Article snippet: The TAKE with Rick Klein Budget peace is messy, sleep-deprived and expensive. And those were only one a few of the steep costs incurred in Washington this week. Overnight Senate and House votes mean one of the shorter and most pointless shutdowns in history will itself be history with a morning presidential signature. But Sen. Rand Paul’s point was heard – much as his colleagues wanted to unhear it — as were the “no” votes of the House Freedom Caucus. This is big spending coming quick on the heels of a deficit-driving tax cut; the chapter of GOP deficit hawks dictating policy outcomes now appears closed, with President Donald Trump along for that ride. Also gone, of course, are long-term prospects for Trump’s plans for slashing government agencies, and for ending budget deficits. The great immigration debate starts next with no clear GOP plan, and now no new money for the president’s border wall. Then there are the costs incurred in the Rob Porter affair. A communications director whose name has stayed relatively clean of controversy is in the middle of that, as is a chief of staff who was supposed to be the guy who brought order to White House chaos. That doesn’t even begin to cover the damage to relationships with the Justice Department and the FBI, as the Democratic-authored memo still waits on presidential approval. It’s been less than two weeks since Trump’s first State of the Union address opened possibilities for a new start. Things have chan... Link to the full article to read more