AP News Digest 3:05 a.m.
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NEW/DEVELOPING
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UGANDA-REBEL-ATTACK-STUDENTS-KILLED — Ugandan police say at least 25 people have been killed in a suspected rebel attack on a school near the Congo border. Police say that the Allied Democratic Forces carried out the attack late on a school in the border town of Mpondwe. By Rodney Muhumuza. SENT: 310 words.
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TOP STORIES
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ELECTION 2024-BIDEN — President Joe Biden will tout his pro-labor bona fides at his first major political rally since he formalized his reelection campaign, appearing alongside union members to make his case that his economic agenda is boosting the middle class. By Seung Min Kim and Will Weissert. SENT: 500 words, photo. UPCOMING: 990 words after 2:15 p.m. rally.
TRUMP-CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS-VOTERS — Some Republican-leaning voters in early-voting states say they are angry about Donald Trump’s indictment on charges that he mishandled classified documents. But that doesn’t mean they will support him in his quest for a third GOP presidential nomination. By Thomas Beaumont. SENT: 1,300 words, photos
RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR-DAM-COLLAPSE-VICTIMS — Massive flooding from the destruction of a huge dam has devastated towns along the lower Dnieper River in Ukraine and forced many civilians to flee to rooftops, attics and higher ground. Ukrainian rescuers have been carrying out risky missions to evacuate civilians in small boats from the areas occupied by Russian forces on the river’s west bank. The rescuers have come under fire from Russian snipers and drones. By Samya Kullab, evgeniy Maloletka and Sam McNeil. SENT: 1,310 words, photos.
UNITED NATIONS-GLOBAL FINANCE — The secretary-general of the United Nations is pressing for major changes in two other international institutions. Antonio Guterres says the International Monetary Fund has benefited rich countries instead of poor ones. And he describes the IMF and World Bank’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic as a “glaring failure” that left dozens of countries deeply indebted. By Edith M. Lederer. SENT: 1,120 words, photos.
HOUSE-EVICTIONS-RISING — Eviction filings are far above pre-pandemic levels in many cities across the country as pandemic relief disappears and inflation causes rents to spike. According to the latest data from the Eviction Lab, filings in some cities are running as much as 50% above levels seen prior to the pandemic. Those numbers are especially stark, given that many tenants experienced a reprieve during the pandemic when eviction moratoriums were in place and billions of dollars in federal rental assistance was plentiful. By Michael Casey and R.J. Rico. SENT: 1,290 words, photos. This story moved as the Sunday spotlight.
STATE-SUPERMAJORITIES — Lawmakers in state capitols this year have been flexing their superpowers. In North Carolina, a new supermajority of Republicans enacted abortion restrictions. In Vermont, a new supermajority of Democrats imposed a climate-sensitive home heating law. And in Montana, a GOP supermajority booted a transgender lawmaker from the House floor. In each case, the views of their political opponents ultimately were irrelevant. By David A. Lieb. SENT: 1,110 words, photos.
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RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR
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RUSSIA-UKRAINE-WAR — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appealed to a group of African leaders to ask his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to free political prisoners from Crimea and beyond — saying it could be an important part of their trip to Russia. SENT: 1,200 words, photos, video, audio.
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MORE NEWS
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TRUMP-LEGAL-TROUBLES-COHEN — Former President Donald Trump’s onetime personal lawyer and the key witness against him in his New York state criminal prosecution lost his bid for early release from probation following a three-year prison sentence after federal prosecutors said he’s lying again. SENT: 520 words, photo.
UGANDA-US-VISA-RESTRICTIONS — Washington has announced it is imposing visa restrictions for Ugandans it accuses of “undermining the democratic process” in Uganda after the enactment of an anti-gay law in the East African country. SENT: 180 words, photo.
NCAA-MARIJUANA-TESTING — An NCAA panel is calling for the removal of marijuana from the organization’s list of banned drugs, suggesting that testing should be limited to performance-enhancing substances. SENT: 300 words, photos.
BKL-MERCURY-GRINER — Brittney Griner did not play for the Phoenix Mercury in their first game in Washington since returning from her imprisonment in Russia. But the WNBA star was embraced by opponents and fans in the nation’s capital down the road from many of the folks in the U.S. government who worked to get her home. Griner was out against the Mystics because of a hip injury. SENT: 450 words, photo.
