Futures for the S&P 500 were unchanged before the opening bell, while Dow Jones Industrial futures inched up 0.2%. Nasdaq futures were off 0.4%.

Most chipmakers were down modestly premarket after a big sell-off a day earlier that saw Micron lose more than 10%. Micron fell another 2.3% overnight while most other chipmakers were down less than 1% early Thursday.

In Asia, South Korea’s benchmark Kospi index sank 7.9% to 7,648.09. with chip-related shares trading lower. Memory chipmaker SK Hynix lost 14.6% and Samsung Electronics tumbled 9.1%.

Surging demand for artificial intelligence has pushed many AI and tech stocks higher in recent months, with markets in South Korea, Japan and Taiwan reaping big gains. So far this year, the Kospi and Nikkei 225 have gained about 77% and 33%, respectively.

However, concerns over a potential glut in supply given the massive investments made by Big Tech companies in the U.S. and elsewhere have been clouding investor sentiment.

“AI demand may continue to grow but at a slower pace than expected,” economists Megan Fisher and Vicky Redwood at Capital Economics wrote in a note on Thursday. “Firms and investors may be underestimating the barriers to AI adoption.”

While transformative technologies can be adopted widely, they may still fall short of generating financial returns soon enough in order to justify the massive scale of investments made by many firms, the economists said.

Coming later Thursday morning is more data on the U.S. labor market. The June jobs report comes out a day earlier due to the July 4 holiday and the weekly unemployment benefits report, which acts as a proxy for layoffs, is also scheduled for release.

Oil prices fell after negotiators from the U.S. and Iran met separately with mediators from Qatar and Pakistan on Wednesday, as traders eyed developments in talks on achieving a permanent end to the war in Iran.

Brent crude, the international standard, fell $1 to $70.57 per barrel, effectively the price it was in the days before the war started. Benchmark U.S. crude fell $1.08 to $67.50 per barrel. U.S. crude was below $67 a barrel in the days leading up to the U.S.'s and Israel's attacks on Iran.

Hopes have risen that crude supplies will improve markedly with the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that’s key for the world’s oil transport, even though the number of ships crossing the strait is still limited.

In early European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.5%, France's CAC 40 advanced 0.8% and Germany's DAX climbed 0.9%.

In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 lost 2.5% to 68,733.15. Shares of chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron shed 7.4%.

Taiwan’s Taiex declined 0.6% as chipmaking giant TSMC, or Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., fell 1.6%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed 0.8% higher at 23,055.03. Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD’s shares rose 8.1% after it reported its sales rose for a second straight month. The Shanghai Composite index fell 2% to 4,028.90.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged less than 0.1% higher to 8,724.50.

India's Sensex climbed 0.6%.

In currency trading, the U.S. dollar was at 161.36 Japanese yen, down from 162.58 yen, after the yen fell to a four-decade low against the dollar on Wednesday. The euro was trading at $1.1415, up from $1.1377.

We’ve compiled a non-exhaustive list of upcoming Space Coast launches so you can know what to expect.

[RELATED: Best spots to watch a rocket launch]

Keep checking back, though, because as most space enthusiasts know, launch schedules are subject to change due to weather, technical reasons, and range restrictions.

I repeat: All launch dates and times are tentative!

• Date: July 5
• Vehicle: Falcon 9
• Mission: Starlink
• Launch Time: 6:36 a.m. to 10:36 a.m.
• Location: Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

• Date: First half of 2026
• Vehicle: Blue Origin New Glenn
• Mission: Blue Origin will launch a Blue Moon lunar lander carrying NASA payloads on a demonstration mission.
• Launch Time: TBD
• Location: Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Launch Complex 36

• Date: TBD
• Vehicle: Boeing Starliner
• Mission: An uncrewed Boeing Starliner will deliver cargo to the International Space Station and undergo in-flight validation of a series of system upgrades.
• Launch Time: TBD
• Location: TBD

• Date: TBD
• Vehicle: ULA Atlas V
• Mission: TBD
• Launch Time: TBD
• Location: Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

• Date: Q4 2026
• Vehicle: ULA Vulcan
• Mission: Sierra Space will launch its uncrewed Dream Chaser space plane atop a ULA Vulcan rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
• Launch Time: TBD
• Location: Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Launch Complex 41

Now, after a massive infusion of cash from Congress, President Donald Trump's administration is swiftly building what it has dubbed a “smart wall,” a combination of 30-foot-tall (9-meter-tall) steel fencing and an array of sophisticated technology like sensors, cameras and towers allowing Border Patrol to surveil the territory.

The wall is under heavy scrutiny for the billions of dollars being dedicated to it when border crossings are at their lowest in decades. Critics say the U.S. is militarizing the border as it increasingly deploys sophisticated surveillance technology to the area, impacting local communities.

“We are seeing a massive expansion of surveillance and surveillance technology across the borderlands,” said Ricky Garza, border policy counsel at the Southern Border Communities Coalition, an advocacy group. “The wall in all its forms is harmful to communities.”

Officials say the technology is complementary to the physical wall and frees up agents for other tasks.

“It’s a smart wall. It’s not just a barrier,” Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott said during recent congressional testimony. “It maximizes the use of our most valuable resource, which is our agents.”

Contracts for hundreds of miles of wall already inked

The wall has been a top priority for Trump, a Republican, since he first ran for president.

During the administration of President Joe Biden, a Democrat, the border emerged as a flashpoint, with thousands of people seeking to cross into the country each day. Those numbers started to taper off shortly before Trump returned to office last year and then slowed to a trickle, with his broader immigration crackdown serving as a deterrent for would-be migrants.

Flush with $46 billion to finish the wall after an infusion by Congress for immigration enforcement, CBP is inking tens of billions of dollars in contracts to build the wall and push along the president's signature project.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said recently that a preliminary part of the wall will be finished by “this time next year.” Scott said his agency is putting up 6 miles (10 kilometers) of wall a week.

Hundreds of miles had already been built before Trump returned to office. As of mid-June 2026, CBP has erected another 74 miles (119 kilometers) and aims to build hundreds more. There is no wall planned for roughly 535 miles (861 kilometers) of the roughly 2,000-mile-long (3,200-kilometer-long) border, because rugged terrain already serves as a barrier. Ground sensors and towers will be used instead.

CBP is also going back to hundreds of miles of already built wall and adding more technology, lights and roads. Along the long stretches of river in Texas that mark the border with Mexico, they're deploying 12- to 15-foot-long (3.7- to 4.5-meter-long) cylinder-shaped buoys meant to keep migrants or smugglers from crossing the border.

More technology being deployed on the border

Technology is playing a greater role in the Trump administration’s effort to make illegal crossings along the border more difficult, part of a broader transformation of CBP in the years since Sept. 11, 2001, into an intelligence operation with a mass surveillance network whose reach extends far beyond the nation's frontiers, according to reporting by The Associated Press.

And critics say the border technology poses a threat.

The Southern Border Communities Coalition says surveillance technologies can push migrants into more dangerous routes to avoid being detected.

Garza, the group's policy counsel, warned that surveillance technology infringes on the privacy rights of border residents and that locals have found ground sensors used to detect smuggler or migrant traffic placed on their property without their consent.

Nayda Alvarez and her relatives own land along the Rio Grande roughly 125 miles (200 kilometers) inland from the Gulf of Mexico. She has found cameras placed on her family's land, and just last week she spotted a surveillance tower about a quarter of a mile (almost half a kilometer) down the river from her house.

“Are we expecting a war or something?” she said. "It doesn’t make me feel safer.”

Dave Maass, director of investigations for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit that focuses on civil liberties related to digital technology, said the technology has made the border area “a hostile environment” for locals and would-be migrants.

The foundation has published a guide on the various types of surveillance towers in use along the southern border designed to help local residents.

These can range from fixed towers with video, infrared and radar technologies that have a range of roughly 8 miles (13 kilometers) to remote video surveillance systems that have cameras and a spotlight fixed on top. Some are mounted on the backs of trucks so agents can drive them to different parts of the border.

Increasingly, these towers are autonomous. They can scan an area, analyze what they're seeing using artificial intelligence and alert Border Patrol agents to something suspicious. Proponents say this helps keep Border Patrol agents out in the field instead of sitting in front of computer screens watching for activity. But it also increases AI decision-making along the border when experts have warned about the technology’s potential for bias or other problems.

The big GOP tax cuts and spending bill passed by Congress last summer requires that CBP buys only the autonomous towers, and the department is deploying an additional 95.

Underground, buried fiberoptic cables can sense movement, capturing data that is also then analyzed by AI.

“We follow the contour of the land. We go through trees. We go down into the river banks. We can go absolutely everywhere,” said Magnus McEwen-King, CEO of Sintela, which has a contract with CBP to install the cables. He spoke at a recent border security expo in Phoenix, where some of the technology was on display.

CBP also uses ground sensors and trail cameras to detect smuggling routes.

Concerns over cost and future plans

The nonpartisan watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense has questioned both the huge amounts of money for the wall-building and whether taxpayers are getting their money's worth.

In 2011, under Democratic President Barack Obama, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano pulled the plug on a project to build a “virtual wall” of integrated technology like radars, sensors and cameras across the entire border after it ran over budget, faced technological glitches and was behind schedule.

Josh Sewell, director of research and policy at Taxpayers for Common Sense, said the organization would like to see more “robust evaluation” of the technologies being used to avoid similar scenarios. And he criticized the Trump administration for lack of oversight on how the money is being spent, a charge CBP has denied, citing “oversight mechanism.”

In the Big Bend area of southern Texas, opposition to the department's wall-building plans gathered strong bipartisan support especially in the most sensitive areas that run through a state and national park and a wildlife area.

CBP now says it is not planning to build a 30-foot-high (9-meter-high) bollard wall in those areas. Its recently announced plans include installing patrol roads and some barriers designed to stop cars and using detection technologies.

Clara Benson, who is one of the founders of the No Big Bend Wall coalition, says bright lights in the area designed to illuminate the border could pollute the skies in an area renowned for having some of the best views of the stars. Even without a 30-foot-tall (9-meter-tall) steel wall running through the land, there is concern about CBP's plans.

“There's still a lot of fear and dread that the plan is still going to be quite damaging,” she said.

From dazzling fireworks to drone shows and deep discounts, there’s no shortage of ways to celebrate liberty in style.

Below is a round-up of what you can expect.

Walt Disney World

Celebrating America at The Most Magical Place on Earth makes a day at Walt Disney World all the more memorable, as the resort is known for its decorations, experiences, and cuisine.

• Dazzling fireworks: Red, white, blue and more brightly-colored fireworks will light up the night sky over the Magic Kingdom. “Disney’s Celebrate America! A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky” will take place on July 3, 4 and 5 at 9:20 p.m. At EPCOT, “The Heartbeat of Freedom” will follow Luminous: The Symphony of Us” on July 3, 4, and 5.
• The Flag Retreat: Every day at 5 p.m. in Magic Kingdom’s Town Square, a ceremony retires the American flag for the night in a tribute to U.S. veterans. The gratitude among cast members and guests is all the more appreciative on a day when freedom rings loudly.
• Hall of Presidents: The newly updated attraction includes a President Donald Trump animatronic front and center.
• Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress: It’s the “hottest Fourth of July we’ve had in years” — and your last chance to see Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress in its current form before it closes July 6 for a major makeover.
• Soarin’ Across America: EPCOT’s flight simulator attraction takes guests on a limited-time coast-to-coast journey, featuring famous landmarks and breathtaking landscape views.
• Voices of Liberty Harmonies at EPCOT: The legendary a cappella vocal group will perform patriotic numbers throughout the day in the rotunda of The American Adventure.
• Spaceship Earth: Red, white, and blue lights will envelop EPCOT’s flagship attraction.

• Special photo ops: Mickey, Donald Duck, and Goofy don their “Spirit of ‘76″ attire, something that only happens on July 4.
• “Portraits of Courage:” The special exhibit from the George W. Bush Institute has been extended through July 4, 2026, at The American Adventure. The exhibit features 60 oil paintings of service members and veterans who have served in military uniform with honor since 9/11.
• Walt Disney World flyover: The U.S. Air Force Reserve’s 920th Rescue Wing from Patrick Space Force Base will fly over the Magic Kingdom and EPCOT, beginning at 10:30 a.m. July 4, weather permitting.

Universal Orlando Resort

For Independence Day, Universal Orlando guests can enjoy character meet-and-greets, a DJ, and pyrotechnics, while Universal CityWalk offers live music and entertainment to keep the party going.

This time of year, the Universal Movie Magic Parade comes with a patriotic twist. The Amity 4th of July Celebration float, inspired by “Jaws,” makes an appearance, complete with the iconic shark and energetic performers dressed in red, white, and blue marching band uniforms.

Universal Epic Universe

• Live DJ at the Hemisphere Stage (5–9 p.m.)
• Fourth of July-themed stilt walkers and ground performers near the Hemisphere Stage and Cosmos Fountain (starting at 5 p.m.)
• Fireworks show at the Cosmos Fountain (9 p.m.) followed by a fountain show (10 p.m.)

Universal Studios Florida

• Street Breakz break dancing performances at Expo Circle (5:30, 6:30, 7:30 & 8:30 p.m.)
• Universal Mega Movie Parade (6 p.m.)
• CineSational: A Symphonic Spectacular from the Lagoon (9 p.m.)
• Live DJs at the Music Plaza Stage (5:15–10 p.m.) and Mel’s Drive-In (7:15–10 p.m.)
• Stilt walkers and ground performers (6:15–9:50 p.m.)
• Character meet and greets at the Music Plaza Stage and Mel’s Drive-In (starting 6:30 p.m.)
• Pyrotechnics show from the Lagoon (10 p.m.)

Universal CityWalk

• Live music from American Sirens on the Plaza Stage (5–8 p.m.) and Hall of Fame on the Waterfront Stage (8–10:45 p.m.)
• Live DJ on the Promenade (8 p.m.–12:30 a.m.)
• Atmosphere performers and stilt walkers throughout the evening

SeaWorld Orlando

SeaWorld Orlando is honoring America’s 250th birthday with big savings and a packed lineup of patriotic festivities.

• Fourth of July sale: Guests can save up to 55% on tickets, Fun Cards and Annual Passes for a limited time.
• July 4 celebration: SeaWorld Orlando hosts a family-friendly Fourth of July Celebration featuring a patriotic fireworks display and drone show.
• Red, White & BBQ: Starting July 4 and running through Aug. 23, guests can enjoy regional barbecue, live music and patriotic entertainment.

Legoland Florida

Legoland Florida Resort is celebrating July 4 with extended park hours, a DJ dance party, character meet-and-greets, and its biggest Red, White & BOOM! — a 12-minute fire show over Lake Eloise featuring special glasses that transform bursts into LEGO brick shapes.

For families looking to elevate the experience, a VIP Fireworks Seating Package is available for $30 plus tax per guest, in addition to park admission.

[WATCH: FIFA World Cup celebration kicks off at Legoland Florida]

Fun Spot America

Fun Spot America is ringing in the nation’s 250th birthday with a fireworks spectacular at its Orlando and Kissimmee locations on July 4, starting at 9:30 p.m. The Kissimmee park is also partnering with Old Town Kissimmee for the show.

Gatorland

While Gatorland isn’t hosting specific Independence Day celebrations this year, Uncle Sam will be on hand.

The massive, 10-foot, 700-pound alligator was rescued from The Villages during Fourth of July weekend last year, which inspired its name.

Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex

This Fourth of July, Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex is pulling out all the stops to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary with a summer packed with patriotic events, astronaut appearances, and out-of-this-world experiences.

Fourth of July weekend: All-American Block Party (July 3–5)

• Live DJ in NASA Central daily from noon–4 p.m.
• Hula hoop contests and family-friendly interactive activities
• Interactive experiences inside Space Shuttle Atlantis®
• Special robotics demonstrations from the Pink Team robotics group

More July events worth planning around

• 250 Space Dreams (All of July) — Daily giveaways of 250 prizes celebrating America’s anniversary and the spirit of exploration
• 60th Anniversary of the KSC Bus Tour (All of July) — Commemorative decals, collectible pins, themed photos, and enhanced VIP tour experiences
• STS-135 Anniversary – Atlantis’ Last Flight (July 10–12) — Astronaut meet-and-greets, panel discussions, patriotic drone show July 11
• Moon Fest (July 17–19) — Apollo 11’s 57th anniversary celebration with vintage-chic theme, lunar rover photo ops, and Apollo-to-Artemis presentations

Dezerland Park

Dezerland Park will host Military Appreciation Days July 3-5 as a tribute to active-duty military personnel, veterans, and their families.

During the three-day event, military personnel will receive one complimentary Auto Museum ticket. Service members also have the opportunity to purchase up to four additional Auto Museum tickets at 50% off.

ICON Park

Blue Man Group is marking America’s 250th birthday with a special ticket offer — guests can save 50% on every second ticket for select performances through July 31.

The deal is valid on all non-Saturday shows and must be purchased online by July 5 at midnight.

Old Town

Old Town Entertainment District’s 7th Annual All-American Fourth of July Celebration offers families a full day of free festivities, including a classic car show, live music, the iconic Saturday Night Classic Car Cruise, and a patriotic fireworks spectacular presented with Fun Spot America.

Launching at 12:30 a.m. from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, the rocket delivered 29 broadband satellites for Amazon’s Leo constellation.

The launch marks ULA’s eighth Leo mission, bringing the total satellites delivered by the company to 224 — roughly 60% of the 375-plus satellite constellation now in orbit.

A total of 35 monks from Mukdahan province, about 600 kilometers (372 miles) northeast of the capital Bangkok, were on the pilgrimage. Five monks were killed at the site, while four others died at a hospital. Thirteen were hospitalized with three in critical condition, according to the provincial administration.

The group started the 260-kilometer (161-mile) walk to Ubon Ratchathani province about 30 minutes before the crash.

Security camera footage shared by a local rescue group, Ruam Jai Mukdahan Rescue Association, shows the monks walking in a single line on the side of a road before the truck crashes into them.

The boy is in custody and will be questioned when state child protection officers arrive, police said.

The cause of the accident is under investigation, but police said the monks described seeing the vehicle swerving before it slid off the road and crashed into the group.

In just the past week, Trump has issued dark warnings that members of the Democratic Party's ascendant left are communists who want to “completely destroy the traditional American way of life" and even engage in assassinations. Vice President JD Vance has similarly called out communism as a political shift that is “something we haven't seen in the U.S.” House Speaker Mike Johnson has decried “radical candidates” who are “self-described, self-identifying Marxists.”

The GOP's ideological focus conflates democratic socialism, which often centers on securing universal healthcare, higher taxes on the wealthy and stricter corporate regulation, with communism, under which private ownership is largely eliminated. It has been building since Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, won the Democratic nomination for New York City mayor last year.

But it's kicked into a higher gear recently after democratic socialists won several New York City congressional primaries last week. The primary victory on Tuesday by another democratic socialist, Melat Kiros, for a Denver congressional seat suggested the trend may extend beyond Manhattan liberalism.

“The Democrats are making this easy for us,” Rep. Richard Hudson, the North Carolina Republican who leads the House GOP's strategy and fundraising arm, said in an interview. “They're nominating extreme liberals, leftists who are out of touch even with mainstream Democrats.”

Republicans are holding onto slim majorities

The messaging effort comes as Republicans scramble to hold onto threadbare congressional majorities in the November midterms. It risks overlooking public frustration, particularly among younger voters, with unfettered capitalism at a time of growing income inequality and rising costs.

But it also gives Republicans a much-needed opportunity to shift the conversation back to territory that is more comfortable for them after their party has spent much of the year on defense over the fallout from Trump's decision to launch a war against Iran, which contributed to widespread price spikes.

Ralph Reed, the longtime conservative activist who hosted Trump last week at a Faith and Freedom Coalition conference, acknowledged that Republicans are facing steep headwinds this year. But the recent string of wins by democratic socialists, he said, allows Republicans to present a contrast between “common sense and crazy.”

Democrats are uncertain over the party's direction

The renewed push could tug at tensions among Democrats who are largely united in their loathing of Trump but are divided over the party's direction. This year's primaries are shaping up as a referendum between centrists who are eager to course correct from what they see as progressive overreach earlier in the decade and a left-wing pushing for even more sweeping change.

“A lot of this anger has been boiling under the surface,” said Joseph Geevarghese, executive director of Our Revolution, which was founded by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent who caucuses with Democrats. “It’s coming to the fore in this moment in a very powerful way.”

But Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a centrist New Jersey Democrat, called the victories in Colorado and New York “aberrations.”

“We’ve got to fight like hell to keep our party from being hijacked by socialists,” he said. “Most of them are bomb throwers, not problem solvers.”

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford easily dispatched a more progressive rival earlier this year in his Democratic bid for governor in a state Trump carried in 2024. As he eyes a general election challenge to Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo, he insisted candidates like those who won in New York don't represent all Democrats.

He said the Democratic Socialists of America “is not the face of our party.”

Rep. Suzan DelBene, a Washington Democrat who chairs the House Democratic campaign committee, said in a statement that Republicans were “resorting to desperate attacks that aren’t actually about the pocketbook issues.”

Trump risks overreaching with communism argument

Trump and fellow Republicans risk missing the mark when the public's embrace of capitalism might not be as strong as it was decades ago.

About half of U.S. adults, 54%, have a positive view of capitalism, according to an August poll from Gallup, a slight decline from 61% in 2010. Democrats have driven some of the shift, but favorable opinions of capitalism have fallen among independents as well.

Only 42% of Democrats viewed capitalism favorably, while 66% had a positive view of socialism. The poll found that both younger and older Democrats have warmed slightly on socialism since 2010, but Democrats under age 50 are much less likely to view capitalism favorably. Democrats age 50 or older didn't shift meaningfully.

“Young voters, who I would argue are driving a lot of the electoral energy that we're seeing, came of age politically in a post-Soviet world,” Geevarghese said. “The attacks don't land in the same way when Donald Trump was politically of age.”

Hudson, who is running the House GOP campaign committee, acknowledged the communism line might not resonate in the same way with all voters, particularly younger people. That's why, he said, it's important for Republicans to tailor their message to the needs of individual districts.

“I've never run cookie-cutter campaigns where we just say one thing over and over everywhere,” he said.

Still, the argument was high on Trump's mind again on Wednesday as he visited the newly built Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in North Dakota. He called the former president a “ferocious opponent of a thing called communism.”

“It’s the biggest threat to our country, including World War I, World War II, Pearl Harbor, September 11,” he said. "It’s a bigger threat, potentially a bigger threat than that, because it’s like a cancer that spreads, and you better stop it fast.”

Beverly Gage, a history professor at Yale University who has written on the rise and fall of Sen. Joe McCarthy, said earlier eras of anti-communism politics took hold because there was a large and active Communist Party in the U.S. and the Soviet Union was the country's primary foe. But she said Trump's focus on the issue is notable given his ties to Roy Cohn, a onetime confidant of Trump who earlier worked for McCarthy.

“It's not very many steps to get from McCarthy to Roy Cohn to Donald Trump,” she said.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a potential Democratic presidential candidate, shrugged off Trump's communism focus as “bunk.” In an interview, he said the direction of the party isn't all that different from the dynamics he's navigated for decades in California politics.

“I governed in an environment where the DSA was otherwise known as progressives," he said. “This dialectic is so deeply familiar to me, and I don't over read any of it.”

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This story has been corrected to show the spelling of the Washington congresswoman’s first name is Suzan, not Susan.

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Associated Press writer Michelle L. Price in contributed to this report

Loud explosions shook the Ukrainian capital for hours during the night, with many people sheltering in subway stations after authorities issued air raid warnings. Emergency crews were still digging through the rubble of collapsed and charred apartment buildings in search of victims as dawn broke.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement that the deadly bombardment was in response to Ukraine’s long-range strikes that have caused severe fuel shortages and put pressure on President Vladimir Putin.

Ukraine's increasingly frequent and large-scale attacks — described by Zelenskyy as a 40-day blitz — have especially targeted oil refineries, causing a fuel crisis that has frustrated Russians, more than four years after Moscow's full-scale invasion of its neighbor.

Ukrainian officials say they are trying to force Putin to the negotiating table, but so far Moscow's response has been to hit back.

Diplomatic efforts to end the war, most recently by the Trump administration, haven’t produced results. Putin thinks that time is on his side, that Western support will peter out and that Ukraine’s resistance will eventually collapse under pressure from strategic bombing, Western analysts say.

Ukraine's top diplomat says it

was a 'night of horror’ in Kyiv

The attack killed 18 people in Kyiv, the Emergency Service said. More than 90 others were injured, according to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko.

Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said it was a “night of horror” in the capital.

Damage was recorded in 30 locations across the city, mainly residential buildings and civilian infrastructure, according to Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration. Some 20 residential buildings were damaged, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.

Flashes from exploding drones and missiles lit up the night, and loud booms echoed through Kyiv. Tracers from air defense fire streaked through the air as a huge pall of black smoke rose into the sky.

Kyiv resident Serhii Budko said three or four ballistic missiles hit his district of the city. “We were inside the shelter and felt the shelter shaking — the ceiling and floor, everything,” the 24-year-old told The Associated Press.

In Kyiv's Desnianskyi district, people were trapped inside a damaged nine-story residential building, and in the Darnytskyi district six levels of a nine-story building collapsed.

Russia’s General Staff chief Gen. Valery Gerasimov reported the results of the “massive retaliatory strike” to Putin, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

The bombardment was “exclusively against military or military-linked targets,” Peskov said.

Russia's aerial attacks on Ukraine have repeatedly hit civilian areas. More than 16,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed in the war, according to the United Nations.

Sybiha said in April that domestic production meets up to 75% of Ukraine’s military needs and accounts for up to 95% of long-range strikes against Russia. The location of the factories making those weapons is secret.

Elsewhere, in Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region a Russian guided bomb strike killed a 7-year-old girl and wounded four other people, including an 11-year-old girl, all members of the same family, regional head Oleksandr Hanzha said.

Ukrainian officials urge countries to provide more air defenses

The attack used “high-precision long-range weapons” and drones on “military industry facilities and fuel and energy complexes in Kyiv and the Kyiv region, as well as military airfield infrastructure in four other regions of Ukraine,” the Russian Defense Ministry’s statement said.

It published a list of targets it said the barrage hit, mostly plants manufacturing and assembling Ukrainian drones, missiles and components.

Russia fired 74 missiles, 24 of them ballistic, and 496 drones of various types in the attack, Ukraine’s air force said.

Ukraine's air defenses have improved throughout the war, especially in countering Russian drones. But ballistic missiles are harder to stop, and Ukrainian officials have repeatedly pleaded with partner countries to supply more Patriot missile systems that offer the best protection.

Sybiha urged countries not to delay decisions on supplying air defense systems and missiles.

He rejected any Russian attempts to justify the strikes as retaliation for Ukraine’s long-range attacks, saying Ukraine was exercising its right to self-defense under Article 51 of the U.N. Charter while Russia remained the aggressor.

Sybiha said on X that the death toll may rise as rescue teams continue their work.

Ukraine attacks another Russian oil refinery

Ukrainian forces struck one of Russia’s largest oil refineries overnight in the Nizhny Novgorod region east of Moscow, starting a fire, Ukraine's General Staff said.

Also, Ukrainian forces struck a railway bridge over the Siverskyi Donets River in the Russian-occupied Luhansk region, it said. The bridge was used by Russian forces to transport personnel, weapons and military supplies, according to the General Staff.

Ukraine's recent success with drone strikes that keep Russian troops pinned down on the front line, disrupt Russian supply lines in the rear and damage oil facilities have brought a significant change in the war, Western analysts say.

“Russia’s spring-summer 2026 offensive has failed to achieve operationally significant gains thus far, and Russian forces’ rate of advance in June 2026 (was) a fraction of the rate of advance that Russian forces achieved in June 2025,” the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said in an assessment late Wednesday.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

The princess, who early last year announced her cancer was in remission, is the patron of the All England Club.

“On arrival, Her Royal Highness visited The Queue, spending time meeting attendees who have queued since early this morning, alongside AELTC’s honorary stewards, who volunteer each year to manage The Queue and welcome guests as they arrive at the Championships,” Kensington Palace said in a statement.

Wimbledon leaves a small batch of tickets available for same-day purchase and fans begin lining up and camping out the evening before in Wimbledon Park to get them each day.

The palace said Kate — who also helped out in a Wimbledon ticket office — was to meet with children from Shine Camera Club, a local program that supports children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Kate last year was at Centre Court on consecutive days to present the winners’ trophies to singles champions Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner.

A year ago, Kate offered consoling words to women's runner-up Amanda Anisimova after a 6-0, 6-0 loss to Swiatek.

In 2024, while recovering from cancer, Kate did not attend the women’s final but was on hand for Carlos Alcaraz’s win over Novak Djokovic.

Fery was playing Otto Virtanen of Finland on Court 18. She sat next to Tim Henman, the former Wimbledon semifinalist who is now an All England Club board member.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

What she didn’t know when she entered the water on that day in 2024 was that another woman had been bitten by a shark 90 minutes earlier and just 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) down the beach. Had she known about the earlier attack, there is no way she would have been swimming, she said.

Gribbin’s story has inspired new federal legislation to authorize emergency alerts to mobile phones to warn beachgoers when a shark has bitten someone in the area.

President Donald Trump last week signed “Lulu’s Law,” which requires the Federal Communications Commission to allow the emergency messages. The legislation, which Gribbin advocated for, authorizes the warnings by classifying a shark attack as an event for which an emergency alert can be issued. It is up to states to implement the warnings. Gribbin’s home state of Alabama approved such a warning system last year.

“It’s really just common-sense legislation. It says that whenever there has been a shark attack in a certain area where you are near, it will send an alert to your phone, exactly like how an Amber Alert system works when a child is abducted,” she said.

Gribbin said she hopes the alert system will help prevent attacks like hers. “I definitely see this law working in the future and I'm really excited to hopefully save lives,” she said.

A fight to survive

Gribbin was one of three people bitten by a shark on June 7, 2024, off the Florida Panhandle.

She was on a mother-daughter trip to the Florida Panhandle. Gribbin said she and her friend had been diving for sand dollars.

“All of the sudden my best friend yelled, ‘Shark!’ and so we all started swimming for our lives,” Gribbin recalled. She said she remembered that sharks are attracted to frantic splashing and yelled for everyone to be calm. Gribbin, who was closest to the shark, was bitten.

“The shark bit off my hand first, and I raised my arm out of the water, and there was just flesh and bone there,” Gribbin said. The shark then latched onto her leg. A man punched the shark off her and strangers on the beach rushed to help. She was flown by helicopter to a nearby hospital.

Doctors were able to save the teen's life but had to amputate part of her right leg.

Choosing positivity throughout her recovery

In the hospital, Gribbin made a deliberate decision to choose joy and to never give up.

She initially struggled knowing, “that I only have two regular limbs, and that my life would be completely different.”

“I would cry, and I would ask my mom, ‘Why is it happening to me?’ And on that day, we put a Bible verse on my bedside table that said, ‘With God, all things are possible.’ And then she told me that what you look like doesn’t define you, it’s who you are on the inside. And so, I think that stuck with me throughout my whole recovery the past two years.

It doesn’t matter what I look like, as long as I’m spreading positivity and inspiring others to stay strong and to never give up,” she said.

Gribbin was fitted with prosthetic limbs, quickly regained her ability to walk, returned to sports and got her driver’s license. She has gone back in the water and learned to surf, meeting Bethany Hamilton, a professional surfer who lost her arm in a shark attack.

U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, the Alabama Republican who sponsored the legislation, said the legislation happened because of the teen's “courage, perseverance, and advocacy to protect future beachgoers.”

“Because of her strength, lives will be changed. We should all be inspired by her,” Britt said.

Shark bites remain rare

While sharks are commonly found in the waters off the United States, shark bites are rare, said Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Museum of Natural History’s shark research program.

There are between 60 to 80 known unprovoked bites worldwide each year, he said. It's extremely rare that two or more people are bit in close proximity. He said in a database of known shark bites, called the International Shark Attack File, there have only been a few instances of multiple bites in a single day.

When that happens, he said it’s likely because of environmental conditions such as sharks following schools of bait fish closer to the shore. Murky water conditions can also be a factor because they increase the chance that a shark will mistake a person for a fish or seal.

In the area where Gribbin was bitten, there are about 20 to 30 bull sharks 1,312 feet (400 meters) offshore at all time, Naylor said. Great white sharks have been spotted more frequently in the chilly waters of New England and Atlantic Canada, according to conservation groups. A smartphone app called Sharktivity also allows shark spotters to report their sightings.

The sightings might unnerve people, but Naylor said it's important to remember that shark attacks are rare.

“If sharks wanted to eat people, we’d have about 10,000 bites a day. The fact that we have so few is basically testament to the fact that the sharks are doing their level best to avoid people, not to target them,” Naylor said.

Gribbin said she would rather people have the opportunity to get information and make decisions about protecting themselves than to go into the water without knowing.

Another survivor praises the alert system

Braxton Rocha, who was bitten by a large tiger shark off the north shore of the Big Island of Hawaii, said he liked the idea of an alert system. He thinks it is information that people, particularly tourists to the island, will want to know.

Rocha was spearfishing in 2015 when he saw the large shark. “Looked like a bus or submarine. She was the biggest thing I’d seen in the ocean at that time,” Rocha said. He started making his way to shore. When he looked back to check where the shark was, the animal was right in front of him. He tried to push the shark away, but the animal was too big and powerful. It latched onto his leg. Rocha punched it in the nose and the shark let go and swam away.

“Everything happened so fast. It was almost like being struck by lightning. I was still kind of out of it. I looked down and see giant clouds of blood just bursting out of my leg,” he said.

It took nearly 100 staples to repair the gaping wound on his leg. But the experience did not dampen Rocha's enthusiasm for the ocean and wildlife. “I’ve always loved sharks,” Rocha said.

Democratic lawmakers and governors see it as a way to help pay for the joint federal and state insurance program that covers low-income residents as federal policy changes are expected to make the program more expensive for states and may lead to a reduction in the number of people with coverage.

Proponents also say it's about fairness because employers benefit from having some lower-income workers with taxpayer-funded health coverage.

Business groups object. So do some liberal policy organizations.

New Jersey is putting the fee in place

New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed a measure Tuesday night to charge employers that have at least 50 workers covered by Medicaid, and the state budget she approved earlier in the week counts on raising $145 million this year from the program.

Under the plan, companies will be billed for each employee and employees' dependent receiving Medicaid, the joint state-federal insurance program.

The fees per person would start at $325 a year for companies with 50 to 249 Medicaid beneficiaries and top out at $725 annually for employers with at least 500 recipients.

Federal Medicaid changes are prompting Democratic-led states to act

A bill passed this week in California doesn't impose a charge now, but it does direct the state administration to present lawmakers options for doing so next year.

Finishing the job would fall to the successor of Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who is leaving office in January. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra has made an employer charge part of his election platform.

State Sen. John Laird, a Democrat who sponsored the California proposal, said the big tax and policy law President Donald Trump signed a year ago was a major factor in the need for action because it could prompt the state to spend more on Medicaid to plug holes left by federal changes.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office expects more than 10 million people will be uninsured because of the law by 2034. It requires some beneficiaries to work, be in school or volunteer — and requires even more to document whether they meet the requirements. Most employees at the bigger companies would not be at risk of losing Medicaid coverage as long as they're working at least 20 hours a week.

Laird also said there's an equity issue involved.

“If you're a small business person in California, you are quite likely paying for health insurance for your employees. And through your taxes, you're paying for health insurance for some of the biggest employers in California,” he said. “And that's not fair.”

Legislation with similar intents passed one legislative chamber in both Colorado and Oregon this year, but neither made it to law. A measure was also introduced in Washington.

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat who is seeking a third term in November's election, has called for the same move there with the idea of making it a part of the state budget that would kick in two years from now.

Opposition comes from business and some liberal groups

It's no surprise that business organizations have criticized the approach, which would add to their expenses.

“The fact remains that many job-creators are still going to be penalized for something they have no control over,” Christopher Emigholz, the chief government affairs officer at the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, said in a statement. “If an employee declines an employer-provided health plan because they’d rather be on Medicaid, it is unfair to penalize the employer for that employee’s decision.”

Some left-leaning policy organizations also oppose the charges.

Gideon Lukens, who analyzes health policy at the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said that while the idea may be well-intentioned, it could lead companies to employ fewer people from low-income household or single parents. He said companies could also consider the policy in decisions about whom to hire or lay off — and also on where to locate or how many workers to employ.

And, he said, it could make employees — or potential employees — less likely to enroll in Medicaid knowing it would make them less attractive to employers.

“Usually, when I see a tax on something it’s going to discourage whatever being taxed,” he said in an interview.

New Jersey's legislation tries to address some of the concerns. It would exempt temporary, seasonal and part-time employees. It would also bar employment decisions based on a workers’ Medicaid status.

The idea has come up before, though it's never stuck for long

Charging companies whose workers are covered by Medicaid isn't a new idea. At least two states have previously enacted it, and it's been proposed in Congress.

Massachusetts lawmakers in 2017 adopted a charge on employers up to $750 per nondisabled worker who was covered through Medicaid or a state-subsidized health exchange plan. The program began in 2018 was not renewed when it expired the next year.

An even earlier policy in Maryland, in 2006, immediately affected only Walmart. An industry group challenged it in court and won, stopping the fees. A federal judge found that it required the company to track and allocate employment benefits differently in Maryland than in other states in violation of a federal law that governs self-insured employee health plans.

The latest generation of proposals may avoid that legal pitfall by not referencing those health plans in the legislation.

Giddens stepped down June 3, citing what he called a coordinated effort against him.

In his resignation letter, he wrote that his private life was being “targeted by anonymous individuals driven by personal and political agendas.” He also noted his 32 years in law enforcement as a factor in his decision.

Giddens was placed on leave in May as part of an investigation involving the Howey-in-the-Hills Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Town Manager Sean O’Keefe told News 6 the probe has not wrapped up.

“The investigation, with the assistance of the LCSO, is still ongoing, so we cannot speak to that,” O’Keefe said.

Town leaders have not disclosed what allegations prompted the investigation.

John Batchelor is currently serving as interim chief while the town searches for a permanent replacement.

The strait, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, has emerged as one of the top issues in negotiations to reach a permanent end to the Iran war. The statement from the Khatam al-Anbiya military command, reported by Iranian state television, comes after both U.S. and Iranian diplomats met with mediators on Wednesday in Qatar.

It wasn’t immediately clear what sparked the threat from Iran. However, the U.S. military's Central Command had put out a statement about having a meeting with officials from Mideast nations in Bahrain that said “leaders underscored their shared commitment to the free flow of commerce through the Strait of Hormuz.”

That appears to have been the phrase to anger Iran, which is preparing for the funeral that begins this weekend for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the war's first moments in February.

“Any failure to comply, deviation from the designated route, or disregard for the navigation protocols of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Strait of Hormuz will be met with an immediate and forceful response from the armed forces, endangering the security of the violating vessels,” the Iranian statement said.

It also said the continued presence of U.S. fighter jets over the strait “causes insecurity in this waterway and threatens regional security.”

“Any attempt by the United States to interfere in security matters or any disruptive action in the Strait of Hormuz will be considered a threat to Iran’s national sovereignty and will be met with a rapid and decisive reaction,” the Iranian warning added.

Iran and the United States agreed as part of an interim deal to allow ships to pass without paying charges for 60 days. But Tehran insisted it must control the routes of the vessels and later charge fees for passage, upending decades of practice in the waterway.

The U.S. and many Gulf Arab states say they won’t agree to the charges. An effort by Oman and a United Nations agency to launch a new route near Oman’s shore sparked attacks across the Mideast last weekend, highlighting the tensions.

Despite the tensions, Wednesday's talks saw “positive progress,” Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said. He told journalists that Pakistan hoped the next round of talks would be scheduled as soon as possible after Khamenei’s funeral.

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Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.

