VOL. CLXVII . . . No. 57,980 + © 2018 The New York Times Company NEW YORK, FRIDAY, JUNE 1, 2018

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Communities and fracking are growingnorth of Denver. So is anger over whichprojects should be allowed. PAGE A12

NATIONAL A12-18

Oil Wells Near Schoolyards

New York City would be forcedto spend at least $1 billion and ac-cept a federal monitor to overseeits dilapidated public housing sys-tem, as part of a settlement beingfinalized with the United States at-torney’s office in Manhattan, ac-cording to two people familiarwith the negotiations.

The settlement, which still re-quires approval from the parties,would bring an end to the federalgovernment’s sweeping andyearslong investigation into con-ditions at the New York City Hous-ing Authority, the country’s larg-est public housing stock, whichhouses more than 400,000 poorand working-class New Yorkers.

Federal intervention wouldmark a turning point in the effortsto salvage Nycha, as the housingauthority is known, which slid intoa state of disrepair after the fed-eral government began to disin-vest in the authority’s 325 housingdevelopments two decades ago.

Since 2001, Nycha has sufferedmore than $2.7 billion in cuts fromthe federal government. Underthe city’s watch, maintenance wasdeferred, capital projects were de-layed and a backlog of repairs bur-geoned. The authority currentlyhas $17 billion in unmet capitalneeds, a number that is expectedto grow when Nycha releases itsnew assessment in June.

Two major requirements of thesettlement had been agreed upon:the court-appointed federal moni-tor and the $1 billion, which wouldbe spread over four years and go

U.S. Expected To Get OversightOf City Housing

By LUIS FERRÉ-SADURNÍand J. DAVID GOODMAN

Continued on Page A22

Several N.F.L. teams deter-mined cheerleading programshad a scarcity problem on gamedays. If cheerleaders were on thesideline dancing, none were avail-able to serve as scantily cladhostesses who could mingle withfans high up in the cheap seats orin the luxury suites, where teamscatered to big-money customers.

To address that shortcoming,some teams created a differentkind of cheerleading team — onewhose members did not do anycheering or require any dancetraining. They were hired mainlyfor their appearance. Their visits

with male fans, the teams be-lieved, produced a better game-day experience, akin to the ap-proach of the Hooters restaurantchain.

In interviews with a dozenwomen who have worked forN.F.L. teams as noncheeringcheerleaders and six others whohad direct knowledge of thenoncheering squads, they de-scribed minimum-wage jobs in

which harassment and gropingwere common, particularly be-cause the women were required tobe on the front lines of partyingfans. The fans had no reason to be-lieve these women were not actualcheerleaders because the womenoften dressed exactly like thecheerleaders dancing on the fieldor nearly the same.

“It’s a really big secret, and nowyou know about it,” said JackieChambers, 33, a model with morethan a decade of experience whoworked as a Houston Texansnoncheering cheerleader last sea-son. “But teams don’t want fans toknow about it. All of the cheerlead-

They Wear the Uniform, but They Don’t CheerBy JULIET MACUR

Jackie Chambers said she was upset by what she saw working for the Houston Texans last season.MICHAEL STARGHILL Jr. FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Hired by N.F.L. Teamsto Charm Male Fans

Continued on Page A18

ROME — After 88 days of im-passes and negotiations, two Ital-ian populist parties with a historyof antagonismtoward the Eu-ropean Unionreceived ap-proval Thurs-day night to cre-ate a govern-ment that has al-ready unsettledthe Continent’spolitical order.

Only days ago, President SergioMattarella of Italy rejected a pop-ulist government over concernsabout a proposed finance ministerwho had helped write a guide forwithdrawing Italy from the euro,Europe’s single currency. The po-litical chaos and sudden uncer-tainty about the euro helped sendglobal financial markets reeling.

On Thursday, the populists re-

shuffled, keeping the same primeminister, Giuseppe Conte, andother top players, but moving theobjectionable finance minister toa less critical post.

