President Trump, First Lady Participate in Tree Lighting Ceremony

President Donald J. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump “participated in the 96th National Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony on the Ellipse outside the White House on Wednesday, with the White House grounds fully decked out for the holidays,” CBS News reports. “The president had the crowd count down to the tree lighting with him. The tradition draws hundreds of spectators each year, even in frigid conditions.” Click here to read more.

“Consumers boosted their spending in October at the fastest pace in seven months, while their incomes rose by the largest amount in nine months — both good signs for future economic growth,” Martin Crutsinger reports for The Associated Press. “Consumer spending rose a sharp 0.6 percent last month, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. It was the biggest increase since a similar gain in March.”

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act signed by President Trump last year “continues to encourage the business investment that leads to higher productivity and higher wages for American workers. Today the government reported that such investment was higher than it initially reported for the third quarter of the year,” James Freeman writes in The Wall Street Journal. As the economy continues to boom, it’s time to “get ready for more speeches featuring America’s 44th President [Barack Obama] asserting ownership of the growth breakout that never managed to arrive during his eight years in the White House.”

“First lady Melania Trump spoke about the importance of raising awareness about the opioid crisis and ending the stigma associated with addiction Wednesday,” Megan Keller reports in The Hill. “The chances of you knowing someone who struggles with it are very high,” the First Lady said during a town hall at Liberty University.

“A self-identified member of the violent gang MS-13 was arrested on Saturday, telling authorities that he traveled to the United States with the migrant caravan,” Leah Barkoukis reports for Townhall. The 29-year-old told authorities he traveled to the U.S. border with a large group of people from Central America with plans to file for asylum. “As President Trump and Secretary Nielsen warned, over the last few weeks we have identified over 600 known criminals and gang members in the caravan,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.