Government shutdown, 'Leaving Neverland,' Paul Manafort hearing: 5 things to know Friday
Federal workers miss second paycheck since shutdown began
The nation's 800,000 federal employees will miss their second paycheck on Friday as the government shutdown extends into its second month. About half of those employees, including about 50,000 airport security workers, are considered "essential" and are working anyway. Without paychecks, some federal employees have resorted to picking up temporary jobs to make ends meet. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said he doesn't see why unpaid federal workers are needing to go to food banks when they could just take out a loan. The shutdown began three days before Christmas when President Donald Trump and top Democratic leaders in Congress reached a stalemate over Trump's demand for a $5.7 billion wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
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Hearing to weigh Manafort's alleged lying to prosecutors
A hearing scheduled for Friday in federal court will examine claims by special counsel Robert Mueller's team that Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman, lied to investigators despite his plea agreement to cooperate with them. Manafort pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy and obstruction of justice. But Mueller, who is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election, voided the plea agreement in November because of what he called repeated lying by Manafort. Lawyers for Manafort have denied the allegations in court filings.
Trump's new plan for asylum-seekers set to start
The Trump administration expects to launch a policy as early as Friday that will force asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico while their cases work through U.S. courts. The changes will start at the nation’s busiest border crossing, San Diego's San Ysidro district. Already one of the most significant changes to the immigration system of Donald Trump’s presidency, the policy may also be expanded to other crossings. It is expected to face a legal challenge and other major changes have been blocked in court. "Bypassing immigration law put into place by Congress is illegal. Returning asylum seekers to Mexico and stranding them there is illegal," said Kennji Kizuka of Human Rights First, the Associated Press reported. "This is yet another attempt by the president to undermine asylum and deny protection to people fleeing persecution."
Michael Jackson documentary premieres at Sundance
A highly-anticipated documentary that examines sexual abuse allegations against Michael Jackson screens Friday at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. "Leaving Neverland," a 233-minute film from director Dan Reed, tells the stories of two of Jackson's accusers, who were befriended by the pop icon as boys. The film will air on HBO and British public broadcaster Channel 4 in two installments this spring. The Jackson estate has already denounced "Leaving Neverland" as "just another rehash of dated and discredited allegations." Jackson was acquitted of molestation charges in 2005.
After shaky start, Tiger looks to get aggressive at Torrey Pines
Despite a few shaky distances with his irons, Tiger Woods will look to make a charge up the leaderboard Friday in Round 2 of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torry Pines. Extra "adrenalin" led to a few shaky distances with the irons for the 14-time major champion, but a 2-under 70 at the South Course made for a solid 2019 debut. Woods is eight shots behind leader John Rahm, who fired a blistering 10-under 62 that was one shot short of tying the course record.
