Mediaboss Marketing

1. French elections 2. North Korea China has a message for the US and North Korea: everybody calm down.Chinese President Xi Jinping had a phone chat with President Trump, urging against "provocative actions" astensions heat up on the peninsula. Things were hot this weekend. The North detained a US citizen as he was about to leave the country. And it also threatened to sink a US aircraft carrier conducting drills in the region. China is key to finding a peaceful solution because it's pretty much the only friend North Korea has in the world. 3. White House Everybody's back in Washington from spring recess and the first order of business is to keep the government from shutting down. President Trump's put the word out that he doesn't want to mark his 100th day in office (which he'll celebrate Saturday with a big rally in Pennsylvania) with a shutdown. So, at the very least, a short-term spending bill will probably be voted on by Friday that'll give everyone a chance to hammer out a longer-term deal. The President will pump out a ton of executive orders this week too, but don't hold your breath on that GOP health care bill surfacing just yet. 4. Afghanistan Defense Secretary James Mattis visits Afghanistan today, just days after a Taliban raid thatkilled as many as 140 Afghan soldiers. The Taliban launched the attack on Friday to apparently avenge the deaths of two of its so-called "shadow governors" in the region. The assault was a brutal one, with witnesses saying the Taliban attacked soldiers just after they said their prayers, "firing at anyone who came in front of them." 5. Retail stores No, it's not your imagination. Your favorite retail stores are closing, and at a pretty good clip too. A new report predicts close to 9,000 stores will shut down this year. That compares with more than 6,000 stores closures in 2008, the worst year on record.The culprit? You already know what it is -- the internet (and especially Amazon). BREAKFAST BROWSE

People are talking about these. Read up. Join in.

Goodbye, Joanie

Tough troopers

Only in Dubai

My hero

A little something extra with breakfast

500

Friends forever

Read more here:
5 things for Monday, April 24: France, North Korea, Trump, Afghanistan - CNN