REPUBLICANS STARE DOWN POSSIBLE FAILURE ON HEALTH CARE BILL The GOP is still moving ahead with the vote on the Senate health care bill next week. President Donald Trump has said he will be “very angry” if the bill does not pass. [HuffPost] [Tweet | Share on Facebook]

TRUMP HEADS TO PARIS To escape troubles at home. The president will meet with France’s new leader, Emmanuel Macron, in hopes of easing relations that were strained by his decision to pull out of the Paris accord and “America First” trade stance. Meanwhile, Trump allies are reportedly hoping to counter spin the Donald Trump Jr. scandal by digging up dirt on the reporters working on the story. Worries about Jared Kushner revelations are growing. And Vox’s Ezra Klein breaks down why the emails matter. [HuffPost]

WSJ REPORT: INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS OVERHEARD RUSSIAN SPIES DISCUSSING TRUMP TEAM IN 2015 “The conversations were picked up by intelligence officials who routinely monitor communications (including phone calls and emails) between people believed to be involved in Russian spying on the U.S.” [HuffPost]

TRUMP’S PICK FOR FBI DIRECTOR SAID ALL THE RIGHT THINGS Christopher Wray stressed he had no reason to doubt the intelligence community’s assessments about Russian interference, reiterated his respect of former director James Comey and commented that special prosecutor Robert Mueller was not on a witch hunt. [HuffPost]

FDA PANEL RECOMMENDS FIRST GENE-ALTERING LEUKEMIA TREATMENT “A Food and Drug Administration panel opened a new era in medicine on Wednesday, unanimously recommending that the agency approve the first-ever treatment that genetically alters a patient’s own cells to fight cancer, transforming them into what scientists call ‘a living drug’ that powerfully bolsters the immune system to shut down the disease.” [NYT]

BERNIE SANDERS: A 2020 RUN IS NOT OFF THE TABLE But he said it was too early to tell. [HuffPost]

ISIS HASN’T JUST LOST MOSUL “Cyber jihad efforts of the self-described Islamic State are weakening in quantity, quality and effectiveness as ‘cracks’ appear in the terrorist group’s online propaganda machine, a new report argues.” [HuffPost]