Newsletter: Today: Russia, Are You Listening?
The White House has some strong words for Russia in the aftermath of the Syrian chemical attack. I’m Davan Maharaj, editor-in-chief of the Los Angeles Times. Here are some story lines I don’t want you to miss today.
TOP STORIES
Russia, Are You Listening?
As President Trump turned up his rhetoric against North Korea on Twitter, officials in his administration were exchanging harsh words with Russia over last week’s poison gas attack in Syria. The White House released a report that said the Kremlin’s explanation of the assault was false and provided cover for its ally, Syrian President Bashar Assad, but the U.S. stopped short of saying Russia knew in advance. Vladimir Putin called the American missile strike on a Syrian airbase a “provocation.” All this, while Secretary of State Rex Tillerson set foot in Moscow.
Sessions Heralds a Crackdown on the Border in ‘the Trump Era’
In the U.S. Senate, Jeff Sessions was among the loudest voices opposing illegal immigration. As attorney general, he is looking to put words into action. “For those that continue to seek improper and illegal entry into this country, be forewarned: This is a new era. This is the Trump era,” Sessions said after directing federal prosecutors in the states bordering Mexico to crack down harder on migrants who repeatedly enter the country illegally. And if they have relatives living in the U.S. legally? That won’t afford any protection, he said.
He Said That? Sean Spicer, Hitler and ‘Holocaust Centers’
“You had someone as despicable as Hitler who didn’t even sink to using chemical weapons,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said during a news conference on the first day of Passover. Then, he tried to clarify his remarks but only made it worse by saying Hitler “was not using gas on his own people the same way,” and by using the term “Holocaust centers.” By day’s end Spicer was apologizing on CNN, as some called for his ouster.
More Politics
-- ICE is suspending the recently adopted practice of reporting cities that don’t cooperate with federal detention efforts after the first few reports were plagued by errors.
-- California lawmakers and the state’s chief elections officer are trying to move up the state’s 2020 primary by three months.
A City Grieves While Trying to Stay ‘SB Strong’
“It feels like we go from one tragedy to another,” said Lili Flores, who works not far from where the 2015 San Bernardino terror attack took place. This week, she waited anxiously before finding out her son was safe after an elementary school shooting that killed a teacher and an 8-year-old and left a 9-year-old wounded. Flores and others are once again dealing with heartbreak in a city where the slogan “SB Strong” was adopted just a little over a year ago.
Buckle Up, It’s Going to Be a Bumpy Flight
“Sorry” always seems to be the hardest word, but United’s top executive finally apologized for the incident in which police dragged a passenger off a plane that had been overbooked. That, and the promise of a review of the company’s policies, came after the outrage had spread to China, where netizens grew upset upon hearing that the forcibly removed doctor had complained he was targeted because he’s Chinese. Meanwhile, another story emerged of a passenger being bumped from his United seat the week before: “They said they’d put me in cuffs if they had to,” he told columnist David Lazarus.
California Goes From Drought to Deluge. But Wait, There’s More!
Now that Gov. Jerry Brown has finally declared the California drought over, everything’s back to normal, except for all those bugs flying around, right? Wrong. Experts and water officials say the state’s wild swing from extreme drought to what could be the wettest season on record in the northern Sierra is part of a pattern that has become more intense. If it holds up, that could have big implications for how to deal with droughts and floods in the future.
CALIFORNIA
-- What happened along the border in San Diego? Dueling lawsuits between a Border Patrol agent and a former Navy SEAL tell different stories.
-- Search-and-rescue teams believe they have found the body of a 78-year-old hiker from Culver City on the rocky terrain of Mt. Baldy, a peak he had climbed more than 700 times.
-- Shoulda, coulda, woulda: State lawmakers have put a lot of energy into getting new stadiums built since 2009, without much success.
-- The inventor of the Cronut is opening his first full-service restaurant. It’ll be at the Grove in L.A.
HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS
-- The late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s brash spirit and irascible charm will be in the spotlight when Pasadena Playhouse opens its production of “The Originalist.”
-- Times theater critic Charles McNulty says Hillary Clinton’s next big stage should be at the Tony Awards.
-- Marvel has fired Indonesian artist Ardian Syaf after a controversy over politically charged hidden messages in the comic “X-Men Gold.”
-- “Grand Designs,” one of the most popular home design shows in the U.K., has come to Netflix.
-- Can’t get tickets to “Hamilton” in L.A.? There’s always “Spamilton.”
CLASSIC HOLLYWOOD
Ann Miller danced her way to stardom in films for MGM in the late 1940s and early ’50s, using a talent that traced back to when her mother enrolled her in tap-dancing school at age 5 to strengthen her legs after a case of rickets. Though there was much confusion about her true age, Miller was born on this date in 1923. She died on Jan. 22, 2004.
NATION-WORLD
-- In a phone call Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged Trump to avoid military confrontation with North Korea and expressed a willingness to coordinate with the U.S.
-- As Trump threatens to renege on the Paris climate accord, will India keep its promises to cut emissions?
-- Three explosions went off near the team bus of Borussia Dortmund, one of Germany’s top soccer clubs, slightly injuring a player.
-- France’s presidential election campaign has begun, two weeks before a first round that sees voters faced with an unprecedented choice of 11 candidates.
-- An economic crunch could spell trouble for Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani.
-- For men between the ages of 55 and 69, getting screened for prostate cancer is a mixed bag of possible down-the-road benefits and just-as-possible immediate harms.
BUSINESS
-- Those Energy Star labels are seen as a cheap way to improve energy efficiency. So why does Trump want to kill them?
-- “I really did it for my daughters”: L.A. radio host Wendy Walsh on why she spoke up about her claim against Bill O’Reilly.
SPORTS
-- On Saturday, the 70th anniversary of the day Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier, the Dodgers will dedicate a statue of him at Dodger Stadium.
-- Many, including columnist Bill Plaschke, questioned Metta World Peace’s arrival with the Lakers in 2009, but he’ll leave the team as an unquestioned champ.
OPINION
-- “Holocaust centers” and criminal “filth”: Why Trump officials can’t stop offending everyone.
-- If you’re shocked by the San Bernardino shooting, you haven’t been paying attention.
WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING
-- The Washington Post reports that officials say the FBI obtained a secret court order last summer to monitor Trump advisor Carter Page’s communications, part of an investigation into possible links between Russia and the campaign.
-- Mitt Romney’s “binders full of women” exist, and here’s what is inside. (Boston Globe)
-- The Assad family in Syria has now vexed nine U.S. presidents. (The New Yorker)
ONLY IN L.A.
Werner Herzog is one of the great directors associated with the New German Cinema, but for nearly two decades he’s been living — and driving — in Los Angeles. There was the time he rescued Joaquin Phoenix after the actor flipped his car in Laurel Canyon. More recently, he spotted a deer on Sunset Boulevard. Watch this video and you’ll not only get Herzog’s advice on the 405, but also his reflections on (surprise!) filmmaking.
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