Crosstalk: January 8, 2018

What stories were in the news that you may have missed this week? Find out when you review this edition of VCY America's News Round-Up. Some of the stories included:

--Senators Chuck Grassley and Lindsey Graham have formally recommended that the Justice Department and FBI investigate the author of the controversial anti-Trump dossier in the first known criminal referral from Congress as part of the Russia probe.
--A new book about President Trump contains a note that casts considerable doubt about on the reliability of the contents.
--After one year in office, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has increased by about 35%, making the last 14 months one of the greatest bull market runs in history.
--Under President Trump, the U.S. economy added 2 million jobs in 2017.
--In December, the unemployment rate for black Americans dropped to 6.8%. That's the lowest percentage ever in the U.S. since record keeping began in that category.
--President Trump took an important step toward insuring America's long-term national security by signing an executive order to improve access to America's metals and minerals.
--President Trump to greatly expand the areas available for offshore oil and natural gas drilling including off the Pacific and Atlantic coasts.
--President Trump has scrapped the commission he created to investigate problems with alleged voter fraud.
--The White House announced that it's banning employees and guests from using personal cell phones in the West Wing citing security and technology concerns.
--For the past 12 months, the Inspector General at the Department of Justice has been conducting a review of the FBI and the DOJ's actions related to the investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a private e-mail server while she was Secretary of State.
--Huma Abedin forwarded sensitive State Department e-mails, including passwords to government systems, to her personal Yahoo e-mail account before every single Yahoo account was hacked.
--The Justice Department launching a new inquiry into whether the Clinton Foundation engaged in any pay-to-play politics or other illegal activities while Hillary Clinton served as Secretary of State.
--The protests taking place in Iran may not be the final battle between the Islamic republic's hard-line government and its fed-up populace.
--Iran protests have spread to more than 80 cities.
--A leaked report of meetings recently held by Iranian leadership indicates how pressured the regime feels from the last wave of protests.
--Despite occasional media reports, in the last few years, Iranian Muslims are converting to Christianity at an unprecedented pace.
--Vice President Mike Pence indicated that unlike President Obama, President Trump will not be silent on Iran.
--There have been so many deaths due to opioids that life expectancy at birth in the U.S has declined for the second year in a row.
--Vice President Pence cancels a trip to Israel for the second time.
--A Texas imam who urged Muslims in a sermon to fight and kill the Jews in Palestine, is now trying to repair the damage.
--Operation Rescue names their pro-life person of the year for 2017—President Donald Trump.
--The National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL) lashes out at Operation Rescue, calling pro-life Americans who work for the protection of the unborn as, 'Trump's extremist fringe base.'
--A new report indicates that Planned Parenthood made more money than ever before.​