Your Wednesday Briefing

National Rifle Association, Greenland, Migrants: Here's what you need to know. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

nytimes.com Wednesday, Aug 21, 2019 | View in browser Supported by Good morning. We’re covering the Trump administration’s campaign to promote oil exploration in Alaska, a rare look inside war-torn Syria, and the shutdown of what was believed to be the longest-running webcam. By Chris Stanford Internal records reveal how the Trump administration turned to the federal bureaucracy to help make its case for oil exploration in Alaska.  Katie Orlinsky for The New York Times Putting a positive spin on Arctic drilling In its push to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska to oil exploration, the Trump administration has presented the potential benefits in the best possible light, according to a Times analysis of internal government documents. The White House predicted in 2017 that lease sales in the refuge would generate $1.8 billion over a decade, but revenue estimates ever since, including the government’s, have been substantially lower. The first oil and gas leases could be sold within months. Officials also played down evidence that the refuge might not have much oil, and pushed scientists to provide studies and other information so quickly that some expressed concern. Background: The debate over drilling in the refuge, which opponents say could damage one of the largest expanses of pristine land in the U.S., goes back decades. Government studies in the 1990s suggested as much as 11 billion barrels of oil could be recovered, but findings from the area’s only exploratory well have been kept confidential. N.R.A. gets results with White House call After speaking with the chief executive of the National Rifle Association on Tuesday, President Trump said, “A lot of the people that put me where I am are strong believers in the Second Amendment, and I am also.” Mr. Trump’s endorsement of N.R.A. talking points came less than two weeks after he said that he was interested in pursuing “very meaningful background checks” after mass shootings in Texas and Ohio. Yesterday: The president also said that Jewish Democrats were guilty of either ignorance or “great disloyalty,” a claim that recalled the anti-Semitic accusation that Jews have a “dual loyalty” and are more devoted to Israel than to their own countries. Related: Mr. Trump confirmed he was considering “various tax reductions,” including a payroll tax cut, to stimulate the economy. And … The president was apparently serious about buying Greenland. He postponed a state visit to Denmark set for next month after its prime minister said the semiautonomous territory was “not for sale.” (The Danish were unamused.) Destroyed residential buildings in Aleppo, Syria. Without government reconstruction funds, rebuilding depends on individual contributions.  Meridith Kohut for The New York Times What ‘victory’ looks like in Syria After eight years of civil war, the Syrian government now controls much of the country. Three Times journalists were given tightly controlled access, and they found ruin, generosity and many images of President Bashar al-Assad. They also discovered that the war had diminished the country’s middle class and its population of young men. The United Nations estimates that more than eight in 10 Syrians are living in poverty. How we know: It took almost six months for our Beirut-based correspondent, a Lebanese interpreter and an American photographer to obtain entry to Syria, which has barred many Times journalists and other news outlets for what it considers overly critical reporting. Closer look: “At best, we got a narrow, loyalist’s-eye view of Syria,” our correspondent Vivian Yee writes. “No one we spoke to blamed the Assad government for the catastrophe that had consumed Syria. Economic collapse was always the fault of American sanctions, not the war or corruption.” Yesterday: Syrian troops drew closer to seizing control of Idlib, the last rebel-held province, witnesses and monitors said. If you have 10 minutes, this is worth it Jamie Oliver won’t stop John Kernick for The New York Times Twenty years after vaulting to fame, the British chef, TV star and cookbook author has lost his restaurant empire — but not his taste for hard work. “I have probably been pushed to the edge of my capacity” he told our correspondent. PAID POST: A MESSAGE FROM CAMPAIGN MONITOR Email Marketing 102: Work smarter, not harder. Working smarter means running beautiful, results-driven email marketing campaigns – without sacrificing any bandwidth along the way. And with Campaign Monitor, you'll have access to a drag-and-drop email builder, a gallery of templates, and personalized customer journeys – all the tools you need to replace ‘harder’ with ‘smarter.' Learn More Here’s what else is happening New rules for migrant children: Under a regulatory overhaul that could be issued today, the federal government could detain children and families for longer, revise the standards of care and end longstanding protections. Detention in China: Beijing acknowledged today that it was holding an employee