It's got the kind of media coverage represented in The Post, the international ramifications of Darkest Hour, and its protagonist has been as silent as the main character in The Shape of Water. While most of us were watching the Oscars, The New Yorker was publishing Jane Mayer's wildly interesting piece on Christopher Steele, the man behind the Trump dossier. This is how the ex-spy tried to warn the world about Trump's ties to Russia, and what happened next. "Would Steele end up in a U.S. federal penitentiary? Would a Putin emissary knife him in a dark alley somewhere? ... The dossier had infuriated both Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump by divulging allegedly corrupt dealings between them. 'You've got oligarchs running both superpowers ... And, incredibly, they both hate this same guy...'" (Which probably leaves Steele feeling as stressed as the protagonist in Get Out.)

In a rare public split with the president, House Speaker Paul Ryan issued a statement in which he indicated that he's "extremely worried about the consequences" of Trump's steel tariffs and urged the president "to not advance with this plan." Ryan is joined by many other conservatives critical of the plan, but so far, the president says, "we're not backing down."

"The election, the first in five years, was widely seen as a bellwether of the strength of populists on the continent and how far they might advance into the mainstream. The answer was far, very far." NYT: In Italy Election, Anti-E.U. Views Pay Off for Far Right and Populists. (This trend is bad, and getting worse.)

"Their target that day was the huge, steam-billowing beef plant here on the high plains of the Texas Panhandle, owned then by meatpacking giant Swift & Co. 'Everyone on the production floor was shouting, 'La Migra! La Migra!' Monica Loya, a former plant worker, recalled. 'There were people hiding behind machinery, in boxes, even in the carcasses.'" One of the goals of that raid in 2006 was to return jobs to Americans. But that's not how things played out. WaPo: Trump says American workers are hurt by immigration. But after ICE raided this Texas town, they never showed up.

For years I've been saying that if someone finally makes a movie about a mute woman who has a romantic relationship with an amphibious creature being held in captivity at a top secret research facility, it would absolutely kill. And indeed, Guillermo del Toro's The Shape of Water took home best picture (and three other awards) at a relatively tame Academy Awards. Here's a look at all the winners.

+ Frances McDormand's Best Actress acceptance speech was the most memorable of the evening. And she turned people onto the concept of Inclusion Riders. In 2016, Stacy Smith introduced the idea during a Ted Talk on the data behind Hollywood's sexism. "What if those A-listers simply added an equity clause or an inclusion rider into their contract?" (As if McDormand's night wasn't exciting enough, someone ripped off her Oscar at an after-party. She got it back. He got arrested.)

+ Rolling Stone: The 20 Best, Worst and Most WTF Moments of Oscars 2018.

+ And yes, there were snubs and surprises.

+ Buzzfeed: Remarkable Human Tiffany Haddish Has Now Worn The Same Dress Three Times. Truly revolutionary ...for a famous person. (This is the first time I've felt represented at the Oscars. I wear pretty much the same thing every day.)

"These are not micro-units, nor are they like WeWork's WeLive housing developments, where residents have their own small kitchens, living rooms and bathrooms but share common event space and industrial appliances for parties. These are not single-family homes that are being used as group houses ... In search of reasonable rent, the middle-class backbone of San Francisco — maitre d's, teachers, bookstore managers, lounge musicians, copywriters and merchandise planners — are engaging in an unusual experiment in communal living: They are moving into dorms." From the NYT's Nellie Bowles: Dorm Living for Professionals Comes to San Francisco. Somewhat surprisingly, some of the residents featured in this piece seem to love their new living arrangements. But ultimately, it's a story about a city where the tech boom has priced nearly everyone else out of the market.

"The delay is just one symptom of the largely passive response to the Russian interference by President Trump, who has made little if any public effort to rally the nation to confront Moscow and defend democratic institutions. More broadly, the funding lag reflects a deep lack of confidence by Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson in his department's ability to execute its historically wide-ranging mission and spend its money wisely." The State Dept. Was Granted $120 Million to Fight Russian Meddling. It Has Spent $0.

+ "Screw that. Why do I have to go? Why? For what?" Former Trump Aide Sam Nunberg says he'll refuse Mueller's grand jury subpoena. (And things got weirder.)

"Many of the officers lied, cheated, stole, or assaulted New York City residents. At least fifty employees lied on official reports, under oath, or during an internal affairs investigation. Thirty-eight were found guilty by a police tribunal of excessive force, getting into a fight, or firing their gun unnecessarily. Fifty-seven were guilty of driving under the influence. Seventy-one were guilty of ticket-fixing. One officer, Jarrett Dill, threatened to kill someone. Another, Roberson Tunis, sexually harassed and inappropriately touched a fellow officer. Some were guilty of lesser offenses, like mouthing off to a supervisor." What do they all have in common? None of them got fired. From Buzzfeed: Secret NYPD Files: Officers Can Lie And Brutally Beat People — And Still Keep Their Jobs

"Chuck Feeney today is a man of no property. He and his wife Helga live in a modest rented apartment in San Francisco. He has no car or luxuries of any kind. Actually, come to think of it, he has a very nice watch. It is plastic and cost about $15." In fact, there's almost no sign that Feeney was worth about $8 billion, until he decided to give it all away.

"Forget the cliché of the vulnerable senior citizen falling victim to scammers — a larger share of young people reported that they lost money to fraud than older individuals did in 2017."

+ What turns some law-abiding Canadians into smugglers? The high price of imported cheese.