View in browser   PRESENTED BY WELLS FARGO   Axios AM By Mike Allen · Dec 09, 2023 🥞 Happy Saturday! Erica Pandey is your weekend host — reach her at erica@axios.com.  Smart Brevity™ count: 1,284 words ... 5½ mins. Edited by Lauren Floyd.     1 big thing: Hill already thinking Trump '25 Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images   Republicans in Congress — savoring the potential return of former President Trump — are already laying the groundwork to quickly turn some of his 2025 plans into the law of the land. The bills include plans to crack down on mask mandates, affirmative action and who can become a U.S. citizen, Axios' Sophia Cai reports. Why it matters: Trump enjoys a powerful influence on the House GOP caucus — despite losing the 2020 election, his not-so-stellar recordendorsing other Republicans, and the prospect of facing four felony trialsas he runs for president next year. 🔎 Zoom in: Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), one of Trump's most loyal backers in Congress, introduced a bill over the summer to bar the Transportation Department from enforcing mask mandates, a popular cause in Trumpworld. Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) and Vance this week introduced a bill to create a federal office [subscription] to investigate claims of colleges using affirmative action in admissions. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), another Trump loyalist, has joined Vance in proposing bills that would make gender-affirming care for minors a felony, another priority on the far right's social agenda. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) introduced legislation to end birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants after Trump vowed to sign an executive order to do the same on his first day back-in-office day. Vance introduced a bill to eliminate EV subsidies shortly after Trump railed against them at an auto plant in Detroit. 🥊 Reality check: In today's Democrat-controlled Senate, most legislation proposed by Trump allies has no chance of becoming law. But Republicans have a good chance to win Senate control in November. Share this story.         2. 🧊 Frozen housing market Data: Redfin. Chart: Axios Visuals High mortgage rates have all but frozen home sales in America, Axios' Sami Sparber writes. 🖼️ The big picture: The "lock-in effect" is real — many people want to move, but don't want to swap their 3% interest rate for 7 or 8%. As one real estate agent put it, 2023 was "the year your first home accidentally became your forever home In October, the number of pending home sales — deals that went into contract — neared their lowest point in history. Plus it got even harder for first-timers to make the leap to homeownership. You now have to earn $115,000 a year to afford a typical house. 👀 What to watch: Mortgage rates would need to slide significantly to loosen homeowners' golden handcuffs.  Some buyers are starting to accept that rates probably won't fall back to pandemic levels. Others have found deals on new constructions, townhomes or condos. Share this story.         3. 🏛️ Ds join Rs in hammering Ivy testimony Harvard president Claudine Gay, Penn president Liz Magill and MIT president Sally Kornbluth testified Tuesday. Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images Members of Congress across the political spectrum are shocked and outraged about congressional testimony from the presidents of Harvard, MIT and Penn — and what it might mean for academia writ large. Lawmakers are urging the three presidents to resign, launching investigations and even floating restrictions on federal funding for certain colleges. 🔎 Zoom in: Rep. Becca Balint (D-Vt.), a progressive who is one of a handful of Jewish lawmakers who has endorsed a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, told Axios she found the testimony "shocking." Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), another Jewish progressive, told Axios: "They showed no emotion, they showed no angst, and they just gave their answers like it was a math test." ⚡ The latest: A group of 72 Republicans and two Democrats sent a letter to the three colleges' governing boards calling for the presidents to be removed. More than a dozen Democrats signed a letter to the colleges demanding they "review and update your school policies" to ensure they protect Jewish students. Read on.         A MESSAGE FROM WELLS FARGO Doing makes housing more attainable     Everyone should have a quality place to call home. What you need to know: Over the past 10 years, Wells Fargo has donated more than 400 homes valued at over $60 million to support veterans and their families. Learn more about the impact the bank is making across the U.S.     4. 💰 Good news: Savers beat inflation Data: Bankrate.com, BLS. Chart: Axios Visuals It's a golden era for savers: Those fortunate enough to have some spare cash can earn some real interest on their money right now. The rate on the highest-yielding savings accounts is outpacing inflation by a historically wide margin, Axios' Emily Peck reports. 