That was apparently enough tosatisfy the president, who pre-ferred an elected government to acaretaker alternative he had in re-serve. The populist parties consti-tuting the new government wonthe most votes in a March 4 elec-tion, promising a sweeping crack-down on the illegal immigrationthat helped fuel their ascent.

But the president’s assent wasnot enough to allay concernsabout the actual agenda of thepopulists once they enter power,even though they now claim a sud-den conversion to full faith in theeuro.

“The populist and right-wing

Populists Antagonistic to EuropeGet Nod to Take the Reins in Italy

By JASON HOROWITZ

Continued on Page A6

Conte

THE UPSHOT The economy can handle new tariffs on metals. The realrisk is the Trump administration’s erratic trade policy. PAGE A10

CHINA GESTURE Beijing said it would cut tariffs before the U.S. com-merce secretary’s visit, but few American goods are affected. PAGE A10

WASHINGTON — The Trumpadministration said on Thursdaythat it would impose steep tariffson metals imported from its clos-est allies, provoking retaliationagainst American businesses andconsumers and further strainingdiplomatic ties tested by the presi-dent’s combative approach.

The European Union, Canadaand Mexico, which will face 25percent tariffs on steel and 10 per-cent on aluminum, quickly de-nounced the action and drew uplists of tit-for-tat measures, manyaimed at parts of the United Stateswhere President Trump enjoys hisstrongest political support.

The move follows months of un-certainty as the Trump adminis-tration dangled exemptions for al-lies in return for concessions onother fronts. In moving forwardwith tariffs on national securitygrounds, the administration nowfaces a crucial test of whether itsaggressive strategy will extractpromises from trading partners orend up backfiring on the UnitedStates economy.

The tariffs “have already hadmajor, positive effects on steel andaluminum workers and jobs andwill continue to do so long into thefuture,” White House officials saidin a statement. “At the same time,the Trump administration’s ac-tions underscore its commitmentto good-faith negotiations with

our allies to enhance our nationalsecurity while supporting Ameri-can workers.”

By keeping trading partnersguessing, the president hassought to create leverage in tradenegotiations, including in talksover the North American FreeTrade Agreement with Mexicoand Canada. But in the process, hehas sowed an atmosphere of cha-os among allies as well as manu-facturers uncertain about the im-pact on their vast supply chains.

The latest twist in the tradedrama does little to alleviate theconfusion among business own-ers and foreign leaders. Althoughthe Trump administration sig-naled a tougher stance with thetariffs, it also left open the possi-bility for continued negotiationswith affected countries.

U.S. TO PUT TARIFFSON ITS KEY ALLIES,

RISKING REPRISALSteel and Aluminum From Canada, the

E.U. and Mexico Are Targeted

By ANA SWANSON

President Trump has tried tocreate leverage in trade talks.

DOUG MILLS/THE NEW YORK TIMES

Continued on Page A10

JUBA, South Sudan — Thehunger season came early thisyear.

By February, once seen as atime of plenty, Nyabolli Chok hadrun out of food for her three chil-dren in their village here in SouthSudan. She knew they had toleave.

“We were eating leaves off oftrees,” she said, describing howshe boiled them into a waterysoup.

“Ron reath,” she said — herwords for the hunger season.South Sudan’s dozens of ethnicgroups use different names for themonths when food becomesscarce until the next harvest. Butthe fears are the same: malnutri-tion, disease, even death.

And this year is expected to bethe worst yet.

More than four years of civilwar — most of this young coun-try’s existence — have chased mil-lions from their homes, leavingcountless farms abandoned. Theeconomy has been obliterated.Fighting has overcome some of

Eating LeavesTo Stay AliveAs War Rages

By MEGAN SPECIAand KASSIE BRACKEN

Waiting for food at a United Nations camp outside Juba, South Sudan. Officials fear millions may face malnutrition as food runs out.KASSIE BRACKEN/THE NEW YORK TIMES

Continued on Page A11

WASHINGTON — For morethan a year, President Trump hasstruggled to control the UnitedStates’ law enforcement appara-tus, frustrated that it remains atleast partly out of his grasp. Buthe is increasingly turning to a toolthat allows him to push backagainst a justice system he callsunfair.

