How the president´s two years in power have changed key US policies ... North Korean envoy to meet Pompeo ... Democrat takes charge of Flint water crisis investigationGood morning, I´m Tim Walker with today´s essential stories.PR stunt. In his letter to Pelosi, Trump wrote that, due to the shutdown, `postponing this public relations event is totally appropriate`. He added: `It would be better if you were in Washington negotiating with me.``Utterly irresponsible.´ The Democratic House intelligence chief, Adam Schiff, criticised Trump for publicising Pelosi´s travel plan, which would not normally be made public.Little things. While Trump´s climate change denial and EPA corruption allegations make headlines, it is `the more mundane unspooling of arcane regulations` that is likely to do deeper, long-term damage to the environment, writes Oliver Milman.Missile strategy. The visit comes a day after Trump unveiled plans for a new US missile defence strategy aimed at deterring attacks by `rogue states` including North Korea.`Show trials´. During her 2018 campaign, Nessel described the prosecutions over the Flint crisis as `politically charged show trials` staged by her predecessor, Republican Bill Schuette, who ran for governor and lost to the Democrat, Gretchen Whitmer.The Sri Lankan president has praised his Philippines counterpart Rodrigo Duterte´s brutal war on drugs as `an example to the world`. On a visit to the Philippines this week, Maithripala Sirisena said he intended to emulate Duterte´s ruthless strategy.Authorities in Tokyo are investigating whether a graffiti picture of a rat in the city centre is a genuine Banksy. Meanwhile, a Banksy work found on the side of a garage in Port Talbot, Wales, has just been sold for a six-figure sum.Israel has accused the Malaysian prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, of `rabid antisemitism` after he denied visas to Israeli athletes due to compete in a Paralympics qualifying event, to demonstrate his country´s solidarity with P ...
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