NEW YORK (Reuters) - A bear market in the so-called FAANG stocks - Wall Street’s most popular trade going into the year - is pushing fund managers into searching for the next big growth companies that can lead the overall market higher. Shares of Facebook Inc (FB.O), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Apple Inc (AAPL.O), Netflix Inc (NFLX.O), and Google-parent Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) reached record highs in July. Since then, problems ranging from Facebook’s data privacy scandals to Apple’s declining iPhone sales to Netflix’s rising cash burn rate have cratered the stocks, helping push the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index to the edge of a bear market. The Nasdaq lost another 1.7 percent in midday trading Friday. With shares of the FAANGs down by an average of 25.6 percent since the start of the quarter, fund managers and analysts are starting to reconsider their approach to growth, treating the FAANG stocks less like a single bloc and more on their individual merits. “This was a year when at the start of it you had to own the FAANG names and at the end of it you don’t want to own any of them,” said Kevin Landis, portfolio manager at the Firsthand Technology Opportunities fund. Landis, who has been trimming his position in Apple yet still holds Amazon.com and Alphabet among his 10 largest positions, said that the FAANG group is breaking down as the companies mature and their growth plateaus. As a result, he is trimming his position in Netflix and instead adding to his position in streaming television company Roku Inc (ROKU.O), which has a market value of approximately $3.3 billion, compared with Netflix’s market value of $116.3 billion. “It’s hard to see Netflix growing here by an order of magnitude, but it’s easy to see Roku growing by an order of magnitude as the cord-cutting trend picks up steam,” he said. FILE PHOTO: A trader works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, New York, U.S., December 4, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo/File PhotoThere are still things to like about each FAANG stock, of course. Netflix surprised analysts with its subscriber growth in its most recent quarter, for instance, while Facebook is continuing to grow quickly overseas and Amazon’s profitability came in higher than Wall Street had predicted. Yet each company is also facing hurdles that belie the notion that they will continue to dominate the stock market. Netflix, for instance, is trying to weather a faster cash burn rate as the cost of content increases, while revenue growth for Google’s search and YouTube advertising is slowing amid stronger competition from Amazon. Facebook is facing higher costs and greater regulatory scrutiny, while Apple grapples with a slower-growing market for smart phones and Amazon is weighed down by higher spending costs. It’s been a “slow motion train wreck,” said Michael Pachter, an analyst at Wedbush Securities. The steep slide in the stock market will likely break apart the popularity of investing in the stocks as a single trade, he said. “Facebook has almost daily scandals and Netflix has the impending loss of Disney/Fox content, but the others have really done nothing wrong at all,” he said. Tom Plumb, portfolio manager of the Plumb Equity fund, said that he has largely stayed away from the crowded FAANG stock trade because of their high valuations. Yet of the group, he expects that Facebook is the least likely to rebound quickly, cracking the group further. “Companies that have depended on the social media advertising are going to see some incredible regulatory scrutiny and I’d like to see a couple more quarters at least to see how they’ve adjusted their business models” before buying their shares, he said. Slideshow (3 Images)Instead, he is increasing his position in companies with strong recurring revenue streams such as Adobe Inc (ADBE.O), Visa Inc (V.N), and Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O). “You don’t get to buy companies at panic prices unless there’s a panic, and I think there’s an incredible amount of anxiety in the market right now,” he said. Reporting by David Randall; Editing by Jennifer Ablan and Nick ZieminskiOur Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The firing of attorney general Jeff Sessions on Wednesday by Donald Trump prompted a rash of warnings that Trump’s real target was special counsel Robert Mueller and his investigation of the Trump campaign’s Russia ties, which Trump had complained loudly about at a news conference just hours earlier.The firing “fits a clear pattern of interference” by Trump in the Mueller inquiry, said congressman Jerry Nadler, the incoming chairman of the judiciary committee, in a statement. “There is no mistaking what this means, and what is at stake: this is a constitutionally perilous moment for our country and for the president.”Adam Schiff, the incoming chairman of the House intelligence committee, tweeted that Trump “wants an attorney general to serve his interest, not the public”.“Mueller’s investigation and the independence of the justice department must be protected,” Schiff said.Shortly after Trump tweeted that Sessions was being replaced – which came about 12 hours after the Democrats won control of the House of Representatives in midterm elections – the attorney general released an undated letter informing Trump “at your request, I am submitting my resignation”.A sense of alarm over the Sessions firing and what it could mean for the Mueller investigation was widespread in national security circles. The special counsel’s office is nested inside the justice department, which is headed by the attorney general.“Not a drill,” tweeted Susan Hennessey, the editor of the Lawfare blog and a Brookings Institution fellow. “This is a frontal assault on the Mueller investigation. Trump sees a window and he’s taking it.”Trump’s precise plan for Mueller was unclear from the immediate news of the Sessions firing, the latest in a long series of high-profile firings and resignations from the highest echelons of the Trump administration. While Trump’s loudest complaints about Sessions centered on the attorney general’s decision to recuse himself from oversight of the Russia inquiry, Trump has voiced displeasure with Sessions for many other reasons.Most recently, Trump blamed Sessions after two Republican candidates for Congress were hit with criminal indictments in the run-up to the midterm elections. (Both candidates won.)But most observers saw a clear move against Mueller by the White House in Sessions’s firing. Matthew Whitaker, the official named by Trump to act as Sessions’s stand-in pending a formal nomination to be announced later, published an editorial in 2017 warning that the Mueller inquiry was overstepping its bounds.A justice department spokeswoman indicated on Wednesday that Whitaker would have direct oversight of the Mueller investigation, replacing the deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, who stepped in after Sessions’s recusal.“The acting attorney general is in charge of all matters under the purview of the Department of Justice,” spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said in an email.Elected officials may challenge that attempted transfer of command, however, arguing that Whitaker would first need to be confirmed by the Senate before assuming the oversight role. The uncertainty attached to the matter underscored the rare nature of the situation and the internal turbulence at play.Whitaker described an internal strategy for foiling Mueller on CNN in 2017. “I could see a scenario where Jeff Sessions is replaced,” he said, “it would [be a] recess appointment and that attorney general doesn’t fire Bob Mueller but he just reduces his budget to so low that his investigation grinds to almost a halt.”In an oversight role of Mueller, Whitaker might further be able to frustrate the Russia inquiry by cooperating with hostile congressional committees attacking the investigation with subpoenas for sensitive documents or testimony. Rosenstein had shielded Mueller from such attacks.Hours before firing Sessions, Trump ranted in a press conference that the Mueller inquiry was “a disgrace” and said: “I could fire everybody right now.”But then Trump seemed to say he would not take action to pull the plug on the Mueller inquiry. “I don’t want to stop it,” Trump said, “because politically I don’t want to stop it.”Trump’s popularity dived after he fired former the FBI director James Comey in May 2017, the act that triggered the Mueller appointment.Democrats expressed alarm and concern at the timing of Sessions’s firing and the identity of his replacement. The Senate minority leader, Charles Schumer, called on Whitaker to recuse himself.“No one is above the law and any effort to interfere with the special counsel’s investigation would be a gross abuse of power by the president,” said Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate intelligence committee, in a statement. “While the president may have the authority to replace the attorney general, this must not be the first step in an attempt to impede, obstruct or end the Mueller investigation.”“Anyone who attempts to interfere with or obstruct the Mueller inquiry must be held accountable,” the former attorney general Eric Holder tweeted. “This is a red line. We are a nation of laws and norms not subject to the self interested actions of one man.”Whitaker has left a long trail of published opinions indicating a skepticism of the Mueller probe and an occasional anti-Democratic partisan bent. Defending a June 2017 meeting between Trump campaign figures and Russian operatives, Whitaker echoed Trump, saying: “You would always take the meeting.” He wrote in July 2016 that he would indict Hillary Clinton over her handling of classified information on email.Parts of the Mueller investigation may be out of Trump’s reach. “Mueller has this whole thing booby trapped for precisely these kinds of Mickey Mouse moves by POTUS,” tweeted former FBI special agent Asha Rangappa.Others expressed confidence that Mueller had an emergency plan in place.“Mueller has known since day 1 he may be canned!” the former justice department official Julie Zebrak tweeted. “They have been doling out work to the [US attorneys offices], the litigating divisions and have contingencies in place. Career folks will continue working and the show will go on.” Topics Trump-Russia investigation US politics Trump administration Robert Mueller Jeff Sessions analysis

