|  | | | | | | | | | Politics | | Democratic Representative Adam Smith, the new chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, will hold a hearing with Pentagon officials he hopes will shed light on the costs, scope and goals of a deployment that critics have derided as a political stunt. U.S. officials told Reuters the border deployment, which has fluctuated in size over the past three months, could grow again by as many as 2,000 or more troops. | | | | | United States | | Two-thirds of the continental United States will be a frozen ice box, as the so-called polar vortex of frigid arctic air spins across the U.S. Midwest, clips the Great Lakes, the Ohio Valley and pushes on into New England. The sub-zero cold and bitter winds will stick around for a couple of days, possibly bringing dozens of record lows with a life-threatening freeze before dissipating by the weekend, the National Weather Service reported. | | | | | | | | “We are the First Nations’ people. We know how to survive,” said Ivan Looking Horse, a spiritual leader at the Cheyenne Sioux reservation in Eagle Butte, after President Trump announced an end to the 35-day partial government shutdown. The 35-day partial government shutdown affected 800,000 federal workers, but Native Americans were especially vulnerable because they rely mostly on federal contracts for services and jobs in the Bureau of Indian affairs for incomes. On their reservation in Eagle Butte, South Dakota, the Cheyenne used third-party funds and dipped into tribal funds to provide food assistance. | | | | | | | | “I’ve never tried escargot so this is probably the wildest thing I ever ate,” said Los Angeles Rams defensive end Ethan Westbrooks, adding that he would have tried the scorpion if there had been any hot sauce available. Once a journalists-only event, the Media Day has been transformed into Super Bowl Opening Night, a televised prime time question-and-answer free-for-all where very little is out of bounds - including it seems a plate of scorpions, dried cricket and worms. | | | | | | | | | | | | | World | | The Trump administration on Monday imposed sweeping sanctions on Venezuelan state-owned oil firm PDVSA, aimed at severely curbing the OPEC member’s crude exports to the United States and at pressuring socialist President Nicolas Maduro to step down. Russia, a close ally of Venezuela, denounced the move as illegal interference in Venezuela’s affairs and said the curbs meant Venezuela would probably have problems servicing its $3.15 billion sovereign debt to Moscow.
| | | | Pakistan’s Supreme Court upheld the acquittal of a Christian woman who spent years on death row after being convicted of blasphemy, dismissing a petition filed by Islamists who have called for her execution. | | | | Five arrested, including three employees of Brazilian miner Vale SA, state prosecutors said, deepening a crisis for the company after another deadly disaster at one of its mines. In a statement on Twitter, Vale said it was cooperating with investigators, who are probing a mining catastrophe that is likely to leave a death toll of more than 300 people. | | | | | | Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, two @Reuters journalists, have been imprisoned in Myanmar since Dec. 12, 2017. Follow the case: reut.rs/2Gc4FMd 7:48 AM - 29 Jan 2019 | | | | | | | | | | | Business | | Huawei’s CFO “should not be a hostage” in Sino-U.S. relations, her lawyer said, after the United States announced criminal charges against herself and the Chinese firm just days before crunch trade talks with Beijing. 6 Min Read | | | | Power provider PG&E filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, succumbing to liabilities stemming from wildfires in Northern California in 2017 and 2018. The owner of the biggest U.S. power utility has filed a motion seeking court approval for a $5.5 billion debtor-in-possession financing, it said in a statement. 3 min read | | | | Venture capital-backed financial technology companies raised a record $39.57 billion from investors globally in 2018, up 120 percent from the previous year, according to research by data provider CB Insights published.
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