The regional bureau of The Associated Press, shares 10 things you need to know Thursday, Feb. 7, 2019. Look for full stories on these late-breaking news items and much more in West Virginia newspapers.
1. VIRGINIA HAS CHECKERED RACIAL PAST
Virginia has become more diverse and socially liberal in recent years, but the state continues to struggle with mindsets shaped by its turbulent racial history.
2. BORDER WALL A DELICATE DANCE
Some Mexican homes encroach on U.S. soil, posing a dilemma for federal authorities.
3. ‘REVOLUTION BABIES’ REPRESENT MAJOR FORCE IN IRAN
More than half of the Islamic Republic’s 80 million people are under 35 and they must deal with the country’s economic struggles under re-imposed U.S. sanctions.
4. WHO IS CHANNELING THEIR INNER DONALD TRUMP
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party has plastered huge billboards of the two leaders together and launched a Trump-like weekly webcast to counter what it calls the “fake news” industry.
5. SOME STATES TAKING LEAD IN ABORTION FIGHT
Republican legislators in several states are pushing ahead with anti-abortion bills they hope can pass muster with the U.S. Supreme Court.
6. MAY IN BRUSSELS TO DISCUSS DIVORCE PROCEEDINGS
The British prime minister reopens frosty talks with the EU on the Brexit agreement and is bracing for a clash with the bloc’s presidents who have said there can be no renegotiation.
7. NEW FITNESS TEST COMING FOR ARMY
The more grueling and complex exam adds dead lifts, power throws and other exercises designed to make soldiers more fit and ready for combat.
8. GUCCI PULLS BLACKFACE ITEMS AFTER COMPLAINTS
The Italian fashion giant apologizes for a wool sweater that resembled a “blackface” and says the item has been pulled from its online and physical stores.
9. WHO’S BEING ACCUSED OF PLAGIARISM
Former New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson is facing allegations that she lifted material from other sources for her new book, “Merchants of Truth.”
10. NOMAD NFL TEAM LOOKING FOR A NEW HOME
Still two years from moving to Las Vegas, the Raiders are in search of a home, any home, for the 2019 season.