The Angle

The Angle: Separate Beds Edition

Slate’s daily newsletter on the pros and cons of filibusters, the president’s 1950s bed setup, and lawmakers really going too far with partisan loyalty.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump on Jan. 20 in Washington.

Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images

Raising the ceiling: Last week, the federal government stopped being able to borrow money beyond its current debt level. This calls for a routine, semiregular vote from Congress to raise the official debt ceiling. Democrats aren’t likely to help the process along, though, and Donald Trump is about to learn what a headache raising the debt ceiling can be, Daniel Gross writes.

A “royal” setup: US Weekly recently reported that Donald and Melania Trump allegedly sleep in different bedrooms. Christina Cauterucci argues why a particular piece of news like this actually does matter: It subverts the Trump narrative that a past-your-prime man can use power and wealth to get sex from models and other traditionally beautiful women.

Misplaced loyalties: With Rep. Devin Nunes’ recent missteps, the lack of hardball questions at Monday’s Russia hearing, and House Republicans’ hurry to push through a poorly designed health care bill, congressional Republicans are showing that they care more about loyalty to the president than their principles or even the law, concludes Jamelle Bouie. “Over the course of just a few days, we’ve seen lawmakers abandon all pretense to principle or consistency for the sake of partisan gain,” he writes.

A Slate debate: Democrats announced they will filibuster Neil Gorsuch’s Supreme Court nomination. The Slate staff were divided about whether that’s a good idea. Read through the discussion to get their real-time reactions.

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Molly