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NEWS BRIEFING
N. Korea issues direct criticism of China amid nuclear dispute
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Lawmakers approved the measure on a 419-1 vote as tensions continued to mount over North Korea’s advancing nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
The Senate must take up the measure next.
The bipartisan legislation is aimed at thwarting North Korea’s ambitions by cutting off access to the cash the regime needs to follow through with its plans.
The bill bars ships owned by North Korea or by countries that refuse to comply with U.N. resolutions against it from operating in American waters or docking at U.S. ports. Goods produced by North Korea’s forced labor would be prohibited from entering the United States, according to the legislation.
Royce said companies from Senegal to Qatar to Angola import North Korean workerswho send their salary back to Pyongyang, earning the regime billions of dollars in hard currency each year
Meanwhile, North Korea issued a rare direct criticism of China through a commentary through its state-run news agency saying Beijing’s “reckless remarks” on the North’s nuclear program are testing its patience and could trigger unspecified “grave” consequences.
China, North Korea’s largest trading partner and main benefactor, has recently been urging its traditional ally to stop nuclear and missile activities amid U.S. pressure.
Facebook, Twitter, Google sued over San Bernardino attack
The lawsuit filed Wednesday in federal court in Los Angeles alleges that the companies aided and abetted terrorism, provided material support to terrorist groups and are liable for the wrongful deaths of three of the 14 victims killed in the Dec. 2, 2015.
Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, who carried out the attack, were inspired by the Islamic State group, authorities said. There have been similar lawsuits targeting social media providers and some have been dismissed because federal law shields providers against content posted by users.
British man deported after prison in Trump attack case
Michael Steven Sandford, 21, was escorted by federal agents aboard a commercial flight Wednesday for his flight from Seattle to London, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman said.
Sandford was found to have overstayed a 90-day visa after entering the U.S. in June 2015.
A lawyer for Sandford’s family said he suffers seizures, obsession-compulsion, anxiety and autism spectrum disorders, and that a psychiatrist determined that he was delusional at the time of the attempted attack.
U.S. to seek social media details from certain visa applicants
The department, in a notice published Thursday in the Federal Register, said it was seeking public comment on the requirement. But it also said it is requesting a temporary go-ahead from the White House budget office so the plan can take effect for 180 days, beginning May 18, regardless of those comments.
The proposed requirements would apply to visa applicants identified for extra scrutiny. The State Department said it estimates that the rules would affect about 0.5 percent of U.S. visa applicants, or roughly 65,000 people.
Texas governor set to sign anti-sanctuary bill
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is poised to sign a sweeping bill that would outlaw sanctuary jurisdictions in the state and impose costly fines and even jail time on officials who refuse to cooperate with U.S. immigration agents.
It makes clear that local law enforcement officers may ask people they detain about their immigration status, a line of questioning that critics say should be reserved only for federal immigration agents.
Texas is home to the second-largest number of undocumented immigrants in the nation, some 1.6 million people.
The legislation would be the country’s most significant crackdown so far on sanctuary cities, which in general refuse to hold immigrants who have been arrested for local crimes past their release date so that ICE officers can take them into federal custody and try to deport them.
Chiefs of FBI, CIA testify at secret Russia probe hearing
The committee’s work had been stalled when the panel’s chairman, Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., recused himself from the probe. The committee is now sending invitations for future witnesses to testify and making requests for relevant documents.
The next steps of the investigation include interviewing witnesses and scheduling an open hearing with former CIA Director John Brennan, former National Intelligence Director James Clapper and former acting Attorney General Sally Yates.
Early voters can cast ballots Thursday and Friday at about 3,510 polling stations across the country before the election next Tuesday, the National Election Commission said in a statement.