THURSDAY & FRIDAY

A few isolated showers and storms will be possible through the day, with coverage at only 20-30%. Strong onshore flow will also keep temperatures on the more seasonal side, with highs in the upper 80s to low 90s. Feels like temperatures will be a bit more manageable near 100 degrees.

HOLIDAY WEEKEND

Rain chances continue to increase Saturday and Sunday as deeper tropical moisture spreads north across Central Florida, making scattered to numerous afternoon and evening storms more likely with coverage up to 70-80%.

Even with the higher rain chances, temperatures will remain well above normal through the weekend. Afternoon highs will reach the upper 80s to low 90s, with a few middle 90s possible along the Interstate 4 corridor. When humidity is factored in, it will feel more like 100 to 107 degrees during the hottest part of the day.

Click here to see more on the hour breakdown for the Fourth of July

NEXT WEEK

Looking ahead to early next week, little change is expected. Daily afternoon thunderstorms remain in the forecast with highs staying in the low to middle 90s and the muggy summer pattern continuing across Central Florida.

The species' population has jumped from around 2,000 to around 35,000 in approximately 40 years, close to their population before whaling, said Enrico Marcovaldi, co-founder of the Humpback Whale Project. That means they are increasingly being spotted in Rio’s postcard Guanabara Bay.

“It’s wonderful. It shows that the whales are making a recovery, are healthy and thriving, and hopefully they’ll continue to do so,” said Marcovaldi.

In 1982, the International Whaling Commission decided that there should be a pause in commercial whaling on all whale species and populations from the 1985/1986 season onward.

Louise Raulais, who runs the Rio Ocean Club with her partner Theo Andrade, is among those who see the tourism opportunities in the whales' resurgence.

This year, the company began offering sailboat trips for between five and 10 people to observe the whales. Raulais said they always have a biologist onboard to share information, which can stimulate a desire to protect the whales and the ocean.

“These animals are so iconic and charismatic that they have the power to transform people, to change the way they see the world,” said Raulais.

Humpback whales are known for roaming long distances across major oceans in predictable patterns, typically following migration routes learned from their mothers. They feed on krill and small fish in the warmer months and breed in tropical waters over winter.

Between June and November, thousands of humpback whales migrate through Brazilian waters, traveling roughly 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) from their feeding grounds in the Southern Ocean to breeding and calving grounds off northeastern Brazil.

Most gather around the Abrolhos Bank, a coral reef region spanning the coasts of Bahia and Espirito Santo that is one of the South Atlantic’s most biodiverse marine environments.

The Humpback Whale Project set up a scientific expedition, scheduled to run from June 26 to July 9, to study the humpback whales’ behavior, size and health, as well as identify their travel route, key gathering areas, and to measure how far offshore the whales pass.

“They’re exploring this area," said Pedro Fróes, a biologist for the Humpback Whale Project who is part of the expedition. "They want to find out whether, in the future, it could become a place for them to rest, to mate, or to give birth to a calf,” Fróes said.

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Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

The Russian climbers, who go by Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus, were the subject of the 2024 Netflix documentary “ Skywalkers: A Love Story ” about their “rooftopping” exploits and budding romance.

Dressed in black and wearing masks but not tethers, the two balanced on a narrow ledge and appeared to kiss atop the New York skyscraper's antenna, news helicopter video showed. The banner, reading “when the power of love beats the love of power the world knows peace,” waved from the structure, which rises 1,454 feet (443 meters) above midtown Manhattan.

After lingering for a time, the two collected the banner and began to climb down, picking their way along the latticework of metal to a wider ledge, where one seemed to set up a piece of photography equipment and got down on one knee. After the two kissed again and hugged, the other person took selfies with an outstretched left hand, as if examining a ring.

Police Emergency Services Unit officers started ascending a ladder in the spindly structure to intercept them. Police body camera video showed an officer calling out a greeting and explaining, “Well, you can't be up here.”

An off-camera voice replied with what sounded like, “We are engaged.”

A few seconds later, officers reached a landing within the antenna and met the couple, who were coming down a ladder and calmly spoke with police, the video showed.

Nikolau posted images of the escapade on her social media accounts, including a photo that modeled an engagement-style ring above a bird’s-eye view of Manhattan.

The two climbers — whom police identified by their formal names, Angelina Nikolau and Ivan Kuznetsov — were awaiting arraignment on burglary, reckless endangerment and other charges. It wasn't immediately clear whether they had attorneys who could speak to the allegations. An assistant to Nikolau said early Thursday that the couple was unavailable for the time being.

“Skywalkers: A Love Story” follows Beerkus and Nikolau as they make often unauthorized ascents of tall structures, sometimes posing as construction workers to sneak in.

It wasn’t clear how the pair gained access to the Empire State Building's antenna, which rises well above public areas of the 102-story building. Building management said in a statement that the episode was “unauthorized” and didn’t endanger anyone in the skyscraper.

The management didn’t answer questions about how the two reached the antenna and what interactions, if any, they had with security workers. Empire State Building visitors are screened and told not to bring large packages, sports equipment, costumes or masks, among other items.

Tourist Julie Morris told local TV stations that she was on one of the building's observation decks when she saw two people pass through some mesh gates into an off-limits area. She said she assumed the pair, who weren't masked, worked there.

As the stunt unfolded, onlookers gaped from the sidewalks near the Art Deco office tower.

“It's crazy — it's like being in the movies,” said Jonathan Roman, a tourist visiting from the Scottish city of Glasgow. He and his 15-year-old son had observation platform tickets but arrived to find the building blocked off because of the antenna activity.

Still, the spectacle was “probably more exciting than going up to the viewing platform for the second time,” Roman reasoned.

Daredevils have previously climbed the antenna and other parts of the Empire State Building. Those ascents have largely been unauthorized, but actor and musician Jared Leto was allowed to climb up to the base of the antenna from the 86th floor in 2023 to promote a tour.

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This story has been corrected to show that the incident happened Wednesday, not Tuesday.

Back in February, Luz Lenzi told News 6 she had someone repair a crack in her driveway. Then, weeks later, she got a call from a colleague with shocking news.

“She said, ‘Luzi, there is a mountain in front of your house and your driveway is gone,” Lenzi recalled.

Lenzi said she never hired anyone to replace her driveway.

“I didn’t hire them. I didn’t need to have my driveway redone,” Lenzi said.

[WATCH: ‘It’s a pile of junk’: Sanford woman returns home to missing driveway]

According to police, someone who claimed to be from a real estate company hired a different contractor to update the driveway. That contractor stopped work after a $15,000 check provided for the job bounced.

Records obtained by News 6 show the check was written from “SOIL Realty LLC,” listed as being in New Mexico.

Sanford police said the contractor did not meet the client in person and did not file a permit for the work.

As part of the investigation, police subpoenaed bank records seeking transactions connected to SOIL Realty LLC and also requested Google records tied to an email address used in the deal.

Police said their investigation led them to internet addresses in Nigeria.

“I said, Nigeria, like in Africa? And he said, yes,” Lenzi said. “I said how? I was shocked.”

It is not exactly clear how the alleged scammer would have ultimately benefited. Investigators said they believe the goal may have been to shake down the contractor for money, and that Lenzi’s home may have been selected because it was on the market.

“I was the loser in the whole thing,” Lenzi said.

Lenzi said the contractor initially refused to fix the driveway, saying the company was also a victim, but she said the contractor is now reimbursing her for repairs.

News 6 called the contractor for comment, but the company declined.

• “Solo-maxxing” is the decision to prioritize personal growth, financial independence, and life outside of dating.
• The trend reflects broader shifts in dating, the economy, and social norms.
• Living solo can offer more freedom – but economists say it also comes with a “single premium.”

Well, this is different. Have you ever heard of solo-maxxing? If not, you’re probably not alone.

The latest internet buzz phrase, “solo-maxxing”, combines “solo,” meaning single or independent, with “maxxing,” an internet slang term meaning to optimize or maximize a particular aspect of your life. Together, the phrase describes intentionally prioritizing life as a single person.

At its core, solo-maxxing is the deliberate decision to prioritize personal growth and financial independence over dating, with supporters arguing that the time, money, and emotional energy typically spent pursuing relationships can instead be invested in themselves (positive solitude).

Solo-maxxing doesn’t necessarily mean swearing off dating or choosing a life of celibacy. Instead, the mindset is more along the lines of: “I’m done forcing it and I’m going to focus on myself. If the right relationship comes along, great – if not, I’m still building a life I enjoy.”

The emphasis isn’t on rejecting relationships – it’s on stepping back from the active pursuit and redirecting time, money, and energy elsewhere.

Why now?

People have always stepped back from dating for a variety of reasons: an exhausting breakup, a string of bad relationships, bad work/life balance, family commitments, or simply because they were tired of the process.

My generation had a different name for this. We called it, “Stop trying so hard – you need to figure out you first.” Not too long ago, staying out of the dating pool was seen as a good way to reset and gain some perspective. Today, several social and economic trends have converged, turning what was once an individual decision into something resembling a broader movement.

Translation: solo-maxxing really isn’t new – these days, it’s just framed a different way. In fact, several social and economic forces have pushed stepping away from dating into a recognizable movement:

• Dating fatigue. Ask almost anyone who’s been on dating apps long enough, and you’ll likely hear a familiar refrain: “I’m just tired.” Endless swiping. Awkward first dates. Ghosting. Catfishing. The emotional investment required to meet someone can leave people wondering whether the effort is worth it.
• The economy. Dating has become more expensive. Coffee, drinks, dinner, entertainment, transportation, and even dating app subscriptions all add up. At the same time, inflation and high housing costs have made many people more protective of both their time and their money.
• Changing social norms. Not long ago, spending a Friday night alone often carried a social stigma. Today, solo travel, solo dining, and even taking yourself to a movie are increasingly viewed as signs of independence rather than loneliness.

Dining alone has become commonplace. Solo travel has grown into one of the fastest-growing segments of the tourism industry (one study says women in fact now make up 71% of solo travelers). People routinely attend concerts, festivals, sporting events, and even take cruises by themselves. Instead of being viewed as a sign that something is missing, many people now see these experiences as expressions of confidence and independence.

• The emergence of social media. Fifty years ago, social media simply didn’t exist. In fact if you go back to the history of the first big three social media sites, Friendster didn’t launch until March 22, 2003, Myspace was right on its heels on August 1, 2003, and Facebook followed on February 4, 2004. Instagram and TikTok were late to the party, but now dominate: October 6, 2010 and September 20, 2016 respectively.

Social media didn’t create solo-maxxing – it did, however, give it a name and an audience. Millions of people now document solo vacations, solo dining, and independent lifestyles online. Instead of portraying singlehood as something to escape, with the emergence of the “influencer,” many people now present it as something to embrace.

• The idea of marriage is shifting. Americans are waiting longer to marry than previous generations, and more adults are remaining single for longer periods of their lives. That shift has made singlehood less of a temporary stop and, for many, a lifestyle that doesn’t need to be “fixed.”

In 1975, the median age for marriage in America was 23.5 for men and 21.1 for women. Fast forward fifty years and you’ll see how dramatic the shift has become: the median age for men is now 30.8 and for women it’s 28.4. Furthermore, marriage is no longer the default household: in 1975, 66% of American households were comprised of married couples. Today, that percentage is 47%.

Perhaps the biggest reason solo-maxxing has gained traction is that today’s young adults are spending far more of their lives single than previous generations. Rather than viewing those years as a waiting period, many are choosing to treat them as an opportunity: they’re choosing to invest in themselves while remaining open to whatever comes next.

The single premium

Living the single life isn’t all sunshine and savings.

While solo-maxxing does have its perks, there are downsides as well. In fact, economists have a name for one of its biggest financial drawbacks: the “single premium.”

The idea is surprisingly simple: when you’re in a relationship or sharing a household, many of life’s biggest expenses are divided between two people. When you’re single, those same expenses often fall entirely on one person.

Welcome to Singlesville: population you.

To be fair, embracing solo-maxxing can save money in several obvious ways. Think about these expenses you may avoid:

• Date nights
• Valentine’s Day gifts
• Engagement rings 
• Wedding expenses
• Anniversary gifts

Those are the obvious savings, and they’re often the examples supporters of solo-maxxing point to first. But what about the flip side? From a financial perspective, you may spend less on dating, but living alone often means paying for:

• 100% of the rent or a mortgage, utilities, internet, cellphone, and entertainment subscriptions
• 100% of groceries (reducing your economies of scale)
• 100% of transportation expenses (yes, married couples get much higher discounts on auto-insurance)
• 100% of vacation accommodations – one of the reasons economists coined the term “single premium”

So is solo-maxxing actually saving people money – or is it simply shifting where that money gets spent?

Dating less may save you money. Living alone probably won’t.

The Psychology of Being Single

Money, however, tells only part of the story.

If solo-maxxing were simply about dollars and cents, the debate would end with a calculator. But – choosing to remain single also raises a different question: what does the research say about happiness? Can intentionally spending time by yourself improve your mental health, or does it come with risks of its own?

A 2023 study published in Scientific Reports found that people who spent more time alone often reported lower stress levels and a greater sense of autonomy. But there was an important caveat: those same researchers also noted benefits were strongest when the solitude was voluntary rather than forced. In other words, when people chose to spend time alone rather than socialize, they often experienced measurable psychological benefits.

Everything changes when solitude isn’t a choice.

That same study found that when people spent time alone because they felt isolated or lacked meaningful social connections, they were more likely to report feelings of loneliness and lower life satisfaction. The research suggests that the key isn’t simply whether someone is alone – it’s whether that solitude is by choice.

And that’s an important distinction: loneliness is a feeling – solitude is a choice. One can be healthy and restorative; the other can be emotionally damaging.

Finding the Balance

Like many lifestyle trends, solo-maxxing isn’t inherently good or bad – it depends on why someone chooses it.

If stepping away from dating gives someone the opportunity to improve their finances, focus on their career, strengthen friendships, or simply recharge emotionally, there can be meaningful benefits.

But if independence slowly becomes isolation, the same lifestyle can produce very different results.

Perhaps that’s why psychologists make such a clear distinction between solitude and loneliness. One is intentional – the other isn’t.

That distinction may help explain the appeal of “solo-maxxing.” The trend isn’t about encouraging isolation – instead, it promotes intentionally choosing independence while still maintaining meaningful friendships, family relationships, and other social connections.

-Whether solo-maxxing proves to be a lasting cultural shift or simply the latest name for an old idea remains to be seen. Solo-maxxing isn’t changing the definition of happiness; it’s changing the timeline.

And for a growing number of Americans, being single during that timeline is no longer something to get through – it’s something to build upon.

After Trump questioned Italy’s reliability as a wartime ally and claimed Giorgia Meloni had groveled for his attention, European leaders rallied to Meloni's side, thawing what had been a frosty relationship over her hard-right political roots.

It is the latest example of how the often divisive American president is helping to draw Europe closer together.

European leaders are finding more reasons to coordinate on defense, tariffs and foreign policy as they confront wars in Ukraine and Iran, a ballooning trade deficit with China, and threats from Russia. That leaves Trump, who has often preferred to negotiate with European countries individually, with less ability to do so, analysts say.

“Most of the mainstream leaders realize that Europe is getting squeezed between China and America, and so, if not now, then when?” said Sudha David-Wilp, vice president at the German Marshall Fund. “They need to act as a bloc in order to maintain Europe’s place in the world.”

This newfound European unity could be tested next week at a NATO summit in Turkey.

European leaders rally around Meloni

Meloni's spat with Trump has helped her strengthen ties with European leaders once wary of her party’s post-fascist roots.

A pivotal moment came in March when she wouldn't allow U.S. bombers headed to the Middle East to use a base in Sicily without parliamentary approval.

For years before then, France and Germany often kept Meloni outside the small-group talks that helped shape Europe’s response to major foreign policy crises. That persisted into 2026 amid disagreements over the Russian war on Ukraine, including Meloni’s rejection of a proposal by Britain and France to send European troops there following a possible ceasefire.

But Trump’s escalating attacks on Meloni — who called Trump's criticism of Pope Leo “unacceptable” — helped shift the dynamic, prompting European leaders to rally around her.

After all, they, too, have been on the receiving end of Trump's barbs.

Meloni was firmly in the fold at a late June meeting in Berlin with the leaders of Germany, France, Britain and Poland. And she met the next day with French President Emmanuel Macron in southern France — the first bilateral summit since the pandemic.

Europe's nationalist parties are adjusting

Even nationalist parties across the continent once aligned with Trump are recalibrating their stances because his trade policies and war with Iran are proving unpopular with voters.

In France, far-right leader Jordan Bardella recently blasted U.S. actions as “foreign interference” and described Trump as “erratic” and “extremely unsteady.” Bardella had previously welcomed Trump's brand of nationalism as a “wind of freedom.”

In Germany, leaders of the far-right Alternative for Germany party have criticized the U.S. military campaign against Iran. The co-leader of the party, Tino Chrupalla, said in March he was “extremely disappointed” with Trump, whom he had viewed as a politician who would avoid new conflicts.

The changing rhetoric comes as elections approach, putting more focus on domestic issues.

“This pushes everyone to consider a European horizon more than an international one,” said Lorenzo Castellani, a political analyst and professor at Rome’s LUISS University,

Beyond Europe’s biggest powers

These dynamics are playing out beyond the European Union, from the Arctic Ocean to the Balkans.

When Trump threatened to take Greenland by force, protests erupted in its capital, Nuuk, and in the Danish capital of Copenhagen. Leaders across the political spectrum bristled at the threatened infringement of European sovereignty and feared it could shatter the already stressed NATO military alliance.

In Albania, a luxury development being planned that is linked to Trump’s family business has become a major political issue, drawing protests in June.

The political risks of close alignment with Trump were perhaps most clearly illustrated in Hungary. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán — long regarded as Trump’s closest ally in the European Union — was voted out of office in April despite support from the U.S. president and prominent figures in the MAGA movement.

An analysis by the consultancy Maplecroft suggested that negative perceptions of the Trump administration may have weighed on Orbán politically.

Meloni’s balancing act

Though Meloni remains closely aligned with Trump on issues like immigration and security, she has long diverged from him on Ukraine. Her steadfast support for Kyiv made her more palatable for European leaders and has been a key factor in forging a more united European front toward the U.S.

During their public spat last month, Meloni said her friendship with Trump came with a heavy political cost.

In her response to his accusation that she had “begged” to be photographed with him while at the recent G7 summit in France, she wrote on social media: “As for my popularity, being your friend has certainly not helped it, nor does it depend on my relationship with you.”

A recent Pew Research Center survey found that Trump is deeply unpopular in Italy. According to the survey, 83% of Italians have no confidence in Trump’s ability to do the right thing regarding foreign affairs. His handling of a range of issues -- including Iran, tariffs, and U.S. immigration policies -- received a low level of support.

With a national election due by 2027 — and possibly as early as next spring — Meloni faces mounting political pressures, including fallout from the unpopular Iran war and her former ties to Trump.

Voters across Europe could hold their own politicians accountable for the actions of an American president beyond their control, said Castellani, the political analyst.

“At a certain point, when voters see the price of gasoline rising because of a war perceived as distant, they ask Meloni for the bill, not Trump.”

___

McNeil reported from Brussels. Associated Press Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Geir Moulson in Berlin, and Justin Spike in Budapest, Hungary, contributed to this report.

Doctors say she urgently needs 50 units of extremely rare, specially matched blood before they can safely move forward with a bone marrow transplant—her best chance at a cure.

“I’m just asking for your help, because I really do need it,” Gigi said.

Doctors say the challenge isn’t just finding O-negative blood—it’s finding blood that matches Gigi’s antigen profile, the genetic markers found on red blood cells.

Because Gigi has received countless transfusions over her lifetime, her body has developed antibodies, making most donor blood incompatible.

Gigi’s required antigen profile is most commonly found in people of African descent.

Statistically, doctors say only 1 in 1,000 people of African descent may be a match.

“We need the African American and Afro-Caribbean community to step up to help save Gigi’s life,” said Dr. David Crawford, a pediatric hematologist/oncologist.

OneBlood’s reference laboratory is screening donations 24/7 to identify compatible units and reserve them specifically for Gigi. Some matching units have already been found—but doctors say they still need many more to reach 50.

Without enough compatible blood on hand, doctors say the transplant is too risky to perform.

OneBlood’s reference laboratory is screening donations 24/7 to identify compatible units and reserve them specifically for Gigi. Some matching units have already been found—but doctors say they still need many more to reach 50.

Without enough compatible blood on hand, doctors say the transplant is too risky to perform.

“To me it just seems like my last golden ticket,” Gigi said.

Doctors and OneBlood urge people of African descent to donate as soon as possible—even if they don’t know their blood type.

To be a match for Gigi, donors must:

• Be African American or of African descent
• Be O-negative (only about 7% of the population is O-negative)

Click HERE to find the nearest OneBlood location to you.

In almost any other conflict, these haunting truths would be seared into national memory. Yet more than 120 days since at least one U.S. missile struck an Iranian primary school, there remains no final accounting of what happened.

The Trump administration has yet to directly accept the blame or formally release findings of a Pentagon investigation into the bombing, even though the military possessed evidence almost immediately that the site of the school had been struck, a U.S. official with knowledge of the situation, who spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss an ongoing investigation, told The Associated Press.

The AP has reconstructed the story of the attack, beginning in the schoolyard on the morning of Feb. 28, drawing from open-source information, video footage, human rights reports and interviews with researchers and civilians inside and outside Iran to reveal previously unreported details about the bombing in Minab, including the diversity of children killed.

Still, many details about the blast remain elusive, as a lack of information from the Pentagon and politicization of the attack by Iran’s theocracy have complicated independent reporting efforts. That has created an accountability vacuum, leaving the families of the victims without resolution. Among the mysteries remaining are the number of munitions that hit the school and a complete list of the dead.

When asked last week about the incident, President Donald Trump said he hadn't read the Pentagon's report and had seen nothing to make him believe the U.S. had carried out the attack.

“I don’t know that they’re ever going to solve that problem in terms of whose fault was it, because there were missiles flying all over the place,” he said. “I don’t think it was us."

Iran's mission to the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment from the AP.

Video evidence, interviews and other sources yield a fuller picture

The reconstruction draws from interviews with U.S. officials, Iranian human rights workers, a resident of Minab, an international representative of the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers’ Trade Union and researchers from major international rights groups.

Several people who spoke to the AP were in direct contact with the families of victims and rescuers who rushed to the scene. Most requested anonymity for fear of retribution against them and those with whom they spoke.

Teachers called parents to pick up their kids. Then the bomb fell

Skies over the city of Minab, located in southeastern Iran about 16 miles (25 km) from the Strait of Hormuz, were clear and bright on the morning of Saturday, Feb. 28, a school day in Iran. It was Ramadan.

Students of the Shajareh Tayyebeh school, Farsi for “Good Tree,” jostled past the colorful murals lining the schoolyard and into the building. Boys and girls filtered into separate spaces with brightly painted desks.

The school they entered was one of over 30 with the same name established to serve children from families closely tied to Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard or other state institutions, said Shiva Amelirad, the international union representative who also worked as a teacher in Iran for 18 years and has been in contact with people in Minab.

Though most schools in Iran operate within guidelines proscribed by the Islamic Republic, the Shejareh Tayyebeh schools were more explicitly oriented toward reproducing and reinforcing the Guard’s worldview, she said, adding that children are civilians regardless of their family backgrounds, and "any attack targeting a school is unequivocally condemnable."

The school lay within the same walled compound as a Guard base, according to an AP assessment of satellite imagery and open-source mapping. It was once part of that neighboring base, before it was fenced off and converted over a decade ago.

Though some of its pupils were the children of Guard officers working on the nearby base, others were local children from Minab, which is populated predominantly by people of the majority-Sunni Baluch ethnic minority who often face repression from the Iranian government, said the Balochistan Human Rights Documentation Network.

Hundreds of students are believed to have been inside the building by the time teachers and administrators received the news that bombs had begun falling on Tehran around 9:40 a.m.

Teachers and administrators thought it prudent to send the children home. They called parents on landline phones, summoning them for an early pickup, two people told the AP. A recently released report by Airwars, a London-based independent group that tracks recent conflicts, also found that parents were called to pick up their children.

At 10:15 a.m., Iran’s state media sent out an advisory, closing schools across the country.

One father, who lived a short distance away, went immediately to pick up his 10-year-old son, said a resident of Minab, who relayed the stories of several families to the AP. The AP verified details of the residents’ stories against available lists of the dead and rights groups' chronologies of the day’s events.

The father noticed his 6- and 7-year-old relatives among the students waiting for their parents, said the resident. He asked them if they’d like a ride home and they said no, that their own father was on the way.

He left with his child and headed to the supermarket. Ten minutes later, he heard the explosions.

Multiple munitions pummeled the compound, striking at least five buildings, according to an AP analysis of satellite imagery. Hundreds of pounds of explosives collapsed the school.

A tiny arm, suspended in the rubble

The father raced back to a scene of chaos, where onlookers gathered, screaming, as men pawed through smoking rubble to dig out bodies, according to video of the aftermath circulated by Iranian state media.

Eventually, the father made out two burned figures he believes were those of his relatives, but he couldn’t be sure.

People kept coming. One man from a nearby Sunni village arrived to search for his nephew after receiving a panicked call from the boy's mother. In the rubble, he found her dead son.

Rescuers found small backpacks and children’s drawings, colored pencils and worksheets. Gently suspended, a tiny arm lay in the wreckage.

Men carried disfigured limbs and torsos to the local hospital, said the Balochistan Human Rights Documentation Network, whose staff spoke with two families of those killed. The AP has not been able to verify how many munitions specifically hit the school, but the attack had left flesh so mutilated that many body parts were unrecognizable.

By the end of the day, doctors at the hospital estimated they had at least 108 bodies, but cautioned that it was likely an undercount, said the resident of Minab.

By the next day, state media was saying around 150 had been killed. Soon, it was reporting a death toll of 168.

‘They called the kids martyrs’

Three days after the bombing, state TV showed thousands of Iranians packing a Minab roundabout, where the crowds faced a podium and a large portrait of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the late founder of the Islamic Republic.

The gathering might have been mistaken for a demonstration, if it were not a funeral. All the parents of victims, regardless of ethnicity or religion, had to participate, said the Minab resident. Most women in the crowd donned the black chador garment customary to the Islamic Republic, even though it’s not typically worn by Baluch people at funerals.

Parents were told they'd be permitted to take their children’s bodies back to their villages and conduct their own observances, said the resident. In the end, though, many decided to bury their children together.

In footage captured by drone cameras and circulated by state media, workers broke ground on an earthen lot, creating a grid of tiny, identical, unmarked graves.

“The state media advocated a narrative based on IRGC interest,” said Amelirad. “You can tell because they called the kids martyrs.”

The story grows harder to tell

Strikes continued to ravage Iran, targeting more sites in its opening days than the start of recent U.S. or Israeli military campaigns, including in Gaza, an Airwars analysis found.

Racing to document the ongoing bombardment, journalists and rights groups struggled to verify details from Minab. They had no access to the target site. Government restrictions in Iran prevented most foreign journalists from entering the country. The opening day of the war, Iran shut down the internet, making it nearly impossible to hear from ordinary civilians.

As the war progressed and the Strait of Hormuz became a major battlefield, the situation in the province grew more tense, said the resident. All branches of the military were deployed heavily in the area. Families of the victims feared retribution for speaking out. People were reportedly being detained for trying to communicate with foreign media.

That left Iran's government in control of the messaging around the strike.

Iran’s soccer team wore golden “#168” pins on their jackets upon their arrival at the FIFA World Cup.

The Iranian team negotiating for a pause to the war with the U.S. named itself “Minab 168.”

The children were depicted as animated Lego figures in viral videos made by pro-Iran groups trolling the U.S.

“In the aftermath of the attack, Iranian authorities ... exploited the suffering of victims’ families and surviving children for propaganda purposes,” wrote Amnesty International in a March report investigating the deaths.

Through it all, there remained no public list of the names of the dead.

The Pentagon finds clues in archive

Locked out of Iran, researchers focused on the question of responsibility.

Iran blamed the U.S. Trump cast doubt on American culpability and pointed the finger at Iran. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said only that the Pentagon was investigating.

Internally, the U.S. military knew more than it initially let on. The clues were buried in their archives.

When the news first surfaced, the U.S. military knew they had conducted strikes in the vicinity — though it took the military time to verify the Iranian claims that a school was struck and begin a formal investigation, said a U.S. official with knowledge of the situation, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing inquiry.

It appears that while the building housing the school was identified as such by one analyst as early as seven years ago, that discovery was not sufficiently made known across different intelligence and military staffs and agencies, the U.S. official said.

Ultimately, the building was not known among target developers as a school, revealing potential systematic shortfalls in the target analysis and review process, they said.

One former Pentagon official, similarly speaking on condition of anonymity, said the bombing came as a natural result of changes made by the Trump administration to reduce staff to mitigate civilian harm and Hegseth’s emphasis on lethality.

When Hegseth took charge, he slashed the size of an office called the Civilian Protection Center of Excellence, created at the direction of Congress in late 2022. That stopped the office’s work on updating “no-strike lists,” which are lists of protected sites such as hospitals, schools, churches and mosques, that the Pentagon keeps, said Wes Bryant, who began working at the office in 2024 as the Branch Chief of Civil Harm Assessments.

When he was working at the Pentagon, it was well known that the list was out-of-date, he said.

The search for more answers from Minab

In the last weeks, researchers have made some progress. Airwars, the conflict research group, spent months combing through open-source information to verify the identity of victims. The group determined the names and identities of 157 of the dead, including 123 children, all 13 or younger, and 34 adults. Among the adults are 26 school staff members (one of whom was pregnant) and five parents — each of whom lost at least one child.

The group puts the death toll between 157 and 168 and says between 95 and 111 people were injured.

It’s unclear when the formal results of the military’s Minab investigation will be published. Much of the investigative work has been completed, but the U.S. military’s Central Command, which commissioned the investigation, is currently reviewing the findings.

Hegseth said last week the report would be divulged “when the appropriate time is right.”

Findings from similar past investigations have been more timely. When a Hellfire missile killed 10 civilians in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Aug. 29, 2021, the Defense Department claimed responsibility and gave details on its operations in less than a month.

Some members of Congress still push for transparency.

In a recent interview, Sen. Mike Rounds, a Republican from South Dakota and a member of the Armed Services and Intelligence committees, said Congress has not gotten enough information on the bombing and expected a full report.

The issue “has not gone away,” he said.

___

Corrective: In a story published Jul. 1, 2026, about a U.S. strike on an Iranian school, The Associated Press erroneously reported the name of a local rights group. It is the Balochistan Human Rights Documentation Network, not the Baluchistan Human Rights Group.

Associated Press writers Konstantin Toropin, Mary Clare Jalonick and Lisa Mascaro in Washington, Sarah El Deeb in Beirut, Amir Hussein Rajdy in Cairo and Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.

The Vatican’s doctrine office went above and beyond the minimum sanctions foreseen by the church’s canon law to respond to the consecrations Wednesday of four new bishops at the society’s Econe, Switzerland, seminary.

The society, known by its acronym SSPX, celebrates the ancient Latin Mass and opposes the modernizing reforms of the Catholic Church, which it considers to be rife with heresies and errors.

During a ritual-filled, five-hour Mass on Wednesday, attended by some 15,500 people and their children, the SSPX consecrated four new bishops in direct defiance of Pope Leo XIV, who had urged the SSPX to hold off for the sake of the church's unity.

A decree targeting bishops and faithful

In a decree, the Vatican excommunicated the four new bishops and the two bishops who participated in the ceremony. It declared the consecrations a “schismatic act” and declared the society itself had created a schism, or intentional rupture with the Catholic Church.

The Vatican warned the faithful who go to the society’s Masses to stop, declaring “those who adhere formally” to the society are considered themselves schismatic and excommunicated. It declared SSPX priests to be schismatic, and therefore excommunicated, and invalidated the sacraments of confession and marriage that they administer.

The sanctions, especially those targeting the priests, the faithful and the sacraments they can receive, were particularly harsh and reversed concessions the Vatican had granted the SSPX in recent years as part of its outreach to bring the group back under Rome's wing.

The harshness of the response suggested that after nearly five decades of trying to negotiate with the SSPX, the Holy See has had enough.

A group formed in opposition of modernism

French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre founded the SSPX in 1970 in opposition to the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council. Among other things, the 1960s meetings known as Vatican II revolutionized the church’s relations with other Christians, Jews and people of other faiths and allowed Mass to be celebrated in the vernacular rather than Latin.

Lefebvre consecrated four bishops without papal consent in 1988. The Vatican promptly excommunicated Lefebvre and the four bishops and declared the consecrations a “schismatic act.”

Pope Benedict XVI in 2009 lifted the excommunications as part of his yearslong outreach to the group. But the SSPX today has no legal standing in the church and with Thursday’s decree is declared to be in schism.

The consecrations had posed a crisis for Leo because the American pope has stressed the need for church unity. He has reached out especially to the conservative and traditionalist wing of the church that was in many ways alienated during the Pope Francis pontificate.

The Vatican responded so aggressively in part because the group poses something of a threat by representing a parallel, ultra-Catholic, pre-Vatican II church that has grown in the decades since its original break from Rome. While representing only a fringe of the Catholic right and the 1.4-billion strong church, the SSPX now has six bishops, 751 priests, 264 seminarians training in five seminaries, 145 religious brothers, 88 oblates and 250 religious sisters representing 50 nationalities, according to SSPX statistics.

Traditionalists in communion with Rome respond

In an explanatory note accompanying the decree, the Vatican said it was willing, “like a caring mother,” to welcome any SSPX faithful back into the fold. But it didn't create any specific Vatican entity to receive them, only decreeing that Vatican ambassadors around the world would establish procedures for local bishops to follow.

While the SSPX is out of communion with Rome, plenty of other Catholic traditionalists who love the Latin Mass remain in communion with the Holy See. They had been watching carefully to see how Leo's Vatican would respond to the SSPX consecrations and were surprised by the harshness of Thursday's sanctions.

Luigi Casalini, of the blog Messa in Latino, meaning Latin Mass, said the excommunication of the bishops was correct because canon law provides for it.

But the extension of the excommunications to SSPX priests and faithful was “an act of unusual severity” and the invalidation of SSPX sacraments was problematic, he said.

“Above all, we find it hard to believe that, to date, no Vatican body has been established to manage potential defectors,” as was the case after the 1988 excommunications, Casalini told The Associated Press.

The SSPX has accused the church of being rife with errors, such as modernism and liberalism, and that only it is upholding the true faith of Christ. It has justified the consecrations, citing a “state of necessity” to minister to its faithful. Only two of the original four bishops consecrated in 1988 are alive, and the SSPX has said they simply are too old to minister to all the SSPX faithful.

In his homily during the consecrations Wednesday, the Rev. Davide Pagliarani, the SSPX superior, insisted the consecrations served Leo and the church.

“We are accused of not respecting the pope,” Pagliarani said. “But it is precisely because we love the pope as the vicar of Christ, as the head of the church, that we don’t want to see the pope humiliated anymore, on the side of false shepherds representing false religions.”

Employment projection data offers a grim outlook for the women-dominated profession that may be particularly vulnerable to AI-induced job displacement compared to the broader workforce. But some admins are embracing the technology — and even using it as a tool to get ahead.

Deanna Danger, 43, has worked in an administrative role since 2003. She says adapting and staying ahead of the curve is a key part of her constantly-changing role, and AI is no exception.

“All you do is have to evolve,” she says.

Danger started using AI professionally in 2022, learning through experimentation and collaboration with fellow admins. Today, she no longer takes notes during meetings — she's set up Copilot and ChatGPT to do it for her. That has freed her to “actually participate in the meetings, and not just worry about making sure I typed everything out that was said,” says Danger, executive assistant to the chief information officer at Vanderbilt University. “Honestly, what used to take me hours I’m now done with in under five minutes.”

How — and to what extent — AI might reshape her profession remains to be seen, but jobs for administrative assistants and secretaries have been dwindling for decades. In 2004, about 3.5 million people worked in the role — nearly 97% of them women, according to Current Population Survey data. Twenty years later, that number slid to 2.1 million — despite overall workforce growth during the same period.

And except for medical secretaries and administrative assistants — a category projected to grow 4% by 2034 thanks to growth of the healthcare industry — economists at the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predict a continued decline in the profession.

“The overall story in office and admin occupations from the projection standpoint for the last several cycles has been one of productivity-enhancing technologies, limiting demand for employment,” said Emily Rolen, lead economist for the division of employment projections at the BLS. Technological advances — word processing, speech-to-text transcription, scheduling tools and apps — each transformed the duties of administrative professionals and contributed to overall decline.

Clerical and administrative workers may be more exposed to AI-induced job displacement than other professionals because they “lack adaptive capacity due to limited savings, advanced age, scarce local opportunities, and/or narrow skill sets," according to a Brookings Institution report published in January. About 86% of these 6 million workers are women.

Indeed, more secretaries and administrative assistants are 55 and older compared to the workforce at large (34% vs. 23%), median pay is lower than that of all U.S. workers ($47,460 vs. $49,500), and a high school diploma is sufficient for many entry-level roles.

But what labor data doesn't capture — as noted by the Brookings report — is an individual’s ability to navigate a changing environment, including administrative assistants like Danger, who say they “are way more capable than people think.”

Danger hosts a biweekly virtual coffee chat for peers through the American Society of Administrative Professionals, a professional group that says it serves about 132,000 members. Participants in a May session shared their AI use cases: creating flyers, scouting out restaurants for executive events, coming up with captions for employer social media accounts, drafting standard operating procedure language, and more.

But despite the overall atmosphere of enthusiasm, some participants raised concerns, including data security and the lack of AI regulation. Others emphasized that AI cannot, and will not, replace the emotional intelligence and relationship building skills that are hallmarks of a successful admin.

Fiona Young, founder of Carve, a business focused on training executive assistants on AI, says she has seen “a massive shift in demand" for her services since 2023. Young, a former executive assistant herself, says she has delivered AI training to administrative professionals globally, including at Google, Amazon, Uber, Salesforce and LinkedIn. In her experience, employers want staff to be able to leverage AI — “not just loosely understanding it, but genuinely using it as an integral part of how people are working every day,” she says.

Oana Manolache takes an even stronger stance. The founder and CEO of Sequel.io, a platform that enables companies to host webinars on their own websites, wrote in a LinkedIn post last year: “I will fire anyone who doesn’t use AI.”

But even Manolache says AI could not replace her executive assistant, Stephanie Martinez.

Manolache says Martinez uses AI to “free herself” from tasks like note-taking and meeting prep to focus on the “human work” of building team connectivity, making judgment calls, understanding executives' relationships with stakeholders and communicating accordingly.

Maybe AI could supplant the “traditional” assistant, but “it doesn’t replace what an executive assistant does now as the role has evolved,” Manolache says.

Martinez works remotely from El Salvador through Viva Talent, which — in another example of the shifting landscape for the role — trains and matches assistants from Latin and South America to primarily U.S.-based tech companies.

“The people who truly want to succeed in this role have a massive opportunity," Manolache says. “This person has access to information across the entire organization.”

For instance, when the company aimed to drive more customer reviews on a software review platform, Martinez, who manages most invoices and billing, approached the problem innovatively. She leveraged AI to sift through all customer communications, pinpoint good candidates for reviews, and draft outreach emails. Without AI, “it would have taken her so long to do this,” Manolache says, adding that it also freed up Martinez to “think creatively.”

That freedom to strategically implement AI is just as important as education and training, since many assistants are interested in adopting AI but lack the bandwidth to incorporate it, says Melissa Peoples, an Austin, Texas-based executive assistant coach and former C-suite executive assistant.

Gender dynamics compound that challenge in an industry dominated by women who are often paired with male leaders, Peoples says.

“You see those that are early adopters, and are crushing it, and are partnered with really empowering executives, and can do all of these things," she says. "And then you see the other side of this, where literally assistants are being told, ‘You’re not smart enough to be in the room. Just bring me my coffee.’”