HKN-STANLEY-CUP-GOLDEN-KNIGHTS — Tens of thousands of Vegas Golden Knights fans, maybe more, are expected at the heart of the Las Vegas Strip for a Stanley Cup victory parade and a rally to mark the team’s first-ever NHL championship. SENT: 430 words, photos.
PEOPLE-PETE-DAVIDSON — Los Angeles prosecutors charged former “Saturday Night Live” star Pete Davidson with reckless driving, three months after authorities said he crashed into a Beverly Hills home. SENT: 180 words, photos.
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WASHINGTON/POLITICS
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ELECTION-2023 MISSISSIPPI-GOVERNOR — Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves and the Democrat who is trying to unseat him this year, Brandon Presley, traded barbs about crime, courts and transgender health care Friday in separate appearances before newspaper editors and publishers. SENT: 650 words, photos. With ELECTION-2023-MISSISSIPPI-LTGOVERNOR — Republicans tout conservative credentials in lieutenant governor primary (sent).
UNITED STATES-CHINA-BLINKEN — Shortly before setting out for Beijing, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has emphasized the importance of the U.S. and China establishing better lines of communication. He will be the highest-ranking member of the Biden administration to visit China. SENT: 390 words, photos, audio.
ELECTION 2024-DEMOCRATS — President Biden’s plan to overhaul his party’s 2024 presidential primary schedule remains unsettled, after a Democratic rules committee gave New Hampshire more time to comply with new rules that leaders there fiercely oppose, but opted not to immediately offer such an extension to another battleground state, Georgia. SENT: 620 words, photos.
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NATIONAL
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JUNETEENTH-HOW-TO-CELEBRATE — For more than one-and-a-half centuries, the Juneteenth holiday has been sacred to many Black communities. It marks the day in 1865 enslaved people in Galveston, Texas found out they had been freed — after the end of the Civil war, and two years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. Since it was designated a federal holiday in 2021, Juneteenth has become more universally recognized beyond Black America. Many people get the day off work or school, and there are a plethora of street festivals, fairs, concerts and other events. By Terry Tang. SENT: 1,280 words, photos.
OBIT-ELLSBERG — Daniel Ellsberg, the history-making whistleblower who by leaking the Pentagon Papers revealed longtime government doubts and deceit about the Vietnam War and inspired acts of retaliation by President Richard Nixon that helped lead to his resignation, has died. He was 92. SENT: 2,210 words, photos.
GEORGE-FLOYD-MINNEAPOLIS-POLICE-TAKEAWAYS — The Justice Department on Friday issued a scathing assessment of Minneapolis police, alleging that racial discrimination and excessive force went unchecked before George Floyd’s killing because of inadequate oversight and an unwieldy process for investigating complaints. SENT: 990 words, photos.
HEAT-WAVE — Summer doesn’t officially start until next week, but extreme heat was already making itself right at home in Texas, with temperatures soaring above triple digits in many cities. SENT: 480 words, photos.
TRANSGENDER-HEALTH-INDIANA — A federal judge is blocking much of Indiana’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors from taking effect on July 1. SENT: 760 words, photo.
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INTERNATIONAL
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KOREAS-TENSION — With leader Kim Jong Un in attendance, North Korea opened a key political conference to discuss improving its struggling economy and reviewing defense strategies in the face of growing tensions with rivals, according to state media reports. SENT: 430 words, photos.
MEXICO-CARTEL-VIOLENCE — Gun battles between drug cartels forced about 700 people to flee their rural villages in the western Mexico state of Michoacan, activists and a local priest say. SENT: 470 words.
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BUSINESS/ECONOMY
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REDDIT-API-BOYCOTT — Thousands of Reddit discussion forums have gone dark this week to protest a new policy that will charge some third-party apps to access data on the site, leading to worries about content moderation and accessibility. 760 words, photo.
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SPORTS
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GLF-US OPEN-PEOPLE’S CHOICES — A fan favorite. An underdog. A comeback story. All those storylines are in play heading into the weekend at the U.S. Open. And, as luck would have it, they are all wrapped up in the same player — Rickie Fowler. One of the sport’s most popular personalities is emerging from a three-year slump, and heading into the weekend with a one-shot lead and as good a chance as he’s had in a while to capture his first major championship. By Eddie Pells. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos by 6 a.m. With GLF-US-OPEN — Rickie Fowler’s wild ride gives him a 1-shot lead in the US Open (sent).
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HOW TO REACH US
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