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As Republican lawmakers pre-pare to leave Washington for aweeklong congressional recess,liberal groups and DemocraticParty organizers are hoping tomake their homecoming as noisyand uncomfortable as possible.

But national organizers con-cede they are playing catch-up toa “dam-bursting level” of grass-roots activism that has bubbled upfrom street protests and the smallgroups that have swelled intocrowds outside local congres-sional offices.

Protests against the Republicanagenda have become routinesince President Trump took office,with momentum building throughwidely shared videos of lawmak-ers being confronted by con-stituents angry over efforts to re-peal the Affordable Care Act. Now,national groups see the recess asthe chance to capitalize on that lo-cal activism, with a show of mightaimed at declaring the arrival of anew, and sustainable, politicalforce — barely three months aftertheir humiliating defeat in No-vember.

In email alerts, MoveOn.org ismobilizing members to attendtown-hall-style meetings acrossthe country, and it has set up awebsite, ResistanceRecess.com,to help people find them. The siteincludes a guide to “health care re-cess messaging.” (“The best andmost impactful questions are oneswhere someone shares their storyabout what the Affordable CareAct has meant to them or theirfamily,” it instructs.)

Organizing for Action, the po-litical nonprofit group that grewout of former President BarackObama’s election campaign, hascreated a “Recess Toolkit” withsuggestions on how to effectivelyask questions at the events. Lastweek, the group held an onlineseminar with members of Indivis-ible, the most prominent activistorganization to emerge in re-sponse to Mr. Trump’s election, tocoach supporters on how to chal-

Wrath AwaitsG.O.P. Leaders

During Recess

Liberal Groups Vow toFight for Health Law

By KATE ZERNIKEand ALEXANDER BURNS

Continued on Page A10

The ceremony aboard an ItalianNavy ship in the port of Valletta,Malta, had all the trappings of aEuropean Union affair. But the“cadets” being awarded certifi-cates on a recent morning were anunusual group: 89 Libyans whothe European Union hopes canhelp solve its migrant problem.

Officers in the Libyan CoastGuard, they were trained by theItalians to intercept and rescuemigrant boats near the Libyancoast before they reach interna-tional waters. Normally, Euro-pean forces intercept the boatsand must take them to Italy.

But if the migrants are pickedup by the Libyans in their own wa-ters, they can be taken back to Lib-ya instead.

For European leaders, trainingthe Libyan Coast Guard is in manyways an attempt, against longodds, to shift the answer to Eu-rope’s migration crisis off itsshores, and deal with it at thesource.

The plan is to give training,money and other resources to theLibyans to keep the migrantsthere, an idea somewhat similar tothe European Union’s deal withTurkey, only this one is with acountry run by competing militiasand multiple weak governments.

It is not the first time Italy hasforged an agreement with Libya

to stem the flow of migration. Butthe most effective attempt was be-fore Libya descended into chaoswith the collapse of its govern-ment in 2011.

Libya has since become theprime launching point for many ofthe 180,000 migrants who reachedItaly last year, when more than5,000 people died trying to makethe Mediterranean crossing.

Even previous agreements met

criticism for the sometimes brutaltactics that North African coun-tries used to hold back migrants.Embryonic as it is, this latest planis already being criticized as bothpotentially unworkable and inhu-mane.

Some international experts areskeptical about the scope of theoperation, and human rightsgroups fear the plan is the equiva-lent of throwing the migrants backinto the frying pan of Libya, wheremany are fleeing dangers and direconditions.

The internationally backedLibyan government the EuropeanUnion is dealing with has barely atoehold in the fragmented, vio-lence-plagued country, and may

Can E.U. Shift Migrant Crisis to Its Roots? Libya’s Odds Are LongBy GAIA PIANIGIANIand DECLAN WALSH

Libyan Coast Guard officers in Malta last week after completing Italian training intended to relieve the flow of migrants to Europe.GIANNI CIPRIANO FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

STORRS, Conn. — When Con-necticut won its 11th N.C.A.A.women’s basketball title lastspring— its fourth in a row —President Barack Obama jokedthat he would keep a room with acot waiting for Coach Geno Au-riemma on the Huskies’ regularvisit to the White House.

