World News: OnPolitics Today: Trump, unseen for days, returns with praise for 'Roseanne'

with Josh Hafner

OnPolitics Today: Trump, unseen for days, returns with praise for 'Roseanne'

The president phoned Roseanne Barr after an estimated

President Trump, unseen in public since Friday, popped up for an infrastructure event in Ohio Thursday. But something loomed large in the leader of America's mind: The revival of the 1990s situational comedy Roseanne.

"Look at her ratings! Look at her ratings!" Trump said to collected union workers in Richfield.

Roseanne Barr plays a Trump supporter on the show, prompting a call from the president Wednesday night congratulating her on the show's boffo ratings.

Trump did talk infrastructure at the Thursday speech, too, vowing a plan that will turn roads and bridges "into a source of absolutely incredible pride."

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Russia's 'tit-for-tat': Giving 60 U.S. diplomats the boot

A Kremlin news agency reported that Russia will kick out 60 U.S. diplomats and fold America's Consulate in St. Petersburg as payback for American actions tied to Russia's alleged poisoning of an ex-spy. The move, which was expected, follows the mass expelling of 150 Russian diplomats by the U.S. and other nations as they accused Russia of poisoning one of its former spies, Sergei Skripal, and his daughter. Here's what expelling a diplomat really means and why another Cold War may be in store.

As advertisers drop out, Laura Ingraham apologizes to Parkland survivor

This from Short List, USA TODAY's newsletter on the day's top news:

Fox News host Laura Ingraham called outspoken Parkland, Fla., school shooting survivor David Hogg a whiner, pointing out he was rejected by four colleges. In response, Hogg mounted a call for an ad boycott of her TV show. By Thursday afternoon, Ingraham apologized "in the spirit of Holy Week." Hogg and other Parkland students want meetings with members of Congress in every district. Oh, as for his college options, Hogg said he was accepted at Florida Atlantic University, Cal Poly and Cal State-San Marcos. Subscribe to Short List.

Trump fired Shulkin via Twitter, an HR nightmare at most places

Trump unceremoniously dumped VA chief David Shulkin in a Tweet on Wednesday. Doing such a life-altering thing via social media would cause an HR nightmare at most workplaces, but Trump's frank form of management could become less jarring - accepted, even - if people become more comfortable with digital criticism, human resources experts said. On Thursday, Trump suggested he canned Shulkin because he didn't align with Trump's desire to give veterans private sector health care options.

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