deal?

Labour have said they will back the amendment, prompting speculation that ministers will be forced to accept it in order to avoid a damaging defeat.

If the government does not back down, a vote on the amendment is expected at about 19:00 GMT.

Minister Richard Harrington told BBC Newsnight he was prepared to resign to stop the possibility of a no-deal Brexit, adding that his position was "not an uncommon one".

The UK is scheduled to leave the EU on 29 March whether there is a deal or not.

The deal which Prime Minister Theresa May has negotiated with the EU - which covers the terms of the UK's divorce and the framework of future relations with the EU - has not been formally approved.

A no-deal Brexit is one where the UK leaves the EU but without any agreed arrangements covering things like how trade or travel will work in the future.

Writing in the Guardian, Yvette Cooper said a no-deal Brexit would cause "deep and long-lasting" damage, and the country "can't afford to play Brexit chicken and wait to see who blinks first".

But International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, who backs Mrs May's deal, said it would be "irresponsible to tie the government's hands" at this stage by ruling out any options.

In other Brexit developments:

Mrs May welcomed Tory MPs to Downing Street for a drinks reception on Monday as part of her charm offensive to persuade them to back her deal

Opponents of Mrs May's deal, including Boris Johnson and Iain Duncan Smith, have insisted they will not change their minds despite the drinks evening. Jacob Rees-Mogg writes in the Daily Telegraph that the public's mood has "hardened" against the deal

Business lobby group London First has urged ministers to "stop the clock" on Brexit and consider the case for another referendum

A new government website advising consumers and businesses what to do in a no deal situation will go live on Tuesday

German and Irish foreign ministers are to meet to try to find a "fix" for the Irish border backstop

MPs write to the head of the Met Police saying they have "serious concerns" about public order and security outside Parliament, after Tory MP Anna Soubry was verbally abused outside Parliament by pro-Brexit supporters

MPs will vote on 15 January on whether to accept the legally-binding terms of withdrawal negotiated by Mrs May, as well as a framework of future relations with the EU. Five days of debate in the Commons will begin on Wednesday.

The prime minister has said the UK will be in "uncharted territory" if the deal is not accepted although she has not ruled out asking the Commons to vote on it on several times prior to the 29 March deadline.

After chairing the first cabinet meeting of 2019 later, Mrs May will meet a delegation of cross-party MPs who believe that a no-deal exit would be disastrous for British industry, more than 200 of whom have urged her to rule it out.

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Stephen Barclay

Brexit

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‘We lost nearly 10k to TV licence scammers’

Image copyright Carole Tack

Image caption Jerry and Carole Tack: "Hubby and me fell out big time... I didn't speak to him for about a week"

When Jerry Tack received an email saying the TV licence needed paying, he didn't think twice about it.

Nothing seemed suspicious about the website he clicked on, so he entered his bank details - and began a chain of events that would lose him £9,900.

Jerry, from Hampshire, was among thousands contacted in what police called a "particularly nasty" fraud.

But the banks say they cannot reimburse customers who have mistakenly authorised payments to fraudsters.

A TV Licensing spokeswoman said: "TV Licensing will never email customers, unprompted, to ask for bank details, personal information or tell you that you may be entitled to a refund."

'We were left penniless'

Carole Tack, Jerry's wife, said that two days after filling in the fraudulent TV licence form online, he received a call purporting to be from his building society, Nationwide.

In reality, it was a scammer who had harvested the 65-year-old's details from the fake form.

The caller asked him about two fabricated transactions, and when he said he had not made them, they advised him to move his money into a "safe account".

Jerry then received a text message with a code from the building society, most likely triggered by the scammers requesting it under a system designed for people who have forgotten their log-in details.

Believing it had been sent by the person he was speaking to, he overlooked warnings not to share the code and gave it to the caller as confirmation.

That inadvertently allowed the scammers to access his account.

Thousands complain about TV licence scam

Elderly 'under siege' from scammers

They emptied two savings accounts of £4,000 each and persuaded Jerry to use a card reader to approve the transfer of the funds, as well as £1,900 from his current account, telling him it would protect the money from fraudsters.

Half an hour later he had second thoughts and contacted Nationwide, to be told that he had been the victim of an "authorised push payment" (APP) scam.

"We were left penniless until the end of November," said Carole, 61. The loss of their savings put "an awful lot of strain on our relationship".

"Hubby and me fell out big time over it. I didn't speak to him for about a week," she said.