💡 Reality check: Not all savings accounts offer great rates, and the Fed could cut rates as soon as early next year, changing the dynamic. Share this story.         5. 🥊 Trump campaign to allies: Put a sock in it  A commit-to-caucus card being distributed by the Trump campaign at Iowa rallies. Photo: Galen Bacharier/The Des Moines Register via Reuters   Following our "Behind the Curtain" column about the potential cabinet in a second Trump administration, top Trump campaign officials Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita issued a statement reiterating that "no aspect of future presidential staffing or policy announcements should be deemed official" unless they come "directly from President Trump or an authorized member of his campaign team." "Let us be even more specific, and blunt," the statement continues. "People publicly discussing potential administration jobs for themselves or their friends are, in fact, hurting President Trump … and themselves. These are an unwelcomed distraction." "Second term policy priorities and staffing decisions will not — in no uncertain terms — be led by anonymous or thinly sourced speculation in mainstream media news stories." Read the statement. 💨 Catch up quick: 🇪🇺 Europeans have gone from denial of a Trump return to panic, the N.Y. Times' Jonathan Swan, Charlie Savage and Maggie Haberman report: "European ambassadors and think tank officials have been making pilgrimages to associates of Mr. Trump to inquire about his intentions. At least one ambassador, Finland's Mikko Hautala, has reached out directly to Mr. Trump and sought to persuade him of his country's value to NATO as a new member." Gift link — No paywall. 📊 A Wall Street Journal poll finds Trump leads President Biden among registered voters, 47% to 43%, in a national head-to-head matchup(margin of error: ±2.5 points.) "Trump's lead expands to 6 points, 37% to 31%, when five potential third-party and independent candidates are added to the mix. They take a combined 17% support, with Democrat-turned-independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. drawing the most, at 8%."         6. 🦾 World's first AI Act Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios   The European Union agreed yesterday on the world's first comprehensive regulation for artificial intelligence: the AI Act. Why it matters: "European policymakers focused on A.I.'s riskiest uses by companies and governments, including those for law enforcement and the operation of crucial services like water and energy," The New York Times reports. Makers of large AI systems, like OpenAI and others, will face transparency requirements, and systems creating manipulated photos and videos will have to make that clear to users, Axios' Kia Kokalitcheva writes. Facial-recognition use by law enforcement will be highly restricted. Companies violating rules could face up to 7% of global sales in fines. Go deeper.         7. U.S. vetoes ceasefire The Security Council after the vote at UN headquarters in New York. Photo: Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images The U.S. vetoed a draft UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza yesterday. Why it matters: This is the second time the U.S. has been the only opposing vote on such a resolution — reflecting its ongoing support for Israel, which is under international pressure as its military campaign continues, Axios' Barak Ravid writes. 13 of the 15 Security Council members voted in favor of the resolution. The U.K. abstained. What to watch: A senior Israeli defense official told Axios the high-intensity phase of Israel's operations in Gaza would likely last another three or four weeks. Share this story. Photo: Mark Schiefelbein/AP Secretary of State Tony Blinken met with Arab leaders — including the foreign ministers of Egypt, Jordan, the Palestinian Authority, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey — in Washington after yesterday's vote.         8. 🎂 Hollywood sign turns 100 Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images Here's the iconic Hollywood sign yesterday — the 100th anniversary of the sign being lit up with 4,000 20-watt bulbs in 1923. Each of the 45-foot letters got a new paint job last fall in preparation for the centennial, the L.A. Times reports. Photo: Underwood Archives/Getty Images The original sign — "HOLLYWOODLAND" — was put up to promote a new housing development in the hills overlooking L.A.         A MESSAGE FROM WELLS FARGO Doing makes communities stronger     Wells Fargo recently launched its $20 million Invest Native Initiative. The impact: This initiative aims to address housing, small business, and sustainability in Native American communities across Arizona, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. Learn more.