The Note: Trump on the ropes after CNN tweet

— -- WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY

THE TAKE with ABC News’ Rick Klein

Calling it a strategy on the part of the president both overstates and understates the case of Donald J. Trump vs. the news media. Trump’s tweets, like so much of his conduct, are impulsive outbursts, driven by short-term tactical decisions for which the main purpose may well be simply making the president feel better. But the flip side is that this is where he goes when he can’t find another groove. You don’t have to issue a value judgment on the sentiments he’s sharing, or even the actions he’s seemingly condoning, to recognize that there’s a swath of his base that wants to be cheering for the president at a professional wrestling match. Everyone knows that’s not real life, calling to mind the infamous question about whether Trump should be taken seriously or literally. Of course, there are other things (health care? Russia?) that could be occupying the president’s time. And the jokes turn deadly serious should any actual violence take place. For now, though, the president’s actions mark not as escalation so much as a return to the norm. That’s not the same as calling it normal.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"He did not get any sun. He had a baseball hat on." -- New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s spokesperson when asked about Christie and his family's spending Sunday on a closed beach after ordering a government shutdown.

NEED TO READ with ABC News’ Daksha Sthipam

"No one would perceive that as a threat," adviser says of Trump's CNN tweet. President Trump's homeland security adviser, Tom Bossert, defended the president's CNN tweet Sunday, saying that “no one would perceive that as a threat.” Bossert said Trump is the most “genuine president ... we’ve seen in [his] lifetime” and that “[Trump is] beaten up in a way on cable platforms that he has a right to respond to.” http://abcn.ws/2tyMGcD

Senate health bill means choosing between "children, seniors, the disabled," Kasich says. Republican Gov. John Kasich of Ohio says that the current version of the Senate Republican health care bill is “not an acceptable choice” and makes it harder for states to treat opioid addicts. “If you cut $750 billion out of Medicaid, and in the out years you basically starve the program, we have to choose between children, seniors, the disabled, the addicted, the mentally ill,” Kasich said Sunday. http://abcn.ws/2teLE36

States push back against releasing voter data to fraud commission. At least 17 states are balking at the Trump administration’s request for voter registration data as part of the new election integrity commission, with six states outright declaring they will not provide the information. Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon said he has “serious doubts about the commission’s trustworthiness” as the commission’s letter demands all states provide personal information of registrants. http://abcn.ws/2sspz3N

WHO’S TWEETING?

@jaketapper: .@BenSasse says President Trump is “weaponizing distrust” with his attacks on the media. #CNNsotu http://cnn.it/2ugET0G

@luisalonsolugo: My @AP_politics story with @colvinj: @realDonaldTrump 's @WhiteHouse is all but ignoring #Spanish speakers http://wapo.st/2uBk6o1

@ClaudeBrodesser: .@GovChristie: "I didn’t get any sun today." http://goo.gl/3NHhdL Gov. Christie spox: “He did not get any sun. He had a baseball hat on."

@oliverdarcy: Worth remembering that once upon a time, @FoxNews called out Trump for behavior "beneath the dignity” of Oval Office http://www.mediaite.com/online/read-all-of-fox-news-statements-to-date-defending-megyn-kelly-from-donald-trump/ …

@mollymhunter: WATCH: @IanPannell files from #Mosul last night, but looking ahead to #Raqqa - where the battle has just started. http://abcn.ws/2ufm2TP

The Note is a daily ABC News feature that highlights the key political moments of the day ahead. Please check back Wednesday for the latest.