Tillerson Puts "All Options" on the Table Concerning North Korea and More in Politics Today

It’s difficult to stay up-to-date on what’s happening in this country and to break through the clutter, so we’re here to make it easier. Here’s what we at Countable are reading today:

1. Tillerson says ‘all options are on the table’ when it comes to North Korea

The Trump administration gave its clearest signal yet that it would consider taking military action against North Korea, as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Friday that "all options are on the table" to deter the threat from Pyongyang.

"We’re exploring a new range of diplomatic, security and economic measures. All options are on the table," Tillerson said. While the United States does not want military conflict, threats “would be met with an appropriate response,” he added.

Read more at The Washington Post.

2. Trump, Merkel Try to Sidestep Differences in First Meeting

Though presenting a study in contrasts, President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Angela Merkel took a similar tack Friday in sidestepping differences after their first meeting at the White House.* *

The two leaders tried to express their common bonds but showed minimal rapport in their first encounter, a departure from Merkel's warm relations with Obama during his eight years as president. During a photo op in the Oval Office, the two did not shake hands before reporters. At the start of the news conference, Merkel sought to break the ice, saying that it was "much better to talk to one another than about one another."

Read more at The New York Times.

More on Chancellor Merkel’s visit with the President at *Countable*

3. "Justice Department delivers documents on wiretap claim to Congress"

The U.S. Justice Department on Friday said it delivered documents to congressional committees responding to their request for information that could shed light on President Donald Trump's claims that former President Barack Obama ordered U.S. agencies to spy on him.

A congressional official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the House Intelligence Committee was examining the documents and might issue a public statement about them later on Friday.

Read more at Reuters.

4. Texans Receive First Notices of Land Condemnation for Trump’s Border Wall

The week before Donald Trump’s inauguration, Yvette Salinas received a letter she had been dreading for years: legal notice that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) wants to build a border wall on her family’s land in Los Ebanos. The 21-page document, entitled a "Declaration of Taking," is addressed to her ailing mother, Maria Flores, who owns the property with her siblings. The letter offers Flores $2,900 for 1.2 acres near the Rio Grande. If she chooses not to accept the offer, the land could be seized through eminent domain. “It’s scary when you read it,” Salinas says. “You feel like you have to sign.”

Read more at The Texas Observer

5. "With Their Leaders at a Loss, Marine Veterans Fight Abusers"

As a Marine infantry sergeant, James LaPorta once led an intelligence team in Afghanistan. Now, as a private citizen, he is doggedly tracking the moves of an online group that has been secretly compiling and sharing nude photos of hundreds of women in the Marine Corps.

They say the fight is up to them in part because trying to get Marine Corps leaders, who are often near retirement, to recognize and address the power of social media in the military is as slow and frustrating as teaching an aging parent to set up a new laptop.

Read more at The New York Times

— Asha Sanaker

(Photo Credit: State Department via Flickr / Public Domain)