Brexit Countdown – 16 Days Until We Go Over the Cliff…Or Not:

A Dream Deferred (Bloomberg Politics)
Did the Brexiteers Kill Brexit? Lawmakers are poised to tell Theresa May today to walk away from the cliff’s edge by taking the threat of an exit without an agreement off the table. They’ll then call for May to push the divorce deadline back.

Cross out the Brexit countdown trackers — the U.K. is no longer departing in 16 days.

That’s good news for consumers stockpiling canned food and for skittish markets, which now see growing odds of a softer exit with most ties to the bloc kept intact. We could even see the second referendum that for months has seemed little more than the desperate last hope of grieving europhiles.

But for the politicians who have spent their careers fighting for a clean break from the EU, it’s looking like the end of a dream.

Brexit Latest:
-Markets Shift Focus to Brexit Extension (Bloomberg)
-U.K. Cuts Growth Forecast Amid Parliament’s Brexit Chaos (Bloomberg)

Programming note: Parliament votes today on a no-deal Brexit at 7pm GMT, 3pm ET.

Boeing 737 Max 8 Latest:
-Shutdown Impact: Ethiopian Airlines Crash Came After US Shutdown Delayed Boeing 737 Max Software Fixes; Boeing Says Update To Be Released ‘No Later than April’ (Quartz)
-Complaints Registered: Boeing 737 Max 8 Pilots Complained About Suspected “Nose Down” Safety Flaw in Voluntary U.S. Database (Dallas Morning News)

U.S. College Admissions Cheating Scandal:
-From ‘Master Coach’ to a Bribery Probe: A College Consultant Who Went Off the Rails (Washington Post)
-Rich Parents Have Plenty of Ways to Game the U.S. Education System (Bloomberg)
Reading assignment: Click here to read the original documents from the Massachusetts U.S. Attorney’s office on ‘Operation Varsity Blues’.

Donald Debt: DoubleLine Capital’s Gundlach Takes Swipe at Trump for `Shocking’ U.S. Debt Growth (Bloomberg)

Tech Today: EU Antitrust Chief Margrethe Vestager Is Ready for Her Next Act As She Ends Term This Year (Bloomberg)

UN Environmental Assembly in Nairobi: Environmental Leaders on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 Mourned (Grist)

Doing the Right Thing: Dick’s Sporting Goods Is Removing Even More Guns From Stores (New York Times)

Times Square Today: Founder of Studio 54 Aims to Make Times Square Cool with New “Edition” Hotel (Bloomberg)

Best of late night.

On the U.S. college admissions cheating scandal:

“You know how the conspiracy theorists say, ‘Everything is rigged for the wealthy and famous’? Well, as a wealthy and famous person, let me just respond by saying: You’re absolutely right.”
— Stephen Colbert

“The F.B.I. was tipped off by the essay question on this year’s Common Application: ‘Reflect on an accomplishment that sparked personal growth and/or list your parents’ credit card number. What prompted your choice? What is the three-digit security code?’”
— Stephen Colbert

“Chef Boyardee has recalled almost 3,000 pounds of microwaveable chicken and rice because they contain beef ravioli. Even more disturbing, the Chef Boyardee spokesman kept using air-quotes when he said the word ‘beef.’”
— Jimmy Fallon

For more best of late night from the New York Times, click here.