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| Geert Wilders, Donald Trump, Scotland: Your Wednesday Briefing | Geert Wilders, Donald Trump, Scotland: Your Wednesday Briefing |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Good morning. | Good morning. |
| Here’s what you need to know to start your day in Europe: | |
| • Polls are open in the Netherlands, in the first test for the European far right this year. Stay tuned for live coverage of the elections, starting at 4 p.m. GMT. | • Polls are open in the Netherlands, in the first test for the European far right this year. Stay tuned for live coverage of the elections, starting at 4 p.m. GMT. |
| Prime Minister Mark Rutte has called it “the quarterfinals in trying to prevent the wrong sort of populism from winning.” Even if populists like Geert Wilders, an anti-immigrant politician, do not prevail, their presence has pushed the agenda of the far right into the spotlight, analysts said. | Prime Minister Mark Rutte has called it “the quarterfinals in trying to prevent the wrong sort of populism from winning.” Even if populists like Geert Wilders, an anti-immigrant politician, do not prevail, their presence has pushed the agenda of the far right into the spotlight, analysts said. |
| Ahead of next month’s French election, François Fillon, the conservative candidate for president, was charged with embezzlement. | Ahead of next month’s French election, François Fillon, the conservative candidate for president, was charged with embezzlement. |
| _____ | _____ |
| • President Trump wrote off $100 million in business losses to reduce his federal taxes in 2005. He paid $38 million in federal income taxes on reported income of $150 million, an effective tax rate of 25 percent, according to the White House. | • President Trump wrote off $100 million in business losses to reduce his federal taxes in 2005. He paid $38 million in federal income taxes on reported income of $150 million, an effective tax rate of 25 percent, according to the White House. |
| The rare disclosure of his finances pre-empted a highly anticipated reveal of his tax forms from that year on a television program on Tuesday night. | The rare disclosure of his finances pre-empted a highly anticipated reveal of his tax forms from that year on a television program on Tuesday night. |
| _____ | _____ |
| • The family of Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is in talks to sell a $400 million stake in a Fifth Avenue skyscraper to a Chinese company that has ties to leading families of the Communist Party. | • The family of Mr. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is in talks to sell a $400 million stake in a Fifth Avenue skyscraper to a Chinese company that has ties to leading families of the Communist Party. |
| The deal would signal the financial marriage of two politically influential families but also presents the possibility of glaring conflicts of interest. Mr. Kushner is the architect of the first meeting between Mr. Trump and President Xi Jinping of China next month. | The deal would signal the financial marriage of two politically influential families but also presents the possibility of glaring conflicts of interest. Mr. Kushner is the architect of the first meeting between Mr. Trump and President Xi Jinping of China next month. |
| Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson will arrive in Japan today. He will travel to South Korea and China this week, where he plans to set the priorities for Mr. Xi’s visit — the most important yet of Mr. Trump’s presidency. | Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson will arrive in Japan today. He will travel to South Korea and China this week, where he plans to set the priorities for Mr. Xi’s visit — the most important yet of Mr. Trump’s presidency. |
| _____ | _____ |
| • The European Union’s top court ruled that employers were allowed to ban head scarves and other religious clothing, in a decision that could shape the place of Islam on the Continent. | • The European Union’s top court ruled that employers were allowed to ban head scarves and other religious clothing, in a decision that could shape the place of Islam on the Continent. |
| Anti-Islam populism has been on the rise, especially since countries of the bloc admitted over a million migrants and refugees in 2015. Now Turkey, in already tense relations with several European capitals, is hinting at upending a deal that has helped stem the flow of migrants, in what observers see as an empty threat. | Anti-Islam populism has been on the rise, especially since countries of the bloc admitted over a million migrants and refugees in 2015. Now Turkey, in already tense relations with several European capitals, is hinting at upending a deal that has helped stem the flow of migrants, in what observers see as an empty threat. |
| _____ | _____ |
| • Scotland and now Northern Ireland are showing an appetite for independence. Nationalists in both countries have called for referendums just as the British prime minister is preparing to begin talks to exit the European Union. | • Scotland and now Northern Ireland are showing an appetite for independence. Nationalists in both countries have called for referendums just as the British prime minister is preparing to begin talks to exit the European Union. |
| In Scotland, campaigners are wasting no time. Pro-independence banners have gone up, and donations have started coming in, although the timing of the vote is still uncertain. | In Scotland, campaigners are wasting no time. Pro-independence banners have gone up, and donations have started coming in, although the timing of the vote is still uncertain. |
| _____ | _____ |
| • Germany has warned Facebook and Twitter that they could face heavy fines if they don’t step up the fight against hate speech. | • Germany has warned Facebook and Twitter that they could face heavy fines if they don’t step up the fight against hate speech. |
| • The so-called March Madness storm in the northeastern U.S. did not quite live up to its name. But airlines took to widespread flight cancellations, pre-emptively. | • The so-called March Madness storm in the northeastern U.S. did not quite live up to its name. But airlines took to widespread flight cancellations, pre-emptively. |
| • Phones, fitness monitors and even cars can be hacked with sound waves, a team of researchers found. “You can think of it as a musical virus,” one said. | • Phones, fitness monitors and even cars can be hacked with sound waves, a team of researchers found. “You can think of it as a musical virus,” one said. |
