• Separately on Wednesday, the Justice Department rebuked an effort by House Republicans to undermine the Russia investigation. Representative Devin Nunes of California has led a push to release a memo, drawing on classified information, that is said to accuse the F.B.I. of abusing its power.
“I just signed your death warrant”
• With those words, Judge Rosemarie Aquilina sentenced Lawrence Nassar, the former doctor for the U.S. gymnastics team, to 40 to 175 years in prison on Wednesday for multiple sex crimes.
More than 150 women confronted Dr. Nassar, 54, during his seven-day sentencing hearing, accusing him of abuse. We highlighted some of their poignant comments.
• Dr. Nassar was also on the faculty at Michigan State University until 2016, when the abuse came to light. Amid fallout from the scandal, the university’s president, Lou Anna Simon, resigned on Wednesday.
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Defeated ISIS fighters still pose a threat
• It was a major security mistake of the Iraq war: Militants, including the current leader of the Islamic State, were held for years at a U.S. detention facility, where they became even more radicalized.
Now, American-backed Kurdish militias in Syria have detained hundreds of ISIS fighters and their families in makeshift camps, raising fears among U.S. military officials of another breeding ground for extremists.
• President Trump warned Turkey on Wednesday to limit its attacks on the Kurds. The Turkish government views them as terrorists, but they have helped the U.S. fight Islamic State militants.
Listen to ‘The Daily’: The Doctor and the Judge
When the former physician for the American gymnastics team pleaded guilty to sex crimes, the judge opened her courtroom to his accusers. More than 150 women came forward.
Business
• President Trump is on his way to the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, to explain his “America First” approach. But the world has moved ahead with a trade agenda that no longer revolves around the U.S.
Whatever reception Mr. Trump receives at the forum, one thing is true for its moneyed elite: The president has been good for business. You can find all of our Davos coverage here.
• More large companies like Starbucks and Walmart are seeing the value in paid leave and other benefits for parents, and are beginning to close the gap between salaried and hourly workers.
• Demand for coal in the U.S. continues to fall, and the impact is being felt in Pennsylvania, where the closing of a mine will idle 370 workers.
• Britain’s “most un-P.C.” charity is shutting down. An undercover investigation revealed that participants at the annual fund-raising dinner of the Presidents Club groped and propositioned young women hired as servers.
• U.S. stocks were mixed on Wednesday. Here’s a snapshot of global markets today.
Smarter Living
Tips, both new and old, for a more fulfilling life.
• Throw an incredible Super Bowl party.
• Should you give back the engagement ring?
• Recipe of the day: Satisfy a sweet tooth with salted chocolate chunk shortbread cookies.
Noteworthy
• Governor, mayor and soon-to-be retiree
Jerry Brown, 79, says his time in public service is “getting close to the end.”
We spoke to the two-time governor of California, the face of the state’s old political order, who will deliver his final State of the State speech today.
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• Pope Francis on “fake news”
The serpent in the Garden of Eden hissed the first fake news to Eve and it all went downhill from there, Pope Francis wrote in a major document about the phenomenon.
• Those magazines sure stack up
Even as print flails, piles of Vogues, Playboys and other publications are being painstakingly preserved in a former cannon foundry in London. We visited the Guinness World Record-holding collection.
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• Best of late-night TV
President Trump is traveling to Davos with the message that America is open for business. “And who better to make that declaration than a man who declared bankruptcy six different times?” Jimmy Kimmel asked.
• Quotation of the day
“Maybe there was some sort of presumption on the part of the president and his team that if the U.S. said stop, this process would come to a halt. What this shows is that’s not true. The world just moves on without us.”
— Phil Levy, a former White House economist, on President Trump’s approach to trade pacts.
• The Times, in other words
Here’s an image of today’s front page, and links to our Opinion content and crossword puzzles.
Back Story
In honor of Australia Day, Friday’s holiday marking the anniversary of Britain’s arrival Down Under in 1788, we’re looking at one of the country’s most recognizable exports: “G’day, mate!”
Australian National University points to an early use of the greeting in “The Romance of a Station,” a novel from 1889:
“He pulled up, nodding to Alec’s ‘Good-day, Tillidge,’ and replying in a short, morose manner, running his words one into the other, as a bushman does, ‘G’d-day, sir.’ ”
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A century later, the phrase was popularized the world over in a tourism campaign featuring Paul Hogan, the Australian actor who would later gain international fame as Crocodile Dundee.
Australians have a long tradition of abbreviating and slackening words and phrases, particularly by adding “ie” to the end.
“Aussie” appears in references from World War I. A book by Gertrude Moberly, recounting the experiences of a nurse, described a “farewell dance for the boys going home to ‘Aussie’ tomorrow.”
And Australians always have their “mates.” The nation’s unique camaraderie, known as mateship, is especially evident during commemorations of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (or Anzacs), the World War I-era fighting force.
Adam Baidawi contributed reporting.
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