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VOL. 43 | NO. 3 | Friday, January 18, 2019

Need temporary workers in a hurry? Good luck

Nashville labor shortage transforms temp agencies

Your company just scored a special project. It’s Friday, and you’ll need 20 workers on hand by Monday.

Temporary work a good fit for Dead Deads bassist

As bassist for Nashville-based band The Dead Deads, Mavis Turner knows all about life on the road. She also has a background as a business analyst and, when touring is slow or she needs some time at home, she turns to temping.

JOE ROGERS: MY TAKE

How hard can it be to find the perfect church?

“Church shopping” sounds slightly off-putting. So, I prefer to think of my current repatriated Nashvillian process as spiritual home seeking.

Local Weather
Currently
Nashville, TN
45.0°F
Overcast
Wind: North at 8.1 mph
Humidity: 68%

EVENTS

Nashville Restaurant Week. Enjoy a week of special discounts at select restaurants throughout the city. Most restaurants offer two-or three-course meals during lunch or dinner from $10-$30. Through Sunday, Jan. 27. Information

more events »

RICHARD COURTNEY: REALTY CHECK

Hacker’s scam, court ruling a big wakeup for industry

There is no better way to get the attention of an industry than to have a court render a $167,129 decision against one of its members.

REAL ESTATE

Top Middle Tennessee residential sales for 2018

Top residential real estate sales, 2018, for Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson and Sumner counties, as compiled by Chandler Reports.

Top Middle Tennessee residential sales for December 2018

Top residential real estate sales, December 2018, for Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson and Sumner counties, as compiled by Chandler Reports.

Top Middle Tennessee commercial sales for 2018

Top commercial real estate sales, 2018, for Davidson, Williamson, Rutherford, Wilson and Sumner counties, as compiled by Chandler Reports.

US average mortgage rates steady; 30-year stays at 4.45 pct.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. long-term mortgage rates held steady this week, after falling for six straight weeks to reach their lowest levels in nine months.

TENNESSEE TITANS

Titans' OC hire might offer clue to Mariota’s future

Marcus Mariota can’t catch a break. His offensive coordinator, Matt LaFleur, was named head coach of the Green Bay Packers last week, leaving the Titans to search for play-caller No. 5 as Mariota heads into a make-or-break fifth season as Tennessee’s quarterback.

Looks like Patriots (again?) vs. Saints in Super Bowl

With only four teams remaining, it’s no real surprise that four of the most potent offenses in the league have slots in the conference championship games.

VANDERBILT SPORTS

Right scheme draws Notre Dame transfer to Vanderbilt

When Matt Ryan decided to transfer from Notre Dame after two seasons with the basketball team there, he did not have to search for an offense that fit his 3-point shooting abilities.

NEWSMAKERS

Bass, Berry & Sims elects 7 new members

Bass, Berry & Sims PLC has elected seven new members, including three in the Nashville office. New Nashville-office members are:

BRIEFS

HealthStream buys Denver health care firm

HealthStream, a Nashville-based provider of workforce and provider solutions for the health care industry, has acquired Providigm LLC.

BEHIND THE WHEEL

Top car tech trends from Consumer Electronics Show

Every year at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, we get a glimpse of what vehicles might be – and what they could do. The event has also become an annual progress report on the latest electric vehicles and how close we are to “full driving automation,” as the Society of Automotive Engineers calls it. Here are a few vehicle trends from CES that you’ll see in the immediate future and some others that are much further away.

BUSINESS BOOK REVIEW

Change the conversation to help your business stand out

Blah, blah, blah. Sadly, that describes your business. Nothing has changed in decades, so it’s time for something new. You’d like to shake things up, but the budget is limited, and you don’t know what to say. That’s fine: in “Talk Triggers” by Jay Baer & Daniel Lemin, you’ll learn that actions speak louder anyway.

CAREER CORNER

Be polite and keep your business jargon to yourself

Have you ever wondered how your website is doing in the SERPs? What about your PPC? Are you getting a good CPA? What about the CPM? Are you tracking all of your KPIs?

STATE GOVERNMENT

Tennessee resolution praises King, denounces racism

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee House lawmakers on Wednesday unanimously adopted a resolution praising Martin Luther King Jr.'s life while also promising to fight racism.

March oral arguments set in Tennessee lawmakers' refugee case

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee lawmakers have a March court date in an appeal of their dismissed lawsuit against the federal government over the refugee resettlement program.

