The first bill House Democrats introduced after taking control in January was ambitious legislation promising to reduce money in politics, expand voting rights, and crack down on corruption in Washington. The bill, HR 1, is "not going to go anywhere," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in December. And he explained why in an op-ed in The Washington Post late Thursday.

McConnell's op-ed, which focused on HR 1's voting rights and campaign finance aspects, could be read as a response to one published by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) in late November. They describe the bill very differently:

McConnell: "Their bill proposes making Election Day a new paid holiday," or an "extra taxpayer-funded vacation for bureaucrats."

Pelosi: "Let's make it easier, not harder, to vote."

McConnell: "Pelosi and company are pitching new taxpayer subsidies, including a 600 percent government match for certain political donations and a new voucher program that would funnel even more public dollars to campaigns."

Pelosi: "We must also empower hard-working Americans in our democracy by building a 21st-century campaign-finance system ... to increase and multiply the power of small donors" over "wealthy special interests."

McConnell: "Egregiously, the legislation dedicates hundreds of pages to federalizing the electoral process. It would make states mimic the practices that recently caused California to incorrectly register 23,000 ineligible voters. It would make it harder for states to fix inaccurate data in their voter rolls."

Pelosi: "We will promote national automatic voter registration, bolster our critical election infrastructure against foreign attackers, and put an end to partisan gerrymandering once and for all by establishing federal guidelines to outlaw the practice."

McConnell: "Many more Americans would have to notify the feds when spending even small amounts of money on speech or else be penalized."

Pelosi: "Let's rein in the unaccountable 'dark money' unleashed by the Supreme Court's Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision by requiring all political organizations to disclose their donors."

This "naked attempt to change the rules of American politics," McConnell writes, "should be called the Democrat Politician Protection Act." Pelosi agrees HR 1 "will ultimately change the balance of power in Washington," though away from "special interests" and toward "hard-working Americans." Peter Weber

Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac may have just taken their last steps in a larger world.

Director J.J. Abrams on Friday announced that Star Wars: Episode IX, which is being billed as the conclusion of the franchise's Skywalker saga, has officially wrapped production. "There is no adequate way to thank this truly magical crew and cast," Abrams wrote, posting a photo of the film's main three stars hugging on set. "I'm forever indebted to you all."

Boyega wrote that this is "the end to a chapter of my life that I couldn't be more thankful for," also thanking Abrams for "making my dreams come true."

The photo is only the second glimpse of Episode IX, following a picture taken in the Millennium Falcon that Abrams tweeted when production began in August. The photo posted Friday reveals that Episode IX will feature scenes on a desert planet, perhaps Luke Skywalker's home, Tatooine, or Rey's home, Jakku. The photo also shows Rey and Finn sporting new hairdos, while Poe seems to be rocking some suspenders.

With 10 months to go until Episode IX is released, Lucasfilm still hasn't yet revealed the film's official title, but that announcement could be imminent. The title of The Force Awakens, after all, was announced shortly after production wrapped in 2014. Then again, the title of The Last Jedi wasn't announced until four months after production wrapped.

In addition to the returning cast, Episode IX will feature Billy Dee Williams reprising his role of Lando Calrissian, as well as a posthumous appearance by Carrie Fisher as Leia Organa using footage shot for The Force Awakens. The film hits theaters on Dec. 20. Brendan Morrow

Roger Stone may need to cut down on his Infowars appearances.

U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson on Friday issued a gag order in the trial of the former adviser to President Trump, saying Stone must "refrain from making statements to the media or in public settings that pose a substantial likelihood of material prejudice to this case," Politico reports.

Stone was arrested last month as part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, and he pleaded not guilty to charges of witness tampering, lying to Congress, and obstruction, The New York Times reports.

But that hadn't slowed down Stone's media appearances, and he jumped on Alex Jones' InfoWars two times within a week after his arrest. This prompted Jackson to warn him earlier this month that he must stop acting like he's on "a book tour."

Axios reports that the gag order prevents Stone from making any comments "within the vicinity of the courthouse." But Politico notes that the gag order only prevents him from talking about his case, and Jackson says he can continue talking about "foreign relations, immigration or Tom Brady" to his heart's desire. Brendan Morrow

Police have arrested two potential suspects in connection with the alleged assault of Empire star Jussie Smollett, ABC News reported on Friday.

