by Sarah Willson
- Connecticut remains the only state in the country without a budget. The 110-day ongoing crisis could cause even more towns to freeze spending and propose tax increases. According to Governor Dannel Malloy, the new budget, which was proposed on Monday, includes an additional $150 million in cuts.
- A “huge truck bomb blast” killed hundreds of people in Mogadishu, Somalia over the weekend, in what is said to be the “single deadliest attack ever in the nation.”
- Officials say the “deadliest week of wildfires in California history” took place last week after nearly 6,000 buildings were destroyed and 36 people were killed, according to CNN. The fires continue to rage on through California’s wine country.
- The United Kingdom is on high alert as Category 3 Hurricane Ophelia barrels towards Northern Ireland. The Met Office has warned of “potential danger to life.”
- President Donald Trump has continued to hint that he will withdraw the United States from the Iran nuclear deal, a program created by President Barack Obama in 2015 with the goal to limit the country’s nuclear power. Despite this, Trump said he will prevent Iran from gaining “all paths to a nuclear weapon.”
- Trump continued to praise the United States’ efforts in aiding Puerto Rico after Category 4 Hurricane Marie directly hit the island back in September. Trump said he and his administration have done “a great job” in helping repair the island but also commented that federal aid can not be in Puerto Rico “forever.”
- The Trump administration announced last week that it will be ending cost-sharing substitutes, part of the Affordable Care Act, which help millions of low-income patients receive access to healthcare.
- Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Sunday that “diplomatic efforts [with North Korea] will continue until the first bomb drops,” and that Trump is “not seeking to go to war.”
- Former Presidential Candidate Hillary Clinton made a statement that aired in an interview on Sunday that warned the U.S. to “Keep an eye on [Vladimir Putin] because he’s not done.” This comes after the Central Intelligence Agency claimed that Putin hacked the 2016 U.S. presidential election late last year.
- On Saturday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences board voted to expel Harvey Weinstein’s membership from the group that presents Academy Awards. This comes after dozens of women claimed Weinstein sexually assaulted or raped them while working with him.
- On Sunday, U.S.-backed forces launched their “final assault” on Islamic State (ISIS) militants in Raqqa, Syria.
- Two ISIS leaders in Marawi, Philippines have been killed after a five-month siege.
- Austrian conservative People Party candidate, 31-year-old Sebastian Kurz, is on track to become Australia’s youngest national leader, according to BBC News.