Your Friday Briefing

> Jared Kushner, Afghanistan, Michael Jackson: Here’s what you need to know. [The New York Times]( [nytimes.com]( [The New York Times]( Friday, Mar 1, 2019 | [View in browser]( Supported by Good morning, We start today with a new report about Jared Kushner’s security clearance, the aftermath of the failed U.S.-North Korea talks, and details of a peace plan in Afghanistan. By Chris Stanford The question of Jared Kushner’s access to intelligence has been an issue since almost the beginning of the Trump administration. Sarah Silbiger/The New York Times President Trump demanded clearance for Jared Kushner Mr. Trump overruled concerns from intelligence officials last year and ordered his chief of staff [to give top-secret security clearance to Mr. Kushner]( his son-in-law and senior adviser, according to four people briefed on the matter. John Kelly, then the White House chief of staff, wrote an internal memo saying he had been “ordered” to grant the clearance. The top White House lawyer at the time, Donald McGahn, also wrote a memo outlining his reservations. [The president told The Times in January]( that he had taken no role in Mr. Kushner’s receiving his clearance. Background: Mr. Kushner’s initial background check took more than a year. Officials had raised questions about his ties to overseas governments and investors, and about his initially unreported contacts with foreigners. Response: A spokesman for Mr. Kushner’s lawyer said on Thursday: “In 2018, White House and security clearance officials affirmed that Mr. Kushner’s security clearance was handled in the regular process with no pressure from anyone. That was conveyed to the media at the time, and new stories, if accurate, do not change what was affirmed at the time.” President Trump’s motorcade leaving the summit meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Thursday. Linh Pham/Getty Images The breakdown of the U.S.-North Korea talks [The two sides traded blame on Thursday]( after the second summit meeting between President Trump and North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, collapsed with no deal. Mr. Trump said Mr. Kim was unwilling to dismantle enough of his nuclear weapons program to warrant lifting sanctions, an assertion the North later disputed. News analysis: Mr. Trump negotiated directly with North Korea, an approach his predecessors avoided. The risk of doing so is that if you fail, there are few places to go, [our national security correspondent writes](. What’s next? History suggests that the North Koreans may try to pressure Mr. Trump by escalating. The North has the world’s fastest-growing nuclear arsenal. The Daily: Today’s episode investigates [why the meeting fell apart](. Plan promises a U.S. exit from Afghanistan All American troops [would withdraw from the country within the next five years]( under a new Pentagon proposal being discussed in peace talks with the Taliban. The plan would transfer responsibility for training the Afghan military to international troops, and largely shift American operations to counterterrorism strikes. It has been met with broad acceptance in Washington and among NATO officials. Negotiations with the Taliban to end the war, now in its 18th year, resume on Saturday. How we know: Parts of the plan were shared with The Times by more than a half-dozen current and former American and European officials. Speaker Nancy Pelosi has pushed back against calls to impeach President Trump, which she said was “a divisive issue in our country.” Erin Schaff/The New York Times Top Democrats shy away from impeachment The party’s leaders emphasized on Thursday that they [intend to pursue multiple investigations of President Trump’s actions]( rather than an effort to impeach him, after this week’s testimony by Michael Cohen. That position puts the leadership at odds with some rank-and-file Democrats and liberal activists. Another angle: It’s unclear whether Mr. Cohen’s testimony about Mr. Trump’s potentially criminal conduct will shift opinion on either the left or the right. But he did implicate Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization’s longtime chief financial officer, [who may now face further scrutiny](. If you have 16 minutes this weekend, this is worth it Breaking Michael Jackson’s spell Dave Hogan/Getty Images “Leaving Neverland,” which appears on HBO starting Sunday, is a four-hour movie about the musician’s alleged pedophilia, focused on the stories of two men who say they were his victims as children. Our critic at large, Wesley Morris, writes about [wrestling with his fandom as the agonizing stories unfold](. PAID POST: A Message From XBrand Renewable Energy in Today's Age Look around you...All of the things that you love about this planet can be used to power it. the sun, rain, wind, tides and waves. We are creating renewable enery that benefits you and our planet, more efficiently and inexpensively. Recharge today with something different. [Learn More]( Here’s what else is happening India-Pakistan tensions: Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan said on Thursday that his country [would release a captured Indian pilot](. Indictment near for Netanyahu: Israel’s attorney general has [announced a plan to