Chicago police told ABC that two men were arrested on Wednesday at the airport, with detectives having "probable cause that they may have been involved" in the alleged assault. The suspects have not yet been charged with a crime, however.

Authorities also told ABC that the suspects "have a relationship with" Smollett but did not offer specifics. According to CNN, they are two Nigerian brothers, and CBS 2 Chicago reports they have worked as extras on Empire.

This development comes after two local news stations reported Thursday that investigators now believe the attack on Smollett was staged, per Variety. But chief police spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said that there is "no evidence to say that this is a hoax" at this time, USA Today reports. One of the Thursday reports had also said investigators believe Smollett staged the attack because he was being written off Empire, something 20th Century Fox denied in a statement, calling the notion "patently ridiculous." Brendan Morrow

The NFL and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick announced Friday that they have reached a settlement over Kaepernick's collusion lawsuit, The Washington Post reports. Kaepernick had sued the league after he was apparently blacklisted from playing football due to his protests during the national anthem; he has been out of the sport for the past two seasons.

While the terms of the settlement were not revealed, and the resolution is subject to a confidentiality agreement, NFL columnist Mike Freeman reported that "team officials are speculating to me [that] the NFL paid Kaepernick in the $60 million to $80 million range."

Separately, a similar lawsuit against the NFL by Carolina Panthers safety Eric Reid also reached a settlement. In a joint statement, the NFL and lawyers for Reid and Kaepernick said: "For the past several months, counsel for Mr. Kaepernick and Mr. Reid have engaged in an ongoing dialogue with representatives of the NFL ... The resolution of this matter is subject to a confidentiality agreement so there will be no further comment by any party."

The NFL Players Association also released a statement: "We are not privy to the details of the settlement, but support the decision by the players and their counsel," it read. "We continuously supported Colin and Eric from the start of their protests, participated with their lawyers throughout their legal proceedings, and were prepared to participate in the upcoming trial in pursuit of both truth and justice for what we believe the NFL and its clubs did to them. We are glad that Eric has earned a job and a new contract, and we continue to hope that Colin gets his opportunity as well." Jeva Lange

In the wake of President Trump's national emergency declaration, some congressional Republicans are already fearing the precedent he has set.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) outlined these concerns in a statement Friday, criticizing Trump's "executive overreach" and saying that this will "create a new precedent that a left-wing president would undoubtedly utilize to implement their radical policy agenda."

In fact, Tillis took Republicans through a few specific hypothetical scenarios, imagining that President Bernie Sanders would declare a national emergency to "implement a radical Green New Deal," President Elizabeth Warren would do so to "shut down the banks," and President Cory Booker would "effectively end Second Amendment rights." The senator says it's "clear what kind of rabbit hole our country can go down" if national emergencies become the norm.

Tillis' argument has been a common one in Republican circles over the past few weeks, with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) warning members of his party last month that if the national emergency is the border today, "tomorrow, the national security emergency might be climate change," per Vox.

But Trump's decision is hardly earning universal condemnation from Republicans, with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) saying that he stands "firmly behind" Trump's decision and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) saying Trump's actions were simply "the predictable and understandable consequence of Democrats' decision to put partisan obstruction ahead of the national interest."

It is a remarkable thing that President Trump's tweets can still be utterly mind-boggling, but, well, here we are. On Friday, the leader of the free world tweeted out this video with no comment (trust me, you'll want to turn the sound on):

To the tune of R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts," the montage features Democrats (and GOP Sen. Mitt Romney) reacting to Trump's State of the Union address, ranging from bored expressions to suppressed laughter and eye rolls. While it's obviously intended to be braggadocious, it is still a bit funny for Trump to have shared a video of a bunch of politicians failing to take him seriously.

One thing is for sure — R.E.M. is not going to be too happy. Trump has previously used the band's hit "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" at his rallies, prompting R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills to quote lead singer Michael Stipe as saying "Go f--k yourself ... you sad, attention-grabbing, power-hungry little man. Do not use our music or my voice for your moronic charade of a campaign." Jeva Lange