Catalonia, John Kelly, Donald Trump: Your Weekend Briefing …
The undoing of Harvey Weinstein underscored the increasing gravity of womens accusations. Big-name actresses like the Oscar winner Lupita Nyongo, above, have come forward with long-withheld accounts of his behavior. Now that we are speaking, let us never shut up about this kind of thing, she writes in an Op-Ed.
Actresses like Jennifer Lawrence and Reese Witherspoon discussed other perpetrators, and hundreds of thousands of women posted #MeToo messages.
In Californias capital, more than 140 women including legislators and lobbyists denounced pervasive sexual misconduct in the legislature. France, after a #MeToo-style outburst, is considering fines for catcalls.
And The Times reported a previously undisclosed sixth settlement over sexual harassment allegations against Bill OReilly, the former Fox News host. A month after the $32 million deal in January, Fox extended his contract.
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3. Meanwhile, the wheels of government are turning, if slowly. Republicans, still striving for a single marquee legislative achievement in the Trump presidency, narrowly secured Senate approval for a budget blueprint paving the way for a $1.5 trillion tax cut.
The House takes it up this week, shadowed by news from the Treasury Department: the largest annual budget deficit in four years.
Republicans aim to pass the tax bill by Christmas, but few on or off Capitol Hill have seen even a draft. Here are the mechanics of the effort.
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4. Senator Mitch McConnell and President Trump made a show of togetherness, moving to fill scores of federal court vacancies with conservatives. Above, Mr. McConnell, center left, with Senator Cory Gardner of Colorado.
On health care, Mr. Trump walked back his endorsement of a bipartisan effort to save insurance subsidies. Conversely, the I.R.S. announced a move that would bolster Obamacare: It will enforce the individual mandate, declining 2017 tax returns that do not disclose the filers health insurance status.
At the same time, the E.P.A. has been moving to ease restrictions on toxic chemicals, under the direction of a former industry lobbyist.
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5. Without speaking President Trumps name, two former presidents, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, in separate speeches implicitly condemned the president and the powers that thrust him into office. Bullying and prejudice in our public life sets a national tone, provides permission for cruelty and bigotry and compromises the moral education of children, Mr. Bush said.
And George Soros, the billionaire hedge fund manager and a major Democratic donor, revealed that he had transferred $18 billion to his Open Society Foundations. A lightning rod for conservative critics, he is now squarely in the middle of the social and political debates convulsing the country.
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The shots began at 10:05. Twelve bursts of gunfire later, the police broke down Stephen Paddocks door at the Mandalay Bay. The Times mapped 30 videos to draw perhaps the most complete picture to date of what happened.
6. Disaster recovery continues: A month after Hurricane Maria, 80 percent of Puerto Rico remains without electricity. We need trucks, we need poles, we need crews, we need lines, we need more people, said a local utility employee.
In Northern California, some businesses are reopening as investigators dig through debris to determine what set off the regions staggering outbreak of wildfires, whose toll includes 40 lives and almost 8,000 structures. The findings will help decide who pays for damages that are estimated to have surpassed $1 billion.
The mass shooting in Las Vegas continues to mystify investigators. Using forensic analysis, we mapped 30 videos on a timeline to reconstruct the attack minute by minute, above, drawing perhaps the most complete picture to date of what happened when Stephen Paddock rained an estimated 900 rounds onto concertgoers.
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7. Abroad, Spains prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, in an unexpectedly forceful move, said he would seek the removal of Catalonias leader, Carles Puigdemont, to halt the regions secessionist movement.
The question of independence is particularly complex in Barcelona, which is divided between its identity as a global city and as Catalonias capital.
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8. In the Middle East, our photographer accompanied some of the U.S.-backed forces that drove the Islamic State from its de facto capital, Raqqa, Syria. That capped the groups ouster from most of Syria and Iraq, but at the cost of unfathomable destruction. Above, fighters in Raqqa.
And counterterrorism officials say ISIS could morph into a new, lethal incarnation.
To the west, the Iraqi military vanquished Kurdish forces to reclaim Kirkuk, checking the Kurds move toward independence. The U.S., despite its long reliance on the Kurds in the fight against ISIS, sat by, lining up with Irans priorities.
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9. While world attention has been on North Koreas nuclear program, the country has nurtured a secretive hard-currency trade that nets $1 billion annually, and built a cyberwar program capable of stealing millions and unleashing global havoc.
Elsewhere on the world stage, Nikki Haley, President Trumps U.N. ambassador, made strident denunciations of Iran and urged tougher action by the Security Council against its outlaw behavior.