STATEWIDE

Tennessee inmates graduate from community college program

ONLY (AP) — Inmates at the Turney Center Industrial Complex in Tennessee are graduating from Nashville State Community College with associate's degrees in political science and business administration.

PREDATORS

Predators' Subban says Golden Knights' Bellemare bit finger

LAS VEGAS (AP) — This goal-mouth scramble might have had some real bite to it.

Saros makes career-high 47 saves, leads Predators to 2-1 win

LAS VEGAS (AP) — If Nashville and Vegas meet in the postseason, Predators coach Peter Laviolette shouldn't have a problem choosing his starting goaltender.

AUTO INDUSTRY

Renault names new leaders to replace Ghosn, jailed in Japan

PARIS (AP) — The board of French carmaker Renault on Thursday named two new leaders to replace industry veteran Carlos Ghosn, who resigned after weeks of detention in Japan.

ENVIRONMENT

'The milkman model': Big brand names try reusable containers

A new shopping platform announced Thursday at the World Economic Forum aims to change the way we buy many brand-name products.

TECHNOLOGY

Microsoft's Bing blocked in China, prompting grumbling

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese internet users have lost access to Microsoft Corp.'s Bing search engine, setting off grumbling about the ruling Communist Party's increasingly tight online censorship.

Huawei announces 5G smartphone based on own technology

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese tech giant Huawei announced plans Wednesday for a next-generation smartphone that will use its own technology instead of U.S. components, maneuvering to gain a competitive edge and sidestep complaints it is a security risk.

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

Applications for US unemployment aid fall to 49-year low

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people seeking jobless benefits dropped last week to the lowest level since November 1969, a sign the job market remains strong despite the partial government shutdown, now in its fifth week.

European Central Bank holds firm despite weaker growth

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The European Central Bank kept its level of support for the eurozone's slowing economy unchanged Thursday despite worries about Brexit, trade wars and weaker global growth.

NATIONAL POLITICS

AP-NORC poll: 6 in 10 Americans blame Trump for shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — A strong majority of Americans blame President Donald Trump for the record-long government shutdown and reject his primary rationale for a border wall, according to a new poll that shows the turmoil in Washington is dragging his approval rating to its lowest level in more than a year.

Trump's shutdown gift to Pelosi: A unified Democratic caucus

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has done something remarkable in the government shutdown: He's unified the diverse new House Democratic majority firmly behind Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Votes on Senate bills seen as progress even if they fail

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate is taking a new approach to ending the partial government shutdown by actually taking votes instead of just pointing fingers.

Ending showdown with Pelosi, Trump postpones State of Union

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said he is postponing his State of the Union address until the partial government shutdown ends, yielding after a weeklong showdown with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.


WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23
VANDERBILT SPORTS

Garland's declares for NBA draft after 5-game college career

NASHVILLE (AP) — Vanderbilt point guard Darius Garland says he's leaving for the NBA draft after a knee injury ended his freshman season in November.

STATE GOVERNMENT

Resolution denouncing neo-Nazis resurfaces in Tennessee

NASHVILLE (AP) — A Nashville lawmaker is once again backing a resolution denouncing neo-Nazis and white nationalists after similar proposals failed to gain traction in the Tennessee Legislature last year.

Lee issues first executive order, focuses on rural areas

NASHVILLE (AP) — Gov. Bill Lee is directing all state agencies to find ways to improve how they serve rural Tennessee regions as part of his first executive order.

Lee asks Tennessee agencies to assess shutdown impacts

NASHVILLE (AP) — New Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Lee says he's asking his state agencies to assess impacts of the federal government shutdown.

HEALTH CARE

Judge releases Tennessee's Medicaid program from injunction

NASHVILLE (AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday released Tennessee's Medicaid program from a 2014 injunction requiring it to hold hearings for people whose applications aren't processed promptly.

Poll: Support for 'Medicare-for-all' fluctuates with details

WASHINGTON (AP) — "Medicare-for-all" makes a good first impression, but support plunges when people are asked if they'd pay higher taxes or put up with treatment delays to get it.

REAL ESTATE

Analysis: Falling home sales not helping middle-class buyers

WASHINGTON (AP) — When home sales weaken, prices typically do, too, and buyers benefit.

TECHNOLOGY

Verizon cutting about 800 jobs in troubled media business

NEW YORK (AP) — Verizon is cutting about 800 jobs, or 7 percent of its media and advertising employees, as it reorganizes the troubled division.

