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Good morning,
We start with a crucial week in Congress, a deal to save the Paris climate agreement, and President Trump’s comments about the case of a Green Beret accused of murder.
Lame ducks could hurt chances of averting a shutdown
The deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown is Friday, but even if a legislative solution is found, Republican leaders don’t know that they’ll have the votes to pass it. Some House Republicans who lost elections last month or who are about to retire haven’t been showing up for votes.
President Trump declared last week that he would be happy to take sole responsibility for a shutdown, undercutting Republican leaders who had hoped to blame Democrats.
The basics: The president’s demand for $5 billion for a border wall remains the main sticking point. The next votes in the House are set for Wednesday night, though the schedule could change.
Climate negotiators save the Paris agreement
Diplomats from nearly 200 countries defied expectations and reached a deal this weekend to keep the Paris climate accord alive.
The U.S. also signed on, despite President Trump having vowed to abandon the pact (a move that can’t formally take effect until late 2020).
The details: The deal in Poland creates standards for measuring emissions and tracking policies, calls for stepped-up plans to cut emissions, and builds a process to help countries struggling to meet their goals.
Closer look: The U.S. and other big oil producers derailed efforts to formally endorse a U.N. report in October calling for drastic cuts in fossil fuel use.
A presidential twist in a Green Beret’s case
President Trump said on Sunday that he would examine the case of Maj. Mathew Golsteyn, who was charged last week with premeditated murder after he killed an Afghan in 2010 who was suspected of making bombs.
In making the announcement on Twitter, Mr. Trump described Major Golsteyn using the same language that had aired just minutes earlier on a Fox News program that lauded the officer as a war hero.
The background: Major Golsteyn said during a job interview with the C.I.A. in 2011 that he had killed a man identified as a member of the Taliban. The Army opened an investigation but did not charge Major Golsteyn. Five years later, in an appearance on Fox News, Major Golsteyn again said he had shot the Afghan. The Army opened a second investigation in late 2016, leading to last week’s charges.
The impact: Mr. Trump’s decision complicates the military’s case, raising questions about the judicial process and expectations of justice for those harmed by American forces.
Evidence of forced labor in China’s camps
Accounts from the country’s Xinjiang region, satellite images and previously unreported official documents suggest that a system of forced labor is emerging from camps where hundreds of thousands of Uighur Muslims are being detained.
The inmates are being sent to new factories inside or near the camps. China has said that the detainees, who are forced to renounce their religion and to pledge loyalty to the Communist Party, receive job training and can escape poverty.
International reaction: The labor program highlights China’s determination to continue operating the camps despite calls from U.N. human rights officials, the U.S. and other governments that they be closed.
Go deeper: Just four miles from one camp, the U.S. consulting firm McKinsey held its lavish annual corporate retreat, pointing to its deep relationship with Beijing. The company has worked with authoritarian governments around the world, raising questions about whether it has been complicit.
If you have 4 minutes, this is worth it
Bringing World War I back to life
The director Peter Jackson restored century-old footage from the Imperial War Museum in Britain and culled veterans’ commentary from hundreds of hours of BBC interviews to create his new documentary, “They Shall Not Grow Old.” The result is visually astonishing.
From Opinion: The Australian actor Geoffrey Rush has been accused by a fellow Australian, the actress Yael Stone, of sexual misconduct. Ms. Stone, who stars in “Orange Is the New Black,” spoke to one of our columnists about why Australia’s strict libel laws made it tough to discuss the case.
Snapshot: Above, visitors entering a tomb in Saqqara, Egypt, on Saturday. The newly discovered 4,400-year-old tomb of a royal priest and his family is “one of a kind,” the authorities said.
N.F.L. playoff picture: The season is in its final weeks, but there are still nine billion ways it could end. We looked at every team’s chances to make the postseason.
At the opera: The conductor Gustavo Dudamel made a much-anticipated debut at the Metropolitan Opera with “Otello.” Read our critic’s review.
What we’re reading: Your Morning Briefing writer recommends this segment from WBUR, a public radio station in Boston. It popped up a lot on social media over the weekend, and for good reason. Shirley Wang tells the story of her father, Lin, a cat litter scientist in Iowa, and his unlikely friendship with the N.B.A. great Charles Barkley. You might cry. I did.
Now, a break from the news
Smarter Living: In many states, getting ordained to officiate at a wedding takes just a few mouse clicks. The harder part is crafting a memorable ceremony. Use the tried-and-tested skeleton of a traditional ceremony, and interview the couple and those close to them to strike the right notes.
We also look at what experts know about diet and weight loss (there’s shockingly little certainty), and which cameras are best for checking on your pets.
And now for the Back Story on …
The “Orwell” revival
The exiled Chinese writer Ma Jian says his latest novel, “China Dream,” was heavily influenced by George Orwell’s dystopian classic “1984.”
The 1949 novel described a totalitarian regime that suppressed critical thought. Mr. Ma says “China Dream” shows how the vision has become reality in China under President Xi Jinping.
“I’m going to carve this book in stone and bring it to Orwell’s grave,” he said on a recent trip to Hong Kong.
Mr. Ma isn’t the only one thinking of Orwell these days.
Last year, a White House adviser defended a colleague’s provably false claim about the size of Mr. Trump’s inauguration crowd as “alternative facts.” Some readers said the comment sounded Orwellian, and sales of “1984” surged.
And in May, the White House described China’s decision to order 36 airline companies to purge their websites of references to Macau, Taiwan and Hong Kong as separate countries as “Orwellian nonsense.”
(China’s Foreign Ministry fired back by saying it was an “objective fact” that all three places were “inseparable parts of Chinese territory.”)
That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.
— Chris
Thank you
To Eleanor Stanford for knowing how to get to Broadway, and Kenneth R. Rosen for the wedding advice and other Smarter Living tips. Mike Ives, a reporter based in Hong Kong, wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.
P.S.
• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Today’s episode is about the case against Michael Cohen and what it means for President Trump.
• Here’s today’s mini crossword puzzle, and a clue: Monastery head (5 letters). You can find all our puzzles here.
• Choire Sicha, our Styles editor, is moonlighting as the “Work Friend” advice columnist for the Sunday Business section.
Source : Nytimes
