The regional bureau of The Associated Press, shares 10 things you need to know Thursday, Nov. 16, 2017. Look for full stories on these late-breaking news items and much more in West Virginia newspapers.
1. GOP MUSCLING TAX BILL THROUGH HOUSE; HITS SENATOR ROADBLOCK
House leaders are confident a massive tax overhaul bill will pass, but Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin became the first Republican senator to say he opposes his party’s politically must-do legislation.
2. WHAT GOP IS BRACING FOR
Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore and his allies in Alabama are bracing for an extended conflict — not with Democrats, but with their own party in Washington.
3. MUGABE IN TALKS THAT COULD END DECADES-LONG RULE
The Zimbabwean president has been in military custody, reportedly with his wife, and there’s no sign of the recently fired deputy Emmerson Mnangagwa, who fled the country last week.
4. FRANCE SAYS HARIRI ACCEPTS INVITATION
Macron’s office says that the Lebanese prime minister will be in the country within days after his surprise resignation from Saudi Arabia that stunned Lebanon and rattled the region.
5. NEIGHBOR SLAIN BY NORTHERN CALIFORNIA GUNMAN HAD PROTECTIVE ORDER
Hailey Suzanne Poland told a judge earlier this year that she lived in fear of Kevin Janson Neal because he was violent and unpredictable, firing off guns at all hours and threatening her with “perverted things.”
6. FERTILIZER RUNOFF POSES RISKS TO HEALTH, DAMAGES ECONOMY
An AP investigation finds that vast sums of taxpayer money spent to make farms more environmentally friendly are not stopping a toxic algae plague in the nation’s waterways.
7. WHERE THEY’RE HAVING TROUBLE KEEPING TRACK OF PATIENTS
There have been 17 escapes in the past eight years at a Hawaii psychiatric hospital thrust into the spotlight after a dangerous patient got away and made it to California before he was captured.
8. $500 MILLION MUSEUM OF THE BIBLE SET FOR WASHINGTON OPENING
Hobby Lobby’s owner, who provided the artifacts, says the museum is a nonsectarian effort to educate people about the Bible’s broad influence, but critics say its ultimate goal is evangelizing.
9. WHAT $450 MILLION CAN GET YOU
A painting of Christ by da Vinci sells for a record at a Christie’s auction in New York, smashing previous marks for artworks sold at auction or privately.
10. WHO IS FEUDING OVER GOODELL
The NFL sends a letter to Jerry Jones’ attorney accusing the Cowboys owner of “conduct detrimental to the league’s best interests” over his objection to a contract extension for the commissioner.
