| This Hungarian taps the potential of disabled people Posted: 16 Mar 2017 03:41 PM PDT ![This Hungarian taps the potential of disabled people]( "This Hungarian taps the potential of disabled people") Zoltán Kollár has a movement disorder that has made him unable to walk, talk, or eat unaided. He's used a lumbering electric wheelchair since childhood. But none of that has slowed him down.
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| Why Trump and Trudeau don't see eye-to-eye on NAFTA Posted: 16 Mar 2017 03:32 PM PDT ![Why Trump and Trudeau don't see eye-to-eye on NAFTA]( "Why Trump and Trudeau don't see eye-to-eye on NAFTA") President Trump has said NAFTA is "the worst trade deal ever approved" because it unfairly benefits Mexico. "We've got auto parts criss-crossing the border six times before they end up in a finished product," Justin Trudeau said in an interview that aired on NBC's "Today" show on Thursday, part of a campaign to hold Trump to his promise to merely "tweak" the terms of US-Canada trade under the North American Free Trade Agreement. Since his presidential campaign, Trump has vowed to tear up the agreement between the three nations, hurling most of his disapproval at Mexico.
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| Why a New Zealand river now has legal personhood Posted: 16 Mar 2017 03:03 PM PDT ![Why a New Zealand river now has legal personhood]( "Why a New Zealand river now has legal personhood") In the eyes of the law, the Whanganui river in New Zealand just underwent a significant transition on Wednesday: it became a person. The river, which is the third longest in the country, will have all the legal rights of personhood, thanks to a nearly 150-year effort by local Māori people, for whom the river is a significant part of their culture. The Māori have fought for formal legal recognition of their connection to the river, which they refer to as "Te Awa Tupua," since the 1870s, according to Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson.
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| Why Texas police are showing support for sanctuary cities Posted: 16 Mar 2017 02:49 PM PDT ![Why Texas police are showing support for sanctuary cities]( "Why Texas police are showing support for sanctuary cities") Opponents of a Texas bill that would strip funding from so-called sanctuary cities have gained support from an unlikely source: local sheriffs. Some 600 people, including law enforcement officials from around the state, signed up to testify before the Texas House Committee on State Affairs on Wednesday against a proposed law that would punish Texas communities that refuse to hold undocumented immigrants for federal agents.
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| Global economy finally hums but needs a purr of innovation Posted: 16 Mar 2017 01:51 PM PDT ![Global economy finally hums but needs a purr of innovation]( "Global economy finally hums but needs a purr of innovation") For the first time in seven years, most of the world's economies are humming the same tune – one of steady growth. There's just one sour note: The global growth rate, which is expected to be about 3.4 percent this year, is not yet back to pre-crisis levels. To listen to Janet Yellen, chairwoman of the US Federal Reserve, what is needed are fresh ideas and investments that can raise the level of output per worker.
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| Appealing to public, Philippine lawmaker files Duterte's first impeachment complaint Posted: 16 Mar 2017 12:53 PM PDT ![Appealing to public, Philippine lawmaker files Duterte's first impeachment complaint]( "Appealing to public, Philippine lawmaker files Duterte's first impeachment complaint") On Thursday, Gary Alejano, a member of the House of Representatives in the Philippines, filed an impeachment complaint against President Rodrigo Duterte, the first attempt at an impeachment made against the controversial leader. Duterte remains very popular in the Philippines, despite sharp criticism from the international community for his bloody war on drugs, which has killed more than 8,000 people in the country. "We are of the firm belief that President Duterte is unfit to hold the highest office of the land and that impeachment is the legal and constitutional remedy to this situation," said Alejano.
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| Is Canada in the midst of an influx of migration from Mexico? Posted: 16 Mar 2017 12:17 PM PDT ![Is Canada in the midst of an influx of migration from Mexico?]( "Is Canada in the midst of an influx of migration from Mexico?") After Canada relaxed travel restrictions in December, the number of visitors from Mexico has tripled. Some are asking whether that might have just as much to do with the United States as with Canada. Several Canadian immigration lawyers, consultants, and activists told Reuters in recent days that their offices have seen a surge of requests for advice from Mexicans hoping to obtain a work permit there.
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| Ms. Trump and Trudeau: Unlikely pair take in a show celebrating openness Posted: 16 Mar 2017 11:53 AM PDT ![Ms. Trump and Trudeau: Unlikely pair take in a show celebrating openness]( "Ms. Trump and Trudeau: Unlikely pair take in a show celebrating openness") On Wednesday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau went to a Broadway show and invited an unexpected guest to come along with him: first daughter Ivanka Trump. The musical, "Come From Away," is based on a true story of acceptance and generosity toward foreigners: Americans whose flights were redirected to the small town of Gander in Newfoundland, Canada, on Sept. 11, 2001. Ms. Trump is the daughter of, and a close adviser to, President Trump, who built his candidacy on the promise to build a wall on the Mexican border and who has issued two executive orders in an attempt to ban immigrants from several Muslim-majority countries – in many ways a contrast to Canada's policies toward refugees and immigrants.