CARACAS/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Critics at home and abroad on Monday denounced the re-election of Venezuela’s socialist President Nicolas Maduro as a farce cementing autocracy, while the U.S. government imposed new sanctions on the crisis-stricken oil-producing country. Maduro, the 55-year-old successor to late leftist leader Hugo Chavez, hailed his win in Sunday’s election as a victory against “imperialism.” But his main challengers alleged irregularities and refused to recognize the result. In response to the vote, U.S. President Donald Trump issued an executive order restricting Venezuela’s ability to liquidate state assets and debt in the United States, the latest in a series of sanctions that seeks to choke off financing for the already cash-strapped government. Venezuela’s mainstream opposition had boycotted the election, given that two of its most popular leaders were barred, authorities had banned several political parties, and the election board is run by Maduro loyalists. Maduro won 68 percent of votes - more than three times as many as his main rival Henri Falcon. Turnout was a low 46 percent, significantly down from 80 percent in 2013’s presidential vote. “The revolution is here to stay!” Maduro told cheering supporters outside the presidential palace in Caracas. He has not outlined firm policies, but has promised to prioritize economic recovery after five years of crippling recession that has seen many struggle with chronic shortages of food, medicines and other basic necessities. Maduro’s dwindling but often still fervent supporters, many of whom remember the generous welfare policies of the Chavez years, want to give him another shot. “We believe in the process and we’re giving President Maduro another chance,” said 45-year-old social security worker Maira Garcia, as she celebrated his victory in the poor Caracas hillside neighborhood of 23 de Enero. Venezuela election: tmsnrt.rs/2IWH6ZD Related CoverageVenezuelan opposition claims moral win, lacks strategy to oust MaduroTrump calls on Venezuela's Maduro to 'restore democracy'U.S. Vice President Mike Pence called the election “a sham - neither free nor fair.” In a statement sent from the White House, U.S. President Donald Trump called for Maduro to “restore democracy, hold free and fair elections, release all political prisoners immediately and unconditionally, and end the repression and economic deprivation of the Venezuelan people.” In recent months, Washington has imposed a series of sanctions on companies and individuals with ties to the Maduro government. Trump’s order on Monday prohibits involvement in the purchase of any debt owed to the Venezuelan government, including accounts receivable, particularly related to oil sold by the OPEC member. The action appears to target in part Venezuelan-owned but U.S.-based oil refiner Citgo [PDVSAC.UL]. “Today’s executive order closes another avenue for corruption that we have observed being used: it denies corrupt Venezuelan officials the ability to improperly value and sell off public assets in return for kickbacks,” a senior administration official told reporters in Washington. Venezuela’s foreign minister, Jorge Arreaza, called the new sanctions illegal, saying they were “madness, barbaric and in absolute contradiction to international law.” While the order applies only to U.S. citizens and residents, the official said the Trump administration had had “fairly pointed discussions” with China and Russia over the issuing of new credit to Venezuela. Maduro has counted on the support of China and Russia, which have provided billions of dollars in funding in recent years. “What these sanctions are seeking to avoid is that countries outside the Western hemisphere come rescue Maduro financially so that he can consolidate an autocracy,” said Venezuelan opposition lawmaker and economist Angel Alvarado. Other countries also hinted at sanctions, with Spain leading European Union criticism of the election. Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro raises a finger as he is surrounded by supporters while speaking during a gathering after the results of the election were released, outside of the Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela, May 20, 2018. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia RawlinsAnd the 14-nation “Lima Group” of countries in the Americas, from Canada to Brazil, said in a stinging statement it did not recognize the vote and would downgrade diplomatic relations. The group deplored Venezuela’s “grave humanitarian situation.” In contrast, Venezuela’s regional leftist allies, such as Cuba and Bolivia, sent congratulations. In Beijing, foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said China believed Venezuela could handle its own affairs and the choice of the people should be respected. The Venezuelan government used ample state resources to get voters out on Sunday and public workers were pressured to vote. Falcon called for a new election, complaining about the government placing of nearly 13,000 pro-government stands offering ‘prizes’ close to polling stations nationwide. The main political opposition said its boycott had worked, but the disparate group did not appear to have a plan going forward other than calling for new elections - a non-starter given the pro-Maduro electoral council. Major protests, like those seen last year and in 2014, seem unlikely, given widespread disillusionment and fatigue. Demonstrators did barricade some streets in the southern city of Puerto Ordaz, drawing teargas from the National Guard, witnesses said. Maduro, a former bus driver whose second term in office starts in January, faces a colossal task turning around Venezuela’s moribund economy. The bolivar currency is down well over 99 percent over the past year and annual inflation is at nearly 14,000 percent, according to the opposition-led National Assembly. Venezuela’s multiple creditors are considering accelerating claims on unpaid foreign debt, while oil major ConocoPhillips (COP.N) has been taking aggressive action in recent weeks against PDVSA [PDVSA.UL], part of a claim for compensation over a 2007 nationalization of its assets in Venezuela. Slideshow (7 Images)U.S. crude hit its highest level since 2014 on Monday amid rising concerns that Venezuela’s oil output could fall further following the election and sanctions. Trading of Venezuelan government and PDVSA debt was mixed but volumes remained thin in New York on Monday afternoon, with election results considered a formality and offering little to change investor viewpoints. The benchmark government bond due 2027 VENGLB27=RR was bid up 0.25 points to 29 cents on the dollar while the benchmark PDVSA 2022 recovered about half of its early losses to trade down 0.65 points in price to 26.851 cents on the dollar VE059352415=, according to Thomson Reuters data. Election results: tmsnrt.rs/2IDZsek Reporting by Alexandra Ulmer in Caracas and Roberta Rampton in Washington; Additional reporting by Maria Ramirez in Ciudad Guayana; Andrew Cawthorne, Andreina Aponte, Deisy Buitrago, Vivian Sequera, Girish Gupta and Luc Cohen in Caracas; Felipe Iturrieta in Santiago; Marco Aquino in Lima; Ben Blanchard in Beijing; Lisa Lambert in Washington; Rodrigo Campos, Daniel Bases and Jessica Resnick-Ault in New York; Editing by Girish Gupta, Frances Kerry and Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

