He remembers the pain and fear in his community in the eastern Congo city of Beni during the 2018-2020 Ebola outbreak, history's second-biggest with more than 3,400 reported cases and over 2,200 deaths. It was stopped with the aid of vaccines.

Kombi also remembers the broad skepticism over the disease, attacks on health workers and inaction from patients that he blames for the speed in which the disease spread.

“We thought it was witchcraft,” said Kombi. “The community had not accepted that this disease existed and it had not accepted that we could recover from it.”

In Beni, a bustling commercial hub near the borders with Uganda and Rwanda, some fear that a repeat of mistakes made during Congo's past outbreaks and the lack of an approved vaccine this time around might make the response to the latest outbreak more challenging.

A total of 550 cases of the disease were confirmed as of Sunday in the current outbreak caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, a type of Ebola virus, including 101 deaths and 19 recoveries.

Suspicions of a conspiracy

Kombi recalled how he contracted the virus after being exposed to others who had it. He said they had little information about the disease at the time, and that while many thought it was witchcraft, others described it as a “Western conspiracy for funding reasons.”

“The community had not accepted that we could recover from this disease, that’s why reintegrating into the community at first was a bit difficult,” he said.

“When a pandemic hits here in Congo, we initially think it’s a political issue,” said Bienfait Wanzire, who also recovered after contracting Ebola during the 2018 outbreak.

“At first, we thought it was a spiritual illness,” he said. “Then because there were election campaigns, we believed it was political.”

Doctor recalls losing his uncle and colleagues

Dr. Babah Mutuza Lusungu, a physician at “Dieu Est Grand” Medical Center in Beni, remembered losing his uncle and two colleagues even as he tried to convince people the outbreak was real.

“There was very strong resistance,” said Lusungu. “And so there was a climate of mistrust that took place between the population, the authorities, the partners too, right, and the health workers.”

Youths at the time were not directly involved in response efforts, he said, urging local authorities to work more closely with youth leaders to enlighten people about the disease.

“If we wait until they have so many declared cases to start making an effective response, we will have totally missed the target,” he said.

Vaccines saved his family

Esperance Masinda, who was working for the U.N. children’s agency in Beni during the 2018 outbreak, said it was particularly difficult caring for children who had lost their parents to Ebola.

She contracted the disease while looking after her husband who was working as a medical doctor. Although they both later recovered, the vaccine that helped save them distanced them from family and neighbors.

“When we were in the community, we were told that you’re not going to make it even five years, you’re going to die with that medication that you took there,” Masinda said.

“And today, when they see us, these people no longer stigmatize us,” she said. “We are all humans, even though we have been victims of Ebola, all of us are humans.”

Attacks on health workers from angry residents, skepticism among some locals and armed conflict in hot spots continue to challenge efforts to stop the spread.

Out of the 550 cases of the disease confirmed as of Sunday, there have been 101 deaths and 19 recoveries, according to the latest situation report late Monday. The number of cases though is believed to be higher because the outbreak was confirmed weeks late, and response has been challenging also because the virus has no approved vaccine or treatment.

The latest Ebola disease outbreak is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, which does not have an approved vaccine or treatment unlike the Zaire virus responsible for most of Congo’s past 16 outbreaks of the disease.

What caused the crash remained unclear Tuesday morning in the Middle East, which was still reeling after Iran and Israel exchanged fire the previous day in the biggest blow yet to the straining ceasefire in the Iran war. Iranian state media, relying on foreign reporting, acknowledged the crash without elaborating.

Since the U.S. and Israel began striking Iran on Feb. 28, the war has shaken the global economy, driven up energy prices around the world and made many basics, including food, more expensive. Officials have been unable to turn the April ceasefire into a deal to permanently end the conflict.

Trump, speaking to journalists at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York after watching the NBA Finals on Monday night, acknowledged the crash.

“The pilots are fine. Yeah,” Trump said. “Nobody injured. We are going to issue a report tomorrow. But the pilots are fine.”

The New York Times first reported that a U.S. Army Apache attack helicopter went down near the strait in unclear circumstances. The U.S. military's Central Command and the Defense Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press.

Apache helicopters have been a key asset for the American military as it enforces a blockade on Iranian crude oil shipments and tankers, seeking to pressure Tehran into reaching a deal. The helicopters also have been used by the United Arab Emirates to shoot down Iranian drones during the Iran war.

Trump insists an Iran deal is coming

Trump also expressed renewed optimism over negotiations with Iran.

“We have a good chance” of signing a deal in “two or three days," Trump said. But he didn’t provide any details on why there was reason for new optimism.

“We’re very close to having a very, very good, strong, powerful deal,” the president said. “If we go and bomb — which we could do very easily if we want, and we spend another two or three weeks bombing — they’ll have nothing left whatsoever. But you won’t have the strait open for months.”

He added: “If we do the bombing, you know, a lot of people are going to be killed. Who wants to do that? I don’t.”

Mediators, led predominantly by Pakistan, have been trying for weeks to get a deal across the line. However, both Iran and the U.S. have taken hard-line positions.

The U.S. wants to see Iran give up its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which is believed still to be entombed in the country after American airstrikes in the 12-day war in 2025. But Iran is refusing that and demanding relief from sanctions. It also wants the release of frozen assets even before a final agreement is in place, something rejected by Trump.

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Price reported from New York. Associated Press writer Will Weissert in Washington contributed to this report.

Oil prices fell back after surging on Monday as fighting flared between Israel and Iran, threatening to pull the region back into full-scale war.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.9% to 65,273.83. Computer chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron gained 9.9% and other technology stocks were among the biggest gainers.

In South Korea, the Kospi jumped 7.7% to 8,063.52 after Monday’s loss of more than 8%. SK Hynix, which on Monday announced plans to partner with Nvidia in building data centers, jumped 15.8%. Samsung Electronics was up 8.8%.

Taiwan's Taiex advanced 2.8% on gains for tech companies like computer chip giant TSMC.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.1% to 24,631.52 and the Shanghai Composite index added 0.7% to 3,988.46.

The S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.1% to 8,615.60.

On Wall Street on Monday, the S&P 500 added 0.3%, coming off a 2.6% drop Friday that was its worst since October. It closed at 7,405.73.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.9%.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 21.99 points to 7,405.73. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 80.77 to 50,786.01, and the Nasdaq composite gained 220.23 to 25,929.66.

Some of the best performers were companies that sell computer chips, memory and other AI-related products that had plunged on worries their prices have shot too high.

Micron Technology rose 9.9% after sliding 13.3% Friday for the largest loss in the S&P 500. That resumed a run where its stock has more than tripled so far in 2026.

Marvell Technology climbed 9.6% in its first trading after S&P Dow Jones Indices said the semiconductor company’s stock has grown enough to join its widely followed S&P 500 index. Marvell’s stock has also more than tripled so far this year, aided by a 32.5% surge in one day last week. That was its best day since it began trading in 2000, and it came after Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, suggested at a conference in Taiwan that Marvell could be “the next trillion-dollar company.”

That such a comment could add billions of dollars to a company’s value in an instant suggests to critics that AI stocks are running too hot. A widely followed index of semiconductor stocks surged nearly 85% for the year so far through Thursday, for example.

Early Tuesday, oil prices fall back from gains on Monday. back into full-scale war. The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil, the international standard, fell $1.16 to $93.09 per barrel. It had briefly topped $98 overnight.

U.S. benchmark crude shed $1.42 to $89.88 per barrel.

High oil prices caused by the war with Iran have already sent inflation higher, which increases not only bills for households but also yields in the bond market. High yields worldwide recently have threatened to slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and all kinds of other investments.

In currency trading, the dollar fell to 160.15 Japanese yen from 160.17 yen. The euro climbed to $1.1547 from $1.1532.

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Called “Leonardo’s Ferry,’’ the mechanism of the so-called reaction ferry was designed five centuries ago and immortalized by the Renaissance genius himself in a drawing preserved in Windsor Castle's Royal Collection outside of London.

It is the last remaining of its kind along the Adda River, which extends from the Alps to the Po River in the Lombardy region.

“This is a mean of transport that has been here for 500 years and has always connected the two banks of the Adda,” said Massimo Zoia, one of the volunteer ferrymen who operates the vessel. “And now it has returned to its original purpose: connecting two populations living on different banks of a river."

Despite its name, it remains unclear whether Leonardo himself actually designed the ferry. What is certain, however, is that he sketched it in 1513, as part of his famed studies of waterways, including Milan's canal system. Leonardo was one of history’s greatest polymaths, filling notebooks with designs across a range of disciplines, including flying machines that wouldn't be realized for centuries.

The ferry’s operating principle is as simple as it is ingenious, and entirely environmentally friendly.

“The river pushes us downstream. We have a cable that binds us, and by breaking down the forces, according to the parallelogram rule, which we study in high school, the force is broken down and one part becomes resistance and the other we use for lateral movement,” Zoia said.

“The rudder is used to adjust the inclination of the ferry so that it better absorbs the stream that hits us and makes us move,” he said.

The ferry is run by the town of Imbersago, and runs to the town of Villa d’Adda on the other side. It came close to disappearing in 2023, when its operator gave up the concession. Determined to save it, Imbersago Mayor Fabio Vergani obtained a ferryman’s license himself and, together with the local tourism association, assembled a team of volunteers.

Since 2024, they have primarily transported weekend visitors from one bank of the Adda to the other.

But they added commuter service this spring after a nearby bridge was closed for maintenance to help ease traffic congestion. It now runs from 7 a.m.-7 p.m., with a two hour lunch break at noon. Passengers pay 1.50 euros (about $1.75) if they are on foot, 2 euros ($2.30) with a bicycle, 2.50 euros ($2.88) with a motorbike and 3.50 (around $4) for a car.

Gianpaolo Graffagnino lives in Villa d’Adda and works on the other side of the river. He has started biking to work, using the ferry as a shortcut.

“Right now this is the fastest system, but above all the nicest because you get three minutes of peace,” he said.

Mauro Carnati drove his Maserati onto the ferry to bring his daughter to school on the other side, avoiding a long detour caused by the bridge closure.

“It’s true that we spend a little money, and it’s not possible every day, but the romance and added value of the Adda and the ferry are truly amazing. It makes for a better start to the day,” he said.

Wembanyama had 32 points, eight rebounds and six assists, carrying the San Antonio Spurs to a 115-111 victory Monday night that cut the Knicks’ lead to 2-1 in the best-of-seven series.

San Antonio is trying to make a first-of-its-kind NBA Finals comeback, and the 7-foot-4 Wembanyama, with his array of skills, makes anything look possible.

“I’m sure Victor has numerous sources of motivation,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “I don’t think any of us are surprised or expect anything different than a strong performance.”

The Spurs handed the Knicks their first loss in 46 days and potentially salvaged their season in front of a Madison Square Garden crowd that included President Donald Trump.

The Knicks had their 13-game winning streak, the second-longest in NBA postseason history, snapped and missed a chance to move to the brink of their first title since 1973. Their previous loss occurred on April 23 in a one-point defeat to the Atlanta Hawks. They won the next three against Atlanta, swept Philadelphia and Cleveland and took the first two games against the Spurs.

The run stirred New York into a frenzy, with raucous watch parties, fans paying outrageous sums of money for tickets and “Knicks In Four” becoming a daily greeting on streets, subway cars and in workplaces.

But Wembanyama and the Spurs ended the streak and ruined the Knicks' first home NBA Finals game since 1999.

“At home, it really feels like playing six against five. Here, it feels like five against six,” Wembanyama said. “It really shows what teams are made of.”

Knicks coach Mike Brown complained about the Spurs’ 24-8 advantage in free throw attempts in the second half.

“I tell the guys, it’s a seven-game series for a reason,” Brown said. “They are a great team. They are well-coached. They have an iconic player. It’s not going to be easy.”

Stephon Castle and De'Aaron Fox hit big shots late as the Spurs avoided falling into a 3-0 hole, which no NBA team has escaped. Now they can tie the series Wednesday night and are guaranteed another game at home, with Game 5 scheduled for Saturday.

Castle finished with 23 points as the Spurs got started in their quest to become the first team to win the NBA Finals after losing the first two games at home.

Jalen Brunson scored 32 points and OG Anunoby had 28 for the Knicks.

Fans who endured long lines to get in with the extra security measures in place — and some who paid five-figure sums for the chance to do so — were treated to a back-and-forth game as the NBA Finals returned to Madison Square Garden for the first time in 27 years.

Wembanyama, whose turnover late in Game 2 cost the Spurs dearly, didn’t make many mistakes Monday. He had 10 points in the final quarter, helping San Antonio build just enough of a cushion to withstand Brunson's latest comeback attempt.

Minutes after Trump was booed loudly when he was shown during the national anthem, the Spurs got off to an ideal start. Wembanyama dunked for their first two baskets and they had a double-digit lead 4 1/2 minutes into the game. San Antonio made nine of its first 11 shots, with the Knicks and their fans frustrated by the referees and the home team’s sloppy play, and led 33-22 after one.

The Garden crowd didn’t really start to rock until Anunoby’s 3-pointer capped an 11-2 surge that cut it to 40-38. The Knicks got their first lead of the night on Brunson's 26-footer as part of a big burst to finish the half. New York led 64-57 at the break.

But the Spurs went back ahead in the third quarter and led 111-104 on Castle's 3-pointer with 1:53 to play. Castle then closed the scoring with two free throws with 6.8 seconds left after Anunoby's 3-pointer cut it to two.

The Knicks had piled up massive scoring margins while romping through the Eastern Conference playoffs, then were just good enough in the two games in San Antonio. This time, a horrible start to the fourth quarter put them too far behind.

A star-studded crowd that included Derek Jeter and Eli Manning, champions of New York teams in other sports, was hoping to see the Knicks move closer to a third NBA title. But with Karl-Anthony Towns limited to 11 points and Mikal Bridges saddled with foul trouble, a team that had been so potent in the postseason struggled for long stretches.

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

Montserrat, a healthy drive from the city followed by a steep ascent, is dear to many of the Catalan people in northeastern Spain. Annually, 2 million people travel to the complex that includes an 11th-century Benedictine abbey as well as a 16th-century basilica. Its Black Madonna statue, which studies show originally was white but turned dark by centuries of smoke and incense before being painted black, is widely revered.

But for many Catholics watching from afar — and especially non-Catholics — the highlight of the Chicago-born pope's seven-day trip to Spain will be his evening Mass at the Sagrada Familia — the Basilica of the Holy Family — commemorating the centennial of the death of its architect, Antoni Gaudí. Leo will speak almost exclusively Spanish on the trip, with some comments in Catalan.

The visit illustrates his balancing act of upholding centuries-old religious traditions in a country where faith is waning while reaching a global audience from a basilica that is more a magnet for tourists than believers. Yet the two sites share a connection even some locals don't know.

A pulpit for the world

The Sagrada Familia fuses the universal language of nature — trees, birds, reptiles, cornucopias of fruit — with scenes from Christ's life. Beyond that unique aesthetic, its allure stems from allowing visitors to bear witness to a great church's ongoing construction.

That began 144 years ago, with the first cornerstone laid in 1882 during the pontificate of Leo's namesake, Pope Leo XIII.

Its claim to “the new” is what sets Gaudí’s masterpiece apart from Europe's other cathedrals and why it has captivated millions. Leo’s Mass is an opportunity to link him with this breathtaking place of worship.

"Its stones and stained glass speak of the possibility of conjuring up 2,000 years of Christian history from a modern and even postmodern view," Ferran Sáez, professor of humanities at Barcelona’s University of Ramón Llull, told The Associated Press. "It is a building that expresses very complex ideas while coming across as comprehensible for anyone who is receptive, whether they are Christian or not.”

The Sagrada Familia is an international sensation, featuring on virtually any self-respecting globetrotter's bucket list. Foreigners account for 90% of its visitors, whose entrance fees fund its construction, and more Americans visit than Spaniards, according to the basilica.

While there aren't statistics on visitors' average age, it is hugely popular among adolescents and twentysomethings. That's in stark contrast to the graying parishioners at most Spanish churches at a moment the Catholic Church strives to engage with and remain relevant to youth.

The basilica's latest superlative — world’s tallest church, with its recently raised Tower of Jesus Christ — has made it an even greater beacon.

Catalans see Montserrat as a spiritual home

The Sagrada Familia is a global pulpit, but it's set in a country where Christianity is receding. Spain underwent a religious crisis in the late 20th century during its return to democracy. Just over half of Spaniards polled by the state opinion agency in 2024 self-identified as Catholics, but only about 1 in 5 called themselves practicing Catholics.

And Catalonia is one of Spain's most secular provinces, Sáez said.

Catalonia’s Catholics are reserved in their practice, without flamboyant Easter Week processions like those in Seville and other Spanish cities.

The force of their faith rests in its holy places: the Sagrada Familia, the Poblet monastery and the Romanesque churches dotting the foothills of the Pyrenees. And, above all, in Montserrat, where pilgrims arrive by bus, cable car, cog railway and strenuous trails.

“It is home to our most beloved representation of Mary, the Black Madonna,” Catalan theologian Francesc Torralba told AP. “Many Catalans pray to her and feel close to her in times of need. Montserrat is a key to our culture, as well as our efforts to maintain our language and our traditions.”

While Montserrat is the region's religious epicenter, its faith is “culturally expressed in its artistic creations” like the Sagrada Familia, he added.

Throngs of tourists

And it's that unbridled and unique artistry that draws so many visitors. Many Barcelona residents feel the Sagrada Familia's fame has driven some of overtourism's worst ills. Tour buses flood the area with day-trippers from cruise ships, and streets facing the church are full of fast food restaurants and souvenir shops. Protesters who squirted tourists with water guns last year were planning to reach the Sagrada Familia until police stopped them.

“Where there are two people (tourists and locals), there can be friction, and that happens in the best marriages,” the Sagrada Familia’s rector, the Rev. Josep Turull, told AP. “So we try, just like with a marriage, for these small crises to be growing pains, and that’s why we try to not just welcome pilgrims and tourists but also make sure that our parishioners feel that this is their basilica.”

Leo could bring even more tourists. Pope Benedict XVI's consecration to make it an operating basilica in 2010 boosted visits from about 3 million a year to nearly 5 million in 2025, according to Xavier Martínez, the CEO of the Sagrada Familia’s construction project.