“He does seem to spend an aw-ful lot of time here,” Mr. Obamasaid.

A trip to the White House, withthe ceremonial awarding of a jer-sey to the president, has long beenan affirmation for championteams. But ire over the election ofPresident Trump has spurred ac-tivism by athletes, coaches and of-ficials perhaps not seen since thecivil rights movement and the warin Vietnam.

Breanna Stewart, the formerUConn star who helped lead herteam to the last four national ti-tles, joined a protest at Los Ange-les International Airport againstMr. Trump’s temporary ban onvisitors from seven predomi-nantly Muslim nations, a policysince rebuffed in federal court. Sixmembers of the New England Pa-triots, who recently won their fifthSuper Bowl, have said they willskip the team’s White House trip,which has not yet been scheduled.

And now Mr. Auriemma is beingasked a question he hadn’t faced

since his teams began winning ti-tles in 1995, during the first term ofthe Clinton administration: Wouldany or all of the Huskies decline tomeet the president should theywin a 12th championship in April?

“The fact that in all the 11 cham-pionships I’ve never been askedthis question says somethingabout where we are” as a country,Mr. Auriemma said. “Forget theanswer. The fact that I’ve neverbeen asked means there’s some-thing going on that isn’t normal.”

UConn has won 100 consecutivegames since 2014. And while theHuskies are not a lock to win a 12thtitle, they are favored again to cutdown the nets in triumph at the Fi-nal Four in Dallas. Now coaches,

New Test for Sports Champs:Would You Meet With Trump?

By JERÉ LONGMAN

The University of Connecticutwomen’s basketball team dur-ing a 2013 White House visit.

CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES

Continued on Page A16

Students at New York Univer-sity, where a year of undergradu-ate education can run to about$66,000 in room, board, tuitionand fees, often complain about thecost of four years at the school inGreenwich Village.

Now, N.Y.U. has a suggestion forthem: Finish faster.

On Friday, the university an-nounced a series of measures thatmake it easier to graduate in un-der four years, part of an initiativeaimed at diminishing the universi-ty’s enormous affordability prob-lem.

In some ways, the school is justcatching up with its students.Ellen Schall, a senior presidentialfellow and the head of the univer-sity’s affordability steering com-mittee, which is tackling collegecosts on a number of fronts, saidthat about 20 percent of N.Y.U. stu-dents already graduated ahead ofschedule.

“We were surprised,” ProfessorSchall said. “That’s part of whatconvinced us we needed to makethis more transparent and moreavailable to more students.”

Students have long found waysto make it through school morequickly to save money. But thereis increasing momentum to for-malize the process in the face ofballooning outrage over collegecosts and student debt — whileN.Y.U. is expensive, many otherprivate universities cost $60,000or more a year.

Gov. John Kasich, Republican ofOhio, pushed to make it easier for

N.Y.U. OffersPath to FinishDegree FasterBy ELIZABETH A. HARRIS

Continued on Page A1

MUNICH — While PresidentTrump has disrupted assump-tions about American foreign pol-icy, members of his cabinet havebeen scrambling to reassure alliesthat the United States remains abedrock of support.

The trouble is, after four weeksof tumult at the White House, theallies are not sure whom to be-lieve.

Mr. Trump has questioned theEuropean Union and NATO, spo-ken admiringly of Russia and up-ended Middle East diplomacy. Hisproxies have maintained that theUnited States is still a deterrent to

Russia and China, a credible arbi-ter in the Middle East and a faith-ful ally to Europe.

The skepticism over who is incharge in Washington wascrystallized on Friday at an annu-al meeting of dignitaries in Mu-nich for a yearly security confer-ence. Germany’s defense min-ister, Ursula von der Leyen,caused ripples when she point-edly expressed appreciation forthe American “secretary of de-

fense’s strong commitment toNATO.”

She was referring to DefenseSecretary Jim Mattis, who hasspent his week in Europe trying topersuade allies that contrary towhat President Trump has said inthe United States, the country hasnot soured on the trans-Atlanticalliance.