of Britain’s consulate in Hong Kong who had disappeared this month. The case has added to fears that the police in mainland China were arresting people in an effort to dampen support for antigovernment protests. Crisis for Italy: After 14 months of bickering, the nationalist-populist government collapsed. If another coalition cannot assemble a parliamentary majority, elections could follow as soon as October. Moves at Facebook: The company introduced a tool that lets users better control the information it has gathered about them outside its social network. Facebook also said that a news section inside its mobile app would have human editors. Harvey Weinstein trial: The once-powerful Hollywood producer wants his trial on sexual assault charges moved out of New York City, arguing that media scrutiny there makes a fair trial impossible. His legal team counted more than 11,000 mentions of his name online by The New York Post’s gossip column. The 1619 Project: A curator at the Smithsonian helps tell the story of American slavery using objects from the National Museum of African American History and Culture. It’s part of our series examining slavery’s legacy. Chang W. Lee/The New York Times Snapshot: Above, the All-Japan Abacus Championship in Kyoto this month. Calculating with an abacus was a staple of Japanese elementary schools until the 1970s, and tens of thousands of children still take private lessons. Online pioneer bids goodbye: After 25 years, the San Francisco FogCam, which many contend is the world’s oldest webcam, will be turned off. 50 states photo quiz: We scoured The Times’s archive to find one striking picture from each state. How many can you guess? Late-night comedy: Most shows are in reruns, so our column is on hiatus. What we’re reading: Alisha Haridasani Gupta, on the briefings team, recommends this article in Foreign Policy, which argues that British colonialism paved the way for the political crises in Kashmir and Hong Kong. ADVERTISEMENT Now, a break from the news Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne. Cook: Pickle juice makes a great brine for a fried chicken sandwich. Watch: The writer and director Spike Lee narrates a sequence from “Do the Right Thing,” his 1989 film that remains startlingly relevant. Eat: Foxface, in the East Village, takes wild-hare stew, shrimp and grits, and other far-flung dishes and puts them on a bun. Read our restaurant critic’s review. Go: A major retrospective of the painter Lee Krasner brings her out of the shadow of her famous husband, Jackson Pollock. It’s at the Barbican in London before moving to Germany, Switzerland and Spain. Smarter Living: Thinking about renting out your home? Feeling nervous? We collected some helpful strategies. One priority: Move valuable items to a safe space, like a locked closet. Sentimental items can go there, too, or you can leave a note explaining their importance. And the keto diet is popular. But is it good for you? And now for the Back Story on … Bull and bear markets Concerns have been building that the U.S. economy might be nearing a recession. And a downturn could seem due for the stock market, which has been on a bull run for more than 10 years. A bronze statue of a bull fighting with a bear at the Museum of American Finance on Wall Street.  Spencer Platt/Getty Images How did the bull become associated with rising stock prices? Some say it’s because the bull attacks by swinging its horns upward. But richer accounts delve into peculiar areas of history. The association of bears with falling prices came first, thanks to a practice in 17th-century fur trading. Middlemen sometimes sold bearskins they had not yet bought from hunters, betting that the price would drop. It seems to be an early form of what is now known as naked short selling. And the bull was once an obvious partner to the bear, because of the enormous popularity of “baiting” them with trained dogs or beatings. Britain’s Parliament banned the practice in 1835, but the bull and bear are still battling it out on the stock market. That’s it for this briefing. See you next time. — Chris Thank you To Mark Josephson and Eleanor Stanford for the break from the news. Andrea Kannapell, the briefings editor, 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 a push by chief executives in the U.S. to change their business practices. • Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Lost ones might turn up in an old pants pocket (four letters). You can find all our puzzles here. • Sebastian Modak is visiting each destination on our Travel section’s annual 52 Places to Go list. Midway through his trip, he answered readers’ questions. Were you sent this briefing by a friend? Sign up here to get the Morning Briefing. Today's Front Page nytimes.com Subscribe to The Times You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Morning Briefing newsletter. Want to change the time you receive your briefing? Click the time zone more relevant to you: London Hong Kong Sydney Unsubscribe | Manage Subscriptions | Privacy Policy | Contact | Advertise Copyright 2019 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018 ADVERTISEMENT