“I believe that on June 10 we will experience something similar to what we saw in 2010," Martínez said. "At that time, the world discovered the interior of the Sagrada Familia. Now the world will discover the towers of the Sagrada Familia.”

Tour guide and historian Mònica Santín has seen the Sagrada Familia's stunning power for believers and nonbelievers alike; some even weep upon crossing the church's threshold. As personally fulfilling as it is to help tourists achieve these life-changing moments, she is concerned Leo's Mass could drive tourism to levels that are unsustainable for the community.

The sacred sites share a connection

Santín has reserved her spot to see Leo in person, but it won't be at the basilica. She will instead make the journey to the Montserrat monastery.

Santín’s grandmother made the same pilgrimage, walking barefoot to a mountainside cave where legend has it shepherds discovered the Black Madonna statue and prayed for protection for her husband during the Spanish Civil War. Today, Santín wears the ring her grandmother gave her.

“I don’t know how it doesn’t fall apart,” Santín said, gently touching her ring, with its profile of the Virgin of Montserrat, the patron saint of Catalonia, barely visible after so many years.

And she notes that Montserrat and the Sagrada Familia have a shared, but little-known, connection.

A young Gaudí apprenticed with an architect building the mountaintop chapel for the Virgin of Montserrat, according to Santín, who is researching her doctoral thesis on the architect at Barcelona's ISCREB theology school. That same architect was originally hired to build the Sagrada Familia, but material costs made his neo-Gothic proposal inviable and the commission went to Gaudí. As part of his radical design, he introduced elements of the mountain.

Even the basilica's sandcastle-like towers resemble the spirelike rock formations that every Catalan can identify as jutting from Montserrat.

“Montserrat is our holy mountain,” Santín said. “The Sagrada Familia is like a Montserrat in the middle of the city."

Chants of “U-S-A! U-S-A!” echoed through the arena as Avery Wilson sang “The Star-Spangled Banner," but they they gave way to boos moments later as Trump was displayed on the jumbo screens giving a military salute. The jeers ended when the U.S. flag followed him on the screens, and fans cheered when New York Knicks players were shown. Mentions of the San Antonio Spurs also elicited vociferous boos.

The president was unfazed. “It was, I think, mostly cheers,” he told reporters after the game before boarding Air Force One to return to Washington. “It was loud, and it was very enthusiastic.”

Trump watched Game 3 from Knicks owner James Dolan’s suite, along with granddaughter Kai, personal adviser Boris Epshteyn and Cabinet secretaries Lee Zeldin, Sean Duffy and Doug Burgum. He sat next to Dolan for the first quarter and spent part of the second talking to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and Republican gubernatorial hopeful Bruce Blakeman.

Trump’s Marine One helicopter flew from his home in New Jersey and landed near Wall Street before his motorcade made its way up through Manhattan and to the arena roughly an hour before tipoff. He encountered a handful of people making rude gestures, and outside the area, one group held signs saying “Trump must go.”

He settled into Dolan's suite shortly afterward.

During the afternoon before Trump's arrival, the New York Police Department and the U.S. Secret Service set up a large perimeter surrounding Madison Square Garden. Fans lined up to get inside the arena more than four hours before tipoff, in a scene more closely resembling New Year’s Eve in Times Square than the usual leadup to a basketball game.

They were required to provide a ticket or pass to get past various checkpoints, along with going through a Transportation Security Administration-style magnetometer. Secret Service personnel and police were positioned at every corner and in large numbers. Daily commuters, tourists visiting Manhattan and fans were all confounded at various times as they tried to maneuver the security.

New Yorkers forced to adjust

After traveling from his home in Florida for the game, Knicks fan Greg Weldon said the main inconvenience faced so far has been the lack of information.

“We’ve asked so many cops, secret service, guys with machine guns, what to do, where should we go,” he said. “Nobody knows.”

Knicks coach Mike Brown and Spurs counterpart Mitch Johnson downplayed any concept of being inconvenienced by the closures and enhanced security because of Trump.

“There’s a lot going on, and I’d much rather be a part of it than not,” Johnson said.

With security stepped up, a watch party outside was canceled, and ticket-holders were not allowed to bring bags inside the Garden. Fans had gathered near the arena to watch games during this playoff run, during which the Knicks have won 13 games in a row to reach the final for the first time since 1999 and move two victories from their first NBA title since 1973.

“We are looking forward to bringing back watch parties for Game 4,” Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a news conference Monday. "But I think New Yorkers are used to presidents coming to town, and they understand that that generally means lockdowns of areas and that’s what you’re going to see tonight at the Garden.”

The Knicks’ streak was broken Monday night, with the Spurs winning 115-111. Game 4 will be played Wednesday night at the Garden.

Incidents heighten attention to Trump's security

This is the latest major sporting event Trump has attended during his time as president, and the security measures have created major hassles for fans.

Thousands of fans missed the start of last year’s U.S. Open men’s singles final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner because of lengthy security lines. Even though the U.S. Tennis Association pushed back the start of the match by a half-hour, many fans still couldn’t get in because added measures meant that they had to go through screening not only when they arrived at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center but again in front of the steps into Arthur Ashe Stadium, where Trump watched from a suite.

Federal law enforcement officials have been reexamining Trump’s security in light of three incidents in the past two years: a shooting at a 2024 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania; the discovery of a man armed with a rifle as Trump played golf in West Palm Beach, Florida, later that year; and the recent shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.

Asked Sunday his thoughts on Trump attending, Knicks center Mitchell Robinson said: “Cool, I guess. We can still get out there and play (no matter) who’s here and who’s not.”

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and other dignitaries were also at the game, as were Yankees Hall of Famer Derek Jeter and two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback Eli Manning of the Giants.

It was already hard enough for Knicks fans to get inside Madison Square Garden because of astronomical ticket prices. The get-in price for a ticket is higher than the average cost of monthly rent in New York, surging over $5,000.

The best seats were listed for tens of thousands of dollars. Mamdani said he bought his ticket, which he said was standing-room-only, for about $1,000 directly from Madison Square Garden.

The difficulty of seeing the game in-person has prompted fans to crowd bars, streets and watch parties all over the city. The watch party near the Garden has become a major event all through the playoffs, but with Trump attending, that event was moved a few blocks away outside the security perimeter, at Bryant Park.

“We improvise,” said Knicks guard Jose Alvarado, who is a New York native. "We're New Yorkers. We’re going to find a way to watch a game, and that’s what we’re doing.”

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AP Basketball Writer Brian Mahoney contributed to this report.

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

Since 2023, the Scandinavian country’s center-right coalition government has pursued a policy prioritizing more reading time and less screen time, particularly among preschool students, by favoring books and other traditional learning tools.

Lawmaker Joar Forsell, chairperson of the Swedish parliament's education committee, said officials have seen a decline in the general ability to read and write in Sweden, especially among younger students.

“We’re rolling the screens back because we believe that books and more traditional ways of learning are better for kids,” Forsell said.

Sweden’s plans are part of a broader shift and a digital reckoning against smartphones in schools internationally after countries outfitted their campuses with laptops, tablets and learning apps for their students. Classrooms have become saturated with screens and a growing number of parents, teachers and school districts say it is time to scale back.

In the Nordics, Denmark looks set to implement a similar ban to Sweden, and a law restricting use of mobile devices in schools in Finland came into effect last August. Other countries from Spain to South Korea have taken a variety of steps that range from a ban of mobile phones in classrooms to limits on screen-based homework.

The Los Angeles Unified School District, the second-largest school district in the U.S., has said it will ban screens until second grade, require daily caps for screen time per grade, ban YouTube and require an audit of all education technology contracts.

Backing away from screens

Tech-savvy Sweden, which is home to music streamer Spotify and telecoms giant Ericsson, has one of the most digitally advanced education systems in the world. But the mobile ban aims to foster learning environments with fewer distractions by building on restrictions on phones already independently implemented by many schools in the nation of over 10 million.

Alongside the ban, the government this year set aside 555 million Swedish krona ($59 million) as part of a new grant for purchasing textbooks and teachers’ guides.

The back-to-books policy was triggered by falling reading levels. In the 2022 Program for International Student Assessment, the latest study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, 24.3% of Swedish ninth graders did not reach a basic level of reading comprehension. That figure is only slightly better than the European Union average of 26.2%.

Magnus Haake, an associate professor of cognitive science at Lund University in southern Sweden, said learning with physical materials engages the motor sensory part of kids’ brains and “boosts the whole system.”

Sweden also is taking steps outside of school: Its public health agency has provided advice to parents about being better role models on use of screens, like having the same “screen-free zones” at home as their kids do.

Removing mobile phones removes distractions

At the Malmö Borgarskola high school in southern Sweden, mobiles are already banned during classes. Students place their handsets in a box — nicknamed a “Mobile Hotel” — and pick them up at the end of class.

“When you have a phone, there’s always something to look at,” student Melina Sallahi, 17, said. “It’s less of a distraction.”

Classmate Vasilije Stjepanovic, also 17, said apps like games or social media are “more fun than learning,” adding that students can learn better by taking away the phones.

At the same time, every student is given a laptop computer. But Deputy Headmaster Patrik Sander said students are now discouraged from using them in class, unless teachers say so.

“Nowadays, we see the push going in the other direction,” Sander said. “We have pushed back, learning that writing with your hands and a pencil helps you remember.”

Starting last summer, Swedish children under 2 years old could use only nondigital materials such as books, and preschoolers in general face no requirement to use digital learning tools. A new curriculum to prioritize book-based learning is expected in 2028.

Divisions over digital reckoning in classrooms

Not everyone in the Nordic nation supports the shift away from digital learning.

Trade association Swedish Edtech Industry said in a report that 90% of all future jobs are expected to require digital skills. A lack of this knowledge could cause a skills shortage among young Swedes, a lack of innovation in the public sector and even increased unemployment, the report warned.

Peter Carlsson, CEO of Malmö-based startup Imvi Labs, which uses virtual reality headsets to train brain-eye coordination in children and adults, said not all screens disrupt learning and some software is “critical” to help children with learning or reading difficulties.

“By having good tools, the teaching can become more efficient,” he said.

But at Malmö Borgarskola, there is little concern over learning digital skills. One morning in May, students clutched textbooks and discussed Russian history as they prepared for end-of-year exams.

“Everyone uses digital devices during their free time, so I don’t think that’s something that should be taught in school,” student Melina Sallahi said. “It’s nothing I’m worried about.”

Classmate Aslan Özhan Kilicasan added, “We learn much more easily when we use books.”

Only four people were considered missing on official records in the southern provinces near where the 7.8 magnitude quake struck Monday morning, but the Office of Civil Defense acknowledged several collapsed and heavily damaged buildings must be thoroughly inspected for possible survivors or casualties.

The earthquake centered off Mindanao, the second most populous Philippine island, injured nearly 500 people and displaced more than 20,000, most of whom fled to emergency shelters.

Many people who left their homes feared a tsunami. Waves up to 1.4-meter (4.6-foot) above tide level were measured in the Philippines, but the only tsunami damage reported was to six shanties on stilts in a coastal village. Smaller waves washed ashore in Indonesia and Palau and as far away as southern Japan.

Landslides and building collapses caused several deaths

The earthquake left a trail of destruction, including in General Santos, a lively coastal city of more than 700,000 people known as the country’s tuna capital, where at least 13 people were killed in collapsed buildings and due to falling debris.

At least 18 died in Sarangani province mostly in a landslide that buried houses in the mountainside town of Glan, according to Rafaelito Alejandro of the Office of Civil Defense.

The other deaths were reported in the southern provinces of South Cotabato and Davao Occidental, and on Balut Island, disaster-response officials said.

About 2,000 houses and 117 government buildings and facilities were damaged in several provinces, according to an initial government damage assessment. The international airport in General Santos remained shut, forcing the cancellation of 63 domestic flights except for those on humanitarian mission.

About 6,000 public school buildings in quake-hit provinces must be assessed before classes can resume. The quake struck on the first day of classes nationwide after a two-month summer break and many who sustained injuries were young students who had gathered with excitement for morning flag-raising ceremonies.

Authorities have warned that buildings that sustained cracks could collapse due to aftershocks, some of them dangerously powerful.

“We cannot force the immediate reopening of schools because we have to ensure the integrity of the buildings,” Alejandro said.

It was the strongest Philippine quake since 1976

Monday's earthquake was centered at sea at a depth of 33 kilometers (20 miles), about 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of Maasim town in Sarangani province.

It was set off by movement in the Cotabato Trench and was the strongest since the same undersea depression triggered an 8.1-magnitude quake that whipped up tsunami waves on Aug. 17, 1976, said Teresito Bacolcol, the director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.

About 8,000 people died from that quake and tsunami waves of up to 8 to 10 meters (26 to 33 feet) that engulfed several towns and provinces, Bacolcol said.

The Philippine seismological institute was scheduled to commemorate the anniversary of the 1976 quake and tsunami in August by installing markers to remind vulnerable towns and cities of the need for constant vigilance, Bacolcol told The Associated Press.

A 1990 earthquake that also had a magnitude of 7.8 left more than 1,000 people dead, injured thousands and caused extensive damages in northern provinces and cities.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. deployed top defense-mitigation officials from Manila to help oversee search and rescue, the distribution of tens of thousands of food packs and construction materials to quake victims and assess damage to bridges, roads and other infrastructure.

The United States, a treaty ally of the Philippines, said it was coordinating with Manila and was ready to support Philippine response efforts. France, Japan and New Zealand also expressed support.

The Philippines is often hit by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of seismic faults around the ocean.

The archipelago is also battered by about 20 typhoons and tropical storms each year, making it one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries.

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Gomez reported from Manila, Philippines. AP journalists Basilio Sepe in General Santos, Philippines, and Haruka Nuga in Bangkok contributed to this report.

Knicks fever reached a new peak Monday night, with New York hosting Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs. Shouts of “Let's go Knicks!” and “Knicks in four!” were heard throughout midtown Manhattan, with spirits up even as tight security measures for the presence of President Donald Trump caused hours-long lines to get in.

The excitement extended until just about the final buzzer, when the Spurs finished off a 115-111 victory that ended New York's 13-game postseason winning streak. San Antonio trimmed its series deficit to 2-1 and avoided getting pushed to the brink of elimination.

With the Knicks in the finals for the first time since 1999 and leading the best-of-seven series 2-0, their first home game this round was a hot ticket. The get-in price exceeded the average cost of rent in the biggest U.S. city.

“This is my son here, so taking him to the finals, you can’t really put a price on the experience,” said Greg Weldon, who flew in from Florida to attend a finals game as he did when New York won it all in 1970 and '73. “It’s like that commercial: The tickets, ridiculous; the hassle getting in, ridiculous — the experience, priceless.”

The cheapest upper-deck seats available were going for over $5,000 on resale platforms like StubHub, SeatGeek and VividSeats. The experience of being courtside carried a $75,000 price tag.

“I don’t care who you are, that’s a lot of money for a ticket,” said guard Jose Alvarado, a New York native who was planning a viewing party in Brooklyn and pointed out his Queens high school also is hosting one. “People that could afford it, we’re grateful with them coming out, and it just shows you our team is really special and we’re doing something here that hasn’t been done in a long time.”

The hoopla for Game 3 included the appearance by Trump, booed by fans when he was shown on arena video screens, as well as Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Yankees Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, Giants two-time Super Bowl-wining quarterback Eli Manning, actor Daniel Radcliff and more.

Trump's presence led to the cancellation of a planned watch party outside the arena. There was instead one a few blocks away in Bryant Park, which included police intervening in at least one altercation among people gathered, according to video from the scene.

Officers also shut down an unauthorized viewing party when the game was projected onto the side of a building on 33rd Street not far from The Garden.

The possibility of a sweep drove ticket prices up to more than $10,000 apiece over the weekend, and the price is about the same for an if-necessary Game 6, which is more likely now after San Antonio guaranteed a Game 5 back in Texas.

Fewer than 20,000 people will get the opportunity to attend each night in the Big Apple. Alvarado knows far more will be watching on television all over.

“The people that can’t afford it, we improvise,” he said. "We’re New Yorkers. We’re going to find a way to watch a game, and that’s what we’re doing.”

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Associated Press writer Philip Marcelo contributed to this report.

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

The results are not in question. Neither Republican incumbent Sen. Susan Collins nor Democratic challenger Graham Platner faces serious opposition for their party's nomination. And yet Tuesday marks an especially significant moment for Platner, the embattled veteran and oyster farmer, who is fighting to rebuild his credibility in a campaign rocked by controversy.

Elsewhere, President Donald Trump's clout within his party will be tested anew in states like South Carolina and Nevada, where he's endorsed his favored candidates. Democrats hope to build momentum in Nevada in their broader push to reclaim key governor's seats.

Powerful family ties will also be in the spotlight in Maine and South Carolina, where candidates with political pedigrees are running for office.

Here's what we're watching Tuesday.

Platner faces a big moment

Platner sits at the very center of the Democratic Party's quest to reclaim the Senate majority this fall. So Democrats need him to take a significant step forward Tuesday, with the eyes of the nation watching, in the urgent task of rebuilding his credibility.

It was barely a week ago when revelations surfaced that Platner had engaged in sexually explicit messages with multiple women while married. Allies wondered if more baggage would emerge, and then The New York Times reported new allegations about his behavior during previous relationships.

There is no doubt that Platner will win his party's Senate nomination Tuesday. His most serious opponent, Maine Gov. Janet Mills, suspended her campaign in April after it became clear Platner was in a commanding position. That said, Mills is still technically on the ballot and some advocates have suggested voting for her as a way to protest Platner.

More important, perhaps, will be Platner's public remarks Tuesday night. Friends and foes alike will be paying close attention to how he addresses the evolving questions about his past and whether he can refocus the race on Collins.

Maine race will test Democrats’ standards

It's not just Platner who will be tested Tuesday — the Democratic Party itself will face new scrutiny about its standards in the Trump era.

So far, Platner's biggest national supporters have remained firmly behind him. Sen. Bernie Sanders, one of his earliest backers, reiterated his support for the Maine Democrat on Saturday, a day after Rep. Ro Khanna appeared alongside Platner at a campaign event.

The public show of support reflects how much Democratic politics have changed over the last decade.