With effective AI training, Peoples says admins can “find their voice” and “have higher impact so they are protected against what is going to happen as agentic AI becomes more commonplace and more easily accessible.” ___

The Associated Press’ women in the workforce coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

The report could show that 100,000 new jobs were added last month, according to a survey of economists by data provider FactSet. If so, it would be the fourth straight month of solid hiring, after a string of weak months late last year through February, when employers actually shed jobs. The unemployment rate is forecast to have stayed a low 4.3% in June.

Yet some economists expect a stronger figure as companies have adjusted to a series of challenges — higher tariffs, the Iran war, widespread AI investment — and are increasingly confident that the economy will keep growing. In the three months from March through May, employers added an average of 188,000 jobs a month, a significant pickup from an average loss of 4,000 in the preceding three months from December through February.

“Even though it’s still kind of a challenging market ... the understanding of where things are headed, it has calmed down a bit,” said Nicole Bachaud, labor economist at ZipRecruiter. “And so businesses are able to now execute on hiring plans.”

Still, inflation is at a three-year high of 4.2%, lifted by spiking gas prices, and that has eroded Americans' incomes. Inflation-adjusted after-tax incomes were flat in May from a year earlier, which could discourage some consumers from spending.

But a healthy labor market that can continue to generate jobs should enable many consumers, particularly upper-income ones, to remain resilient and spend more, boosting the economy.

The inflation-fighters at the Federal Reserve, however, are under increasing pressure to raise rates to slow the economy and combat inflationary pressures. Now that gas prices are headed lower with the peace agreement between the United States and Iran, inflation should start to cool and many Fed officials will want to see how much closer it can get to the Fed's 2% target before raising rates.

Still, other officials say that solid job growth is a sign that the Fed's key rate — currently about 3.6% — may not be restraining the economy or cooling inflation pressures.

Historically, average job gains of 188,000 a month wouldn't be seen as that strong. Yet as more Americans retire and new immigration has dropped sharply, the U.S. workforce is barely growing. In that case, hiring at about 100,000 new jobs a month may be enough to keep the unemployment rate unchanged — or even lower it.

There are some wild cards that could affect the June data. In May, employers added 172,000 jobs, with 70,000 of those new positions at restaurants, bars, and hotels. And local governments added 55,000 jobs. Both gains, particularly in local government, were higher than normal and economists think it's unlikely they'll be repeated.

Some analysts speculate the May job gains at restaurants and hotels reflected additional hiring in preparation for the World Cup, which began June 11th. If so, the large gain would be unlikely to happen again. Yet many economists say that while the World Cup may have sparked more hiring in the cities hosting the event, it hasn't been large enough to affect the national data.

The ongoing adoption of artificial intelligence has led to widespread worries that it will replace many workers and reduce employment. Yet so far there haven't been widespread layoffs stemming from AI adoption, and economists argue that it could make many workers more efficient at their jobs instead.

Bachaud said AI adoption could have encouraged a trend she's noticed on their website: Companies are increasingly posting jobs seeking more senior, experienced workers, while job hunters are instead gravitating toward entry-level jobs.

With far fewer people quitting their jobs than just after the pandemic, Bachaud said, companies are having more trouble recruiting experienced workers from other businesses. At the same time, that's left less-experienced workers struggling to break into the job market.

That gap “just shows the mismatch between what employers are looking for and what current job seekers have to offer,” she said. It has likely contributed to the frustration many job seekers feel even as the unemployment rate remains low.

The FBI did not specify how many ransom notes have been received, other than saying “several.”

“This case continues to be investigated as a kidnapping for ransom case,” the FBI said in a statement.

The Pima County Sheriff's Department is also investigating the case. The department declined to comment on the notes Wednesday but said it's taking every tip in the investigation seriously.

Tucson TV station KOLD has said it received two notes, one demanding millions in Bitcoin in exchange for Guthrie’s return and another that said she had died. TMZ also received a note.

Guthrie is the mother of longtime “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie. Authorities believe she was kidnapped, abducted or otherwise taken against her will on Feb. 1. They found blood near the front doorstep of her home just outside Tucson, and the FBI later released surveillance videos showing a masked man on the porch that night.

Volunteers and search teams scoured the nearby desert terrain filled with cactuses, bushes and boulders in the weeks after she vanished. A volunteer group recently conducted a search for her body near the Arizona-Mexico border.

The report, which was shared before publication with The Associated Press, plotted 144 suspected drone sightings across Europe, including in NATO members Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, the U.K., and Denmark, between 2024 and 2026.

Those sightings peaked in late 2025, forcing the temporary closure of several European airports, including in Germany, Spain and Denmark.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen described the incidents in her country as the “ most serious attack on Danish critical infrastructure to date.”

The IISS said the Russian campaign was designed to fall below the threshold of triggering discussions for a collective NATO response and was a “strategic failure” for Europe that exposed how the continent’s air defenses are not fit to deal with the current threat.

Air Chief Marshal John Stringer, NATO's deputy supreme allied commander in Europe, told AP that it is up to each alliance member to decide how to respond to such threats — and many countries are taking them increasingly seriously.

Several senior European officials said it’s difficult to attribute the drone incursions to Russia, and Stringer did not blame Moscow. But he suggested the activity fits the pattern of behavior seen in a widespread campaign of disruption across Europe that Western officials have blamed on Russia since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Of the handful of countries that have confirmed drone sightings, only Sweden has blamed Moscow directly — when a military drone flew toward a French aircraft carrier from a Russian spy ship.

President Vladimir Putin said in May that Russia is not waging a sabotage campaign against Europe.

European nations struggled to respond to drones, the IISS said

Drones are challenging to detect because they fly low and slow, and on radar can look like birds or planes. They can be launched inside, or near, national borders, bypassing missile defenses, which are designed to detect supersonic missiles fired from abroad. And even if a drone is shot down, it’s extremely difficult to identify where it came from or who sent it and why.

The incursions showed drone defenses in Europe need to rapidly be improved, the IISS said.

Creating a comprehensive picture of threats is often difficult because the responsibility for tackling drones is often split among various authorities, Lt. Gen. Jonny Lindfors, Sweden’s military representative to NATO, told AP. It’s also a “tough decision,” he said, to decide to shoot a drone down because it could cause civilian casualties.

In a June report, Denmark’s Defense Command said the armed forces “could have been in a stronger position” to respond to drone sightings and that there were shortcomings in equipment used to detect them. Following the incidents, Denmark and several other European countries said they would boost their drone defenses.

Countries that may have had a “benign” view of the danger a few years ago have now realized that counterdrone systems are a critical part of air defense, said Stringer.

Russia is launching drones from shadow ships, the IISS said

The IISS plotted the movement of Russian shadow fleet vessels — ships of uncertain ownership that help Moscow dodge sanctions — and concluded that it’s highly likely that Russia is using them as platforms for launching drones.

The report focused on sightings of drones across central and northwest Europe and did not examine incursions along NATO’s eastern flank, where multiple Russian and Ukrainian attack drones have entered European airspace.

On Dec. 2, the Vezhen, a shadow ship linked to the severing of a Baltic cable, sailed in circles off the coast of Ireland when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived for his first official visit, the IISS said. Another ship was nearby, but its signal was off, it said.

At that time, four large military drones were spotted off the Dublin coast, flying for two hours above an Irish navy ship, the report said. The Irish Defense Forces did not reply to a request for comment.

The report cited other sightings that occurred when shadow fleet ships were nearby, several in Denmark.

— On Jan. 3, 2025, as the shadow fleet vessel Arctica sailed along the Danish coast, the IISS said up to 20 drones flew over the port of Koege, Denmark, before disappearing toward the sea.

— On Sept. 22, drone sightings led to the closure of Copenhagen Airport. The IISS found several shadow ships were in the area at the time, including the Arctica and the Boracay.

— Over the next several days, as the Boracay rounded Denmark and several other ships were in the area, more drones were reported over the country, including near military installations.

The IISS said suspicion for at least some of the sightings in September fell on the Boracay. The French military boarded the ship at the end of the month, and President Emmanuel Macron said he can't rule out that the vessel was involved in the drone flights over Denmark.

Denmark’s Defense Command confirmed that drones were identified in the country’s airspace in September and October 2025. It didn’t link them to Russia but noted that Moscow is carrying out hybrid attacks against the West, including those that are of a “character and scope far beyond what Russia carried out before the war in Ukraine.”

“It’s a reasonable assumption” that Russia is launching drones from shadow fleet ships, said Lindfors, though he noted it's often “almost impossible” to attribute them to one nation or actor.

Russia flew drones above military sites, the report said

The report also concluded that Russia likely tried to monitor military sites in the U.K., the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Germany and force NATO nations to scramble to defend against drones, and so reveal radar positions and gaps in defenses. Among the reports of drones over military installations cited by the IISS were:

— The U.S. Air Force in Europe said there were multiple sightings of drones in November 2024 over four American air bases in the U.K.

— German authorities recorded more than 1,000 suspicious drone sightings in 2025, including over defense companies and military bases where Ukrainian soldiers were training.

— Dutch and Belgian defense officials said drones were spotted in November and December 2025 over military bases in the Netherlands and Belgium. The IISS said the bases are believed to host American B61 nuclear bombs.

— Drone sightings were reported at the Ile Longue submarine base, which hosts France’s nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines.

The U.S. Air Force in Europe said it couldn't provide more detail on the incidents in the U.K., the Netherlands and Belgium, nor confirm the presence of American nuclear weapons.

A British defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military information, said a defense police investigation found no evidence to conclusively link the drone sightings in the U.K. to Russia. The Dutch Defense Ministry confirmed drones were seen over Volkel Air Base and said it took steps to defend military sites against drones.

The French army chief of staff headquarters said an investigation of the drones over Ile Longue is ongoing. It didn’t respond to questions about whether the military suspects the drones were launched from shadow fleet ships.

Requests for comment were also sent to defense ministries in Belgium, Denmark and Germany.

With so many incursions, “it would be naive to believe it’s just a coincidence,” said Lindfors, suggesting that such threats are the new normal.

___

Associated Press writers John Leicester, Lorne Cook and Mike Corder contributed.

Aceh’s Sharia court ordered the two people to be whipped with a rattan cane 21 times each for kissing without being married. At least a hundred people witnessed the caning, carried out by a group of people wearing robes and hoods on a stage in Bustanussalatin City Park in Banda Aceh.

The couple, a 22-year-old man and a 25-year-old woman, were arrested in April after a Feb. 27 livestream in which they kissed in a car in Banda Aceh went viral and prompted reports to local Sharia authorities.

Aceh is the only province in Muslim-majority Indonesia that enforces a version of Islamic law. Indonesia’s secular central government granted the province the right to implement religious law in 2006 as part of a peace deal to end a separatist war.

In 2015, Aceh expanded the law to apply to non-Muslims, who account for about 1% of the province’s population.

The law allows up to 100 lashes for morality offenses including adultery and gay sex. Caning is also allowed to punish people gambling and drinking, and for women who wear tight clothes or men who skip Friday prayers.

The couple caned Thursday were sentenced to 25 lashes each, but it was reduced to 21 strokes because they had already spent four months in prison.

The court also seized a cellphone and a USB flash drive containing the TikTok live video as evidence to be destroyed.

Four other people were publicly caned on Thursday for online gambling and adultery.

Amnesty International Indonesia said public caning in Aceh as a form of human rights violation because it is cruel, inhumane and degrading to human dignity, even though Indonesia has ratified a convention mandating the abolition of inhumane punishments.

“Such behavior might be considered inappropriate because social media is viewed by people of various age groups, including children. But is it a crime that warrants imprisonment or even caning? That would be excessive,” said Usman Hamid, the Executive Director of Amnesty International Indonesia on Thursday.

Aini Nadhirah, 22, a Banda Aceh resident who attended the caning, said the public concern over the punishment could provide a lesson for others.

“In my opinion, this caning is entirely justified because it serves as a warning to other Aceh residents to be more careful when using social media. It also raises awareness that such actions are unacceptable, thereby educating the public,” Nadhirah said.

___

Tarigan reported from Jakarta, Indonesia.

The company announced the project back in March, explaining that Harveys Supermarkets across Florida and Georgia would be converted into Winn-Dixie locations.

The move was intended as part of the company’s mission to bring its stores “together under one trusted name.”

“The conversions mark another step forward in the company’s evolution to The Winn-Dixie Company, reflecting a sharpened focus on growing the Winn-Dixie brand and delivering a more unified grocery experience for customers,” officials wrote at the time.

[RELATED: Florida reacts to grocery store changes]

Last week, Winn-Dixie revealed that the eight supermarkets had finally finished their conversions, signifying broader reinvestment into the Sunshine State and the company’s hometown of Jacksonville.

The eight converted locations are listed as follows:

• Jacksonville — 201 W. 48th Street
• Jacksonville — 5250 Moncrief Road
• Jacksonville — 5909 University Blvd. W.
• Lake City — 4506 SW Heritage Oaks Circle
• Lakeland — 2630 U.S. Highway 92
• Lakeland — 1305 Ariana Street W.
• Ocala — 3435 N. Pine Ave.
• Folkston (GA) — 3606 S. Second Street

According to the release, these stores will reflect Winn-Dixie’s new look while stocking Own Brand products, prepared foods and the grocer’s signature “Lip Lickin’ Chicken” in the deli section.

Furthermore, Harveys Rewards customers may transfer their existing points over to the Winn-Dixie Rewards app, where they can also access weekly digital deals, planning tools and savings that turn rewards into dollars off groceries.

To do so, customers only have to download the Winn-Dixie app and enter their phone number — no new sign-up required, officials added.

Meanwhile, officials said they plan to unveil new stores in Keystone Heights and Alachua in the coming months, followed by a new store in Zephyrhills later this year.

“These upcoming openings will strengthen the grocer’s presence in Florida and expand access to the Winn-Dixie experience for more communities across the region,” officials wrote. “The grocer is also exploring future opportunities to expand its footprint across its home state as it revitalizes its store fleet, reinvests in the communities it serves and positions Winn-Dixie for its next century.”

In a release, the governor’s office revealed that DeSantis wants to impose this designation on Antifa, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).

[RELATED: New Trump highway, airport take effect in Florida]

Per the release, the state also received recommendations to designate over 90 foreign terrorist organizations under state law, including:

• Cartel de Sinaloa
• Tren de Aragua
• Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)
• Cartel del Noreste
• Cartel del Golfo

“Last December, I signed an Executive Order to eliminate the influence of radical terrorist ideologies and the organizations that promote them in Florida. This year, I signed legislation to strengthen those protections and give Florida permanent statutory tools to combat terrorism while defending the Constitutional rights of our citizens.

Today, we are officially designating terrorist organizations under Florida law. In addition to CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood, we are adding Antifa to the list—along with more than 90 Foreign Terrorist Organizations, including cartels.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis

The new law — HB 1471 — introduces a rule that allows the FDLE executive director — a role appointed by the governor — to designate certain groups as terrorist organizations.

To do so, the FDLE director must find the following criteria:

After the FDLE director provides written notice of the decision, the Cabinet is responsible for either approving or rejecting the designation.

“Keeping our community safe starts with identifying the threat,” FDLE Commissioner Mark Glass said on Wednesday. “The safety of our community is strengthened by that knowledge every day, and reinforced by the collaboration between our officers, our federal partners, and — most importantly — the people we serve.”

[RELATED: Supreme Court, Florida budget and Roku’s child safety fix]

Other rules under HB 1471 include the following:

• Religious Laws: Courts and tribunals are prohibited from enforcing religious or foreign laws against someone if such application would violate his/her constitutional rights
• Private Schools: Prohibits private schools participating in state scholarship programs from being owned or funded by terrorist groups, terrorist supporters, or criminal gangs
• State Universities: Prevents institutions in the Florida College System from using state funds to support programs that advocate for terrorist organizations
• Visa Students: Public colleges must report information about the current status of students who are attending on a visa if they promote terrorist organizations
• Student Expulsions: If a student promotes a terrorist organization while enrolled at a public university, the student must be immediately expelled and assessed an out-of-state fee

If a group is properly dubbed a terrorist organization, the following consequences will also apply:

• No taxpayer funding: State and local agencies may not expend funds or levy ad valorem taxes to support such an organization or its members
• No school funding: Public colleges, universities, and school districts may not use public resources to support or promote designated organizations
• Harsher penalties: Criminal penalties imposed against such organization may be enhanced
• Terrorism crimes: The following terrorist-related crimes include conduct involving a domestic terrorist group as designated by the FDLE head:
• • Using military-type training provided by a terrorist organization
  • Providing material support or resources for terrorism
  • Willfully becoming a member of a terrorist organization

In a decree Thursday, the Vatican's doctrine office declared the Society of St. Pius X in schism and decreed the excommunication of its bishops and priests.

The society, known by its acronym SSPX, celebrates the ancient Latin Mass and opposes the modernizing reforms of the Catholic Church, which it considers to be rife with heresies and errors.

During a ritual-filled, five-hour Mass on Wednesday in Econe, Switzerland, attended by some 15,500 people and their children, the SSPX consecrated four new bishops. The consecrations were in direct defiance of Pope Leo XIV, who had urged the SSPX to hold off for the sake of the church’s unity.

A group founded in dissent

The society was founded in opposition to the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council. Among other things, the 1960s church meetings revolutionized the Catholic Church’s relations with other Christians, Jews and people of other faiths and allowed Mass to be celebrated in the vernacular rather than Latin.

In 1975, the SSPX founder, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, was suspended and the society was suppressed by the Vatican.

In 1988, Lefebvre consecrated four bishops without papal consent. The Vatican promptly excommunicated Lefebvre and the four other bishops, and the group today still has no legal status in the church.

Despite that original schismatic act, the group has continued to grow and today poses a threat to the Holy See since it represents a parallel, ultra-Catholic, pre-Vatican II church. The SSPX counts six bishops, 751 priests, 264 seminarians training in five seminaries, 145 religious brothers, 88 oblates and 250 religious sisters representing 50 nationalities, according to SSPX statistics.

An automatic excommunication for a schismatic act

Under the church’s in-house canon law, consecrating a bishop without papal consent incurs an automatic excommunication for both the people administering the consecration and the bishops receiving it.

The Vatican doesn’t have to declare the excommunications or issue a decree: It happens automatically. But the Vatican on Thursday declared the excommunications of the bishops and also declared the priests to be schismatics and therefore excommunicated.

The Vatican also warned the society's faithful that they would face the harshest sanctions in the Catholic Church if they “formally adhere” to the group.

Excommunication is the harshest penalty under canon law. It is considered “medicinal” in nature, meant to teach those who incur it that “what you did was wrong and you must repent for what you have done,” said the Rev. Robert Gahl of the Catholic University of America.

“The medicine may be bitter tasting, meaning that there’s a harsh feature of it because it’s a penalty, but it’s meant to bring about a change in the one who receives it,” he said.

The excommunication, however, doesn’t affect the validity of the consecration itself: SSPX bishops, like their priests, are validly but illicitly ordained.

Pope Francis made SSPX concessions during crackdown

Despite his general distrust of traditionalists and a broader crackdown on the old Latin Mass, Pope Francis went out of his way to offer concessions to the SSPX.

In 2015, he decreed that Catholics could validly go to confession with SSPX priests, essentially recognizing as legitimate the absolutions granted to Catholics who confessed their sins to SSPX priests.

Francis had made the concession as a one-year gesture during his Jubilee of Mercy, but he then extended it indefinitely. He also made a provision to allow SSPX priests to celebrate marriages legitimately.

The Vatican reversed those concessions on Thursday, declaring the sacraments of confession and marriage that SSPX priests administer to be invalid.

Pope Benedict XVI tries to reconcile

First as cardinal and then as pontiff, Pope Benedict XVI had worked to heal the SSPX schism and bring the group back under Rome’s wing.

He made two major concessions as part of his outreach. In 2007, he relaxed restrictions on celebrating the traditional Latin Mass throughout the Catholic Church. And in 2009, he removed the excommunications of the four SSPX bishops.

The gesture, however, became an acute embarrassment for him and sparked a crisis with Jewish leaders because one of the four, Bishop Richard Williamson, was a known Holocaust-denier.

And in a television interview that aired on Swiss television just before the pope’s decree was made public, Williamson said he didn’t believe Jews were killed in gas chambers during World War II.

Benedict later acknowledged a simple internet search would have turned up Williamson’s views.

Williamson later ran afoul of the SSPX, which expelled him in 2012 for insubordination. He had ignored a deadline to “declare his submission” to its authority and had called for the society’s superior to resign, the group said at the time.

Williamson, who was ordained a priest by Lefebvre in 1976 and had taught in the society’s seminaries in Europe, the U.S. and Argentina, died in 2025.

Relations with other traditionalists

Despite his concessions to the SSPX, Francis enraged many Catholic traditionalists by reversing Benedict's relaxation on celebrating the old Latin Mass for the broader Catholic Church. Francis cracked down on its spread, arguing it had become a source of division in the church.

While the SSPX is one fringe group out of communion with Rome, plenty of other traditionalists are in full communion with the Holy See.

Leo, as part of his effort at promoting unity, allowed a prominent American cardinal to celebrate an old Latin Mass in St. Peter's Basilica last year.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

But UPS said in its own submission to the National Transportation Safety Board that the reason it never required those enhanced bearing inspections inside the pylons that hold the engines to the wings of its MD--11 freighters is because Boeing said incorrectly that the failure of those bearings wouldn't jeopardize the safety of flight. And the enhanced inspections were never required.

The plane crashed last fall while accelerating down the runway at Louisville’s Muhammad Ali International Airport, killing killed all three pilots and 12 people on the ground. Twenty-three more were injured.

The failures that kept mechanics from taking a close look at the key parts securing the engines to the wings were highlighted at two days of investigative hearings on the crash in May, but the documents released Wednesday provide additional details.

The NTSB might not publish its final report on the cause of the fiery crash that happened as the UPS plane was trying to take off in Louisville, Kentucky, last November until late this year or possibly early next year. But UPS said it's clear “once the pylon separated from the aircraft, the crash was inevitable.”

Boeing and Federal Aviation Administration officials acknowledged during the hearings that they misunderstood the risks related to the potential failure of a steel bearing and metal sheath in the engine mount before the crash, not realizing that it could lead to the lugs that secure engines to an MD-11’s wings breaking. The bearings are tucked deep inside near the pylons, so problems are hard to spot without removing each engine for detailed inspections.

Aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti said the actions of Boeing, UPS, FAA and the maintenance company STE San Antonio Aerospace all contributed to this crash.

“There’s just lots of subtleties and semantics that these four entities are using. But in the end, this got missed and to some degree, all four have some role to play in that,” said Guzzetti, who used to investigate crashes for both the NTSB and FAA. “Safety is a shared responsibility, and I think the NTSB’s task now is to apportion that responsibility.”

Failure of key part securing the engine never identified

Chris Hentz, who is Vice President of STE San Antonio Aerospace, said UPS only required its mechanics to check for corrosion and not for signs of bearing failure. But Hentz and UPS both pointed out that even as Boeing said “changes to the inspection requirement of the spherical bearing were warranted” the planemaker said in the same letter that the existing inspection requirements were sufficient.

Hentz said in his letter that Boeing “stated that while the MD-11 inspection intervals and requirements for an inspection of the aft bulkhead were sufficient, changes to the inspection requirements of the spherical bearing were warranted to ensure that the migration of the outer race would be reliably detected and identified during inspection.”

UPS said that even though Boeing developed an enhanced inspection procedure that it added to the MD-11 maintenance manual, the planemaker never added that procedure to its federally approved maintenance schedule that would have required it.

“Relying on Boeing’s representations that the issue was not safety-of-flight and that existing MPD inspections were sufficient, UPS determined that no additional changes to its maintenance program were necessary beyond what was already being performed.” the package delivery giant said.

Past problems didn't trigger alarm

At one point, Boeing even successfully petitioned the FAA to extend the schedule for required inspections from once every 19,900 cycles of takeoffs and landings, to once every 29,260, so that airlines could complete more of the major maintenance tasks simultaneously, with less down time.

The planemaker sought the change even after receiving reports about seven of the flaws in the bearings well before the planes had reached their original inspection limits. In the years after the schedule was relaxed, three more instances were discovered before the crash.

The UPS plane that crashed after losing its engine had flown 21,043 cycles, so it should have been thoroughly inspected under the original schedule. There has been only one other crash, decades earlier, involving a similar plane model losing an engine, but that one was blamed on improper maintenance and not the same flaw.

FedEx and other operators of these MD-11s reported at least 10 other instances of failures of these bearings or the parts that hold them in place over the years before the UPS crash. But it's not clear what these other operators might have been doing differently in their maintenance.

FedEx resumed flying its MD-11s in May after the FAA approved Boeing’s plan to ensure their safety. The engine mounts were closely inspected following the November crash, and going forward the spherical bearings will be replaced regularly, after every 4,000 cycles of takeoffs and landings. UPS decided to retire all of its MD-11s early after this crash.

Tillman delivered the goal of his life, and one of the biggest ever by a U.S. man at the World Cup, sending this American soccer fairytale into the round of 16.

“I’ve been dreaming about this game," Tillman said after scoring the final goal in a 2-0 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina on Wednesday night. “I’ve been dreaming about maybe taking a free kick and scoring a free kick. I’ve practiced this in training and I think today I showed what I can do.”

The round of 32 win set up a Monday matchup in Seattle against Belgium as the U.S. hopes to make a deep run on home soil. The Red Devils beat the Americans 2-1 in extra time at 2014's round of 16.

“It’s about to keep dreaming,” said U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino, who belted out “Take Me Home, Country Roads” as it played over the public-address system after 10 minutes of stoppage time. “In football all is possible if you believe.”

Folarin Balogun put the Americans ahead in the 45th minute with his third goal of the World Cup, then was sent off in the 64th for a red card.

Star Christian Pulisic had a goal disallowed for offside in the 78th, and Tillman helped seal the win when he curled in a free kick that got over the wall and on target from just outside the box in the 82nd. The ball went off diving goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj’s right hand and in despite the pain in Tillman's bloody right foot from being stepped on.

Balogun dominated the first half and scored in the 45th minute. The Americans had to scramble after his foul for awkwardly stepping on Tarik Muharemovic and preserved the shutout despite playing short-handed for more than 30 minutes.

“It felt so comfortable, even down to 10 men,” captain Tim Ream said. “That’s the way you want to feel. You don’t want to have that panic set in. You want have that calm and focus and we had that.”

Pochettino became the first U.S. coach with three World Cup victories, and the Americans gained just their second World Cup knockout round win. They made it to the semifinals in the first tournament in 1930 by winning their group and won a round of 16 matchup against Mexico in 2002.

Balogun leads the U.S. with three goals, but will miss the Belgium match because of an automatic suspension for the red card, assessed by Brazilian referee Raphael Claus after a video review. Balogun stepped on an ankle of Tarik Muharemovic, apparently not intentionally.

“Obviously the ref made a decision that he made, but I think it’s questionable,” midfielder Weston McKennie said. “I think there’s been many other plays like that throughout the tournament on other players that a card wasn’t given at all. It’s disappointing.”

Balogun matched Landon Donovan in 2010 for the second-most goals by an American in a World Cup, behind only Bert Patenaude’s four in 1930.

“Of course he’s a great player," Tillman said. "We have great players who can replace him, and give the best they can, and hopefully score some nice goals as well.”

The win snapped a 10-game losing streak for the U.S. against European teams dating to a tie against England in the 2022 World Cup. The Americans had lost seven games and tied six against European nations in World Cup play since beating Portugal in their 2002 opener.

The U.S. had started fast in the group stage matches by scoring in the first 15 minutes of all three games but it was Bosnia that had the better chances early. Matt Freese needed to make two saves early to stop Ermedin Demirovic following a deceptive goal kick that caught the U.S. defense napping and then again on the ensuing corner kick that Kerim Alajbegovic almost scored on directly.

Balogun took over from there. He had an apparent 31st-minute goal called off for offside and was knocked down in the box on two other opportunities before finally delivering. Ream intercepted a Bosnia goal kick at midfield and passed to Tyler Adams, who flicked to Tillman. The ball, with the help of an errant Bosnian clearance attempt and a deflection, found Balogun in the box. Balogun slid the left-footed shot past Vasilj.

Balogun punctuated the goal with his version of the LeBron James Silencer celebration, drawing a positive reaction from King James himself.

Balogun nearly scored again in first-half stoppage time but his shot from in close deflected off the crossbar and out of play.

Bosnia’s second World Cup trip was a success with a draw against Canada in the opener and a win over Qatar that helped the team advance to the knockout round for the first time. But it ended in disappointment.

“We had our moments after the red card,” Vasilj said. “You could feel that there was something. The only thing that was missing was a goal. And then in the worst moment, out of nothing, I would say, a free kick and we conceded a second goal. After that it was really difficult.”

___

See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Gone is the trademark light blue hull that helped Air Force One blend into the sky. The refurbished jet is painted in Trump’s preferred color scheme: a navy-blue belly with red and gold stripes. It has the luxury features that the president believes a commander-in-chief’s entourage should have — plush carpets, lie-flat seats, wood paneling and a presidential seal on the seat belts, according to reported tours of the plane.

Trump told reporters that he was proud of the luxurious plane. “You can do two things: You can low-key it, or you can show it,” he said.

The retrofitted Qatari jet is intended to serve as a “bridge” between the aging Boeing jets that have served as Air Force One for the last 36 years and two new aircraft, which are years behind schedule and expected to be delivered in 2028 at the earliest. Trump toured the new jet just weeks after returning to the White House last year and directed that it be prepared for his use for the bulk of his remaining time in office.

The compressed timetable set by the president limited the modifications to the plane. Images of the jet captured since its unveiling and analyzed by the Associated Press show that it is not equipped with at least some of the same missile detection and countermeasure systems as the outgoing Cold War-era jets.

The Air Force has said that it did little to change the cabin layout of the plane and that it spent less than $400 million on security upgrades.

Jeremiah Gertler, a senior analyst for Teal Group, an aviation and defense consulting firm, said that this absence, as well as a seemingly smaller number of communications antennas, suggested that the Qatari jet is better suited to only work as a domestic aircraft.

“If you’re going on a long trip, you take the big fancy car, but if you’re just buzzing around town, you’ll settle for something less. Right? And this looks like it’s a domestic-only model,” Gertler said, speaking of the new jet.

“If the idea was to do it as quickly and inexpensively as possible, it would seem to lead to the notion that there’s less content” in the jet’s modifications, Gertler said.

Trump has said he plans to use the new plane next week when he travels to attend the NATO summit in Turkey.

The Air Force argued that the rapid conversion of the jet was done “without accepting any risk regarding security, safety, or secure communications,” but added that “several highly complex engineering modifications required for the final (Air Force One aircraft) were intentionally excluded from the Bridge aircraft.” The service acknowledged that it did not widen the doors leading out of the aircraft or include multiple stairs built into the hull of the plane.

Reporters are generally not permitted to take photos inside the plane unless Trump is present. But on Wednesday, Trump administration staffers shared images of the plane's interior on social media.

White House communications director Steven Cheung posted a photo of aides gathered around a circular table that had off-white place mats and leather captain's chairs. Monica Crowley, the chief of U.S. protocol, posted a picture of herself perched on a leather couch between a pair of Air Force One throw pillows. Mounted on the wall behind her was a framed photo of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial.

The jet carried Trump to North Dakota to see the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, its first official visitor ahead of its opening on the nation’s 250th anniversary.

The gift from the Middle Eastern power raised ethical concerns, but Trump saw the plane as a necessary replacement for the older planes that had previously ferried him as president.

“This is a gift from a country that has treated us very well,” Trump said. Trump has said in the past that the Qatar plane would end up in a presidential library.

More than a year after first trying to buy Infowars, The Onion on Thursday will debut a send-up under its own website with plans to give some of the revenue to families of the victims in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.

The families have still received no money from Jones since courts ordered him to pay more than $1 billion for falsely calling the 2012 shooting a hoax.

The Onion will start by sending the families $100,000 from merchandise sales that combine the conspiracy empire’s brand with the The Onion’s logo in rainbow colors, according to CEO Ben Collins, whose company is still in court trying to take control of Infowars.

“Don’t give comedy writers a grudge for 18 months,” Collins said.

The parody will include a series of shows and other content under Infowars branding that spoof Jones’ aggressive mashup of conspiracies linking major news events, dubious scientific claims, attacks on people suffering in tragedies and sales of supplements and survival gear.

Jones' claims that the 2012 shooting that killed 20 first graders and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut is a hoax have no truth, but Jones continued to amplify them. His followers started to harass victims' families, suggesting they were “crisis actors” and even making death threats.

Jones' Infowars empire had 10 million visitors a month and generated more than $50 million in annual revenues at its peak, according to the company. But the $1.4 billion judgements in defamation cases in Connecticut and Texas, where Jones is based, forced him into bankruptcy and broke Infowars apart.

“All he’s been left with is an iPhone and a fancy microphone," said Chris Mattei, an attorney for nine of the Sandy Hook families.

Jones has moved his show to a different website. An email sent to an address to request interviews went unanswered.

The families knew they could never stop Jones from getting his message out, and he has managed to avoid paying the judgement so far. But they could expose what he said and assure he can never profit again, Mattei said.

“Every dime Alex Jones makes from here until the end of eternity is going to be claimed by the families,” Mattei said.

The Onion stepped in when Collins saw Infowars' assets were going to be sold at auction.

Collins spoke to Sandy Hook families, who said they were briefly skeptical, but then saw how The Onion's staff could use the Infowars style and branding to take the moral high ground and make fun of the people who not only caused them so much pain but they felt also poisoned society.

Collins didn't want to give away too much of the new stuff before it goes live Thursday.

But the new Infowars will maintain The Onion's sharp satire sprinkled with shock value. Collins said there will be a section selling a penis flattening device, a fake “pro oxygen” supplement pill that the host claims can replace breathing, as well as an extended debate on how many Bozo the Clowns there are.

“It’s old-fashioned Infowars — using the tricks that they use to get people addicted to outrage and, I would say, addicted to anticipation, trying to find the thing that’s around the corner that’s going to save your life,” Collins said.

The Onion will keep chasing Jones' property. Collins thinks they will soon get control of the Austin, Texas, studio Infowars once used.

Some families can't wait for that day. Collins said that Robbie Parker, whose daughter died at Sandy Hook, plans to read his book about fighting Jones while dealing with so much grief in the place Jones once sat.

The families at first wanted Infowars shut down forever and Jones never heard from again. But they are now looking forward to seeing what The Onion has planned, attorney Mattei said.

“The idea that it could be turned to some social good. I think it’s even better,” Mattei said. “So, yeah, I think the families are both pleased and amused with what they’ve been able to achieve here.”

So if a certain pop idol were to choose this island, at this moment, for her vows, could anywhere be more fitting?

“This city has always known how to celebrate big moments. But this summer, so many of them have collided at once,” says Rabbi Yael Buechler, 40, of the Riverside section of the Bronx, who is preparing a “Swiftie Shabbat” this weekend with friendship bracelet cookies and a bedazzled challah bread she says is inspired by her “Chuppah Era.” “When I look back on the summer of 2026, I won’t remember just one event. I’ll remember a season when New York felt united in celebration.”

New York is always a city whose seduction battles its struggles, where the thrill of finding a subway car with an open seat meets the realization that it’s empty because its lone passenger is hurling trash across it. The schlepping, the waiting on line, the $9 boxes of cereal and $32 burgers and microscopic apartments with titanic rents, the sidewalk mounds of trash, the gutted rat you nearly step onto in the street. All of it can congeal into too much, separating New Yorkers for a season from New Yorkers for life.

But then there are those days when the streets are a storybook, with all the eclectic, utopian splendor Richard Scarry could muster, where you step out of an impossibly tiny, immeasurably cute cheese shop to find an impromptu classical concert on a front stoop. Neighbors exchange knowing looks at whatever absurdity unfolds before them, parks unfurl like paintings, a kaleidoscope of humanity seems in sync, lights twinkle, dumplings are cheap, pizza is perfect, bagels are fresh from the oven, dreams are all fulfilled.

Optimism emerges for summer in the city

In the battle between the slog of metropolitan life and its many daily gifts, some felt the recent arrival of a thumb on the scale.

The city’s trademark cynicism faded a bit. And in a place where celebrity passersby and visiting monarchs typically get the same collective shrug, a certain exuberance appeared. The beaming young mayor, fresh off an announcement that a swath of New York’s tenants would see no rent hike, was even found jumping into a city pool in a suit and tie.

This town has known seasons of many stripes, from that autumn of grief after 9/11 to that spring of solitude and trepidation as COVID-19 first emerged. They always pass. The city moves forward. But however long this Summer of New York stretches and the city pulsates with positivity, locals are relishing it.

“It’s easy to feel alone in the big city, but we all feel a bit closer right now,” says Dallas Short, a 38-year-old publicist who lives in the Two Bridges neighborhood of Manhattan. “Anything seems possible and attainable right now.”

More than anything, the Knicks’ fantastic run fueled today’s New York temperament, with its underdogs-coming-out-swinging, constantly-rallying-from-behind, Jalen Brunson methodically delivering, OG Anunoby tipping in an impossible shot, and millions of onlookers unsure of what they just witnessed as they slid into a warm bath of delight.

Spike Lee, a sideline fixture for decades and quintessential New Yorker, captured the city's darker side with his film “Summer of Sam,” set in the city's long-remembered summer of 1977. This year, he oozed joy even before victory was sealed.

“This is truly Fun City,” he proclaimed in The New York Times, “born again!”

Then there were those soccer games

Before the thrill of that even wore away, the world’s soccer fans descended, turning Times Square into a Viking longship and points across the city into flag-waving, drum-beating celebrations. In a city whose most iconic statue is a testament to its openness to newcomers, teams from Cape Verde to Paraguay to Congo found local fans and international visitors found compatriots.

“There is electricity in the air,” says Steven Gottlieb, a real estate agent and born-and-bred New Yorker who lives in the Flatiron neighborhood of Manhattan. “Many of us have a love-hate relationship with New York City, but there’s a lot to love right now.”

Which brings us to none other than Taylor Swift.

After moving here over a decade ago, she penned “Welcome to New York,” which called the city a “true love” and portrayed it as an “ever-changing,” “drives you crazy,” “keeps you guessing” paramour.

Asked about her new home at the time, she told Rolling Stone, “In terms of being happy, I’ve never been closer.”

Swift was spotted courtside at Madison Square Garden in Game Four of the Knicks’ run. And if rumors prove to be true, she’ll return to the arena this week to celebrate a marriage to football player Travis Kelce. Should it come to pass, it would arrive on a week capped by all the revelry the city can serve up for the 250th anniversary of the country’s independence, in a fireworks-blasting, tall ships-sailing spectacle.

In this city scarred by terror, darkened by blackout and flooded by storm, no New Yorker would be so naïve as to think it all will last. The rents will rise. The kvetching will return. The smells and the crowds will again grow too much.

Let it be remembered, though: For a blissful moment in the summer of 2026, joy reigned here.

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Matt Sedensky can be reached at msedensky@ap.org and https://x.com/sedensky

Days after selecting play-making 18-year-old forward Gavin McKenna with the first pick in the NHL draft, Chayka added veteran depth — with Stanley Cup Final experience — in a series of moves highlighted by the signing of goalie Sergei Bobrovsky to a three-year, $21 million contract as free agency opened on Wednesday.

At nearly 38, Bobrovsky is a two-time Cup champion and leaves Florida to fill what’s been a long-unaddressed need in Toronto.

“Sergei’s a real game-changer for us in terms of the stability, the consistency, the durability,” Chayka said. “We think he’s really motivated to come into the largest hockey market in the world, and it’s important to him that he finish his career strong.”

Among the other more active teams were the San Jose Sharks. They signed free agent defenseman Jacob Trouba and forward Mason Marchment, while also acquiring defenseman Darnell Nurse in a trade with Edmonton.

Utah, coming off its first playoff appearance, signed former Islanders captain Anders Lee to a three-year, $16.2 million contract and acquired Vincent Trocheck from the Rangers as the Mammoth muscled up their front line.