Several people at the confer-ence instantly took note on Twit-ter of Ms. Von der Leyen’s phras-ing, including Vali Nasr, dean ofthe Johns Hopkins School of Ad-vanced International Studies. Hewrote, “German Defense Min tells#MSC2017 Europe appreciates

President’s Aides Strive to Assure Worried AlliesBy HELENE COOPER

Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson with Foreign Minister Wang Yi of China in Bonn, Germany.POOL PHOTO BY BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI

Confusion in Europe onDirection of Policy

Continued on Page A13

Continued on Page A6

Europeans Embrace aChaotic Partner toStop Boats at Sea

Protests and funerals were abundant insouthern Pakistan after more than 80people were killed when a shrine wasbombed the day before. PAGE A3

INTERNATIONAL A3-8

Anger After Attack in Pakistan

The British capital is choking from dirtyair caused by diesel vehicles, as well aswood-burning fires in homes. PAGE A4

Record Pollution in London

As a crackdown on illegal immigrantsbegins, Mexican citizens in the UnitedStates turn to their consulates for legalassistance. PAGE A11

NATIONAL A9-16

Anxiety at Mexican ConsulatesIn “Werther,” Vittorio Grigolo shows hemay be “the most galvanically convinc-ing singer in the world today,” writesZachary Woolfe. A review. PAGE C1

ARTS C1-8

A Stylish and Gutsy TenorTHIS WEEKEND

If completed, the $143 billion takeoverwould create an empire of hundreds ofhousehold names. PAGE B1

BUSINESS DAY B1-6

Kraft Heinz Bids on Unilever

Charges against the heir to South Ko-rea’s largest company intensified callsfor some major housecleaning. PAGE B1

Arrest Adds Stress to Samsung

Nick Chavin, a former friend of RobertDurst, above, who is accused of murder,was questioned about why it took himso long to come forward. PAGE A17

NEW YORK A17-18

Ex-Friend of Durst Questioned

Kyle Mazza, 19, created a network inFair Lawn, N.J. His question Thursdaygave the president a respite. PAGE A17

Cub Reporter Calms Trump

In an era of hard throwing, MichaelKopech of the White Sox stands out,writes Tyler Kepner. He hopes to last aslong as his idol, Nolan Ryan. PAGE D2

SPORTSSATURDAY D1-6, 8

A Modern-Day Nolan Ryan

Tom Brokaw PAGE A21

EDITORIAL, OP-ED A20-21

WASHINGTON — The WhiteHouse budget office has drafted ahit list of programs that PresidentTrump could eliminate to trim do-mestic spending, including long-standing conservative targets likethe Corporation for Public Broad-casting, the Legal Services Corpo-ration, AmeriCorps and the Na-tional Endowments for the Artsand the Humanities.

Work on the first Trump admin-istration budget has been delayedas the budget office awaited Sen-ate confirmation of former Repre-sentative Mick Mulvaney, aspending hard-liner, as budget di-rector. Now that he is in place, hisoffice is ready to move ahead witha list of nine programs to elimi-nate, an opening salvo in theTrump administration’s effort toreorder the government and in-crease spending on defense andinfrastructure.

Most of the programs cost un-der $500 million annually, a pit-tance for a government that is pro-jected to spend about $4 trillionthis year. And a few are surpris-ing, even though most if not allhave been perennial targets forconservatives.

Mr. Trump has spoken volublyabout the nation’s drug problems,yet the list includes the WhiteHouse’s Office of National DrugControl Policy, which dispensesgrants to reduce drug use anddrug trafficking. And despite Mr.Trump’s vocal promotion of Amer-ican exports, the list includes theExport-Import Bank, which hasguaranteed loans to foreigncustomers of American compa-nies since the 1930s.

While the total amount of annu-al savings of roughly $2.5 billionwould be comparatively small, ad-ministration officials want to high-

FAMILIAR TARGETSFACE ELIMINATIONIN TRUMP BUDGET

BUT MORE FOR MILITARY

Public Broadcasting andArts Groups Are onDraft List of Cuts

By SHARON LaFRANIEREand ALAN RAPPEPORT

Continued on Page A12

Late Edition

VOL. CLXVI . . . No. 57,512 © 2017 The New York Times Company NEW YORK, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2017

Today, sunshine and clouds, warmerafternoon, high 58. Tonight, cloudy,mild, low 45. Tomorrow, becomingmostly sunny, warm, high 60.Weather map appears on Page D8.

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