Top story: President declines to invoke emergency in TV address

Good morning – Warren Murray with the news summary that you can slip into like a comfortable pair of shoes.

Donald Trump was immediately rebuked by Democrats overnight after he went on national television appealing to Congress to fund his Mexico wall in return for ending the government shutdown. The president did not offer fresh ideas to break the current political impasse and did not declare a national emergency so that he could bypass Congress, as had been speculated.

In a string of dubious claims, Trump blamed criminal gangs and “vast quantities of illegal drugs” for “thousands of deaths” and faulted Democrats for failing to end the shutdown, now in its 18th day. He told primetime viewers: “This barrier is absolutely critical to border security. It’s also what our professionals at the border want and need … The wall will also be paid for indirectly by the great new trade deal we have made with Mexico.” (Fact-checkers have scorned Trump’s assertion that the post-Nafta deal means Mexico would somehow bear the cost.) “This situation could be solved in a 45-minute meeting,” the president said. “I have invited congressional leadership to the White House tomorrow to get this done.”

The House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, and the Senate minority leader, Chuck Schumer, delivered a live rebuttal. “Sadly, much of what we have heard from President Trump throughout this senseless shutdown has been full of misinformation and even malice,” Pelosi said.

Play Video 2:19 Democrats to Trump: 'End this shutdown now' – video

Delivering the soundbite of the day, Schumer added: “We don’t govern by temper tantrum. No president should pound the table and demand he gets his way or else the government shuts down, hurting millions of Americans who are treated as leverage.” Guardian US columnist Richard Wolffe characterises it as Trump staring himself down in the mirror and losing – “This is a very real crisis inside one man’s cranium and it’s playing out in the living rooms of a weary nation.”

MPs deal blow to May – In the House of Commons a cross-party alliance has set up a shutdown of sorts, by curbing the government’s powers to spend money on a no-deal Brexit. Their amendment means new tax administration measures will only be allowed to come into force if there is a deal, a decision to extend article 50, or a vote in the Commons specifically approving a no-deal Brexit. The successful passage of the amendment with Labour’s backing has galvanised opponents of a hard Brexit: “We will not allow a no-deal exit to occur at the end of March,” said Conservative former staunch loyalist Sir Oliver Letwin. May has conceded to senior ministers that she is on course to lose next week’s historic Brexit vote. At a cabinet meeting, Michael Gove was said to have likened MPs holding out for a better deal to “mid-50s swingers” wishing Scarlett Johansson would turn up to one of their parties (felt a bit nauseated typing that). This morning, political correspondent Jess Elgot answers key questions on how things play out from here; while our editorial says it is clear the government has failed on Brexit and advocates taking it back to the people.

Midweek catch-up – The first one of 2019, not counting that new year catch-up last Thursday …

> Flights at Heathrow were halted between 5-6pm yesterday when a drone was sighted over the airfield. The military was called in to provide protection and police have opened a criminal investigation.

> Protesters who have been harassing and abusing MPs outside parliament have put away their yellow vests because “the police are after all of us”. Facebook has deleted the page of James Goddard, the group’s most prominent member, for spreading hate speech.

> The largest opposition party in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has claimed its leader is the “presumed” winner of the 30 December presidential election. Electoral authorities missed a deadline of last Sunday to release the result.

> Kate Bush has announced that despite praising Theresa May in an interview, she is not a Conservative supporter. The musician said she liked having a woman in power and had disliked David Cameron.

Hand of Moscow – In the Trump-Russia investigation, Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort allegedly shared polling data on the 2016 election with a Russian contact of Moscow’s intelligence agencies. And a mystery foreign government-owned company is paying a daily US$50,000 fine for refusing to comply with a subpoena that may be linked to Russia’s interference in the election. Court proceedings surrounding the matter are being kept under wraps.

Paradise Papers journalist jailed – Pelin Ünker, a journalist in Turkey, has been given more than a year’s jail for “defamation and insult” over her Paradise Papers reporting, which detailed the Maltese business activities of the country’s now-former prime minister Binali Yıldırım and his sons. Ünker has told the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) she intends to appeal, pointing out that the Yıldırım family admitted articles about their Maltese businesses were accurate. Turkey has the world’s worst record for jailing journalists, with 68 in prison at the end of 2018. The ICIJ’s director, Gerard Ryle, condemned Ünker’s jailing as “the latest assault on journalistic freedom under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s autocratic rule”.