It is being touted as one of the late John McCain's greatest political moments: the then-presidential candidate defends the good character of fellow candidate Barack Obama in 2008 after a Republican supporter voices her fears that Obama is an “Arab”.

Media player Media playback is unsupported on your device Video Venezuela's Maduro wins re-election Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro has won re-election to another six-year term, in a vote marred by an opposition boycott and claims of vote-rigging.

Gopalkrishna Gandhi, grandson of Mahatma Gandhi and one of the most credible voices in public life in India, worries about a second partition, a division this time not of the country but of the mind. He reminds us that the Two-Nation Theory had not just Muslim but also Hindu adherents. These are now “wandering over the Indian countryside looking for, thirsting for, disembowelling the Indian earth for the acquifers of hate…They want in India a partition of the mind within the partitioned nation…a Hindu Rashtra.” Violent, triumphalist majoritarian dominance is on lurid display across this new India.“Two ways of life,” he declares in another interview, “are now before us. One, that which wants Indians to have freedom of conscience, thought, and speech so that the best ideas and energies can be devoted to raising the poor, the marginalised and the discriminated, making India a republic for all its citizens. Second, that which wants India to be dominated by one political ideology, one religious order, one majoritarian grip on all, making India a nation of stark, severe, and strict uniformity. A subtle fear pervades our politics today. This converts a majority from an honest weightage of democratic opinion into majoritarianism, the very antithesis of democracy.”This violent, triumphalist majoritarian dominance is on lurid display across this new India. As lynching threatens to grow into a national pandemic, Indian Muslims are learning to endure a sense of foreboding—a lurking, unnamed, unspoken, everyday fear. …As this fear grows like a cancer in a permissive political environment, there is very little resistance from the rest of the Indian people. Too little outrage, too little empathy and compassion.I think today of Babasaheb Ambedkar, recalling his counsel that the core of democracy and our Constitution is fraternity. That justice, liberty, and equality can never become the natural order of things unless there is fraternity. Our shared sisterhood and brotherhood.Solidarity. Love. But of all the founding constitutional principles of our republic, it is fraternity today that is most under attack.I recall today Mahatma Gandhi’s last and finest months. In 1947, a million people had died in a tempest of hate in Hindu–Muslim riots. Yet he risked his life repeatedly for love, for Hindu–Muslim unity, for the right of minorities to live in India as their homeland, as equal citizens in every way, with their minds without fear, and their heads held high. He walked bravely, alone and unmindful of his safety, and fasted again and again until peace was restored, consecutively in Noakhali, Bihar, Calcutta, and finally in Delhi. He did this even as the entire country was engulfed and ripped apart by hate.His epic fast for forty days in Calcutta succeeded in dousing the inferno of communal killings of Hindus and Muslims. Lord Mountbatten wrote to him that what 55,000 armed soldiers could not accomplish in burning Punjab, one man did in Bengal, battling with only the weapon of his frail body and his steely moral resolve.Gandhiji had resolved to proceed from Calcutta to Punjab to fight the communal madness that had gripped it on both sides of the new border. But when he reached Delhi, he found that Hindu and Sikh refugees had gathered in tens of thousands, bitterly enraged by the killings of their loved ones and the loss of their homes and homelands to Muslims there. Spurred and encouraged by the Hindu Mahasabha, the RSS and the Akalis, they began to attack Muslim settlements and violently occupied Muslim homes, and placed Hindu idols in more than a hundred mosques and dargahs in the capital.Gandhi said India’s soul would be hollowed out if Muslims could not live in India as equal citizens, without fear.It was both Nehru and Gandhi who would go to these refugee camps, braving the anger and hatred of refugees, to try to persuade them to restore peace and amity. Gandhiji said the Hindu faith would be destroyed if a single mosque was forcefully turned into a Hindu temple. He reminded angry Sikhs that love was central to the tenets of their faith. He said India’s soul would be hollowed out if Muslims could not live in India as equal citizens, without fear. His last fast, a fortnight before he was killed, was for all mosques, dargahs and homes to be returned to the Muslims. …I worry about many things. Majoritarian governments that cynically create an enabling environment that tacitly encourages hate attacks on minorities….The morally weak-kneed response of parties across the political establishment which claim only for electoral gain what they call the “secular” space. And the shamefully partisan role of the police, which does little to protect the victim, often criminalising those it is charged to defend, and subverting justice.I worry also about the ease with which mobs gather, and the rage and hatred that drives them as they knife or pulp strangers, sometimes children, only for their faith or caste.…But more than all of these, I worry about the bystander. Lynch assaults across the land are characterised almost without exception by bystanders who either actively support the killing, or do nothing to stop the battering or to save the innocent victims. I worry about us who watch and do nothing. Starkly, I worry about you and me, and our complicities by silence and inaction. I believe our greatest, hardest battle will have to be with the bystander. With ourselves. And with our own.…Today lynch attacks barely register, or linger in the public memory, a blip in our consciousness until the next outrage. My idealistic young friend in Assam, Abdul Kalam Azad, asks in anguish in a recent article: “Has fear lynched my conscience?”I worry even more profoundly—Has hate lynched my conscience? We need our conscience to ache. We need it to be burdened intolerably.Either we are too frightened to speak, or we don’t care.There can be only three reasons for our silences today as hatred and fear prevail. Either we are too frightened to speak, or we don’t care. Or most worrying of all, somewhere in our hearts, it is that we too secretly nurture some of the hatred of the mob, and are happy to outsource to the lynch mob to do our work for us.From Gandhi’s last months we need to learn and claim a love that burns, that aches, love born from the defiant conviction of the equal worth of every human being, love that is fierce and brave, love founded in courage, in the willingness to sacrifice everything, even one’s life, for love to overcome, to prevail. In the rising darkness in India, it is this radical love that has been lynched—whether by fear, indifference and hate, I do not know. But we must fight, before it is too late, to locate within ourselves our collective capacities for radical love.Darkness can never be fought with darkness, only light can dispel the enveloping shadows. And so also a politics of hate can only be fought with a new and radical politics of love and solidarity. In battling ideologies that harvest hate, we can win only equipped with this love. We need to garner across our land a plenitude of acts of love.Excerpted from Harsh Mander’s book Partitions of the Heart with permission from Penguin Random House India. We welcome your comments at ideas.india@qz.com.