"Christmas for us was a complete wash-out. I didn't even put any decorations up - we didn't feel like it."

But while she acknowledged her husband had made a mistake, she felt financial institutions could do more to support victims of frauds such as this.

'All taken away by an email'

Laura Hodson, 27, received a similar email saying payment details for her TV licence needed to be updated.

"The site looked very realistic and I think because it was due for renewal I didn't think it was unusual. The fines are so big that to do nothing panicked me more," she said.

Image copyright Laura Hodson

Image caption Laura Hodson and her partner Scott: Smiling now but they lost £2,500 to fraudsters

More than 24 hours later she received a "gut-wrenching" call from her bank, RBS, to say that more than £2,500 had been taken.

The payments were traced to a Barclays account and after about a month of wrangling Laura was told that only £2.21 could be recovered.

"We came across as a nuisance and that the scam was our entire fault," Laura said.

Laura, a nurse from Dumfries, lost the money two days after payday at the end of October, leaving her and her partner Scott struggling to make ends meet and relying on the financial support of family.

"That was all taken away by a single email," she said.

How did the banks and police respond?

Banks say that the funds in these cases are frequently transferred to accounts owned by students being used by the scammers as "money mules".

The cash is often impossible to recover because it is transferred between several accounts operated by mules in quick succession to avoid detection, before being withdrawn.

UK Finance, a banking industry group, said it was introducing a new voluntary code for members setting out "clear requirements for consumer protection and the principles for reimbursement".

I was a teenage 'money mule'

But Nationwide said that Jerry Tack's funds could not be reimbursed because he had authorised the payments and ignored warnings not to share security information.

A spokesman said: "We're very sorry that our member has been a victim of this cruel scam.

"Unfortunately, despite warnings generated by our systems, the member gave away details to the fraudster and originated all of the transactions into the third-party account."

RBS has been contacted for comment.

Action Fraud, the national reporting centre for fraud and cyber-crime, said all reports of scams such as the TV licence one are sent to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, which assesses if there is enough information for an investigation.

Reports can also lead to telephone lines and websites used by fraudsters being shut down, or bank accounts being closed, the centre said.

A spokeswoman said: "This disruption activity prevents people being defrauded in the future and therefore making a report can help stop others from becoming victims themselves."

Have you ever been the victim of a scam? Tell us about your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways:

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Related Topics

UK Banking

Fraud

UK TV licence

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Ministers defeated over no-deal Brexit

MPs have inflicted another Brexit defeat on the government in Parliament by backing measures designed to thwart preparations for a no-deal exit.

They backed an amendment to the Finance Bill, which would limit spending on no-deal preparations unless authorised by Parliament, by 303 to 296 votes.

Jeremy Corbyn urged Theresa May to now rule out no deal "once and for all".

Treasury minister Robert Jenrick said the "simple truth" was the UK would leave the EU on 29 March.

He said no-deal planning was "prudent preparation to provide our taxpayers with the certainty they deserve" and all the defeat would do would be to make the UK "somewhat less prepared".

Twenty Conservative MPs rebelled against the government, including former cabinet ministers Michael Fallon, Justine Greening, Dominic Grieve, Ken Clarke and Oliver Letwin.

Live: MPs debate Finance Bill

Police under pressure over MP harassment

Ministers speak out against no-deal Brexit

Mr Grieve said it was a "perfectly sensible" step given that he believed a no-deal exit presented the gravest peacetime threat to the UK in 70 years.

Mr Corbyn hailed the development as an "important step" to prevent a no-deal Brexit.

The Labour leader tweeted: "It shows that there is no majority in Parliament, the Cabinet or the country for crashing out of the EU without an agreement."

The setback for the government comes as MPs prepare to resume debate on Wednesday on Theresa May's proposed Brexit deal, culminating in a vote next week.

It also comes at the end of a day in which senior ministers spoke out about the risks of exiting the EU without any agreement on the terms of withdrawal.

Image copyright Reuters

Image caption Yvette Cooper said the victory would send a strong message to government

Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd told the cabinet that the public would take a "dim view" of government if it settled for a disorderly Brexit and suggested it would make the UK less safe.

And Business Secretary Greg Clark said such an outcome "could not be contemplated".

The Commons amendment, tabled by Labour's Yvette Cooper, is designed to limit the Treasury's ability to spend money implementing a no-deal exit, including raising certain taxes, without the explicit consent of Parliament.