At the height of the #MeToo movement, Democrats argued they held their candidates to a higher standard than Republicans, particularly as Trump faced a series of sexual misconduct allegations. Back in 2017, Democratic leaders pressured Sen. Al Franken to resign in the wake of allegations of inappropriate touching and kissing.

The reaction to Platner has been markedly different. Even after allegations surfaced that he locked a woman in a room, among other accusations of inappropriate behavior, most Democrats have declined to abandon him.

“I think President Trump set a new standard,” Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday.

Expect Democratic leaders to face a new round of difficult questions about their own standards after Tuesday's primary.

Trump looks to shake off embarrassment

Just a week ago, Trump's pick for Iowa governor was defeated in a rare rebuke from his own party. Trump hopes to move past the political embarrassment during a fresh test of his political clout in South Carolina and Nevada.

The biggest may come in South Carolina, where Trump has endorsed Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette in a five-person Republican gubernatorial primary. There are a number of other high-profile candidates in the race, including Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, who may prove formidable. State Attorney General Alan Wilson and millionaire Rom Reddy are also running.

Trump will also keep a close eye on whether one of his closest allies in Congress, Sen. Lindsey Graham, is forced into a runoff for the first time ever. Graham faces appliance business owner Mark Lynch, who Trump has said “would be a DISASTER for the Republican Party” if elected.

Candidates must earn a majority of the vote to avoid a June 23 runoff.

Meanwhile, in Nevada’s 2nd congressional district, Trump-backed candidate retired Lt. Col. David Flippo is facing former state Sen. James Settelmeyer. Republican Rep. Mark Amodei, who announced his retirement from the seat, has endorsed Settelmeyer, as has the state’s governor, Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo.

Democrats eye a key governor's seat

Democrats will select a nominee for Nevada's governor race, where they have a real opportunity to flip control of the swing state this fall. Republican incumbent Gov. Joe Lombardo is considered one of the most vulnerable governors in the country.

The race is a window into the broader political landscape this fall as Democrats go on the offensive in several states Trump won in 2024.

The Democrats vying to challenge Lombardo include state Attorney General Aaron Ford, who has the backing of the Democratic congressional delegation and former Vice President Kamala Harris. He would be the first Black man elected governor of Nevada. He's facing Democrat Alexis Hill, a county commissioner in northern Nevada who campaigned as a candidate willing to shake things up.

Democrats are also fighting to win Republican-held governors' seats in states like Georgia, Ohio and Iowa.

Republicans, of course, have several pickup opportunities of their own, despite the challenging political environment for their party. They include Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Can they keep it in the family?

The power of political family ties will be tested in at least two states where candidates with last names you'll likely recognize are on the ballot.

In Maine, Democrats Angus King III and Hannah Pingree are competing for their party's nomination for governor. King is the businessman son of U.S. Sen. Angus King. Pingree, a former speaker of the state House, is the daughter of U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, who has represented the state's 1st congressional district since 2009.

There's a member of an even bigger political dynasty on Maine's ballot, too. Republican candidate for governor Jonathan Bush, a 57-year-old businessman, is the nephew of former President George H.W. Bush — and yes, that also makes him the cousin of former President George W. Bush. Despite the family ties, Jonathan Bush is casting himself as the outsider in the race and focusing heavily on his local business experience.

And don't forget about South Carolina, where Republican Attorney General Alan Wilson is running for governor. While he has established his own resume as the state's top law enforcement official, Wilson also happens to be the son of U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, who has served South Carolina in the House of Representatives for a quarter century.

South Carolina: redistricting dies and Clyburn’s political future survives

Just weeks ago, longtime Rep. James Clyburn, the dean of South Carolina Democrats, appeared to be facing the greatest threat to his political future.

Republican lawmakers, backed by Trump, considered a congressional map that would have significantly altered Clyburn’s majority-Black district and made it harder for him to hold onto the seat for an 18th term. But the Republican-led state Senate rejected the effort, leaving his district largely intact.

Clyburn is heavily favored in Tuesday’s Democratic primary against a little-known challenger. As South Carolina’s lone Democratic House member, he's one of the party’s most influential figures, with many Democrats expecting him to play a significant role in the lead-up to the 2028 presidential race.

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Peoples reported from New York.

The list, updated and published Monday by the Pentagon, now sanctions well-known, non-state-owned Chinese companies that are not traditionally considered to be in the defense or security sector. It reflects growing wariness of Beijing’s strategy of tapping the strength of non-state businesses for military purposes.

Created in 2021 by a congressional mandate, the list seeks to identify Chinese companies that the Pentagon considers to have links to the Chinese military — not only those directly controlled by the Chinese military and security forces but also those contributing to the country's defense industrial base.

When updating the list last year, the Pentagon said the Chinese military sought to acquire advanced technologies and expertise developed by Chinese companies, universities and research programs that “appear to be civilian entities.”

The Chinese Embassy on Monday accused the U.S. of “overstretching the concept of national security and making discriminatory lists to go after Chinese companies.” It said Chinese companies observe the laws and regulations of the countries where they do business. “The U.S. should stop its wrong practice and create a fair, just and non-discriminatory environment for Chinese companies,” the embassy said in a statement.

Alibaba and Baidu said there is no basis for including them on the list. “Alibaba is not a Chinese military company nor part of any military-civil fusion strategy,” a statement from the leading e-commerce company said. Baidu, which has expanded into artificial intelligence and self-driving taxis, said the suggestion that it is a military company is “entirely baseless.”

This year's list has grown to 188 Chinese entities, up from last year's roughly 130 named by the Pentagon. It already had covered companies such as DJI, a major maker of consumer drones. While a company on the list can still do business in the U.S., it faces reputational damage and could be subject to more restrictions.

After the Pentagon released the updated list, the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party called it “a warning to American businesses, all levels of government, and the American people." It said the companies on the list that are traded publicly on U.S. exchanges should be delisted and no American company should do business with those on the list, “otherwise they are enabling China's military ascendance.”

In naming Alibaba, the Pentagon said the tech giant helps boost China's defense industrial base because it is affiliated with the country's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Alibaba is traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

The Pentagon said BYD and Baidu are affiliated with the same ministry, which oversees China's technology and industrial policies. BYD is dominant in the global electric vehicle market, and President Donald Trump said in January that he would welcome Chinese carmakers such as BYD if they built plants in the U.S. and hired American workers.

However, a number of U.S. lawmakers have said they will seek a ban on Chinese electric vehicles.

Another addition is the Chinese robotics company Unitree, whose dancing robots impressed Simon Cowell on NBC's “America’s Got Talent.” The Pentagon said the company “knowingly received assistance” from the Chinese government through its designation as a small or medium-sized company that is highly innovative, highly competitive globally and critical to the country's supply chain.

BYD and Unitree did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.

He said friends for years have jokingly referred to him as senator and asked if he has ever thought about running. He said he’s been considering it for more than a decade.

“This is my choice,” Sullivan, who lives in the small fishing community of Petersburg, said in a telephone interview Monday.

Last week, Sen. Dan Sullivan accused the challenger Sullivan of “trying to trick” voters to help his main rival in the race, Democratic former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola. The senator suggested the other Sullivan's entrance in the August primary was part of a coordinated effort by Democrats and Peltola's campaign to confuse voters, an accusation they deny. He threatened litigation to get to the bottom of it.

Late Monday, Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom, a Republican who oversees elections in the state, announced she was opening an investigation into the candidacy of the challenger Sullivan.

‘I have every right to run’

The issue is of national concern to Republicans because they are seeking to hold onto their majority in the U.S. Senate in what is expected to be a difficult midterm election year for the party in power. Sullivan, the challenger, dismissed claims that his candidacy is a merely a ruse to undermine the senator's reelection chances.

He said he has had no contact with Peltola's campaign — “zero, none, zilch” — and said “no” when asked if anyone from the state Democratic Party or any national Democratic operatives had contacted him to run.

A Peltola spokesperson, Harry Child, has said the campaign “has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.” The executive director of the Alaska Democratic Party, Jenny-Marie Stryker, said her organization “is in no way affiliated with either Dan Sullivan.” A Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesperson, Monica Robinson, replied “no” when asked if the group had been involved in urging the challenger Sullivan to run.

Sullivan called sharing a name with the Alaska's incumbent U.S. senator “a matter of fate” and said he had done nothing wrong.

“I have every right to run for whatever office I'm qualified for, and I’m qualified for this office,” the challenger said, adding: “I think I’m doing what most Americans would think would be a patriotic thing to do when you’re unsatisfied with the status quo. You stand up and say, I’m going to fight for things I believe that are going to make my community better.”

Like Murkowski, but with 'touches of a Rand Paul Republican’

Ballots in prior years in Alaska have not identified the incumbent, but the Alaska Division of Elections’ current candidate list online does. It also distinguishes the candidates using a middle initial — Dan S. Sullivan for the senator and Dan J. Sullivan for the challenger.

Alaska has open primaries in which the top four vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the ranked choice general election in November. Sen. Sullivan's campaign worries having two Dan Sullivans on the ballot could confuse voters.

Sen. Sullivan's campaign, in a statement Monday, said, “Alaskans deserve a fair and honest election — not political games meant to manipulate the ballot and benefit Democrats.”

The challenger said he was registered with the limited government-leaning Alaskan Independence Party for decades, until the party's dissolution late last year. Election officials had said voters registered with the party could change their affiliation but if they did not, they'd be shown as “undeclared.” Sullivan said he then was listed as undeclared until filing to run for office, when he registered as Republican.

He said he was motivated in part by his late father, whom he described as a “true, compassionate, conservative Republican.” He said if he had to label himself, it would be “a pragmatic Republican centrist” — similar to Alaska's senior U.S. senator, Lisa Murkowski, but “with touches of a Rand Paul Republican in there.”

He said he grew up in the Chicago area but was drawn to Alaska and put down roots nearly 50 years ago in Petersburg. The fishing community of about 3,400 in southeast Alaska's Tongass National Forest is known as “Little Norway” for its many residents with Scandinavian roots. He worked for the U.S. Forest Service before changing careers and becoming a teacher. He has since retired.

Candidate ponders how to run a campaign

Like most communities in Alaska, Petersburg isn't connected to the state's main road system and is accessible only by air or water. Juneau, the nearest city, is about 45 minutes away by plane.

Petersburg sits on Mitkof Island, which is distinguished by mountains, thick stands of forest and boggy areas called muskeg. Sea lions hauled up on buoys and humpback whales and orcas are common sights off its shores.

Sullivan, who will turn 69 this weekend, passed on an interview request last Friday, he said, because the king salmon were running and he wanted to fish.

As far as his run for office, the challenger said he plans to do some fundraising and hopes to campaign in the state's larger cities, including Anchorage and Juneau, but he so far has no firm plans to do so and is working on the details.

He finds the current dustup over his Senate run — and the incumbent's reaction — a bit surprising.

“I guess my thought would be, ‘Dude, why don’t you just run your campaign?’ If you’ve got a strong record, run on your record. People will love you for it and you’ll be swept back into office,” he said Monday. “Why would he be concerned that a guy out of Petersburg is this huge threat?”

Abdulrahman Oriyomi, 25, was released on a $15,000 bond after being charged with felony impairing or interrupting the operation of a critical infrastructure facility following an incident at Bush Airport on May 18.

According to Oriyomi’s attorney, Omotayo “O.J.” Lawal, his client did not knowingly use a fake boarding pass.

“He did obtain this fake boarding pass online thinking that he’s buying a cheap ticket,” Lawal said. “All of us can see the problem with using the internet to obtain a ticket when it’s not coming from the airline itself, and that is what the case is all about.”

• RELATED: Houston man arrested after allegedly sneaking onto United Airlines flight at Bush Intercontinental Airport

When asked additional questions about the allegations and evidence in the case, Omotayo declined further comment.

“I will not answer any other question. I presented to you all the information you can use,” he said.

Court records paint a different picture of the events leading up to Oriyomi’s arrest.

Investigators allege Oriyomi arrived at Bush Airport early on the morning of May 18 and made his way through a TSA security checkpoint using what authorities later determined was a possibly forged boarding pass. Surveillance video and court documents indicate he spent hours moving between terminals and multiple departure gates after unsuccessfully attempting to board other flights.

According to investigators, Oriyomi first attempted to board a United Airlines flight to Los Angeles from gate E16 around 7:10 a.m. Records show he tried twice to scan a boarding pass but was unsuccessful and was ultimately turned away by gate agents.

Authorities say he later went to gate D4, where he allegedly waited near boarding operations before joining the line for United Flight 469, another flight bound for Los Angeles. Investigators claim Oriyomi intentionally waited until gate agents were distracted by other passengers before walking past them and down the jetway without a valid boarding pass being scanned.

Once onboard, investigators say Oriyomi sat in a seat assigned to another passenger before moving around the aircraft and spending time in multiple lavatories. Flight attendants became suspicious when they could not match him to any passenger on the flight manifest.

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According to court records, Oriyomi identified himself as “Mr. Lopez” when questioned by crew members and later asked if he could sit in a jump seat after flight attendants determined there were no open seats available.

The plane, which was preparing for departure, was forced to return to the gate after crew members realized there was an unauthorized passenger onboard. The incident triggered a significant law enforcement response involving the Houston Police Department, the FBI, TSA, Houston Airport System officials, and an explosive detection K-9 unit.

All passengers were required to deplane while authorities searched the aircraft. Investigators said the disruption delayed the flight’s departure by approximately three hours.

During the investigation, United Airlines employees determined Oriyomi had at one point made a reservation, but it had been canceled because payment was never received. Authorities later concluded the boarding pass on his phone appeared fraudulent because it lacked required information and contained a QR code investigators believed had been forged.

The case has also raised questions about airport security procedures after records showed Oriyomi was able to pass through TSA screening before eventually boarding the aircraft.

Neither TSA nor airport officials have publicly explained how the suspect was able to clear security and gain access to the secure side of the airport using a boarding pass investigators later determined may have been fake.

Oriyomi does not appear to have a prior criminal history in Harris County, according to court records. His case remains pending.

A Waller County grand jury handed down a 22 count reindictment for Maria Rojas, 50, last week.

Rojas was previously indicted on 15 counts, including performing an illegal abortion and practicing medicine without a license. The reindictment drops the practicing medicine without a license charges and instead alleges 19 counts of violating the Medical Practice Act resulting in financial harm, in addition to three abortion-related charges.

• RELATED: Houston-area midwife accused in abortion case missed payments for court-ordered GPS monitor

The new indictment alleges Rojas knowingly offered medical treatment to patients without a license, resulting in financial harm. The document also now names several of the patients who were reportedly in Rojas’ care.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton first announced Rojas’ arrest in March 2025.

Paxton’s office accused Rojas of operating a network of illegal clinics and performing illegal abortions in the Houston area.

Last October, the AG’s office also announced the arrest of eight employees tied to Rojas’ clinics.

Rojas’ case drew national attention because she is the first person to be charged since the reversal of Roe V. Wade.

“There is nothing new on our end,” Rojas’ attorney Nicole DeBorde Hochglaube told KPRC 2 on the phone Monday, when asked about the reindictment.

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It is unclear why prosecutors sought to reindict Rojas on new charges. But her defense has maintained her innocence.

“We believe that she did not commit a crime and we look forward to doing everything we can to get to the truth in this matter,” Hochglaube told KPRC 2 after a court hearing last September.

In addition to the criminal charges, Rojas is also facing a separate civil lawsuit filed by the Texas Attorney General’s Office in connection to her clinics.

The lawsuit seeks monetary damages as well as keeping Rojas’ clinics closed.

In March 2025, a Waller County judge issued a temporary injunction to keep the clinics closed.

But Rojas’ civil attorneys, including from the Center for Reproductive Rights, are fighting to appeal the decision. It is currently pending with the Texas Court of Appeals.

KPRC 2 has reached out to the AG’s office for comment, but has not heard back yet.

Rojas’ next court date in the criminal case is in August.

It's extremely difficult to independently verify reports released by state-controlled media outlets of North Korea and China. But their dispatches on the meeting touted a joint push for greater cooperation while not mentioning North Korea's banned pursuit of nuclear weapons. This implies the summit produced outcomes both leaders could portray as gains; Xi reaffirms influence on North Korea and Kim wins some economic and political benefits.

It was Xi's first visit to North Korea in seven years. Xi and Kim last met in Beijing in September after viewing a military parade alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and other foreign leaders.

Xi was given pomp-filled, extravagant welcome ceremony

Upon arrival at Pyongyang's international airport on Monday, Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan were greeted by Kim and his wife Ri Sol Ju, who broadly smiled and clapped.

Xi later arrived at Pyongyang’s main square, where a military honor guard and thousands of people, including children carrying balloons and hopping, staged a welcoming ceremony. Buildings surrounding the plaza were draped in the two countries’ flags, giant portraits of Kim and Xi and red-and-yellow banners welcoming the Chinese leader and celebrating the nations’ “friendship and unity.”

In the evening, Kim threw a banquet for Xi and his delegation.

Kim calls North Korea-China ties ‘most important’

In a summit later Monday, Xi expressed China’s willingness to expand cooperation in a wide range of areas including trade, agriculture, construction and technology, China’s state broadcaster CCTV said in an online report.

Xi said the two countries should strengthen strategic cooperation and firmly safeguard their respective sovereignty and security interests, according to the report.

Kim, for his part, affirmed that North Korea and China will maintain their friendship as “the most important top-priority strategic work," the official Korean Central News Agency reported Tuesday. Kim called Xi “the greatest state guest,” saying he views the fact Xi chose North Korea as a destination for his first foreign travel this year as “the most encouraging support” to North Korea, according to KCNA.

Kim also reiterated Pyongyang’s support for Beijing’s “one-China principle,” a reference to Beijing’s official position that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory. Kim and Xi also discussed international and regional issues and reached broad agreement on strengthening strategic coordination to safeguard their shared interests, KCNA said.

Sway over North Korea could help Xi's dealings with US

China has long been North Korea’s economic lifeline and main diplomatic backer. Experts say China has avoided fully enforcing U.N. sanctions on North Korea and sent clandestine aid to help its impoverished neighbor stay afloat. This year marks 65 years since the two countries signed a mutual defense treaty.