Vote leaf, vote romaine – Here’s a lovely “and finally” piece … how to grow your own veg even if you don’t have the space. “Microgreens are ideal,” writes Alys Fowler. “These are the first flush of a seedling’s leaves and are harvested at about 5-10cm tall.” Raid the bin for takeaway containers that will fit on the windowsill; poke holes in the bottom for drainage and use the lid to catch it. Nearly fill the tray with peat-free compost, sow your seeds 1cm apart, water them in, and you can usually start harvesting a week or two later, Fowler writes. “Lettuce, herbs such as basil, mint, coriander and parsley, peas, celery, chard, any cabbage, watercress, mustards, rocket, chives, radishes and spinach are all ideal.”

Today in Focus podcast: Where next for Brexit?

As Theresa May prepares for the showdown Brexit vote on Tuesday, the government is stepping up its contingency planning for crashing out of the EU without a deal.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Hired haulage trucks queued up on the A256 to test no-deal traffic plans around Dover port. Photograph: Leon Neal/Getty Images

The Guardian’s Patrick Wintour sets out the routes available to the government as the exit date fast approaches. Plus in opinion: Owen Jones on responding to increasing abuse on the streets and online.

Lunchtime read: Constant craving, from sugar to screens

Addiction was once viewed as tethered to substances like alcohol and opium. But now it seems to have snowballed, from sugar to sex to shopping to social media. The NHS opens its first internet addiction clinic this year and the World Health Organization (WHO) now lists gaming disorder as an official addiction.

Experts say compulsions can flit between different vices – a young man seeking refuge from family problems might toggle between gaming and porn. “I saw [a gaming disorder patient] yesterday who then went on to spending money on objects and clothes,” says Henrietta Bowden-Jones, psychiatrist behind that forthcoming NHS clinic. “You can somehow shift the behaviour but it’s an illness we don’t yet know enough about.” Amy Fleming delves into the many forms of addiction.

Sport

Maurizio Sarri complained bitterly about the Harry Kane goal that decided the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final at Wembley last night in Tottenham’s favour, suggesting that English referees are unable to use the VAR system. London’s 2012 clean Games boast is in ruins as the IOC’s decision to keep samples for 10 years has led to a steady drip of retrospective failed doping tests. Padraig Harrington admitted upon his unveiling as Europe’s Ryder Cup leader for 2020 that the thought of failure left him with a sense of trepidation to the point where accepting the European Tour’s overtures was far from the formality the rest of us assumed. Pep Guardiola is hopeful Vincent Kompany, who is in discussions with the club, will sign a contract extension. And Leigh Halfpenny is expected to miss at least the first two Six Nations matches after being told by a specialist he is at least three weeks away from a return from concussion.

Business

US and Chinese envoys have extended trade talks into a third day, with Asian stock markets rising to their highest in nearly four weeks on the news. The FTSE is headed for a higher open. Sterling has been trading at $1.273 and €1.111 overnight.

The papers

A number of front pages have pictures of Anna Soubry. The i’s lead story is: “MPs reveal death threats and vile abuse” and the Mail focuses on the man accused of threatening Anna Soubry: “Ukip and the hatemonger”.

The Telegraph plays it down, captioning a picture of a face-off between pro and anti-Brexit protesters “Friendly rivals”. But their main story is: “Rebels draw first blood in battle to stop no deal”. The same topic also leads the Times: “Rebel Tory MPs inflict historic defeat on May”, the Guardian: “We will end threat of no-deal Brexit, cross-party alliance of MPs tells May” and the unhappy Express: “They really do want to steal your Brexit”. The Sun has an interview with a people-smuggler: “I’ve smuggled 300 migrants into UK”. The FT has “IAG faces loss of flying rights as Brussels balks at Brexit plan” and the Mirror reports on how a TV drama led to women coming forward with accusations against a serial killer: “Bellfield attacked us too”.

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