Context matters, as international brands keep learning the hard way.The luxury fashion brand Prada is being accused of displaying racist imagery over a doll that serves as a keychain and handbag charm. The image, of a monkey with exaggerated lips, bears an uncomfortable resemblance to the “Black Sambo” figure, which has a long and horrid history in the US.Sambo, a caricature of a black boy who was made to appear practically sub-human, was usually drawn with dark brown or black skin and bright red protruding lips—a visual trope that Prada’s cartoonish monkey charm recalled for many.Prada announced today (Dec. 14) it had pulled the charm, which was a part of its “Pradamalia” collection. In a statement, it said:Prada Group abhors racist imagery. The Pradamalia are fantasy charms composed of elements of the Prada oeuvre. They are imaginary creatures not intended to have any reference to the real world and certainly not blackface. Prada Group never had the intention of offending anyone and we abhor all forms of racism and racist imagery. In this interest we will withdraw the characters in question from display and circulation.The charm didn’t immediately spark accusations of racism upon its release several weeks ago. It is one of several in the collection, including another monkey charm with green and yellow coloring, which has been on display in cities including Tokyo and Paris, and has been featured in the fashion media.It was in a window at the Prada store in New York’s Soho neighborhood that the brown-and-red dolls caught people’s attention. In a Facebook post, Chinyere Ezie, a staff attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, described her feeling at seeing the toy when she visited the store yesterday:“Today after returning to NYC after a very emotional visit to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture including an exhibit on blackface, I walked past Prada’s Soho storefront only to be confronted with the very same racist and denigrating #blackface imagery. I entered the store with a coworker, only to be assaulted with more and more bewildering examples of their Sambo like imagery,” she wrote. She added that when she asked a Prada employee about the matter, the employee noted that a black employee had complained previously, but no longer worked there.The post added: “History cannot continue to repeat itself. Black America deserves better. And we demand better.”At the Soho store in New York this morning, the blinds were drawn and Prada employees were removing the figures from the floor.Prada’s misstep follows soon after an imbroglio involving another European luxury house, Dolce & Gabbana, which was accused of racism while it promoted a fashion show in China, a situation that could prove disastrously expensive for the company. The episode also recalls the fast fashion retailer H&M’s troubles, when in January it was slammed for a product image showing a black child wearing a hoodie that said “coolest monkey in the jungle.” The company issued an apology and has taken measures to avoid similar missteps. Now it’s Prada’s turn.

Uber also has plans to launch an IPO in 2019, or so the company’s CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, has previously said. As of July, Lyft had 28% of U.S. market share, according to Second Measure. For the majority of its existence Lyft has been stuck in Uber’s enormous shadow. Unlike its competitor, Lyft has not gone global (though it is in Canada), hasn’t ventured into as many business arms, and has been slower overall to expand.But its slower growth seemed to pay off last year when Uber began to implode. In 2017, Uber was caught evading law enforcement, engaging in dubious ethical practices, and having an overall toxic work environment. Lyft emerged as an alternative. The climate allowed Lyft to grow its share of the market rapidly, from 15% to 26% in one year.Also in the last two years, Lyft has grown its business beyond simple ride sharing. In 2017, it announced it would develop autonomous car technology through a partnership with tier-one automotive supplier Magna, putting it in competition with Uber and Google. Lyft also expanded into bike sharing through its purchase of Motivate, which operates major programs like Citi Bike and Ford GoBike.For Lyft, that means going public earlier could give it an opportunity to shine in its own right.Rob Metzger, professor at Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois, says there are advantages to being first to go public. If one company goes first and there are problems during its time as a public company–for instance, regulatory issues or other potential friction points for the business model–it could dampen the potential valuation for whoever goes public second. “If we’re smaller, but we’re better run and our operating metrics are strong, I’d rather be first to tell that story so that I’m not–from a valuation perspective–in the shadows of the other one,” Metzger says.

The Trump Organization reimbursed Mr. Cohen for his payment to Ms. Daniels. State prosecutors are examining whether the company — and any of its senior executives — then falsely listed the reimbursement as a legal expense, the people briefed on the matter said. Following the groundwork laid in the federal investigation, the district attorney’s office is expected to scrutinize the senior ranks of the company, although it is unclear whether the inquiry will reach the president. Mr. Trump has denied the affairs and any wrongdoing. While Mr. Cohen has said he arranged the hush-money at the direction of Mr. Trump — and federal prosecutors have since repeated that accusation in court papers — less is publicly known about the president’s role. Mr. Cohen is currently serving a three-year prison sentence in Otisville, N.Y.A spokesman for American Media Inc., the media company that was subpoenaed, did not respond to a request for comment. The company bought the rights to Ms. McDougal’s story of an affair with Mr. Trump and never ran the story. The company, whose leader was friends with Mr. Trump, cooperated with the federal investigation and received a nonprosecution agreement.The district attorney’s office initially considered mounting the inquiry nearly a year ago, after Mr. Cohen pleaded guilty. Mr. Vance’s office paused at the request of the federal prosecutors. Mr. Vance’s latest foray into the hush-money case could present a legal and political quandary.Mr. Trump’s lawyers will try to portray Mr. Vance, a Democrat, as leading a partisan attack. Earlier this year, similar criticism was leveled by a lawyer for Paul J. Manafort, Mr. Trump’s former campaign chairman. After Mr. Manafort was convicted of federal crimes, Mr. Vance’s office charged him with state felonies in hopes he would still face prison if he received a presidential pardon.Still, if Mr. Vance declined to bring charges in the hush-money case, the decision could fuel criticism that he has pulled punches with the Trump family. His office previously declined to charge two of Mr. Trump’s children, Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr., who were under criminal investigation in 2012 over allegations that they misled buyers interested in the Trump SoHo hotel-condominium project.