Aside from Lee, and with veteran forward Patrick Kane and defenseman John Carlson still available, Bobrovsky was considered among the most prized free agents on the market.

“A sincere thank you to Sergei Bobrovsky for all he did for this organization,” said Panthers general manager Bill Zito, who this past week had traded for goalies Jacob Markstrom and Akira Schmid. “Things happen where decisions get made and people move on. It’s part of our game. We have nothing but appreciation for Sergei.”

Though nearly a decade removed from winning the Vezina Trophy for a second time as the NHL’s top goalie with Columbus in 2017, Bobrovsky represents an upgrade for a Leafs team that’s gone through a carousel of netminders, including five alone last season. Toronto is attempting to retool on the fly with a new coach after finishing last in the Atlantic Division standings to snap a nine-year playoff run.

The Leafs also signed center Teddy Blueger, who won a Cup in 2023 with Vegas, center Colton Sissons and center Jack Roslovic.

More than 11 hours into free agency, Tampa Bay signed defenseman John Carlson to a two-year, $17 million contract, according to a person with knowledge of the deal who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because it had not been announced. Carlson chose the Lightning over other interested suitors including Carolina and Washington.

Rangers whe

el and deal

The Rangers made four trades in a five-hour span, most notably sending Trocheck to Utah for defenseman Sean Durzi, prospect Cole Beaudoin and a third-round pick in the draft next year. They also acquired Marcus Pettersson from Vancouver for a conditional 2030 first-rounder, shipped fellow defenseman Will Borgon to Boston for picks and made an additional trade with the Bruins to get backup goalie Joonas Korpisalo.

New York also signed former Tampa Bay forward Oliver Bjorkstrand to a one-year, $4.5 million contract.

Sharks stock up

The fast-improving Sharks are suddenly a destination. They acquired Nurse in a deal that sent defensive prospects Shakir Mukhamadullin and Zack Sharp to Edmonton. Trouba signed a four-year, $33 million deal and Marchment signed a five-year, $33.75 million contract.

After the Sharks enjoyed a 19-win jump in the standings and barely missed the playoffs, Trouba called being part of a team on the rise behind Macklin Celebrini one of the biggest reasons he signed in the Bay Area.

“You want a team that you feel like you can grow with and make an impact and help these young guys,” Trouba said. “It’s important to get into where everybody wants to be is on a contending team, and I think we have a good opportunity in San Jose to do that.”

Goalies on the move

The Oilers shuffled goalies by acquiring Buffalo’s minor league prospect Devon Levi in a trade and added veteran Frederik Andersen on a $2.8 million contract for next season. Andersen was Carolina's goaltender on the way to the Cup final before getting injured and exiting the series.

Winnipeg signed Stuart Skinner to a two-year, $7.5 million contract with Winnipeg. The Jets' goaltending depth could be in flux with the team listening to trade offers for three-time Vezina Trophy-winner Connor Hellebuyck. Minnesota signed Calvin Pickard, while Tampa Bay got Denis Hildeby from Toronto for forward Nick Paul.

Free agent signings

— Washington, still waiting on Alex Ovechkin’s decision about whether he'll return for a 22nd NHL season, signed Columbus forward Boone Jenner ($23 million) and San Jose defenseman Vincent Desharnais ($16.8 million) to four-year contracts.

— The Los Angeles Kings signed Nashville forward Erik Haula to a two-year, $7.2 million contract. And Mats Zuccarello left Minnesota to sign with L.A.

— Chicago got veteran defenseman Ian Cole (Utah) for next season at $4.75 million.

— Colorado signed former Seattle winger Jaden Schwartz to a three-year, $9.75 million contract.

— Detroit signed Swedish winger Viktor Arvidsson (Boston) to a two-year contract worth $10 million.

Staying put

In the meantime, teams were also busy retaining players.

— Vegas re-signed defenseman Rasmus Andersson to a seven-year, $59.5 million contract.

— Florida signed rugged defenseman Radko Gudas, who just turned 36, to a six-year deal worth $1.5 million annually for a total of $9 million. The 36-year-old Gudas played in Florida for three seasons from 2020-23 and acquired in a trade with Anaheim on Monday.

— New Jersey locked up captain Nico Hischier by signing the Swiss center to a five-year extension worth $58.5 million with an annual cap hit of $11.7 million from 2027 through 2032.

— Montreal re-signed Ivan Demidov to an eight-year, $73 million contract after the 20-year-old Russian forward led all NHL rookies with 62 points (19 goals, 43 assists) last season.

— Philadelphia got two extensions done, signing forward Tyson Foerster to an eight-year, $56.8 million contract and extending goalie Dan Vladar for five years at $27.5 million.

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AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, contributed to this report.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

Those in the crowd beat their chests rhythmically in the intense summer heat, the wails of women cutting through the noise. Mourners rushed the casket, causing the 86-year-old religious leader's white-wrapped body to tumble out into the crowd.

Initial reports said the chaos killed at least eight people and injured some 11,000 others. It was recognized by Guinness World Records as the largest percentage of a population to attend a funeral, drawing an estimated 10.2 million people — about one-sixth of Iran’s population at the time

Now, as Iran prepares to bury the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, The Associated Press is making its story and historic photographs of Khomeini's funeral available. The story has been edited for typographical errors, but maintains the AP style of the day.

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Mourners Block Funeral, Postpone Burial; Scores Crushed in the Chaos

By ALEX EFTY

Millions of mourners beating on their heads and chests today blocked the funeral procession of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, and scores of people, including Khomeini’s son, were crushed in the chaos.

The unyielding crowds forced authorities to postpone the burial.

There was no immediate word on if or how many people were killed, injured or simply fainted because of the 91-degree heat. At least eight people were killed and hundreds hurt Monday during a similar huge show of mass grief.

Security forces fired in the air to disperse the crowds, but the grieving multitudes remained, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

The Revolutionary Guards beat mourners on their hands to let go of Khomeini’s coffin.

Khomeini’s only son, Ahmad, 43, was knocked down in the dusty north Tehran square outside the Mosalla Mosque where Khomeini’s body had lay in state since Monday in an air-conditioned glass-encased bier.

Ahmad Khomeini’s white turban fell off as he was being hoisted above the crowds and passed from hand to hand to an ambulance at the edge of the square. He appeared pale and drowsy, but conscious.

The hearse carrying the body was stranded in a sea of mourners clad in black, unable to move forward because of the crowds, IRNA said.

Tehran television said it was “impossible” to break through the grieving multitudes to bury Khomeini before dusk. Islam forbids burying the dead after nightfall.

Khomeini died Saturday at age 86.

He was to be buried at the Baheshte Zahra cemetery, 22 miles south of Tehran, alongside victims of the Islamic revolution that catapulted him to power 10 years ago and thousands killed in the Iran-Iraq war.

The television said alternative arrangements for Khomeini’s burial would be announced later.

Shouts of “Allah Akbar!” God is Great, echoed across the city. The hearse had hardly covered a half mile of the journey two hours into the funeral procession.

Many of Tehran’s 6 million people turned out to bid Khomeini farewell. Millions more converged on the city from other regions, the official media reported.

The procession began at 7 a.m. when Khomeini’s devout militants, the Revolutionary Guards, carried his body down from the bier.

Five helicopters hovered overhead as a martial band played somber tunes.

Khomeini’s body was wrapped in the Islamic republic flag and laid on the ground in the open air as the white-bearded Ayatollah Mohammad-Reza Golpaygani prayed. Golapaygani, one of the four remaining senior ayatollahs in Iran, choked often and lifted his spectacles to wipe tears with a handkerchief.

After the 30-minute service, Khomeini’s body was placed in a wooden coffin that was covered with a white cloth, then carried by Revolutionary Guards from hand to hand into a white van.

Crowds cried hysterically. Readings from the Koran, Islam’s holy book, blared from the mosque’s minaret as the masses cried: “Farewell beloved imam!” and “Oh Khomeini, why have you left us?”

They pounded their heads and chests with clenched fists in a traditional Shiite Moslem expression of grief.

In the chaos, women, clad in head-to-toe black chadors, were rubbing shoulders with men, defying an Islamic ban on physical contact between a woman and a man other than her husband.

Firefighters sprayed the mourners with water to cool them off.

About 2 million frenzied mourners had kept a nightlong candle-lit vigil around the bier.

Some mourners scratched their faces until the blood ran and threw ashes over their clothes.

Khomeini died of a heart attack 11 days after intestinal surgery without resolving the problem of who would succeed him. He left a 29-page “political testament,” excerpts of which were read over Tehran radio on Monday.

The excerpts made no reference to how Iran should be governed after his death. But such proposals may have been in the sections that still have not been made public.

President Ali Khamenei, 49, was appointed caretaker leader Sunday. A presidential election and referendum on constitutional reforms, which are likely to increase the president’s executive power, are scheduled for Aug. 18.

Khamenei’s swift appointment was designed mainly to fill the vacuum amid political turmoil that has prevailed since Khomeini launched his resurgence of Islamic fundamentalism in February with a call for the death of British novelist Salman Rushdie.

In the absence of a single personality who can match Khomeini’s religious and political authority, it seemed likely that Iran would be ruled by a collective leadership.

Khamenei has endorsed the presidential candidacy of Parliament Speaker Hashemi Rafsanjani, 55, a political ally and the only declared candidate.

Former Iranian President Abolhassen Bani-Sadr said from exile in France that Khamenei’s appointment indicated “total failure” by the government.

“Imagine a church that cannot find a pope. It is exactly the same, like a dynasty that cannot find a king. … It will not last,” he said.

Powell has agreed to a two-year deal that could be worth up to $45 million with the Chicago Bulls, a person with knowledge of the talks said Wednesday. Powell also had received some interest from the Detroit Pistons, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the contract cannot be finalized until July 6 at the earliest.

ESPN and Chicago Sports Network were among those who first reported the agreement between Powell and the Bulls, who will hold a team option for 2027-28. Powell spent this past season in Miami, where he became an All-Star for the first time and averaged 21.7 points in 58 games with the Heat.

Miami will have a very different look this coming season, after the acquisition of Giannis Antetokounmpo in a trade that sent Tyler Herro and others to Milwaukee. Powell will be joining his fifth team, after past stints with Portland, the Los Angeles Clippers, Toronto and the Heat.

All-Stars on the move

Powell is among six — and there likely will be more — All-Star selections from 2026 alone to be on the move this offseason.

He joins Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee to Miami), Kawhi Leonard and Brandon Ingram (the headliners of a trade that brings Leonard back to Toronto and sends Ingram to the Los Angeles Clippers), LeBron James (who is leaving the Los Angeles Lakers for a yet-to-be-decided team), and Jaylen Brown (traded by Boston to Philadelphia for Paul George and draft picks).

Of the 62 players with at least one All-Star selection in the last five years, just over half — 33 of them — have changed teams at least once in that span.

Nikola Vucevic returns to Orlando

Nikola Vucevic has signed a deal to return to the Orlando Magic, agreeing on a one-year deal for just under $4 million, a person with knowledge of those talks confirmed.

Vucevic is second all-time on the Magic list in rebounds, third in points and fourth in games played. The 35-year-old center has been in the league for 15 seasons, nine of those with Orlando — and now joins a young core led by Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner.

Orlando needed another post option after losing Moritz Wagner in free agency to Brooklyn — and Vucevic, who still has a home in central Florida, was the natural fit.

Moritz Wagner, the brother of Franz Wagner, is signing a two-year deal with the Nets.

Vucevic averaged 15.1 points this past season for Chicago and Boston.

Also Wednesday, the Magic re-signed forward Jonathan Isaac. He was waived last week in a procedural move, only to be brought back as expected for what will be his 10th season with the club (including two he missed with injury).

Mitchell Robinson, Mike Conley Jr. to Boston

Mitchell Robinson just won a title with New York, and now the center will chase another in Boston.

The Celtics agreed to a $47.4 million, three-year deal with Robinson, a person with knowledge of that agreement told the AP. And veteran guard Mike Conley Jr. also is headed to the Celtics on a one-year deal, a second person with knowledge of that agreement said.

Robinson's deal includes a third-year option. Conley is set to play a milestone 20th season in the NBA.

Marcus Smart to Houston

Marcus Smart, the NBA's defensive player of the year in 2022, is about to join his fourth team in a span of 17 months after agreeing with the Houston Rockets on a two-year deal worth about $12.7 million, a person with knowledge of those talks told the AP.

Smart was with Memphis as recently as February 2025, then was sent to Washington to complete that season and spent this past season with the Lakers.

He averaged 9.3 points and started 54 games for the Lakers in 2025-26.

Tobias Harris to San Antonio

The Western Conference champion Spurs got another veteran, adding Tobias Harris on a two-year deal worth about $15 million this coming season and about $16 million in 2027-28, a person with knowledge of the agreement told the AP.

Including playoff games, Harris has played in 466 victories over the last decade — the sixth most of any player in the league over that span. Harris, who turns 34 later this month, averaged 13.3 points this past season for Detroit.

John Collins to Detroit

Forward John Collins is changing teams again, after agreeing to a three-year contract with the Pistons, a person with knowledge of those negotiations told the AP.

ESPN reported the deal is worth $51 million.

The Pistons will be Collins' third team in as many seasons. He started his career in Atlanta, then spent two seasons in Utah (until 2024-25) and played for the Clippers last season.

Lakers reload

The Lakers are thoroughly retooling their roster following James’ decision and Smart’s departure. After agreeing to a major trade to acquire center Walker Kessler from Utah, they added forward Sandro Mamukelashvili and guards Quentin Grimes and Collin Sexton in free agency, a person with knowledge of those talks told the AP.

Mamukelashvili, a bulky power forward with an outside shooting touch, played his way into a multiyear deal with the Lakers by scoring a career-high 11.2 points per game and hitting 38.9% of his 3-point attempts for Toronto last season and then opting out of his contract.

Grimes is a former Dallas teammate of Luka Doncic who provides strong on-ball defense and versatile offensive skills. Grimes posted a photo of himself as a child wearing Lakers gear on social media Wednesday.

Sexton has been a consistent scorer throughout his first eight NBA seasons with four teams. He averaged 15.4 points and 3.3 assists per game last season for Charlotte and Chicago.

Kelly Oubre Jr. to Indiana

The Indiana Pacers, who played in the NBA Finals in 2025 and expect to be a playoff contender again this coming season, have agreed to terms with Kelly Oubre Jr. on a two-year deal. ESPN and The Indianapolis Star reported it to be worth around $17 million.

Oubre averaged 14.1 points for Philadelphia this past season.

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AP Sports Writers Kyle Hightower in Boston and Greg Beacham in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

According to EPD, Peoples fled earlier from VSO deputies who were attempting to arrest him, raising concerns he would continue to endanger the public. Police say he later entered Edgewater, where EPD officers located his vehicle and attempted to stop it using a PIT maneuver.

EPD says the first PIT maneuver damaged a rear tire, but the vehicle continued a short distance. A second PIT maneuver at Old Mission Road and Massey Drive stopped the vehicle, police said.

During the pursuit, Peoples “lightly struck” a civilian vehicle, according to EPD. No injuries were reported.

After the arrest, officers said they discovered Peoples’ 11-year-old daughter was in the vehicle, and Peoples now faces an additional charge of child abuse.

EPD noted Peoples has been arrested five times in Volusia County over the past four years on charges that include burglary, fleeing and eluding, and narcotics trafficking.

“Outstanding work by the Volusia Sheriff’s Office and all involved,” EPD said in a statement, adding the department remains committed to holding violent offenders accountable and protecting Edgewater residents.

Brown — the 2024 NBA Finals MVP, a five-time All-Star and the league's fourth-leading scorer this past season — is getting traded by the Celtics to the Philadelphia 76ers, a person with knowledge of the deal's terms said Wednesday.

Boston is getting Paul George, along with a slew of draft capital that could become two first-round picks and two second-round picks, said the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the trade does not yet have the required league approvals.

ESPN first reported the trade agreement, and the terms were later confirmed by The Boston Globe.

Add this move to the list of blockbuster moves across the NBA so far this offseason. LeBron James is leaving the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent, and now this trade joins a long list of moves that involve All-Star-caliber players — like Giannis Antetokounmpo going from Milwaukee to Miami, Kawhi Leonard and Brandon Ingram headlining a swap between the Toronto Raptors and Los Angeles Clippers, and Ja Morant getting traded to Portland by Memphis.

Now, this.

“Welcome to Philly, JB!” Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro posted on social media. “Sixers get way better and, as a bonus, the Celtics got worse!"

It's a move that breaks up what has been one of the league’s most successful 1-2 punches in Brown and Jayson Tatum, who helped carry the Celtics to the 2024 NBA title.

Tatum missed most of this past season while recovering from an Achilles tear that happened during the 2025 playoffs, meaning Brown had to carry even more of the load for Boston — and he wound up with career-best averages of 28.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game.

It seemed, though, that Brown has felt underappreciated, especially after it became known that Boston had included him in trade talks with Milwaukee when Antetokounmpo was on the market.

“Nobody has won more combined regular-season and playoff games since I entered the league 10 years ago,” Brown posted on social media over the weekend. He’s right: The Celtics have won 523 games with Brown in the lineup, including playoff contests, which is six more than Denver has won with Nikola Jokic over that span.

Brown now gets to be part of a squad in Philadelphia alongside guard Tyrese Maxey and center Joel Embiid — someone who Brown recently called a flopper on a livestream.

“Joel Embiid is a great player, one of the best bigs in (expletive) basketball history,” Brown said. “Flops. He know it. This ain’t breaking news.”

Brown, Maxey (the league's No. 5 scorer this past season) and Embiid (a two-time NBA scoring champion) could become a positively frightening trio in Philadelphia, and the Celtics deciding to play a role in creating such a triumvirate only adds to the intrigue surrounding why they wanted to trade Brown in the first place.

The trade ends a tremendously disappointing two-year stint for George, who was traded with two years left on a four-year, $212 million free-agent contract. The 36-year-old George never approached his nine-time All-Star form in Philadelphia and his tenure was marred by a 25-game suspension last season for flunking a drug test.

He averaged just 16.7 points in his two seasons in Philadelphia after topping the 20-point mark in nine straight seasons with Indiana, Oklahoma City and the Los Angeles Clippers.

Brown is the latest big name brought in to team with All-Stars and franchise cornerstones Embiid and Maxey. Brown can try and lead the Sixers to their first title since 1983; a feat a steady string of stars from Ben Simmons to James Harden to George failed to do when paired with Embiid and Maxey to make a Big Three.

George cited mental health reasons as to why he failed a drug test and was suspended in late January for violating the terms of the NBA’s anti-drug program. His first year in Philly was marred by knee and adductor injuries that resulted in the forward having one of the worst years of his NBA career.

George averaged 16.2 points in just 41 games, easily his lowest scoring average in a full season since he averaged 12.1 points for Indiana in his second NBA season. He then had surgery in July on his left knee after he was injured during a workout and missed the first 12 games of this past season.

This was the first blockbuster pulled off under new team president Mike Gansey, who replaced the fired Daryl Morey.

Morey was fired after the Sixers failed to advance out of the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs in his tenure and they were swept by the eventual NBA champion Knicks in the second round last season — but only after erasing a 3-1 deficit to oust Boston in Round 1.

“Philadelphia is a good basketball team," Brown said after the Game 7 loss to the 76ers, surely not knowing at that time that he would be joining them a couple months later.

His job now will be to make that good basketball team even better.

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AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston in Philadelphia contributed.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

The Society of St. Pius X, which opposes modernizing reforms in the Catholic Church, went ahead with the five-hour ceremony at its seminary in Econe, Switzerland, despite a last-ditch appeal by Leo to call it off. The American pope warned in a letter Tuesday that consecrating bishops without his approval amounted to a “sin of extreme gravity” that will actually harm their faithful.

Leo's secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, went further and said the act “is a schismatic act” that incurs excommunications, although he said he didn't know how or when they would be confirmed by the Holy See.

The consecrations amounted to a crisis for Leo, who has prioritized church unity and healing tensions with traditionalists that worsened during the Pope Francis pontificate.

The SSPX, as the society is known, is a threat to the Holy See because it represents a parallel, ultra-Catholic faith. It now has six bishops, 751 priests, 264 seminarians training in five seminaries, 145 religious brothers, 88 oblates and 250 religious sisters representing 50 nationalities, according to SSPX statistics.

Bells tolled through the misty Alpine mountain valley as hundreds of priests walked two-by-two to the altar under a tent to start the service and then again at the end. An estimated 16,500 faithful who prefer the traditional Latin Mass over modern liturgies attended, sitting in a field through a downpour alongside their children who were too numerous for organizers to count.

The Mass, rich in velvet and gold-trimmed vestments, chanting and incense, was livestreamed on the society's YouTube channel, with simultaneous explanations in several languages. The highly organized religious extravaganza underscored the society's international reach, despite its schismatic outsider status, and appeal to conservative, traditionalist Catholics wary of the modern, secular world.

At the start of the Mass, a priest read aloud a statement justifying the consecrations as a necessary “sacred duty” and dismissing the resulting penalties. “We consider every punishment and censure brought to bear against this step will have no validity,” he said.

In the consecration rite, Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta, who himself was excommunicated after being consecrated without papal consent in 1988, placed his hands on the head of each of the four new bishops. The ritual confers the Holy Spirit from one bishop to another and recalls Christ’s gesture to his apostles. After they received their miter hats, gloves and pastoral staffs, the four made a procession through the crowd, blessing the faithful as bishops.

According to church law, consecrating a bishop without a papal mandate incurs the harshest penalty in the Catholic Church: automatic excommunication for the four new bishops and the bishop administering the rite. It also amounts to a schismatic act, an intentional rupture of church unity.

The society was founded in opposition to Vatican II

French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre founded the SSPX in opposition to the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council. Among other things, the 1960s meetings known as Vatican II revolutionized the church’s relations with other Christians, Jews and people of other faiths, and allowed Mass to be celebrated in the vernacular rather than Latin.

In 1988, Lefebvre consecrated four bishops without papal consent. The Vatican promptly excommunicated Lefebvre and the four bishops and declared the consecrations a “schismatic act.” Pope Benedict XVI in 2009 lifted the excommunications, but the SSPX today has no legal standing in the church.

The SSPX has accused the church of being rife with heresies and errors, and that only it is upholding the true faith of Christ. It has justified the consecrations, citing a “state of necessity” to minister to its faithful.

It identified the new bishops as Pascal Schreiber of Switzerland, Michael Goldade of the United States, Michel Poinsinet de Sivry of France and Marc Hanappier, also of France.

The Rev. Davide Pagliarani, the SSPX superior, said in his homily that the consecrations were necessary for the salvation of souls, but he also insisted they served Leo and the church.

“We are accused of not respecting the pope," he said. "But it is precisely because we love the pope as the vicar of Christ, as the head of the church, that we don't want to see the pope humiliated anymore, on the side of false shepherds representing false religions.”

Catholic faithful don't incur penalties for attending SSPX services, but they also can attend Latin Masses celebrated by priests in communion with the Vatican.

The Vatican didn't immediately comment on the consecrations and it wasn't clear how or if it would declare the excommunications or any other penalties. The SSPX acknowledged in a statement late Wednesday that the consecrations did not have papal approval.

The ritual had a joyous air

And yet everything about Wednesday’s ceremony had the air of a joyous celebration. The SSPX website has had a countdown clock running for days ahead of the consecration. Participants received a baseball cap with the “Econe2026” seal on it.

And in perhaps the most obvious sign of a celebration, registered participants could buy a souvenir set of wine to commemorate the “historic” event for 75 Swiss francs ($92.50). The “Cuvee des Sacres” gift box featured pinot noir, syrah, Petit Arvine and Fendant, each bottle with a label depicting a bishop’s miter, his ring, a cross or crozier staff.

The field, located under giant power lines, was awash in smiling nuns, priests posing for photos, youths handing out bottled water, black-clad security guards with earpieces and orange-vested volunteers who occasionally cut short journalists' interviews with the faithful. During the downpour, priests administered Communion under yellow and white umbrellas, the colors of the Holy See.

Arlina Onglao, a 71-year-old travel agent from the Philippines, said she wanted to be on hand for the “historic event” and didn't care about the prospect of excommunications of the bishops. She said the Vatican had “lost credibility.”

“I don’t think it’s going to scare any of us. Me, I’m not scared,” she said. “I feel like I’m on a safer road to heaven.”

Medical researcher Wulfran Lindzondzo, 42, a native of Gabon who lives in France, said he wanted to “rediscover tradition” through the society, noting its presence in the African country.

“The Holy Father doesn’t really agree with it, but I hand over –- I will pray to the Good Lord that the authorities in Rome can one day accept coming back to the church’s traditions,” he said before the Mass.

Eduardo Limón of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, lamented that Leo had asked the SSPX to halt the consecrations at the last minute. He prayed that "God illuminate him so he sees that the fraternity is an institution that has defended the faith,” he said.

“I’m both sad and content at the same time," he added. "Sad because again Rome closes itself in accepting that the tradition is the only hope for faith. And happy because the father superior (Pagliarani) has said courageously we are going to go ahead with the consecrations.”

But many Catholics not in Econe, including conservative and traditional ones, opposed the consecrations as an act of severe disobedience that hurts the church.

“You can’t serve tradition while disobeying the church and her authority,” said the Rev. Robert Gahl, an ethics expert at the Catholic University of America.

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Winfield contributed from Rome.

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Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

The mini grocery store at 536 N. Westmoreland Drive is set to open in August after The Desire Foundation’s local nonprofit weekly food drives have grown to serve hundreds.

You might have seen Jennifer’s face on a building along West Church Street in Parramore. Now, the founder of The Desire Foundation is working to tackle food insecurity with a new mini grocery store called Parramore Market.

Hilaire says while many people associate Parramore with homelessness, a wide range of residents call the neighborhood home and many don’t have easy access to a grocery store.

Parramore Market is set to open in August. Hilaire obtained ownership after The Desire Foundation partnered with Interstruct Design + Build in 2025. The groups have been hosting food drives every Friday, and Hilaire says the need has surged.

She says the weekly effort grew from serving about 50 to 60 people to about 400 people every Friday, with roughly 30,000 pounds of food gone each time.

Hilaire says those interactions made it clear the community needed more than pop-up support and wanted something permanent nearby.

The market is expected to offer many of the same essentials people find at a traditional grocery store, including dairy, dry goods, household products, fruits and vegetables, milk and eggs, but in a smaller space.

This year, the project got a boost from a $100,000 grant from OBT Next, a community redevelopment agency in Orange County. The money is intended to help renovate and beautify the building and ensure it meets code before opening to the public.

Hilaire started her nonprofit during the COVID-19 pandemic and says the work has always been about meeting needs in real time, not just reaching big numbers.

She says she has been involved in the Parramore community since she was 17, learning people’s stories and needs so she could advocate for them and explain why a market like this matters.

Hilaire says her motivation comes from hustle, determination and faith, and she is now asking the community to help donate $50,000 to stock the shelves in time for the store opening this summer. So far, she says she has raised $15,000 toward that goal.

DONATE HERE- https://givebutter.com/yzOyXK?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio]

The Ice Bucket Challenge gained popularity in the summer of 2014 as a way to raise ALS awareness. People took a video or photo as they got a bucket of ice water dumped on them, and they’d challenge friends or relatives to do the same.

According to the ALS Therapy Development Institute, the drive helped raise an estimated $135 million in the United States and $220 million worldwide in the fight against ALS.

Johnson attempted to boost the cause once more in an Instagram post Wednesday, two days after announcing on “Good Morning America” that he’s dealing with ALS.

Johnson said he was inspired after watching former Utah men’s basketball player Hunter Mecum post an Instagram video in which he dumped ice water on his head to honor the 40-year-old former running back.

“The support you’ve shown me over the last few days has meant more than I can put into words,” Johnson said in his post. “Seeing this video reminded me of something powerful. Years ago, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge united millions of people around one cause and helped change the fighting against this disease. Today, I’m asking you to help me do it again.”

Johnson challenged former All-Pro running back Marshawn Lynch and former Tennessee Titans teammates LenDale White and Adam “Pacman” Jones to participate. Johnson later added Instagram Story posts showing White and others getting doused with water.

In his “Good Morning America” interview, Johnson said he was diagnosed with ALS last year.

The 2008 first-round draft pick from East Carolina rushed for 9,651 yards during a 10-year career that included stints with the Titans (2008-13), New York Jets (2014) and Arizona Cardinals (2015-17). He rushed for 2,006 yards and was The Associated Press offensive player of the year in 2009.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Senegal held a 2-0 lead with just 5 minutes of regulation time remaining but late goals by Romelu Lukaku and Youri Tielemans pushed the round of 32 match into extra time.

Tielemans completed Belgium’s comeback by converting a penalty in the 125th minute of the game – the latest goal in World Cup history.

“Being part of this comeback is a proud moment because I scored the last two goals to give the team the win today. I’m very proud of that to be able to help the team to score goals and bring us over the line,” Tielemans said.

He was fouled with only seconds to go and with a penalty shootout looming, and the referee awarded the spot kick after a video review, ignoring protests from the Senegal team.

“I do not want to interpret the decision. We all have different interpretations when it comes to awarding a penalty,” Senegal coach Pape Thiaw said. “I’d rather not comment, not interpreting the referee’s decision.”

The win for Belgium marked the second time in the last 11 World Cups that a team trailed by two or more goals in the knockout round and advanced. Belgium also did so in a 3-2 victory over Japan in the round of 16 at the 2018 tournament.

“Senegal deserved to win," Belgium coach Rudi Garcia said. "But, I am happy it was us.”

Many of the key players from the Belgium team that finished in third place in Russia in 2018 were instrumental to Wednesday’s victory. Lukaku, who leads his nation in goals scored, came off the bench to get Belgium back into the match by scoring in the 86th minute, setting the scene for Tielemans to force extra time.

“It is a cruel loss, as we were good in the game," Thiaw said. "We had the advantage. We were leading 2-0. However a football match is not an 85-minute one. Belgium came back, and we were not able to deal with that ... We must congratulate Belgium as they progress.”

Belgium is back in the round of 16 for the third time in four tournaments. The team reached the quarterfinals in 2014 and the semifinals in 2018 but failed to get out of the group stage four years ago in Qatar.

The Belgians will next face the United States on Monday in Seattle.

Senegal long appeared to be heading toward the round of 16. Habib Diarra scored in the first half and Ismaïla Sarr made it 2-0 at the start of the second. It was his fourth goal of the World Cup, and one of the most beautiful of the tournament. Sarr made a perfect first touch off his chest on a long ball from Moussa Niakhaté and then sent his shot past Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

Courtois, who was playing in his fourth World Cup, then made three key saves to keep Senegal from increasing its lead.

Senegal defender Krépin Diatta said Belgium should not have been allowed to get back into the game.

“It shouldn’t have happened. You have to defend your box and you have to be the boss of your box," he said. "We suffered, but we have to go on. It’s a pity.”

Lukaku said Belgium showed character with its late comeback.

“This Senegal side is one of the best teams in the tournament,” he said. “Technically, physically and tactically, it was really tough. But when we stepped up the intensity of our pressing, when we were there for the second ball, our team spirit shone through and we won the match.”

Senegal headed to the World Cup as the second-highest ranking team in Africa, behind Morocco. It won a chaotic Africa Cup of Nations final on Jan. 18 against Morocco, but the result was overturned by the governing body of African soccer because Thiaw had temporarily pulled his players off the pitch.

Senegal advanced to the World Cup knockout phase as one of the best third-place finishers after losing to France and Norway and beating Iraq.

“It’s the best African nation. It’s as simple as that," Garcia said. "They showed that even against France, they dominated in the first half. They came out of a difficult group. I would have preferred not to play against them.”

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

The team advanced on Wednesday, defeating Bosnia-Herzegovina to set up a round of 16 match against Belgium on Monday.

“Hershey to me is everything -- it’s where my family is from, it’s where I grew up,” Pulisic recently said on his Instagram account as he promoted limited-edition Pulisic’s Milk Chocolate Bars by the Hershey Company that feature custom wrappers with his signature. “It’s where I learned how to play. It’s just home.”

Pulisic grew up in this south-central Pennsylvania community surrounded by farms and rolling countryside, where even the streetlights along Chocolate Avenue are shaped like Hershey’s Kisses. The community was founded in 1903 by Milton S. Hershey, the American businessman and philanthropist who also built homes for workers, a hotel and a theme park that Pulisic often visited with family.

More than 120 years later, the Hershey Company is still the economic engine of Chocolatetown, USA. But the “Man Behind the Chocolate Bar” now shares the hometown hero honor with the soccer player nicknamed “Captain America.”

Pulisic inspires young soccer players in Hershey

Pulisic’s hometown roots run deep, and during the World Cup, his community has rallied around him as the U.S. plays some of its most exciting soccer ever.

“It’s pretty amazing that he came from Hershey and played for my club,” said Hershey High School rising freshman Cecelia Stefanelli who, on a recent afternoon, kicked a ball to score a goal on her father at a field where Pulisic played.

The Americans won their first World Cup elimination game in 24 years on Wednesday evening, defeating Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-0 in the round of 32 despite playing a man down for more than 35 minutes. They had a healthy Pulisic in action after the star missed the second group-stage game with a calf injury and played only 33 minutes as a sub in the final group match against Turkey.

“I’d love if USA won the World Cup; it’d make me happy,” said Stefanelli, a center back who also plays for the Pennsylvania Classics soccer club. Pulisic often credits the structure and coaches at PA Classics, where he played for eight years, with helping develop his skills. In 2021, he returned to the club for a ribbon-cutting ceremony for new fields that he financed and helped design. It's now known as the Pulisic Stomping Grounds.

The club is located in Lancaster County, surrounded by chicken and dairy farms that give off a pungent odor of fermenting feed and manure.

On a recent day, Liam Gustafson and Moussa Oumarou juggled a soccer ball and passed it back and forth as they warmed up for training in front of a huge collage of photos of Pulisic that trace from his childhood training to starring for the U.S. at the World Cup.

“It’s really special to see someone from around here, where we live, playing in the World Cup,” said Gustafson, a 17-year-old forward who dreams of playing pro soccer and calls Pulisic his role model. “It’s really inspiring to see someone who paved the way, so that we can do that someday.”

Pulisic's path to USMNT stardom ran through Hershey

The road to soccer was paved early as Pulisic followed in the footsteps of his parents. He was born in Hershey on Sept. 18, 1998, to Kelley and Mark Pulisic, both former collegiate soccer players at George Mason University. His father went on to play pro indoor soccer for the Harrisburg Heat. The family moved to England for a year while Pulisic’s mother completed a Fulbright Program teacher exchange and their 7-year-old rising star played for the Brackley Town youth team.

“Mark and Kelley could write a playbook on how to raise a humble, smart, kind superstar, while maintaining family relationships,” said Tara Seymour, a family friend and retired health and physical education teacher at Hershey Middle School. She met the family at a soccer camp and became close friends with Pulisic’s mother.

“She just quietly said to me one time, ‘We have never seen anything like this.’ This is a kid who could juggle the soccer ball hundreds of times when he was in elementary school,” Seymour said. Pulisic, she said, would practice in his backyard for hours, trying to emulate the moves of pros he saw on TV.

“He has an intensity that couldn’t be taught,” she recalled. “I think he had the opportunity to go pro earlier or go to Europe earlier and they held back just to make sure emotionally and maturity-wise he was ready.”

When the family returned to Hershey, Pulisic joined PA Classics at the age of 10. The club's president and co-founder Doug Harris said Pulisic's talent allowed him to play with older age groups, and he was often the smallest player on the field.

“I think if you were to pull kids in the world who want to achieve the level of Christian Pulisic, you’d have millions that would step up, raise their hand. They’re all gifted; they all can play,” Harris said. “But there’s something fundamental about what Christian has been able to do and I’d credit Mark and Kelley Pulisic with a lot of that.”

Looking forward to the future of American soccer

The Americans' only World Cup knockout win came on June 17, 2002, when they defeated Mexico 2-0 in the round of 16 in South Korea. Pulisic has said the team's approach won't change in this round and the mood remains light despite the high stakes.

“It’s just special to be here,” he said. “You just don’t want it to end.”

Ahead of the game against Bosnia-Herzegovina, PA Classics coaches Brittney Jakobson and Nick Jakobson took their children, Declan and Camden, to kick a ball at Pulisic’s former club. The Americans, they said, have a shot at winning the tournament. But their legacy goes beyond the trophy.

“Their goal is to inspire a generation and it’s really fun to see that happening in real time … to hear people going out and watching the games, to see people buying the jerseys,” Brittney Jakobson said.

“Pulisic, obviously, in the short term is a great kind of figure to follow,” said Nick Jakobson. “But he does very much encourage that it’s not just about him. It’s not about just these four years. It’s about the next eight, 12, 16. It’s forward-thinking, and they’re laying a good foundation for what we can build on.”

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

The updated Live Local Act now allows school districts to build affordable housing on parcels that are three acres or larger-regardless of current zoning.

As districts statewide shut down schools and consider what to do with unused land, some single-family neighborhoods could soon see affordable apartment developments built in place of former campuses.

Orange County Public Schools has already signed an agreement to turn an 8.5-acre parcel near Catalina Elementary into affordable housing, and neighbors in the Isle of Catalina community said they’re alarmed by what could come next.

Last year, OCPS signed a lease agreement with Warwick Commons last year for $1 a year for 99 years. In return, Warwick Commons agreed to build 100 apartment units on the site, with priority given to OCPS employees for 51 to 75 of those units.

The 8.5-acre parcel had been zoned for single-family residential. Neighbors say they were caught off guard by the plans and argue the proposed multi-family complex does not fit with the character of their community. Even so, the new Live Local law gives the district the green light to proceed.

[RELATED: Here are all the new Florida laws taking effect on July 1]

“Ideally, I would hope that we don’t end up with apartments in our backyard,” said resident Byron Hebert. “If it was up to me, you know, build single-family homes over there, develop a nice community for teachers, single-family homes that can integrate with our neighborhood and add to our neighborhood. We’re all for that. We have nothing wrong with some new neighbors, but an apartment complex here is not for us.”

Driving through the Isle of Catalina neighborhood, signs opposing the project line the streets. Residents say they’re concerned about increased traffic and the environmental impact on nearby Clear Lake.

“We invested our livelihoods to live on this lake,” said resident Ronen Sartena. “This lake is a gold mine for people enjoying fishing, meeting up with friends. We already live in a flooding zone. Our neighbors were hit pretty hard by one of the recent hurricanes and to add another 100-unit apartment complex right across the street without any studies just feels quite crazy to all of us.”

Neighbors also tell us, they want stronger guarantees that school employees will actually live there.

“I personally believe that saying these apartments are for teachers or school board people is not the truth,” said Isle of Catalina resident Cynthia Hammonds. “There are so many places that have been put up in the names of nursing, hospitals and within one year it’s open ground for anybody and everybody.”

Prior to the new legislation being signed into law, OCPS had been requesting a zoning change before the City of Orlando’s Municipal Planning Board. The district was asking to change the zoning from R-1A to R-3A to allow for the increased density.

More than 50 letters and speakers turned out to a June 16th, 2026 Municipal Planning Board meeting when OCPS was seeking the zoning change, but that zoning change request was pulled just days after Gov. DeSantis signed the latest version of the Live Local Act.

In a statement to News 6, OCPS spokeswoman Lorena Arias said, “The rezoning application was voluntarily withdrawn because a recently enacted amendment to Florida’s Live Local Act now allows qualifying affordable housing projects on school district-owned property to proceed through an administrative review process rather than a rezoning process. As a result, the rezoning is no longer necessary.

The proposed project itself has not been withdrawn. OCPS and its development partner intend to continue pursuing the project. The project remains focused on providing attainable workforce housing, including housing opportunities for eligible OCPS employees."

“Originally, when the Live Local Act came out, I was all for it,” said Hebert. “Commercial and industrial zone properties, you can build affordable housing, I have no problems with that. Obviously, they wanted to expand it so that they could use school board properties for something and I think the unintended consequences, they didn’t really think, are where are these schools located? And so many schools are located right in neighborhoods. So I think that’s something that probably wasn’t looked at the bigger picture.”