'Empty threat'

The technical changes to a crucial piece of government legislation were intended to demonstrate to ministers the strength of opposition to a no-deal Brexit in the Commons.

Ms Cooper said although it would not block a no-deal exit, it "set a precedent" and showed MPs would not allow the UK "to just drift into it by accident".

Labour MP Ian Murray, who backs the People's Vote campaign for another referendum, said it showed that a no-deal exit was an "empty threat".

"The real choice facing Parliament and the country is now clear," he said.

"We can leave the EU under the terms of some version of the prime minister's bad deal or we can keep all our rights, powers, influence and op-outs in our current deal as full members of the EU."

Many Tory Brexiteers believe a no-deal exit, which would see the UK trade with the EU on the basis of World Trade Organization rules, is nothing to be feared.

Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said "scare stories" that it would lead to planes being grounded and ports being gridlocked must be put to bed.

Tuesday's vote, he told Sky News, did not alter the fact that MPs had already passed legislation last year specifying that the UK would leave on 29 March.

"We have legislated to leave the EU, with or without a deal... That is what people voted for."

Related Topics

UK Parliament

Yvette Cooper

Brexit

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Bid to limit tax powers if no-deal Brexit

Image caption Richard Harrington said MPs had to choose between Mrs May's deal or no Brexit

MPs who do not want the UK to leave the EU without a deal will later try to limit the government's financial powers in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

The House of Commons will vote on a cross-party amendment to the Finance Bill, which enacts the Budget.

Several senior figures back the move, but International Trade Secretary Liam Fox called it "irresponsible".

Meanwhile, minister Richard Harrington said he is prepared to resign to stop the possibility of a no-deal Brexit.

Mr Harrington suggested to BBC Newsnight that others might follow suit, saying his position was "not an uncommon one".

PM 'working to get more EU assurances'

Is the EU about to rescue Theresa May?

Kuenssberg: What has changed?

MPs will seek to turn the screw on ministers with Tuesday's amendment, which is intended to demonstrate to the government the strength of opposition to a no-deal Brexit in the Commons.

If passed, it would mean the government would not be able to raise certain taxes and take other financial steps arising from a no deal - unless Parliament had explicitly authorised the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

The UK is scheduled to leave the EU on 29 March whether there is a deal or not.

The deal which Prime Minister Theresa May has negotiated with the EU - which covers the terms of the UK's divorce and the framework of future relations with the EU - has not been formally approved.

A no-deal Brexit is one where the UK leaves the EU but without any agreed arrangements covering things like how trade or travel will work in the future.

Labour MP Yvette Cooper who, along with Conservative Nicky Morgan, is behind the amendment, said Parliament must act now to rule out a no deal in the event of Mrs May's agreement being voted down next week and MPs being unable to agree any other course of action before the UK's exit in March.

Image copyright Getty Images

Image caption Yvette Cooper says her amendment has support from Remain and Leave MPs

Writing in the Guardian, Ms Cooper said a no-deal Brexit would cause "deep and long-lasting" damage, and the country "can't afford to play Brexit chicken and wait to see who blinks first".

Labour have said they will back the amendment, prompting speculation that ministers will be forced to accept it in order to avoid a damaging defeat.

But Mr Fox, who backs Mrs May's deal, said it would be "irresponsible to tie the government's hands" at this stage by ruling out any options.

Speaking at a technology fair in California, Mr Fox said it would not take the possibility of a no-deal exit off the table.

"The government has to ensure that all eventualities are covered," he said. "It maybe that we cannot get agreement with the EU and that we have to leave without an agreement in which case the UK has to be prepared."

In other Brexit developments:

Mrs May welcomed Tory MPs to Downing Street for a drinks reception on Monday as part of her charm offensive to persuade them to back her deal

Opponents of Mrs May's deal, including Boris Johnson and Iain Duncan Smith, have insisted they will not change their minds despite the drinks evening. Jacob Rees-Mogg writes in the Daily Telegraph that the public's mood has "hardened" against the deal

Business lobby group London First has urged ministers to "stop the clock" on Brexit and consider the case for another referendum

A new government website advising consumers and businesses what to do in a no deal situation will go live on Tuesday

German and Irish foreign ministers are to meet to try to find a "fix" for the Irish border backstop

MPs write to the head of the Met Police saying they have "serious concerns" about public order and security outside Parliament, after Tory MP Anna Soubry was verbally abused outside Parliament by pro-Brexit supporters

MPs will vote on 15 January on whether to accept the legally-binding terms of withdrawal negotiated by Mrs May, as well as a framework of future relations with the EU. Five days of debate in the Commons will begin on Wednesday.