| • The Federal Reserve is expected to raise its benchmark interest rate, to ward off inflation — a course that is in clear tension with Mr. Trump’s stated goal of stoking growth. | • The Federal Reserve is expected to raise its benchmark interest rate, to ward off inflation — a course that is in clear tension with Mr. Trump’s stated goal of stoking growth. |
| • Asian markets were down ahead of the decision by the Fed. Here’s a snapshot of global markets. | • Asian markets were down ahead of the decision by the Fed. Here’s a snapshot of global markets. |
| • An oil tanker was hijacked off the Somali coast, in what may be the first major pirate attack in more than five years. [The New York Times] | • An oil tanker was hijacked off the Somali coast, in what may be the first major pirate attack in more than five years. [The New York Times] |
| • Poland will seek the extradition of a 98-year-old Ukrainian-American who prosecutors say carried out Nazi-led atrocities in 1944. [The New York Times] | • Poland will seek the extradition of a 98-year-old Ukrainian-American who prosecutors say carried out Nazi-led atrocities in 1944. [The New York Times] |
| • Russia is recruiting cosmonauts for a planned moon landing by 2031. Women are welcome to apply. [Agence France-Presse] | • Russia is recruiting cosmonauts for a planned moon landing by 2031. Women are welcome to apply. [Agence France-Presse] |
| • Mr. Trump’s envoy to the Middle East met with Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority. [The New York Times] | • Mr. Trump’s envoy to the Middle East met with Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority. [The New York Times] |
| • More than 250 human skulls were discovered in a mass grave in Mexico, most likely belonging to victims of criminal drug cartels. [The New York Times] | • More than 250 human skulls were discovered in a mass grave in Mexico, most likely belonging to victims of criminal drug cartels. [The New York Times] |
| • In Hungary, a group of detained asylum seekers went on a hunger strike, demanding to be released, after the country approved harsher rules on refugees this month. [Associated Press] | • In Hungary, a group of detained asylum seekers went on a hunger strike, demanding to be released, after the country approved harsher rules on refugees this month. [Associated Press] |
| • If you work at a desk, remember to get up often. The benefits are immense. | • If you work at a desk, remember to get up often. The benefits are immense. |
| • Recipe of the day: Roasting vegetables is a great way to take advantage of leftover produce. | • Recipe of the day: Roasting vegetables is a great way to take advantage of leftover produce. |
| • Africa’s national parks seemed like the perfect place to use drones to fight poachers. But deploying them has not been as easy as conservationists had hoped. | • Africa’s national parks seemed like the perfect place to use drones to fight poachers. But deploying them has not been as easy as conservationists had hoped. |
| • In memoriam: Ed Whitlock, an English marathon runner, among the world’s oldest, died at 86. Amy Krouse Rosenthal, the author whose bittersweet ode to her husband recently appeared in The New York Times, has died. She was 51. | • In memoriam: Ed Whitlock, an English marathon runner, among the world’s oldest, died at 86. Amy Krouse Rosenthal, the author whose bittersweet ode to her husband recently appeared in The New York Times, has died. She was 51. |
| • And the world’s oldest golf club in Scotland finally admits women, despite concern from members that they will not be able to continue playing the speedy type of golf that they usually do. | • And the world’s oldest golf club in Scotland finally admits women, despite concern from members that they will not be able to continue playing the speedy type of golf that they usually do. |
| Today is a national holiday in Hungary, which honors a 19th-century revolution. | Today is a national holiday in Hungary, which honors a 19th-century revolution. |
| Tied to the celebration is a poem Hungarian schoolchildren learn by heart. | Tied to the celebration is a poem Hungarian schoolchildren learn by heart. |
| Janos Arany’s “A Walesi Bardok” or “The Bards of Wales” was born of the uprisings that swept across Europe in 1848, known as the Springtime of the Peoples. Mr. Arany joined the fight for independence against the Austrian Empire. | Janos Arany’s “A Walesi Bardok” or “The Bards of Wales” was born of the uprisings that swept across Europe in 1848, known as the Springtime of the Peoples. Mr. Arany joined the fight for independence against the Austrian Empire. |
| The poem, written in 1857, tells the story of bards slaughtered in the 13th century, after the invasion of Wales by King Edward I of England. | The poem, written in 1857, tells the story of bards slaughtered in the 13th century, after the invasion of Wales by King Edward I of England. |
| One verse reads: “In martyrship, with song on lip / Five hundred Welsh bards died / Not one was mov’d to say he lov’d / The tyrant in his pride.” | One verse reads: “In martyrship, with song on lip / Five hundred Welsh bards died / Not one was mov’d to say he lov’d / The tyrant in his pride.” |
| The rebellious Welsh performers inspired Hungarians, who equated the tyrant king with Franz Joseph, the Austrian emperor. Decades later, the assassination of the heir apparent, Franz Ferdinand, set off World War I and the empire’s demise. | The rebellious Welsh performers inspired Hungarians, who equated the tyrant king with Franz Joseph, the Austrian emperor. Decades later, the assassination of the heir apparent, Franz Ferdinand, set off World War I and the empire’s demise. |
| This month, Hungary celebrated the 200th anniversary of Arany’s birth. Wales, too, has taken a liking to his poem. | This month, Hungary celebrated the 200th anniversary of Arany’s birth. Wales, too, has taken a liking to his poem. |
| As one mayor there put it, “In these days of the ‘Brexit’ situation, it’s good to keep furnishing good relations with our neighbors in Europe.” | As one mayor there put it, “In these days of the ‘Brexit’ situation, it’s good to keep furnishing good relations with our neighbors in Europe.” |
| _____ | _____ |
| Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings and updated online. | Your Morning Briefing is published weekday mornings and updated online. |
| Read the latest edition of the U.S. briefing here and the latest for Asia and Australia here. | |
| What would you like to see here? Contact us at europebriefing@nytimes.com. | What would you like to see here? Contact us at europebriefing@nytimes.com. |