1. RUSSIA-UKRAINE LATEST: The Kremlin has responded to President JOE BIDEN’s decision to allow Kyiv to use American long-range missiles to attack Russia, arguing that the controversial policy reversal is “adding fuel to the fire” and “provoking further escalation of tensions around this conflict,” AP’s Samya Kullab and Illia Novikov report from Kyiv. Speaking to reporters, Kremlin spokesperson DMITRY PESKOV claimed that such a decision “fundamentally changes” the U.S.’s direct involvement in the conflict, and the AP notes that “Russian lawmakers and state media bashed the West over what they called an escalatory step, and threatened a harsh response.” Will it all matter? Some experts say the delayed decision is “unlikely to be a gamechanger overall” on the battlefield, Reuters’ Tom Balmforth, Max Hunder and Lili Bayer report: “On the streets of Kyiv on Monday, the general feeling was that the decision would help, but that it had come far too late.” 2. JERSEY GIRL: New Jersey Rep. MIKIE SHERRILL is jumping into the state’s crowded gubernatorial race, posting a campaign kickoff video on X this morning. Sherrill is the sixth high-profile Democrat — and the only woman — to announce a run for the office, and has “already secured several endorsements, including the Laborers’ International Union of North America and, unofficially, from Democratic chairs in Essex, Middlesex and Passaic counties,” Matt Friedman reports. The other Dems in the running: Newark Mayor RAS BARAKA, Jersey City Mayor STEVEN FULOP, former state Senate President STEVE SWEENEY, New Jersey Education Association President SEAN SPILLER and fellow Rep. JOSH GOTTHEIMER. 3. LET’S BE FRENEMIES: “‘Morning Joe’ hosts visited Mar-a-Lago for Trump meeting,” by Andrew Howard: “While this is the first face-to-face meeting Trump has had with the popular cable hosts in seven years, the president-elect has maintained an on-again off-again relationship with [JOE] SCARBOROUGH and [MIKA] BRZEZINSKI dating back years. … But the married hosts of MSNBC’s flagship morning program appear ready to turn the page, though they committed to viewers they would continue to hold Trump accountable.” FWIW … Trump described the meeting as “extremely cordial” in an interview with Fox News this morning, stating that “to Make America Great Again, it is very important, if not vital, to have a free, fair and open media or press.” 4. SHADES OF BLUE: After white working class voters threw their support behind Donald Trump in 2020, Democrats hoped to do better with that voting bloc this year. They didn’t. Now, the party is facing a growing identity crisis as large numbers of blue-collar Americans feel “the Democratic Party does not fully grasp their struggles — and in some cases, disdains them outright,” NYT’s Katie Gluek reports. A case study: Rep.-elect KRISTEN McDONALD RIVET (D-Mich.) said that for many voters in her area (a swingy area that includes Flint and its environs), high costs were not just an inconvenience. “They raised ‘fear in people, right, about their ability to make it.’ … To those voters, she said, litigating other subjects — whether Mr. Trump was a ‘fascist,’ for example, or the violence of the 2021 Capitol riot — simply felt less urgent.” Related read: “After Democrats lost the working class, union leaders say it's time to 'reconstruct the Democratic Party,’” by NBC News’ Alex Seitz-Wald 5. MEDIAWATCH: “Associated Press to Cut Staff by 8%,” by NYT’s Ben Mullin: “In a note to employees Monday, the AP News Guild said that the cuts were the result of revenue declines … The note said that as many as 121 employees would be eligible for a buyout package, adding that managers said the buyouts aimed to avoid layoffs.”
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