But there have been questions about their ties in recent years, with North Korea prioritizing cooperation with Russia by supplying troops and weapons to support its war against Ukraine. In return, North Korea has received economic and military assistance from Russia.

Restoring an exclusive influence over North Korea would give Xi leverage in dealings with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly expressed his desire to restart diplomacy with Kim. Xi and Trump met in Beijing last month and are to meet again in the U.S. in September.

Xi's trip was meant to demonstrate China’s “sway over the Korean Peninsula” and “a leadership role in entire Northeast Asia in the age of strategic competition with the U.S.,” said Kwak Gil Sup, the head of One Korea Center, a website specializing in North Korea affairs.

“Implementing U.N. Security Council resolutions and enforcing sanctions do not appear to be priorities for China,” said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.

Kim needs Xi's support for his nuke ambitions, economy revival

A key takeaway from the Chinese and North Korean reports was that they didn't touch upon North Korea's nuclear program at all. No public mention of the subject by Xi was crucial for Kim, who is desperate to win international recognition as a nuclear weapons state as a way to call for lifting of U.N. sanctions on North Korea.

That stands in contrast to Xi's trip to North Korea in 2019, when he was quoted by Chinese media as saying that Beijing was willing play a constructive role in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Xi's 2019 trip came after Kim's nuclear diplomacy with Trump collapsed earlier that year.

After last month’s summit between Trump and Xi, the White House said the two leaders confirmed their shared goal to denuclearize North Korea. But China only said the leaders discussed the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula.

Ahead of Xi’s trip, North Korea made it clear again that it’s advancing nuclear program is non-negotiable. Kim unveiled a new plant to produce nuclear ingredients and vowed to bolster the country’s nuclear forces “at an exponential rate.” His sister and senior official, Kim Yo Jong, also dismissed as an “anachronistic dream” a U.S. push for the denuclearization of North Korea.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung told reporters Monday that North Korea is producing enough nuclear ingredients annually for about 10 to 20 bombs and is close to perfecting intercontinental ballistic missile technology.

“Chinese officials have taken the position of not speaking publicly about denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula while still maintaining it as a long-term goal. Kim appears to want Xi to accept North Korea as a nuclear neighbor,” Easley said.

Xi could have offered economic aid packages such as shipments of rice and fertilizers and a resumption of Chinese group tourism to North Korea as well, analysts said.

“North Korea can’t solely rely on Russia. It needs to align with China,” Kwak said.

Two-way trade volume between China and North Korea last year recovered to pre-pandemic levels. Earlier this year, the countries also resumed direct flights and passenger trains that were stalled since the pandemic. Xi said Monday that both nations should use the reopening of flight and train services as a chance to expand people-to-people exchanges.

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Moritsugu reported from Beijing. Associated Press writer E. Eduardo Castillo in Beijing contributed to this report.

During a school board meeting Monday night, district leaders said Spring Branch ISD received funding from House Bill 2, the school finance package approved by lawmakers this year. However, officials said in May there was a change to a TEA funding formula, reducing the amount of money the district anticipated receiving.

According to district administrators, the change resulted in a $9.6 million loss in expected revenue for the current fiscal year.

The issue has also surfaced at the state level. During a public committee hearing before the Texas Legislature, TEA officials acknowledged that Houston ISD could lose approximately $17 million under the revised formula.

Since that hearing, KPRC 2 News has repeatedly requested clarification from the agency regarding the funding changes and how districts were impacted but has not received additional details.

• Gov. Abbott activates Texas emergency operations center as state ramps up screwworm response

Spring Branch ISD’s Vice Superintendent Christine Porter told board members that had district leaders known sooner about the reduction in state funding, they may have taken additional steps to address the budget shortfall.

“If I had known that we were going to receive less state revenue, I would have encouraged that we needed to make additional cuts this year,” Porter said. “Which would have helped start the process so that moving forward we’d be in a little bit better spot.”

Porter said the district is now expected to continue drawing down its fund balance to cover expenses.

“We are now expected to continue to drop fund balance and bring our fund balance now down to 14% as a percent of expenditures,” Porter said. “This use of fund balance continues to still be an unfortunate effect of the state mandating specific spending and truly not recognizing the inflationary pressures that school districts continue to have.”

According to Porter, only seven school districts statewide were affected by the funding adjustment. She said Spring Branch ISD and Houston ISD account for the vast majority of the losses.

The funding loss drew sharp criticism from school board members.

• Woman fatally shot at Houston apartment complex after ongoing dispute; neighbor detained by police

Board President Courtney Anderson questioned how the situation would be viewed if a school district had made a similar financial error.

“If we were to make a nine million dollar mistake, can you imagine the headlines?” Anderson said. “Can you imagine what they would say about school districts and finance?”

Anderson warned that continued financial pressures could ultimately affect district staffing.

“At some point we’re having to cut payroll, which to anybody who doesn’t understand that means people,” Anderson said. “People in the district, people that work with our children day in and day out.”

Superintendent Dr. Jennifer Blaine said the district has faced similar challenges before.

“It’s the same song, second verse. It’s happening again,” Blaine said. “We found ourselves in the same position in 2014.”

Despite the financial strain, Blaine said the district has continued to make academic progress.

“We’ve made incredible academic gains on a shoestring budget,” Blaine said. “We don’t hardly have anybody left helping these teachers in these schools. It is very skeletal staff.”

The frustration expressed during the meeting led one trustee to suggest the district could explore legal options.

Board member Ted Tredennick said school districts have legal avenues available if they believe state funding practices are unfair.

“We do have legal recourse,” Tredennick said. “School districts can take legal action to enforce what we perceive are unfair tax or revenue practices by the state or TEA. And so that might be something that we consider.”

Anderson later compared the state’s expectations for public schools to an uphill battle.

“It’s like they tie both hands behind our back and then push us down a hill and say, ‘Go, why aren’t you doing better?’” Anderson said. “If they really want to see public education successful, they would come to Spring Branch.”

The board said they will form a community budget committee to look at all ways to cut costs.

Tonight will be muggy and buggy! Temperatures will slowly fall through the upper-70s with high humidity. Overnight lows will be in the mid-to-upper 70s.

Tuesday’s Forecast:

Tuesday will be very similar to Monday! Expect a mix of sunshine and cloud cover with temperatures climbing into the upper-80s and lower-90s. Factor in the humidity and we’ll feel closer to the triple digits.

Three Day Forecast:

We are back in a typical June pattern! We’re hot and humid with afternoon highs feeling like 100 degrees. Everyday there will be a chance for a quick afternoon downpour but we aren’t expecting anything widespread like last week.

More tropical moisture on the way?

We’re watching tropical moisture building up in the Gulf. Depending on its movement, it could reach southeast Texas next weekend. That would bring back the risk of downpours and flooding if it lifts in our area.

Your extended forecast:

We are back to a more typical weather pattern, but there is an increasing chance for rainfall into the end of the weekend.

The screwworm is actually a fly larva that eats living flesh instead of dead material. The flies lay their eggs in open wounds of animals like cattle, but wildlife, pets and occasionally even humans can be infested. The government has a program to breed sterile male flies and drop swarms of them from planes to mate with wild females, which kept screwworm contained at the southern end of Panama for decades.

So far, there are five confirmed cases: three calves and a goat in Texas and a dog from neighboring Lea County, New Mexico. The small dog, which the USDA initially reported as a Texas case, lives in New Mexico and was reclassified as the first in that state.

The dog had not traveled to Mexico or Texas, so authorities were investigating around the property where the pet lived. If they find infected flies, animal inspections in the area will increase, New Mexico State Veterinarian Samantha Holeck said during a virtual news conference Monday.

Screwworm cases continue to climb

The first two screwworm cases were discovered last week in calves a few miles apart in south Texas. A case was announced Monday in a calf in La Salle County, southwest of San Antonio, and in a goat in Gillespie County, west of Austin.

In each case, officials have set up a 12-mile (20-kilometer) quarantine zone to try to slow the parasite's advance.

Along with cattle and other warm-blooded livestock, scientists worry screwworms could devastate the millions of wild white-tailed deer in Texas.

Scientists expect new cases could pop up in the coming days and weeks, but it doesn't mean screwworm is spreading rapidly, said Edward Burgess, a University of Florida entomologist who studies the fly.

“When that first case is seen, everyone is being vigilant and their eyes are on it more intensely,” Burgess said. “And when you are looking for something, you are more likely to see it.”

A race to stop the screwworm now moves to Texas

Screwworm gets its name from the maggots’ habit of burrowing — or screwing — into a wound, according to the USDA. The pest eats the flesh of the animal, further opening wounds and increasing the risk of deadly bacterial infections. Animals can die within a few weeks if not treated. There are a dozen government-approved medications to treat livestock.

The agency and the U.S. cattle industry have been racing to prevent an outbreak since screwworm was detected in Mexico late in 2024. The USDA has been dropping sterile flies in south Texas since February and is working to both increase sterile fly production in plants outside the U.S. and build a $750 million fly factory in Texas.

So far, screwworm's reappearance hasn’t greatly affected beef prices, which are already near record levels because there are fewer cows in the United States. Although the parasite attacks live cattle, it does not infest meat or fruit.

Canada temporarily stopped importing cattle, horses or other livestock from Texas on Friday. The parasites prefer humid areas where temperatures are at least 77 F (25 C), making them more of a summer problem up north.

Fighting screwworms with sterile male flies

Burgess said the long-term solution — breeding sterile male flies — is months away. Since wild female flies mate just once, if that encounter is with a sterile male, outbreaks can eventually be halted as the flies die out.

The goal is to have enough sterile flies to stop the pests from returning in 2027 after the winter kills off most of them, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said at a news conference at the U.S. Livestock Insects Research Laboratory in Kerrville, Texas.

Scientists are also working on ways to sterilize only male flies to make the program even more effective.

Texas officials encouraged ranchers to keep a close eye on their herds and local wildlife. There's now a 24-hour screwworm hotline and a website and map for reported cases.

“This is a highly treatable condition if you act on it immediately,” Republican Gov. Greg Abbott said.

However, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller — who lost the recent Republican primary to a candidate backed by Abbott — said the federal response will take too long and risks crippling the cattle industry.

Instead, he says a poison bait could eliminate the screwworm problem in a few months, even if the USDA and other experts say the bait hasn’t been proven effective and could poison other flies, animals and even humans.

“What the hell is a good fly?” Miller said in an interview.

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This story has been updated to reflect that the USDA revised the dog screwworm case to New Mexico, not Texas as the agency initially reported, and to correct the spelling of Kerrville.

___

Associated Press writers Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Scott McFetridge in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this report.

The outcome means Spencer Pratt, a Republican and former reality television personality from “The Hills,” is out of the running. His candidacy had drawn national attention because of his celebrity and willingness to challenge liberal governance in a city dominated by Democrats, but the buzz did not translate into enough votes to make the runoff.

Raman made a last-minute entry into the race, after she had endorsed Bass for reelection. She was elected to the council with the support of the Democratic Socialists of America, and the election will test whether voters in the heavily Democratic city want to move further to the political left to address long-running problems of homelessness, buckled streets and sidewalks and climbing rent and home prices.

The race also has historical markers. Bass is the first Black woman to hold the post, and Raman could be the first South Asian woman in the job.

“If you’re as frustrated by the broken status quo as I am, I hope you’ll join our movement to build a city that works for everyone,” Raman said in a statement. "For too long, City Hall has prioritized giving political advantage to powerful interests that fund elections. Meanwhile, working people pay the price in higher rents, depleted services and a city that has stopped working for them.”

“A campaign against Nithya Raman, who allows encampments near schools and cuts the police force, is one Mayor Bass looks forward to winning,” said Bass campaign strategist Douglas Herman.

Raman gained votes on Pratt in every vote update since Election Day as Los Angeles continued to process additional mail ballots and release results. Raman moved past Pratt and into second place on Sunday and extended her lead over Pratt on Monday to nearly 22,000 votes.

The mayoral matchup sets the field in one of the state's two marquee races. In the other, the California governor’s race, Democrat Xavier Becerra has advanced to the general election but it's not yet clear if he will face Republican Steve Hilton or fellow Democrat Tom Steyer. Hilton has more votes than Steyer, but Steyer cut into his lead by nearly a third in Monday’s vote updates.

The mayoral race was technically nonpartisan, so the candidates appeared on the ballot without party identification next to their names.

The election was not a vote of confidence in Bass, who according to incomplete returns received under 35% of the vote, a vulnerable position for an incumbent.

Bass represents the Democratic establishment as the incumbent mayor, and she’s backed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, former Vice President Kamala Harris and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, along with influential labor unions. She served in the state Legislature and Congress before becoming mayor in 2022 and was under consideration to be former President Joe Biden’s running mate in 2020.

Raman — in her first run for citywide office — has promised to speed up housing construction, bring back entertainment industry jobs and improve services in a city known for dirty streets, gridlock and homeless encampments that are commonplace in many neighborhoods.

“What we are doing right now is just not working,” Raman says. “LA’s primary strategy for homelessness has been to move encampments from one block to another, from your block to your neighbor’s block and back again. ... It’s political theater.”

California’s vote count takes a long time

It took nearly a week to determine who would face Bass in November due to California’s notoriously slow vote-counting process. Ballots are mailed to every eligible voter and they are counted if they are postmarked by Election Day and arrive at an election office within seven days.

Los Angeles, like other counties in California, processes and counts mail ballots in roughly the order they are received, so the last ones returned are the last ones counted.

On Tuesday night after polls closed, Los Angeles released results from mail ballots that had been returned early and already processed as well as votes cast that day. Those votes put Bass in the lead with Pratt running in second and Raman behind in third. Since then, the county has been processing and releasing results from mail ballots that arrived later.

Election data shows that large numbers of Democrats held onto their mail ballots and returned them in the race’s final days, which helps explain why Bass and Raman have been doing better than Pratt in the votes counted since primary day.

Raman’s political positions have shifted

Born in India, Raman moved to the United States as a child and earned degrees from Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she studied urban planning.

She has opposed efforts to prohibit homeless people from setting up tents within 500 feet (152 meters) of schools and daycare centers. However, she appears to have softened her opposition to no-camping zones, which were intended to curb the spread of encampments and clear streets. She voted against dozens of them on the council but later said she would not block them if elected mayor.

Raman’s positions on policing in the city have also changed.

She once talked of a department that would be much smaller and posted “defund the police” on social media in 2020. She did not support the mayor’s 2023 police contract, which she said was too expensive for the financially strapped city.

More recently, she said the Los Angeles Police Department should remain at its current size, about 8,600, down from about 10,000 in 2020. The police union has taunted her in ads, calling her “Flip Floppin’ Raman.”

In diverse Los Angeles, mayors are elected by building coalitions, ethnically and geographically. And to surpass 50% of the vote and win, Raman will need to find more supporters.

“I don’t think it’s impossible, but she is going to have to expand beyond her ideological base,” said Democratic consultant Bill Carrick, who sees Bass as vulnerable.

“The people who didn’t vote for Nithya weren’t voting against her, they were voting for somebody else. Karen (Bass) had a good number of people who were voting against her,” Carrick added.

Though Raman and Pratt are political opposites, both have attracted voters who aren’t happy with the city’s status quo.

Tanika Vickers, who works for a housing nonprofit in Los Angeles, said that she felt like she was part of a group of people who work and pay taxes but have been “forgotten.” She said she was frustrated with the way tax dollars were being spent, especially “throwing” more money toward homelessness without results.

She said she voted Raman for mayor because she was most qualified to execute her plans and fulfill what the city needs.

“I think that we are all looking for change,” she said.

___

Associated Press journalists Jaimie Ding in Los Angeles and Stephen Ohlemacher in Washington contributed.

The state first used nitrogen for capital punishment in 2024, and the ruling could upend Alabama’s next scheduled execution on Thursday. The method involves strapping a respirator to the person’s face and replacing breathable air with pure nitrogen, causing death from lack of oxygen.

The three-judge panel on Monday night reversed a judge’s May finding that the nitrogen method does not violate the U.S. Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment and remanded the case for additional consideration. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed last year by Jeffery Lee, a man on death row who is scheduled to be executed with nitrogen on Thursday at a south Alabama prison.

The panel stopped short of staying Lee’s planned execution. However, the panel asked the judge to consider whether his proposed alternative of a firing squad was feasible.

The U.S. Supreme Court requires a two-prong test for people challenging the constitutionality of an execution method. They must show the method provides a substantial risk of superadded pain and that a feasible alternative method is available. The appeals court said Lee met the first test but sent it back to the trial court to consider the second.

The appeals panel raised concerns about the nitrogen method and how long it might take the subject to lose awareness.

“In our view, the overall suffering described by the district court, which lasts for one to three minutes, presents a substantial risk of serious harm over and above death itself," the panel wrote. “Counting to 60 or 180 seconds is not a quick exercise, and constitutionally speaking, that timeframe is intolerable given the suffering that would likely take place under Alabama’s nitrogen hypoxia protocol.”

The Alabama Attorney General’s Office did not immediately issue a comment on the decision. The state has maintained the method is constitutional.

Opponents of the method cheered the decision.

“For the first time a court has acknowledged what I and so many others have seen with our own eyes. Nitrogen executions are a unique form of horror,” said the Rev. Jeff Hood, who was the spiritual adviser at two nitrogen executions.

Nitrogen has been used in eight executions nationally — seven times in Alabama and once in Louisiana. Lee’s attorneys argued it causes excessive suffering. Alabama’s last nitrogen execution took more than 30 minutes to complete.

Lee was convicted of two counts of capital murder for killing Jimmy Ellis and Elaine Thompson while robbing a pawn shop on Dec. 12, 1998. Prosecutors said Lee entered Jimmy’s Pawnshop with a sawed-off shotgun and shot Ellis, the owner of the store, and Thompson, a store employee.

A jury voted 7-5 that Lee should receive a sentence of life imprisonment. However, a judge overrode that recommendation and sentenced Lee to death. Alabama in 2017 ended the practice of judicial override and no longer allows a judge to disregard a jury’s sentencing decision in death penalty cases.

The ruling came several hours after a vigil was held at the Alabama Capitol urging the governor to reduce Lee’s sentence to life imprisonment.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said he opposed the clemency request.