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| Has Iran's success in Syria made it an arena for longer-term conflict? Posted: 16 Mar 2017 11:02 AM PDT ![Has Iran's success in Syria made it an arena for longer-term conflict?]( "Has Iran's success in Syria made it an arena for longer-term conflict?") Having successfully propped up the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against an array of armed rebel groups for more than six years, Iran appears to be preparing the ground for a long-term presence in the war-ravaged country, causing rising alarm in neighboring Israel, its bitter foe, and garnering the attention of Washington. Iran has spent hundreds of millions of dollars to buttress Syria's economy, oversees a multi-national Shiite militia force to bolster Mr. Assad's flagging army, and trains Syrian militia networks based on Iran's Basij paramilitary volunteer force.
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| Sochi redux? St. Petersburg stadium echoes battle between investment, corruption Posted: 16 Mar 2017 09:06 AM PDT ![Sochi redux? St. Petersburg stadium echoes battle between investment, corruption]( "Sochi redux? St. Petersburg stadium echoes battle between investment, corruption") Slated to host several high-profile, international soccer matches in this June's FIFA Confederations Cup and next year's World Cup in Russia, Krestovsky Stadium is one of Russia's longest-running construction projects. Vladimir Putin's government has used to drive basic infrastructure development while promoting Russia on the world stage.
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| European leaders breathe sigh of relief over Dutch election results Posted: 16 Mar 2017 08:35 AM PDT ![European leaders breathe sigh of relief over Dutch election results]( "European leaders breathe sigh of relief over Dutch election results") Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte won reelection by a wide margin on Wednesday, defeating anti-Islam and Euroskeptic candidate Geert Wilders in a vote that was seen across Europe as a crucial test of democratic liberalism. With turnout at 78 percent, the highest in a decade, Mr. Rutte's center-right VVD Party captured 33 of the 150 parliamentary seats – down from 41 in 2012 – while Mr. Wilders' Freedom Party (PVV) took 20 seats and centrist Christian Democrats and D66 parties won 19 each, giving shape to what will likely become the governing coalition. The results triggered an outpouring of relief and congratulations from European leaders, many of whom echoed Rutte's declaration of an "evening in which the Netherlands, after Brexit, after the American elections, said 'stop' to the wrong kind of populism." European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker called the outcome "an inspiration." German chancellor Angela Merkel said it was "a good day for democracy." And leaders from Sweden, Norway, Estonia, and Lithuania also offered congratulations.
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| Federal judges in Maryland, Hawaii put freeze on Trump’s revised travel ban Posted: 16 Mar 2017 07:48 AM PDT ![Federal judges in Maryland, Hawaii put freeze on Trump's revised travel ban]( "Federal judges in Maryland, Hawaii put freeze on Trump's revised travel ban") Two federal judges have struck blows against President Trump's travel ban against people from six Muslim-majority countries, just hours before the ban was scheduled to take effect. On Thursday morning, he was joined by fellow US District Judge Theodore Chuang of Maryland, who granted a preliminary injunction in a similar lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the National Immigration Law Center.
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| What Trump’s stark budget plan says about his priorities Posted: 16 Mar 2017 06:43 AM PDT ![What Trump's stark budget plan says about his priorities]( "What Trump's stark budget plan says about his priorities") In his debut budget blueprint, President Trump proposes a sharp increase in spending on defense, domestic security, veterans, and school choice, and deep cuts in many domestic programs and in foreign aid. Specifically, Mr. Trump would slash funding for environmental programs, the State Department, housing, agriculture, the arts, and programs for the poor, among others. One would pay for the other – $54 billion in cuts to nonmilitary spending to cover a $54 billion increase in defense spending.
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| Merkel to meet with Trump: It's not just business, it’s personal Posted: 16 Mar 2017 04:54 AM PDT ![Merkel to meet with Trump: It's not just business, it's personal]( "Merkel to meet with Trump: It's not just business, it's personal") What does President Trump really think about the US relationship with Europe? It's hard to say, given the president's all-over-the-map comments about the transatlantic partnership and the European Union – comments that have ranged from dismissal and doubts about their usefulness to rock-solid support. Recommended: How much do you know about Germany?
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| Rep. Steve King: what Republicans stand to lose by chastising him Posted: 15 Mar 2017 05:21 PM PDT ![Rep. Steve King: what Republicans stand to lose by chastising him]( "Rep. Steve King: what Republicans stand to lose by chastising him") A tweet from a Republican congressman that praised a nationalist, anti-Muslim politician from the Netherlands was quickly rejected by some within his own party including House Speaker Paul Ryan. The California congresswoman insisted on Tuesday that Mr. King be removed as chair of a House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice, a demand that Mr. Ryan's office shrugged off.
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