OCPS recently shut down seven campuses, but so far, the district has not revealed what it plans to do with that land or what changes other neighborhoods could see in the future.

“I think it’s just an unintended consequence of thinking something was good that ultimately turned out not to be,” said Herbert.

Investigators say they are closely monitoring social media and promotional flyers advertising large gatherings at vacation rental properties, including homes rented through Airbnb.

Maj. Alex Guevara with the sheriff’s office said deputies have recently seen an increase in illegal parties at short-term rentals throughout the county.

“Lately, we’ve been having a lot of issues with the Airbnbs, parties,” Guevara said.

According to Guevara, deputies are actively working to identify party organizers before events begin.

“We are able to identify the promoters and the people that are putting these parties together and then we are trying to take those people and hold them accountable and put them in jail,” Guevara said.

The sheriff’s office says it has also been working directly with Airbnb representatives in recent weeks to quickly shut down unauthorized events.

“We pretty much have them on speed dial and whenever we identify any of this illegal activity or illegal parties, within 30 minutes, we already got the answer that we need and they are being very proactive,” Guevara said.

The renewed enforcement effort comes months after a deadly spring break party at a short-term rental in a gated subdivision along Shanti Drive.

Investigators say 17-year-old Qvarious McCloud was shot and killed during the March gathering.

Authorities say illegal parties often lead to additional criminal activity.

“The problem with these parties is they are bringing in a lot of crime to the area,” Guevara said. “They are bringing drugs, alcohol, firearms and a lot of times juveniles are being victims of these parties.”

Visitors staying in vacation rentals nearby say they support the increased enforcement.

Monta Clayton, who is visiting from Atlanta with his family and staying in an Airbnb in the same subdivision, said he hopes for a peaceful holiday weekend.

“I’d be upset,” Clayton said when asked about the possibility of a party happening nearby. “I don’t want to interrupt my vacation. I took a long time off of work for this, so peace of mind is all I want.”

The Osceola County Sheriff’s Office is urging anyone with information about planned illegal house parties to contact deputies.

Sheriff Mike Chitwood says Greater Harvest Ministries sits just 25 feet from a house raided early Tuesday morning as part of an investigation into a gang called the Cut Throat Killers. So far, 45 people have been arrested, and law enforcement is searching for a dozen others.

“You have one building dedicated to quote-unquote ‘saving souls’ and the other building that was dedicated to destroying souls,” Chitwood said.

[WATCH: Volusia sheriff, Daytona Beach police target gang linked to fatal overdoses, shootings]

Chitwood says his office and Daytona Beach Police began investigating the group more than a year ago after linking several fatal overdoses and shootings to the same gang. His office conducted surveillance on the property for nearly a year and worked with the FBI to wiretap suspects.

“How you could not see all this activity that’s going on out there? We’re out there doing surveillance seven days a week for almost a year. And during church services, they were selling dope out of that house,” Chitwood said.

During Tuesday’s operation, deputies raided the house next to the church, searched other properties and arrested several suspects — including the pastor’s son, Ermando Lewis, and her 17-year-old grandson. Those arrested face drug, drug trafficking and firearms charges.

Chitwood directed his response at comments made by Pastor Terry Brown, who spoke to News 6 after a reporter knocked on her door Tuesday.

“My kids were not running no operation out of the house, no. Not that we were aware of anyways. My son lived there and it was a rooming house, and so I’d rent out to guys who didn’t have anywhere to live,” Brown said.

Chitwood pushed back firmly on the pastor’s claims.

“When you say things like, ‘Oh, my son’s innocent,’ or ‘I didn’t know what was going on,’ or ‘I’m a property owner, that’s not my responsibility,’ you’re damn right, you’re just as responsible as everybody else is,” he said.

Despite his pointed remarks, the sheriff said investigators cannot prove Brown was involved or had knowledge of the operation and does not expect her to face charges.

“At the end of the day, these scumbags are murdering people,” Chitwood said.

The proximity of the projects embodies what experts describe as an “all-of-the-above" energy approach for Inner Mongolia, which has become China's largest base of both renewable energy and coal production. Its energy transition mirrors China as a whole: Wind and solar capacity are expanding quickly while coal remains indispensable.

China has been installing wind and solar power faster than any other country. Yet coal-fired plants still supplied around 51% of China’s electricity in 2025, according to the latest data from the National Energy Administration.

“While China as a whole is transitioning away from coal, Inner Mongolia is most certainly the most paradoxical part of the story. In Inner Mongolia’s case, more renewables often means more coal capacity as well,” said David Fishman, an energy consultant at The Lantau Group, who has visited Inner Mongolia's coal plants and the solar farms.

Inner Mongolia wants wind and solar power to increasingly replace electricity traditionally supplied by coal, while also meeting the country’s growing demand for power. But officials said both renewables and coal will continue to rise for now, with coal needed to supplement when weather causes interruptions in wind or solar power.

“Many people see there is a conflict or a competitive relationship between traditional energy and renewable energy,” said Gu Qing, an official of Inner Mongolia’s energy administration, standing at the edge of the Dalad Banner solar farm.

“As more renewable energy capacity is added, coal-fired power will also continue to grow, although the pace will gradually slow,” Gu said.

The Dalad Banner solar farm, which Associated Press reporters visited on a recent government-organized tour, currently generates around 2 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually. It is part of a broader clean energy program started in 2018 in northern China’s Kubuqi Desert.

Inner Mongolia is crucial to China's power transmission plan

Inner Mongolia is one of the most crucial nodes in China’s “West-to-East Power Transmission Project," which transmits electricity from the country's resource-rich northwest to its industrialized east. In 2025, 40% of Inner Mongolia’s electricity generation, about 350 billion kilowatt-hours, was sent to other parts of China. The amount is enough to power 120 million households for a year.

Solar and wind installed capacity has more than doubled in the past five years in Inner Mongolia, but coal still dominates electricity generation. Coal-fired plants produced around 590 billion kilowatt-hours in 2025 in Inner Mongolia, while solar and wind generated about 277 billion kilowatt-hours combined.

Coal power capacity in Inner Mongolia has continued to expand over the past five years.

“Because wind and solar are intermittent…we cannot do without the support of coal-fired power,” said Huang Zhiqiang, vice governor of Inner Mongolia, during a recent news briefing.

“What is changing is that coal power units are turning from supply-guarantee units to serving as a supporting and regulating role,” he said.

Inner Mongolia mined around 1.2 billion tons of coal in recent years, accounting for one quarter of China’s total coal production. Over 60% was transported to other provinces. Ordos, the city administering the Dalad Banner, is also one of the country's five largest coal-producing centers designated by the central government.

Managing the energy transition

Officials said renewable energy is beginning to replace existing demand conventionally provided by coal. The transition requires that coal plants ramp down when renewable output is abundant and ramp up when it is not. Huang said Inner Mongolia refurbished all coal power units so they can ramp down to operate at 15% of their capacity so less coal is burned.

But Fishman, the energy consultant, said ramping units down to 15% is “an aspirational or best-unit capability rather than something that applies across the whole fleet in day-to-day operations,” because it will cause stress both technically and financially.

Similarly, Anika Patel, China section editor at the climate change research organization Carbon Brief, said: “Just because a plant can operate flexibly doesn’t mean that it is operating flexibly."

She said that it's challenging to relegate coal to a supporting role because of Chinese economic and political incentives around its use. Patel said China’s long-term power contracts reduce flexibility for power grids to purchase renewable electricity, while lengthy interprovincial trading arrangements make it harder to include solar and wind.

Supporting artificial intelligence, electric vehicles and manufacturing

The government said Inner Mongolia is not only building more wind and solar projects to meet the rising electricity demand from AI computing, electric vehicle charging and manufacturing. It is also investing in energy storage, transmission infrastructure and other ways to make the grid efficient.

Gu said Inner Mongolia will encourage factories to adjust production to better match patterns of wind and solar generation so renewable energy can be used more efficiently.

For over a decade since the early 2010s, China experienced a rapid solar and wind energy expansion that was largely driven by government targets and investment incentives, leading to issues such as overcapacity.

Power generation is only one part of Inner Mongolia’s coal strategy. The region is also a big hub of coal chemical industry, in which coal is converted to chemicals or fuels to produce other products. The processes emit more carbon dioxide than using coal to generate electricity. Huang said Inner Mongolia will deploy carbon-capture technologies to curb emissions.

He said Inner Mongolia has been expanding capacity of coal-to-oil, coal-to-gas and coal chemical industries. The Iran conflict and the close of the Strait of Hormuz exposed the vulnerability of countries that rely on imported oil and liquefied natural gas.

“At the industrial level, this can help offset and ease China’s reliance on imported oil and gas, reducing dependence on overseas supplies,” Huang said.

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Video producer Olivia Zhang contributed to this report.

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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

A lightning strike is being blamed for water issues in Groveland that left thousands of residents under a boil water notice this week. City officials said the strike caused a power surge that damaged one of the city’s water treatment plants, knocking out power.

The city said it has handed out more than 500 cases of bottled water since Tuesday, with dozens of cars lining up at Cherry Lake Preparatory Academy to pick up free water.

“I have company. I told them, ‘No, no, no. Don’t brush your teeth. You need bottled water or you need to boil it first,’” Groveland resident Maria Aricyn said.

Another resident, Beverly Kimber, said she’s been relying on family for basic needs while the city works to restore service.

“I don’t know if they can keep doing this daily. I’m going to my daughter’s in Lake Mary, and I’m going to take a shower over there,” Kimber said.

Officials also said the lightning strike knocked out the plant’s backup generator. Public works officials said nearly half the homes in their service area — about 3,500 — were impacted, but the boil water notice was lifted Wednesday afternoon.

The outage comes after other water issues in the city. Several neighborhoods reported brown-colored water two weeks ago after the city flushed fire hydrants.

“We took a major level of iron from the aquifer into our system, which is not toxic. It’s just uncomfortable for people to see the water turn darker,” said TJ Fish, the city’s director of transportation and public works. The water concerns are happening as customers prepare for another 10% water rate increase in October.

“It’s hard. I’m on one income, and I’m trying to conserve between taxes, water, and everything else,” Kimber said.

“Prices are going up too fast and too much,” Aricyn said.

Fish said the additional revenue will go toward upgrading the city’s aging utility system, which has been in place for about 50 years.

“The big increase happened two years ago, and it’s 10% for three years in a row,” Fish said.

The last hike in that plan will happen next year.

Fish said the money will also help fund a $265 million project that includes building a new water treatment plant — an effort he said should address many of the problems residents have been experiencing.

It’s a scene that has played out hundreds of times across Florida in the past year. On July 1, 2025, the state’s “super speeder” law took effect, making it a criminal offense to drive 50 miles per hour or more over the speed limit or exceed 100 mph.

Nearly 1,000 arrests statewide

Data shared with News 6 from the Florida Highway Patrol shows troopers made 967 arrests for dangerous excessive speeding statewide from July 1, 2025, through June 15, 2026. The total number of “super speeders” stopped in Florida in the last year is likely much higher when you factor in arrests made by county sheriffs, municipal police, and other agencies.

Troopers made 390 arrests under statute 316.1922(1)(a) and 583 under 316.1922(1)(b).

Arrests remained steady throughout the year — 514 in 2025 and 453 through mid-June 2026.

A 127 mph stop on SR 417

A week and a half before the law’s one-year anniversary, a Seminole County Sheriff’s Office deputy was running stationary speed enforcement on State Road 417 near Lake Jessup in Oviedo when a dark SUV came flying through — northbound, in a 70 mph zone.

The deputy initially clocked the vehicle at 110 mph using a forward-facing radar antenna, according to an arrest report obtained by News 6. As the SUV approached, its speed increased, and the report noted the confirmed final speed of 127 mph using a rear-facing antenna.

Body camera video captured what followed.

“What in the world are you doing?” the deputy can be heard asking the driver as he approached the vehicle.

“I have to pee so bad. Like, so bad,” the driver replied.

The deputy ordered the driver out of the car.

“Turn around. Hands behind your back.”

As handcuffs clicked into place, the driver’s protests continued — but the deputy didn’t waver.

“You were gonna kill somebody,” he said.

“I have to pee,” the woman said.

“I do not care. There is absolutely no reason for that speed. 127 miles an hour.”

“Like, I’m literally — I know, I understand. I literally, like, I’m about to pee my pants," she said.

The arrest report reveals the driver had two problems beyond an urgent bathroom break. A license plate check revealed the driver’s Florida license had been suspended just four days earlier — on June 15, 2026 — for failing to pay multiple traffic citations.

“I don’t want to go to jail,” the driver said.

“Well, there’s no way about that,” the deputy replied.

Minutes later, the driver tried one more time.

“I just have to go pee really bad.”

“Well, you can go pee at the jail,” the deputy said. “And your car is being towed.”

The driver was arrested on two charges: dangerous excessive speeding under 316.1922(1)(a) and driving with a license suspended for failing to pay multiple traffic citations — a second or subsequent offense.

Our News 6 team has covered cases across central Florida where drivers have given different excuses after they were caught going too fast. A 25-year-old Longwood man clocked driving a Honda Civic at 116 mph on the highway in Lake Mary told the trooper who stopped him he thought he was racing him. After a woman in Orlando was pulled over for speeding and she was asked why she was going so fast, she said, “I’m going to pick up my dog,” according to an arrest report. Another man in Seminole County claimed he was swerving to avoid an animal in the road.

Seminole County cases by the numbers

That stop was one of many in Seminole County within the last year. An review of cases done by the State Attorney’s Office for the 18^th Judicial Circuit, which covers both Seminole and Brevard counties, revealed they’ve handled a combined 415 cases — 177 in Seminole, 238 in Brevard.

Of those, 256 cases have been closed and 156 remain open.

Most drivers aren’t fighting the charges

News 6 learned from the State Attorney’s Office analysis that the overwhelming majority of defendants chose not to fight the charges in court. Of the 256 closed cases, 223 defendants pleaded with their cases resolved “as charged” for dangerous excessive speeding. Not a single defendant went to trial.

64 of those defendants were adjudicated guilty. Another 159 had adjudication withheld by judges — meaning a formal guilty conviction was not entered — typically in exchange for paying fines and completing a state-mandated driving course. 28 others pleaded to lesser charges but still faced fines and the course. Only 5 cases were dropped by prosecutors for insufficient evidence.

Seminole County defense attorney Kevin Pitts has represented some of the drivers caught under the new law.

“It’s just dramatically different from what we’ve typically had happen when you get pulled over for speeding,” Pitts said.

The cost of getting caught

The financial consequences start the moment the handcuffs go on. Defendants pay to bond out of jail, hire an attorney and have their car towed — before they ever set foot in a courtroom.

“Most of the time we’re seeing fines. You know, obviously record stuff like that can have an impact. Jail definitely is a possibility,” Pitts said.

A review of about 30 cases by the State Attorney’s Office found that defendants consistently received the maximum fine of $500 for first-time offenders, plus more than $300 in court costs.

Most were also ordered to complete the Florida Advanced Driver Improvement Course — a 12-hour online program that focuses on psychology, behavior modification and risk management. Completing it does not dismiss citations or remove points from a driver’s record.

Pitts says some prosecutors are pushing back on negotiations.

“We do get some resistance in some counties, where they want to keep it a misdemeanor,” he said.

And taking one of these cases to trial? Pitts says that’s a tough sell.

“They have to show some level of dangerousness, but it’s not something you’re real excited to take to a jury and say your client was going 110 on the interstate. Those individuals are going to be driving on the same roads,” he said.

Pitts says it isn’t just the fine that stings — it’s everything that comes with an arrest..

“That’s where the big deterrent to me is, is just the formality,” he said. “It’s one thing to get a ticket, and you show up 10 minutes late to wherever you’re trying to go. But, it’s a whole different thing when you can realistically be taken to jail that night or that afternoon.”

Of the $11 billion obligated by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency alone, some $2.7 billion has been disbursed, mostly for things like equipment, materials and architecture and engineering design costs, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

Obligated funds means the government is legally bound to disburse that money for a specific purpose.

The 86-page report is based on an audit from August 2024 to June 2026. It was released by U.S. Democratic lawmakers.

“The people of Puerto Rico have waited nine years for their government to keep its word,” Rep. Jared Hoffman, a California Democrat, said in a statement. “They watched billions get appropriated and almost none of it arrive.”

Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico in September 2017 as a powerful Category 4 storm, knocking out power in some neighborhoods for almost a year – the longest outage in U.S. history. An estimated 2,975 people died in the storm’s sweltering aftermath.

Two weeks before Maria hit, Hurricane Irma swiped past the island’s northeast corner as a Category 5 storm, also knocking out power.

The grid was further destabilized by a series of strong earthquakes that struck southern Puerto Rico in late 2019 and early 2020.

Multiple issues delay progress

Chronic blackouts prompted Puerto Rico's governor to declare a state of emergency in April 2025, but outages persist, with about half of those incidents blamed on vegetation overrunning transmission and distribution lines.

As of February, only 400 miles (640 kilometers) had been cleared using federal funds out of 16,000 planned miles (26,000 kilometers), according to the report. Overall, nearly 2,800 miles (4,500 kilometers) of lines were cleared in fiscal year 2025, according to Luma Energy, a private company overseeing the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. It currently is facing a lawsuit by the island’s government seeking to terminate its contract; the company has since counter sued.

The report noted that staff turnover; project review processes it described as “onerous;” and the financial state of Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority – which is still struggling to restructure more than $10 billion in debt – are preventing progress.

One move that further delayed the release of funds was when former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem implemented a policy in June 2025 that DHS expenditures over $100,000 be personally approved by that office. The rule was rescinded in April by new Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

Many funds allotted but few disbursed

As of December 2025, nine large FEMA-funded projects were completed, most of them related to generation; 133 projects remain at different stages.

The agency also has obligated about $1.3 billion to 24 critical generation projects, seven of which have been completed.

The report noted that repair work often means planned outages and finding replacement parts can take up to two years.

Of the $2.9 billion allotted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to modernize and repair the grid, only about $589 million had been disbursed as of February.

Meanwhile, of the $1 billion obligated by the U.S. Department of Energy, about $255 million has been disbursed, the report found.

Some $365 million originally allotted for solar energy projects have since been redirected to the power grid, for “practical fixes and emergency repairs” according to department officials interviewed by auditors.

The Department of Energy also canceled up to $350 million in grants under a solar access program, the report noted.

It did disburse all $1.2 million slated for hubs aimed at providing vulnerable communities in Puerto Rico with electricity during disasters.

DHS says Puerto Rico ‘ultimately responsible’

The Government Accountability Office called on FEMA to update guidance to reflect flexibilities and on the Department of Energy to clarify roles and responsibilities, and create a collaboration plan.

“Given the complexity of funding, the numerous players involved, and the various plans for grid recovery, extensive coordination across Puerto Rico and federal entities is vital,” the report states.

The Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security concurred with the recommendations, although the latter noted that “the government of Puerto Rico is ultimately responsible for developing a comprehensive solution and rebuilding the electrical grid.”

In an arrest affidavit, Lake County deputies said they were tipped off about the incident on June 24.

The complainant reportedly informed deputies that a video had been posted to Snapchat of the man — identified as Isaiah Nimnauth, 19 — putting whipped cream on his genitals and letting his dog “lick it.”

After viewing the video, investigators said they responded to Nimnauth’s home on the morning of Wednesday, July 1.

Upon arrival, deputies executed a search warrant, though Nimnauth soon explained to his mother and a detective that he’d indeed made the video on Snapchat for someone who asked him to do so, the affidavit states.

As a result, Nimnauth was taken into custody and now faces charges of using a two-way communication device to commit a felony, and animal cruelty (sexual contact with an animal). He was released on bond later that day.

In a release, state officials announced that the teen — identified as Dominick Harris, 17 — was last seen near the 700 block of South Alabama Avenue in DeLand.

At the time, he was spotted wearing a black shirt, pajama pants, and black “HEYDUDE” shoes, the release notes.

“Dominick may be travelling in the DeLand, Florida area or to Alabama,” the release reads.

Harris is described as standing 5 feet, 9 inches tall; weighing around 125 pounds; and having blonde hair and hazel eyes.

The Florida Spectrum Alert is aimed at quickly alerting communities to help locate and ensure the safe recovery of missing children with autism spectrum disorder.

While the alert system was established last year, it officially kicked off on Wednesday.

Thousands of displaced Venezuelans are sleeping in crowded shelters or outside without access to clean water amid dismal sanitary conditions following the June 24 earthquakes which officials say killed at least 2,295 and left more than 11,000 injured.

Aid workers said the aftermath of the quakes has become a major medical crisis that, unless quickly controlled, would take more lives in the days and weeks ahead. The emergency has laid bare Venezuela's chronic shortage of doctors, the result of years of economic crisis, underfunding and emigration.

“The issue we foresee just around the corner is the infections that patients who have been exposed to the disaster for the longest time might bring,” said Eugenio Cova, the head of the trauma unit at Hospital del Oeste Dr. José Gregorio Hernández in Caracas, the capital. “We’ve already gone through a period of complex trauma — which will continue to occur — but now it’s complicated by infections."

Aid workers also warn that the extensive damage to infrastructure could fuel outbreaks of diseases in the hardest-hit communities.

“It’s very hot and there’s a lot of concern about potential vector-borne diseases,” said Veronique Durroux, the U.N. humanitarian agency spokesperson for Latin America and the Caribbean. “Waste management is an issue. Debris management, when you see the scale of devastation, it’s very concerning.”

US military deploys 900 personnel to aid Venezuela

The United States had 900 military personnel currently on the ground to support relief and rescue operations as of Wednesday, Steven McLoud, a U.S. Southern Command spokesperson, told The Associated Press.

The military has repaired an earthquake-damaged runway at the country's main international airport that serves Caracas to allow for the arrival of humanitarian assistance and stationed naval assets off the coast to receive airlifted survivors. An additional 100 people from the U.S. State Department have been sent to aid those efforts, McLoud said.

So far, the Trump administration has offered Venezuela $300 million in assistance channeled through aid groups and the United Nations. But that's just a fraction of the post-earthquake aid the country needs: Material damage from the quakes is estimated at over $6.7 billion, according to satellite analysis by the U.N. Development Program.

Fifty other international teams have arrived in recent days to help with search-and-rescue operations, including from countries like Ecuador and Israel that don't have diplomatic relations with Venezuela. Against the odds, rescuers are continuing to find a small number of survivors, including on Tuesday, a toddler who had been trapped for six days.

Crisis-stricken hospitals dealt another blow

Long before the earthquakes, Venezuela's public hospitals were strained by shortages of water, energy, critical medical equipment and highly trained staff.

More than 7.7 million Venezuelans have left the country since 2013, when Nicolás Maduro took office and the economy came undone as a result of mismanagement, corruption and a drop in oil prices.

Among those who took flight were many specialized doctors and nurses.

Venezuela’s medical association has estimated that about a third of its 60,000 registered physicians have left the country since the economic crisis began. Dr. Huníades Urbina, a member of the board of the pediatrics association of Venezuela, said the number left is roughly half of the 84,000 that the country needs based on World Health Organization standards.

Urbina added that a 2025 national survey of public hospitals revealed shortages of more than 30% of emergency supplies and more than 70% of supplies in operating rooms. Laboratories are “all practically closed or do the basic things only," he said.

The earthquakes "once again highlight the Venezuelan government’s inability to provide an adequate health care system that meets the needs of the Venezuelan people,” he said.

Underequipped hospitals face a surge

Those who remain now confront the overwhelming prospect of treating thousands of grievous injuries from crushed and caved-in concrete structures.

Hospital del Oeste Dr. José Gregorio Hernández in Caracas lacks screws and plates needed for orthopedic surgery and medicated gauze to prevent infections, said Cova, who conducts surgery on crushed limbs in makeshift operating rooms because possible earthquake damage has made parts of the building inaccessible. Doctors have even started posting what medical supplies they need on social media, asking for donations.

According to the government, the earthquakes damaged or otherwise compromised 38 hospitals nationwide.

There's also a nationwide shortage of ambulances that forces many injured Venezuelans to arrive at hospitals in the backs of pickup trucks, said Jaime Lorenzo, director of United Doctors of Venezuela, a nonprofit network of medical professionals. That's just one of the ways that ordinary citizens, feeling abandoned by the government, say they've been forced to shoulder much of the rescue effort.

When the chaos and trauma of the quakes starts to subside, Lorenzo said he fears a new wave of patients will hit hospitals: Venezuelans, who, rendered suddenly homeless after the earthquakes, have gone all week without medication for chronic diseases such as asthma, diabetes and high blood pressure.

Questions over government response

The government of acting President Delcy Rodríguez — who served as deputy to Maduro until he was ousted by the United States in January and who became interim leader with the backing of the Trump administration — has faced growing criticism over its handling of the disaster.

Videos circulating on social media in recent days appear to show security officers picking through the rubble of fallen buildings and making off with U.S. dollars, appliances and other personal belongings and sparking widespread anger among Venezuelans. The videos couldn't be verified by the AP.

In response to the videos, the the Interior Ministry on Wednesday said it dismissed and detained four police officials for “deviating from their duties and taking advantage of the rescue and humanitarian aid efforts."

Many thousands remain missing, adding ambiguity to the complete toll and leaving families in an agonizing limbo as they wait days by collapsed buildings, hoping for the bodies of their loved ones to surface. One non-governmental digital database where families can register missing loved ones showed over 40,600 people still unaccounted for as of Wednesday.

On Wednesday, U.S. officials pushed back against accusations that Rodríguez was politicizing response efforts and brushed off widespread criticisms of failures by Venezuela's government to respond to the crisis. Gen. Francis Donovan, head of U.S. Southern Command, turned blame on decades of neglect in Venezuela which he said “made this even more challenging for the current government.”

“It is a big problem for any leader to deal with a challenge of this magnitude,” Donovan said.

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This story has been corrected to show the U.S. Southern Command spokesperson's name is Steven McLoud, not Steven McCloud, and the hospital name is Hospital del Oeste Dr. José Gregorio Hernández, not Hospital del Oeste Dr. José Gregor Hernández.

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Janetsky reported from Mexico City and DeBre reported from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Associated Press journalist Ben Finley contributed to this report from Washington D.C.

The letter appears to stem from last year, when a man convicted of murder was sentenced to just four years in prison.

According to court records, that man — identified as Marcus Anderson — was arrested in December 2024 after a teen was shot and killed in Orange County. At the time, he was only 18 years old.

Originally, Anderson was indicted by a grand jury on a charge of first-degree murder and robbery with a firearm, which Uthmeier claimed should have made him eligible for the death penalty.

However, Anderson was ultimately found guilty of second-degree murder, and the robbery charge was dropped. He was sentenced earlier this year to only four years in prison as part of a “youthful offender sentence,” court records reveal.

Last month, Uthmeier called out Worrell, blaming her for the outcome and claiming that she handed out “sweetheart plea deals to violent criminals.”

Nobody indicted for capital murder should get a sweetheart plea deal for only four years in prison. Unacceptable! https://t.co/bZUjBLKhLq pic.twitter.com/bxspxuk4ef

— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) May 12, 2026

Worrell later responded to Uthmeier’s comments, saying that the court determined Anderson’s sentencing — not her or her office.

That said, Worrell also pointed out that “Stand Your Ground” was a potential defense in the Anderson case.

“Prosecutors do not operate in a vacuum...” Worrell said. “A Stand Your Ground claim materially affects the calculus of what a jury may or may not do at trial.”

[RELATED: Florida AG calls out Monique Worrell over 4-year sentence for murderer]

Regardless, Uthmeier took to X again on Wednesday afternoon, accusing Worrell of taking “zero responsibility” and claiming that she indeed has the ability to oppose “lenient dispositions for the undeserving.”

“On one hand, you emphasize that courts impose youthful offender sentences,” Uthmeier wrote. “On the other, you characterize prosecutorial discretion as insulating your office from any meaningful accountability for those sentences.”

State Attorney Worrell takes zero responsibility for her office’s leniency toward murderers and pedophiles.

Her generalized policies and charging decisions that produce leniency for the dangerous and depraved are putting Floridians at risk. pic.twitter.com/tWanXHf75W

— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) July 1, 2026

Worrell again responded to the claims against her, providing News 6 with the following statement:

“The appointed Attorney General wants to talk about my record instead of answering for his own. He can’t explain why he’s more interested in scoring political points than doing the work of keeping people safe — so instead, he attacks the prosecutors in my office who show up every single day to do exactly that.

Let’s talk facts, since he won’t. Violent crime is down. Our prosecutors are in court securing convictions and holding offenders accountable, every day, without the theater.

I wasn’t overwhelming re-elected to play politics, and I’m not going to start now. My focus — our focus — has always been the people of the 9th Judicial Circuit. That means integrity. That means fairness. That means public safety, not manufactured press releases.”

State Attorney Monique Worrell

It’s not the first time that Uthmeier has put Worrell in his sights, though.

Just last year, he criticized Worrell when he claimed she had given a man a “free walk in the park” after the man was allegedly caught masturbating near children at a public splash pad in Apopka.

“It is an open-shut case. Why would you not bring charges?” Uthmeier stated at the time. “You’ve got video evidence, witness testimony; you’ve got this dad that saw this feet away, made sure all the other kids were going to be safe, handled it correctly. Justice needs to be served.”

[RELATED: Florida AG, Orange-Osceola state attorney take jabs at one another]

Worrell later responded to the Florida attorney general, claiming that she had no personal knowledge of the situation at the time. However, she added that the attorney who did handle it eventually determined charges couldn’t be brought after interviewing the victim’s father.

“(The father) confirmed that the child did not see anything and wasn’t aware of what was happening,” she said. “(The attorney) explained that based on the language of the statute, he could not charge the charge of exhibition — which would have been the felony in the case — and he also explained that because no other adult saw the defendant’s penis, that he could not charge any of the misdemeanor crimes of exposure."

[RELATED: Orange-Osceola State Attorney Monique Worrell responds to AG’s criticisms]

The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said Michael Struhar, 43, of Palm Coast, owner of Sunshine State Contractor Services, signed an agreement with the homeowners in December 2025 to do work on their home.

Investigators say Struhar showed up once, removed and painted a single wall, then never returned. The couple’s calls and texts went unanswered, and a certified letter demanding a refund was ignored, the agency said.

After the victims reported the case to FCSO in April, the General Assignment Unit began investigating. Records showed that within days of the wire transfer, the account reflected about $11,500 in cash and debit withdrawals and more than $33,500 in Zelle payments — with no evidence the funds were used to buy materials for the Palm Coast job, according to the sheriff’s office.

Detectives also found recurring charges to an online auction site where Struhar allegedly collected signed baseball cards. By the end of December, the account was negative and stayed there for most months afterward, deputies said.

Struhar’s ex-wife told detectives she’d been contacted by unpaid subcontractors and said Struhar brushed off the certified letter, texting her, “all good, already taken care of.”

The State Attorney’s Office approved an arrest warrant for grand theft over $20,000, with bond set at $50,000. Struhar was arrested Friday and later released on bond.

“This contractor’s version of ‘if you build it, he will come’ was build nothing, take the cash, and buy baseball cards.” said Sheriff Rick Staly. “He painted one wall and called it a day. Contractors who think they can come to Flagler County and pocket someone’s money should think again. Our detectives will relentlessly track down scammers and thieves posing as honest professionals and take them to the Green Roof Inn.”

The investigation remains active; anyone who believes they may be a victim is asked to call FCSO at 386-313-4911.

The Resolute Desk is one of the most recognizable pieces of furniture in the White House — and probably in the entire nation. As the president’s desk, it’s been at the center of American history for nearly 150 years.

That famous front panel has its own story. Many accounts claim it was added during FDR’s presidency to conceal his wheelchair and leg braces, but some historians dispute that. They argue Roosevelt used the desk in his private study, away from the public eye, and that the panel itself was not installed until after his death.

The desk’s origins extend far beyond the Oval Office. In fact, it's not American; it’s British.

The desk is crafted of timbers from the HMS Resolute, a British naval vessel that set off for the Arctic in the early 1850s in search of Sir John Franklin, who disappeared while seeking the Northwest Passage. During that mission, the Resolute became trapped in ice and was abandoned by its crew. Years later, it was discovered drifting through Arctic waters by an American whaling vessel.

The United States repaired it and returned it to Queen Victoria. The vessel resumed service for many years before eventually being retired.

Once decommissioned, Queen Victoria expressed her gratitude to the United States by ordering the timbers of Resolute to be transformed into several pieces of furniture. One of them was a large desk that she presented to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880.

The desk spent much of its early White House history out of public view until 1961, when first lady Jacqueline Kennedy moved it into the Oval Office.

Every president since Jimmy Carter has used the Resolute desk in the Oval Office, with the exception of President George H.W. Bush, who instead placed it in the Treaty Room. The desk has also become the place where recent presidents leave a letter for their successor on Inauguration Day.

The Resolute Desk stands not only as a symbol of the American presidency, but also as a reminder of the enduring friendship between the United States and Britain.

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Part of a recurring series, “American Objects,” marking the 250th anniversary of the United States. For more American objects, click here. For more stories on the anniversary, click here.

Temperatures in the high 90s Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius) were forecast for the Northeast; Philadelphia and Boston could top 100 by Thursday. Throw in humidity, and the real-feel heat index will be even higher at times, the National Weather Service said.

A heat dome — high-pressure systems above a region that trap heat and humidity — has been smothering parts of the U.S., from the Midwest to the East Coast. It will add much discomfort amid 250th anniversary parades, ship flotillas, outdoor concerts and, in Boston, a popular public reading of the Declaration of Independence from a historic balcony Saturday.

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani advised residents to stay cool inside and avoid “extraordinary temperatures.”

“To be breaking into triple digits over the course of these many next days — it is of immense concern given that too often the heat is something that is underestimated,” Mamdani said.

In Hamptonburgh, New York, air conditioning failed on a bus carrying Junior ROTC cadets, resulting in multiple heat-related illnesses, Orange County authorities said. Some cadets were taken to hospitals as a precaution.

Concrete and steel aggravate hot weather

Humidity is not uncommon in the Northeast. But Dr. Alexander Azan of NYU Langone Health in New York said high air temperatures and humidity are a dangerous combination.

“Their body doesn’t have that level of acclimatization to respond appropriately to the heat, and so heat stress in the form of what we call heat exhaustion, and in more severe cases, heat stroke, can occur at much lower temperatures than we see in people who live in the South,” Azan said.

Experts say cities in particular are at greater risk.

“The concentration of concrete, asphalt, steel, all of those materials help to retain heat,” said Vijay Limaye, a climate scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council. “The number on your phone may actually not reflect the true temperature profile that you’re going out into.”

New York City said more than 200 teams of government workers and volunteers will check on homeless people and encourage them to get inside. There will be hundreds of cooling centers, from the Javits Center convention hall to vans to outdoor spots with misting fans.

Cashing in on the weather

The phone seemed like it wouldn't stop ringing at Acme Ice Co. in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which delivers ice to bars and restaurants in the Boston area. The owner, Marc Savenor, said this week's stretch of hot weather is an “ice man's dream.”

“What could an ice man ask for? ... I’ve hired a couple extra drivers. I’ve put on an extra couple trucks. I put ice in different freezers so I don’t run out,” Savenor said. “After my ice is depleted here, we go pick up another load, bring it back, and we deliver it everywhere.”

The American Kennel Club’s Museum of the Dog in New York is allowing visitors to bring their dogs to cool off, through Sunday. Executive Director Christopher Bromson said he got the idea from seeing his own Newfoundland sprawled on the museum’s cool floor.

“I thought every dog should have access to this,” he said.

In Washington, D.C., where the high temperature was 95 F (35 C), thirsty children reached for cold water from U.S. Park Police as they waited in line for the Ferris wheel on the National Mall.

In the Midwest, meanwhile, heat risks remained. Taylor Harnist, whose Cincinnati business installs and repairs air conditioners, said he was trying to keep his employees comfortable with breaks, water and electrolyte drinks.

“You get an attic job when it’s this hot, we do them but it’s strenuous,” Harnist said. “It’s so hot the attics will reach temperatures of 145 degrees.”

Jeff Schlegelmilch, associate professor at Columbia University Climate School, said heat is one of the easiest things to attribute to climate change.

“We have seen a continued increase in longer summers, hotter temperatures, hotter temperatures earlier on, more evaporation of moisture, higher humidity — effects like that,” he said.

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Associated Press reporters Jennifer Peltz in New York, Rodrique Ngowi in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, contributed to this report.

Beasley, the latest big name caught up in a sweeping federal gambling investigation, said little at his arraignment in Brooklyn federal court. He answered a judge's questions with “yes, your honor” but let his lawyer, Jason Goldman, enter his plea on his behalf.

Afterward, the 6-foot-4 (1.92 meter) shooting guard stood quietly as Goldman spoke to reporters outside the courthouse, demurring when one asked if he had anything to say to his fans. Beasley, who played for six NBA teams in nine years, missed the most recent season because he was under investigation. Instead, he played for a Puerto Rican team co-owned by the rapper Bad Bunny.

“He looks forward to fighting. He’s fought every day,” Goldman said. “He’s presumed innocent and that has to mean something still, obviously."

Beasley, 29, and sports agent Paolo Zamorano, who also pleaded not guilty on Wednesday, were among six people charged in an indictment unsealed this week.

They are the newest defendants in a gambling sweep that has netted more than three dozen arrests, including former Miami Heat star Terry Rozier, who was accused of conspiring with friends to help them win bets, and Basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups, who was accused of conspiring to fix high-stakes poker games.

Zamorano, 39, formerly represented another co-defendant, ex-NBA player Ed Davis, who had loaned money to Beasley and is accused of acting as his “gatekeeper" in the alleged scheme.

“We look forward to our day in court," Zamorano’s lawyer, Kenneth Breen, told reporters.

Beasley and Zamorano were both released on bond. They're due back in court for a status conference on Aug. 6.

Beasley is accused of fixing or trying to fix his performance in at least four games while playing for the Milwaukee Bucks in 2024 by under or overperforming bookmakers' expectations. In exchange, the indictment said, the bettors bribed Beasley and his debts to Davis were reduced or eliminated.

“Only way you can beat Vegas is sports betting,” Davis told Beasley in a Jan. 26, 2024, text message, according to the indictment. “Everything else they got the edge.”

In one example, according to the indictment, Beasley told Davis that he would try to outperform the 3.5 line that sportsbooks had set for his rebound total in Milwaukee’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers on March 10, 2024.

With a second left, and the Bucks up by seven points, Beasley challenged a Clippers shot and dashed past four players to grab his fourth rebound and securing a win for the bettors as the horn sounded.

One bettor made a $3,252 profit on a $2,838 wager, the indictment said, and another made a $2,107 profit on wagers totaling $2,400. Other bettors missed out and lost money, mistakenly placing wagers on Beasley to underperform the rebound total because of an apparent miscommunication, the indictment said.

“What’s funny is after he got it he had a big sigh of relief,” a co-conspirator said in a text message, according to the indictment.

Beasley borrowed money from Davis, a former teammate, after racking up millions of dollars in gambling losses. His widely reported financial problems include disputes with a Detroit landlord, a Milwaukee barber and a Minnesota dentist. A 2025 lawsuit from a sports marketing agency resulted in a $1 million default judgment against him.

“There’s a bigger conversation here about the industry, about individuals and institutions that are profiting billions and billions of dollars and fueling the addiction,” Goldman said.

Beasley has been aware of the investigation for about a year, Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Weintraub said.

He last played in the NBA for the Detroit Pistons on a one-year, $6 million contract in the 2024-2025 season. He averaged 16 points per game and scored 20 in his last game, a playoff loss to the New York Knicks. He is one of five players in NBA history with more than 300 three-pointers in a season.

Beasley's release was secured by his parents, actors Michael and Deena Beasley, who joined the arraignment by phone from their home in Georgia. Stone-faced for most of the hourlong proceeding, Beasley laughed at his mother's answer to Magistrate Judge Taryn Merkl's question about how often they talk to each other.

