Congress Navigates Spending Plan, White House Names New IRS Head, Emotional Support Hamster Flushes News Cycle Down a Toilet: P.M. Links

• Will Congress be able to push through a spending bill before the midnight deadline tonight? It certainly has enough pork to pass.
• A leader within the Black Lives Matter movement was shot and killed in New Orleans. Police say further information is not yet available.
• A white supremacist and holocaust denier is running for Congress as a Republican in the Chicago area. He has utterly no chance of winning, but his candidacy is nevertheless causing some heartburn.
• The White House announced today that President Donald Trump is nominating California tax lawyer Charles Rettig to be commissioner of the IRS.
• A coalition strike led by the U.S. military killed an estimated 100 pro-government fighters in Syria. According to officials, coalition forces were defending themselves from an unprovoked attack.
• The International Criminal Court said it’s going to investigate claims that Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has committed crimes against humanity while perpetuating his extremely violent war on drugs.
• Today’s absurd emotional support animal vs. airlines story involves a hamster getting flushed down a toilet. Well, at least her emotional support animal is cheap to replace.
• Also still being flushed: The stock market.

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