5 things to know for Feb. 17: Federal firings, Ukraine, Severe weather, Middle East tensions, Bird flu
CNN
CNN’s 5 Things AM brings you the news you need to know every morning.
Today is Washington’s Birthday, a federal holiday commemorating the first president of the US, who served from 1789 to 1797. Many Americans also call it Presidents’ Day, while some states have decided not to recognize the holiday at all. Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day. Less than three weeks after a deadly midair collision over Washington, DC, hundreds of Federal Aviation Administration employees are being fired. The FAA is the latest critical government agency impacted by widespread job cuts in the federal workforce. Many of the probationary employees being terminated include those who maintain radio and computer systems and develop new flight procedures. The firings do not include air traffic controllers, who are in short supply amid a decadeslong staffing shortage. Officials have set their sights on probationary workers, typically employed for less than a year, because they have fewer job protections and lack the right to appeal. European leaders will hold an emergency summit on Ukraine and their continent’s security today as concern grows that President Donald Trump’s push to work with Russia to end the war has left Kyiv and Europe isolated. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who called the summit in Paris a “once in a generation” moment for national security, said he was ready to put British troops on the ground in Ukraine if necessary. The summit comes before US and Russian officials meet in Saudi Arabia for talks on ending the war, which sources told CNN would begin on Tuesday. Millions of people are under flood warnings after powerful storms ripped across the eastern US on Sunday. At least 10 people are dead and thousands in the region are without power. Water levels reached historic highs in Kentucky, where emergency responders performed over 1,000 rescues in under 24 hours, Gov. Andy Beshear said. The storm looks set to wane in the coming hours, but parts of the Great Lakes could be buried by lake-effect snow in its wake. Meteorologists say that around 10 million people are under winter storm warnings from upstate New York to New England ahead of an incoming arctic blast that could break record temperatures this week. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Sunday to “finish the job” against Iran with the support of President Trump. “Over the last 16 months, Israel has dealt a mighty blow to Iran’s terror axis. Under the strong leadership of President Trump … I have no doubt that we can and will finish the job,” Netanyahu said. He spoke alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has been visiting Israel on his first official trip to the region since assuming the role. US intelligence agencies recently warned both the Biden and Trump administrations that Israel will likely attempt to strike facilities key to Iran’s nuclear program this year. US intelligence also cautions that such strikes could increase the risk of a wider war breaking out in the Middle East.
Following the capture of President Nicolás Maduro during a US military operation in Venezuela, the command of the South American country has fallen into the hands of a woman: Executive Vice President Delcy Rodríguez.
The detailed timeline and the revelation that a CIA team has been operating inside Venezuela for so long sheds new light on the administration’s pressure campaign on Maduro for the past several months.
Embattled Wisconsin Judge Hannah Dugan, who was convicted of obstruction last month for helping an immigrant evade federal officers, has sent her resignation letter to the governor.
More than two decades ago, on January 24, 2004, I landed in Baghdad as a legal adviser, assigned an office in what was then known as the Green Zone. It was raining and cold, and my duffle bag was thrown into a puddle off the C-130 aircraft that had just done a corkscrew dive to reach the runway without risk of ground fire. Young American soldiers greeted me as we piled into a vehicle, sped out of the airport complex and then along a road called the “Highway of Death” due to car bombs and snipers.
CNN’s David Culver sees massive crowds building up in Doral, Florida, outside of Miami, a place where there are a lot of Venezuelans celebrating President Nicolas Maduro’s capture Saturday.
On November 2, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles told Vanity Fair that land strikes in Venezuela would require the approval of Congress. She said that if Trump “were to authorize some activity on land, then it’s war, then (we’d need) Congress.”
A federal judge in Kentucky has dismissed Louisville’s proposed settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice over police reforms after the department withdrew its support of the plan earlier this year.
In the days since the Trump administration announced it would freeze federal child care payments to Minnesota amid an alleged fraud investigation, fear and confusion have spread almost as fast as the viral video that launched the scandal.
President Donald Trump wants to tamp down on public debates about his health.
A US appeals court ruled on Friday that California’s ban on openly carrying firearms in most parts of the state was unconstitutional.
A CNN team witnessed several explosions on Saturday night in Caracas, and reported that some areas of the city were without electricity. Follow for live updates.
Thousands of people gathered for a New Year’s Eve celebration in Seattle this week, anticipating the annual fireworks show at one of the city’s most iconic landmarks, when a man stopped on a lawn and opened his coat to reveal a loaded shotgun, police said, alarming witnesses and an officer nearby.
The US Coast Guard announced Friday night it has suspended its search for people in the water after US strikes on alleged drug boats in the eastern Pacific Ocean earlier this week.