“I probably call him every day. He might not answer every day,” Deena Beasley said, prompting chuckles in the courtroom. “If I call him six times a week, he'll answer five times.”

During a tour of the 96,000-square-foot library and in a speech afterward, Trump spoke admiringly of Roosevelt and compared himself favorably to the former president, who he described as the embodiment of the American spirit, praising his toughness as a leader and outdoorsman.

“He had a freakin’ wild life,” Trump told an audience at a Western-themed amphitheater. “He didn’t want to be quiet. He wanted to be great.”

The official opening of the library on Saturday coincides with July 4th celebrations honoring the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Trump made the trip to see the $450 million project aboard his new Air Force One, a Boeing 747 given to the United States by Qatar. The visit was a boost for Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, a former governor of North Dakota, while also bringing the nation's birthday festivities to a region synonymous with its westward expansion.

In his speech after the tour, Trump weaved between his own administration's work while returning to lessons drawn from Roosevelt's life, recounting stories of bravery during Roosevelt's time in the West and as president.

“He was something special," Trump said. “He was a really great man. He was a man the likes of which you may never see again.”

During the visit, Trump announced that his administration was giving $750,000 from the National Endowment for the Humanities to support the library’s first year.

Roosevelt was a New York native with a strong North Dakota connection

Roosevelt visited Dakota Territory in 1883 to hunt bison. On Valentine’s Day the next year, his mother and wife died hours apart in the same house in New York.

Devastated, Roosevelt came to Dakota where he ranched cattle and hunted big game in the West during visits mostly from 1884 to 1887.

He underwent deep personal growth from his experiences, including chasing boat thieves down a river, standing up to a bully in a bar and working alongside cowboys who ridiculed him for wearing eyeglasses.

Roosevelt, who served as president from 1901 to 1909, later said he never would have been president were it not for his experiences in North Dakota.

Near the library is Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Visitors can hike trails and drive a scenic route through the colorful, rugged Badlands where bison and wild horses roam.

Trump has often described an affinity with Roosevelt

Trump began his second term last year by trumpeting the construction of the Panama Canal during the Roosevelt administration.

Trump even said the U.S. might seek to take back the waterway from Panama to curb influence from China. That goal has been overshadowed by his suggestions that Washington might seize control of Greenland or that Canada could become America's 51st state.

Given a chance to talk with an artificial-intelligence version of Roosevelt at the library, Trump asked if the 26th president considered the Panama Canal his greatest achievement. A digital Roosevelt said he took pride in it while also listing achievements involving parks, medicine and his Square Deal.

In the run-up to staging a UFC fight on the White House lawn for his 80th birthday, Trump said he was aware of Roosevelt holding far lower-key boxing matches in the White House. Trump made no mention of Roosevelt having detached the retina of his left eye during one such sparring session.

The trip also underscores the president's esteem for Burgum, who has become a key face of and cheerleader for the president’s expansive renovation projects around Washington.

In 2019, Burgum championed the library to North Dakota's Republican-led legislature when he was governor, touting its tourism potential. The legislature approved a $50 million operations endowment, requiring library planners to raise $100 million in private donations, a goal met in 2020. Donations total about $354 million as of early 2026.

Donors include oil executive Harold Hamm, the Waltons of Walmart fame, Kenneth Griffin, founder and CEO of Citadel, a hedge fund, and Burgum himself.

The library will showcase Roosevelt's ideas and artifacts

Trump was the library’s first official visitor, according to the library’s executive director, Robbie Lauf.

All living presidents were invited to the grand opening of the library, which joins more than a dozen others across the country that examine the lives and legacies of U.S. presidents, from Ronald Reagan in California to Franklin D. Roosevelt in New York and Herbert Hoover in Iowa. The Obama Presidential Center recently opened in Chicago, bringing together four former presidents for the occasion.

Visitors will learn about Roosevelt's conservation ideas and his Rough Riders regiment of the Spanish-American War, but also his “horrific comments” about Native Americans and other issues “that have obviously aged poorly,” Lauf said.

Artifacts, many of them out of public view for decades, will tell Roosevelt's story. Visitors will see his Rough Riders uniform; the 1884 diary grieving his terrible loss; and the eyeglasses case, speech and shirt from the 1912 assassination attempt against him.

Organizers hope the library draws families and thousands of school children from the region, as well as some of the millions of motorists who travel to Yellowstone National Park and the Black Hills.

“It's a feature, not a bug, that we are in a county of 1,000 people and a town of 120,” Lauf said. “TR came here for that purpose.”

The Dakota Resource Council on Tuesday hosted several conservation leaders who criticized Burgum and Trump for policies they say contradict Roosevelt's conservation principles, such as cutting staff and budgets and prioritizing energy development on public lands.

Last year, Burgum signed an order prioritizing the openness and accessibility of parks to the public amid the workforce cuts. He has compared America's public lands and natural resources to “assets” that should be responsibly developed to exert “energy dominance.”

On Friday, Trump plans to visit South Dakota’s Mount Rushmore for Independence Day fireworks, as he did in 2020.

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Binkley reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Will Weissert and Josh Boak in Washington contributed to this report.

Some of the children discovered Tuesday were unable to speak and one — an 18-year-old who was developmentally disabled — could not even write her name, investigators said.

“Most of our livestock was kept in better conditions than the children,” said Vinton County Sheriff Ryan Cain. “Just a disgusting scene.”

The children's parents and two grandparents were charged with felony child endangerment, a prosecutor said.

Authorities found the children while carrying out a search warrant in an unrelated investigation, Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson said Wednesday at a news conference.

Officials said it seemed as if no one outside the family knew about the children, who weren't enrolled in school.

“We didn’t know there were going to be 16 kids there,” said Wilson, who was nearly at a loss for words in describing what officials found in the tiny village of Hamden that sits in one of Ohio's poorest counties.

“It’s the type of thing that we’re not used to seeing here in America,” he said.

Rescued children looked like ‘feral animals’

The sheriff said it appears the children spent most of their time in a room that was roughly 12 feet by 12 feet (3.5 meters by 3.5 meters). He didn’t disclose how the kids were kept inside the home, but said authorities didn’t find any cages in the house.

The children ranged in age from 1 1/2 years to 18 years old and included both boys and girls, officials said. Seven were transported to hospitals in Columbus and two were flown by helicopter. One was in critical condition on Tuesday while some of the others were admitted for care, Wilson said.

“They looked like almost feral animals,” Wilson said. “It was terrible.”

The children were in temporary custody of the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services.

Vinton County prosecuting attorney William Archer said the four adults were charged with second-degree felony child endangering because it involves “serious physical harm.”

Gary Siders Jr., Gary Siders Sr., Christina Siders and Elizabeth Siders appeared in court Wednesday where a judge entered not guilty pleas on their behalf and set bond at $300,000 for each. They have not yet been assigned lawyers.

Steve Irwin, a spokesperson for the attorney general's office, would not say whether all of the children are siblings or how they were related.

Neighbor saw ‘no kids at all’

The house where the children were found sits on a road tucked away alongside a steep railroad embankment, where tracks carry rumbling trains through Hamden. The closest neighbors are separated by trees and thick brush, but the house is easily visible from the road.

An open door revealed bits of trash inside while a wooden deck and the backyard were filled with discarded tires, a high chair and other debris.

Investigators said members of the family had moved around southern Ohio over the past two decades and that it looks like they avoided setting up medical and government records.

“These folks were pretty good at hiding these kids,” Wilson said.

Investigators were reviewing whether the family was reported to any children’s services agencies in the past.

Neighbor Joseph Stewart, 60, said he saw “no kids at all” since the family moved in three houses down and that he could clearly see the house and yard when passing by.

“It’s a sad situation,” he said. Stewart has lived on the street for six years and called it “a quiet neighborhood.”

On Wednesday, the home's doors and windows stood open to the sweltering heat. A tangle of discarded children’s items -- two busted bicycles, a plastic play table, a beach pail and two infant carriers -- stood in a pile in the yard.

Hamden has a population of less than 1,000 people and is about 60 miles (97 kilometers) southeast of Columbus.

The discovery of the children is reminiscent of past horrific cases of family abuse.

In 2019, David and Louise Turpin pleaded guilty to torture and years of abuse that included shackling some of their 13 children at their home in California, starving them and providing only a minimal education.

They were sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years. The couple were arrested in 2018 after their 17-year-old daughter escaped from the home and called 911.

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Seewer reported from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press writers Rebecca Boone in Boise, Idaho, and Julie Watson in San Diego contributed.

The festivities will kick off with a smaller rehearsal dinner planned for Thursday night, the official said. The person spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the events.

Speculation about the superstar singer and football player’s nuptials has built to a frenzy in recent days, following weeks of unconfirmed reports that it would take place over July Fourth weekend at one of New York’s iconic landmarks.

In recent days, crews have been unloading equipment from trucks outside the Manhattan arena. A large carpet was briefly unveiled outside one entrance and then promptly removed.

Still, nothing has been publicly confirmed by the couple, despite multiple requests from the AP to Swift’s representative for comment, including on Wednesday.

While city officials have made coy references to an upcoming wedding at Madison Square Garden, they have offered few details about the plan, including potential impacts to nearby businesses or local transit.

“We are fully prepared,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said at a news conference on Wednesday. “There isn’t anything to share beyond that.”

In a separate social media post, he offered New Yorkers tips for staying cool during the heat wave, “especially if you’re (hypothetically) having your wedding at MSG this weekend.”

Swift and Kelce first announced their engagement on Instagram last August, fueling widespread speculation among the Swiftie fan base about possible venue locations.

Following initial reports last month that the event would be held at Madison Square Garden, some theorized that the choice could be an elaborate smoke screen to divert attention from the couple’s real wedding plans.

The arena, which seats up to 19,500 people, is located above Penn Station, the busiest rail hub in the U.S., in the heart of Midtown, Manhattan.

It has on occasion hosted weddings in the past, including funk singer Sly Stone’s marriage to actor Kathy Silva in 1974 and a mass ceremony officiated by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon in 1982.

The arena has guarded entrances, a secure garage and a lack of windows, allowing Kelce, Swift and celebrity guests to stay out of sight of photographers or camera-equipped drones.

On Wednesday, New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch outlined a slew of challenges facing the city this weekend, including huge Independence Day celebrations, a World Cup match and a searing heat wave.

“I would be remiss not to mention an event that we are tracking at Madison Square Garden on Friday night,” Tisch added. “The NYPD will, of course, have a detail in place, but I am not going to go into more specifics on that at this time.”

The decision handed several victories to the League of Women Voters of Arkansas and other plaintiffs, which sued last year amid efforts in various states to make it harder for regular citizens to make laws or amend their states’ constitution through ballot initiatives.

One such measure required someone signing a petition to show photo ID. That and other additional ballot-initiative restrictions were imposed by Arkansas’ GOP-controlled state government after election officials cited a legal technicality to reject petitions submitted by abortion rights supporters in a 2024 effort to legalize abortion in the conservative state.

One of the plaintiffs, Protect AR Rights, called the decision an “important victory for the people of Arkansas and their constitutional right to direct democracy."

The decision, issued Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks, also rejected some challenges by the league and its fellow plaintiffs, while Brooks sent three other disputes to trial.

The defendant, Arkansas Secretary of State Cole Jester, a Republican who had defended the laws in court, said in a statement that his office plans to appeal Brooks' decision and “will fight tirelessly for common sense safeguards like voter ID.”

Among the laws Brooks struck down are 2025 measures requiring canvassers to verify a petition signers' identity through a photo ID and to read the ballot question aloud or require a petition signer to read the entire ballot question before signing it. The ballot questions are often hundreds of words long.

Requiring a petition signer to possess and present a photo ID “before engaging in core political speech” plainly violates free speech laws, Brooks wrote, and noted that the Arkansas secretary of state's office reviews every signature to confirm that the petition signer is a registered voter.

The ID requirement regulates what a registered voter “must do before signing a petition and what a canvasser must do before allowing them to,” Brooks wrote. “This impedes supporters of a measure from expressing their views by signing a petition.”

State officials had contended that requiring a reading of the ballot question before anyone can sign a petition was necessary to prevent a canvasser from misrepresenting the ballot question.

But Brooks wrote that the state had refused to prosecute reported cases of such canvasser misconduct, and that it should enforce its existing laws before it chose a more restrictive alternative of “imposing burdensome speech codes on good and bad actors alike.”

Twenty-three states and Washington, D.C., allow citizen-initiated ballot measures, according to the nonprofit Ballot Initiative Strategy Center.

In March, the center reported that it had found a “sharp escalation” by lawmakers in both the number and severity of anti-democratic attacks on the ballot measure process over the past several election cycles.

Sponsors of such efforts, it wrote, framed them as steps to improve election integrity, administrative efficiency or voter protection.

One of the most common methods is making it harder for initiatives to qualify for the ballot by placing restrictions on where, when and how signatures are collected, it wrote.

It singled out efforts in Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio and Oklahoma.

Another common method of restricting ballot initiatives, it said, is requiring a larger majority of voters, rather than a simple majority, to approve a referendum, thus making it harder to pass. It cited efforts in Arizona, Florida, Missouri, North Dakota and Ohio.

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Follow Marc Levy at http://twitter.com/timelywriter

Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Florida, sent a letter to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Acting Director Russell Vought urging the bureau to investigate rent now, pay later companies and hold them accountable for potential violations of federal consumer financial protection laws. In the letter, obtained by The Associated Press, Frost also asked the bureau to explain what it is doing to protect renters and whether landlords are steering tenants toward rent-financing products.

“Rent now, pay later” companies allow renters to split their monthly rent into smaller payments over the course of a month. A renter with a $1,000 monthly rent bill might pay in four weekly payments of $250 or two payments of $500.

First elected to Congress in 2022 at the age of 25, Frost said he frequently used buy now, pay later services to furnish his first apartment in Washington, which put him heavily into debt. In an interview, Frost said it was only because he made a healthy salary as a member of Congress that he was recently able to pay those debts off. He said he believes his experience is likely the same as other young Americans.

“Americans should know they have rights when using these buy now, pay later products,” Frost said. “This is why the CFPB was created in the first place.”

Frost looked into using his credit card to pay rent, but “thank God that didn't happen,” he added.

Companies such as Flex and Livble say breaking rent into multiple payments can help renters manage cash flow. Some payment plans can come with fees and finance charges. In February, the AP reported on how users of these services were paying as much as $50 a month to split their rent.

Other companies, such as Affirm, are running limited experiments with splitting rent into multiple payments. Affirm's offering through a partner splits rent into bimonthly payments.

These RNPL companies differ from companies like Bilt, which allows some renters to pay rent through its credit card and rewards platform. Bilt says it has more than 5 million members, and its customers have historically used its service to earn rewards points on rent payments. RNPL companies are more focused on allowing customers to finance large rent payments across multiple payments.

Frost says there should be more disclosure to consumers around the products as they become more popular.

“While many of these companies market their loans as ‘innovative’ products that can help struggling cash-strapped renters, including by allegedly boosting their credit scores, many of these products more closely resemble repackaged payday loans,” Frost said in his letter.

A February report by Protect Borrowers and Toward Justice argued that some RNPL companies should comply with Truth in Lending Act requirements based on how they structure their products. The industry strongly disagreed with the groups’ findings at the time.

“In addition to structural reforms to drive down the cost of housing, lawmakers, policymakers, and law enforcement at every level of government need to wake up to the reality that a broad array of companies are cashing in, at working people’s expense, on the massive burden of rent in Americans’ lives,” the groups said in the report.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has sharply curtailed its work under the second Trump administration. Under Vought, the bureau has rolled back regulations and guidance, dropped enforcement actions and moved to rescind previous agency activity. Other calls by members of Congress for bureau investigations have largely gone unanswered. The bureau did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Frost’s letter.

Vought’s tenure at the CFPB will end this summer. President Trump has nominated Brian Johnson, an executive formerly with Capital One, to be the next permanent director of the bureau. Johnson previously held a high-ranking position at the bureau during Trump’s first term in office.

Frost said that if the bureau does not act on buy now, pay later and rent now, pay later companies, he hopes to use information gathered from this letter and other resources to propose legislation next year if Democrats take control of Congress.

“I’m not holding my breath for the Trump administration to do the right thing, but this is the first step of many we can take to make sure these products are used correctly and Americans are protected,” he said.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law Tuesday afternoon officially designating May 17 as Bruce Lee Day, according to the office of state Assemblymember Matt Haney, who represents San Francisco.

An 18-year-old Lee returned to San Francisco on May 17, 1959, after spending his childhood in Hong Kong.

Lee's daughter, Shannon, who is CEO of the Bruce Lee Foundation, said the honor is a testament to her father's enduring legacy as a bridge between cultures.

“From young people who found confidence and possibility in his philosophy, to families who finally saw themselves represented on screen, to athletes who still draw on his teachings of discipline and inner strength, his reach is profound," Shannon Lee said in a statement.

Haney called Lee the epitome of the best of California.

“At a time when Asian Americans were too often absent from or stereotyped on screen, Bruce Lee helped generations see themselves represented with strength and dignity,” he said in a statement.

The foundation and various Asian American organizations hope Lee will be celebrated every year with voluntary commemorative activities around the state such as cultural exhibits, public events and classroom lessons.

Born in 1940 to Chinese parents who were touring with an opera, Lee was allowed to have birthright citizenship. A few months later, the family returned to Hong Kong where Lee became a child actor and began learning Chinese kung fu. He moved back to the U.S. in 1959 and enrolled in the University of Washington in Seattle two years later. He dropped out and threw himself into practicing and teaching martial arts.

In the ‘60s, Lee found work in Hollywood, most notably as Kato in the TV series “The Green Hornet,” but studios wanted him to play racist stereotypes and paid him less than his white counterparts.

He pivoted back to Hong Kong and soon became a megastar of martial arts flicks, including “The Big Boss” and “Fist of Fury.” Lee died in 1973 at 32 after an allergic reaction to pain medication.

Lee's name and likeness remain popular. Fans gather on his birthday. A treatment for a proposed TV action series he wrote inspired the HBO Max show “Warrior.”

A preliminary autopsy requested by the family of Kohen Wiley suggested the baby was shot from the side of the car, not the front, civil rights attorney Ben Crump said, disputing officers' claims that the car was heading toward them. Kohen's mother, who was holding her baby in the passenger seat, says her friend was driving away from the officers.

Kohen and his mother are Black, and the June 14 shooting has sparked protests and outrage in the small town of Senatobia. Residents point to a string of troubling encounters with police in recent years. Crump said the child was killed after police were called to a Walmart parking lot about diapers that may have been shoplifted.

“We’re going to try to continue to demand transparency,” Crump said. He spoke from the pulpit of Senatobia Church of Christ, surrounded by more than a dozen people including the baby's grandparents, some of them holding “Justice for Baby Kohen” signs.

However, Crump repeatedly emphasized that the pathologist did not have access to complete information. He said the family won't rest until authorities release the police body camera and dashcam video, as well as Walmart surveillance video.

A spokesperson for the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, which is in charge of the ongoing inquiry, declined to comment Wednesday. Tate County Coroner Ernie Lentz said in an email the official autopsy report is not complete. An email was sent to Senatobia Police Chief Harold Vanderford seeking comment.

An email was also sent to a Walmart spokesperson seeking comment.

On display at the church were photos and diagrams of Kohen’s body and a photo of the car. The passenger window was shattered and an apparent bullet hole pierced the windshield on the passenger side. The other woman in the car was badly wounded, authorities said.

The broken passenger-side window indicates a bullet was fired into that side the car, Crump said.

The preliminary findings, Crump said, show the bullet entered the baby’s torso on his right side and exited on his left. Crump said that assessment is supported by the clusters of cuts on the right side of his chest and abdomen that would have been caused by the broken tempered glass.

“That’s very important as we try to solve a puzzle,” he explained, adding: “The reason that we’re having to try to solve the puzzle is because they won’t release the video.”

In an initial account of the shooting, state investigators said: “Officers attempted to stop the vehicle, but the driver drove in the direction of the officers, almost striking one. An officer then discharged their weapon and the vehicle fled the scene.”

Investigators will try to figure out the vehicle’s position, how everyone was sitting inside, and where the officers were standing, said policing expert Ian Adams, who teaches criminal justice at the University of South Carolina. They will need to look at damage to the car as well as bullet wounds, because people can move around.

“We need to know a lot more before drawing firm conclusions based on bullet wounds alone,” Adams said.

The killing has drawn comparisons to other instances where Black people lost their life over accusations of petty criminal offenses, such as the murder of George Floyd. Kohen’s mom says she thought her friend had paid for the diapers.

Crump, who rose to prominence representing the families of Floyd and other Black people killed by police, emphasized that the officers' own report says they saw two women and a child get into the car. He questioned why the officer would shoot, knowing there was a kid inside.

“They want us to believe that it was a life-or-death situation,” he added. “They told us that, but they have not showed us that.”

The two-hour guided tour isn’t just about the view. It’s built like a wildlife outing, with guides focused on keeping the experience calm and respectful for animals that call the spring run home.

“Our goal is to take people to teach them how to respect the wildlife and appreciate the wildlife,” said Justin Severance, manager of Kayaking Florida. “This is the animals’ home.”

That approach shows up in the group size. Kayaking Florida limits tours to seven boats per guide, a detail that can make a difference on a busy waterway.

“Safety first,” Severance said, explaining the cap that helps reduce congestion and keeps the paddling experience quieter.

Wildlife sightings can start fast. This trip spotted manatees almost immediately — including mothers with babies — followed by alligators, otters, ducks, turtles and an almost constant lineup of birds along the banks.

Silver Springs is among Florida’s most recognizable springs, long known for its glass-bottom boat rides and its striking, “unreal” clarity. The park is open daily from 8 a.m. to sunset, 365 days a year, making it an easy day trip option for Central Florida visitors.

The spring run also comes with a pop-culture twist: More than 100 movies have been filmed in the area, Severance said, and tours may point out filming locations and underwater features such as boats and statues.

And yes — there are monkeys.

Silver Springs is home to wild rhesus macaques, which were introduced to the area in the 1930s. You can learn more about the monkeys — and see that side of Silver Springs — by watching Joey Manna’s Everyday Wild episode on rhesus macaques below.

For visitors who want more time on the water, Kayaking Florida also offers longer routes. The full river stretch is about five miles, Severance said, while most tours cover a shorter section — with the option to go deeper for “more time, and way more animals.”

Kayaking Florida offers guided clear kayak tours as well as self-guided rentals at Silver Springs and other destinations, including Blue Springs, Rainbow Springs and Alexander Springs. More information is available at floridakayaktours.com.

The lawsuit says the records would shed light on the motivations of government officials who are investigating Brennan and would form the basis of defense efforts to dismiss any eventual indictment on grounds that the case constitutes a vindictive prosecution.

Such an argument, his lawyers said, would be supported by the more than 100 verbal or written statements that President Donald Trump has made since 2017 lambasting Brennan and by the Republican president's directives to his Justice Department to initiate investigations of Brennan “without regard to factual or legal justification.”

“To fully consider those motions, the reviewing judge would need to scrutinize the motivations of the Justice Department officials who directed, oversaw, or undertook those actions to determine whether they violated Director Brennan’s rights, and specifically whether they were motivated by a desire to vindictively prosecute him as an act of retribution,” Brennan's lawyers wrote in the lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington.

Without an order, the lawsuit contends, the records are at risk of being lost or intentionally deleted.

The lawsuit amounts to a preemptive strike of sorts on months-long investigations into Brennan and other perceived adversaries of the president, and represents another effort by Brennan's legal team to sound the alarm on inquiries they believe are part of a pattern of politically motivated probes driven by the White House. It asserts that Brennan is being targeted in a vindictive and selective manner arising from Trump's "obsession with punishing him for his lawful conduct as CIA Director and for his constitutionally protected criticism of the President and the President’s policies.

“That is the reason he is being singled out for investigation of concocted theories of criminal activity, and that will be the dominant reason for any criminal charges resulting from that investigation. That is also why Director Brennan will have an extremely strong basis to challenge those charges as the product of vindictive and selective prosecution,” the lawsuit says.

Investigators based in Florida are examining whether Brennan made a false statement to Congress in 2023 related to an assessment by intelligence agencies documenting Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, when Trump defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton. The other investigation aims to determine whether former law enforcement and intelligence officials conspired over the last decade to undermine Trump, including during the course of the Russian interference investigation.

Brennan has denied any wrongdoing.

The complaint seeks a court order requiring the preservation of all government records relevant to the investigations, including emails, calendar entries and communications — whether public or private — from Trump or other White House officials about the inquiries and efforts to advance them.

“Given these strong indicia of vindictiveness, Director Brennan expects that he will forcefully challenge any eventual indictment as the product of an unconstitutionally vindictive and selective prosecution,” the lawsuit says, adding that the judge presiding over any criminal case would look to those records for a glimpse of the government's motives.

The lawsuit says there's a “very real risk” that the requested communications will not be available by the time any indictment is brought, either because of technology changes that make deletion of records more routine or automatic or because of a Trump administration habit of “failing to observe their legal obligation to maintain such records.”

“Given the government’s questionable recent history with respect to its record preservation and other legal obligations, however, Director Brennan has a well-founded concern that those records and communications will not be preserved until such time as the court can review them for evidence of unconstitutional vindictiveness,” Brennan's lawyers wrote.

The lawsuit names as defendants Trump and other top officials from his administration, including acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, FBI Director Kash Patel, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.

Other defendants include Jason Reding Quiñones, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Joe diGenova, a Reagan administration prosecutor who returned to the Justice Department in April to serve as a special counselor to the attorney general and help oversee the investigations.

Brennan's lawyer, Ken Wainstein, wrote in December to the chief judge of the federal court in Florida asking that the Justice Department be prevented from steering investigations related to Brennan to a “favored” Trump administration judge, Aileen Cannon, who in 2024 dismissed the classified documents prosecution against Trump.

Asked about Brennan's lawsuit, Justice Department spokeswoman Emily Covington said in a statement, “While we cannot comment on the existence, or lack thereof, of an investigation, it is certainly rich that John Brennan is accusing anyone of a ‘retribution campaign.’”

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Associated Press writer Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington contributed to this report.

Judge Christopher Wagner, who previously denied a temporary restraining order hours after the lawsuit was filed, said Wednesday during a hearing that his written order will be made on July 9.

The lawsuit was filed shortly after the NCAA Division I Cabinet approved a monumental change in eligibility rules last month.

“When each plaintiff completed their fourth season of competition during the 2025-26 academic year, they had every reason to know it was the end of the line and time to make way for the next generation of college athletes,” the NCAA wrote in a filing.

The plaintiffs are seeking to be eligible to play a fifth year during the upcoming season, representing athletes who graduated from high school in 2022 and began their college sports careers that fall and never redshirted.

“Each plaintiff was harmed each time he or she competed in a basketball game against a fifth or sixth-year player without being offered the same opportunity to compete in a fifth season themselves,” attorney Ryan Downton wrote in a filing.

The NCAA now allows athletes five seasons of competition over a five-year period that begins with their full-time enrollment or the academic year following their 19th birthday, whichever occurs first.

The move will all but eliminate waivers or redshirt years for extended eligibility except for religious missions, pregnancy or active-duty military service. Extensions will no longer be considered for athletes who are injured.

Athletes whose eligibility expired by spring 2026 under the traditional model — four years of competition over five years — will not be allowed a fifth year of competition under the new rules that go into effect this fall.

Similar lawsuits are being filed in other states.

The Division I Cabinet has said in a statement posted on X that it was aware of legal action challenging its decision and that “we do not intend to change course.”

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

The reality is a little messier.

A clear kayak trip delivers classic Florida wildlife — gators, otters, and birds — but no monkeys. The guide’s best advice is that the animals have been hanging out deeper in the park, so the search moves to land.

The trail stretches on long enough that the exact timeline is better left unspecified. After a while, expectations drop, and the goal becomes finding anything at all.

A loop where monkeys are rumored to appear turns up empty.

With no movement in the trees, the mission pivots into damage control: gather photos of whatever cooperates and regroup. Then, just as the workday detour starts to feel like it is winding down, the forest shifts.

A whole troop of rhesus macaques appears.

Suddenly, the assignment feels less like a local curiosity and more like a nature documentary unfolding a few feet away. The monkeys are close enough to catch their expressions, but far enough to keep the moment in perspective.

They are wild primates and can be dangerous.

The monkeys at Silver Springs come with a surprising origin story.

Years ago, a man identified as Colonel Tooey decided he wanted a monkey island at the park. The problem was that rhesus macaques do not stay where they are put.

They can swim, and they love it.

That early decision helped set the stage for what visitors see now: monkeys that have become a draw for tourists, while also being an invasive species.

The segment acknowledges the contradiction while focusing on what is in front of the camera: a troop trying to survive in a landscape that feels both familiar and strange.

Even when monkeys are in the area, seeing them can take patience.

The best strategy is often to listen. Macaques travel in groups, and sound can give them away before they come into view.

On this day, the sun sinks, mosquitoes come out and camera batteries start running low, but the energy changes the moment the troop shows up.

It is also a reminder worth keeping. These are wild animals. Keep your distance, do not feed them and remember they are watching back.

Mere startups when he took the oath of office, the new ventures have now eclipsed in revenue much of his vast property portfolio that took him decades to accumulate.

Also, the House leadership on Tuesday abruptly canceled votes and sent lawmakers home early for the holiday recess, Speaker Mike Johnson ’s majority once again ground to a standstill by a Republican revolt over their own party’s agenda. In this case, it’s a standoff blocking the annual defense bill as Republicans push to include Trump’s own priority, the SAVE America Act, a strict voter ID bill.

Here's the latest:

New Federal Reserve chair emphasizes political independence, signals focus on inflation

Kevin Warsh said the central bank would remain independent and seek to bring down inflation, likely foreclosing the rate cuts President Donald Trump has sought.

In remarks at a central bank conference in Sintra, Portugal, Warsh said that if businesses or households thought the Fed would accept inflation above 2%, “I guess they’d be disappointed. We’re going to deliver price stability.”

The Fed typically combats inflation by raising borrowing costs. When asked about Trump’s oft-repeated desire for lower rates, Warsh underscored the Fed’s independence from day-to-day politics.

“We’ve been an independent central bank for a very long time,” he said. “We’re going to be an independent central bank at this moment and you’re going to see no changes to that.”

Such comments suggest that Warsh has shifted his views since replacing Jerome Powell as chair May 22. He called for lower rates last year as he essentially campaigned for the job. Since becoming chair, however, Warsh has appeared to move away from that stance and instead has signaled a focus on getting inflation down.

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The US, Canada and Mexico begin bumpy negotiations to renew North American trade pact

Tourists from Chattanooga check into beach resorts in Cancun. Canadian auto parts feed factories in the American Midwest — and vice versa. Happy hour revelers raise glasses of Mexican tequila and mezcal at bars in Seattle.

It adds up. The United States trades $1.9 trillion a year — $5 billion a day — worth of goods and services with its neighbors. They have supplanted China to become America’s top two trading partners.

So the stakes are high when it comes to fiddling with the rules that govern trade between the three countries. And after a year of President Donald Trump’s chaotic tariff policies, many U.S., Canadian and Mexican businesses would welcome the return of stability across North America.

They are not likely to get it.

The regional trade pact — the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA — that Trump negotiated and boasted about came up for renewal Wednesday, starting a process that is likely to last months, maybe longer.

And the path forward is lined with landmines.

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US hits Ecuadorian gang with sanctions for political assassinations

The Trump administration has imposed sanctions on a subgroup of an Ecuadorian gang that it accuses of involvement in political assassinations and narco-trafficking in the South American country.

Rubio announced Tuesday that he had designated the “Chone Killers” as a foreign terrorist organization.

The Chone Killers are an offshoot of Los Chineros, a gang the United States previously designated as an FTO in 2020.

The designation freezes any assets the group or its members may have in U.S. jurisdictions.

Chinese foreign minister speaks with Rubio about Taiwan

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged the U.S. side to handle the Taiwan issue with “utmost caution” in a phone call with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Chinese foreign ministry said Wednesday.

The Tuesday call took place as the Trump administration is reviewing a $14 billion weapons sale proposal to Taiwan under a domestic law that obligates the U.S. to provide the self-governed island with sufficient hardware for self-defense. Beijing, which considers Taiwan part of Chinese territory, opposes it, suggesting the arms sale could negatively impact President Xi Jinping’s plans to visit the U.S. this fall.

“The Taiwan issue can implicate the entire China-U.S. relations, and we hope the U.S. side will handle Taiwan-related matters with utmost caution,” Wang said, according to the Chinese statement.

The U.S. State Department has yet to confirm the phone call.

Crypto, real estate, watches: How Trump made over $1 billion last year

The latest disclosure report listing Trump’s financial holdings shows he took in about $1.2 billion last year from crypto holdings, overshadowing a real estate business that first brought him fame.

It’s a stunning development, sped along by his own friendly policies toward the industry and help from billionaires and others with business before the presidency.

The report, which is over 900 pages, also shows Trump took in tens of millions from new properties in countries beholden to the U.S. for military support or seeking tariff relief. He got tens of millions more suing media companies.

The White House says the president has no financial conflicts with his government role and only acts in the public interest.

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Americans step out for their nation’s 250th in a proud moment sown with division and doubt

America has come to a landmark moment of pride and patriotism — and a time of division and doubt.

As the country turns 250 on Saturday, Americans are stepping out for celebrations in a big way. Thousands of events are unfolding from every corner of the country.

But tears in the national fabric are seen everywhere, too.

And belief in American exceptionalism has declined.

An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll shows more people in the U.S. think there are better countries than those who think the United States is the best.

Still, the party’s on.

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Trump talks Panama Canal with AI Teddy Roosevelt

Given a chance to talk with an artificial intelligence version of Roosevelt, Trump asked a pointed question: “Do you consider the Panama Canal your greatest achievement?”

A digital rendering of Roosevelt said the canal’s construction was one of his proudest feats, but he added that greatness is measured by lives improved. He rattled off other achievements involving parks, medicine and his Square Deal.

But with the canal, AI Roosevelt said he believed he had “left a mark that would last.”

“OK,” Trump said. “You did. Thank you.”

The exchange was shared in a video posted online by The White House as Trump toured the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library. Trump has previously suggested the U.S. might seek to take back the waterway from Panama to curb China’s influence.

As the Pentagon stays quiet, AP reconstructs a US strike that killed over 100 Iranian children

The Feb. 28 attack on a primary school in southeastern Iran was the deadliest reported strike in the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. Most of the victims were children.

In almost any other conflict, these haunting truths would be seared into national memory. Yet more than 120 days since at least one U.S. missile struck the school in Minab, there remains no final accounting of what happened.

The rapid pace of U.S. bombing and chaotic death tolls have left families without resolution. President Donald Trump has denied U.S. involvement, while Iran blames the U.S. The Pentagon’s investigation remains incomplete.

The Associated Press has reconstructed the story of the attack, beginning in the schoolyard on the morning of Feb. 28, drawing from open-source information, video footage, human rights reports and interviews with researchers and civilians inside and outside Iran to reveal previously unreported details about the bombing in Minab, including the diversity of children killed.

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Navy helicopter makes emergency landing in Arabian Sea

A U.S. Navy helicopter made an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea, leaving one sailor missing, the Navy’s 5th Fleet said in a statement Wednesday.

According to the Navy, an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to USS George H.W. Bush went into the water at 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday, but the statement noted that “there is no indication the emergency was caused by hostile action.”

The statement went on to say that three of the helicopter’s four crew members were recovered, but one aircrewman was still missing.

The USS George H.W. Bush is one of two aircraft carriers deployed in the waters off Iran.

Ex-CIA Director John Brennan seeks court order requiring records from investigations be preserved

Former CIA Director John Brennan sued the Trump administration on Wednesday, demanding a court order that would require officials to preserve records from investigations that are targeting him.

Brennan said in the lawsuit that the records would be essential for him to defend himself against any eventual indictment and make the case that it was a vindictive prosecution by the Republican administration.

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Vance says Doha talks are focused on Strait of Hormuz, not yet on nuclear issues

The vice president told reporters as he was leaving Virginia Beach on Wednesday that it was still “pretty early” in talks that U.S. negotiators were having with Iranian and Qatari officials.

Vance said they were discussing details related to commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and “really just ensuring that we continue to make the progress on that, and that’s what they’re focused on.”

“Obviously, we’re worried about the nuclear issue. We’re going to start talking about that,” he said.

Trump highlights chipmaker Micron for plans to invest $250 million in ‘Trump Accounts’

The president has promoted his eponymous investment accounts for children, highlighting a planned $250 million contribution from Micron, a computer memory chip maker.

“This incredible gesture, made by Micron’s fantastic CEO, Sanjay Mehrotra, will make many children extremely happy some day in the not-too-distant future,” Trump posted on social media.

The accounts created by Trump’s 2025 tax cut extension include government seed stock index accounts for newborn children and allow private contributions to accounts for other children.

Micron will provide a $1,000-per-child matching benefit for employees and a one-time $250 deposit into accounts for children in the states where it operates: Idaho, New York, Virginia, California, Colorado, Minnesota and Texas

Micron estimates its commitments will benefit up to 1 million children.

Vance uses speech celebrating 250 years of ‘military excellence’ to slam Iran critics

The vice president visited Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia and began his speech joking that he reminded himself while taking the stage, “Don’t fall and bust your ass.”

The vice president noted former President Joe Biden having infamously tripped in the past, adding, “If I did it one time, it would be a major, major story.”

Vance also slammed critics who he said want the U.S. military “to just keep going and keep going” in Iran and “attack the president of the United States for using the leverage that you gave him to engage in negotiations.”

Vance said unnamed people had similarly suggested the U.S. do more during past wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Such critics, he said, “Encouraged us to just go a little bit further and just drop a few more bombs.”

Trump gives condolences after death of musician who co-wrote ‘Y.M.C.A.’

Victor Willis, who co-founded the Village People and helped write the disco group’s classic hits, has died at age 74.

The song “Y.M.C.A.” is a favorite of Trump’s and is often played at his events.

“We will think of Victor every time ‘Y.M.C.A.’ is played, like today, and all throughout this July Fourth Birthday week,” Trump wrote on social media Wednesday. “My condolences to his wonderful family and group, Victor Willis will be sorely missed.”

Nealy 1,000 US military personnel are helping with Venezuela earthquake relief

The U.S. military now has about 900 military personnel supporting relief efforts in Venezuela following a pair of powerful back-to-back earthquakes that struck the country June 24, Steven McCloud, a U.S. Southern Command spokesperson said.

The statement comes as U.S. Southern Command continues to utilize a host of military aircraft and ships to move supplies and equipment into the country and U.S. Marines have joined search and rescue teams. The Marine Corps has also brought military transport trucks, highly mobile off-road vehicles and military ambulances to “further accelerate the movement of critical supplies and equipment,” a Southern Command statement said Wednesday.

McCloud added that there are also about 100 people from the State Department supporting aid and relief work.

The Venezuelan government has reported more than 1,400 deaths from the quakes over the weekend as well as thousands more that have been reported missing.

Trump administration moves to deport Cubans legally living in the US for alleged espionage

It comes accusations they were working as spies for Cuba’s socialist government.

The State Department said Tuesday that it had revoked the legal status of Carlos Antonio Lloga Dominguez, his wife and son, all of whom are now in federal custody awaiting deportation. The department said Lloga Dominguez had worked for more than a decade in the U.S. as an agent of the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the People, which it said was an “influence and intelligence front group” for Cuba.

“Under the Trump Administration, America will never become home for Cuban Communist regime thugs who peddle propaganda, run foreign influence operations, or seek to wage revolution against American civilization,” the department said in a statement.

Trump visits Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in North Dakota

The president is visiting North Dakota on Wednesday to see the newly built Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library, a massive facility exploring the life of America’s 26th president. The 96,000-square-foot library is in the rugged, lonely landscape where the young Easterner built his conservation values while ranching and hunting in the 1880s.

