Nation & World Glance
Miss. Sen. Thad Cochran resigning April 1
JACKSON, Miss. — Longtime Republican Sen. Thad Cochran of Mississippi said Monday he will resign because of health problems — triggering what could be a chaotic special election to fill the seat he has held for a generation.
Cochran, who turned 80 in December and has been in poor health, has been a sporadic presence on Capitol Hill in recent months. He stayed home for a month last fall, returning to Washington in October to give Republicans the majority they needed to pass a budget plan. He has since kept a low profile and an aide ever present at his side.
Cochran said his resignation is effective April 1, allowing Republican Gov. Phil Bryant to appoint a temporary replacement to fill the seat until a special election Nov. 6. The winner would serve until the end of Cochran’s term in January 2021.
Winter storm threatens foot of snow for parts of Midwest
BISMARCK, N.D. — A large storm brought freezing rain, heavy snow and strong winds to a large swath of the Midwest on Monday, snarling traffic and forcing the closure of some schools and government offices.
The system by midweek also was expected to cause more problems for the Northeast, which is dealing with the aftermath of a destructive and deadly nor’easter.
Parts of the Dakotas were expected to get more than a foot of snow by the time the system moved east on Tuesday, with Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa also getting significant amounts, according to the National Weather Service.
Snowfall reports from the agency as of mid-afternoon Monday totaled as much as 6 inches in South Dakota and 9 inches in North Dakota and Minnesota.
State transportation officials advised against travel in parts of the upper Midwest, and a 211-mile stretch of Interstate 90 in southeastern South Dakota was shut down. I-29 also was set to shut down Monday evening from the North Dakota border to Iowa.
N. Korean dictator, Seoul envoys have ‘openhearted talk’
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has held an “openhearted talk” in Pyongyang with envoys for South Korean President Moon Jaein, the North said Tuesday.
It’s the first time South Korean officials have met with the young North Korean leader in person since he took power after his dictator father’s death in late 2011 — and the latest sign that the Koreas are trying to mend ties after a year of repeated North Korean weapons tests and threats of nuclear war.
North Korea’s state media said Kim expressed his desire to “write a new history of national reunification” during a dinner Monday night that Seoul said lasted about four hours.
Given the robust history of bloodshed, threats and animosity on the Korean Peninsula, there is considerable skepticism over whether the Koreas’ apparent warming relations will lead to lasting peace.
North Korea, some believe, is trying to use improved ties with the South to weaken U.S.-led international sanctions and pressure, and to provide domestic propaganda fodder for Kim Jong-Un.