“The people of Alabama have not forgotten Jimmy and Elaine. I have not forgotten them," Marshall said. “Anything short of carrying out the sentence imposed by the court falls short of justice for the victims, and that is not what victims of this state deserve.”

Russell, the No. 10 amateur in the world, survived a bogey on the first playoff hole and grabbed the fourth and final spot from the Florida qualifier. Charlie Woods is one of his close friends who has the same commercial agent and is following Russell to Florida State.

“It kept it so light,” Russell said. “It's the first time I've had a buddy on the bag. I really like it, not talking much golf, just having a good time.”

Russell smiled when asked if he would have Woods at Shinnecock Hills, saying only, “We'll see what he's doing. To be determined.”

The medalist from the Florida qualifier was Giuseppe Puebla, who ranks second behind Russell in the American Junior Golf Association ranking.

They were among 715 players at 10 sites from coast-to-coast and into Canada, all of them vying for 43 spots available for the 126th U.S. Open.

Previous qualifiers were held in England, Japan and Dallas.

Vaughn Harber, who just finished his sophomore year at Ohio State, played his final five holes at The Lakes in 5-under par — including an eagle — and then advanced in the 4-for-3 playoff in one of the two Ohio qualifiers. Jackson Van Paris birdied his last two holes to qualify without extra holes.

That qualifier also produced the first player from Iceland to play in the U.S. Open, Arni Sveinsson, who plays for LSU.

In the other Ohio qualifier, Billy Horschel found a happy note in an otherwise tough season when he was among five who made it through. Tony Finau missed out by two shots and will not be at the U.S. Open for the first time since 2017.

Here's how the other qualifiers looked (a-amateur):

Ohio-Springfield

QUALIFIERS: Neal Shipley, Zac Blair, Dylan Wu, Billy Horschel, Nick Hardy.

NOTABLE PLAYERS MISSING: Brandt Snedeker, Tony Finau, Cam Davis.

DIVOTS: Shipley, who finished his college career at nearby Ohio State, has missed the cut in nine of his 12 starts in his rookie year on the PGA Tour. ... Snedeker was the first alternate.

Florida

QUALIFIERS: a-Giuseppe Puebla, Ben Silverman, a-Ryder Cowan, a-Miles Russell.

NOTABLE PLAYERS MISSING: Matt Kuchar, Matthieu Pavon, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Luke Clanton, Luke Poulter.

NOTEWORTHY: Three of the four qualifiers are amateurs. ... Kuchar hasn't played in any major since the 2024 U.S. Open.

Canada

QUALIFIERS: Emiliano Grillo, Alejandro Tosti, Marcelo Rozo, William Mouw, John Parry, Max McGreevy.

NOTABLE PLAYERS MISSING: Max Homa, Matt Wallace, Garrick Higgo, Seamus Power.

NOTEWORTHY: The final three spots were determined by an eight-man playoff. ... Homa missed out in a playoff for the second straight year in U.S. Open qualifying.

Maryland

QUALIFIERS: Jackson Suber, Ben Kohles, a-Logan Reilly, Jake Sollon.

NOTABLE PLAYERS MISSING: Blades Brown, Michael Thorbjornsen, Karl Vilips.

NOTEWORTHY: Sollon earned the final spot in a playoff over Bryan Lee. He was scheduled to leave for Bogota, Colombia, for a PGA Tour Americas event. ... Kohles was coming off a victory Sunday on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Ohio-Columbus

QUALIFIERS: Davis Thompson, J.B. Holmes, a-Vaughn Harber, a-Arni Sveinsson.

NOTABLE PLAYERS MISSING: Lucas Glover, Jhonattan Vegas, Bud Cauley, Austin Eckroat, Denny McCarthy, Erik van Rooyen.

NOTEWORTHY: Sam Udovich bogeyed his last two holes and was the odd man out in a 4-for-3 playoff. He will be the first alternate. ... What used to be the main qualifier for PGA Tour players only had a 51-man field.

North Carolina

QUALIFIERS: a-Jackson Ormond, Carl Yuan, Jackson Van Paris, Brandon Wu, Cole Hammer.

NOTABLE PLAYERS MISSING: Aaron Wise, Ryo Ishikawa, Bill Haas, Troy Merritt.

NOTEWORTHY: Ormond, an 18-year-old who will play at Florida next year, birdied five of his last seven holes for a 63 to go from outside the number to be the medalist. ... Haas, the son of Jay Haas, had his son caddying for him.

New York

QUALIFIERS: Kevin Roy, Max Greyserman, Ben James, James Nicholas.

NOTABLE PLAYERS MISSING: Matt Jones.

NOTEWORTHY: James makes his pro debut this week in the Canadian Open. He finished atop the PGA Tour University ranking. ... Roy makes his U.S. Open debut in his native New York.

Georgia

QUALIFIERS: Chris Kirk, Jake Peacock, Keith Mitchell, Robbie Higgins, a-Chase Keys.

NOTABLE PLAYERS MISSING: Aldrich Potgieter, Stephan Jaeger, Jason Dufner, Patton Kizzire.

NOTEWORTHY: Keys birdied the last hole in near darkness to avoid a 3-for-1 playoff for the final spot. ... Potgieter can still get in the U.S. Open if he wins the Canadian Open this week, which would give him two PGA Tour victories since the last U.S. Open.

___

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

The San Francisco-based company said Monday it has filed confidential paperwork with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

“We expect it to leak so we’re just announcing it,” the company said in a statement. “We have not decided on timing yet; it may be a while because there are things we want to do that are likely easier as a private company. But it’s a complicated set of tradeoffs and this gives us the option to go public sooner if that ends up being best.”

OpenAI's move follows its rival Anthropic's June 1 disclosure that it is also moving toward an initial public offering of shares. Both are now following Elon Musk's rocket company SpaceX, which has started an IPO roadshow pitching itself as an AI-focused space company.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman first publicly floated the possibility of an IPO last fall, describing it as the “most likely path” for the company given its size and the need for vast amounts of capital to advance its technology.

OpenAI began in 2015 as a nonprofit dedicated to developing AI for the common good and is now a company valued at $852 billion.

The filing comes at a “precarious moment” for OpenAI as it appears to be losing ChatGPT’s strong early leads with consumers and businesses to Google and Anthropic, said Emarketer analyst Nate Elliott.

“But OpenAI doesn’t have a lot of other places to look for the enormous capital required to support its costs,” Elliott said.

Paving the way for going public was OpenAI’s decision last year to reorganize its business structure and convert itself into a public benefit corporation even as it remains technically under the control of a nonprofit.

OpenAI cleared another obstacle last month with its victory against Musk in a federal jury trial. Musk, an OpenAI co-founder and early donor, had sued the company seeking to oust Altman from its leadership and unravel its conversion to a for-profit business. A judge dismissed the case after the jury found Musk filed his lawsuit too late.

OpenAI has not yet publicly disclosed how much money it is making or when it plans to turn a profit. Much like Anthropic and SpaceX, the company has been losing more money than it makes because of the huge costs of building out the venture. OpenAI faces fierce competition from Anthropic, maker of the increasingly popular chatbot Claude, and Google's AI assistant Gemini.

In an April interview, OpenAI’s chief financial officer Sarah Friar declined to give a timeline for a potential IPO but said the company was already “acting with the good hygiene of a public company,” such as by measuring its revenue in the way a publicly traded firm would have to report earnings to the SEC.

“I want us to be ready,” she told The Associated Press. “I think it’s good to be able to tap the public markets. They’re much bigger than the private markets."

She said OpenAI’s current valuation would make it one of the 15 biggest companies in the S&P 500.

She also said there is a “credentializing moment of being a public company.”

“At that point, people are checking your balance sheet, the SEC is governing you and so on,” she said.

In a separate statement Monday published around the same time as the announcement of the confidential filing, Altman outlined a broad vision for OpenAI including three big goals: building an automated AI researcher, accelerating economic growth and giving “everyone on Earth a personal AGI,” which stands for artificial general intelligence or a form of AI that surpasses humans at many tasks.

Altman said OpenAI started out in AI research and moved into commercial product development but is now moving into its third phase involving a “broad distribution of power” as the economy reshapes around AI technology.

He said OpenAI is “working to ensure the gains are widely shared. Everyone should have an opportunity for a meaningful share in the prosperity AI creates.”

The remarks follow Altman’s visit last week with Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is pushing a plan for the public to take a 50% ownership stake in AI companies such as OpenAI, as well as comments from President Donald Trump embracing giving the public a stake in AI’s growth.

___

AP Technology Writer Kaitlyn Huamani contributed to this report.

The person said Knight will first sign a foundational contract with Las Vegas as part of Phase 2 of the league’s expansion signing process. Las Vegas in turn has reached an agreement to trade Knight to Detroit for the team’s first-round pick in the draft next week, the person added.

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to reveal the trade. The deal won’t become official until the PWHL’s trade freeze lifts on June 16, a day before the draft.

The 36-year-old Knight is a five-time U.S. Olympian and one of the most decorated players in her sport. She is coming off captaining Team USA to a gold-medal victory at the Milan Cortina Games in February, in which Knight deflected in the championship game-tying goal late in the third period of a 2-1 overtime win against Canada.

Though Knight said the Olympics in Milan would be her last, she planned on continuing her pro career.

Knight is on the move for a second straight PWHL offseason. After spending her first two PWHL seasons in Boston, she left the Fleet to sign with the expansion Seattle Torrent to be closer to her offseason home in Idaho.

Now, it’ll be the Chicago-area town where she grew up that she’s closer to.

As much as Knight and the Torrent would have preferred she remain in Seattle, the team under the expansion rules was restricted to protecting three players. The Torrent chose to protect forward Alex Carpenter, defender Anna Wilgren and goalie Hannah Murphy.

Knight at least gets the benefit of signing a foundational offer, which guarantees her at least $100,000 per season. She made $106,090 last year.

Each of the PWHL’s four expansion teams were allowed one foundational contract offer. Las Vegas still had its foundational slot open, while Detroit used its offer to sign Toronto forward Daryl Watts last week.

Las Vegas, meanwhile, lands an additional first-round pick in a draft class stocked with young talent and led by five U.S. national team members, including defender Caroline Harvey and defender/forward Laila Edwards. The PWHL has yet to set the draft order, with the exception of Vancouver picking first.

Knight counts toward one of the five players Las Vegas must add in this expansion phase, which closes on Monday. The team filled its final two slots by signing Walter Cup champion Montreal Victoire teammates forward Hayley Scamurra, a two-time U.S. Olympian, and defender Erin Ambrose, a two-time Canadian Olympian.

San Jose rounded out its initial five-player roster by signing New York forward Maddi Wheeler to a two-year contract. Wheeler is the third Sirens player to join the team, joining Anne Cherkowski and Kristin O’Neill.

Phase 2 of the expansion process closed with Vancouver not losing a player, and Boston losing just one, with forward Alina Muller signing with Hamilton.

In Detroit, Knight joins a team that already features three U.S. gold medal-winning teammates in forwards Britta Curl-Salemme, Hannah Bilka and defender Cayla Barnes, who were signed in the expansion process. She also is reunited with newly hired Detroit coach Josh Sciba, who was an assistant on the U.S. Olympic team.

And Knight joins a team headed by one of women's hockey's trailblazers in GM Manon Rheaume. The 54-year-old Rheaume was a goaltender, and the first woman to appear in an exhibition game of any of North America’s four major sports.

Earlier in the day, Detroit filled its fifth expansion spot by signing Toronto forward Jesse Compher to a three-year contract. Compher won a silver medal representing the U.S. at the 2022 Beijing Games.

Knight finished last season with five goals and 14 points in 22 games, while missing the final two months of the season with a lower-body injury. A year earlier, she finished tied for the league lead with 29 points (15 goals, 14 assists). Overall, she ranks 12th in the PWHL with 54 career points (26 goals, 28 assists) in 76 games.

The trade caps an eventful stretch for Knight. A day before winning gold, she became engaged to American speedskater Brittany Bowe. Her goal against Canada was her 15th and 33rd point of her Olympic career, U.S. records for both categories.

In 2024, Knight was the International Ice Hockey Federation's female player of the year. She has won two Olympic gold and three silver medals since making her Team USA debut at the 2007 world championships. She has won 10 gold medals at worlds and holds the career tournament records for goals (67), assists (53) and points (120).

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AP women’s hockey: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-hockey

U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Monday that a Somali national who was planning to referee in the World Cup had been denied entry after arriving to Miami International Airport from Istanbul on Saturday. While the CBP statement didn’t mention the person by name, Artan is the only World Cup referee from Somalia.

FIFA confirmed later Monday that Artan wouldn't be able to train and officiate at the World Cup, then released a statement on the referee's behalf.

“Despite the circumstances, I am in a positive mood and I am focused on the next challenges in my refereeing career," Artan said in the statement. “I would like to thank FIFA and (the African federation) for all their support and I promise to keep my refereeing levels up as I concentrate on the future. I want to thank the football family for their messages and wish my colleagues all the best success during the World Cup and I look forward to joining them again in future competitions.”

In its own statement, FIFA said it was not involved in the immigration processes and was informed by authorities that Artan's “status will not be changed at present.”

“In line with previous FIFA events, a host government ultimately determines who receives a visa and who is admitted into their country," soccer's governing body said.

CBP issued a release explaining why Artan was denied entry.

“During processing, the traveler underwent additional inspection, a routine part of CBP’s inspection process when officers need to verify information or determine admissibility,” CBP said in its statement. “Following inspection, the traveler, a referee for the FIFA World Cup, was determined to be inadmissible due to vetting concerns and was denied entry.”

CBP noted that all travelers seeking entry into the U.S. — including athletes, coaches and staff — are subject to CBP inspection and vetting.

“Admissibility determinations are made on a case-by-case basis using law enforcement, national security, and immigration information available at the time of inspection,” the CBP statement said. “CBP officers have the authority to question travelers, conduct inspections, and determine admissibility consistent with U.S. law.”

___

AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup

Now, one of those politicians has pleaded guilty to being an illegal agent of the Chinese government. Former Arcadia Mayor Eileen Wang's plea, entered in federal court Friday, continues a saga that some residents of the area worry could bring unfair scrutiny on the broader Chinese and Asian American community.

Arcadia has gone under rapid demographic change in the last two decades as immigrants from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong flocked to the San Gabriel Valley east of Los Angeles. After Wang's case was made public May 11, the news made national headlines and filled the unassuming suburban city with anger, disappointment and murmurs of quiet concern. On social media, fears about spies and Chinese Communist Party influence abounded.

“We cannot allow this moment to become an excuse for people to paint entire communities with one brush or weaponize ethnicity for political gain,” acting Mayor Paul Cheng said in a statement.

Shock in heavily Chinese community

Wang agreed in April to plead guilty to doing the bidding of Chinese officials by sharing articles favorable of Beijing on a news website she ran, without notifying the U.S. government as required by law.

The 56-year-old was elected in November 2022 to a five-person City Council, from which the mayor is selected on a rotating basis. She was born in Chengdu, China, and immigrated to the U.S. in 1995.

The San Gabriel Valley is home to the largest concentration of residents of Chinese and Taiwanese descent in the United States. Beginning in the 1970s, real estate developers marketed the region as “Chinese Beverly Hills” to woo affluent immigrants. As the population grew, it became a haven for newer immigrants who could go about life without needing English, access business opportunities, and avoid putting their children through China’s intensely competitive education system. Arcadia's population of about 53,000 is majority Asian, like many other cities in the region.

Ted Tseng, 52, arrived in Arcadia from Taiwan nearly 40 years ago with his parents, who emigrated because they feared potential conflict between Taiwan and China.

Tseng was concerned Wang's indictment would deepen animosity against Asian Americans and discredit their contributions to the region. Fears of anti-Asian racism, though hate crimes are down since the COVID-19 pandemic, still linger.

“I'm just worried our image has been damaged,” Tseng said.

Feds crack down on Chinese espionage

The U.S. Department of Justice has escalated efforts in recent years to combat Chinese espionage. In April, a man accused of running a secret Chinese spy outpost in Manhattan’s Chinatown neighborhood was convicted of acting as an illegal foreign agent.

Wang has suggested that she was misled by her former fiance, Yaoning “Mike” Sun, who pleaded guilty to the same charge last year and is now serving a four-year prison sentence. Sun was the treasurer for Wang’s 2022 election campaign.

A statement shared by Wang's lawyers references her "trust and love for apparently the wrong person who ultimately led her astray.”

April Verlato, a former City Council member who served with Wang, said Wang and Sun lived together, and Sun accompanied Wang wherever she went.

Verlato said Wang should have stepped down as soon as she came under investigation.

“She was being selfish, getting sworn in as mayor and not resigning when she knew she was going to be pleading guilty to something,” Verlato said.

Gene Sun, a long-time lawyer in Arcadia, agreed.

“I don't understand how she could have continued being a City Council member,” he said.

Beijing seeks influence overseas

It is not surprising that the Chinese government would attempt to exert political influence in the region, especially given the increased political tension and economic rivalry between China and the U.S. in recent years, said Wei Li, a professor of Asian Pacific American Studies at Arizona State University.

“A lot of countries, if they have the will and if they have the means, will try to influence their diaspora,” Li said.

According to his federal criminal complaint, Sun was in contact with John Chen, who also pleaded guilty to being an illegal agent of the Chinese government, regarding local politicians that Beijing could influence. In reports to Chinese officials, Sun and Chen called Wang a “New Political Star” and bragged about her contacts with mainstream U.S. politicians.

They also wrote of combatting “anti-China forces” such as Taiwan independence and the Falun Gong, an exiled anti-communist spiritual movement.

In a January 2023 message from Chen to Wang referenced in Sun’s criminal complaint, Chen said: “You are doing a good job, I hope you can continue the good work, make Chinese people proud.”

Some fear political repercussions for Asian Americans

Not only was the news of her guilty plea like a “slap in the face," the reaction from some community members has also been painful, said Cheng, the acting mayor.

Some residents at a May 19 City Council meeting blamed remaining council members for enabling Wang and called for their resignations.

“I’ve been called more names, been told to go back to China although that’s not where I’m from,” said Cheng, who came to the U.S. from Taiwan at age 2.

For many Arcadia residents and workers, life was as usual the day after the news broke. Many smiled apologetically when asked about the issue, saying they don’t pay attention to politics.