Saturday’s official opening coincides with July Fourth celebrations honoring the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Trump is coming early to see the $450 million project, a boost for Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, a former governor of North Dakota, while also bringing the nation’s birthday festivities to a region synonymous with its westward expansion.

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Retrofitted Qatari jet takes flight as Air Force One for Trump’s trip to North Dakota

President Trump is taking his maiden voyage on a new Air Force One — a retrofitted Boeing 747 worth $400 million gifted by Qatar that embeds his personality more deeply into the institution of the American presidency.

Gone is the trademark light blue hull that helped Air Force One blend into the sky. The refurbished jet is painted to Trump’s preferred color scheme of a navy belly and red and gold stripes. It has the luxury features the president believes a commander-in-chief’s entourage should have — plush carpets, lie-flat seats, wood paneling and a presidential seal on the seat belts, according to reported tours of the plane.

Trump told reporters he was proud of the luxurious plane. “You can do two things: You can low-key it, or you can show it,” he said.

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Trump says Pulte can declassify what he wants as acting director of national intelligence

The president said federal housing finance regulator Bill Pulte, who Trump named as the acting director of national intelligence, “can declassify whatever” he wants.

Pulte’s elevation to the position has been a source of tension because of his lack of national security credentials. But he’s been given free reign to force job cuts at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

“Bill is there just for a fairly short period of time, but while he’s there, I said, ‘You can declassify whatever you want,’” Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One.

The president estimated that Pulte could hold the job for one or two months. There’s been a push inside Trump’s movement to release documents to back up Trump’s claims that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him, despite electoral results that show a clear loss to Democrat Joe Biden.

Trump has nominated Jay Clayton, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, to be the permanent DNI.

The president said Clayton will have a Senate hearing on his nomination in two weeks, after having canceled Clayton’s initial hearing.

Trump claims stock market gains are behind his rising fortune

Financial disclosures show Trump made roughly $1.2 billion off his crypto currency ventures last year, but the president claimed he’s not directing his investments.

“We have funds that run my money,” Trump said. “I made a lot of money before I became president, and they invest my money, and I don’t talk to them. I never, I don’t even speak to them.”

Trump claimed his financial gains largely came from a rising stock market and that those profits help the country as a whole.

“We’re all profiting,” Trump said. “I’m profiting because I have a lot of money and a lot of cash.”

But not all Americans have access to the stock market.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said that 38% of Americans don’t have exposure to the stock market.

Trump boards new Air Force One, saying Boeing’s answers to questions led him to approach Qatar

Trump beamed with pride about the new Air Force One before its initial voyage, telling reporters pictures of the Boeing 747 given to him by Qatar would win the Pulitzer Prize.

The plane was given to the U.S. by Qatar and Trump relayed how the exchange happened. He said he asked Boeing — which is set to deliver new planes for the presidential jet in 2028 — if there were any counties that had potential substitutes in the interim.

“I said, ‘Who has the best one?’ They said, ‘Qatar. There’s no, there’s never been a plane like it.’ Frankly, we couldn’t build a plane like this because we wouldn’t be willing to spend the kind of money necessary. They spent top dollar,” Trump said.

The president said he went to Qatar and asked to use its plane for a period of time and the emir said he would instead give the plane to Trump. The president described the plane as “a gift from a country that has treated us very well.”

“You’re going to get a kick out of it,” Trump said to reporters about the plane. “There’s just nothing like it.”

How the Supreme Court became a pivotal force in Trump’s immigration agenda

President Trump’s administration looked to the Supreme Court to greenlight its sweeping hard-line immigration agenda and, by and large, it got the backing it was looking for with one key exception — birthright citizenship.

After lower courts repeatedly ruled against the Trump administration, the nation’s top court allowed it to terminate temporary protections for people fleeing war or strife. It gave immigration officers greater leeway in dealing with green card holders returning from abroad, and it allowed the government to limit the number of people who can apply for asylum.

In being asked to serve as an enabler of the Republican president’s contentious immigration crackdown, the Supreme Court showed deference to constitutional guardrails in the key case of birthright citizenship that would have redefined who can be an American. In ruling against the administration, the court upheld the idea that people who are born in the United States, regardless of their parents’ immigration status, are Americans.

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Trump’s actions signal a move toward institutionalizing people with disabilities, advocates warn

For decades, disabled people have fought for their rights to go to school and live alongside peers without disabilities — rights that some fear could be losing ground under the Trump administration.

Last month, the Education Department announced it would offload oversight of special education to the Department of Health and Human Services, led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whose comments on the limits of disabilities such as autism have drawn sharp rebukes from advocates and lawmakers.

Meanwhile, following a White House push to police homelessness, the Department of Justice released guidance that lowered the barrier to institutionalizing any person with a disability.

Taken together, the actions signal a worrying return to a reality where people with disabilities are pushed to the margins of society, advocates said.

“It’s a direct, frontal assault on the rights of people with disabilities to live their lives the way that people who are nondisabled live their lives,” said Selene Almazan, legal director for the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates. “I can’t imagine that as a country, that would be something that we would agree we should go back to.”

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Writer E. Jean Carroll calls for Trump to pay $5.8M after high court appeal fails

Advice columnist E. Jean Carroll asked a judge Tuesday to require President Donald Trump to pay her $5 million from a jury verdict that concluded Trump sexually abused her in the 1990s and defamed her after she publicly described the attack in 2019.

Lawyers for Carroll filed papers in Manhattan federal court to say Trump is unjustly trying to further delay release of the money after the Supreme Court refused Monday to hear an appeal of the 2023 civil jury verdict.

The amount has grown to nearly $5.8 million with interest and should be required by the court to be disbursed, the lawyers wrote, saying Trump has resumed his defamatory attacks against Carroll as his lawyers considered asking the high court to reconsider its decision.

The jury reached its verdict in a trial that Trump did not attend after Carroll testified that she was sexually abused by Trump in spring 1996 in the dressing room of a midtown Manhattan luxury department store after a flirtatious and friendly chance encounter between them turned violent.

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The next meeting will be scheduled “at the earliest possible time” after the funeral of Iran’s previous supreme leader, the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Majed al-Ansari, a spokesman for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry, said on X. The funeral is set to start Saturday in Tehran.

U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, were in Qatar for talks seeking a permanent end to the war, along with Iran’s top negotiator, Kazem Gharibabadi.

Negotiators aim to nail down specifics to pave the way for top leaders to seal an agreement, though differences over the Strait of Hormuz and Lebanon loom large.

A ship ran aground in the strait while using a route not approved by Iran, state television in Tehran reported Wednesday. The vessel was identified as a foreign container ship, with no other details.

The report appeared aimed at underlining Tehran’s claims to control the strait, which the world has long considered an international waterway. A fifth of all oil and natural gas passed through it in peacetime.

Since the U.S. and Israel launched the war against Iran on Feb. 28, Iran has used its ability to choke off the waterway as a key source of leverage, disrupting global markets for energy and other critical goods.

The Strait of Hormuz is a key sticking point in talks

Iran and the United States agreed as part of an interim deal to allow ships to pass without paying charges for 60 days. But Tehran insisted it must control the routes of the vessels and later charge fees for passage, upending decades of practice in the waterway.

The U.S. and many Gulf Arab states say they won't agree to the charges. An effort by Oman and a U.N. agency to launch a new route near Oman's shore sparked attacks across the Mideast last weekend, highlighting the tensions.

Iranian state TV on Wednesday said the ship “ran aground with its cargo because of shallow waters along the route it had chosen and was unable to continue sailing.” It said shippers needed to follow the instructions of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard in the strait.

The Guard’s navy has repeatedly warned that “any entry or exit through routes other than the ‘Route of Authority’ in the Persian Gulf could lead to irreparable incidents.”

The report did not mention the two ships Iran attacked in recent days for daring to head out through the strait without Tehran's permission, including one carrying crude oil from Qatar.

Qatar meets with both sides

Witkoff and Kushner met Wednesday with Qatar's ruling emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and its foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, according to a statement by the Qatari government.

Discussions included details related to traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Vice President JD Vance told reporters in the United States.

“Obviously, we’re worried about the nuclear issue,” Vance said. “We’re going to start talking about that.”

Sheikh Mohammed also met with Gharibabadi and other Iranian officials, with Pakistani mediators also on hand. Gharibabadi said the Iranian delegation had no direct talks with the American side, and its talks with mediators dealt with Lebanon and plans to return some of Iran’s frozen assets, Iranian state media reported.

Lebanon remains a thorny issue in the negotiations. Iran has insisted that all fighting end between the Iranian-backed militia Hezbollah and Israeli military forces there.

Iran also has called for Israel to give up the land it now occupies in southern Lebanon. Israel insists it must hold the territory and have a free hand to attack Hezbollah, which has been launching attacks into northern Israel.

More ships get out of Strait of Hormuz

While ship traffic in the strait dropped after the weekend attacks, more countries say their vessels have gotten out.

The Thai Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that 10 out of 11 Thai-flagged vessels or vessels chartered by Thai operators have departed the strait safely. South Korean officials say all but two of the country’s 26 vessels that were stranded have left safely.

US Navy searches for helicopter crew member in the Arabian Sea

In other developments Wednesday, a U.S. Navy helicopter made an emergency water landing into the Arabian Sea, leaving one crew member missing, the Navy’s 5th fleet said in a statement.

The Navy said there was "no indication the emergency was caused by hostile action.” It said the MH-60S Sea Hawk went into the water at 3:30 a.m.

Three of the helicopter’s four crew members were rescued, the statement said. The Navy was searching for the missing crew member.

The Navy statement did not say whether the aircraft sank or was recovered. The helicopter was assigned to the USS George H.W. Bush, one of two aircraft carriers deployed in the waters off Iran.

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Associated Press writers Michelle L. Price and Konstantin Toropin in Washington; Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran; Samy Magdy and Fatma Khaled in Cairo; Najib Jobain in Doha, Qatar; Jintamas Saksornchai in Bangkok; Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad; Tong-hyung Kim in Seoul, South Korea; and Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia, contributed to this report.

“I’m extremely torn up about the way that things were perceived,” Cavalli said before the Nationals beat the Red Sox 10-2. “Obviously, there was no ill intention behind that.”

Cavalli shouted at Contreras after striking him out looking with a full-count pitch in the fourth inning of the Nationals’ 8-1 victory over the Red Sox.

The term “boy” has a racist history in the United States. Contreras, who is Venezuelan, demurred when asked after the game if he felt there was a racial component to Cavalli’s word choice.

“My teammates know me, my family knows me, this organization knows me,” Cavalli said. “I couldn’t sleep because of it. It hurt my heart, knowing that, if there’s a 13-year-old Black kid in D.C. that sees that — that looked up to me and thinks that he perceived it in a way that wasn’t intended the way that it came out, and then he’s not looking up to me anymore — that hurts my heart.”

When asked, he said he understands the meaning behind the word used.

“There’s a history behind that word, and that’s just something that as a competitor, like in football or basketball, playing wiffle ball with my brother, you don’t understand it,” Cavalli said. “And then it gets perceived in a way that was not my intention, and then you learn from that. It’ll never happen again.”

The 27-year-old right-hander said he didn’t realize the public outcry on social media until he got back to his hotel room.

“I looked at my phone, and I saw what people were saying about me. Saw how torn up my wife was. It hurt my heart,” he said. “I couldn’t believe it. I really couldn’t. Because I know that people know me, and they know my character, and that’s not me. So, it was hard. I truly didn’t sleep last night.”

Contreras was walking back to the dugout after striking out and yelled back at Cavalli: “Are you talking to me?” A few words were exchanged, and he charged the mound. He was stopped before he got to the pitcher. He tried to throw his helmet over a group of players at the righty.

Things settled down quickly after that, though the brief dustup ended with Contreras, Boston interim manager Chad Tracy, Red Sox outfielder Nate Eaton and Washington pitcher Miles Mikolas being ejected.

Cavalli said he hadn’t apologized to Contreras yet, but he hopes he hears his explanation.

“I have not reached out to him. I know that we’re both competitors, I hope that he hears this and he understands that was not what was intended at all,” Cavalli said. “I think he knows that. But if I see him, I want to make sure that he knows that.”

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

The home was on South Ranger Boulevard near Banchory Road, just west of Semoran Boulevard.

Crews arrived at the house to find flames going through the roof of the garage. The car inside the garage was severely damaged.

One person was treated for smoke inhalation while crews got the fire under control.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Andrew Boutros, the U.S attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, said the massive review will include all pending grand jury proceedings in his district as well as other presentations by prosecutors going back almost 20 years. It was sparked by revelations of grand jury misconduct that forced prosecutors to abandon a closely watched case against four activists who protested outside a federal building during last year’s immigration crackdown in the city.

“It’s going to be a massive review, a comprehensive review and it is underway,” said Boutros, who was in Washington for an unrelated news conference. Boutros said the process is meant to ensure that his prosecutors have “acted ethically” and to provide “assurances and confidence" that other pending cases have not been tainted by similar issues.

The Justice Department dropped charges against the activists in May after a judge scrutinized allegations of misconduct, which included a prosecutor meeting with a grand juror outside proceedings and other jurors who disagreed with the case being dismissed from participating.

When the case was dismissed, Boutros told a judge that the conduct was upsetting, adding that: “No one acted with the intent to mislead, your honor.”

The judge overseeing the case took the extraordinary step last month of releasing the transcripts of the presentation made by prosecutors, who were seeking to secure an indictment against the activists in the most high-profile cases to come out of the crackdown that rippled across the nation’s third-largest city and its suburbs last year.

The transcripts showed that one of the grand jurors called the case a “crock of (expletive)." The grand juror was subsequently excused from the proceedings.

Alibaba operates some of the world's largest e-commerce platforms, including Alibaba.com and AliExpress.com.

The U.S. alleges that Alibaba’s U.S.-based payment processor, AUS Merchant Services, violated federal law by failing to prevent merchants from selling and importing illegal products into the U.S. through Alibaba.com and AliExpress.com.

Alibaba acknowledges in an agreement with the Justice Department that between January 2016 and December 2024, it failed to stop roughly 80,000 product sales involving unlawful imports that violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and other federal laws.

A news release on the settlement resolution says that Alibaba employees raised concerns that the company’s compliance controls were inadequate and failed to prevent the sale of illegal products — and, in some instances, merchants used Alibaba’s messaging service to direct buyers to third-party messaging platforms to facilitate illegal sales.

In a statement, Alibaba said the firm and the U.S. government reached a mutually satisfactory resolution to bring stricter compliance to the sale of products in the U.S. by third-party merchants on its e-commerce platforms.

Law enforcement officers across the FDA, FDIC, IRS-CI, and other agencies conducted more than 40 undercover purchases of pharmaceuticals and equipment that were illegal to import into the U.S., according to the news release. A non-prosecution agreement was crafted between Alibaba and the Justice Department.

IRS Criminal Investigations' Chief Jarod Koopman said the resolution "underscores IRS Criminal Investigation’s commitment to following the money and ensuring that companies operating in the United States comply fully with federal law.”

It adds up. The United States trades $1.9 trillion a year — $5 billion a day — worth of goods and services with its neighbors, Canada and Mexico. They have supplanted China to become America's top two trading partners.

So the stakes are high when it comes to fiddling with the rules that govern trade between the three countries. And after a year of President Donald Trump’s chaotic tariff policies, many U.S., Canadian and Mexican businesses would welcome the return of stability across North America.

They are not likely to get it.

The regional trade pact — the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement or USMCA — that Trump negotiated and boasted about came up for renewal Wednesday, starting a process that is likely to last months, maybe longer.

And the path forward is lined with landmines.

"There’s going to be a lot of drama this summer," Diego Marroquín Bitar, a fellow in the America’s program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said last week at a USMCA forum sponsored by the Cato Institute.

A bumpy road ahead for North American trade

The U.S. is making demands that could effectively force Canada and Mexico to surrender some automaking production to the United States. That might bring more auto factory jobs to the United States. But it would also upend established supply chains and would push up U.S. prices for new cars that now average nearly $50,000 at a time when American consumers are already frustrated about the high cost of living.

Trump, characteristically, has added to the tension by threatening to pull out of his own agreement altogether.

In 2020, the USMCA replaced the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement, which tore down most trade barriers between the three North American countries.

Trump and other critics had called NAFTA a job killer because it encouraged U.S. companies to move factories south of the border to take advantage of low-wage Mexican labor, then ship goods back to the United States duty free.

His USMCA ended up being similar to NAFTA — though it pressured factories to pay higher wages and make sure that more of what they made originated in North America in an effort to prevent Chinese products from slipping across regional borders duty free.

To renew or not to renew?

The USMCA included a novel provision requiring the pact to be renewed every six years. That deadline was Wednesday.

The three countries met virtually Wednesday, but U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement that the United States was not ready to renew the pact as it is for another 16 years — which would have been until 2042. The U.S. wants changes to the agreement to reduce its trade deficits with Canada and Mexico and to resolve specific disputes over issues such as Canada's protection of its dairy industry.

The USMCA remains in effect while the three countries continue to work on ways to resolve their differences; they have until the current term ends in 2036 to reach an agreement. Otherwise, the pact expires.

Mexican Economy Secretary Marcelo Ebrard said in a video posted on his social media accounts that he was confident the review of the treaty could be concluded “within a reasonable time frame.”

“We’re in no rush, but we also don’t want there to be any uncertainty, which is why we need to try to reach an agreement on many issues,” he said. “Our goal is for that review to have fewer outstanding issues each year.”

Meantime, any USMCA country can pull out of the pact provided it gives its two partners six months’ notice — a red buzzer that Canada and Mexico, dependent on trade with the United States, fear Trump just might push.

Trump, after all, said in June that he was “not looking to renew’’ the trade pact with Canada and Mexico. "We don’t need anything that they have,” he said.

Canada is out in the cold — so far

The United States and Mexico have held talks on renewing the trade agreement. But Canada has so far been stuck on the sidelines.

Patrick Childress, a partner at the Holland & Knight law firm and a former U.S. trade negotiator, said: "The danger for Canada is this: that the U.S. government and the Mexican government reach agreement on changes to core provisions of the treaty and then show up in Ottawa and say: ‘Here’s what we’ve agreed to. You can take it or leave it.’’’

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that the three trading partners plan to meet virtually on Wednesday, adding: “I’m not looking for my pen.”

Carney later said in French his priority is to update the USMCA and that it is impossible for the U.S. to have a new agreement without the approval of Congress.

Pushing production to the United States

The U.S. wants a refreshed trade pact to do more to make sure that Chinese goods don’t get in through the back door. But the most contentious issue is a U.S. push to require that more products are made in North America — and specifically the United States.

The USMCA included a requirement that automotive products must be 75% made in North America — up from 62.5% under NAFTA — to qualify for duty-free treatment.

The U.S. wants to push the 75% threshold even higher but it won’t be easy. Automakers already "have been fine-tuning their supply chains for years to be able to hit that 75% mark," Childress said. They would need time to meet the higher standard.

The U.S. is also seeking a brand-new requirement: that 50% of cars be made in the United States, Carney confirmed in early June. Currently, none of the USMCA countries gets a guaranteed share of production. "It’s a red line for both Mexico and Canada, and it goes against the spirit and the letter of regional integration," said Oscar Ocampo, director of economic development at the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness.

Marcos Carias, an economist at the credit insurer Coface, said only 1 in 5 Mexican and Canadian cars imported into the United States would currently meet the 50% standard.

Vehicle models likely to be hit with higher costs under the plan, he said, include Ford’s Maverick compact pickup truck, Chevrolet’s mid-size Equinox SUV and some Nissan sedans — all made in Mexico. Carias’ "back of the envelope" calculations suggest that prices could increase 5% to 7% on the most-affected models.

Businesses want stability

A lot of companies just want relief from Trump’s ever-changing tariffs. “My interest in this USMCA renewal is just consistency, right?" said Shawn Miller, co-founder of PKGD Group, which imports agave spirits (tequila, mezcal and raicilla) from family producers in Mexico. “If the rules change, the rules change. But we’d really like to know (what they're going to be) and we’d like them to stay that way for a while."

Business is booming for PKGD. Sales at the Holland, Michigan-based firm are up 62% so far this year after surging 100% in 2025 and 300% in 2024.

But last year was chaotic.

Trump hit Mexican and Canadian goods with a 25% import tax in February only to turn around a month later and exempt products that were eligible for preferential USMCA treatment. The USMCA allows the Mexican spirits into the United States duty free.

Amid the tumult, three truckloads of Mexican spirits imported by PKGD crossed the border into the United States and got hit with the 25% tariff. The cost came to $105,000. "For us, it was one unfortunate day!'' Miller said.

Not knowing what tariffs Trump might conjure up next, PKGD huddled with its Mexican producers to figure out how to respond. “What can we absorb? What can they absorb?" Miller said. “How can we mitigate this?"

Miller said he and his Mexican suppliers “are not large multinational corporations with dedicated trade departments, teams of lawyers, or lobbyists focused on trade policy."

Kerry Mellin can sympathize.

In 2014, the veteran Hollywood costume designer started a business in Ventura County, California, selling silicone grips that enable people with disabilities (such as cerebral palsy and Parkinson’s) to hold things — spoons, cups, pens, toothbrushes.

But sales floundered when she introduced her EazyHold grips in Canada, where she has dual citizenship. She thinks it’s because the silicone she imports from Asia kept her grips from having enough North American content to qualify for USMCA’s duty-free treatment when they crossed the border from the United States.

Mellin suspects EazyHold could meet the USMCA standards, “but the rules are complex and unpredictable enough that I genuinely can’t be sure without hiring a trade attorney."

Mellin believes the USMCA’s rules of origin should be loosened, not tightened, to help small businesses that can’t afford costlier raw materials from North America.

“I do understand why the rule exists -- to stop companies from routing Chinese goods through Mexico," she said. “I just wish it could tell the difference between that and a small family business in California making grip aids for people who can’t hold a fork. I’m not the problem they were trying to solve."

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AP Writers Maria Verza in Mexico City and Rob Gilles in Toronto contributed to this story.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% for its eighth loss in 11 days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 13 points, or less than 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 0.7%.

General Mills helped lead the market and climbed 8.5% after the company behind the Cheerios and Progresso brands reported better results for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It also announced a plan to cut $3 billion in costs over four years.

Three out of every five stocks within the S&P 500 likewise climbed, and the index trimmed an early drop of 0.7% after a report said U.S. manufacturing grew last month at a slightly slower speed than economists expected. The survey from the Institute for Supply Management also said prices were increasing at a slower pace.

The data could take some upward pressure off inflation, which in turn could make the Federal Reserve less likely to raise interest rates multiple times this year. Following the report, the yield on the 10-year Treasury pulled back from a peak near 4.50% in the morning and fell to 4.47%.

That offered some relief because higher yields make it more expensive for businesses and households to borrow money and in turn can slow the economy. Higher yields also tend to undercut prices for stocks and other investments. Yields have been on the rise since the war with Iran began because of worries about high inflation caused by expensive oil.

The heaviest weights on the market were stocks that had soared earlier in the euphoria around artificial-intelligence technology, including drops of 10.6% for Micron Technology, 6.9% for for Advanced Micro Devices and 1.3% for Nvidia.

Such stocks have been zigzagging in recent weeks because of worries that they had become too expensive. They also have big influence on the S&P 500 and other indexes because they’ve grown so huge in size.

Kroger swung from an early loss to a gain of 1.3% after the grocer said it agreed to buy Giant Eagle for $1.25 billion in cash. It will also take on $400 million in liabilities to buy the food and pharmacy retailer with stores stretching from Indiana to Maryland.

Nike also flipped an initial loss and rose 4.9% after reporting stronger results for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The athletic-gear giant is in the midst of a turnaround attempt by CEO Elliott Hill, and he said it’s still facing headwinds dragging on its revenue.

All told, the S&P 500 slipped 16.13 points to 7,483.23. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 13.96 to 52,305.24, and the Nasdaq composite fell 173.69 to 26,040.03.

Gold’s price recovered from an early to rise. It briefly sank below $3,980 per ounce overnight, down from more than $5,300 per ounce early this year. When Treasurys pay more in interest, investors become less willing to pay high prices for investments. That includes gold, which pays its holders nothing.

But the weaker-than-expected manufacturing report and ensuing easing of Treasury yields sent gold back up 1.1% to settle at $4,082.40 per ounce.

In the oil market, prices sank as hope remains that the United States and Iran may ultimately end their war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers delivering crude. The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, fell 1.9% to $71.57.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe and Asia.

South Korea’s Kospi fell 2% for one of the world’s biggest moves. It’s been one of the world’s brightest stars thanks to euphoria around SK Hynix and other AI stocks, and the index is still up 97% for the year so far.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.6% after the Japanese yen fell to a 40-year low against the U.S. dollar.

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AP Business Writer Yuri Kageyama contributed to this report.

Krejcikova earned her biggest victory on Centre Court since winning the 2024 Wimbledon title by knocking out French Open champion Mirra Andreeva 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the second round Wednesday.

It didn't come easy, though.

Andreeva faced six match points when Krejcikova served for the match at 5-3 and saved them all before finally converting her fourth break point in a marathon game.

The fifth-seeded Russian teenager handed her opponent a seventh match point when she sliced a backhand wide in the next game, and this time Krejcikova converted with a bit of luck. Her shot hit the net cord and bounced in and Andreeva could only return it long.

Andreeva, coming off her first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros, threw her racket in disgust and later smashed it into her bag before leaving Centre Court.

“What a match,” Krejcikova said, trying to sum it all up. “What a match.”

Earlier, No. 1 ranked Aryna Sabalenka and Jannik Sinner both advanced in straight sets, with Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka also reaching the third round. Novak Djokovic finished off Day 3 by beating Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 on Centre Court to continue his quest for a 25th major title.

Krejcikova is a two-time Grand Slam winner, also taking the 2021 French Open title, but has struggled with back and knee injuries and has fallen to No. 38 in the rankings.

Andreeva had shown signs of frustration throughout the third set — including when her bead bracelet broke during a point at 1-1 and she had to spend a few moments picking beads out of the grass along the baseline and throwing them toward the back of the court.

Two ball kids and the chair umpire joined her in cleaning up before play resumed.

There was also some loud cheers during the third set that had nothing to do with tennis. Some in the Centre Court crowd had half an eye on England's World Cup match against Congo and celebrated both of Harry Kane's goals and the final whistle.

Gauff came from a break down in the third set and then won the last six points of the tiebreaker to beat Solana Sierra 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7).

Gauff was two points away from losing the match when Sierra served at 5-4 in the third set but won three straight points to break back.

“When she had to serve for the match I just reminded myself that I’m a great returner as well,” Gauff said. “I was just trying to be positive and I think that showed.”

Gauff had her breakthrough at Wimbledon in 2019 when she reached the fourth round as a 15-year-old, beating Venus Williams in the first round. As it happens, that win over Williams also came on July 1 on No. 1 Court.

“It was kind of my breakout moment, and playing against one of my idols was insane,” Gauff said. “Every time I walk down this hallway I get deja vu and I just remind myself, like, if I could do that (seven) years ago, I'm definitely a better player since then. So I definitely can do it now.”

Osaka showed off a new look again before winning her second-round match.

Osaka, whose fashion reveals have become an event of their own at Grand Slam tournaments, wore a less elaborate outfit for her walk-on than the “Kill Bill” inspired kimono she sported for her opening-round match on Monday.

It still drew plenty of attention as she made the walk from the locker room to No. 2 Court, trailed by photographers and fans wanting to take their own photos.

This all-white outfit featured a wide belt and a long train that trailed behind her, which the four-time major winner took off as she began warming up for her match against qualifier Anastasia Gasanova.

She went on to quickly dispatch Gasanova 6-3, 6-2.

“I'm just trying to mix it up a little bit,” Osaka said about her outfit, adding she had been worried that a loss might have ruined her daughter Shai's third birthday on Thursday.

“I just wanted to be here for longer, I didn't want to make her get on a plane on her birthday,” Osaka said.

Sabalenka soon followed her into the third round, beating McCartney Kessler 6-1, 7-6 (9) on No. 1 Court.

Sinner, the defending champion who came from a set down twice to win in five sets in the first round, had a more comfortable victory Wednesday. Sinner beat Nuno Borges 7-6 (4), 7-6 (2), 6-4 in the first match on Centre Court.

It wasn't entirely straightforward for the Italian, though, as he had to break back for 5-5 when Borges served for the second set, before winning in just over 2 1/2 hours.

“Second set was very, very tough,” Sinner said.

Other winners included French Open runner-up Flavio Cobolli, No. 8 Daniil Medvedev, No. 17 Frances Tiafoe and No. 21 Tommy Paul.

On Tuesday, Serena Williams returned to Centre Court but lost in three sets to Maya Joint in her first singles match in nearly four years. Williams, who tweaked her knee in the match, still hopes to play doubles with sister Venus later in the week.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Starting Wednesday, toll rates operated by the Central Florida Expressway Authority increased, adding to financial pressures many drivers say they are already feeling from higher everyday expenses, including gas prices.

Drivers who regularly use the region’s toll roads say even small increases can add up.

“It’s just crazy, but it’s not the first time. It feels like everything now,” one driver said.

The rate changes affect major expressways, including State Road 408, State Road 417, State Road 528, and State Road 429.

[WATCH: Fight over toll road through Split Oak Forest continues as activists keep voicing concerns]

Drivers using electronic toll systems will see increases ranging from about 2 to 7 cents at some toll points compared with last year. Some electronic toll users will see slight decreases depending on location and the car axle.

For drivers who pay by plate, the increases could be higher, with some toll points rising between 4 and 16 cents.

One driver said the monthly cost of tolls has become another major expense of “about $100.”

He said it can be compared to the cost of a regular bill.

The increase comes as many drivers are already dealing with higher transportation costs. Some say they have noticed the impact of rising gas prices and worry about another expense added to their budgets.

“I kind of wish it would go down or go to tourists,” one driver said.

[WATCH: Central Florida has the worst roads in America, report claims]

Toll revenue helps fund Central Florida’s transportation system, including road maintenance and improvements. But some drivers say they would like to see fewer toll roads in the region.

“There are some going down 528, for example, it’s like back to back, and it’s like I just paid and if you make the wrong turn or exit, you have to pay to get back on,” one driver said.

Some motorists say they plan to avoid toll roads when possible, while others say that is not always realistic.

“I’m going to try, even if it takes me an hour and a half longer, but it just kind of sucks,” one driver said.

The new rates apply to Central Florida Expressway Authority roads. Other toll systems, including roads managed by the Florida Department of Transportation and Florida’s Turnpike, have not announced new rates.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Wednesday that there are no known specific or credible threats to this year’s celebrations, which will include parades of sailing ships and naval vessels on the Hudson and East rivers, jet flyovers and a massive fireworks show — all happening during a heat wave that could also tax emergency medical personnel.

Plus, police will be dealing with another event that will bring a lot of attention to the city — the wedding of pop star Taylor Swift and football player Travis Kelce.

“In a briefing about major events happening this weekend in New York City, I would be remiss not to mention an event that we are tracking at Madison Square Garden on Friday night," Tisch said in a winking reference to the nuptials. "The NYPD will, of course, have a detail in place, but I am not going to go into more specifics on that at this time."

A law enforcement official briefed on security plans told The Associated Press that the celebrity wedding will be held Friday, with a smaller rehearsal dinner Thursday night. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the events publicly.

Uniformed officers, K-9 units and heavy weapons teams will be out in force along the city's waterfronts for the Sail 250 festivities, which will bring around 100 vessels and about 27,000 sailors, crew members and dignitaries to the city for events Friday, Saturday and beyond.

Attendees will be required to go through security checkpoints as they head to waterfront viewing areas Saturday, officials said.

In the evening, the Macy’s Fourth of July fireworks show will draw thousands of eyes upward as 85,000 shells are launched from six barges and a laser show beams up from the Brooklyn Bridge.

Also in the sky: the police department's aviation unit and drone teams, which will be monitoring the city and looking out for illegal drones hovering in the restricted flight area around the show.

“The message is clear: If there is any illegal drone activity that violates our temporary flight restrictions, your drone will be seized," Tisch said.

The department will also deploy counterterrorism resources, explosive detection K-9s, bomb squad personnel and heavy weapons teams, along with plain clothes officers and a harbor unit for the waterways.

Meanwhile, the city will again have special security restrictions in place at its busiest rail hub, Penn Station, on Sunday to accommodate thousands of fans headed across the Hudson to see Brazil take on Norway in the World Cup. Only people with a ticket to the match will be allowed into some parts of the station.

Police have already been setting up crowd-control barriers and hanging “no parking” signs near Madison Square Garden, which sits atop Penn Station, in anticipation of crowds of Swift fans and other gawkers hoping to catch a glimpse of wedding-related events.

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Associated Press reporter Jake Offenhartz contributed to this story.

Of course, for the holiday itself Saturday, widespread storms will threaten cookouts outdoor plans.

Storm chances Friday will rise to 50%, with most of the action favoring areas south of Orlando.

For the Fourth, storms become much more widespread. Expect storms to fire along and around I-95 and I-75 early in the afternoon.

Storms will gradually push toward I-4 late in the afternoon.

Rain and storms are likely to to linger through the evening in interior Central Florida.

Essentially, the storms have to rain themselves out rather than move out as the steering flow is very weak.

Rain chances gradually drop by fireworks time, but a few light showers may hang on inland.

Storm chances remain elevated Sunday. Highs will be in the lower 90s Friday through Sunday.

Avi Loeb, a cosmologist who studied black holes and served as head of Harvard’s astronomy department until 2020, was recently appointed to helm a new scientific advisory council tasked with investigating the origins of mysterious orbs and other objects reported by military personnel in recent years.

Loeb’s team will report to a new panel focused on UFOs, now often referred to as unidentified anomalous phenomena, or UAP. The panel was established by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. It’s part of the push announced by President Donald Trump in February to declassify more information about the issue.

“It’s like a detective story,” Loeb said in an interview. “It’s a lot of fun, as long as you don’t pay too much attention to the critics.”

For the last decade, Loeb has been scanning the skies and seas for evidence of intelligent alien life. He began the quest in 2017 as scientists puzzled over an interstellar object soaring by Earth. While others proposed it was a comet or ice chunk, Loeb said it could be a thin “light sail” detached from an alien spacecraft.

His theories have won praise in UFO circles but often put him in conflict with academic peers. Other astronomers accuse him of making exotic claims with little evidence. Some chafe at his habit of skipping the peer review process and bringing claims directly to the public.

Steve Desch, an Arizona State University astrophysicist who has challenged some of Loeb’s theories, said Loeb uses flawed methods to reach wild conclusions about alien life — all while shunning a more established branch of science searching for life beyond Earth.

Loeb’s role on the administration’s new panel casts doubt on the entire endeavor, Desch said.

“I don’t know what’s going to come of this, but we’re not going to get any closer to answering these questions with him in charge,” Desch said.

The team includes scientists, UFO activists and a billionaire

Loeb brushes his critics aside, saying they lack the imagination to consider new ideas. He’s promising a grounded approach to his work for the Trump administration. As he analyzes UAP, he’s starting with the assumption that they’re the work of humans, he said, approaching it from a national security perspective.

Nonetheless, he envisions an outcome where his work could lead to something bigger. If the government invests in better data collection on UAPs, Loeb said, it could settle the alien debate once and for all.

His hand-picked team includes more than a dozen scientists and UFO activists. Among them is Timothy Gallaudet, a retired rear admiral who has warned about UAP controlled by “nonhuman intelligence,” claiming the United States has recovered crashed aircraft. Also on the team is Ben Lamm, a billionaire working to revive extinct species.

After its first meeting last month, the team sent a request to the Pentagon asking for more than 50 videos, images and other documents related to known UAP incidents. Loeb’s group meets behind closed doors, but he has vowed to brief the public and create a website to share findings.

“At a time when science is not so much celebrated, this is an opportunity to actually do good for all sides involved,” Loeb said.

New UAP board created in response to Trump’s order for transparency

Earlier this year, Trump directed his administration to provide more transparency on questions of UFOs and alien life. So far, the Pentagon has released three batches of files ranging from decades-old FBI reports to more recent military videos showing orbs darting or soaring through the sky.

Trump’s directive led to the creation of a UAP Governance Board overseen by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. The board met for the first time in June, and is supported by Loeb’s team and several other advisory groups, the office said.

It comes as a bipartisan group in Congress pushes the White House to go further, with some Republicans amplifying claims the U.S. is hiding evidence of alien encounters. The White House has encouraged anyone with information to come forward. A Pentagon office that investigates UAP says it has seen no evidence of alien life.

Loeb said he doesn’t buy into cover-up theories. “My impression is the government is baffled by not being able to infer the nature of some of these objects,” he said.

Before looking for aliens, Loeb studied black holes and galaxies

Before he became known for his alien theories, Loeb was a respected cosmologist who authored hundreds of papers, specializing in black holes and the birth of galaxies. He served as chair of Harvard’s astronomy department for nearly a decade.

Loeb’s career took a turn with his “light sail” theory in 2017, which he presented in a paper and later a book. He went on to found the Galileo Project at Harvard, with a stated mission to search for artifacts from alien civilizations.

His team drew attention in 2023 when they used magnets to retrieve hundreds of small spheres from the floor of the Pacific Ocean, near the possible site of a 2014 meteor crash. After analyzing the metallic “spherules,” Loeb suggested they came from a distant planet or, alternately, from alien technology.

Other scholars challenged the claim, saying it was probably volcanic rock or coal ash.

Sean Kirkpatrick, a physicist who previously investigated UAP at the Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, said Loeb is “not viewed favorably” in the scientific community and lacks national security experience. He said the makeup of Loeb’s team suggests the Trump administration is more interested in fringe theories than hard science.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment about the criticism.

Loeb, meanwhile, said he aims to follow the science without distraction. “Let’s keep our eyes on the orbs,” he said, “not the social media.”

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This story was first published June 30, 2026. It was updated July 1, 2026, to correct that the panel was established by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in response to President Donald Trump’s February directive on the issue, not by the White House itself.

Harry Kane ensured England avoided an early exit from the inaugural 48-team World Cup by scoring two second-half goals in a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Congo in the round of 32 on Wednesday.

The late victory, England's second ever at the World Cup after conceding the first goal, earned the 1966 champions a spot in the round of 16 and a match against co-host Mexico.

“It was just about pounding the rock, keep pounding the rock and our moment would come,” Kane said after scoring his fourth and fifth goals of the tournament. “We spoke about people having hero moments. It can be anyone in the team … Whoever it is, we have hero moments, and for me it was the day.”

That team's next match will be played at the Azteca Stadium, the site of Argentina great Diego Maradona’s infamous “Hand of God” goal that eliminated England from the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals.

Getting there didn’t come easy against a Congo team that nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history.

England's only other World Cup victory after trailing 1-0 came in the 1966 final against West Germany at Wembley Stadium.

“That’s a good sign. It just shows you the level of determination and the level of belief and also the level of focus," England coach Thomas Tuchel said. “I didn’t feel the weight on their shoulders and I found that we played it with the exactly right attitude and we trusted our spirit.

“The goalkeeper kept on saving incredible saves ... but this team today did not accept a defeat as an outcome.”

Kane made sure the early deficit wasn't a problem Wednesday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium by extending his record as his country’s leading scorer in tournament history to 13. He has a record 84 goals for the national team in total.

His first goal came in the 75th minute. Substitute Anthony Gordon lifted a cross from the left and despite Congo goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi getting a hand to Kane’s header, he didn't stop it from nestling into the bottom corner.

Eleven minutes later, Kane sent his shot into the top corner to put the thoughts of an upset to rest.

“When you get to the knockouts, the pressure and the risks are so much higher. But from an attacking point of view, that was easily our best game of the tournament,” Kane said. “Sometimes you just have to grind wins out and we did exactly that today. I told the boys to enjoy it. We’re through, and we go again in four days.”

Brian Cipenga had put Congo in the lead in the seventh minute after collecting a cross on the left of the box and shooting low past England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford at the near post.