Mr. Leissner vouched for Mr. Low. Days later, Mr. Blankfein and Mr. Low sat down and discussed investment opportunities in Southeast Asia, according to two people familiar with the meeting. The 1MDB fund was not on the agenda, and there is no indication that the men talked about the planned third bond sale.In March 2013, Goldman was prepared to start work on a third 1MDB deal, this one to raise $3 billion by selling bonds. Mr. Ryan urged his colleagues to postpone it until after an election, in which Mr. Najib was vying for another term as prime minister, according to the people familiar with Mr. Ryan’s thinking.The bond sale went ahead despite Mr. Ryan’s objections. It brought Goldman’s total fees from 1MDB to about $600 million. Mr. Najib was re-elected six weeks later.Mr. Ryan left Goldman in 2014, partly because he was frustrated that his concerns about the 1MDB deals were not heeded, the people said. Mr. Ryan did not respond to requests for comment.Prosecutors have described Goldman bankers as playing a crucial role in enabling Mr. Low’s activities. The Justice Department charged Mr. Leissner and his deputy, Roger Ng, with violating bribery and money-laundering laws. The charging documents, unsealed in federal court on Nov. 1, referred to an unidentified Goldman executive as an unindicted co-conspirator who approved of the alleged bribery. People familiar with the matter said that executive was Andrea Vella, who was Goldman’s co-head of Asian investment banking. The bank suspended him the same day that prosecutors unsealed the criminal complaints.In addition to the Justice Department’s criminal investigation, the Federal Reserve is preparing an enforcement action against Mr. Leissner, Mr. Ng and Mr. Vella, according to a person familiar with the Fed’s plans. The New York Department of Financial Services is also investigating, according to a person familiar with the agency’s work.David M. Solomon, who recently succeeded Mr. Blankfein as Goldman’s chief executive, sent a voice mail message to all bank employees last week, telling them how upset he was about the situation.“I am personally outraged that any employee of the firm would undertake the actions spelled out in the government’s pleadings,” he said. “A group of people, including some of us in the executive office, are intensely focused on this matter.”

Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro looks on during a promotion ceremony for generals of the armed forces, at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil August 9, 2019. REUTERS/Adriano MachadoRIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Right-wing Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro warned on Monday that his country could see a wave of migrants fleeing Argentina if a presidential election there returns leftist politicians to power, after their strong showing in a Sunday primary vote. Bolsonaro has cast himself as foe to the left-wing leaders around Latin America and celebrated his friendship with Argentine President Mauricio Macri, who faces long odds of winning another term in October. The Brazilian president singled out as a “leftist scoundrel” Argentina’s former president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, the vice-presidential candidate on the ticket confirmed as front-runner on Sunday. He compared her to ideological allies from Cuban President Fidel Castro to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Speaking in southern Brazil, Bolsonaro warned it could soon see migration on par with the north of the country, where waves of Venezuelans have fled an economic crisis. “We don’t want that: Argentine brothers fleeing over here, seeing how awful it could get if the result of the vote yesterday is confirmed in October,” he said. Argentina’s peso currency collapsed on Monday and inflation was expected to rise as voters flirted with a return to interventionist economics by snubbing market-friendly Macri for the opposition in a primary vote on Sunday. Bolsonaro’s government has not been shy about weighing in on domestic politics around the region, antagonizing Venezuela’s Maduro and touting a close friendship with Paraguayan President Mario Abdo when he faced the threat of impeachment. Bolsonaro tapped his son Eduardo to become ambassador in Washington, citing praise from U.S. President Donald Trump. In a visit to Washington, Eduardo Bolsonaro met with members of the conservative movement and wore a cap emblazoned: “Make America Great Again - Trump 2020”. Reporting by Pedro Fonseca; Writing by Brad Haynes; Editing by Alistair BellOur Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Appearing before Congress on Wednesday, former special counsel Robert Mueller will for the first time publicly detail ties between Donald Trump’s campaign and Moscow and potential efforts by the president to obstruct justice in the Russia investigation.One Democrat on the House judiciary committee told the Guardian Mueller’s testimony will prove “damning and explosive”.The highly anticipated appearance is expected to reinvigorate heated debate among Democrats over whether Trump should be impeached.For Democrats who took control of the House in November, Mueller’s remarks could prove a make-or-break moment as they grapple with how to hold the president accountable – and whether the public will be on their side if they move ahead with impeachment.“We cannot emphasize enough that this will be the first opportunity for many, many Americans to actually hear what’s contained in the Mueller report,” said Representative David Cicilline, a Democrat from Rhode Island who sits on the House judiciary committee.“I don’t think anyone should expect there’s going to be an explosive new moment where [Mueller] is going to add something the investigation didn’t cover, but the contents of the report are damning and explosive.”Mueller will appear before the judiciary committee and the intelligence committee in what will be his first and only public assessment of his work before lawmakers on Capitol Hill. A redacted version of his 448-page report was released in April.The former FBI director made only a brief statement in May, reiterating his team’s consensus that Trump could not be exonerated but also could not be charged with committing a crime. Mueller signaled a reluctance to testify, stating that his report should speak for itself.But his decision not to recommend charges against the president, choosing instead to punt the issue to a divided Congress, has left Democrats with little clarity on how to move forward.Roughly a third of House Democrats have called for a formal impeachment inquiry. The House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, has cautioned against such a move, stating the ensuing fight would be “divisive” and play into Trump’s hands as he seeks re-election.Greg Brower, a former assistant director in the FBI’s Office of Congressional Affairs, said Mueller’s testimony could be “very impactful” in shifting the political winds.“I don’t think the American people or Congress fully understands what the evidence is,” Brower said. “It’s part of Mueller’s continuing duty to explain his findings in as compelling a way as possible that, at a minimum, is intended to inform Congress, but could also change public opinion.“Just assuming that nobody cares and it’s not going to change any minds is an abdication of his responsibility to make sure the public understands the details of his report.“That’s not to say it’s Mueller’s duty to advocate for a certain outcome. That would be wrong. But I think he needs to explain the facts so that the members decide what the right outcome is, based on constituent input and their own analysis of the evidence.”Mueller’s report outlined 11 attempts by Trump or his campaign to obstruct justice after January 2017. It also concluded that the campaign was “receptive” to help from Moscow in the 2016 election and expected to benefit electorally from Russian interference.The former special counsel’s testimony will consist of three hours of questioning from each House committee. The intelligence committee is expected to focus on whether the Trump campaign coordinated with the Russians while the judiciary panel will examine the president’s actions in office and whether they amounted to obstruction.The notoriously tight-lipped and nonpartisan Mueller is unlikely to deviate from the contents of his report. But Cicilline said the special counsel had turned up “extraordinary evidence” that Trump sought to obstructed justice on numerous occasions.“If the activity described in the Mueller report was anyone other than the president of the United States, they would indict that individual,” Cicilline said.Polling has found that the Mueller report did not substantially change public perceptions of the Russia investigation, although a slim majority would like to see some kind of action against the president. Just 39% believe no further action should be taken and investigations into Trump should end.All eyes are now on Mueller, with millions of Americans due to tune in from home.Republican members of the House committees have promised tough questioning, with supposed FBI misconduct around the Russia investigation, tweeted about by Trump on Monday, one likely subject.Trump himself suggested he had no plans to watch the hearing.“Maybe I’ll see a little bit of it,” he told reporters at the White House, before swiftly reversing course.“I‘m not going to be watching Mueller because you can’t take all those bites out of the apple. We had no collusion. No obstruction. We had no nothing.”

