| By Derek Caney
House Republicans voted to end the independence of an ethics watchdog because they believe it had grown too intrusive. The Office of Congressional Ethics was created in 2008 following several corruption scandals. But some lawmakers have charged in recent years that it has been too quick to investigate complaints lodged by outside partisan groups. The body will now have to deliver its reports to the House Ethics Committee, rather than releasing them directly to the public. The measure was passed over the objections of House Speaker Paul Ryan and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. It was added to a broader rules package that is expected to pass when the House formally convenes today.
South Korea is interpreting the president-elect's tweet as confirmation that he will maintain a policy of sanctions against North Korea. Trump's tweet was a response to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's claim that his country was close to test launching an ICBM. If successful, parts of the United States would be within range of a nuclear attack from North Korea. Trump has not outlined a policy on North Korea but during the U.S. election campaign indicated he would be willing to talk its leader, Kim, given the opportunity. He followed the above tweet with a jab at China. 
Oil prices hit 18-month highs on the first trading day of 2017, buoyed by hopes that a deal between OPEC and non-OPEC members to cut production will drain a global supply glut. Crude oil rallied 2 percent this morning to $58 a barrel.
Skating away 
People skate on the frozen Doubs river at the Swiss-French border in Les Brenets, Switzerland, Jan. 2, 2017. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse
Around the world - Russia wants to hold maritime drills with the Philippines to help combat terrorism and piracy. Moscow is sending two warships to Manila for the first official navy-to-navy contact. Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has made overtures to both Russia and China, as the country's traditional ally, the United States, has criticized his "war on drugs." More than 6,000 accused drug dealers and users have been killed in the six months since Duterte took office.
Digits of the day: 56 Drug gangs sparked a prison riot in Brazil that killed 56 people. Decapitated bodies were heaved over prison walls, security officials said, in the bloodiest violence in Brazil's overcrowded penitentiary system since 1992. - The gunman who killed 39 people in an Istanbul nightclub on New Year's Day in an attack claimed by Islamic State appears to have been well versed in guerrilla warfare and may have trained in Syria.
Around the country - A new, Republican-controlled Congress convenes eager to repeal major portions of President Barack Obama's healthcare law and roll back environmental and financial industry regulations. They will also have to approve Trump's Cabinet choices, some of whom have drawn questions from both sides of the aisle.
- A judge ruled Dylann Roof was mentally fit to serve as his own lawyer in the penalty phase of his trial, when a jury will decide whether to sentence him to be executed for the 2015 massacre at a South Carolina church.
- A tornado left four people dead in southeast Alabama, as a heavy storm pounded the South with rain, hail and strong winds.
Around Wall Street - The head of Twitter's China operations, Kathy Chen, quit after only eight months on the job. It comes at a time when China is increasingly curtailing access to social media. Twitter has been blocked in China since 2009 but is still used through virtual private networks.
- Indonesia plans to drop some JPMorgan services after the bank recommended in November that investors cut their holdings within the country. JPMorgan downgraded its investment recommendation on Indonesia to "underweight" from "overweight", citing higher risk premiums for emerging markets after Trump won the U.S. presidential election.
- Bitcoin jumped above $1,000 for the first time in three years over the weekend, having outperformed all central-bank-issued currencies in 2016.
Today's reason to live Lucinda Williams – Whispering Pines |
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