10 things you need to know today: February 25, 2014
Congress' longest-serving member ever announces his retirement, Venezuela's uprising heats up, and more
1. The longest-serving member of Congress ever decides to retire
Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress ever, announced Monday that he will not run for election this November as he wraps up his 29th full term. Dingell (D-Mich.) is 87, and has served for 20,997 days. Dingell said partisan acrimony had made serving in the House "obnoxious." He also said it was simply time to go. "I don't want people to say I stayed too long," he said. [The New York Times, The Washington Post]
………………………………………………………………………………
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
2. Venezuela violence continues as death toll mounts
The death toll from political unrest rose to 13 on Monday, as anti-government protesters barricaded major thoroughfares in Caracas despite calls from opposition leader Henrique Capriles for calm. Capriles rebuffed President Nicolas Maduro's invitation to meet at a gathering of mayors and governors. "This is a dying government," he said. "I'm not going to be like the orchestra on the Titanic." [Reuters]
………………………………………………………………………………
3. Gov. Brewer urged to veto Arizona anti-gay bill
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer (R) is under mounting pressure, some of it from within her own party, to veto a bill that would give businesses the right to deny service to gay and lesbian customers, as long as they say they're doing it because of their religious beliefs. Brewer promised to "do the right thing," and said she would announce her decision later this week. [CNN]
………………………………………………………………………………
4. Bipartisan governors' meeting ends with partisan yelling
An annual meeting of the nation's governors with President Obama — intended to foster bipartisanship — ended with a sharp clash between Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a Republican, and Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy, a Democrat, over Obama's push to hike the minimum wage. Jindal said Obama was building "a minimum-wage economy." Malloy called the remark "the most insane statement I've ever heard." [The Wall Street Journal]
………………………………………………………………………………
5. Samsung introduces its latest Galaxy smartphone
Samsung on Monday unveiled its Galaxy S5 smartphone, the South Korean tech firm's latest rival for Apple's iPhone. The S5 lacks the dazzling new features some fans hoped for. It has a bigger screen, an improved 16-megapixel camera (up from 13 megapixels), and matches the iPhone's fingerprint reader. The water-resistant S5 goes on sale April 11. [Bloomberg News]
………………………………………………………………………………
6. Jeb Bush says his name would be a 2016 "issue"
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush said on Monday that being part of the Bush political dynasty might hurt him if he runs for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. "It's an issue for sure," he said. Jeb Bush, the brother and son of former presidents, isn't the only one with doubts. His mother, Barbara, said not long ago that there had been enough "Kennedys, Clintons, Bushes" in the White House. [CNN, Politico]
………………………………………………………………………………
7. Ukrainian leader says the country needs a foreign bailout
The new speaker of Ukraine's parliament, Oleksandr Turchynov, said Tuesday that a new government would be established Thursday, two days later than expected. He also said the country needs a huge international economic bailout as politicians rebuild an administration left in ruins after former President Viktor Yanukovych fled. Russia suspended $15 billion in loans and cheap gas after Yanukovych left office. [The New York Times]
………………………………………………………………………………
8. Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox goes offline after theft
The website of Mt. Gox, a major bitcoin exchange, went offline Tuesday following reports of the theft of $350 million worth of the virtual currency. The site's disappearance came two days after Mt. Gox CEO Mark Karpeles resigned from the board of the Bitcoin Foundation, a group touting the virtual currency. Mt. Gox's crisis threatened to deal a devastating blow to bitcoin's legitimacy. [The Associated Press]
………………………………………………………………………………
9. Study links acetaminophen use in pregnancy to children's ADHD
Children born to women who took acetaminophen during pregnancy are 40 percent more likely to be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to a study published Monday in the journal JAMA Pediatrics. Those whose mothers took the drug — the active ingredient in Tylenol and Panadol — in the last two trimesters were the most likely to be medicated for ADHD. [JAMA Pediatrics, Los Angeles Times]
………………………………………………………………………………
10. Harold Ramis dies at 69
Filmmaker Harold Ramis, the comic mastermind behind a string of classics starting with 1978's Animal House, died Monday from complications of autoimmune inflammatory vasculitis. He was 69. Ramis wrote, directed, and/or starred in some of the most beloved comedies of the last four decades, including Caddyshack, Ghostbusters, and National Lampoon's Vacation. "He earned his keep on this planet. God bless him," frequent collaborator Bill Murray said. [USA Today, Time]
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.
-
Will California's EV mandate survive Trump, SCOTUS challenge?
Today's Big Question The Golden State's climate goal faces big obstacles
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
'Underneath the noise, however, there’s an existential crisis'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
2024: the year of distrust in science
In the Spotlight Science and politics do not seem to mix
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published