Articles of impeachment are issued
Democrats officially called for President Trump’s removal from office, charging him with abusing his power and obstructing Congress and claiming that he”disregarded and hurt the interests of the country.”
The draft posts, crossing nine pages, accuse Mr. Trump of “corruptly soliciting” election help from the authorities of Ukraine in the shape of investigations that could violate his Democratic political competitions. Read them on your own.
Details: Democrats say Mr. Trump utilized two”official functions” as leverage: $391 million in security assistance for Ukraine, along with also a White House meeting for the new president.
The next post fees that Mr. Trump participated in”unprecedented, categorical and indiscriminate defiance” by ordering officials to not comply with subpoenas for documents and testimony.
The White House answer: The president’s press secretary accused Democrats of”forcing unfounded accusations down the throats of the American men and women.”
What is next: The House Judiciary Committee could vote Thursday to urge the fees to the complete chamber for final acceptance. When the House follows during the week, as anticipated, Mr. Trump could stand trial in the Senate early in the year. It might require two-thirds of this Senate to convict Mr. Trump and remove him from office.
India needs to rein in data collection
The measure would create a powerful agency to write rules, enforce them and settle disputes. But it has fewer restrictions on the government’s use of personal data — like the fingerprint and iris scans that are part of the Aadhaar national ID system and its detailed surveys of who receives government benefits.
Big picture: The measure brings India closer to China in its tight regulation of the internet. Increasingly, governments are writing their own rules for privacy, security and free speech, while offering protection for homegrown companies. It’s making it more difficult for multinational internet companies to operate freely across the world.
Health care is a new factor in British elections
In the waning days of an otherwise sluggish election race, many British voters are having the dawning realization that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s vow to exit the E.U. could threaten the cherished British health system.
The National Health Service has already deteriorated under the watch of Mr. Johnson’s Conservative Party, with beds overflowing, waiting times swelling and nurse and doctor vacancies mounting.
The system’s precarious state has created a potent obstacle to Mr. Johnson’s campaign. Some polls show the health service is neck and neck with Brexit as most important issue to voters.
Misinformation: A photograph of a sick 4-year-old lying on the floor of an overcrowded hospital — an implicit criticism of the Conservatives’ N.H.S. funding — was subject to false claims that the episode was staged. (The hospital said it was true and issued an apology.)
When the Russian Federation first went to war in the rebellious region of Chechnya 25 years ago today, it expected a swift victory. Instead, Russia was left humiliated, and tens of thousands of people were killed.
We look back at how the humbling of two wars in Chechnya became a turning point that left Russia open to the ascent of Vladimir Putin, a former K.G.B. agent who vowed to restore order and avenge the defeat.
Here’s what else is happening
New Zealand: Why visitors were allowed to tour the mouth of an active volcano in New Zealand remains a major question after at least six people were killed in an eruption on Monday. More than 30 people were injured, many with severe burns.
The Philippines: President Rodrigo Duterte announced that military rule in the southern Philippines would soon end, two and a half years after he imposed it in response to a rebellion by Islamic State militants.
Jersey City shooting: Several people, including at least one officer, were killed in Jersey City, N.J., on Tuesday after two people opened fire around a convenience store, officials said. It touched off a fight involving dozens of officers in a residential area just west of New York City.
Snapshot: Above, Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of Myanmar, in front of The Hague’s International Court of Justice on Tuesday, where she will defend the country as it faces genocide accusations. This week’s public hearings focus on whether the court should issue urgent orders to protect the half a million Rohingya still living in Myanmar.
Self-care: A Buddhist teacher offers five steps to quiet your mind and soothe your stress, especially around the hectic holiday season. Among them: acceptance. Welcoming difficult emotions instead of resisting them allows our minds to rest.
What we’re reading: This Guardian Q. and A. with Lucy Ellmann, the British-American author of the novel “Ducks, Newburyport.” She discusses, among other things, “when resilience appalls her” and how thankless and enraging parenthood is, writes Andrew LaVallee, an editor on our Books desk.
Now, a break from the news
Cook: You can be eating these gingery chocolate cookies 30 minutes after you start measuring the cocoa powder. (And here are 11 more stunning cookies that will impress everyone you know.)
Watch: Jamar Roberts, the first resident choreographer at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York, wants to bring the world into his work.
Go: Our 52 Places traveler visited Perth and the Northern Rivers region of Australia, where he found natural (and fragile) beauty, as well as the tragic backdrop to devastating bush fires.
Smarter Living: Keep your emails concise and clear, and don’t forget the CC rule: People who are expected to reply go in the “to” field, and people not expected to reply in the “CC” field. Read our tips for digital etiquette.
And now for the Back Story on …
Ukraine and global nukes
Pull one thread of the news, and you can find a tapestry of history that leads right back to the present.
For instance: The U.S. impeachment inquiry has focused on the Trump administration’s delay of aid meant to help Ukraine deal with an assault by Russian militias in its east.
Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its proxy war in eastern Ukraine are also considered violations of the memorandum, but repercussions were limited.
Still, the memorandum removed the final obstacle to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, a global limit on nuclear weapons. In practice, it kept the remains of the former Soviet arsenal in Russian control. At the time, that seemed safer than leaving them spread out.
Back to the present: The START treaty is set to lapse in 2020, and Russia and the U.S. have been discussing an extension, most recently on Tuesday, when President Trump met the Russian foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, at the White House.
That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.
— Melina
Thank you
To Mark Josephson and Eleanor Stanford for the break from the news. Will Dudding, an assistant in the Standards department, wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at [email protected]
P.S.
• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Our latest episode is about China’s crackdown on Uighur Muslims.
• Here’s our Mini Crossword, and a clue: Lines on a music score (five letters). You can find all our puzzles here.
• Lynsey Addario, the Pulitzer Prize-winning Times photographer, wrote about one of the most emotional assignments — and friendships — of her life: covering the Belgian Paralympic athlete Marieke Vervoort over three years, as she prepared to die by choice.
