IN THE NEWS TODAY
A suicide bombing near Afghanistan's presidential palace in Kabul has killed at least 80 people and wounded more than 300. The powerful explosion took place during rush-hour traffic. (NBC News)
A re-engineered American interceptor rocket collided with a mock intercontinental ballistic missile on Tuesday afternoon in the skies over the Pacific Ocean, in the first successful test of whether it could shoot down a warhead from North Korea. (NY Times)
Vietnam's prime minister, who visits President Donald Trump at the White House today, said he'll sign deals worth up to $17 billion for U.S. goods and services, mostly for high-tech products. (Reuters)
After a series of angry Trump tweets directed toward Germany over trade, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told CNBC he's open to continuing talks on a proposed trade pact with the European Union.
President Trump has been handing out his cellphone number to world leaders and urging them to call him directly, an unusual invitation that breaks diplomatic protocol and raises security concerns. (AP)
Trump posted vague, midnight tweet about "negative press covfefe ," apparently meaning to type coverage. About six hours later, it was deleted, and in a new tweet the president said, "Who can figure out the true meaning." (USA Today)
Trump's communications director is leaving the job as the president considers wider staff changes to try to contain the political damage from investigations into Russia and his presidential campaign. (Reuters)
Michael Flynn, Trump's former national security advisor, will reportedly hand over some personal and business documents to the Senate panel investigating alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election. (NBC News)
Trump's personal attorney, Michael Cohen, told NBC News that if he were issued a subpoena as part of congressional investigations into Russian interference he would testify.
Goldman Sachs (GS) said it never dealt directly with the Venezuelan government when it bought $2.8 billion in bonds for pennies on the dollar. Venezuela's legislature has voted to ask the U.S. Congress to investigate the deal. (Reuters)
Uber has fired the head of its self-driving car unit after he failed to comply with a court order to hand over documents at the center of a legal battle between the ride-hailing service and Alphabet's (GOOGL) Waymo unit. (Reuters)
The FAA is proposing to fine United (UAL) almost a half million dollars for flying a plane that was not in "airworthy condition," accusing the airline of failing to inspect a fuel pump repair on a Boeing 787 before putting the jet back into service. (CNBC)