Hulu ups price for live-TV service, cuts basic package price

NEW YORK (AP) — Hulu's live-TV streaming service will cost $5 more per month, while its traditional video-on-demand service will be $2 cheaper.

Comcast loses cable users, but internet subscribers surge

NEW YORK (AP) — Comcast is still losing U.S. cable customers but is racking up more internet subscribers and has gotten a revenue boost from Sky, its big bet on European TV.

Netflix joins MPAA lobbying group, its 1st streaming member

NEW YORK (AP) — On the same day Netflix scored its first best picture nomination from the Oscars, the streaming company is also joining the lobbying group the Motion Picture Association of America.

COURTS

Canadian ambassador: Huawei exec could avoid US extradition

TORONTO (AP) — Canada's ambassador to China said a top Chinese executive has a strong case to avoid extradition to the United States in remarks one of his predecessors said were "mind-boggling.

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

US stocks waver as signs of future profit growth wobble

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes spent Wednesday drifting and finished with small gains. While big companies continue to report strong profit growth, investors aren't sure how much longer it will last.

Government shutdown poses increasing risk to wider economy

WASHINGTON (AP) — As the government shutdown enters a second month, economists say it could pose a threat to the wider economy.

At Davos, battle lines are drawn over trade and cooperation

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — World leaders in favor of international cooperation and free trade struck back Wednesday against the wave of populist nationalism that has featured more prominently than usual at the gathering of elites in Davos, Switzerland.

Japan's PM seeks trade reform as risks to world economy loom

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — Japan's prime minister says China's slowing growth, Brexit woes and U.S.-China trade disputes pose risks to the world economy, while decrying the World Trade Organization as "behind the curve" and in need of reform to help ease trade tensions.

Businesses sound alarm as UK says prepare for no-deal Brexit

LONDON (AP) — Businesses in Britain and the European Union need to prepare for the possibility the U.K. will leave the bloc in March without an exit deal, senior British and EU officials warned Wednesday, as a growing number of U.K. firms braced for disruption by stockpiling goods or shifting operations overseas.

NATIONAL POLITICS

AP-NORC poll: Shutdown drags Trump approval to yearlong low

WASHINGTON (AP) — A strong majority of Americans blame President Donald Trump for the record-long government shutdown and reject his primary rationale for a border wall, according to a new poll that shows the turmoil in Washington is dragging his approval rating to its lowest level in more than a year.

Pelosi officially postpones Trump address

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is officially postponing President Donald Trump's State of the Union address until the government is fully reopened.

Ex-Trump lawyer Cohen delaying testimony to Congress

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer is postponing his public testimony to Congress.

Week 5: Shutdown votes set up political test for Senate

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate leaders agreed to hold votes this week on dueling proposals to reopen shuttered federal agencies, forcing a political reckoning for senators grappling with the longest shutdown in U.S. history: Side with President Donald Trump or vote to temporarily end the shutdown and keep negotiating.


TUESDAY, JANUARY 22
STATE GOVERNMENT

Tennessee House adds feature to online bill tracking process

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee lawmakers say the state House has added a new feature to the online bill tracking process that will add more public transparency into tracking amendments to bills.

AUTO INDUSTRY

Google self-driving spinoff Waymo to put factory in Michigan

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Google's self-driving car spinoff Waymo said Tuesday it will bring a factory to Michigan, creating up to 400 jobs at what it describes as the world's first plant "100 percent" dedicated to the mass production of autonomous vehicles.

Toyota, Panasonic announce venture for green auto batteries

TOKYO (AP) — Toyota Motor Corp. and Panasonic Corp. are setting up a joint venture to research, manufacture and sell batteries for ecological autos, an increasingly lucrative sector amid concerns about global warming.

Tokyo court rejects Ex-Nissan chair Ghosn's bail request

TOKYO (AP) — A Tokyo court rejected former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn's latest request for bail on Tuesday, more than two months after his arrest.

COURTS

China demands US drop Huawei extradition request with Canada

BEIJING (AP) — China on Tuesday demanded the U.S. drop a request that Canada extradite a top executive of the tech giant Huawei, shifting blame to Washington in a case that has severely damaged Beijing's relations with Ottawa.

HEALTH CARE

Pelosi works her health care strategy from the ground up

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is laying out her strategy on health care and first up is improvements to "Obamacare" and legislation to lower prescription drug costs. "Medicare for all" will get hearings.

