Florida Democrats choose Rep. Crist to challenge DeSantis
MIAMI (AP) — U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist has won the Democratic nomination for governor in Florida, putting him in position to challenge Gov. Ron DeSantis this fall in a campaign that the Republican incumbent is eyeing as the first step toward a potential White House run. In selecting Crist, Florida Democrats sided with a candidate backed by many in the party’s establishment who viewed him as the safest choice. The 66-year-old Crist defeated Nikki Fried, the state agriculture commissioner, who staked out a more progressive campaign. In New York, congressional primaries include a race between two powerful Democratic committee chairs, Carolyn Maloney and Jerry Nadler, and other incumbents fending off challenges from the left.
Nadler defeats Maloney in battle of top House Democrats
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler has defeated U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney in a Democratic primary after a court forced the two veteran lawmakers into the same New York City congressional district. As the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, Nadler twice led fights to impeach former President Donald Trump. His victory ends a 30-year run in Congress for Maloney, who fought to get government aid for people sickened by clouds of toxic soot after the Sept. 11 attacks. The unusual battle between incumbents resulted from a redistricting process that lumped Nadler’s home base on the west side of Manhattan together with Maloney’s on the east side.
Student loan help for millions coming from Biden after delay
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Wednesday is set to announce his long-delayed move to forgive up to $10,000 in federal student loans for many Americans and extend a pause on payments to January, according to three people familiar with the plan. Biden has faced pressure from liberals to provide broader relief to hard-hit borrowers, and from moderates and Republicans questioning the fairness of any widespread forgiveness. The delay in Biden’s decision has only heightened the anticipation for what his own aides acknowledge represents a political no-win situation. Down-to-the-wire decision-making has been a hallmark of the Biden White House, but the delay on student loans reflects the vexing challenge confronting him in fulfilling a key campaign promise.
US airstrikes target militia-controlled areas in east Syria
BEIRUT (AP) — The U.S. military says it carried out airstrikes in eastern Syria that targeted areas used by militias backed by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. The U.S. military’s Central Command said the strikes hitting Deir Ez-Zor “took proportionate, deliberate action intended to limit the risk of escalation and minimize the risk of casualties.” There was no immediate acknowledgment by Syria’s state-run media of the strikes. Iran as well did not acknowledge the attack. The strikes come after U.S. forces were targeted by a Aug. 15 drone attack. Deir Ez-Zor is a strategic province that borders Iraq and contains oil fields. U.S. forces entered Syria in 2015, backing allied forces in their fight against the Islamic State group.
More than 100 classified Trump docs recovered back in Jan.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The National Archives and Records Administration recovered more than 100 documents bearing classified markings, totaling more than 700 pages, from a initial batch of 15 boxes retrieved from Mar-a-Lago earlier this year. That’s according to newly public government correspondence with the Trump legal team. The numbers lay bare the large volume of classified documents found at the Florida estate of former President Donald Trump — long before an FBI search of the property this month in which the Justice Department said 11 sets of classified records were located and removed.
US to send $3 billion in aid to Ukraine as war hits 6 months
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. officials say that as Russia’s war on Ukraine drags on, U.S. security assistance is shifting to a longer-term campaign that will likely keep more American military troops in Europe into the future. They say a new aid package to be announced includes an additional roughly $3 billion to train and equip Ukrainian forces to fight for years to come. The aid is expected to be announced Wednesday, the day the war hits the six-month mark and Ukraine celebrates its independence day. The money will fund contracts for drones, weapons and other equipment that may not see the battlefront for a year or two.
Former Louisville cop pleads guilty in Breonna Taylor case
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A former Louisville police detective who helped falsify the warrant that led to the deadly police raid at Breonna Taylor’s apartment has pleaded guilty to a federal charge. Federal investigators say Kelly Goodlett added a false line to the warrant and later conspired with another detective to create a cover story when Taylor’s 2020 shooting death by police began gaining national attention. Taylor was shot to death by officers who knocked down her door while executing a drug search warrant. Goodlett appeared in a federal courtroom in Louisville on Tuesday afternoon and admitted to conspiring with another Louisville police officer to falsify the warrant.
IRS initiates safety probe after threats to workers
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Internal Revenue Service says it is conducting a comprehensive review of safety at its facilities. The action comes in response to an increasing number of threats borne of conspiracy theories that agents were going to aggressively target middle-income taxpayers. The climate, healthcare and tax legislation signed into law by President Joe Biden last week included $80 billion in funding for tax collection efforts. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen specifically directed the agency to not focus its attention on taxpayers with middle-class incomes, but misinformation spread rapidly online that agents were going to crack down on taxpayers of all earnings levels.
2 men convicted in plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Whitmer
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A jury has convicted two men of conspiring to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020. Prosecutors described the plot as a rallying cry for a U.S. civil war by anti-government extremists. The jury also found Adam Fox and Barry Croft Jr. guilty of conspiring to obtain a weapon of mass destruction. Croft, of Bear, Delaware, was also convicted of a third crime. It was the second trial for the pair after a jury in April couldn’t reach a unanimous verdict. Two other men were acquitted and two more pleaded guilty. The FBI considered it a major domestic terrorism case and put at least three informants and two undercover agents in the group. Defense lawyers say Fox and Croft were simply “big talkers” who said vile things about Whitmer and government.
Bolsonaro welcomes emperor’s heart for Brazil bicentennial
SAO PAULO (AP) — The embalmed heart of the emperor who declared Brazil’s independence has returned to the South American nation for ceremonies worthy of a head of state as the nation prepares to celebrate its bicentennial. The heart of Pedro I is contained in a golden reliquary that arrived from Portugal in a Brazilian air force plane. It was carried up the ramp of the presidential palace in Brasilia on Tuesday — in line with procedures afforded to visiting leaders on official state visits. Pedro I declared Brazil’s independence on Sept. 7, 1822, and imperial rule lasted until 1889, when the monarchy gave way to a republic.