Far-right terrorism in Germany

A Trump loyalist gets the nod for top intelligence job; a recent mass shooting in Germany appears to have been motivated by racism and conspiracy theories. Tonight's Sentences was written by Cameron Peters. TOP NEWS Ambassador to Germany tapped for acting DNI job Johannes Simon/Getty Images - President Donald Trump on Wednesday appointed US Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell as acting director of national intelligence. Grenell is also expected to retain his ambassadorship. [[NYT / Julian E. Barnes and Maggie Haberman](] - The director of national intelligence is a Cabinet-level administration job that oversees the 17 US intelligence services. The position requires Senate confirmation, but Grenell’s previous Senate confirmation as an ambassador means he can take up the “acting” mantle without going back through the Senate. [[Axios / Jonathan Swan and Zachary Basu](] - Trump has reportedly sought a loyalist to fill the role of DNI, though the position is traditionally nonpartisan. Despite his enthusiastic support for the president, Grenell lacks experience with the intelligence community. [[Washington Post / Shane Harris, Anne Gearan, and Josh Dawsey](] - Acting or no, Grenell’s appointment is historic: He’ll be the first openly gay Cabinet member in US history. [[NPR / Scott Neuman](] - Grenell will be the second acting DNI since intelligence chief Dan Coats departed this summer. Grenell’s predecessor in the acting role, Joseph Maguire, would have been required to exit the role by mid-March. [[Politico / Meredith McGraw, Daniel Lippman, Nahal Toosi, and Natasha Bertrand](] - Grenell is not likely to serve in the role permanently — he tweeted on Thursday that the president will announce a different, permanent nominee for the DNI role “soon.” [[Twitter / Richard Grenell](] - Were the president to nominate him for the permanent role, however, it’s unlikely he would survive Senate confirmation. Trump previously pulled the nomination of Rep. John Ratcliffe for the DNI job after it became clear his nomination was likely to stall in the Senate. [[CNN / Kaitlan Collins, Zachary Cohen, Kylie Atwood, and Lauren Fox](] - Grenell is a controversial figure in his current role: A Der Spiegel story from January last year described him as a “vain, narcissistic person” who is largely ignorant of Germany and who “dishes out aggressively, but can barely handle criticism.” [[Der Spiegel / Konstantin von Hammerstein](] Mass shooting kills 10 in Germany - At least 10 people were killed on Wednesday in Hanua, Germany, as a shooter attacked two shisha bars in the city. [[NPR / Rob Schmitz and Scott Neuman](] - Many of the gunman’s victims were Turkish citizens. [[The Guardian / Philip Oltermann, Luke Harding and Bethan McKernan](] - German officials are treating the attack as an act of terrorism; the suspect, who committed suicide before he could be apprehended, reportedly subscribed to racist, xenophobic conspiracy theories. [[CNN / Nadine Schmidt, Sheena McKenzie, Rob Picheta and Ivana Kottasova](] - German Chancellor Angela Merkel responded to the attack Thursday by condemning extremism. “Racism is a poison; hate is a poison,” Merkel said. “This poison exists in our society, and it's to blame for too many tragic events.” [[Washington Post / Loveday Morris, Rick Noack and Luisa Beck](] - The attack may reflect an uptick in right-wing extremism and virulent anti-immigrant sentiments in Germany. In particular, the far-right Alternative für Deutschland party has found increasing electoral success in recent years. [[Vox / Alex Ward](] MISCELLANEOUS Trump confidant Roger Stone was sentenced to more than three years in prison for lying to Congress, obstruction, and witness tampering. [[Politico / Darren Samuelsohn and Josh Gerstein](] - “We’re a little state with big state energy”: New Jersey’s hilarious Twitter account, explained [[NYT / Michael Gold](] - In a remote Alaska village, the decennial census gets a very early start. [[NPR / Claire Harbage and Hansi Lo Wang](] - How Boston plans to deal with climate change and rising sea levels. [[Washington Post / Steven Mufson](] - Elizabeth Warren laid into Mike Bloomberg in the ninth Democratic debate — and made an electability argument in the process. [[Vox / Emily Stewart](] VERBATIM “This isn’t about how it turned out, this is about what it was designed to do to begin with. It targeted communities of color. It targeted black and brown men from the beginning. And if you want to issue a real apology, then the apology has to start with the intent of the plan." [[Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Mike Bloomberg’s stop-and-frisk record at the ninth Democratic debate Wednesday / Vox](] WATCH THIS [The British royal family is very rich, but not as rich as you might think.]( The British royal family is very rich, but not as rich as you might think. [[YouTube / Laura Bult, Nicole Finateri, and Dion Lee](] [Read more from Vox](#) [Identity politics isn’t hurting liberalism. It’s saving it.]( [How to reduce your food’s carbon footprint, in 2 charts]( [The slow implosion of Joe Biden’s big bet on South Carolina, explained]( [How does the new coronavirus spread? These new studies offer clues.]( [3 winners and 4 losers from the Nevada Democratic debate]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [YouTube]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Manage your [email preferences](, or [unsubscribe]( to stop receiving all emails from Vox. View our [Privacy Policy]( and our [Terms of Service](. Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036. Copyright © 2020. All rights reserved.