REAL ESTATE

US home sales plummeted 6.4 percent in December

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. home sales cratered in December, causing price growth to slip to the lowest level in more than six years as the housing sector ended 2018 on a decidedly weak note.

COURTS

High court lets military implement transgender restrictions

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration can go ahead with its plan to restrict military service by transgender men and women while court challenges continue, the Supreme Court said Tuesday.

Supreme Court releases censored appeal by foreign government

WASHINGTON (AP) — An unidentified foreign government is asking the Supreme Court to get involved in a case that may be part of special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation.

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

Stocks sink on growth fears and possible snag in trade talks

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks fell sharply Tuesday following new signs the global economy is weakening and reports of difficulties in trade talks between the U.S. and China. That broke a four-day winning streak for U.S. indexes.

Brexit battle looms as UK lawmakers attack May's 'Plan B'

LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Theresa May is determined to get a tweaked version of her rejected European Union divorce deal through Parliament. British lawmakers have other ideas — lots of other ideas.

Google opens new office in Berlin with eye on expansion

BERLIN (AP) — American tech giant Google has opened a new office in Berlin that it says will give it the space to expand in the German capital.

Chinese economy 'certain' to cool in 2019

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — A top financial regulator in China says it's "certain" that the Chinese economy will slow further this year — but that's largely due to a "much-needed" cooling of the real estate market.

Political shifts, sales slump cast shadow over gun industry

When gunmakers and dealers gather this week in Las Vegas for the industry's largest annual conference, they will be grappling with slumping sales and a shift in politics that many didn't envision two years ago when gun-friendly Donald Trump and a GOP-controlled Congress took office.

NATIONAL POLITICS

Schumer: Trump shutdown plan made in 'bad faith'

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer says President Donald Trump did not propose a "good faith" proposal to end the government shutdown.

GOP unveils fundraising tool to rival Democrats' ActBlue

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican Party believes it finally has its answer to the Democratic fundraising behemoth ActBlue.

Some fear federal safety net is unraveling for those in need

WASHINGTON (AP) — Doris Cochran, a disabled mother of two young boys, is stockpiling canned foods these days, filling her shelves with noodle soup, green beans, peaches and pears — anything that can last for months or even years. Her pantry looks as though she's preparing for a winter storm. But she's just trying to make sure her family won't go hungry if her food stamps run out.

Trump's proposal to break budget deadlock falls flat

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans have released a measure designed around President Donald Trump's proposal for breaking a budget impasse, its centerpiece his demand for $5.7 billion to build a southern border wall all but guaranteeing Democratic opposition and no foreseeable end to a partial government shutdown.

House Democrats bringing new scrutiny to education secretary

WASHINGTON (AP) — Wielding control of the House and a new set of investigative powers, Democrats are preparing to bring Education Secretary Betsy DeVos under the sharpest scrutiny she has seen since taking office.


MONDAY, JANUARY 21
TENNESSEE TITANS

Titans promote tight ends assistant to offensive coordinator

NASHVILLE (AP) — Mike Vrabel has stayed inside the Tennessee Titans' organization for his new offensive coordinator, promoting tight ends assistant Arthur Smith to the job vacated when Matt LaFleur left for the Green Bay Packers' head coaching job.

UT SPORTS

Tennessee moves to No. 1 in AP Top 25, Duke drops to No. 2

Top-ranked Duke went down early in the week. No. 2 Michigan and No. 4 Virginia, the last of Division I's unbeaten teams, both fell over the weekend. In all, six top-10 teams lost.

AUTO INDUSTRY

Ex-Nissan chairman Ghosn asks for bail, promises not to flee

TOKYO (AP) — Nissan's former Chairman Carlos Ghosn is promising to wear an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet, give up his passport and pay for security guards approved by prosecutors to gain release from detention on bail.

STATEWIDE

Ex-Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam says he'll mull Senate options

NASHVILLE (AP) — Former Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Haslam says he'll take some time to consider his options before deciding whether to run for the U.S. Senate.

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

TSA screener sick-outs hit 10 percent over holiday weekend

The percentage of TSA airport screeners missing work has hit 10 percent as the partial government shutdown stretches into its fifth week.

French watchdog slaps Google with $57M fine under new EU law

PARIS (AP) — France's data privacy watchdog has fined Google 50 million euros ($57 million), the first penalty for a U.S. tech giant under new European data privacy rules that took effect last year.

