- Signing one of his first executive orders as president, Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership [1]. While Congress had yet to approve former President Barack Obama's proposed global trade partnership, Trump officially abandoned further pursuit of the plan. One of Trump's campaign promises was to pull out of the partnership, maintaining his efforts to keep jobs in America. Trump has also indicated he would abandon NAFTA if renegotiations do not favor his terms.
- The Razzie nominations for worst films [2] of 2016 are in, and Batman v Superman is one of the top contenders. Picking up eight nominations, including worst movie and worst actor for Ben Affleck [3], Batman v Superman will face some strong competition from Zoolander 2. That film was nominated in nine categories.
- Tornadoes and deadly thunderstorms ravaged the American South over the weekend, leaving 18 people dead. Lasting for two days, the storm hit homes from Mississippi to Georgia the hardest, but its path crossed as far south as Florida. The Associated Press reports that tornadoes in Georgia were particularly violent [4] and caused the majority of the storm's casualties.
- A Republican congressman from Alabama named Mike Rogers introduced a bill [5] that would allow the US to exit the United Nations. However, the proposed bill is unlikely to pass, considering bipartisan support for American membership in the UN as well as the organization's peacekeeping role around the world.
- The next installment of Star Wars has a title: the forthcoming Episode VIII will be called Star Wars: The Last Jedi [6]. Scheduled for release next December, The Last Jedi's cast features favorites from the last film and some new faces. Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac will be joined by Benicio Del Toro [7] and Laura Dern.