The scope of the ethics conversation was limited to the statements about the inquiry that Mr. Whitaker made before joining the department. In the letter — addressed to Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican majority leader, and Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader — the Justice Department noted that no previous attorney general or senior department official had stepped down from a matter “based upon statements made in the media.”Separately, the Justice Department provided to the Senate Judiciary Committee late on Wednesday a package of Mr. Barr’s writings and speeches. The documents included a 19-page, apparently unsolicited memo Mr. Barr sent to senior department officials in June in which he sharply criticized Mr. Mueller’s focus on whether Mr. Trump had obstructed justice.[Read Mr. Barr’s memo.]Public speculation about an obstruction charge has focused on actions like Mr. Trump’s pressuring the F.B.I. director at the time, James B. Comey, to quash a criminal investigation into his first national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn, for lying to investigators about his conversations with the Russian ambassador; Mr. Trump’s firing of Mr. Comey; and the president’s seeming dangling of potential pardons at witnesses in Mr. Mueller’s inquiry.While acknowledging in his memo that he was “in the dark about many facts,” Mr. Barr argued that the Justice Department must not accept the notion that a president can violate a statute that criminalizes obstruction of justice when he is exercising his constitutional authority in an otherwise lawful way — such as by firing a subordinate, pardoning someone or using his “complete authority to start or stop a law enforcement proceeding” — but with a corrupt motive.“Mueller’s obstruction theory is fatally misconceived,” Mr. Barr wrote. “As I understand it, his theory is premised on a novel and legally insupportable reading of the law. Moreover, in my view, if credited by the department, it would have grave consequences far beyond the immediate confines of this case and would do lasting damage to the presidency and to the administration of law within the executive branch.”Mr. Barr’s memo was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.Several Democrats reacted to the memo and the recusal decision with alarm. Representative Jerrold Nadler of New York, who will soon become chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, suggested that Mr. Whitaker was more concerned with satisfying Mr. Trump than protecting the department’s integrity. He said he would grill Mr. Whitaker at an oversight hearing next month.

Closing arguments concluded Wednesday in the financial crimes trial of Paul Manafort, the former campaign chairman for Donald Trump, and the case is now in the hands of 12 jurors who will begin deliberations Thursday morning to decide Manafort's fate. Interested in Russia Investigation? Add Russia Investigation as an interest to stay up to date on the latest Russia Investigation news, video, and analysis from ABC News. Russia Investigation Add Interest In their closing argument, prosecutors attempted to paint Manafort as a liar and a schemer, calling attention to the mountain of financial records provided to the court. "When you follow the trail of Mr. Manafort's money, it's littered with lies,” special counsel prosecutor Greg Andres said in federal court on Wednesday, telling jurors that Manafort is “not above the law.” Manafort is on trial in Alexandria, Virginia, where special counsel Robert Mueller has accused Manafort of shielding millions of dollars in off-shore bank accounts from American tax-collectors. During his closing arguments, Andres reminded jurors of the $60 million Manafort is accused of hiding in 31 separate bank accounts. "He lied to his tax preparers, he lied to his bookkeeper, because he wanted to hide that money and avoid paying taxes," Andres added. Andres wrapped his closing statement after 90 minutes, then it was on to the defense. Speaking for Manafort’s defense team, attorney Richard Westling implored jurors to see their client as a respected political operative and successful businessman, highlighting Manafort’s work on numerous presidential campaigns. Westling argued that the volume of documents provided by the special counsel did not amount to meaningful evidence of guilt. “Sitting here today, Mr. Manafort is innocent and he will continue to be innocent until you render a decision,” Westling said. “If you are thinking this evidence adds up to something, you shouldn’t.” Taking over for the defense, lead attorney Kevin Downing returned to the matter of Rick Gates, casting blame on the prosecution’s star witness and longtime business associate of Manafort. Downing reminded jurors of Gates’ confession to embezzling money from Manafort and engaging in multiple extra-marital affairs. “The government was so desperate to make a case against Mr. Manafort, it made a deal with Mr. Gates,” Downing said, accusing Gates “fabricating” his testimony to make a deal with Mueller. Gates pleaded guilty in February to charges of conspiracy against the United States and lying to federal authorities. Having initially been charged alongside Manafort, Gates has since cooperated with the special counsel as part of their investigation into Russian meddling during the 2016 campaign. Prior to the defense team’s closing statements, special counsel prosecutor Greg Andres sought to downplay Gates’ role in the trial, asking jurors to look at the paper trail. “The government is not asking you to take everything Mr. Gates said at face value… we are not asking you to like him,” Andres said, adding, “The star witness, in this case, is the documents.” If found guilty, Manafort, 69, faces a prison sentence of up to 305 years. Manafort has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Special counsel prosecutors rested their case on Monday after bringing more than two dozen accountants and associates of Manafort to the stand. On Tuesday, Manafort’s defense team declined to mount a defense or bring any witnesses to the stand. After the judge instructed jurors Wednesday afternoon, the 12-person panel will deliberate and return their verdict.

The Chinese company, which sells smartphones and telecommunications gear, has come under increased scrutiny after the United States warned of potential national security risks from using its products.Therecent arrestof Huawei's chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, has raised additional questions about the firm. US prosecutors accuse Meng of helping Huawei get around sanctions on Iran. The company says it is unaware of any wrongdoing by Meng and insists that it complies with all applicable laws and regulations where it operates.Huawei haslargely been shut out of the United States, and Australia and New Zealand haveblockedmobile providers from using the company's 5G services.Two major European telecoms companies — France's Orange (ORAN) and BT (BT) in the United Kingdom — recently ruled out using Huawei products in their core domestic 5G networks. Germany's Deutsche Telekom(DTEGY) and Japan's SoftBank (SFTBF) are reviewing their use of Huawei equipment.Doors are slamming shut for Huawei around the worldHuawei has repeatedly denied accusations that its products pose a security risk, or that it works under the influence of the Chinese government. "The recent global developments have no bearing in India," the company said in its statement to CNN Business. "We are in constant dialogue with the industry and all stakeholders, and have a proven track record of doing business in the country."Sales of Huawei smartphones, which US intelligence agencies have warned American citizens not to use, have increased this year in India.The company accounted for about 3% of India's fast-growing smartphone market in the quarter ended June, up from 1% a year earlier, according to Counterpoint Research.

