Your Wednesday Evening Briefing

Trump, Brenda Fitzgerald, Virginia | View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Wednesday, January 31, 2018 [NYTimes.com »]( [Your Wednesday Evening Briefing]( By KAREN ZRAICK AND DAVID SCULL Good evening. Here’s the latest. Zach Gibson for The New York Times 1. The F.B.I. expressed “grave concerns” about the accuracy of a Republican memo accusing the bureau of mishandling the Russia inquiry. The bureau’s statement [thrust the F.B.I. director, Christopher Wray, above, into the deepening clash]( with President Trump and other Republicans over whether it should be released. Our Washington correspondent’s analysis: Mr. Trump’s allies are trying [to shift the focus away from Russian election interference]( and portray the actions of investigators as the real scandal. ____ Tom Brenner/The New York Times 2. President Trump’s first State of the Union address, despite its call for unity, may have [worsened partisan tensions on Capitol Hill](. “I have never seen a president who cares nothing about reaching out to people who did not vote for him,” said a Democratic senator. Here’s an [annotated transcript]( of the speech, and some of the best [writing about it from across the political spectrum](. ____ Andrew Burton for The New York Times 3. In other news from the Justice Department: We got an exclusive look at legal documents that show that prosecutors are seeking information on FIFA and Olympic organizations in a far-reaching [investigation of international sports corruption](. Above, Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., which was chosen to host the 2021 world track and field championships without a bidding process. And prosecutors moved to dismiss [the corruption case against Senator Robert Menendez]( the New Jersey Democrat. That will allow him to run for re-election without the cloud of an indictment hanging over him. ____ Zack Wajsgrasu/The Daily Progress, via Associated Press 4. An Amtrak train carrying numerous Republican lawmakers to an annual retreat [crashed into a large truck in Virginia](. The White House said that at least one person was killed and another seriously injured, but that the lawmakers and their staff members were fine. Senator Jeff Flake said in a TV interview that he had been in one of the front cars and helped carry an injured man from the truck to an ambulance. ____ David Tulis/Associated Press 5. The director of the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention resigned]( after criticism of her financial investments in tobacco and health care companies. Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald, above, was appointed to the agency in July by Tom Price, who served as Mr. Trump’s first Health and Human Services secretary — until he too was forced to resign, for traveling on private jets and charging them to the government. ____ Eric Thayer for The New York Times 6. The Federal Reserve left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at [its final meeting under its departing chairwoman, Janet Yellen]( above. The rate remains in a range between 1.25 percent and 1.5 percent. Jerome Powell, a member of the Fed’s board since 2012, will take the oath of office as the new chairman on Monday. ____ Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal, via Associated Press 7. Larry Nassar, the former doctor for the U.S. gymnastics team sentenced to more years than any human has ever lived, [is back in court](. But it’s a different courtroom in Michigan, handling a separate case involving sex abuse against minors. About 65 women and girls have signed up to speak for this sentencing. The judge in this case, Janice Cunningham, said that there were more than 265 victims in total. ____ NASA 8. An amateur fossil hunter led experts to a rare cluster of dinosaur footprints on a slab of rock [under a NASA parking lot in Maryland](. At one end of rock, above, is a single footprint from a young, long-necked sauropod. At the other end is one from a nodosaur, an armored plant-eater as heavy as a small elephant. Alongside are smaller footprints from a baby nodosaur, following its parent. “I was in ecstasy as a tracker,” the fossil hunter said. ____ Karsten Moran for The New York Times 9. The Super Bowl’s coming up this weekend, and our Cooking team has [recipes at the ready]( for staples like chili, wings and dips. But [they suggest eating sensibly in preparation]( offering, for instance, this [Italian potato-pasta soup with greens](. ____ [“The Good Place,” with, from left, William Jackson Harper, Manny Jacinto, Kristen Bell and Jameela Jamil, suggests that becoming good is hard work.]Colleen Hayes/NBC 10. Finally, the former adult film actress known as [Stormy Daniels appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”]( just moments after the State of the Union ended. She didn’t confirm — or deny — reports of an affair with the president. On another channel, and in another vein, [“The Good Place,” above, airs its season two finale]( on Thursday. Our critic says the NBC show’s optimism about human nature is refreshing in an era of artistic bleakness. “It’s made humane and sidesplittingly entertaining television out of the notion that people — and even the occasional immortal demon — are redeemable,” he writes. Have a great night. ____ Your Evening Briefing is posted at 6 p.m. Eastern. And don’t miss [Your Morning Briefing]( posted weekdays at 6 a.m. Eastern, and Your Weekend Briefing, posted at 6 a.m. Sundays. We have four global editions, timed for [the Americas]( [Europe]( [Asia]( and [Australia](. Want to catch up on past briefings? [You can browse them here](. If photographs appear out of order, please download the updated New York Times app [from iTunes]( or [Google Play](. What did you like? What do you want to see here? Let us know at [briefing@nytimes.com](mailto:briefing@nytimes.com?subject=Evening%20Briefing%20Feedback). LIKE THIS EMAIL? Forward it to your friends, and let them know they can sign up [here](. ADVERTISEMENT Sponsor a Subscription Inspire the future generation of readers by contributing to The Times’s [sponsor-a-subscription program](. For questions, email sponsor@nytimes.com or call [1-844-698-2677](. 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