Aliza Mo, who emigrated from China six years ago for her children's education, said she first thought the headlines must be exaggerated.

“A lot of people wondered if it was discrimination," she said.

When she learned what Wang pleaded guilty to, she changed her mind.

“I think it would be improper for anyone to be doing something like that,” she said.

Separately, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has confirmed that Roman Abramovich acted as a go-between for messages between Kyiv and Moscow. Zelenskyy told Sky News that the former owner of Premier League team Chelsea traveled to Kyiv with a message from Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Zelenskyy said Abramovich brought the message that the Russians “want to understand what we are ready to do,” and had offered to take a reply to Putin.

Meanwhile, the European Union’s foreign policy chief said a new proposed round of sanctions against Russia includes 80 listings targeting Russia’s “military industrial complex, human rights violators and propagandists.”

Kaja Kallas told a news conference after a meeting of EU defense ministers Monday that Western sanctions have already cost Moscow an estimated $1.2 to 1.5 trillion.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said its forces shot down 310 Ukrainian drones overnight into Monday, including over the Moscow region, western and southwestern Russia, Russian-occupied Crimea and the Black and Azov seas.

Russia targeted Ukraine with 155 drones, of which Ukrainian air defenses shot down or suppressed 124, according to its air force.

Ukraine strikes Russian energy sites

Ukraine’s General Staff said Ukrainian forces had struck Russia’s Krasnodar Krai region overnight, hitting the Grushovaya oil transshipment base near Novorossiysk. The complex is one of the largest transshipment hubs in southern Russia for oil and petroleum products.

Russian regional authorities confirmed a Ukrainian drone sparked a fire at the facility, adding that there were no casualties. While they did not comment on the extent of damage, they said 130 rescue workers were involved in putting out the blaze.

Asked whether the Kremlin is worried about the fuel crisis in Crimea, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Energy Ministry and other agencies are working on a set of measures to respond to the situation.

“There are indeed certain problems at the moment,” Peskov said. “Measures are being taken.”

The Krasny Yar “linear production and dispatching station” in the Volgograd region was also hit, the General Staff said. A fire broke out at the site, according to the statement. Russian Gov. Andrei Bocharov didn’t specify what the facility produces, but said there were no injuries.

Ukraine also carried out strikes overnight in the Semykolodezkaya oil base in the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula on Sunday night, sparking a fire at the facility. The base is used to store fuel reserves supplying the Russian military, according to the statement posted on Telegram.

Ukrainian forces also struck an oil depot near Feodosia in Crimea, the General Staff said.

Zelenskyy sent message to Putin

Zelenskyy said his message was that he would meet Putin “any time” in any location other than Russia or Belarus, and either bilaterally or with U.S. President Donald Trump and European leaders.

But he said Ukraine would not surrender the Donbas region, currently part-occupied by Russia.

“It was the key message. I said we will not leave and we will not go out from our territory,” Zelenskyy told Sky News.

Putin said last week that a Russian businessman, who he didn’t identify, traveled to Kyiv last month and met with Zelenskyy to hear his offer of a personal meeting. The Russian leader rejected the idea of a meeting, saying he saw no point in it.

Drone strikes civilians

Two people were killed and at least 18 injured, including four children aged 5, 10, 13 and 12, by a Russian drone attack in the central Zaporizhzhia region that damaged residential buildings and vehicles and destroyed market kiosks, said the regional military administration head, Ivan Fedorov.

In Nikopol. a Russian attack killed a 49-year-old woman and injured four other people, according to the State Emergency Service.

The service also reported that four people were injured in the Dnipropetrovsk region when strikes hit residential buildings. In Odesa, three people were wounded after a Russian drone struck a public transport stop.

Russian drone strikes overnight also injured civilians and damaged buildings and businesses in the Kharkiv, Odesa and Chernihiv regions, regional authorities said.

Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone overnight struck a passenger train traveling from Moscow to Simferopol in occupied Crimea, injuring the driver and killing the driver’s assistant, Kremlin-installed regional leader Sergei Aksyonov reported early Monday.

Akysyonov added that no passengers were hurt. But all passenger train traffic in Crimea was halted following the attack, with passengers evacuated and replacement buses provided, Russian operator Grand Service Express reported on Telegram that same morning.

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

At a press preview on Monday, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he was pleased that the mostly emptied-out Berlin residence was being opened to art and to the public.

“We need art," Steinmeier said. “A democracy without free art loses its capacity for self-criticism, and art without freedom loses its social relevance.”

The former Prussian royal palace, built in the 18th century, is set to undergo extensive renovations, including a repair of the roof, a new air conditioning system and upgraded offices. The work is expected to last eight years, meaning Steinmeier is not expected to return to the residence. His second and final term ends next year.

The pop-up show Freiraum Kunst, which roughly translates as “free art space,” was organized by the city’s Academy of Arts.

The president of the academy, Manos Tsangaris, thanked Steinmeier for the opportunity to use “these wonderful spaces."

“An opportunity like this to truly bring art to life is something we greatly appreciate,” he said.

It opens to the public Friday and runs until June 28. During this time, the president's residency, which is normally not freely accessibly, will be open to anyone who manages to book a free ticket online.

People’s interest in getting a glimpse inside the official presidential residence was so great that the website crashed just a few hours after it went live last month.

The temporary art show is also certain to attract a lot of interest with works by well-known artists Katharina Grosse, Wolfgang Tillmans and Monica Bonvicini, among others.

Upon entering the building, visitors will be able to see two paintings by artist El Bocho. The first one is an oversized portrait of a young woman with bright orange hair called “Die Bundespräsidentin,” or The Female President.

Across from it hangs a painting of three faceless men in suits called “Die Alten” or “The Old Ones.” The question the artists wants to raise, said curator Anh-Linh Ngo, is why Germany has never had a female president so far.

In general, all artists were given a free hand in what messages they wanted to convey to the public and many used the opportunity to interact with the normally political space, the organizers said.

Artist Karin Sander created a miniature sculpture of Steinmeier which she placed on a pedestal in the “political speeches room” — the only space the artists were asked to not alter as it has to stay untouched until moving day — in case the president needs to give an ad hoc political speech.

So now, a 36-centimeter (14-inch) tall sculpture of the president made of plaster stands on a pedestal in the center of the room under sweeping chandeliers and framed by light-blue silk curtains. It will keep that position until the real Steinmeier, whose role is largely ceremonial, either needs to give a speech or officially opens the president's interim residency near Berlin's central train station.

The overall move, which has already started, is expected to be finished by the end of the summer.

Before visitors finish their art tour, they pass through the former lobby, where film screenings, dance and music performances and readings will take place. They will also be able to meet with the artists.

As a result, the New York Police Department warned fans that watch parties near Madison Square Garden had been canceled and that anyone attending the game on Monday should arrive at least two hours early as part of enhanced security measures.

Here's the latest:

Trump and his granddaughter Kai are in Dolan’s suite

The president was spotted with Knicks owner James Dolan in his suite high above the court. His granddaughter Kai Trump was also in the suite, as well as his personal adviser Boris Epshteyn.

Cabinet secretaries Lee Zeldin, Sean Duffy and Doug Burgum were also nearby.

Trump clapped, waved and gave a thumbs up as he looked out from behind a pane of glass onto the court.

Crowds stream into Bryant Park for watch party

Fans started grabbing seats on the lawn in front of a giant screen Monday evening at the New York park.

The watch party is typically held near Madison Square Garden, but with Trump attending, it was moved a few blocks away outside the security perimeter, at the park.

A voice blaring out over the crowd listed the many rules, including that chairs, plastic sheets, dogs and yoga mats were not allowed on the grass. Visitors also had to have their bags inspected.

Evette calls Trump’s endorsement ‘huge positive’ for her South Carolina governor campaign

Speaking with reporters after her final primary eve rally, Evette said voters across the state had stopped her to say they were backing her because the president had.

“I think we’re going to do really well tomorrow,” Evette said in Greer. “It’s a momentum, I feel it.”

If no candidate wins a majority in Tuesday’s vote, a runoff will be held two weeks later, and Evette said she was ready if needed to “make sure I win everybody’s vote.”

Trump is arriving at Madison Square Garden

Trump’s Marine One helicopter landed near Wall Street in lower Manhattan. His motorcade drove past throngs of people lining metal racks.

There were a handful of people making rude gestures, and outside the area, one group held signs saying, “Trump must go.”

Trump heading to Spurs-Knicks game

Trump was on his way to Madison Square Garden Monday for NBA Finals Game 3.

A line of police and an armored vehicle with flashing lights was making its way up FDR Drive in New York. A helicopter could be heard overhead.

Fans in Knicks gear wait in long queues

A sea of blue-and-orange Knicks jerseys filled the streets around Madison Square Garden on Monday evening as thousands of fans crowded into lines that stretched for blocks around the arena and Penn Station.

The queues wrapped around corners and spilled down sidewalks, with fans slowly inching toward entrances while checking tickets, taking photos and soaking in the atmosphere ahead of the Knicks’ first NBA Finals home game in 27 years.

For many arriving fans, the wait had become part of the spectacle, with some standing shoulder-to-shoulder for blocks before reaching the Garden.

Knicks fans make their way to NBA Finals Game 3

Greg Weldon was in the stands rooting for the Knicks when they made it to the championships more than half a century ago. Now he’s back with his son to cheer them on.

Standing in line outside Madison Square Garden in his New York jersey, he said, “You can’t really put a price on the experience.”

After traveling from his new home in Florida for the game, he said the main inconvenience he’s faced so far has been the lack of information.

“We’ve asked so many cops, Secret Service, guys with machine guns, what to do, where should we go,” he said. “Nobody knows.”

Security ramps up for NBA Finals Game 3 ahead of Trump’s anticipated arrival

An extensive security operation was underway around Madison Square Garden on Monday ahead of Trump’s expected attendance.

Hundreds of police officers lined streets surrounding the arena in Midtown Manhattan as fans wound through a maze of barricades and sanitation trucks positioned to block vehicle traffic. Thousands passed through an exterior security checkpoint before entering the secured perimeter around the Garden.

The heightened security footprint extended well beyond the arena itself, transforming several blocks around neighboring Penn Station into a tightly controlled security zone.

Trump holds primary eve telerally with South Carolina’s Graham and Evette

During a telerally late Monday afternoon, Trump wished his chosen Senate and governor’s race candidates “good luck,” urging South Carolina voters to support Sen. Lindsey Graham and Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette in the next day’s primary.

Last year, Trump endorsed Graham’s bid for a fifth term. He didn’t weigh in on Evette’s candidacy until less than two weeks before Tuesday’s votes.

As he has done in social posts endorsing Republican candidates in the state, Trump also reminded listeners of his general election victories in South Carolina in all three presidential campaigns.

The telerally was piped into a Greer event for Evette, with several people in the audience filming on their phone as the three Republicans spoke.

DHS secretary calls on sheriffs to sign agreements to assist ICE

While speaking at the National Sheriffs’ Association’s annual meeting in his home state of Oklahoma, Markwayne Mullin pitched sheriffs on signing a 287g agreement that allows them to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Mullin said the Department can help pay deputies’ salaries or for equipment in those jurisdictions that have signed 287g agreements with ICE.

Under the Trump administration, the number of jurisdictions that have signed agreements with ICE has skyrocketed.

They essentially make law enforcement agencies in states and cities around the country an arm of immigration enforcement.

“We can do all that through the 287g program, and then we’re not in the streets arresting these individuals. You guys are simply picking them up for a traffic stop,” Mullin said.

Trump formally nominates Todd Blanche to serve as attorney general

Blanche, a former personal lawyer for Trump, has been leading the Justice Department in an acting capacity since Trump fired Pam Bondi in April.

It’s unclear whether Blanche has enough Senate support to be confirmed. A key vote on the Judiciary Committee, Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, has not said whether he will back Blanche’s nomination.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, chairman of the committee, said Blanche is “well-qualified and has shown his dedication to restoring law and order across our country.”

Sen. Dick Durbin, the top Democrat on the committee, said: “Donald Trump has been engaged in the most corrupt enterprise in the history of the Presidency,” adding, “Todd Blanche apparently has not noticed.”

Blanche said last week that he was “honored and humbled” by the nomination.

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy has call with Trump envoys ahead of G7

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media he spoke by phone with Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner earlier on Monday.

The call comes a week before Trump heads to the Group of Seven summit in France in which Russia’s war on Ukraine is expected to be on the agenda. While Ukraine is not a G7 nation, Zelenskyy has been invited to attend next week’s summit.

Zelenskyy in his statement on X also alluded to the conflict becoming more of a backburner issue as Trump looks to find an endgame to the three-month old Iran conflict.

“We understand how much of the world’s attention is focused on the situation around Iran,” Zelenskyy said in a post. “But our shared goal of peace in Europe remains on the agenda.”

Dems call Trump’s refugee approach ‘shameful’

Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin and California Sen. Alex Padilla said in a letter Monday to the president that there are “multiple legal defects” with the administration’s decision to lift the refugee cap, but only for white South Africans.

The Democrats, who criticized the “shameful efforts to gut the refugee admissions program,” argued there is no “unforeseen refugee emergency” that requires a mid-year adjustment to the refugee levels, which is typically done in September.

“By contrast, there are numerous forced displacement crises and conflicts worldwide that would justify an emergency increase in the ceiling, including, for example, in Sudan, Burma, and Haiti,” the senators wrote.

They also said the administration’s legally-required consultation process with Congress was insufficient, in that it sent deputy officials to meet with lawmakers, not Cabinet rank. The Democrats said the decision to admit solely Afrikaners was a “betrayal of our nation’s longstanding bipartisan commitment to serve as a safe haven for those fleeing persecution.”

State Department to offer expedited visa interviews at select embassies and consulates for $750

The State Department will soon offer a “premium” expedited service for foreigners seeking business or tourist visas that will set applicants back $750 on top of the initial fee of $185.

In a notice to be published in the Federal Register this week, the department will unveil a pilot program that will allow visa applicants to pay the $750 to schedule an appointment for an interview within 10 days of the payment at select U.S. embassies and consulates. The embassies and consulates at which the service will be available were not identified.

Wait times for visa interviews for citizens of countries that are not part of the Visa Waiver Program can be several months, if not longer. But paying the fee for the “optional premium add-on service” does not guarantee that a visa will be issued.

The program would run from July 1 to December 31, according to internal documents obtained by The Associated Press and a department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the program has not yet been announced.

—- Matthew Lee

Iran’s UN envoy hopes US-Iran talks ‘will reach a conclusion’ by the end of June

Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said the United States and Iran are “providing and exchanging the views to reach to a conclusion” through Pakistan.

“We have not received to a final document, but we are pursuing to receive it,” he said in response to a question from The Associated Press after he spoke at a U.N. Security Council meeting on Afghanistan on Monday.

Does he think this is going to happen by the end of the month? “We hope so. We hope so,” Iravani replied.

He stressed that the ceasefire was comprehensive and applied to the region, including Lebanon, which Israel rejects. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Israel will continue striking Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants on Monday, even as it backed off of further strikes with Iran.

“And just, I think, all sides returned to the ceasefire,” Iravani said.

Pentagon includes Alibaba on its list of Chinese military companies

The Pentagon has added the tech giant Alibaba, electric-car maker BYD and the search engine Baidu to its list of Chinese military companies, preventing them from getting U.S. defense contracts.

The list updated and published by the Pentagon on Monday now sanctions some of the best-known, non-state Chinese companies that are not traditionally considered to be in the defense or security sector.

It comes at a time when Washington has become wary of Beijing’s strategy of tapping the strength of non-state businesses for military purposes.

The list was created in 2021 to identify Chinese companies that the Pentagon considers to have links to the Chinese military. It already covers companies such as DJI, a major maker of consumer drones.

Defense Department updates its list of faith traditions after LDS senators complain

The Pentagon updated its recognized religious affiliations Monday, three days after it released a streamlined list.

Utah Republican Senators Mike Lee and John Curtis had complained because the Pentagon’s Christian categories did not include The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Whether members of the LDS Church, often called Mormons, are Christian is a long-running debate.

The latest rubric does not categorize the LDS Church as Christian. Rather, it removes the Christian label from 20 other traditions, including Catholic, Lutheran and Pentecostal.

The Defense Department posted on social media that the original list “included redundant and unnecessary labeling, and the mistake has been fixed.”

US hits more than 100 Nicaraguan officials and family members with travel ban

The United States has placed travel bans on more than 100 Nicaraguan officials and their family members as part of a broader campaign to punish the current government for alleged human rights abuses.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement Monday that the new sanctions were, in part, imposed because of the death of indigenous leader Brooklyn Rivera and the policies of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and his wife and co-president Rosario Murillo.

“The United States stands with the Nicaraguan people who, like Rivera, aspire to see a free Nicaragua,” he said.

The U.S. has now barred more than 2,350 Nicaraguan officials and family members from entering the United States. The identities of the most recent targets were not released.

US stocks claw back some of the ground they lost on Friday

Wall Street is recovering a bit from its beat-down from Friday, as stocks swept up in the artificial-intelligence boom bounce back.

Oil prices are higher following fighting between Israel and Iran, but they’ve come off their peaks from overnight.

The S&P 500 rose 0.9% early Monday following its 2.6% drop Friday, which was its worst since October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 215 points, and the Nasdaq composite added 1.5%.

Some of the best performers were companies that sell computer chips and other products fueling the AI boom. They had plunged Friday amid worries that their prices had shot too high.

▶ Read more

Donald Trump, Knicks fan, heads back to New York to root for his team

There was a time when Donald Trump was just another celebrity sitting courtside at New York Knicks games. He was famous, but not yet flanked by Secret Service agents or defined by the politics that have left him deeply unpopular in his hometown.

Now, more than a decade after attending his last Knicks game at Madison Square Garden, Trump is making a rare trip back to New York City as president to cheer for them in Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night. Invited by Knicks owner James Dolan, he’ll be the first sitting president to attend an NBA Finals game.

The Knicks are seeking their first championship since 1973, when Trump was 26 and a relative newcomer to the family real estate business that vaulted him to wealth and fame. Two years after that triumph, the team’s owners at the time hired him as a consultant as they looked to sell the arena.

▶ Read more

As America 250 approaches, fewer Americans see their country as exceptional, AP-NORC poll finds

As the U.S. prepares for an extravagant celebration of its founding principles, fewer Americans see their country as exceptional, a new poll finds.

