The VICE Morning Bulletin

Everything you need to know about the world this morning, curated by VICE.

US News

Don Jr. Refuses to Tell House Committee About Russia-Related Call
President Trump’s son cited attorney-client privilege as a reason not to tell the House Intelligence Committee details of a phone call with his father. Lawyers were allegedly also on the line.—VICE News

Chuck Schumer Calls for Franken’s (Expected) Resignation
The Democrats’ leader in the Senate said the Minnesota senator “has a higher obligation to his constituents and the Senate, and he should step down immediately.” Schumer was one of at least 32 Democratic senators urging him to resign. Franken, who faces several accusations of sexual misconduct including groping and forcible kissing, was set to make an announcement about his future late Thursday morning.—CNN

Powerful Winds Worsen California Wildfires
The National Weather Service predicted “very rapid fire spread” in Ventura County and northwest Los Angeles County, warning powerful winds were set to “intensify” Thursday morning. Fire officials previously ordered the mandatory evacuation of around 200,000 people in the Los Angeles area Wednesday as the Skirball blaze reached Interstate 405.—NBC News

Volkswagen Executive Gets Seven Years in Prison
A federal judge sentenced Volkswagen executive Oliver Schmidt to seven years in a US prison for helping rig the car manufacturer’s diesel emissions tests. Detroit’s federal district court also handed the former Michigan plant manager a $400,000 fine. Schmidt, a German citizen, had pleaded guilty to fraud conspiracy and environmental violation charges.—The New York Times

International News

Palestinians Denounce Trump’s Jerusalem Decision
Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority, said recognizing the city as the Israeli capital and moving the US embassy was “tantamount to the United States abdicating its role as a peace mediator.” A leader of the militant group Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, called for “an intifada”—or a Palestinian uprising—”in the face of the Zionist enemy.” Protests have taken place in Gaza.—Reuters

North Korea Says War Is Now Inevitable
Pyongyang continued to criticize this week’s US-South Korea military exercises and suggest conflict was unavoidable. A foreign ministry spokesman said America’s words and actions “have made an outbreak of war on the Korean peninsula an established fact. The remaining question now is: When will the war break out?”—AP

Australia Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage
A huge majority of Australia’s House of Representatives voted to enshrine marriage equality into law following the success of the “Yes” campaign in a postal referendum. Supporters cheered from the public gallery and sang: “I am, you are, we are Australian.” Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said: “Australia has done it.”—BBC News

China Accuses India of ‘Violation’ Over Drone
A top Chinese military official said India had “violated China’s territorial sovereignty” after a crashed drone was discovered in an area of the Doklam plateau near the border with India’s Sikkim State. “We strongly express our dissatisfaction and opposition,” said the official. India blamed a technical fault, claiming the drone had been on a training exercise.—VICE News

Everything Else

Appeals Court Rejects Meek Mill’s Bid for Bail
The Superior Court of Pennsylvania has turned down a second attempt at getting the imprisoned rapper released on bail. Mill was given a sentence of two to four years in November for violating the terms of his probation.—AP

Pastor Denies Post Malone Claims About Justin Bieber
Carl Lentz, the pastor of Hillsong New York City, has responded to Post Malone’s claim that Bieber gave millions to the evangelical church. Criticizing the rapper’s “reckless” remarks, Lentz said: “Justin has not given our church $10 million, and we do not have gold ceilings.”—Rolling Stone

Saudi Prince Reported Buyer of Da Vinci Painting
Auction house documents showed Prince Bader Bin Abdullah was the purchaser of Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi for a record-breaking $450 million. Louvre Abu Dhabi said the work was coming to the museum in the UAE.—The New York Times

N.E.R.D. Drops ‘1000’ Video
The clip for the group’s latest single features footage of recent political protests and an old interview with Mike Tyson talking about the best way to deal with fear. The collaboration with Future will be on the upcoming album No_One Ever Really Dies.—Noisey

Steam Will No Longer Accept Bitcoin
The popular video game platform announced it has “become untenable to support Bitcoin as a payment option.” Steam blamed the extreme “volatility” of the digital currency, but said the matter would be looked at again “at a later date.”—Motherboard

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