Good Wednesday morning. I'm Anna Palmer and welcome to your Politico Playbook Audio Briefing,

sponsored by J.P. Morgan Chase and Company. And I'm Jake Sherman. House and Senate Republicans head

to the Greenbrier in West Virginia next week for their annual retreat. Here's who will speak.

President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, UN ambassador Nikki Haley, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson,

and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.

It's nice when you control all three branches of government.

This lineup certainly beats the motivational speakers Republicans heard from in the past.

Important reminder, State of the Union is next Tuesday night.

The Republican retreat is Wednesday through Friday, 14 days until the government shuts down.

Aaron Lorenzo has a scoop on Trump picking Charles Reddigg as the next IRS commissioner.

Lorenzo reports that Reddick, who is considered a tax controversy specialist, would come on board,

if confirmed by the Senate, at one of the agency's most challenging times

as it implements a sweeping new tax law with limited

resources and faces a possible restructuring by Congress. Back in Congress, the blame game

continues on the Democratic side over the shutdown. Our colleague, Suggman Kim and Burgess Everett,

also detail how immigration talks have quickly hit a wall. While our colleague Nancy Cook has a big picture look at Trump's cabinet,

how they are free to shape their own agenda and how that's jelling,

giving his cabinet secretaries and agency chiefs almost total freedom to do what they want.

The Washington Post is reporting that Trump met with acting FBI director Andrew McCabean made

in a get-to-know-you meeting

where the president asked McCabe who he voted for. He also expressed anger over McCabe's wife,

who's a Democrat who ran for Virginia State Senate in 2015, and received political contributions

...