China grants Ivanka Trump 5 trademarks amid trade talks

SHANGHAI (AP) — The Chinese government has granted Ivanka Trump's company preliminary approval for another five trademarks this month, as her father's administration pushes ahead on trade negotiations with China.

World economy forecast to slow in 2019 amid trade tensions

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — The world economy absorbed more bad news Monday: The International Monetary Fund cut its growth forecast for 2019. And China, the world's second-biggest economy, said it had slowed to its weakest pace since 1990.

Oxfam says world wealth gap widening, advocates fairer taxes

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — Wealth inequality around the world is "out of control" and doing particular harm to women, anti-poverty campaigner Oxfam warned Monday ahead of the annual gathering of business and political leaders in the Swiss ski resort of Davos.

UK leader unveils Brexit Plan B, looks a lot like Plan A

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May unveiled her Brexit Plan B on Monday — and it looks a lot like Plan A.

China's 2018 economic growth sinks to 3-decade low

BEIJING (AP) — China's economic growth hit a three-decade low in 2018, adding to pressure on Beijing to beef up stimulus measures and settle a tariff war with Washington.

Interest rates could stay lower for longer in Europe

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Multiple threats stalking Europe's economy mean the European Central Bank could keep interest rates at rock-bottom levels longer than expected, extending skimpy returns for savers — but supporting indebted companies and governments with low borrowing costs.

Survey: Workers trust their employer over other institutions

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — With trust in governments taking a hit since the global financial crisis, people around the world view their employer as the most trusted institution in their lives, according to a survey published Monday.

NATIONAL POLITICS

Kamala Harris jumps into presidential race

WASHINGTON (AP) — Kamala Harris, a first-term senator and former California attorney general known for her rigorous questioning of President Donald Trump's nominees, entered the Democratic presidential race on Monday. Vowing to "bring our voices together," Harris would be the first woman to hold the presidency and the second African-American if she succeeds.

Shutdown goes on as Trump offer doesn't budge Democrats

WASHINGTON (AP) — Thirty-one days into the partial government shutdown, Democrats and Republicans appeared no closer to ending the impasse than when it began, with President Donald Trump lashing out at his opponents after they dismissed a plan he'd billed as a compromise.

AP FACT CHECK: Trump's murky claims on weather, shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — There's nothing like a cold snap to bring out the global-warming skepticism of President Donald Trump.

Giuliani: 'So what' if Trump and Cohen discussed testimony

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani left open Sunday the possibility that Trump and former personal attorney Michael Cohen might have discussed Cohen's congressional testimony.


FRIDAY, JANUARY 18
NASHVILLE AREA

Police: 150 pounds of pot found in bags at Nashville airport

NASHVILLE (AP) — Police in Tennessee say two men were caught at the Nashville International Airport with more than 150 pounds of marijuana in their suitcases.

PREDATORS

Predators' Ryan Johansen suspended 2 games for high-sticking

NASHVILLE (AP) — Nashville Predators forward Ryan Johansen has received a two-game suspension without pay for high-sticking Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Scheifele.

Hellebuyck makes 37 saves as Jets beat Predators 5-1

NASHVILLE (AP) — Connor Hellebuyck delivered the dominant performance he needed with backup Laurent Brossoit nipping at his net.

REGION

Google to buy power from solar farms in Tennessee, Alabama

NASHVILLE (AP) — Google plans to buy power from Tennessee and Alabama solar farms under a deal with the Tennessee Valley Authority.

UT SPORTS

List of Vols' violations include Fulmer offering instruction

KNOXVILLE (AP) — Tennessee has reported a minor NCAA violation that involved athletic director Phillip Fulmer instructing offensive linemen during a football practice.

STATE GOVERNMENT

Haslam grants parole in murder-for-hire case

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam is granting parole to a man serving a life sentence in a 1994 murder-for-hire, saying the inmate has "undergone a transformation" behind bars. But a woman he shot and partially blinded in the attack says she's terrified she might encounter him again once he's out.

Lee: Legal to investigate if Shelby County breaking immigration law

NASHVILLE (AP) — Gov.-elect Bill Lee says he will direct his legal team to investigate whether Tennessee's most populated county is following a new law that prohibits local authorities from requiring a warrant or probable cause before complying with federal immigration detainers.

