Welcome to Christmas Eve, naughties and nicers...

Gridlock in Congress is nothing new, but sometimes all it takes is a little festive spirit to get lawmakers to work together.

That’s where so-called "Christmas tree bills" come in, and while they can be useful, they’re also often abused, leaving constituents with no choice but to put their lawmakers on the “naughty list.”

No one really knows when the term "Christmas tree bill" first came into use, but a 1956 Time Magazine article was titled “The Christmas Tree Bill” and discussed a farm bill that was the target of more than 100 amendments. A Democratic Senator from New Mexico, Clinton Anderson, remarked:

“This bill gets more and more like a Christmas tree; there’s something on it for nearly everyone.”

How do you feel about “Christmas tree bills”?

2021 Quiz: Do You Know Your News?

Can you ace this end-of-year roundup of some of the top stories of 2021? Click on the image below to take the quiz.

Die Hard: Christmas Movie or Not?

John McClane foils a terrorist plot executed during a Christmas party in Los Angeles.

Some consider Die Hard a classic Christmas movie. Others say the film is only set during Christmas, but not actually a Christmas movie, as compared to, say, Home Alone, It's a Wonderful Life, and Elf. But still...

What say you? Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?

And, In The End...

Hope you got everything you wanted this year,

—Josh Herman

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