indict Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu]( on charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust. An appeal to Amazon: Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been working behind the scenes to persuade the company [to resurrect its plans to open a campus in New York City]( including a personal pitch to Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder. Departure at HBO: The cable network’s chief executive, Richard Plepler, [is leaving after 27 years there](. He is said to have felt that he had less autonomy since AT&T acquired HBO’s owner, Time Warner, last year. Mikko Schimmelfeder/DPA, via Associated Press Snapshot: Above, Edda, a pug that officials seized from a family in Germany and then sold on eBay for 750 euros, roughly $850, to cover an unpaid tax bill. On Thursday, a spokesman for the city of Ahlen [called it “a pragmatic solution”]( to an outstanding debt, but the case has prompted outrage from animal rights activists and others. Record baseball contract: Bryce Harper [has reached a free-agent deal with the Philadelphia Phillies]( for 13 years and $330 million, the most ever guaranteed to a baseball player. News quiz: Did you follow the headlines this week? [Test yourself](. Late-night comedy: Jimmy Kimmel [assessed President Trump’s summit meeting]( in Vietnam: “He flew over there and got nothing — like the Fyre Festival.” What we’re reading: Chris, your Morning Briefing writer, recommends [this Pulitzer Prize-winning piece from 2007 in The Washington Post](. “The violinist Joshua Bell performed a recital in London this week that I was lucky enough to attend. Twelve years ago, The Post (my employer at the time) conducted an experiment in which he played in a Washington subway station during the morning rush hour. Virtually no one stopped to listen.” ADVERTISEMENT Now, a break from the news David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews. Cook: Cauliflower gets the Philippine adobo treatment in [this vegetarian dish](. Watch: “Free Solo,” the Oscar-winning documentary about the rock climber Alex Honnold, is among our [small-screen recommendations for the weekend](. Go: When in Venice, [join the locals for cicchetti]( the Italian version of tapas. Read: Clive Thompson, a longtime tech writer, brings an anthropologist’s eye to the world of programming in “Coders: The Making of a New Tribe and the Remaking of the World.” It’s one of [12 books to watch for in March](. Smarter Living: When you’re cleaning out your closet, try [finding a new life for your unwanted clothes]( whether by selling, donating or recycling them. In 2015 Americans sent 10.5 million tons of textiles to the dump and just 2.5 million tons to be recycled. We also have ideas on how to [keep fresh on long days of travel](. And now for the Back Story on … How Dr. Seuss went global Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, was born 115 years ago on Saturday. He had a unique take on the English language. His inventive use of rhythm and rhyme is at once ridiculous and intoxicating to children and parents alike. Dr. Seuss with one of his creations, the Cat in the Hat, in 1988. Burt Steel/Associated Press His titles have sold a staggering 650 million copies in more than 45 languages — including Latin, Hebrew and Catalan — and are available in 110 countries. This global expansion came with a tricky obstacle: how to translate him. “The challenge is staying true to the original books while being sensitive to the local market,” says Susan Brandt, the president of [Dr. Seuss Enterprises](. “And not lose the magic.” The solution? Hire local poets to work with translators. That’s how “Snuvs” from “Oh, the Thinks You Can Think!” became “Lhufas” in Portuguese, and “Hakken-Kraks’” from “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” became “Scracchi Stridenti” in Italian. And as for Sam I Am? [In Spanish, he’s Juan Ramón]( and he’s obsessed with huevos verdes con jamón. The last time an American spacecraft carried astronauts into orbit was in 2011. On Saturday, SpaceX and NASA [will test a replacement for the space shuttle](. That’s it for this briefing. See you next time. — Chris Thank you To Mark Josephson, Eleanor Stanford, John Dorman and James K. Williamson for the break from the news. Karen Thorne, a content strategist, wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at [briefing@nytimes.com](mailto:briefing@nytimes.com?te=1&nl=morning-briefing&emc=edit_NN_p_20190301§ion=endNotetion=endNote). P.S. • We’re listening to “[The Daily]( Today’s episode is about the failure of the U.S.-North Korea talks. • Here’s today’s [mini crossword puzzle]( and a clue: Monday, in French (5 letters). [You can find all our puzzles here](. • Fifty years ago, the book “A Day in the Life of The New York Times” chronicled 24 hours at the Gray Lady. On its anniversary, [we look at how the news organization operates today](. Were you sent this briefing by a friend? [Sign up here]( to get the Morning Briefing. [Today's Front Page]( [nytimes.com]( [Subscribe to The Times]( You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Morning Briefing newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2019 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018 ADVERTISEMENT