Lee's inauguration to move indoors

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Gov.-elect Bill Lee is moving his inauguration to an indoor venue amid forecasts for weekend rain and thunderstorms.

Texas official named Tennessee's new education commissioner

NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee's newly elected Gov. Bill Lee unveiled one of his most high-profile cabinet positions Thursday, announcing the appointment of an education commissioner touted for her education reform work.

Lee: Capitol gun ban to remain in place

NASHVILLE (AP) — Gov.-elect Bill Lee says he'll continue to keep guns banned in the Tennessee Capitol when he takes over the top office later this week.

STATEWIDE

Federal workers in Tennessee say money is getting tight

NASHVILLE (AP) — As the partial government shutdown drags on toward week four, IRS call center worker Vivian Hunt says she can no longer afford in-home health care for her disabled mother.

AUTO INDUSTRY

Mitsubishi board considers new allegations against Ghosn

TOKYO (AP) — Mitsubishi Motors held a board meeting Friday to examine the latest allegations of unreported compensation against Carlos Ghosn, who led Nissan for two decades and forged the alliance between the Japanese automakers.

On road to make an affordable car, Tesla cuts jobs

Tesla will cut 7 percent of its workforce as it tries to lower prices and break out of the niche-car market to produce an electric vehicle that more people can afford.

Grand jury charges 4 Audi managers in emissions case

DETROIT (AP) — A federal grand jury in Detroit has indicted four Audi engineering managers from Germany in a widening diesel emissions cheating scandal.

Nissan to cut up to 700 contract workers in Mississippi

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Nissan Motor Co. announced Thursday that it's cutting up to 700 contract workers at its Mississippi assembly plant, citing slowing sales for vans and Titan pickup trucks that it makes there.

Tokyo court denies appeal by Nissan ex-chair Ghosn for bail

TOKYO (AP) — A Tokyo court rejected Thursday another appeal by lawyers of Nissan's former chairman Carlos Ghosn to have him released on bail.

TECHNOLOGY

Report: Facebook's privacy lapses may result in record fine

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook may be facing the biggest fine ever imposed by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission for privacy violations involving the personal information of its 2.2 billion users.

Facebook shuts hundreds of Russia-linked pages, accounts

LONDON (AP) — Facebook said Thursday it removed hundreds of Russia-linked pages, groups and accounts that it says were part of two big disinformation operations targeting users outside the U.S.

COURTS

Supreme Court inaction suggests DACA safe for another year

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama-era program that shields young immigrants from deportation and that President Donald Trump has sought to end seems likely to survive for at least another year.

Father of Waffle House shooting suspect wants suit dropped

NASHVILLE (AP) — The father of a man accused of fatally shooting four people at a Nashville Waffle House last year wants a lawsuit against him by a victim's mother thrown out.

Law firm tied to Manafort reaches $4.6 million settlement

WASHINGTON (AP) — A law firm tied to former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort's Ukrainian consulting work has agreed to pay more than $4.6 million and publicly acknowledge that it failed to report its work for a foreign government, the Justice Department said Thursday.

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

Stocks keep climbing as hopes for US-China trade deal rise

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks in the U.S. and Europe jumped Friday as renewed hopes for progress in trade talks between the U.S. and China helped the markets finish the week with another strong gain.

Manufacturing surge pushes industrial production up 0.3 pct

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. industrial production increased 0.3 percent in December, led by the biggest surge in manufacturing in ten months.

Sears confirms chairman's hedge fund wins bid in auction

NEW YORK (AP) — Sears has confirmed that chairman and largest shareholder Eddie Lampert's hedge fund has won tentative approval for a $5.2 billion plan to buy 425 stores and the rest of its assets.

Trump weighs dramatic tightening of US embargo on Cuba

HAVANA (AP) — The Trump administration is weighing what could become the most serious tightening of the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba in more than two decades — a move that could unleash a flurry of lawsuits against foreign companies that have invested on the island.

UK PM May holds Brexit talks; opposition dubs them a 'stunt'

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May was consulting opposition parties and other lawmakers Thursday in a battle to get Brexit back on track after surviving a no-confidence vote, talks that were branded a "stunt" by the main opposition leader.

Number of federal workers seeking US jobless aid doubles

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of furloughed federal employees seeking unemployment benefits jumped in the first two weeks of the shutdown, topping 10,000 during the week of Jan. 5.