Mpasi did his best to keep that 1-0 lead alive. He denied Jude Bellingham on three occasions — blocking two close-range headers before halftime and then clawing away another deflected effort after the break.

Kane nearly made a breakthrough late in the first half, but Mpasi blocked a powerful shot at the near post. And the keeper was also caught up in a collision with Kane in the box. England thought it should have been awarded a penalty, but referee Adham Makhadmeh waved away appeals.

Congo had a chance to double its lead when Yoane Wissa hit the post in the first half.

“We’re disappointed because we really believed we could do it,” Congo coach Sébastien Desabre said. “We played well. Towards the end of the match, we conceded two chances and one of the world’s best players scored two goals against us. It’s a shame.”

England’s only major soccer title came in that 1966 tournament at home. But the team has been getting closer to another in recent years, reaching back-to-back European Championship finals and the semifinals of the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Tuchel has been hired to end that winless run. As a German, his appointment was a controversial choice given England’s long-standing rivalry with his country. So anything other than a deep run in this year's tournament would likely reignite questions over the wisdom of that decision.

Despite winning Group L with two wins and a draw at this year's World Cup, there has been a mixed response to England’s performances.

And in a tournament that has seen traditional powers like Germany and the Netherlands eliminated early, the fear was that England could follow that trend against a Congo team that already held Portugal to a 1-1 draw in the group stage.

The 46th-ranked Congo team had already made history with its first goal, point and win at a World Cup, 52 years after its only previous appearance when competing as Zaire at the 1974 tournament in West Germany.

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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday that it had confirmed at least 48 cases — 38 of them severe — as of June 30. Since 2004, the average number of cases reported to the CDC by the end of June is around 10. Federal health officials said 23 states have reported finding West Nile virus, the most in 10 years.

“These findings serve as an important reminder that mosquito season is well underway,” said Dr. Erin Staples, a CDC expert on insect-borne diseases. “As families gather outdoors to celebrate Independence Day, we encourage everyone to enjoy their holiday while taking simple steps to protect themselves and their loved ones from mosquito bites.”

Most of the cases have been in Arizona. Of the state's 32 total cases, 29 are in Maricopa County. The county, which includes Phoenix, has also recorded four deaths from the virus so far this year.

Officials there asked people to wear bug spray containing DEET, patch up broken window screens and get rid of standing water, where mosquitoes often breed.

“Even an overturned bottle cap can hold enough water for mosquitoes to breed,” said Melissa Kretschmer, a county health department official. “It’s important that we remove these breeding sources that can form after rain or watering plants.”

The CDC also recommends people wear long, loose-fitting clothes when outside to make it harder for mosquitoes to bite them. Experts also suggest people avoid being outdoors around dusk and dawn, when the mosquitoes that carry the virus are most active.

West Nile virus was first reported in the United States in 1999 in New York, and then gradually spread across the country. It peaked in 2003, when nearly 10,000 cases were reported.

Scientists say many people — perhaps tens of thousands each year — are infected but don’t know it because they have no symptoms, or only mild ones such as headaches, body aches, joint pain, vomiting, diarrhea and rashes.

In severe cases, damage to the central nervous system causes potentially deadly inflammation of the brain or spinal cord. Adults older than 60 and people with underlying medical conditions or weakened immune systems face the highest risk of such complications.

In the last decade, health officials have fielded reports of 2,000 cases annually on average, including 1,200 life-threatening neurological illnesses and about 100 deaths.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Two women and one man were found unconscious on streets near the iconic Angel of Independence monument, where thousands had gathered Tuesday night to celebrate, Mexico City's Health Secretariat said on the social platform X. The victims, who authorities said died of asphyxiation, were 48, 44 and 19 years old. Authorities did not provide additional details about the circumstances of the deaths.

Later Wednesday, Mexico City Health Secretary Nadine Gasman, told a news conference that another man, about 30, was treated by emergency personnel after suffering an epileptic seizure, convulsions, and gastrointestinal bleeding. He died shortly afterward at a hospital of cardiorespiratory arrest.

Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada said on social media that emergency crews responded immediately after receiving reports of the three unconscious people, but they had already died.

Brugada also urged the public to celebrate “responsibly, carefully and with empathy.”

Fireworks lit up the sky around the Independence Monument — popularly known as “El Ángel” — on Tuesday night as thousands of Mexicans celebrated along the 5-kilometer (3-mile) Paseo de la Reforma, which links the capital’s main square, the Zócalo, with Chapultepec Park.

In a video posted Tuesday on social media, Brugada said about 1.4 million people were celebrating in the streets and urged the public to stop heading to the city center to ease overcrowding. Instead, she encouraged people to attend a concert by a popular cumbia band in the eastern part of the city.

All of Mexico City seemed overwhelmed Tuesday night. Improvised bands sprang up on street corners, while carts loaded with rockets known as “toritos” inched through streets so packed that people could barely move.

Bottles of alcohol were passed from hand to hand among young revelers as hundreds more tried to push closer to the city center, some succeeding, many others turned back by the crush of the crowd.

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Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Bending Spoons priced 58 million shares at $29 apiece. The company is getting $1 billion in proceeds, while the rest is going to shareholders. The stock surged 39.7% in its first day of trading under the symbol “BSP” on the Nasdaq, giving it a market value of $25.2 billion.

Among the company's well-known holdings are the event creation and ticketing company Eventbrite, and the video hosting service Vimeo. AOL, formerly America Online, is a more recent acquisition for the company. The email and search engine service dates back to the dawn of the internet age.

AOL itself went public in 1992 and was a vanguard of technology and communication. It reached a market value of $164 billion in 2000 shortly before merging with Time Warner. It then crashed along with the rest of the industry following the bursting of the dot-com bubble. It has been bought and sold several times over the last two decades.

Bending Spoons' key focus is acquiring troubled tech companies and overhauling them. The company takes its name from the fictional concept of bending spoons with the mind, as portrayed in the dystopian AI-focused “The Matrix” films. The company's founders say the name is meant to evoke focus and dedication, as well as some humor.

“We were about to attempt to create a world-class company with $40,000, a team of five, and a track record that read 0 for 1," the company wrote in its prospectus. “A touch of irony seemed appropriate.”

The Italy-based company was founded by three friends in 2013 following the failure of their first attempt at building a technology startup. It has since grown by buying more than 50 companies.

The acquired companies are reorganized, and AI technology is often a key tool in the redesign. The focus remains on subscription-based revenue from the portfolio of businesses.

The company said it had net income of $27.5 million on revenue of $601 million during the first three months of 2026. It had more than 500 million monthly active users and 9 million monthly paying customers as of March.

The company has debt of just under $4.4 billion. It plans to use proceeds from the offering to invest in new acquisitions.

The Bending Spoons offering comes amid a resurgence in the IPO market this year, highlighted by the record-setting market debut of SpaceX last month.

All but one of those sentenced in Fort Worth on Wednesday had pleaded guilty to charges related to the July 4 shooting outside the Prairieland Detention Center near Dallas. The sentences ranged from nearly two to 15 years in prison.

Eight others who were convicted at trial last week were handed lengthy sentences, including a former Marine reservist who received a 100-year prison term.

Prosecutors said the group’s actions — including bringing firearms, first aid kits and wearing body armor — signaled nefarious intent, and U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman — one of two justices presiding over the sentencings — noted Wednesday that the center is located in a residential neighborhood.

“This could have been an absolute slaughter,” Pittman said.

The U.S. Justice Department alleges the shooting was carried out by members of antifa — a claim attorneys for the defendants have denied. Antifa is an umbrella term for far-left militant groups that confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.

The protesters’ attorneys insisted their clients did not plan an ambush and that those who took firearms to the demonstration did so for their own protection. They argued the gathering was planned as a late-night demonstration with fireworks to show support for immigrants detained inside the facility.

Benjamin Song, the former U.S. Marine reservist who was convicted of attempted murder and other charges in the shooting, was sentenced to 100 years in prison, and seven others received prison terms ranging from 30 to 70 years. Some of them, including Song, have filed notices of appeal.

Those convicted at trial had faced various charges, with all but one charged with providing material support to terrorists.

The six defendants sentenced Wednesday who did not stand trial had pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists. Some of them were at the protest that night while others were accused of helping Song avoid arrest after the shooting.

Nathan Baumann was sentenced to almost two years in prison Wednesday after apologizing in court for vandalizing vehicles at Prairieland.

“There is no justification for what I did,” Baumann said.

John Thomas, who was sentenced to nine years in prison, was not at the July 4 protest but was among those accused of helping Song evade arrest by moving him from location to location and providing him with clothes, according to a court document.

“I am so very sorry I ever got involved,” Thomas told the judge

Another person who was convicted at trial was among those sentenced Wednesday. Ines Soto was sentenced to 50 years in prison for providing material support to terrorists, riot and explosives charges.

The case has been closely watched by critics who say the prosecution could have serious implications for protesters nationwide and First Amendment free-speech rights.

One remaining person who pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists is set to be sentenced on Monday. According to a court document, she was among those who helped Song evade arrest.

Serena Williams won plenty of praise about her game from her fellow players at Wimbledon a day after her first singles match in nearly four years.

The 44-year-old Williams was beaten 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-3 by 20-year-old Maya Joint of Australia in the first round on Tuesday but showed she could be competitive after being away for so long.

Coco Gauff ended her dinner early to find somewhere to watch Williams.

“I think Serena’s level was insane," Gauff said Wednesday. "It proves even more how she’s the GOAT despite age and all that. I don’t know how she can play that level not playing for four years. I was already nervous not playing two weeks before this tournament. I couldn’t imagine four years.

“I just love her. I love her fight. And the serve is unbelievable,” Gauff added after her second-round win. “You just look at her and you think, ’This is like 10 years ago.' It’s really insane. I think it was cool for the sport.”

The 87th-ranked Joint was in the top 30 earlier this year.

“Maya played top-10, top-5 tennis. Obviously she’s a great player,” Gauff said. “She seems like an even, chill girl. I do think if anyone was ready for the moment, it would be her.”

Williams announced on Wednesday that she tweaked her right knee toward the end of the first set but said she still hopes to play doubles with sister Venus later in the week.

Serena, a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion who won seven of her titles at Wimbledon, did not ask for medical treatment during the match and did not meet with media afterward.

“Serena tweaked her right knee at the end of the first set and was therefore excused from her media obligations by the Wimbledon and WTA medical teams,” said Jill Smoller, Williams’ agent. “She left site that night unaided and is doing everything she can to be ready for her doubles match later this week.”

Williams confirmed the injury on Instagram and added, “It felt so good to be back on the grass (at) Wimbledon. I’m incredibly thankful for the wild card — and even more grateful my daughters got to see that it’s never too late to chase something you love.

“Congratulations to Maya Joint on a great match, and thank you to everyone who showed up and showed me so much love. That feeling will never get old,” Williams added.

Serena received wild card invitations from Wimbledon organizers to play both singles and doubles with Venus.

Serena has said that having her two daughters off from school inspired her comeback and it marked the first time that her youngest daughter, Adira, who is almost 3, saw her play singles. Adira sat next to her 8-year-old sister, Olympia in the front row of Serena’s players’ box.

Alexis Ohanian, Williams' husband, wrote on social media: “Our little family is so proud of you (at)serenawilliams — even though it wasn’t the outcome you wanted, you’re an inspiration. We love you” He added that the kids “are also happy they got to stay up a bit past their bedtime.”

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka also paid tribute on social media: “I really wonder if Serena and Venus know how much they mean to us,” Osaka posted.

Then after winning her second-round match, Osaka discussed watching Serena play.

“The montages that they had before the match started made me really emotional because I feel like I’ve watched her growing up,” Osaka said. “Now I feel like I’m grown up and I get the privilege of watching her again. So it was really cool.”

Fellow American Tommy Paul watched, too.

“It’s pretty impressive at her age,” Paul said. “She was striking the ball pretty well, returning pretty well. I thought she was going to go after it a little bit more. ... I think it would have helped her a lot to have maybe a match of singles before coming out to Wimbledon. But she’s Serena. She can do whatever she wants.”

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

Kausen, a chef and cooking teacher in Irvine, California, is more discerning and often uses her sense of smell before deciding what to do with the milk.

“I’ll put some thought into it, and if we’re talking about meat and poultry, I’m very cautious about that and for sure will do the smell test and the touch test,” she said.

The debate playing out in Kausen’s kitchen is repeated in homes across California and the country, where varying phrases on food packaging have long left shoppers unsure whether food is simply past its peak quality or unsafe to eat. The state is aiming to cut down on confusion — and the food waste it creates when people throw away food early — with a new food labeling law starting Wednesday.

It bans the use of “sell by” labels on food packaging, which experts say act as a guide for retailers on how long to display products on the shelves but are not an indicator of whether they are still safe to consume. Now, manufacturers selling food in California must use two standardized labels — a “Best if Used By” label for peak quality and “Use By” label for product safety.

Food manufacturers can choose to use either label or both, said Democratic Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin, the author of the bill.

California became the first state in the U.S. to standardize food labels when it approved the law in 2024 that seeks to reduce food waste and the state’s climate-warming emissions. New York state lawmakers recently approved a similar law that is awaiting Gov. Kathy Hochul’s signature.

Legislation addressing food labeling also has been proposed in Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and South Carolina, though it has not passed in those states.

Nick Lapis, director of advocacy at Californians Against Waste, which co-sponsored the bill, said food labels are the leading cause of household food waste. The “sell by” date labels have also been a problem for food banks in California because people consider those dates as meaning the food has expired, he said.

“We don’t need to build some kind of huge infrastructure and invest tons of money to solve this. We just need companies to use the same words across brands,” he said.

There are more than 50 different date labels on packaged food sold in stores, according to a 2022 report on food waste published by the University of Maryland. The information in the labels is largely unregulated and often does not relate to food safety.

“Consumers get confused and they just default to assuming that whatever date is on the package means ‘don’t eat it and throw it away’,” said Kumar Chandran, policy director at ReFED, a nonprofit focused on reducing food waste.

Chandran said California and New York’s approval of food-labeling laws has added momentum to the push for a national standard. A bipartisan bill that would establish uniform food labels is pending in Congress. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recommended a decade ago that food sellers should switch to “Best if Used By” labeling.

Currently, the only product that is regulated federally with date labels is infant formula.

With no federal regulations dictating what information labels should include, the stamps have led to consumer confusion — and nearly 20% of the nation’s food waste, according to the Food and Drug Administration. In California, that’s about 6 million tons of unexpired food that’s tossed in the trash each year.

Nate Rose, a spokesperson for the California Grocers Association, said some grocers have had to overhaul their labeling systems, but as a whole, the association has been supportive of the change.

The new labels will result in “a win-win where we can reduce food waste and consumers will find these decisions a little bit simpler,” he said, adding that shoppers will still find old labels in stores for months to come as grocers sell through the products that already have them.

President Donald Trump's latest financial disclosure report showed he took in about $1.2 billion last year from various crypto holdings, overshadowing a real estate business that brought him fame and helped propel him to the nation's top office.

Whereas it took decades for Trump to amass his various properties, the rise of crypto in his portfolio was done in just over a year, a stunning development sped along by his own friendly policies toward the industry and help from billionaires and other actors with important business before the presidency.

Running over 900 pages, the mandatory annual report showed Trump struck several other new veins of wealth last year, raising questions about whether he is profiting from his high office.

He took in tens of millions from new property holdings in foreign countries eager to please a man with power over where to deploy the U.S. military and how much to charge in tariffs. And he got tens of million more suing media companies worried they could lose their broadcast licenses or not get deals approved by his regulators.

Ever the salesman, Trump even made big money off the smallest of things, pulling in millions by slapping his name on Bibles, guitars and watches — the latter alone bringing in $4.7 million.

Hail the new crypto king

Trump got more than $500 million from his World Liberty Financial business selling “governance tokens" and “stablecoins” and other crypto assets. Another crypto business, CIC Digital LLC, took in more than $600 million from sales of souvenir-type “meme” coins stamped with his face.

Both the tokens and the meme coins have plunged in value since his sales, partly because they are so difficult to value. Governance tokens, for instance, confer to holders only the power to vote on certain management policies at a company, not equity stakes, and so typical valuation measures don't apply.

Buyers pounced on Trump crypto anyway, including a Chinese billionaire who spent $75 million on the tokens and $200 million on the souvenir coins. In February 2025, a federal lawsuit charging the billionaire, Justin Sun, with duping investors was paused before being settled for a $10 million fine.

Sun has denied his spending on Trump businesses had anything to do with his federal case, while World Liberty has dismissed the notion of a conflict of interest.

Separately, a company linked to the United Arab Emirates government bought a stake in World Liberty for $500 million shortly before Trump's inauguration. The disclosure says nothing about the deal explicitly, but notes Trump received his share of a “capital contribution” amounting to nearly $200 million.

Subsequently, the UAE got access to advanced U.S. chips that it had been previously banned from importing because of national security concerns.

The White House has repeatedly said that Trump has acted only in the public interest, never gets involved in a family business run by his two oldest sons and has zero conflicts of interest.

His real estate business is booming, too

Trump took in tens of millions in fees from a flurry of new hotel, resort and condo deals overseas, amounting to the biggest property expansion ever in the century since the family business was founded.

Many of those countries were negotiating with the U.S. over tariffs, military aid and other important matters while the family business was striking the deals.

A property in the UAE generated $10.4 million for the Trump business last year. One in Saudi Arabia being built by a real estate developer close to the ruling family sent the president’s company $9 million. And one in Bucharest, Romania, and another in Qatar sent him $5 million each.

Trump's Winter White House is hot

A big winner last year was Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, generating $77 million as heads of state and business people flocked to what Trump has dubbed his Winter White House. That's up 50% from a year earlier when Trump was just another citizen.

His golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, also is doing well from the glow of the presidency. Trump got $38 million from his so-called Summer White House, up nearly 20%.

In total his 16 golf courses and clubs around the world brought in more than $470 million in fees and licensing income.

The president's MAGA book sold more than the Bible

Trump took in millions last year from selling Trump books and various other Trump-branded goods in another unprecedented move for the presidency.

Trump Bibles made $208,486, but the word of God didn't sell as well as a trio of other literary offerings. His “Save America” book took in $1,893,965, “Letters to Trump” generated $590,730, and “A MAGA Journey,” $552,685.

His brand of guitars generated $35,920. Trump sneakers and fragrances took in $67,634.

Trump sued a lot, and made a lot of money

It's anyone's guess why exactly various media companies decided to settle Trump lawsuits alleging fraud and defamation, but settle they did — and paid up.

Lawsuits against ABC, CBS, Meta, and others took in more than $80 million, much of which went to Trump's planned Miami library.

Where Trump hasn't prevailed so far is with E. Jean Carroll, the advice columnist who won millions accusing Trump of sexual abuse and defamation. The disclosure says Trump owes her $50 million, pending appeal.

The states and federal government accused Cal-Maine Foods, Versova and Hickman’s Egg Ranch of a behind-the-scenes arrangement to “artificially inflate the daily price quotations for eggs" between June 2022 and March 2025. In particular, their investigation found that the companies coordinated on what bids they would submit to Urner Barry Publications, a company that runs an index key to determining how much grocery stores, restaurants and others pay for billions of eggs each year.

In turn, that meant “higher prices for eggs sold to consumers,” alleged the complaint, which was filed in Iowa on Monday, the day the settlement terms were announced.

“When powerful corporations collude behind the scenes to raise prices, working families suffer the costs,” New York Attorney General Letitia James, who helped lead the investigation, said in a statement. “These egg producers manipulated the market to squeeze even more profit out of consumers and businesses."

None of the companies admitted wrongdoing under the settlements. But to settle the states' claims, Cal-Maine, Versova and Hickman's will collectively be on the hook for $3.3 million and 53 million eggs, James and others said. Those eggs would be donated by the companies and make their ways to food banks and nonprofits. The money will be distributed to the states.

The Justice Department and the states also outlined actions the companies will need to take, including adopting antitrust compliance programs and banning communicating with competitors on pricing and bidding strategies.

The settlements would still need court approval. The Justice Department's Omeed A. Assefi said Tuesday that the proposed settlements “resolve years of conduct that dragged on Americans’ finances and their everyday lives.”

Average U.S. egg prices soared to a record high of about $6.23 per dozen in March 2025, amid a bird flu epidemic that forced farmers to slaughter millions of egg-laying chickens. Egg producers blamed price spike on the outbreak, but critics accused big companies of taking advantage of their market dominance and the government began its investigation.

Monday’s complaint notes that price quotations “dropped significantly” after Cal-Maine, Versova and Hickman’s learned of the Justice Department’s investigation and were instructed to preserve documents in March 2025. Consumer egg prices also later tumbled — to under $2.20 per dozen as of May 2026 — as replenished flocks caught up despite the ongoing outbreak.

Cal-Maine maintained Monday that allegations of price manipulation were “baseless” and that it believes its conduct has been legal. It also noted that while it was part of a cooperative with the other egg producers, it left the group in May 2024.

Still, Cal-Maine CEO Sherman Miller said the company's settlement agreement “enables us to move forward so we can devote our full attention to what matters most: delivering affordable, high-quality eggs and egg-based prepared foods to consumers nationwide.”

Miller added the period the Justice Department reviewed “was a particularly challenging time” — noting that, beyond avian flu, the COVID-19 pandemic, weather and other market conditions have contributed to temporary supply shocks and high prices in recent years. He said Cal-Maine “took numerous steps to protect and grow its hen flock” in that time.

Versova echoed a similar sentiment, particularly pointing to the toll the bird flu has had on its farmers, who it noted “don’t set the wholesale price of eggs.” Instead, Versova said the price of most of its eggs depends on cost fluctuations of grain used in hen feeds.

Meanwhile, Hickman's owner Mantiqueira USA, which acquired the egg producer in November, said the “conduct referenced in the complaint predates our acquisition," noting that it is committed to complying with the law.

Some advocacy groups say the proposed settlements aren't enough.

“Consumers paid record prices while dominant egg producers reported extraordinary profits, yet the result is another settlement that corporations can treat as the cost of doing business rather than meaningful accountability,” said Angela Huffman, president of Farm Action.

Cal-Maine — the only of the three companies that is public and reports quarterly financials — reported a profit of $1.22 billion for the 2025 fiscal year. Under its settlement agreement with the states, the company would pay $1.5 million and donate 30 million eggs.

Meanwhile, per court documents, Versova would provide 20 million eggs and $800,000, and Hickman's would be on the hook for 3.25 million eggs and $1 million.

In addition to New York, these states were party to the settlement agreements: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Wisconsin.

In an arrest affidavit, police said the incident happened on Tuesday evening along State Road 414, where the girl was seen waving her arms to get help outside an SUV on the side of the road.

“A passerby made contact with the juvenile, who stated she was 6 years old,” the affidavit reads. “Dispatch further advised that the juvenile’s mother remained inside the vehicle and had been observed vomiting. According to the witness, the female appeared unconscious and had vomit on herself.”

Upon arrival, police said they began assessing the woman, who was later identified as 33-year-old Joelle Service.

At the time, she appeared “confused and disoriented” while interacting with first responders, and she wasn’t able to provide a clear explanation about why, police noted.

There was also damage seen on both the front and rear passenger-side doors of the vehicle, though Service claimed she wasn’t aware of any collision and didn’t know how the damage had occurred, the affidavit states.

“While speaking with Joelle, I observed that her eyes were glassy and bloodshot and that her speech was slurred,” the affidavit continues. “Officers on scene were informed by (Apopka Fire Department) personnel that Joelle stated she had consumed alcohol throughout the day and believed she was ‘good to drive home.’”

Police said they spoke with the girl, who explained that it was Service’s birthday and that the two had traveled to Wolf Branch Brewing in Mount Dora earlier that day.

Per the 6-year-old girl, Service had drunk several glasses of wine while in Mount Dora, and on their way home, she had been “driving badly” and struck several objects on the roadway.

“(She) advised that she became scared because Joelle was swerving and striking objects,” police wrote. “According to (the girl), Joelle eventually stopped on the shoulder of SR-414 because she began feeling ill.”

As a result of the incident, Service was taken into custody and now faces charges of DUI with a child in the vehicle and child neglect without great bodily harm.

Arrest warrants say Nateal Campbell’s throat was cut and Ciarre Campbell was found with a knife. Officers found her unresponsive when they arrived at around 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to a police statement.

Ciarre Campbell, 41, was booked into the Fulton County Jail, where he was being held without bond, and waived his initial court hearing Wednesday on charges including aggravated assault and murder. A lawyer listed for him in online court records did not immediately return an email and voicemail seeking comment on the charges.

In a 911 call released by police, an unidentified man can be heard asking for a wellness check. He tells the dispatcher that he is trying to get inside his mother's house with his brother and sister-in-law. He says they can see another brother, who is “mentally ill” and lives with their mom, inside the home. The caller says the brother inside had said their mother left, but a neighbor's camera footage shows she didn't.

Police records show that before Tuesday, officers had received at least nine calls for service to that address since September for a variety of reasons, including a fight in progress, a suspicious person and an earlier welfare check.

According to a police incident report, a sister of Ciarre Campbell called police on April 24 and said her brother was inside the home and had “started a fire to rid the house of the demons.” The sister told an officer that her mother lived there but had not been at the house for a week because Ciarre Campbell “has overtaken the home.”

Neighbors called the police on multiple occasions to report disturbances, and Nateal Campbell told an officer in mid-April that her son had not been taking medication prescribed to treat schizophrenia, reports show.

The Campbell family issued a statement asking for privacy while they deal with “overwhelming grief.”

“We are devastated to share that the Campbell Family has lost its matriarch, Mrs. Nateal Campbell,” the family statement said. “While the details of her passing are still being investigated, we take comfort in knowing she is reunited with our father, her beloved Chuck, and in the arms of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”

A defensive lineman for the Baltimore Ravens, Calais Campbell is entering his 19th NFL season after signing a one-year, $5.5 million contract in April. He is the oldest active defensive player in the NFL going into the 2026 season. He will be 40 on Sept. 1.

The 2017 first-team AP All-Pro selection has been voted to the Pro Bowl six times in a career that started as a second-round pick in 2008 with the Arizona Cardinals.

The former Miami Hurricane spent 10 seasons with the Cardinals and also played in Jacksonville, Atlanta and Miami.

Campbell has 117 career sacks in 278 games, including 259 starts.

After months of complaints from residents, Florida’s Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) has launched a formal investigation into the community’s homeowners association. But as the investigation continues, residents say they are still paying higher HOA dues while watching their neighborhood decline.

Residents describe dead landscaping, broken amenities, trash at the community entrance and facilities in disrepair — conditions they say don’t reflect the “premier” community they were promised.

“We’re being told that we’re getting an assessment and we don’t know where the money is,” homeowner Jennifer Rivers said.

Residents question rising fees, missing financial records

Legends Golf and Country Club, which is managed by ICON Management Services, a division of Troon, has increased HOA costs through both higher monthly dues and a special assessment.

Special assessments are an additional fee charged to homeowners by their association to cover major projects or unexpected emergencies that exceed the HOA’s regular budget and reserve funds

Rivers said residents were first told in February that a budgeting error required homeowners to pay an additional $290 — roughly equal to one month’s HOA dues.

Weeks later, she said, the association cited damage from Central Florida’s record winter freeze and increased the assessment to $860.

Then, residents say the HOA retracted that and changed the price a third time, causing major confusion and raising red flags about how much money was needed, how record-keeping was being managed, and where their dues were being used.

At the same time, residents say they requested financial records to better understand the spending but received only partial documentation, which they stated violated Florida law.

Under Florida Statute §720.303(5), the HOA must keep financial and accounting records according to good accounting practices, which must include:

• Accurate, itemized, and detailed records of all receipts and expenditures.
• A current account and periodic statement for each member detailing assessments paid, due dates, and balances.
• All tax returns, financial statements, financial reports, and bank statements.
• All current contracts and any bids received by the association for work to be performed.

“I started going to board meetings and asking questions, and I realized that people who asked questions were attacked or shamed,” resident Kristin Shirley said.

Residents say neighborhood conditions have deteriorated

Homeowners say the financial concerns have coincided with visible declines throughout the community.

Among the issues they pointed to:

• Dead trees, bushes and landscaping
• Trash left at the community entrance
• Fitness equipment left broken for months
• Broken lights
• Dried up ponds and fountains

Residents also raised concerns over the HOA’s reserve account.

According to financial documents reviewed by News 6, homeowners say the reserve fund dropped from approximately $1.5 million in early 2025 to roughly $376,000 about a year later.

“That’s $1.1 million that we don’t see a paper trail for,” one resident said.

Residents hire attorney as investigation moves forward

After repeated attempts to get answers, residents said they turned to social media to organize Facebook groups like Legends Unite to centralize information, keep the community informed, and press HOA board members for transparency.

Ultimately, around 70 households pooled additional money to hire an attorney, an effort they described as ‘frustrating and costly,’ especially given the economic turmoil and because they are supposed to be represented and supported by the HOA’s legal counsel.

“We felt we needed protection,” Shirley said, disappointed. “This is our home. This is where our children grow up.”

News 6 also repeatedly requested information via email and voicemail from Legends Golf and Country Club HOA, ICON Management, and TROON, to no avail.

State investigation underway

The Department of Business and Professional Regulation opened a formal investigation in early June before referring the matter to its Office of General Counsel, where the case remains.

News 6 is continuing to seek updates from the state on the status of the investigation.

The case also highlights a broader issue in Florida: there is no single state agency dedicated to regulating homeowners associations, a gap that can complicate oversight and enforcement when residents raise concerns about HOA operations or management.

Gracie, who is about 3 years old, has been missing for nearly two weeks after escaping her enclosure at Cedar Hollow Ranch in the Texas Hill Country, said Vick Jones, who owns the remote property about 100 miles (160 kilometers) west of San Antonio. He said Wednesday that Gracie had wandered into a part of the privately owned preserve that other giraffes previously avoided.

Jones said he has sent up helicopters to look for Gracie, a few sightings have trickled in, and a $5,000 reward is on the table.

But the giraffe, which stands roughly the height of a tree, hasn't turned up.

“She wound up going up and feeding in an area on the hillside and the rocky ledges that none of the other giraffes had ever gone on before,” Jones said. “And when she came down off of there, she came down on the wrong side of the gate.”

The ranch is in rural Real County, where its roughly 2,700 residents were put on alert to be on the lookout for a missing giraffe. Jones said the search area is extremely remote, and the likelihood of Gracie encountering any humans is low.

“People are not in danger of her because she’s not around people,” Jones said. 'She’s out in very, very rough, heavily wooded lands.”

The Texas Hill Country has one of the largest concentrations of exotic captive animals in the country. Real County Sheriff Nathan Johnson said the mild climate and rugged terrain seems to serve as a good stand-in for most of the animals' native African environments.

He rattled off a list of animals that have gone missing over the years, especially after floods, but said this was his first giraffe.

“I’ve had wildebeests, I've had water buffalo, I've had monkeys, I’ve had zebras, all go missing,” Johnson said. “Sometimes we recover them, and sometimes we don’t.”

While the middle of Texas is not a giraffe's native environment, Jones said Gracie should be able to find plenty of leaves and other vegetation to eat. He said other animals were not likely to bother her.

Jones said he initially had helicopters searching an area of about 7,500 acres (3,000 hectares) with no luck. A few days later, there was a report that Gracie was spotted to the south.

But by the time they could search the area, Jones said, she was already gone.

“We're always two three days late for where the information is coming from, so that makes it tough,” Jones said.

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This story corrects the spelling of the first name of the giraffe’s owner. His name is Vick Jones, not Vic Jones.

It adds up. The United States trades $1.9 trillion a year — $5 billion a day — worth of goods and services with its neighbors, Canada and Mexico. They have supplanted China as America's top two trading partners.

So the stakes are high when it comes to fiddling with the rules that govern trade between the three countries. And after a year of President Donald Trump’s chaotic tariff policies, many U.S., Canadian and Mexican businesses would welcome the return of stability across North America.

They are not likely to get it.

The regional trade pact — the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement or USMCA — that Trump negotiated and boasted about in his first term came up for renewal Wednesday, starting a process that is likely to last months, maybe longer.

And the path forward is lined with landmines.

“There’s going to be a lot of drama this summer," Diego Marroquín Bitar, a fellow in the America’s program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said last week at a USMCA forum sponsored by the Cato Institute.

A bumpy road ahead for North American trade

The U.S. is making demands that could effectively force Canada and Mexico to surrender some automaking production to the United States. That might bring more auto factory jobs to the United States. But it would also upend established supply chains and would push up U.S. prices for new cars that now average nearly $50,000 at a time when American consumers are already furious about the high cost of living.

Trump, characteristically, has added to the tension by threatening to pull out of his own agreement altogether.

In 2020, the USMCA replaced the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement, which tore down most trade barriers between the three North American countries.

Trump and other critics had called NAFTA a job killer because it encouraged U.S. companies to move factories south of the border to take advantage of low-wage Mexican labor, then ship goods back to the United States duty free.

His USMCA ended up being similar to NAFTA — though it pressured factories to pay higher wages and make sure that more of what they made originated in North America in an effort to prevent Chinese products from slipping across regional borders duty free.

North America trade deal is up for renewal

The USMCA included a novel provision requiring the pact to be renewed every six years. That deadline was Wednesday, and the three countries met virtually. But U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement that the United States was not ready to renew the pact as it is for another 16 years — which would have been until 2042. The United States wants changes to the agreement to reduce its trade deficits with Canada and Mexico and to resolve specific disputes over issues such as Canada’s protection of its dairy industry.

The USMCA remains in effect while the three countries continue to work on ways to resolve their differences; they have until the current term ends in 2036 to reach an agreement. Otherwise, the pact expires.

Meantime, any USMCA country can pull out of the pact provided it gives its two partners six months’ notice — a red buzzer that Canada and Mexico, dependent on trade with the United States, fear Trump just might push.

Trump, after all, said in June that he was “not looking to renew" the trade pact with Canada and Mexico. "We don’t need anything that they have,” he said.

Canada is out in the cold

The United States and Mexico have held talks on renewing the trade agreement. But Canada has so far been stuck on the sidelines.

Patrick Childress, a partner at the Holland & Knight law firm and a former U.S. trade negotiator, said: “The danger for Canada is this: that the U.S. government and the Mexican government reach agreement on changes to core provisions of the treaty and then show up in Ottawa and say: ‘Here’s what we’ve agreed to. You can take it or leave it."’

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said that the three trading partners plan to meet virtually on Wednesday, adding: “I’m not looking for my pen.”

Carney later said in French his priority is to update the USMCA.

Pushing production to the United States

The U.S. wants a refreshed trade pact to do more to make sure that Chinese goods don’t get in through the back door.

But the most contentious issue is that the U.S. is also seeking a brand-new requirement: that 50% of cars be made in the United States, Carney confirmed in early June. Currently, none of the USMCA countries gets a guaranteed share of production. “It’s a red line for both Mexico and Canada, and it goes against the spirit and the letter of regional integration,” Ocampo said.

Marcos Carias, economist at the credit insurer Coface, said only 1 in 5 Mexican and Canadian cars imported into the United States would currently meet the 50% standard.

Vehicle models likely to be hit with higher costs under the plan, he said, include Ford’s Maverick compact pickup truck, Chevrolet’s mid-size Equinox SUV and some Nissan sedans — all made in Mexico. Carias’ “back of the envelope" calculations suggest that prices could increase 5% to 7% on the most-affected models.

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AP Writers Maria Verza in Mexico City and Rob Gilles in Toronto contributed to this story.

In remarks at a central bank conference in Sintra, Portugal, Warsh said that if businesses or households thought the Fed would accept inflation above 2%, “I guess they'd be disappointed. We're going to deliver price stability.”

The Fed typically combats inflation by raising borrowing costs. When asked about Trump's oft-repeated desire for lower rates, Warsh underscored the Fed's independence from day-to-day politics.

“We’ve been an independent central bank for a very long time," he said. "We’re going to be an independent central bank at this moment and you’re going to see no changes to that.”

Such comments suggest that Warsh has shifted his views since replacing Jerome Powell as chair May 22. He called for lower rates last year as he essentially campaigned for the job. Since becoming chair, however, Warsh has appeared to move away from that stance and instead has signaled a focus on getting inflation down.

But on Wednesday he declined to say what steps the Fed would take to achieve that goal, consistent with his opposition to so-called “forward guidance,” in which central bank leaders foreshadow their next policy moves.

“I'm not going to make a judgment now," he said during the panel discussion with other central bankers. "The tactics, the strategy, and the rest, that's still to come,” he later added.

At his first news conference last month, Warsh also emphasized his goal of getting inflation back down to target. Wall Street investors expect the Fed could hike its key interest rate as soon as in September, from its current level of about 3.6% to roughly 3.9%.

When the Fed last met June 16-17, nearly half of the 19 policymakers signaled that they supported higher rates this year, while eight supported no change and one penciled in a cut. Warsh did not submit a forecast because of his opposition to providing guidance.

The economy has shifted since Trump first nominated Warsh in January, with inflation rising to a three-year high of 4.2% in May, pushed higher by the Iran war's impact on gas prices. Yet as a peace agreement has been reached, gas prices have declined, suggesting inflation may have peaked. Fed officials may very well wait to see where inflation settles if oil and gas prices continue to fall back to prewar levels.

On Wednesday, Warsh also said there are signs that the threat of persistent inflation has moderated. He specifically cited inflation expectations, or where the public and financial markets think inflation will head next, as measured by surveys and bond prices. Both have showed declining expectations in the past month.

Yet a key question facing Warsh is whether he will have to raise rates in the next few meetings to underscore his commitment to fighting inflation. If gas prices keep falling and inflation declines, he may be try to avoid doing so.

At the same time, hiring has picked up in recent months and economists forecast the government will issue a solid jobs report on Thursday that will likely show the unemployment rate remains a low 4.3%. Such a report would reduce pressure on the Fed to lower borrowing costs.

Warsh also reiterated his view that over time, artificial intelligence will expand the economy's ability to produce goods and services and reduce inflationary pressures. Yet many economists think it could take an extended period of time for those trends to take hold.

In the short term, economists say, the breakneck investment in AI infrastructure is pushing up prices for semiconductor and computing equipment, fueling inflation.

Warsh declined to comment specifically on whether AI spending is inflationary, and often noted that he has set up five task forces at the Fed to study a range of issues, including AI and its impact on productivity.

“This is as exciting a time and also as consequential a time to be a central banker that I can think of at any point, maybe outside of a crisis, in my adult lifetime,” he said.

Chitwood said the gang, known as the “Cut Throat Killers,” has been linked to multiple fatal overdoses and shootings across the east side of the county over the past year. About a dozen suspects are in custody as of Tuesday, with the search for the remaining individuals still active.

Deputies executed search warrants at 10 properties Tuesday morning. Among them was a house in Holly Hill adjacent to Greater Harvest Church — a property authorities say was used to store many of the weapons and drugs. The sheriff said the home is owned by the church’s pastor.

The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office and Daytona Beach Police Department launched the investigation last year after realizing several overdoses and shootings were connected to the same group. The FBI was later brought in to assist.

Investigators say the break in the case came largely from tips provided by residents in the affected neighborhoods.

“They don’t like what’s been going on in this community which is why they gave us the tips that we got in order to get where we are in this investigation,” said Daytona Beach Police Chief Jakari Young.

Surveillance footage gathered during the investigation allegedly shows a steady flow of armed individuals at the property near the church. Sheriff Chitwood said the volume of activity at the location left little doubt the pastor was aware of what was happening.

“Clearly there is a lot of activity going back and forth and on the surveillance it’s the who’s who of gun-toting drug dealers on the East side of the county who was there. People who have multiple convictions for firearms, shootings, guns — there’s no way the good pastor there didn’t know what her son was up to,” Chitwood said.

Chitwood and Young both expressed confidence the operation would significantly reduce drug activity on the county’s east side. Authorities say they are actively monitoring known locations and expect to take the remaining suspects into custody soon.

This story will be updated as new information becomes available.