The prime minister has said the UK will be in "uncharted territory" if the deal is not accepted although she has not ruled out asking the Commons to vote on it on several times prior to the 29 March deadline.

After chairing the first cabinet meeting of 2019 later, Mrs May will meet a delegation of cross-party MPs who believe that a no-deal exit would be disastrous for British industry, more than 200 of whom have urged her to rule it out.

Image copyright EPA

Image caption Theresa May hosted Boris Johnson and other Tory MPs for drinks on Monday - but none said their minds had changed

Can Theresa May unblock her Brexit deal?

Brexit vote: What could happen next?

A really simple guide to Brexit

Could Channel Ports cope with no deal?

'PM's deal or no Brexit'

Mr Harrington, a minister in the business department, told Newsnight he was confident that Britain would leave the EU with a deal as the stark reality facing the UK became clear.

"We will not be leaving with no deal," he said. "I think people are beginning to realise that it's the prime minister's deal or there may not be a Brexit."

Asked whether he was prepared to resign to stop a no-deal Brexit, he replied: "Definitely, I would... The prime minister knows everybody's views and I think my view is not an uncommon one."

Another minister, Margot James, suggested on Monday that Brexit may have to be delayed and negotiations extended under the Article 50 process if Parliament could not agree on the terms of withdrawal.

Media playback is unsupported on your device

Media captionMargot James: "We might have to extend Article 50”, but would not give a timescale.

The vote on the cross-party amendment is expected at about 19:00 GMT.

Government sources warned over the weekend of "paralysis" and an effective "shutdown" if the Treasury was stripped of the power to pass regulations relating to "no-deal financial provisions" without parliamentary approval.

One leading tax expert said ministers would still be able to make tax changes by introducing new clauses into future Finance Bills or introducing emergency legislation but would find it much "more cumbersome".

"Even if the clause were passed and there was a no-deal Brexit, the system could still function," Andrew Hubbard, a consultant at audit, tax and consulting firm RSM said.

"But there is no doubt that if the clause were passed, it would represent a huge challenge to the authority of the government and increase further pressure to find a negotiated way out of the current deadlock."

Related Topics

Theresa May

Brexit

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UK Parliament votes to create financial obstacle to a ‘no-deal’ Brexit

(CNN)British Prime Minister Theresa May suffered another setback to her Brexit withdrawal deal Tuesday as members of her own Conservative Party joined opposition Labour Party MPs in favor of a vote to curb the government's spending powers if Britain fails to secure an agreement deal on its departure from the European Union.

The measure isn't expected to carry significant weight in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Robert Jenrick, a Conservative MP and the exchequer secretary to the Treasury said the Finance Bill amendment would only allow MPs power to make "minor technical changes."

But the vote did carry symbolic weight: Parliamentarians are pushing back on a no-deal scenario.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called the vote an "important step to prevent a no-deal Brexit," saying it proved there is no parliamentary support for a no-deal Brexit.

Ian Murray, a Labour MP who supports People's Vote, a group campaigning for a second referendum, said Parliament has "now asserted its authority and sovereignty and effectively exposed the threat of no deal as an empty one."

"The threat of a no deal Brexit has [been] cynically used by the government for many months as part of their campaign to bully and intimidate Parliament into voting for a bad deal that would leave us worse off and offers less control," Murray said in a statement on the People's Vote website, adding that Tuesday's events demonstrated that Parliament "can still act decisively."

"What it now must do is hand the decision back to the people," Murray said.

Parliament is due to vote on the divorce deal next week. If May ultimately fails to push the agreement through, the chances of the country crashing out of the European Union without a deal will soar.

Britain is scheduled to leave the European Union on March 29.

Separately on Tuesday, the Dutch government said British citizens living in the Netherlands will not have to leave in the event of "no deal."

"In the case of a no deal, a national transition period applies from 29 March 2019 to 1 July 2020. In the transitional period, you retain your rights of residence, work and study in the Netherlands," the Dutch Ministry of Justice said in a statement

There are more than 45,000 British people in the Netherlands and a recent survey by the Dutch government found that 89% of them are worried about the effects of Brexit on their situation.

"It's understandable that Brexit is creating great uncertainty for these people," said foreign minister Stef Blok in response to the findings. "So I keep on stressing that the draft withdrawal agreement offers the best solution for everyone."

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