The art of the (phase one) deal

Your guide to how Washington shapes business and the economy

VIEW IN BROWSER | SUBSCRIBE FRI, DEC 13, 2019 CNBC POLITICS EDITOR'S NOTE Hello,   It took about two months, but the phase one trade deal between the U.S. and China, originally announced in October, has finally become ... a deal.   Well, almost.   The trade war might have cooled off a bit, but it's still very much in effect. The two sides haven't signed anything, although they're looking to do that during the first week of January. The preliminary deal still leaves in place tariffs on tens of billions of dollars' worth of Chinese goods. Some won't go into effect and others will be pared back. Well, after the deal is signed.   There isn't much clarity, but there's still plenty of doubt. Even President Trump's top trade advisor, Robert Lighthizer, said it would be wise to be skeptical about whether China lives up to the agreement.   Still, the big thing for the administration is that it didn't have to wait until the last minute, this Sunday, to announce whether new tariffs would go into effect. They won't. And now the White House can move on to other things. The government still needs to be funded, and Congress still has to pass the president's new North American trade deal. Those votes are slated to happen next week, before lawmakers flee the capital for Christmas break.   And, we can't forget the likelihood that Donald Trump will become the third president in American history to be impeached by the House of Representatives. That's set to happen next week, too.    Thanks for reading, and be sure to check out CNBC's "Decade of Disruption" series. For the rest of the year, we'll be publishing stories about what happened over the past decade and what it all means for the future. Find our coverage here.   Thoughts? Email me at CNBCPolitics@nbcuni.com.   Have friends or colleagues who might like this newsletter? They can sign up here. For more on the intersection of business and politics, sign up for the weekly Capital Exchange newsletter here. Mike Calia @Michael_Calia KEY STORIES  China and US reach phase one trade deal that includes some tariff relief and agriculture purchases Under the deal, which the U.S. and China still need to sign, the Trump administration will cancel its next tariffs and roll back other duties. Judiciary Committee votes to advance articles of impeachment against Trump to the full House The House Judiciary Committee sends two articles of impeachment against President Trump to the House floor for a final vote in the chamber. US weighing 100% tariffs on more EU products including whiskies and Cognac, according to documents The U.S. is weighing tariffs of up to 100% on European products it previously absolved, including Irish and Scotch whiskies and Cognac. Trump aides hold daily meetings on vaping as White House scrambles to formulate policy White House officials have been holding meetings on vaping every day for over two weeks, an administration official told CNBC. What the UK election result means for Brexit Conservative Party leader Boris Johnson has secured a five-year term as prime minister with a comfortable parliamentary majority. House passes Speaker Nancy Pelosi's drug pricing bill The sweeping bill will allow the U.S. government to negotiate lower prices on the costliest drugs each year. Chuck Schumer, one of Trump's biggest Democratic cheerleaders on China, says president 'sold out' in phase one deal Chuck Schumer says President Trump has "sold out" by agreeing to a limited trade agreement with China. The 2010s had an appetite for disruption – let's take a look back Disruption has become an overused and abused buzzword, but it's an appropriate term when it comes to markets, money, technology and politics in the 2010s.       Unsubscribe Manage Newsletters Terms of Service Join the CNBC Panel Digital Products Feedback Privacy Policy   © 2019 CNBC LLC. All rights reserved. A property of NBCUniversal. 900 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632 Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes and Market Data and Analysis. Data also provided by THOMSON REUTERS