| By Derek Caney
When President Donald Trump addresses Congress for the first time, he will face not only sanguinary Democrats but a fair number of skeptical Republicans. For example, Trump floated a 10 percent increase in the defense budget to $603 billion. Not enough, said John McCain, the Republican chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Obamacare, Islamic State and immigration are also expected to be on the agenda for tonight's speech.
Hundreds of African and Middle Eastern migrants are fleeing northward into Canada in fear of Trump's immigration crackdown. Many are arriving on foot in the dead of night across a lightly guarded border crossing in a small Manitoba town called Emerson. Quote of the day "I was going to leave them all outside. I figured to hell with (them) for coming over the border in winter." – Brad Renout, an Emerson, Manitoba, truck driver, who nonetheless decided to allow some of the refugees into his kitchen.
It's official. South Korean prosecutors plan to charge Samsung Group chief Jay Y. Lee with bribery and embezzlement as part of a corruption scandal that threatens the country's president, Park Geun-hye.
Around the world A 'strange and terrifying' battle 
An Iraqi Special Forces soldier moves through a hole as he searches for Islamic State fighters in Mosul, Iraq February 27, 2017 REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic - On the streets of Mosul, families cower in basements, huddling in the dark. Above ground, soldiers from Iraq's Rapid Response division move from house to house searching for foreign Islamic State militants fighting to the bitter end to defend their last remaining stronghold in the city's west.
- Chinese state media is calling for a boycott of Lotte Group after the conglomerate approved a land swap with the South Korean government that allows authorities to deploy a U.S. missile defense system. Lotte’s businesses are as far-ranging as candy, hotels, heavy chemicals, electronics and construction.
- Meanwhile, South Korea wants the United Nations to consider revoking North Korea's membership, saying the use of chemical weapons to assassinate the half-brother of North Korea's leader was a "wake-up call." Two women - an Indonesian and a Vietnamese – are expected to be charged tomorrow with murdering Kim Jong Nam in Malaysia by smearing VX nerve agent on his face.
Around the country - Three transgender high school students in suburban Pittsburgh can use bathrooms that match their gender identity as their federal case against their school district proceeds, a judge has ruled.
- So it turned out that one of the PricewaterhouseCoopers accountants responsible for tallying the Oscar votes botched the procedure for announcing the best picture award. Brian Cullinan, who media reports said had been tweeting backstage shortly before, gave presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway the wrong envelope. "Once the error occurred, protocols for correcting it were not followed through quickly enough by Mr. Cullinan or his partner," the accounting firm said.
- California lawmakers demanded detailed information from the Trump administration on immigration arrests and raids, amid growing concern that agents are targeting non-criminals for deportation. Citing reports that agents for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had gone to churches, schools and courthouses to find and arrest illegal immigrants, the legislature used the federal Freedom of Information Act to request all records of enforcement actions taken or planned since Republican Donald Trump was sworn in as president on Jan. 20.
Around Wall Street - The Republican 'border adjustment' tax proposal meant to reduce the trade deficit could become one of the most divisive issues in Congress. If the proposal fails, it could doom prospects for the tax revamp that Trump and Republicans have promised. And some of the nation's largest retailers are lining up against it, including Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Costco, Macy's and Target.
- A year ago, Peabody Energy Corp's chief executive was presiding over $2 billion of losses as the world's largest private-sector coal miner spiraled into bankruptcy. Now, CEO Glenn Kellow and other top executives stand to reap tens of millions of dollars in stock bonuses under Peabody's bankruptcy exit plan.
- The local chamber of commerce is usually a reliable ally in battles against regulation. But when it comes to smoking rules, many business groups are endorsing cigarette tax hikes and other measures, even in tobacco states like North Carolina, Kentucky and Missouri. The reason: Smoking drives up healthcare costs for employers.
Today's reason to live Old 97s – Good With God |
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