Cheat Sheet - Obama Plans Economic Assault on Russia

March 03, 2014 RUBLE RUMBLE 1. Obama Plans Economic Assault on Russia As Russia advances on Ukraine, Obama is working on an executive order to financially punish Russian leaders, Josh Rogin reports. Military and government officials, even pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine, may get the squeeze. While money may talk, it's far from certain Russia will listen. Read it at The Daily Beast AFTER SETH 2. Bravo, Oscars! What a surprise: The Academy Awards were actually pretty great thanks to Ellen DeGeneres, writes Marlow Stern. She's hands-down the best host in over a decade, and she helped the Academy move past last year's cringe-worthy "We Saw Your Boobs" shtick from Seth MacFarlane. Hosting the show really is one of the most thankless—and one of the most trying—jobs in showbiz but DeGeneres did a helluva job. Let's hope she returns next year. Read it at The Daily Beast CRIME AND PUNISHMENT 3. Pistorius Pleads Not Guilty South African Olympian Oscar Pistorius entered a not guilty plea to all charges at the beginning his trial for the murder of his former girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. Pistorius admitted to shooting the supermodel on Valentine's Day 2013, but has claimed he thought she was an intruder and that it was not premeditated. South Africa and the world were shocked by Pistorius' attack on Steenkamp after the double amputee became a global hero at the 2012 Olympics. There is so much media interest in the case that this will be the first time in South Africa that parts of a trial will be televised. Read it at BBC News NOT GIVING UP 4. Russia Bill Ready to Annex Crimea Monday morning the Russian parliament proposed a bill to annex Crimea as Moscow takes over more of the Ukrainian territory. Russian forces blocked a Ukrainian military base and seized a ferry terminal. Crimea, home to Ukraine's largest ethnic Russian community, is under the control of political officials who are aligned with Putin. The new Crimean premier demanded on TV that Ukrainian troops surrender. Ukraine's commander of the navy, Adm. Denis Berezovsky, announced that he had sworn allegiance to the Crimean government leader, Sergei Aksenov, who was installed Thursday by pro-Moscow lawmakers. Read it at The Los Angeles Times GOOD NEWS 5. N. Korea Frees 75-Year-Old Aussie A mixed bag is better than all bad news when it comes to North Korea. The bellicose, human rights-violating nation launched two short-range missiles off its east coast on Monday. The maneuver marked its second missile test in five days. However, on the positive side, North Korea freed and expelled John Short, a 75-year-old Australian missionary who had been held since August 2012. The country's official news agency said, "Our related agencies have decided to expel him, given the generosity of the laws of our republic." Sure, North Korea, sure. Read it at The New York Times MIGHTY MOUSE Disney Divests From Boy Scouts For its ban on gay leaders. PIPELINE PROBLEMS 400 Arrested at Keystone Protest Tied themselves to White House fence. CUSTOMER SERVICE Mt. Gox Sets Up Call Help Center Days after declaring bankruptcy. YUP, STILL WINTER Snowstorm Hits Mid-Atlantic Hard D.C. could see a foot. FRENEMIES Obama Seeks Bibi's Peace Backing For his Palestinian peace talks framework. GET The Cheat Sheet A speedy, smart summary of news and must-reads from across the Web. You'll love the featured original stories on politics, entertainment, and more from The Daily Beast's diverse group of contributors. GET Culture Beast Weekly cultural recommendations from The Daily Beast. The Most Awesome Oscar Moments by Kevin Fallon Best of the Oscars Red Carpet by Tom Fitzgerald and Lorenzo Marquez Legal Steroids for Pro Ballers? by Robert Silverman

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