Bedugul Coffee: Friday Morning Briefing: NRA chief slams anti-gun 'elites'

Highlights

“The elites don’t care not one whit about America’s school system and school children,” NRA chief executive Wayne LaPierre told a friendly audience of conservatives outside Washington. The head of the National Rifle Association lashed out at gun control advocates, saying Democratic elites are politicizing the latest mass school shooting in the United States to try to erode constitutionally guaranteed gun rights.

Longstanding friction between U.S. President Donald Trump and two top aides, the National Security Adviser and the Chief of Staff, has grown to a point that either or both might quit soon, four senior administration officials said.

The head of a federal commission who has helped U.S. states protect election systems from possible cyber attacks by Russia or others is being replaced at the behest of Republican House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan and the White House.

World

The United States is due to announce its largest package of sanctions against North Korea to pressure the reclusive country to give up its nuclear and missile programs, as South Korea readies itself for more talks with the North.

Commentary: The 2018 Winter Olympics has brought the two Koreas a fragile détente, and turned the spectacle of North-South engagement in Pyeongchang into a subject of global fascination. But, writes former Assistant Secretary of State James Dobbins, “It is worth recognizing that all the main actors in this drama are playing roles pioneered by earlier generations of Korean and American leaders.” Today, according to Dobbins, “Kim Jong Un is not so much trying to divide South Korea from the United States as he is seeking to influence Washington through Seoul.”

The Chinese government today seized control of Anbang Insurance Group and said its chairman had been prosecuted, a dramatic move that highlights Beijing’s willingness to curtail big-spending conglomerates as it cracks down on financial risk.