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| Jeff Sessions, China, North Korea: Your Weekend Briefing | Jeff Sessions, China, North Korea: Your Weekend Briefing |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| Here are the week’s top stories, and a look ahead. | Here are the week’s top stories, and a look ahead. |
| 1. We often open with American politics, but this week, let’s look east. | 1. We often open with American politics, but this week, let’s look east. |
| As Barack Obama was leaving the presidency, he warned his successor, Donald Trump, that North Korea would likely be his most urgent problem. Now, a Times investigation has found that a secret, three-year Pentagon cyberwar is not effectively countering the North’s sophisticated nuclear and missile programs. Above, the leader, Kim Jong-un, after a missile test. | As Barack Obama was leaving the presidency, he warned his successor, Donald Trump, that North Korea would likely be his most urgent problem. Now, a Times investigation has found that a secret, three-year Pentagon cyberwar is not effectively countering the North’s sophisticated nuclear and missile programs. Above, the leader, Kim Jong-un, after a missile test. |
| And North Korea’s regional neighbors have been grappling with the likelihood that Pyongyang engineered the high-profile assassination of the half brother of Mr. Kim at an airport in Malaysia. | And North Korea’s regional neighbors have been grappling with the likelihood that Pyongyang engineered the high-profile assassination of the half brother of Mr. Kim at an airport in Malaysia. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 2. Back to U.S. politics. President Trump accused former President Barack Obama of tapping his phones at Trump Tower the month before the election, a claim that the F.B.I. director, James Comey, urged the Justice Department to publicly reject. | |
| The list of encounters between Russian officials and the Trump campaign keeps growing, preventing Mr. Trump from gaining traction after a bumpy first month. | The list of encounters between Russian officials and the Trump campaign keeps growing, preventing Mr. Trump from gaining traction after a bumpy first month. |
| Attorney General Jeff Sessions, above, recused himself from any criminal investigation related to Russian meddling in the presidential election, and plans to amend his confirmation-hearing testimony, in which he denied having contact with Russian officials. Here’s our timeline of those contacts, and who could step in to lead further inquiries. | Attorney General Jeff Sessions, above, recused himself from any criminal investigation related to Russian meddling in the presidential election, and plans to amend his confirmation-hearing testimony, in which he denied having contact with Russian officials. Here’s our timeline of those contacts, and who could step in to lead further inquiries. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 3. House Democrats — and at least one Republican senator — have been trying to find a copy of the bill to replace the Affordable Care Act, which the Republicans have kept from circulating. But they have been describing the health care law in lively and figurative language. | 3. House Democrats — and at least one Republican senator — have been trying to find a copy of the bill to replace the Affordable Care Act, which the Republicans have kept from circulating. But they have been describing the health care law in lively and figurative language. |
| In other health news, the World Health Organization warned that a dozen antibiotic-resistant “superbugs” pose an enormous threat. And U.S. scientists reported a sharp, unexplained rise in colorectal cancers in adults as young as their 20s and 30s. | In other health news, the World Health Organization warned that a dozen antibiotic-resistant “superbugs” pose an enormous threat. And U.S. scientists reported a sharp, unexplained rise in colorectal cancers in adults as young as their 20s and 30s. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 4. China’s national legislature convened today for an annual session with a fascinating subtext: Will the nearly 3,000 lawmakers bend an age ceiling to allow one of President Xi Jinping’s allies to remain in power? If so, he’ll have a precedent to extend his own tenure. | 4. China’s national legislature convened today for an annual session with a fascinating subtext: Will the nearly 3,000 lawmakers bend an age ceiling to allow one of President Xi Jinping’s allies to remain in power? If so, he’ll have a precedent to extend his own tenure. |
| A couple of other interesting notes: The combined fortune of the wealthiest members of Parliament and its advisory body has risen to about $500 billion. | A couple of other interesting notes: The combined fortune of the wealthiest members of Parliament and its advisory body has risen to about $500 billion. |
