The White House proposed to legalize 1.8 million undocumented immigrants, in exchange for funding Trump’s wall
The proposal would provide undocumented immigrants brought to the US as children with a path to citizenship, in exchange for a $25 billion “trust fund” for border security and significant cuts to family-based immigration. It calls for the speeding up of deportation of undocumented people, and in return legalizing 1.8 million young immigrants.
Sorry, but Oprah is not planning to run for president
“That’s not for me.” That’s what Oprah told InStyle magazine when asked about speculation she might run for the highest office. She admitted she met with someone who wanted to help her with a presidential campaign, but she said she doesn’t have “the DNA” for politics.
The rumours started flying after her Golden Globes speech, prompting Donald Trump to respond saying he thinks he can beat her. Of course, people who are planning to run for office never ever deny they’re planning to run for office, right? Never.
The Amtrak engineer in the deadly Washington state derailment says he missed speed limit signs
The engineer says he knew the tight curve was coming up, but does not remember seeing signs telling him to slow down to under 30 mph. He told investigators he approached the curve at 79 mph, and didn’t apply handbrakes until the beginning of the turn. A dozen passenger cars came off the rails and onto an interstate highway. The crash killed three people, and 72 were injured.
PSST: Everyone knows the Earth is round — unless you're a flat-Earther. BuzzFeed News' Cristian Rossel visited a flat Earth conference to understand how so many people wind up with a belief system for which they know they'll be ridiculed. Join the Outside Your Bubble Facebook group to see his video and ask questions about the experience, and stick around to share your own bubble-bursting experiences! You can find it right here.
Quick catch-up
Not playing: The US Olympic Committee wants the whole board of USA Gymnastics to resign within six days. The committee said if the board members don’t resign, their status as the sport's national governing body will be terminated.
Not presenting: Casey Affleck will not be presenting the best actress prize at this year’s Oscars. Tradition has it that the award be presented by the last person to win the best actor statuette, but Affleck has withdrawn. The actor previously settled two lawsuits alleging sexual harassment.
Not holding back: Billionaire financier and philanthropist George Soros launched a scathing attack on Google and Facebook. He called the tech companies “a menace,” and called for more “stringent” regulation because “the fact that they are near-monopoly distributors” of information “makes them public utilities.”
Not just words: Actor Octavia Spencer broke down in tears recounting how Jessica Chastain fought for her to get better pay for an upcoming movie. After hearing that women of color get paid less than white women in Hollywood, Chastain came up with a plan to get equal pay. Spencer added, “I love that woman because she's walking the walk, and she's actually talking the talk.”
Not all business: Justin Trudeau wore purple rubber ducky socks to the World Economic Forum, and of course people have strong feelings about it.
Trump apparently ordered Mueller fired, but backed down when the top White House lawyer threatened to quit
After he reportedly received the order to fire Robert Mueller last June, White House counsel Don McGahn refused to ask the Justice Department to terminate the special counsel and threatened to resign. The revelation marks the first known time the president sought the firing of Mueller.
It seems threatening to quit is the go-to move for managing the president: McGahn is not the only person to have tried it.
Let's talk about money for a minute
If you’re a careful spender, you might be self-conscious about people noticing your habits. Venessa Wong explored her shame about being frugal, and how she came to embrace her thriftiness.
Wong’s piece is a part of a series we’ve been running this week in collaboration with the podcast Death, Sex & Money looking at money and class in the US. It kicked off with a piece from Anna Sale, the host and creator of the podcast, about how she learned to share money after a divorce.
There’s also a valuable contribution from Kelli Auerbach, on spending thousands of dollars trying to get pregnant and planning to spend many thousands more on a surrogate — with still no guarantee of a baby.
I highly encourage you to explore the whole series: It’s filled with thoughtful stories that’ll change the way you think about money, and some tips on saving that you might not have thought of.