Aug 28, 2017

Mexico fires back against Trump's NAFTA tweet

Mexico's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Luis Videgaray Caso (Marco Ugarte / AP)

Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it "will not negotiate NAFTA ... through social media or any other news platform." The statement came in response to President Trump's Sunday morning tweets, which called Mexico "one of the highest crime nations in the world" and said the U.S. "may have to terminate" NAFTA.

Why it matters: Trump has called his Twitter presence "modern day presidential," but tweets can't replace diplomatic negotiations.
On violence in Mexico: "It is a shared problem that will only end if its root causes are addressed: high demand for drugs in the United States and supply from Mexico (and other countries)," the foreign ministry wrote.
On the border wall: "Our country will not pay, under any circumstances, for a wall," it continued.

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Ursula Perano

What we know: Deadly Storm Dennis whips at England, Wales and Ireland

Photo: OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images.

At least two deaths are being attributed to Storm Dennis on Monday as it continues to strike at parts of England, Wales and Ireland, per AccuWeather.

The big picture: Dennis is the second-strongest nontropical storm ever recorded in the North Atlantic Ocean. Its hurricane-force winds and heavy rains have caused widespread flooding across the United Kingdom. The army has been deployed in the U.K. to help with flood relief.

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Axios

Coronavirus cases rise as 14 American evacuees infected

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC, and China's NHC; Note: China refers to mainland China and the Diamond Princess is the cruise ship offshore Yokohama, Japan. Map: Danielle Alberti/Axios

14 Americans evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship tested positive for the novel coronavirus before being flown in a "specialist containment" on a plane repatriating U.S. citizens back home, the U.S. government said early Monday.

The big picture: COVID-19 has now killed at least 1,775 people and infected more than 70,000 others. Most cases and all but five of the deaths have occurred in mainland China.

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Jim VandeHei, Margaret Talev

The cost of going after Bloomberg

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Here's the growing dilemma for 2020 Democrats vying for a one-on-one showdown with frontrunner Bernie Sanders: Do they have the guts — and the money — to first stop Mike Bloomberg?

Why it matters: Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren all must weigh the costs of punching Bloomberg where he looks most vulnerable: stop-and-frisk, charges of sexism, billionaire entitlement. The more zealous the attacks, the greater the risk he turns his campaign ATM against them.

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