Eventhe arrest in Canadaof CFO Meng Wanzhou, the daughter of Huawei's founder, on allegations she helped the company dodge US sanctions on Iran hasn't shaken its resolve. Business operations remain normal and senior executives are sticking to their international travel plans, according to Hu."I was on the plane just yesterday," he said. He declined to comment on Meng's case, but expressed confidence in Huawei's trade compliance system and in "the judicial independence and fairness" of the Canadian and US legal systems. "We look forward to a just conclusion," he added.Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada earlier this month. The US government is seeking her extradition.Hu just arrived back in China from Europe, one of the regions where the company has faced renewed questions over the security of its products.Orange (ORAN), the largest telecoms operator in France, on Friday ruled out using Huawei equipment in its core 5G network in the country. Germany's Deutsche Telekom (DTEGY) said it was taking the discussion about the security of network elements from Chinese manufacturers "very seriously."Canada caught in the middle of US-China spat over Huawei executive Hu said he understands the concerns from customers and authorities, but insisted there is no example of Huawei equipment "posing security threats" in the past 30 years.The company has risen rapidly in recent decades to become the world's biggest manufacturer of telecommunications equipment. Its competitors include Sweden's Ericsson (ERIC), Finland's Nokia (NOK) and another Chinese firm, ZTE (ZTCOF), whichfell foul of US authoritiesearlier this year.The US government has long been wary of Huawei and hasstepped up effortsthis year to limit the use ofits products in the United States. American officials have alleged that the Chinese government could use Huawei products for espionage — claims the company denies.Huawei Deputy Chairman Ken Hu at a media briefing on Tuesday. Business operations have continued as normal since the arrest of CFO Meng Wanzhou, he said.The US government has even been urging its allies to stop using Huawei equipment, according toa reportlast month by The Wall Street Journal.Hu said that governments sometimes have concerns about which companies should supply 5G networks because of "legitimate" concerns about technology, which Huawei is working to address through communication and investing billions in security-related software.But he slammed the "irresponsible decisions" by some countries that he said rely on "baseless speculations" to target a specific company out of "ideological and geopolitical considerations."

FILE PHOTO: A 3D printed Huawei logo is placed on glass above displayed EU flag in this illustration taken January 29, 2019. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoBRUSSELS (Reuters) - Chinese telecoms equipment company Huawei said on Tuesday it welcomed the European Commission’s “objective and proportionate” approach to the security of future 5G networks. “Huawei understands the cybersecurity concerns that European regulators have,” Abraham Liu, Huawei’s chief representative to the EU, said in a statement. “Huawei looks forward to contributing to the European framework on cybersecurity. We are firmly committed to continue working with all regulators and partners to make the 5G rollout in Europe a success,” he continued. Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop; editing by Robin EmmottOur Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

DUBAI (Reuters) - Bahrain, headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, plans to roll out a commercial 5G mobile network by June, partly using Huawei technology despite the United States’ concerns the Chinese telecom giant’s equipment could be used for spying. FILE PHOTO: Logos of Huawei are pictured outside its shop in Beijing, China, February 28, 2019. REUTERS/Jason Lee/File PhotoWashington has warned countries against using Chinese technology, saying Huawei could be used by Beijing to spy on the West. China and Huawei have strongly rejected the allegations. VIVA Bahrain, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabian state-controlled telecoms firm STC, last month signed an agreement to use Huawei products in its 5G network, one of several Gulf telecoms companies working with the Chinese company. “We have no concern at this stage as long as this technology is meeting our standards,” Bahrain’s Telecommunications Minister Kamal bin Ahmed Mohammed told Reuters on Tuesday when asked about U.S. concerns over Huawei technology. A senior State Department official told Reuters the U.S. routinely urges allies and partners to consider the risks posed by vendors subject to extrajudicial or unchecked compulsion by foreign states. The U.S. Fifth Fleet uses its base in Bahrain, a Western-allied island state off the Saudi coast, to patrol several important shipping lanes, including near Iran. Bahrain expects to be one of the first countries to make 5G available nationwide, Mohammed said, although he cautioned it would depend on handset and equipment availability. Early movers like the United States, China, Japan and South Korea are just starting to roll out their 5G networks, but other regions, such as Europe, are still years away and the first 5G phones are only likely to be released in the second half of this year. Bahrain’s state controlled operator Batelco is working with Sweden’s Ericsson on its 5G network, while the country’s third telecoms group Zain Bahrain is yet to announce a technology provider. No foreign company is restricted by the government from providing equipment for Bahrain’s 5G network, Mohammed said, adding mobile operators choose who they work with. Australia and New Zealand have stopped operators using Huawei equipment in their networks but the European Union is expected to ignore U.S. calls to ban the Chinese company, instead urging countries to share more data to tackle cybersecurity risks related to 5G networks. Mohammed said the rollout of the 5G network was an “important milestone” for Bahrain, which is hoping investments in technology will help spur its economy, which was hit hard by a recent drop in oil prices. “It is something we are proud to have,” he said. Reporting by Alexander Cornwell; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Mark PotterOur Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