(She also received something of a tutorial on statecraft at a panel discussion with the former secretaries of state Condoleezza Rice and Madeleine Albright.)
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10. In Africa, some are referring to the twin truck bombings in Mogadishu that killed more than 270 people as Somalias 9/11.
Kenyans are on edge as the redo of their presidential election approaches on Thursday. The warring between parties led an official to say that the repeat might not be credible, either.
In West Africa, a health implication resulting from the 2013-16 Ebola outbreak is shocking doctors: Many survivors have cataracts, even children as young as 5. Above, a child preparing to undergo eye surgery in Sierra Leone.
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11. President Xi Jinpings dominance in China has been on display at the Communist Party congress, which culminates this week with a reshuffle of the powerful Politburo.
Here are the five takeaways from Mr. Xis marathon, 205-minute opening speech, which projected military and economic power.
And the extraordinary security clampdown on Beijing for the congress further emphasized his message: Nothing can stand in my way.
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12. The Houston Astros are back. They face the Dodgers in L.A. on Tuesday for Game 1 of the World Series.
The Yankees lost the chance Saturday night, after the Astros celebrating above held them to three hits and no runs to win the American League Championship Series.
Lance McCullers Jr. spun curve after curve 24 in a row to end the game.
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13. Finally, ready for a bit of escapism? For those who stream, here are 11 underappreciated TV shows now on Hulu. For those whod rather scream, The Walking Dead returns tonight for Season 8. Heres a look back at where the horror series left off.
For a more erudite diversion, curl up with George Saunderss experimental first novel, Lincoln in the Bardo, which just won the Man Booker Prize, or this years T Magazine Greats issue. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, above, a defining voice on race and gender for the digital age, is featured.
Have a great week.
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Catalonia, John Kelly, Donald Trump: Your Weekend Briefing ...
- President Donald Trump signs the spending bill that ends the shutdown and reopens the U.S. Government - The White House (.gov) - February 4th, 2026 [February 4th, 2026]
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- Donald Trump wants to end Americas half-century conflict with Iran - The Economist - February 4th, 2026 [February 4th, 2026]
- Donald Trump and Xi Jinping discuss Ukraine and trade ahead of US state visit to Beijing - Financial Times - February 4th, 2026 [February 4th, 2026]
- Opinion: Why are political cartoonists drawn to Donald Trump? 'He really is a cartoon' - CT Insider - February 1st, 2026 [February 1st, 2026]
- David M. Shribman: Where is Donald Trump taking America? - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - February 1st, 2026 [February 1st, 2026]
- How Donald Trump reshaped Vermont in just 1 year - VTDigger - February 1st, 2026 [February 1st, 2026]
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- Rinse and Repeat: Western allies ready for next rollercoaster with Donald Trump - CNN - January 26th, 2026 [January 26th, 2026]
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- The Woman Who Stands Between Donald Trump and Greenland - The New York Times - January 26th, 2026 [January 26th, 2026]
- Davos 2026: Special Address by Donald J Trump, President of the United States of America - weforum.org - January 24th, 2026 [January 24th, 2026]
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- "SNL" mocks Pete Hegseth and "sleeping" Donald Trump"kill everybody" - Newsweek - December 7th, 2025 [December 7th, 2025]
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- 'I am the one able to take him down.' What Jeffrey Epstein said about Donald Trump. - USA Today - November 14th, 2025 [November 14th, 2025]
- President Donald Trump signs the funding bill from Congress that reopens the government - The White House (.gov) - November 14th, 2025 [November 14th, 2025]
- Donald Trump Is a Lamer Duck Than Ever - The Atlantic - November 14th, 2025 [November 14th, 2025]
- Terry McAuliffe: Donald Trump is the Democrats Best Weapon - CNN - November 14th, 2025 [November 14th, 2025]
- Donald Trump May Have Revealed Where Barron Is Living After His Quiet College Transfer - People.com - November 14th, 2025 [November 14th, 2025]
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- Donald Trump departs South Korea after talks with Xi Jinping - DW - October 30th, 2025 [October 30th, 2025]
- Donald Trump Is the First AI Slop President - WIRED - October 30th, 2025 [October 30th, 2025]
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- Donald Trump Orders Nuclear Weapons Testing: What To Know - Newsweek - October 30th, 2025 [October 30th, 2025]
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- Donald Trump's week in Asia: BBC correspondents on the wins and potential losses - BBC - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
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- When is Donald Trump going to Malaysia? President set to participate in ASEAN 2025. - USA Today - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
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- What Donald Trump gets right in the Middle East - The Economist - October 17th, 2025 [October 17th, 2025]
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