Microsoft pledges $500M to tackle Seattle housing crisis

SEATTLE (AP) — Microsoft says it will devote $500 million to address a problem its own success helped create: the severe need for affordable housing in the Seattle area.

Airports, customs, trade: Europe preps for a chaotic Brexit

PARIS (AP) — One by one, European Union nations are spending millions, hiring thousands of workers and issuing emergency decrees to cope with the increasingly likely possibility that Britain will leave the bloc on March 29 without a plan.

Stocks climb on report US may pare back tariffs on China

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks climbed Thursday after the Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. officials could reduce the new tariffs on Chinese imports as part of trade negotiations between the two countries. It was the latest in a series of potentially conflicting updates on the trade dispute.

NATIONAL POLITICS

Trump to make announcement Saturday on shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he will make a major announcement on the government shutdown and the southern border on Saturday afternoon from the White House.

Trump, North Korean leader to hold 2nd summit

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump will hold a second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to try to broker a deal to coax the North to give up its nuclear weapons, the White House announced Friday.

Technology near for real-time TV political fact checks

NEW YORK (AP) — A Duke University team expects to have a product available for election year that will allow television networks to offer real-time fact checks onscreen when a politician makes a questionable claim during a speech or debate.

Trump staffing up to fend off potential primary challenge

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's re-election campaign is staffing up to fend off any potential primary challenger.

May's foes gather as Britain's Brexit stalemate drags on

LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Theresa May held talks Friday with European leaders and British Cabinet colleagues, but efforts to end Britain's Brexit stalemate appeared deadlocked, with neither May nor Britain's opposition leader shifting from their entrenched positions.

Could Dems' 2020 nominee be someone you've never heard of?

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — At 36, Pete Buttigieg is just over the minimum age required to be president of the United States. Outside South Bend, Indiana, the Rust Belt community where he's been mayor since age 29, few people know his name. Those who know it struggle to pronounce it. It's BOO'-tah-juhj.

Congress to probe whether Trump told lawyer Cohen to lie

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats are vowing to investigate whether President Donald Trump directed his personal attorney Michael Cohen to lie to Congress about a Moscow real estate project, calling that possibility a "concern of the greatest magnitude." Trump's current lawyer said the allegations sparking the inquiry are "categorically false."

Trump, Pelosi feud heats up again

WASHINGTON (AP) — She imperiled his State of the Union address. He denied her a plane to visit troops abroad.

McConnell's maneuvers take backseat to Trump in shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — One of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's guiding principles is: "There's no education in the second kick of a mule."

Pelosi cancels Afghanistan trip, cites Trump 'leak'

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday canceled her plans to travel by commercial plane to visit U.S. troops in Afghanistan, saying President Donald Trump had caused a security risk by talking about the trip.

Schiff berates Trump for disclosing warzone trip

WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairman of the House intelligence committee says that President Donald Trump's decision to reveal House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip to Brussels and Afghanistan is "completely and utterly irresponsible in every way."

Watchdog: Many more migrant families may have been separated

WASHINGTON (AP) — Thousands more migrant children may have been split from their families than the Trump administration previously reported, in part because officials were stepping up family separations long before the border policy that prompted international outrage last spring, a government watchdog said Thursday.

Cohen says he rigged online polls for Trump in 2014, 2015

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump's estranged former lawyer acknowledged Thursday that he paid a technology company to rig Trump's standing in two online polls before the presidential campaign.

State Dept tells diplomats to go back to work with pay

WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department on Thursday instructed all U.S. diplomats in Washington and elsewhere to return to work next week with pay, saying it had found money for their salaries at least temporarily despite the ongoing government shutdown.

House votes to maintain Russian sanctions

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House voted overwhelmingly Thursday to maintain sanctions on three companies connected to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, protesting the Treasury Department's decision to lift the financial penalties.

Pelosi says Trump 'silent' on postponing State of the Union

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says President Donald Trump has yet to respond to her request that he postpone his State of the Union address until the government is reopened so workers can be paid for providing security for the grand Washington tradition.

Trump says US will develop space-based missile defense

WASHINGTON (AP) — Declaring that space is the new warfighting domain, President Donald Trump on Thursday vowed the U.S. will develop an unrivaled missile defense system to protect against advanced hypersonic and cruise missile threats from competitors and adversaries.

Was there collusion? Giuliani contradicts previous stance

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani now says he "never said there was no collusion" between Russia and members of Trump's 2016 White House campaign, contradicting public positions that he and his client have taken.

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