| And while Mr. Xi emphasizes China’s cultural legacy, the country’s cloned landmarks now include a version of London’s Tower Bridge, 10 White Houses, four Arcs de Triomphe, a couple of Great Sphinxes and at least one Eiffel Tower. | And while Mr. Xi emphasizes China’s cultural legacy, the country’s cloned landmarks now include a version of London’s Tower Bridge, 10 White Houses, four Arcs de Triomphe, a couple of Great Sphinxes and at least one Eiffel Tower. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 5. The latest round of Syrian peace talks ended with some progress toward a political solution to a war about to enter its seventh year. And Russian-backed Syrian troops recaptured the historic city of Palmyra from Islamic State militants for the second time. | 5. The latest round of Syrian peace talks ended with some progress toward a political solution to a war about to enter its seventh year. And Russian-backed Syrian troops recaptured the historic city of Palmyra from Islamic State militants for the second time. |
| The U.S. is ramping up airstrikes against Al Qaeda forces in Yemen. A Special Operations raid there in January killed a number of civilians, including children, as well as a member of the Navy’s SEAL Team 6, Chief Petty Officer William Ryan Owens. | The U.S. is ramping up airstrikes against Al Qaeda forces in Yemen. A Special Operations raid there in January killed a number of civilians, including children, as well as a member of the Navy’s SEAL Team 6, Chief Petty Officer William Ryan Owens. |
| Mr. Trump made his widow a focal point for praise during his speech to Congress last week, a stark contrast to the insults he lobbed last year at the Pakistani-American parents of Capt. Humayun Khan, a Muslim soldier killed in Iraq and buried in Arlington National Cemetery. | |
| _____ | _____ |
| 6. Mr. Trump’s advisers are deeply divided over his plans to undo some of Mr. Obama’s climate change achievements. | 6. Mr. Trump’s advisers are deeply divided over his plans to undo some of Mr. Obama’s climate change achievements. |
| Insiders say that his chief strategist, Stephen Bannon, wants to withdraw the U.S. from the landmark Paris climate agreement but that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Ivanka Trump are pushing back. Still, Mr. Trump is expected this week to start unwinding some of Mr. Obama’s E.P.A. regulations on coal-fired power plants and auto emissions. | Insiders say that his chief strategist, Stephen Bannon, wants to withdraw the U.S. from the landmark Paris climate agreement but that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Ivanka Trump are pushing back. Still, Mr. Trump is expected this week to start unwinding some of Mr. Obama’s E.P.A. regulations on coal-fired power plants and auto emissions. |
| Warming weather has led to brutal heat waves in Australia; caused spring to arrive a month early for some Arctic plants; and could bring the cherry blossoms in Washington to bloom a full three weeks early. | Warming weather has led to brutal heat waves in Australia; caused spring to arrive a month early for some Arctic plants; and could bring the cherry blossoms in Washington to bloom a full three weeks early. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 7. On the economic front, all three major U.S. stock indexes rose for the week. | 7. On the economic front, all three major U.S. stock indexes rose for the week. |
| Janet Yellen, the Federal Reserve chairwoman, said the central bank would likely raise short-term interest rates this month. | Janet Yellen, the Federal Reserve chairwoman, said the central bank would likely raise short-term interest rates this month. |
| And Snapchat’s parent company, Snap Inc., had the biggest initial public offering since Alibaba’s in 2014. Its market cap of $28 billion might seem a bit high for a company that may never earn a profit. | And Snapchat’s parent company, Snap Inc., had the biggest initial public offering since Alibaba’s in 2014. Its market cap of $28 billion might seem a bit high for a company that may never earn a profit. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 8. More companies became enmeshed in accusations of sexual harassment. | 8. More companies became enmeshed in accusations of sexual harassment. |
| Documents from a class-action suit revealed that hundreds of women have described the corporate culture at Sterling Jewelers, the parent of Kay Jewelers and Jared the Galleria of Jewelry, as polluted by sexual aggression, gender discrimination and abuses of power. | Documents from a class-action suit revealed that hundreds of women have described the corporate culture at Sterling Jewelers, the parent of Kay Jewelers and Jared the Galleria of Jewelry, as polluted by sexual aggression, gender discrimination and abuses of power. |
| In the latest case to come out of a Silicon Valley culture that has long sidelined women, a newly hired Uber executive, Amit Singhal, left after it emerged that he had failed to disclose accusations of sexual harassment against him at Google. | In the latest case to come out of a Silicon Valley culture that has long sidelined women, a newly hired Uber executive, Amit Singhal, left after it emerged that he had failed to disclose accusations of sexual harassment against him at Google. |
