The VICE Morning Bulletin

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

US News

GOP Backs Trump After Comey Hearing
Senior Republicans are defending President Trump after former FBI director James Comey's Senate Intelligence Committee testimony, mainly by referring to the president's ignorance of norms when dealing with law enforcement. House Speaker Paul Ryan said Trump "is new at this" and not "steeped in the long-running protocols." Senator Marco Rubio blamed Trump's team for failing to tell him what was appropriate, accusing them of "disservice to the president."—VICE News

Kushner Said to Be Scheduling Meeting with Senate Committee
Presidential adviser Jared Kushner will meet staffers from the Senate Intelligence Committee later this month, according to anonymous sources. President Trump's son-in-law is believed to be ready to provide documents and answer questions relevant to the committee's investigation of Russian election meddling.—NBC News

Prosecutors Say Reality Winner Wrote About Burning Down the White House
Federal prosecutors in Georgia claim Reality Leigh Winner, the alleged leaker of classified NSA documents, wrote, "I want to burn the White House down" in a notebook. In Thursday afternoon's bail hearing, Assistant US Attorney Jennifer Solari said Winner had also noted down travel plans for a possible trip to Afghanistan.—ABC News

FDA Asks Drug Company to Kill Opioid Painkiller
The Food and Drug Administration wants pharmaceutical company Endo to remove an opioid painkiller from the market. The FDA said there was evidence Endo's extended-release drug Opana ER was being injected by drug abusers. Endo's share price fell 13.4 percent after the announcement.—AP

International News

Conservatives Lose Majority in Shock UK Election Result
Prime Minister Theresa May's decision to call a surprise general election in the UK has backfired, with her Conservative Party losing an outright majority in Parliament. The party fell short of the 326 seats needed to avoid a "hung Parliament," leaving May a weakened figure as she prepares for Brexit negotiations. Despite calls for her resignation from Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, May signaled plans to lead a minority administration government.—VICE News

30 Dead in Karbala Suicide Bombing
At least 30 people were killed and another 35 wounded in a suicide bombing near the Iraqi city of Karbala, according to security officials. A female suicide bomber blew herself up in a market in the town of Musayab. ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack.—The Independent

Arab Nations Put Qataris on 'Terror' List
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates have put 18 Qataris on a list of suspects connected to terrorism in their latest attempt to pressure the country to do more about extremism.—Reuters

Counter-Terrorism Police Carry Out Raids in Melbourne
Australian counter-terrorism police have raided several homes in Melbourne following Monday's siege in which a gunman killed one man before being fatally shot by officers. One 32-year-old man was arrested, but was then released without any charges. Two other men suspected of providing weapons used in the attack have been questioned.—Reuters

Everything Else

Taylor Swift Returns Music to Streaming Services
Having removed her music from Spotify in 2014, Taylor Swift made her back catalogue available on all streaming services Friday at midnight. Swift's management team announced the decision on her social media accounts.—Rolling Stone

Russian Hackers Reportedly Used Britney Spears' Instagram
According to a report by a Slovakian security firm, Britney Spears's Instagram account has been used by Russian hackers to share covert messages about malware.—Vox

Victim to Urge Court to Drop Rape Case Against Roman Polanski
Samantha Geimer, the woman whom Roman Polanski pleaded guilty to raping when she 13, will appear in court in Los Angeles Friday to urge that the case against the film director be dropped. Polanski's attorney said Geimer "is tired of this… She wants to get it over with."—The Guardian

Gorillaz Drop Drug-Themed 'Humanz' Outtake
Gorillaz released a brand-new track called "Sleeping Powder." A video for the Humanz outtake features 2D playing piano, and also incorporates the classic "This Is Your Brain on Drugs" PSA commercial.—Noisey

Boeing to Test Pilotless Plane Technology
Boeing wants to test out self-flying technology on a jet as early as 2018. Mike Sinnett, the company's vice president of product development, revealed that pilotless software will be tested in a flight simulator this summer.—VICE

Witcher Developer Says New Game Has Been Hacked and Ransomed
The Polish game company behind The Witcher series has announced on Twitter that early work on its next title, Cyberpunk 2077, has been hacked. CD Projekt Red said a ransom request would not be met and authorities had been informed.—Motherboard

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