For the second time this season, Saturday Night Live kicked off with The Ingraham Angle, as Fox News host Laura Ingraham (Kate McKinnon) slings conspiracy theories and obvious falsehoods relating to the week’s headlines, while thanking her ever-dwindling list of disreputable sponsors – Fashion Catheters, Cash for Organs, and Teeny Tiny Turkey (“We Swear It’s Not a Pigeon!”)Her guests include a roll call of recently newsworthy figures – Mark Zuckerberg (Alex Moffat), Marcia Fudge (Leslie Thompson), and the “Vape God” (Pete Davidson), a vaping expert to whom the real Ingraham actually gave airtime – but all of whom come and go too quickly to leave much of an impression.One has to assume that Alec Baldwin’s legal troubles from two weeks ago have kept him off the show, because this week’s cold open feels like the writers scrambling to work around his absence.Steve Carell, hosting for the third time (his last turn was 10 years ago), fields questions from an audience only interested in seeing him reboot The Office. Those haranguing him include his former cast-mates Ellie Kemper, Ed Helms and Jenna Fischer. Carell brings them all onstage to tease a reunion announcement … before expertly dashing any such hopes. It still works as a heartfelt dose of nostalgia.The next sketch, Disney, has Carell playing a clueless father who attempts to surprise his children with a trip to Disney World, only for them to hold an intervention in which they reveal the various ways the family has fallen apart unbeknownst to him. It’s a clever idea undercut by an odd stiltedness in Carell’s performance (he keeps looking off screen, presumably at cue cards).In Message from Jeff Bezos, a bald-capped Carell plays the Amazon CEO, who smilingly extolls his company’s latest dealings while blatantly trolling Donald Trump (who, he reminds us, he’s “literally 100x richer” than). While not big on belly laughs, the segment does earn a wave of oohs and aahs from the audience, especially a final, solid dig at Trump’s limited involvement in recent war commemorations, allegedly for fear of going out in the rain.Friendsgiving is set table-side for a Thanksgiving dinner between neighbors. After one of them questions why there are no famous Thanksgiving songs, they take turns spontaneously singing The Turkey Dance, a synth-backed German tune ostensibly about the holiday, but really about a disappointing one-night stand. Things grow increasingly – but welcomely – absurd as they go on. More sketches should follow this one’s lead and end with a surprise shanking.“RBG Rap” is a muggy rap song from Pete Davidson and Chris Redd about the indefatigable supreme court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (McKinnon, in one of her by-now signature roles). It doesn’t earn a lot of laughs from the live studio audience, but it certainly gets plenty of self-satisfied cheering on behalf of the liberal icon.Space Station Broadcast features Carell as an astronaut broadcasting live from the International Space Station. He fields questions from middle school students back on Earth, while simultaneously dealing with a catastrophic accident that’s killed all the animals onboard, as well as at least one crew member. The use of silly animal props, McKinnon’s surprise turn as a frozen corpse, and the grimly escalating chaos combine to make this the funniest sketch of the night.British singer/songwriter Ella Mai is the week’s musical guest. She performs Boo’d Up, from her new self-titled album.Weekend Update kicks off with a report about the relocation of Amazon’s headquarters to Queens in New York City and Arlington, Virginia. Perfectly betraying his innate and utter unlikability, host Colin Jost loses the audience right off the bat, snarking “Only New Yorkers could complain about getting 25,000 new jobs. All the cities that lost out must be like, ‘shut up you whiny bitches’.”This week’s guests include congressman-elect/big foot erotica writer Denver Riggleman (Mikey Day) and professional NBA dad/huckster Lavar Ball (Keenan Thompson). Both prove entertaining, if not particularly memorable, distractions from the disinterested hosts.Much like this week’s cold open, Update wraps up in surprisingly short order, another signal that the writers had a hard time mining humor from the week’s headlines.Sleepover starts out as parody of Beauty School Dropout from Grease, with Carell as a perm-wearing 1950s crooner who magically appears inside a teenage girl’s bedroom during a sleepover. His creepy attempts to serenade one of the girls fail, after it’s revealed that the host is his own estranged daughter. Carell, at his best playing desperate losers with zero self-awareness, nails his performance here (as does Aidy Bryant as his shame-filled offspring), though the sketch is similar to the earlier Disney.Ella Mai returns to the stage and performs Trip.RV Life has Carell playing yet another husband and father completely oblivious to his family’s naked disintegration (this time he’s an ex-banker who’s dragged his nerve-racked wife alongside him in a woodsy, RV-centered retirement) in a tired sketch. The penultimate sketch – a Mars-set Thanksgiving dinner between human space explorers, their pointy-eared hosts, and sentient corn – finds the cast gritting their teeth through awkward jokes and shoddy special effects. A botched green screen projection towards the end gives them an excuse to break out in embarrassed laughter and rush through the last few lines.The last sketch trades in easy jokes centered around drag culture as personified by Ru Paul in a fitting end to dare I say a lazy episode. Topics Television & radio Saturday Night Live recap Saturday Night Live Steve Carell Comedy US television Television reviews

STRASBOURG (Reuters) - EU nations will be required to share data on 5G cybersecurity risks and produce measures to tackle them by the end of the year, the European Commission said on Tuesday, shunning U.S. calls to ban China’s Huawei Technologies across the bloc. FILE PHOTO: A surveillance camera is seen in front of the Huawei logo outside its factory campus in Dongguan, Guangdong province, China, March 25, 2019. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu/File PhotoThe aim is to use tools available under existing security rules plus cross-border cooperation, the bloc’s executive body said, leaving it to individual EU countries to decide whether they want to ban any company on national security grounds. Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, the Netherlands, Lithuania and Portugal are all preparing to auction 5G licenses this year while six other countries will do so next year. The European Union move came despite U.S. pressure to boycott Huawei, citing fears of China using the company’s equipment for espionage. Huawei has strongly rejected the allegations and launched a lawsuit against the U.S. government. The EU provided additional detail on the plans first reported by Reuters on March 22, with European digital chief Andrus Ansip saying that the measures announced on Tuesday aimed to address concerns about foreign governments using companies for espionage. Last week French President Emmanuel Macron said that Europe was wakening up to potential Chinese dominance in the region. Ansip said that 5G technology would transform the economy and society, but that this cannot happen without full security built in. “It is therefore essential that 5G infrastructures in the EU are resilient and fully secure from technical or legal backdoors,” Ansip said in a statement. EU countries have until the end of June to assess cybersecurity risks related to 5G, leading to a bloc-wide assessment by Oct. 1. Using this, EU countries would then have to agree measures to mitigate risks by the end of the year. Such measures could include certification requirements and tests of products or suppliers regarded as potential security risks. The bloc will decide by Oct. 1, 2020, whether to take further action. The EU has already passed a new law to give permanent status to the EU Cybersecurity Agency and to guide on cybersecurity certification. Huawei described the EU’s approach as objective and proportionate. Its comments were echoed by telecoms lobby group GSMA, which includes 300 operators worldwide, while the European Telecommunications Network Operators Association emphasized the importance of a fact-based and harmonized policy. Deutsche Telekom, meanwhile, said it is open to exchanging data with other operators to improve network security as the industry moves towards super-fast 5G technology. Large telecoms operators, which view 5G as the next big moneyspinner, oppose a Huawei ban, saying that such a move could set back 5G deployment by years. World No.1 telecoms equipment maker Huawei, which competes with Sweden’s Ericsson and Finnish company Nokia, faces intense scrutiny in the West over its relationship with the Chinese government and U.S.-led allegations that its equipment could be used for spying. Australia and New Zealand have stopped operators using Huawei equipment in their 5G networks. But in a separate boost for Huawei on Tuesday, it was announced that Bahrain, headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, plans to roll out a commercial 5G mobile network by June, partly using Huawei technology. Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Philip Blenkinsop and David GoodmanOur Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.