In a burst of action and words,Mr. Trump demonstrated Thurs-day that, in some instances, hestill has the last word. He par-doned Dinesh D’Souza, a conser-vative commentator convicted ofcampaign finance violations, andhe said he may extend clemencyto former Gov. Rod R. Blagojevichof Illinois and Martha Stewart, thelifestyle mogul.

As he has for all of his acts ofclemency since taking office, Mr.Trump bypassed the traditionalsystem for granting pardons anddisregarded more than 10,000 lan-guishing applications to focus in-stead on prominent public figureswhose cases resonated with himgiven his own grievances with in-vestigators. Some critics said hemay even be signaling associates— like one of his personal lawyers,Michael D. Cohen, who is under in-vestigation for possibly violatingfederal campaign finance laws —to stay strong and not help pros-ecutors.

The pardon for Mr. D’Souza,who pleaded guilty in 2014 to ma-king illegal campaign contribu-tions, was a victory for one of thepresident’s most vocal bases ofsupport, the conservative newsmedia. Mr. D’Souza has arguedthat he was singled out for pros-ecution by President Barack Oba-ma’s administration because ofhis conservative politics, an argu-ment that mirrors Mr. Trump’s as-

sertions that his predecessor tar-geted him, too.

Mr. Trump attributed his inter-est in the three cases to indigna-tion over selective or excessivejustice. Mr. D’Souza, he said, “wasvery unfairly treated.” He de-scribed the 14-year sentence im-posed on Mr. Blagojevich, a Dem-ocrat convicted on corruptioncharges, as “really unfair.” He saidMs. Stewart, who spent fivemonths in prison for lying to in-vestigators in a stock case, “washarshly and unfairly treated.”

The president’s interventioncame as he rails against Attorney

Trump Uses Pardons to Confront Justice SystemBy PETER BAKER

Continued on Page A14

Stars Whose Cases EchoHis Legal Grievances

The E.P.A. took a big step toward allow-ing more car emissions, setting the stagefor a fight with California. PAGE A17

Rolling Back Pollution Rules

The government of Mariano Rajoyveered toward collapse as opponentsappeared to have the support to ousthim over a corruption scandal. PAGE A6

Spanish Leader Faces Ouster

As the secretary of state talked to NorthKoreans in New York, Kim Jong-un metwith a Russian in Pyongyang. PAGE A8

INTERNATIONAL A4-11

Diplomacy on Two Continents

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, above, andCynthia Nixon are battling over whoseplan to fix the subway is best. PAGE A19

NEW YORK A19-23

An Underground FightA MoMA show of fantasy architecturalmarvels by Bodys Isek Kingelez is anexhibition-as-utopian-wonderland,Roberta Smith writes. PAGE C13

WEEKEND ARTS C1-26

Jetsonian Cityscapes

China’s two internet behemoths arespending billions to dominate daily life.U.S. titans may be taking notes. PAGE B1

BUSINESS DAY B1-6

New Imports From China

A quarter-century after “Angels inAmerica” landed in New York, Timestheater critics have selected the bestAmerican plays to be produced since.

SPECIAL SECTION

25 Years, 25 Great Plays

Lindy West PAGE A25

EDITORIAL, OP-ED A24-25The storied six-shot revolver that be-came the standard department firearmin 1895 is being phased out. PAGE A20

Police Retiring the Revolver

Golden State broke it open in overtimeto win Game 1 of the N.B.A. finals,124-114, despite LeBron James’s 51points for Cleveland. PAGE B7

SPORTSFRIDAY B7-13

Warriors Take Game 1

Late EditionToday, cloudy, showers or thunder-storms, warmer, humid, high 82. To-night, cloudy, spotty showers, low69. Tomorrow, thunderstorms, high80. Weather map is on Page B16.

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