More Floods, Trump, Lupita Nyong’o: Your Thursday Evening Briefing

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/briefing/more-floods-trump-lupita-nyongo.html

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Good evening. Here’s the latest.

1. The record-breaking floods that have left Nebraska and other Midwestern states reeling may be just a preview.

From now until May, 25 states are at risk of serious flooding from heavy rains and melting snow, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Some 13 million people could be exposed to major flooding, and many, many more to moderate flooding. Above, a map of the affected regions.

Scientists have said that increasing rainfall is a predictable consequence of climate change.

We also found the man overseeing a network of Missouri River dams for the Army Corps of Engineers that has been overwhelmed since last week’s bomb cyclone. “It was not designed to handle this,” he said.

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2. News from Washington:

In an abrupt shift on a decades-long policy, President Trump said the U.S. should recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, pictured above, one of the world’s most disputed territories. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has long pressed for the move, thanked Mr. Trump on Twitter.

The president also signed an executive order directing federal agencies to link grants and other funds to how colleges and universities enforce free speech rights, a cause célèbre for conservatives who argue that their voices have been silenced.

And we learned that Mr. Trump is planning to invite Robert Kraft, the New England Patriots owner entangled in a prostitution sting, to his celebration of the team’s Super Bowl victory at the White House.

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3. The doomed Boeing jets in Ethiopia and Indonesia lacked safety features in their cockpits that could have warned them of sensor malfunctions.

One reason: Boeing charged extra for them.

Now, the company is making one such feature standard as part of a fix to get its 737 Max planes, one of which is pictured above, in the air again.

Separately, the families of the Indonesia crash victims told us Lion Air pressured them to sign away their rights to sue in order to receive government-mandated compensation.

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4. New Zealand’s gun control advocates and police groups praised the decision by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to ban military-style semiautomatic weapons, high-capacity magazines and certain parts that allow weapons to be modified.

The measure, aimed at the weaponry a gunman used to kill 50 people at two mosques, is expected to sail through Parliament. Above, a makeshift memorial for the victims in Christchurch.

Two people who shared the gunman’s live video of the killings have been charged, and many more could face charges under laws against disseminating or even possessing material depicting extreme violence and terrorism or inciting racial disharmony.

We also looked at the major differences between America’s and New Zealand’s National Rifle Associations.

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5. Don’t blame me, blame Parliament.

That, our London reporter writes, was Prime Minister Theresa May’s “astonishing” central message to Britain on Wednesday night.

“So far, Parliament has done everything possible to avoid making a choice,” she said of the very lawmakers whose votes she needs to pass her twice-rejected plan. Above, Mrs. May arriving in Brussels to meet with E.U. leaders today.

Mrs. May and E.U. negotiators haggled deep into the Brussels night over the conditions the bloc wants in exchange for an extension of the Brexit process past its current deadline of March 29.

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6. Cybermercenaries are bringing digital espionage services to the private market.

Small countries, corporations and even wealthy individuals can seize on sophisticated surveillance tools that were once the preserve of major powers like the U.S. and Russia. Some have targeted activists and journalists, according to a monthslong Times examination.

NSO, pictured above in Herzliya, Israel, and a competitor, the Emirati firm DarkMatter, exemplify the proliferation of privatized spying.

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7. A leader in Jewish philanthropy stands accused of a pattern of sexual harassment.

Six women who spoke to The Times and ProPublica, and another woman who filed a lawsuit, say that over decades, Michael Steinhardt, pictured above, requested sex and sexual favors and commented on their fertility and their bodies. Interviews with dozens of people depict a man whose behavior went largely unchecked because of his status and wealth.

Mr. Steinhardt, 78, a retired hedge fund founder and lifelong New Yorker who was a co-founder of Birthright Israel, said in a statement that provocative comments “were part of my schtick since before I had a penny to my name, and I unequivocally meant them in jest. I fully understand why they were inappropriate. I am sorry.”

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8. Sixteen games. It’s Day 1 of the N.C.A.A. men’s basketball tournament.

Gonzaga (the school Jimmy Kimmel has been teasing) is the only No. 1 seed scheduled to play tonight. Opening the night session in Salt Lake City, the Zags face Fairleigh Dickinson, which won a First Four game on Tuesday. The other three top seeds — Duke, Virginia and North Carolina — all play Friday.

We have scores and live analysis of who wins, who loses and who broke your bracket. Above, a New Mexico State Aggies player after his team lost to the Auburn Tigers.

Day 1 for the women’s tournament is Friday, and with four No. 1 seeds and three No. 2 seeds that are strong contenders, the tournament appears to be more open than in the past.

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9. Lupita Nyong’o’s first appearance in a feature film was in “12 Years a Slave” in 2013, which made her the seventh black woman and first black African to win an Oscar for acting.

Now, with her acclaimed role in Jordan Peele’s highly anticipated new horror movie, “Us,” she is rewriting a Hollywood playbook for stars at her level, our pop culture reporter writes. Above, Ms. Nyong’o posing for a portrait this month.

Our reviewer says that Ms. Nyong’o is “dazzling” in “Us” and that the film itself is “a daring fun-until-it’s-not shocker” that’s even more ambitious than “Get Out.”

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10. Finally, a cross-country train tour.

Ride along with our writer as she takes Amtrak from New York City to Los Angeles. Along the way she meets a prophet, encounters thousands of miles of panoramic splendor, and eats food “on a par with the fourth-best airplane meal you could ever imagine.”

Have an adventurous night.

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