The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research highlights many Americans’ feelings of unease over the future of its representative government — particularly among young people. It presents a jarring contrast as communities around the country commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary.

Only about one-quarter of Americans say the U.S. stands above all other countries in the world, the new poll found, while 44% say it’s one of the greatest countries in the world, along with some others. About 3 in 10 say there are better countries than the U.S., an increase from 19% in an AP-NORC poll conducted in June 2016.

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Lawsuit seeks to stop the UFC fight on the White House South Lawn for Trump’s birthday

A federal lawsuit seeks to halt the upcoming UFC fight card on the White House South Lawn in a mixed martial arts show timed for President Donald Trump’s 80th birthday and part of the celebration of the nation’s 250th anniversary.

The filing Saturday by the Public Integrity Project on behalf of two Virginia residents contends the Trump administration’s authorization of the June 14 event was unlawful. The lawsuit says such approval violated National Park Service regulations prohibiting sporting events on federal parklands, Congress did not consent to the towering arch overlooking the event space and no environmental review was conducted before the construction.

The White House said in a statement that the legal challenge was “an obstructionist, baseless, and dilatory” attempt to prevent Trump from hosting the fight and that the event was “no different than the various other White House-hosted events on the South Lawn and properly permitted events on the Ellipse and National Mall throughout the year.”

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Trump issues pardon to former Republican congressman convicted of insider trading

Trump has issued a pardon to Stephen Buyer, a former Republican congressman from Indiana who served nearly two years in prison for making illegal stock trades based on inside information after he left office.

Buyer was sentenced to 22 months in prison in 2023 for trades made while working as a consultant and lobbyist. He was ordered to forfeit more than $350,000, representing the amount of the illegal gains, and pay a $10,000 fine. He was released in 2025.

The Supreme Court in May rejected Buyer’s appeal without comment or noted dissent.

In granting “a full, complete, and unconditional pardon,” Trump cited Buyer’s career as a judge advocate general in the Army and in the House that was “distinguished and highly productive.” The pardon was dated Thursday and released by the White House late Friday.

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No watch party at Madison Square Garden with Trump attending Game 3 of the NBA Finals

Police scuttled an NBA Finals watch party near Madison Square Garden and the New York Knicks warned fans to get to Monday’s matchup at least two hours early as part of enhanced security measures with Trump attending the game.

Trump is a longtime Knicks fan who confirmed Friday that he would attend the first NBA Finals game in New York since 1999. He already has attended a number of major sporting events in his second term, including the 2025 Super Bowl, Daytona 500 and Ryder Cup.

Part of the fallout from Trump’s visit was the cancellation of a Game 3 watch party outside MSG. The New York Police Department said in a statement Sunday the decision was made in coordination with the Secret Service.

“There will be no watch parties outside of Madison Square Garden for Game 3 only,” the statement said. “This was done fully in coordination with the Secret Service because of the presidential visit. We expect watch parties at Madison Square Garden to resume for Game 4.”

Trump dismisses idea that Iran betrays his ‘no new wars’ campaign message

Trump is dismissing the idea that launching the war with Iran this year betrayed his refrain of “No new wars” that he made repeatedly as he campaigned again for the White House.

Trump, in an interview that aired Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” said he “didn’t guarantee” there would be no wars if he were back in office.

“First of all, I didn’t guarantee no war. Why would I have built the strongest military in the world?” Trump said.

It came just hours before Israel and Iran traded fire in retaliatory strikes that threatened to drag the wider Middle East back into a full-scale regional war. It was the first exchange of fire since an April 8 ceasefire was reached.

Trump also defended plans for a now-scrapped $1.8 billion fund that would have compensated allies of the Republican president and he repeated his baseless claims of mass fraud in California’s drawn-out vote count from Tuesday’s primary. He ended the interview abruptly when he became frustrated with pushback from NBC’s Kristen Welker.

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The decision sent shock waves across college sports since bans for gambling are a bedrock rule of the NCAA and many professional sports.

The NCAA said it strongly disagrees with the ruling and “is deeply concerned about the damaging, far-reaching and broadly destabilizing ramifications of this outcome — which undermines and corrupts the integrity of sports.” The NCAA said it would appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Seventh District of Texas in Amarillo.

Sorsby, whose school said he has a gambling problem that he is addressing through treatment, will miss the Red Raiders’ first two games next season under a judge-approved penalty that had been proposed by his attorneys. The NCAA, which usually handles such punishments, was not involved.

The ruling by Judge Ken Curry prevents the NCAA from being able to block the transfer QB's eligibility for what will be his final college season with a team among the favorites to win the Big 12 Conference and return to the College Football Playoff for a second consecutive season.

Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark said the ramifications of the ruling “could have broad impacts across college athletics, creating great concern amongst our membership.” He called a meeting this week of his league's athletic directors and executive board, and been in touch with NCAA President Charlie Baker.

Texas Tech opens the season on Sept. 5 at home against Abilene Christian. The Red Raiders then play Oregon State before their Big 12 opener at home on Sept. 18 against Houston.

“I’m very grateful for the endless support I have received throughout this entire process,” Sorsby posted on social media. “I am also grateful for the chance to rejoin my teammates. This opportunity comes with the responsibility to remain focused on my personal growth, the ability to learn from this experience, and to be able to use my situation to help others going forward.”

The judge's ruling

Curry held a two-hour hearing last week in the 99th District Court in Lubbock County, where Texas Tech is located. In his decision, he wrote that he agreed Sorsby would suffer “a probable, imminent and irreparable injury” if he cannot practice or play for the Red Raiders.

The injunction comes with conditions that Sorsby must continue counseling for his gambling and to participate in peer support through Gamblers Anonymous or a similar group. He also must continue treatment to address “the underlying anxiety that served as the primary driver of (his) gambling behavior.”

Texas Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt said a comprehensive support structure, including clinical care, monitoring and compliance checks, will remain fully in place for Sorsby during his time at the school.

“As we have said before, we do not believe that the circumstances of Brendan’s case warranted permanent ineligibility,” Hocutt said. “As he returns to our football program, we remain committed to supporting Brendan’s recovery and ensuring his compliance with the court’s order.”

Kansas State athletic director Gene Taylor told Yahoo Sports he was disappointed by the ruling.

“It is absolutely devastating for him to be able to play when every other sport, no matter the level, deems an athlete ineligible or they are punished severely for betting on their team,” he told the outlet.

Nebraska athletic director Troy Dannen confirmed to The Associated Press that his coaches have been told to not schedule Texas Tech in any sport, as first reported by Yahoo Sports. Georgia also will not schedule Texas Tech in any sport, according to multiple media outlets.

“This may be one of those seminal moments we've all been waiting for,” Dannen said in a text to the AP.

A significant setback against the NCAA

NCAA attorney Taylor Askew had said during the hearing that allowing Sorsby to play another college season would provide “reputable harm” to the governing body.

“Saying the NCAA is now the first league in America that allows you, without punishment, to bet on its own contests, that’s a reputable harm to the NCAA,” Askew told the court. “This would be the first league in America that does that. ... We should not say for the first time serial gambling is OK.”

Court records show that Sorsby has acknowledged making thousands of impermissible bets totaling at least $90,000 during his time at Indiana, Cincinnati and Texas Tech. That included 40 bets on Indiana while he was a freshman there in 2022, though none on any of the games he played in with the Hoosiers.

While some guidelines for penalties related to gambling have changed in recent years, NCAA rules still call for a permanent loss of eligibility for any player who wagered on his own team.

Sorsby was at Indiana for two seasons before the past two at Cincinnati.

The Texas native transferred in January to Texas Tech for a reported multimillion-dollar deal. The Red Raiders brought him in to be the starting quarterback when trying to defend their first Big 12 title and return to the CFP.

What led to the NCAA investigation

According to court filings, on March 11 the NCAA received a tip about Sorsby’s gambling activity from an online sportsbook, which had been informed by law enforcement. Texas Tech was notified April 14 that an investigation was underway by the NCAA.

Jeffrey Kessler, the attorney who negotiated the $2.8 billion House settlement against the NCAA and now represents Sorsby, told the court that the 22-year-old quarterback has a diagnosed addiction and anxiety-driven compulsion. Sorsby recently completed a monthlong stay in a residential treatment program in Arizona that he entered after the start of the NCAA’s investigation.

According to a clinician who treated Sorsby, Kessler said, not allowing the quarterback to play would hurt his mental health and hamper his recovery.

The NCAA in its statement Monday said it is “committed to supporting student-athlete mental health but must continue to aggressively defend against actions that defraud college athletics and threaten competitive integrity, such as betting on one’s own sport.”

The lawsuit and NCAA appeals

The injunction came in Sorsby’s lawsuit filed May 18 against the NCAA seeking the restoration of his eligibility. That case was initially assigned to District Judge Phillip Hays, a Lubbock native and Texas Tech graduate who later recused himself. Curry is a retired judge from Tarrant County, nearly 300 miles away.

Since the filing of that lawsuit, the NCAA has twice denied Texas Tech’s petition to restore the quarterback’s eligibility.

When the school on May 26 revealed the first denial and its intent to appeal, university president Lawrence Schovanec wrote in a letter to the Texas Tech community that the school felt “the NCAA’s ruling should be reversed or modified.”

That comment illustrates the difficult landscape for the NCAA, which has lost multiple court cases challenging rules that were put in place by the very schools that make up its membership. Many focus on eligibility, with athletes contending they should be allowed to play and continue to earn money that was made available under the House ruling.

The NCAA is on the verge of approving a new eligibility model following meetings among stakeholders and even President Donald Trump. The NCAA continues to also seek limited antitrust protections from Congress in hopes of eliminating or at least smoothing the state-by-state rulings that have thrown the industry into chaos.

“There is no better example of why targeted intervention from Congress is necessary,” Baker said on social media after the ruling. “When you have schools and deep-pocketed supporters willing to look the other way on the glaring integrity threat of betting on your own team — and judges whose rulings effectively strip away our ability to stop them — only Congress can equip the NCAA to apply this common sense rule to everyone fairly and consistently. The Protect College Sports Act would empower the NCAA to enforce rules including the gambling restrictions — it’s needed now more than ever.”

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AP College Football Writer Eric Olson contributed to this report.

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

New formats: regional races and the Tripleheader

This year the competition expands its regional footprint: ninjas from the West, Central and East regions will battle through regional qualifiers for a spot in brand‑new Regional Finals on the road to the National Finals. A headline addition is the Tripleheader — a supersized, three‑lane racecourse debuting in Regional Finals where three athletes race side by side in high‑speed heats. Matt, Akbar and Zuri told Lauren the Tripleheader brings theater and intensity, testing speed, strategy and nerves in equal measure.

Nightly predictions, all‑racing National Finals and the prize

Fans can also look forward to the Fastest Pick of the Night — each qualifying episode opens with the hosts predicting who will post the night’s quickest run, a fun bit of banter that Lauren noted adds personality to the show. Building on last season’s revamp, the National Finals keep an all‑racing format where head‑to‑head speed determines the champion — and the winner walks away with a $250,000 grand prize.

For local viewers in Houston and beyond, the season promises big moments, fierce rivalries and the kind of heart‑stopping runs that make ANW a must‑watch.

When to watch

Catch the Season 18 premiere Monday, June 8 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on NBC; episodes stream the next day on Peacock.

Want more details from Lauren’s conversation with the hosts? Watch her full interview above and get ready for the Tripleheader.

Doyle Hodge II, 40, was taken into custody on May 29 on a charge of sexual assault of a child.

Since Hodge’s arrest, he has had additional charges added, including continuous sexual abuse of a child, indecency with a child by sexual contact, and criminal solicitation of a child (sexual assault of a child).

His combined bond is $425,000.

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office said in its original post about the arrest that up to five victims have been identified. Court documents are shedding new details on three of the charges against Hodge.

• RELATED: Man accused of sexually abusing at least 5 child victims in Polk County; suspect volunteered at several churches

One of the victims said Hodge first began assaulting her when she was 12. The documents allege Hodge began forcing the victim to give him back rubs and also gave her back rubs when she was 15.

He would allegedly make comments such as the “Bible says it’s the right thing to do.” During these sessions, Hodge allegedly sexually assaulted the victim and also threatened to beat her and “kill everyone” if she told anyone.

Another female victim alleged Hodge had assaulted her five or six times over the past year, according to the documents.

A separate charge of criminal solicitation of a child was added based off of the allegations of a male child victim, mentioned in the court documents.

According to the documents, the male victim alleged that Hodge asked him to perform a sex act on him, and the victim rejected the advances. Hodge then allegedly told the victim not to tell anyone.

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office said Hodge had been a volunteer at several local churches in the county. Officials ask anyone who believes they may have been a victim to come forward.

Who needs full-mouth reconstruction?

Full-arch implant reconstruction is for people losing most or all of their teeth or whose remaining teeth are no longer predictable because of gum disease, severe decay, failed dental work, trauma or long-term breakdown. Many patients “hold on” to problem teeth for years - but they can’t chew comfortably, they avoid smiling, or they’re dealing with repeated infections, loose teeth or broken bridges. For those patients, rebuilding the entire upper or lower arch can be a safer, longer-lasting option.

What is ONEARCH and how it works

ONEARCH is a full-arch dental implant solution that restores an entire upper or lower set of teeth using strategically placed implants. Rather than replacing one tooth at a time, the arch is rebuilt as a connected, fixed set of teeth supported by implants. For many patients the process includes removing failing teeth, placing implants and attaching a fixed temporary prosthesis during healing so you leave the office with a working smile. ONEARCH focuses on stability, function and a natural appearance.

Beyond a cosmetic fix: function, health and confidence

A full-arch solution does more than improve a photo-ready smile. It restores chewing function, supports facial structure, stabilizes the bite and reduces the cycle of emergency repairs and infections. Advances such as angled implants, zygomatic and pterygoid implants, plus 3D imaging and digital planning, mean more patients are candidates than they were in the past - even those who’ve been told they “don’t have enough bone.” Patients commonly say they stop avoiding restaurants, family gatherings and photos - and that renewed confidence is as important as the health benefits.

Who’s a good candidate?

People with multiple failing or missing teeth, loose dentures, advanced gum disease or repeated failures from prior dental work. A consultation with a full-arch specialist helps determine whether ONEARCH or other implant approaches are right for you.

To learn more, call 336-ONEARCH (663-2724) or visit www.bestdentalimplantshouston.com.

The move comes as the number of confirmed cases in Texas has grown to four across three counties.

State officials say the New World screwworm poses a significant threat to livestock, wildlife, pets and the state’s agricultural economy. While human infections are considered rare, health experts say Texans should still be aware of the risks.

Can people get New World screwworm?

According to Memorial Hermann infectious disease specialist Dr. Linda Yancey, human infections are uncommon but possible if flies lay eggs in or near a wound.

• RELATED: Three new cases of screwworm confirmed in Texas; A&M leader tasked as federal adviser

“These are very creative little parasites. If it lays an egg near an eye, it will tunnel into the eye. It can cause blindness in some cases. Newborn babies have the umbilical stump. Both of the cattle this was detected in were newborns, and they were infected at their umbilical stump. So, you don’t have to have a huge open wound to be at risk for this. So, it’s definitely rare,” Yancey said.

No human cases have been reported in Texas.

Will the outbreak affect beef prices?

One question many Texans have is whether the outbreak could affect beef supplies or lead to higher prices at the grocery store.

Texas A&M agriculture economist Dr. David Anderson says consumers should not expect any immediate impact.

“Well, it really shouldn’t affect anything as we think about short term, you know, Fourth of July coming up, the rest of summer. It shouldn’t really affect anything because it doesn’t, that we’ve had these couple of cases really doesn’t affect our current beef production. So, you know, we shouldn’t really notice really any change from that. You know, long term, if you’re thinking over, you know, if we had a sustained long-term outbreak that we just couldn’t control very well, you know, it would lead to much higher production costs by ranchers, which would lead to fewer cattle and less beef production,” Anderson said.

• RELATED: A flesh-eating cattle parasite is spreading in Texas as new far-flung screwworm cases are found

Experts say a prolonged outbreak could increase costs for ranchers and potentially impact beef production in the future, but there are currently no concerns about beef availability heading into the summer.

Is beef safe to eat?

Health experts stress that consumers do not need to worry about contracting New World screwworm from beef purchased at a grocery store.

“So this really is a disease of flies. It’s the adult flies laying eggs on you, or more likely cattle, that causes the disease. Now, certainly, the food industry wants very clean processing, so they are gonna ban any meat that might be affected by the screw worm, but that’s not how you acquire the disease,” Yancey said.

Officials say the parasite is spread by flies laying eggs in wounds and is not transmitted through properly processed beef products.

International impact already being felt

The outbreak is already having consequences beyond Texas.

Canada has temporarily suspended imports of livestock originating from Texas following the discovery of New World screwworm cases in the state. The restriction applies to live animals and is intended to prevent the parasite from spreading across international borders.

State officials continue urging ranchers, veterinarians, pet owners and wildlife managers to monitor animals closely for wounds and report any suspected cases immediately.

As Texas works to contain the outbreak, experts say public awareness and early detection will be critical in preventing additional cases.

The culprit? Several inches of raised, broken concrete that has made the sidewalk essentially impassable — for anyone using a wheelchair, pushing a cart, or simply trying to get from point A to point B safely.

“It’s been like this for years,” said Shari Latif, a Galveston resident who first flagged the problem to 2 Helps You. “There are a lot of seniors that pass by — going to the store or other places. But how do you pass by on this side? You’re pushing a cart — you can’t get past.”

The stretch sits near the seawall, on a street heavily used by residents trying to get on and off the island. For those with limited mobility, the damage isn’t just an inconvenience — it’s a safety threat.

• 2 Helps You: Man walks from Houston to San Antonio, then comes back to give away nearly 100 pairs of shoes to Katy kids

Donna Reading, an elderly resident, put it plainly: “If I’m in a wheelchair, I don’t go down this way — because if I did, I’d have to go out in the street, and that is not very safe.”

Rochelle Snowden, another elderly neighbor, described the daily tradeoff: “I have to go in the street anytime I want to go to the seawall this way. But that’s not safe. I know — but what is the option?”