| Separately, Uber tried to get beyond a video of the chief executive fighting with one of the company’s drivers — only to face new scrutiny over its use of a secret tool, called Greyball, to circumvent monitors. | Separately, Uber tried to get beyond a video of the chief executive fighting with one of the company’s drivers — only to face new scrutiny over its use of a secret tool, called Greyball, to circumvent monitors. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 9. Federal authorities identified a suspect in at least eight of the scores of recent threats against Jewish institutions. | 9. Federal authorities identified a suspect in at least eight of the scores of recent threats against Jewish institutions. |
| Juan Thompson, 31, a former journalist from St. Louis who had been fired by The Intercept for making up sources and quotes, was arrested and charged. The authorities said he issued some of the threats in the name of a former girlfriend he wanted to vilify. | Juan Thompson, 31, a former journalist from St. Louis who had been fired by The Intercept for making up sources and quotes, was arrested and charged. The authorities said he issued some of the threats in the name of a former girlfriend he wanted to vilify. |
| This Week in Hate is tracking the wave of hate crimes and harassment around the country since Mr. Trump’s election. | This Week in Hate is tracking the wave of hate crimes and harassment around the country since Mr. Trump’s election. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 10. There’s an opening for one of the most powerful positions in the art world. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is without a director and chief executive after the resignation of Thomas P. Campbell, who presided over a soaring deficit despite record crowds. | 10. There’s an opening for one of the most powerful positions in the art world. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is without a director and chief executive after the resignation of Thomas P. Campbell, who presided over a soaring deficit despite record crowds. |
| Our chief art critic has some ideas on how to fix the Met. | Our chief art critic has some ideas on how to fix the Met. |
| The international art market appears to be strengthening just as high-end auctions of contemporary art take place in London this week. | The international art market appears to be strengthening just as high-end auctions of contemporary art take place in London this week. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 11. In sports, expansion teams in Atlanta and Minneapolis joined Major League Soccer, as the league kicked off its 22nd season on Friday night with 22 teams. While the M.L.S. plays in the U.S., the teams have been adopting more European-style names. | 11. In sports, expansion teams in Atlanta and Minneapolis joined Major League Soccer, as the league kicked off its 22nd season on Friday night with 22 teams. While the M.L.S. plays in the U.S., the teams have been adopting more European-style names. |
| And the fourth World Baseball Classic begins on Monday in Seoul, South Korea. | And the fourth World Baseball Classic begins on Monday in Seoul, South Korea. |
| _____ | _____ |
| 12. And finally, some inspiration to start your week: An immigrant dishwasher in Denmark was promoted to part owner of a restaurant that is considered one of the world’s best. | 12. And finally, some inspiration to start your week: An immigrant dishwasher in Denmark was promoted to part owner of a restaurant that is considered one of the world’s best. |
| A mechanic in Wisconsin lent his truck to a stranded traveler who otherwise would have missed a relative’s funeral 75 miles away, and a woman who doesn’t have long to live expressed her profound love for the man she will leave behind in the form of a dating profile for him. | A mechanic in Wisconsin lent his truck to a stranded traveler who otherwise would have missed a relative’s funeral 75 miles away, and a woman who doesn’t have long to live expressed her profound love for the man she will leave behind in the form of a dating profile for him. |
| Have a great week. | Have a great week. |
| Photographs may appear out of order for some readers. Viewing this version of the briefing should help. | Photographs may appear out of order for some readers. Viewing this version of the briefing should help. |
| Your Weekend Briefing is published Sundays at 6 a.m. Eastern. | Your Weekend Briefing is published Sundays at 6 a.m. Eastern. |
| And don’t miss Your Morning Briefing, weekdays at 6 a.m. Eastern, and Your Evening Briefing, weeknights at 6 p.m. Eastern. | And don’t miss Your Morning Briefing, weekdays at 6 a.m. Eastern, and Your Evening Briefing, weeknights at 6 p.m. Eastern. |
| Want to look back? Here’s Friday’s Evening Briefing. | Want to look back? Here’s Friday’s Evening Briefing. |
| What did you like? What do you want to see here? Let us know at briefing@nytimes.com. | What did you like? What do you want to see here? Let us know at briefing@nytimes.com. |