For Sheila King, avoidance became the only answer. “I haven’t been down that way in about six months,” she said. “Because of that sidewalk. Because of that, yeah — because I get scared. I’ve had people honk at me and stuff like that. But that’s no way to live.”

Latif reached out to 2 Helps You weeks ago. Before coming out, we asked her to make calls directly to the city and to stay persistent. She did. We came anyway — because for too many residents here, the feeling was something deeper than frustration.

When asked if she felt forgotten, Reading didn’t hesitate: “Yeah.”

• Illegal dump site off Antoine Drive ignored for months; 2 Helps You puts Harris County on notice

Here’s the good news: The fix is now in the works.

The apartment complex behind the damaged stretch confirmed to 2 Helps You that they are responsible for the repairs — and that work is set to begin as soon as possible. Management was also made aware of Latif’s complaints, which were part of what prompted action.

2 Helps You is committed to staying on this story until the repairs are complete.

Have a problem you need help solving? Reach out to Investigator Mario Diaz at the 2 Helps You Team.

The La Marque Police Department said it happened on Aug. 2, 2025, when officers responded to the Super 8 Motel located at 312 Delaney Rd in regards to an unresponsive person. They arrived and found 21-year-old Chase Boone unresponsive in his room. Life-saving attempts were made, but he was ultimately pronounced dead.

During the investigation, it was determined that Boone died from a fentanyl overdose. Brooklyn Pace was identified as a person-of-interest in the case.

Investigators found that Pace was responsible for selling the lethal dose of fentanyl that caused Boone’s death.

• Woman fatally shot at Houston apartment complex after ongoing dispute; neighbor detained by police

The case was presented before the Galveston County District Attorney’s Office who determined there was enough evidence to pursue criminal charges.

On May 21, La Marque PD with the assistance of the DEA and USMS Gulf Coast Violent Offenders and Fugitive Task Force–Galveston, Pace was located and taken into custody without incident.

She is charged with murder. Her bond has been set at $200,000.

“I am just glad that we’re able to accomplish this after so many years,” said Ben Wolff, dir. of the Office of Capital and Forensic Writs, which serves as a public defender for post-conviction capital and forensic science cases.

Jordan was convicted and sentenced to death in 1978 for the murder of Houston grocery store worker, Joe Williams, during a robbery. His initial conviction and death sentence was overturned in 1982, but the following year Jordan was convicted and sentenced to death a second time.

• RELATED: Texas court asked to overturn death sentence of Harris County inmate on death row for nearly 50 years

In 1987 Jordan was declared incompetent. By this time the US Supreme Court ruled an incompetent person could not be executed even if they were competent at the time the crime was committed and at the time of trial.

The following year, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals agreed Jordan could not be executed until his competency was restored. After this ruling, the case appears to have stalled.

A 2 Investigates review of the court file does not show what, if any, work was done to restore Jordan’s competency. Citing privacy laws, the Texas Dept. of Criminal Justice declined to answer what type of mental health treatment Jordan received since 1987.

While inquiries about the status of the case were sent over the years to the trial court where Jordan was convicted, none triggered any type of formal action.

• RELATED: How did a Harris County man spend nearly half a century on death row without being executed?

Jordan’s case was among 100 post-conviction writ cases that fell through the cracks of the system. These cases were discovered in 2022 by associate judges tasked with helping clear a backlog of criminal cases in Harris County.

In Nov. 2024, Wolff filed a motion to be appointed Jordan’s attorney. Wolff said it does not appear Jordan had an attorney after he was declared incompetent.

Wolff then filed an appeal with the CCA, arguing Jordan should never have been given the death penalty since he had a documented history of mental illness the jury was not allowed to consider when deciding punishment.

Old Houston Chronicle and Houston Post newspaper articles, and court documents, show Jordan referred to himself as ‘Father Nature,’ tried to stab a bailiff with a spoon after jury selection in his trial ended and escaped from the courthouse on the day he was ruled incompetent. Wolff said Jordan suffers from paranoid schizophrenia, has hallucinations, brain damage, and below-average IQ.

In Apr. 2026, the CCA vacated Jordan’s death sentence. The Justices wrote the jury in 1983 was not given adequate instructions to consider whether Jordan’s mental health issues should be considered a mitigating factor when deciding punishment.

After the CCA’s ruling, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office said it would not seek a retrial.

“As prosecutors, our duty is to seek justice—not to simply convict. After review of this defendant’s case, we have concluded his death sentence must be vacated. This is what justice looks like. The Harris County District Attorney’s Office worked with the defendant’s counsel, and, upon careful review, determined the jury in this case was not able to fully consider mitigating evidence his trial attorneys presented. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals agreed. To be clear: the defendant’s conviction stands. This outcome does not lessen the harm caused to Joe Williams’ family and friends. When a life is at stake, we must follow the law and ensure the process is fair," officials with the DA’s Office wrote in April.

Since his guilt was not in question, the only legal punishment left was life in prison. Since Texas did not have a sentence of life without parole in 1977, this sentence reduction means Jordan is eligible for parole.

However, Wolff said Jordan suffered a stroke in 2010 and has been housed in a prison hospital at the Estelle prison unit since that time.

“Mr. Jordan, who, on top of his life-long cognitive and mental illness challenges, is now addled by a stroke, blind, and unable to ambulate, speak, or feed himself,” Wolff wrote in a May 2026 pre-sentence memo to Judge Thomas.

Wolff is asking TDCJ to place Jordan under Medically Recommended Intensive Supervision. This type of release applies to a limited set of inmates.

“Terminal illness, old age, geriatric illnesses, stokes, brain damage, ect.,” Wolff said.

Wolff said MRIS is not open to inmates with a death sentence, but since Jordan’s sentence was reduced to life he can now ask TDCJ to place his client in this program.

Officials with TDCJ has not yet responded to KPRC’s request for comment.

A proposed $5 monthly trash administrative fee would mark a first for Houston. The city has never charged residents directly for trash pickup before.

City officials say the fee is about shoring up the budget and keeping city services funded. If approved, it’s estimated to bring in between $24 million and $25 million a year.

Officials say the money would help get public works employees in place to pick up trash and get all five solid waste collection centers up and running. Right now, only two are operational.

Under the plan, the fee would stay at $5 for two years, then increase by $5 each year after that — reaching $25 per month by fiscal year 2032.

Wondering what it would look like on your bill? The solid waste cart fee line on your water bill would be renamed “Solid Waste Cart and Administrative Fee,” with a new total of $6.29 — combining the current $1.29 cart fee with the proposed $5 charge.

While city council members will have the final say Wednesday, it’s everyday residents who will feel the impact most.

“I’m on disability, limited income — I have to watch my pennies, so I think it will affect me,” said Rosario Escobedo, a Houston resident.

Maria Rodriguez, who lives in Denver Harbor, says she’s been paying close attention to the proposed fee.

“$5 is $5 — it’s not much, but it adds and adds and adds when rates are still going up,” Rodriguez said.

The debate has also played out on social media since news of the proposal first broke. Some residents say they’re OK with the fee if it helps crack down on illegal dumping. Others are asking a more pointed question — will paying more actually mean better trash service?

It’s worth noting that Houston is currently the only major city in Texas that does not charge a monthly solid waste fee. In San Antonio, residents pay between $19 and $35 a month. Dallas residents pay $40. In nearby cities like Pasadena, Sugar Land and League City, the monthly fee tops $20.

As for where the mayor stands, a spokesperson for Whitmire’s office told KPRC 2 the mayor is confident he has the support he needs to pass the budget.

Sen. Tom Cotton, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Sen. Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, sounded the alarm in a letter over the weekend after a failed procedural vote to extend the program.

The senators urged Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also acts as the president's National Security Advisor, to prepare “for a potential significant gap in foreign intelligence collection” if the authority expires. Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, set to lapse June 12, allows agencies including the CIA, National Security Agency and FBI to collect communications from foreign targets overseas without a warrant.

In a response obtained by The Associated Press, Rubio replied to the senators that he understands the “political challenges” but said he is “deeply disappointed” that Democrats are opposing the legislation.

“Allowing Section 702 to expire would have dire impacts on our ability to keep the nation secure,” Rubio wrote.

Efforts to secure a long-term extension of the program already faced hurdles because of bipartisan concerns that the program can incidentally collect Americans’ communications. Privacy advocates and some lawmakers have been pushing to create a new warrant requirement before those communications can be searched.

Senate leaders from both parties appeared to be nearing bipartisan agreement on a long-term extension, but the effort collapsed after Trump selected federal housing finance regulator Bill Pulte to serve as acting director of national intelligence.

Democrats and several Republicans registered their opposition to Trump’s selection of Pulte, arguing the federal housing finance regulator lacks the experience needed to oversee the nation’s 18 intelligence agencies and has used his current position to investigate some of the president's perceived political rivals.

“Why the president would throw this live hand grenade of Bill Pulte in 10 days before this is due to expire, I'm not sure," Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said on ABC's “This Week.”

Pulte pick upends bipartisan deal

Even as they say it is critical, Democrats have said they won't have the votes to renew the surveillance authority unless Pulte's appointment is withdrawn. Republican leaders tried to start the process last week, but seven Republicans joined nearly all Democrats in blocking a long-term extension.

“The White House bears the responsibility to fix this,” Warner said. “They have the power to do it. They can do it today. Let’s see what happens.”

Trump has said that Pulte won't be his permanent pick, but has not announced a nominee to be confirmed by the Senate.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Monday that there are “conversations” around the White House nominating a permanent pick for the job before the surveillance authority expires. But he said he wasn't sure what they would decide to do.

“We have a deadline ahead of us. We need Democrat votes,” Thune said. “The naming of Pulte to that position, although the timing arguably wasn’t the best, I still don’t think it ought to derail something that’s this important."

Thune has also expressed concern over Pulte's pick, saying the nation’s top intelligence post should not be “weaponized” and that the job should be filled by “professionals.” Cotton, who rarely strays from supporting Trump and is a leading advocate for the surveillance authority, declined to endorse Pulte last week, saying only that he had “no observations on the matter.”

“He’s not qualified for the long-term position,” Republican Sen. James Lankford, another member of the Intelligence Committee, told “Fox News Sunday.” “That’s been clear on this. He has no national security background.”

Both Republican and Democratic senators skeptical of Pulte pointed to his record at the Federal Housing Finance Agency. In the role, he's been linked with criminal referrals over allegations of mortgage fraud by public officials Trump sought to punish, including New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat; Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.; and Lisa Cook, a board member of the Federal Reserve.

“Clearly to get to good-faith negotiations the effort to elevate Bill Pulte as the acting director of national intelligence should be reversed. Immediately," House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said.

A key surveillance tool

The current reauthorization debate is hardly the first time that lawmakers have grappled with the fate of the surveillance program, particularly after a flurry of revelations about government misuse of the vast trove of intelligence it collects.

The topic in recent years has scrambled predictable partisan alliances, with Democratic critics of the Trump administration uniting with skeptics of government power on the right in voicing concerns about Section 702’s renewal.

In 2024, for instance, those divisions nearly caused the program to lapse. The Senate barely missed its midnight deadline that year before approving by a 60-34 margin legislation to reauthorize Section 702 that was subsequently signed by then-President Joe Biden.

In a post on X, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche urged Democrats “to come back to the table with their Republican counterparts.”

The authority is “one of our nation’s key tools for finding and stopping foreign terrorists," Blanche said.

Cotton and Grassley said they believed Democratic leaders would not support another short-term extension of the surveillance authority and urged Rubio to prepare contingency plans. They said Trump should consider an executive order to prevent a disruption in intelligence collection.

Democrats and Republicans have said they were close on a bipartisan deal on a long-term extension and could still move quickly should a change occur before Friday. Still, the bill would likely need to go through the House — and the two chambers so far have disagreed on a separate issue regarding central banking digital currency.

Republicans are already warning of the consequences if Congress fails to act.

“If it goes dark, then it would be a calamitous situation for the country,” House Speaker Mike Johnson said.

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Associated Press writer Seung Min Kim contributed to this report.

The 56-year-old is facing allegations of sexual misconduct with a female aide, in a scandal that has dragged on for more than two years. He has steadfastly denied any wrongdoing.

A final decision on Khan's fate is now up to the Assembly of States Parties, the body that oversees the ICC, which will hold a special session to decide if Khan can remain in his job at the global court.

The Bureau of the Assembly of States parties — the executive committee of the court’s oversight body — said in a statement that it based its decision “on the report of an investigation undertaken by the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), the underlying evidence, the advice of an ad hoc Panel of judicial experts, and written submissions.”

It added that Khan's suspension pending the assembly meeting “is not an indication of the final outcome.”

The U.N. investigation found evidence that Khan had “nonconsensual sexual contact with (the aide) in his office, at his private residence, and whilst on mission,” according to a copy of its report seen by The Associated Press. However, a three-judge panel selected by the executive committee for a legal assessment of the findings found that the investigation was not conclusive enough.

When contacted for comment, Khan’s legal team said a statement would be issued Tuesday.

Khan had already temporarily stepped down in May 2025 pending the outcome of the investigation. The process is unprecedented for the ICC, and the Assembly of States Parties has had to repeatedly create new rules to accommodate the situation.

The allegations against Khan were first reported to the court’s independent watchdog more than two years ago. An AP investigation revealed that Khan was alleged to have seen the woman working in another ICC department and moved her into his office. She later became a regular presence on official trips, according to whistleblower documents.

On one foreign trip, Khan allegedly asked her to rest with him on a hotel bed and then “sexually touched her,” the documents said. Other alleged nonconsensual behavior cited in the documents included locking the door of his office and sticking his hand in her pocket. He also allegedly asked her several times to accompany him on a vacation.

Only the Assembly of States Parties has the authority to remove Khan from office, a move that would require a majority in a secret ballot of its 125 member states. Sixty-three countries would need to support a measure to remove him.

No date was immediately set for the session, but the assembly said it would be convened as soon as possible.

Jones, who spent six years with the Sun before coming to New York in 2023, received a standing ovation from the crowd in a pregame ceremony.

“I want to say thank you to this organization for taking a chance on me and bringing me here,” Jones told the crowd. “Thank you to the fans. Even though it's the ”Sunset season" there are a lot of memories here. A lot of winning that happened here. I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Jones didn't end up playing in the game as she was a late scratch because of an illness.

Connecticut, which is playing its last season in the state before moving to Houston next season, will honor six former Sun members of the franchise during this season.

“It’s an honor. It means a lot, a lot of great memories there,” Jones said. “It’s an organization that saw a lot of me before I proved myself to the WNBA. I said it before, but (Connecticut) decided to move players that were really solidified in this league."

Connecticut acquired Jones on draft night in 2016 from the Los Angeles Sparks in a deal for Chelsea Gray that worked out well for both teams.

“They saw me as someone that could come in and really contribute before I ever stepped on the court in the WNBA. That means a lot to me,” she said. "It’s kind of cool to say you’re honored while you’re still playing in the WNBA as well. Definitely new territory. Something I’m looking forward to, and something that I’m really excited about.”

Jones, who won the league's MVP award in 2021, helped the team reach the WNBA Finals in 2019 and 2022. She is sixth in franchise history with 196 games and fifth in points scored, totaling 2,657. She's first in blocks with 270 and third in rebounds with 1,633. She was traded to New York before the 2023 season.

“It was important to us that Jonquel's legacy be permanently recognized,” Sun president Jen Rizzotti said. “Raising her number into the rafters is a tribute to one of the greatest players in franchise history and a lasting reminder of everything she has meant to this organization and to our fans.”

Connecticut will also honor former players Jasmine Thomas, Alyssa Thomas, Tina Charles as well as coaches Curt Miller and Mike Thibault.

Jones joined other Connecticut greats Margo Dydek, Katie Douglas, Nykesha Sales, Taj McWilliams-Franklin, Lindsay Whalen and Asjha Jones in the rafters at the arena.

___

AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Early Monday evening, officers responded to a shooting scene in the 5100 block of Lavender Street, where an adult female victim was found suffering from gunshot wounds.

She was transported to a hospital, where she later died.

An adult male was detained at the scene and is believed to be the shooter, police said. Investigators said the detained man told officers that the woman assaulted him before the shooting occurred.

According to HPD Lt. Larry Crowson, the victim and the detained man were neighbors who had reportedly been involved in an ongoing dispute prior to the shooting.

Authorities have not released details about the alleged assault, and detectives are continuing to investigate the circumstances leading up to the deadly encounter.

Police have not announced whether charges have been filed. The identities of those involved have not yet been released pending notification of family members and further investigation.

The investigation remains ongoing.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Houston Police Department or Crime Stoppers of Houston.

The meeting, which followed in the tradition of popes meeting with abuse survivors during their foreign trips, lasted about an hour and took place at the Vatican embassy in Madrid, the Vatican said in a statement.

Spain’s Catholic hierarchy has only recently begun reckoning with its legacy of abuse and cover-up after long dismissing the severity of the scandal that came to light thanks to reporting by the newpaper El País.

In 2023, the Spanish government’s ombudsman delivered a damning 800-page report estimating there were hundreds of thousands of possible victims in Spain over decades — based on a survey of 8,000 people. The report also examined 487 known cases.

Spain’s bishops rejected the estimate, saying its own investigation had uncovered 728 sexual abusers within the church since 1945.

During Monday’s meeting, the survivors told the pope their stories and recommendations for how the church should better respond, the Vatican said. Victims in Spain and elsewhere have long complained that the church’s response to the scandal was often retraumatizing, with victims often accused of only seeking money or to harm the church.

“The pope listened with affection and attention, assured them of his closeness — and that of the entire church community — and pledged his commitment to ensuring that the suggestions received serve as a foundation for further efforts, so that the church may truly be a safe and spiritually healthy place where wounds find comfort and healing,” said a statement from Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni.

The encounter marked the first known time Leo had met with victims while on a foreign visit, but it by no means was his first time hearing first-hand from survivors.

As a bishop in Chiclayo, Peru, the former Robert Prevost was in charge of listening to victims as the point of reference for the Peruvian bishops conference. In that capacity, he became intimately aware of the abusive practices in the powerful Peruvian group, Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, which Pope Francis formally suppressed last year.

As pope, Leo has insisted on the need to listen to victims but he has also demanded that the rights of accused priests be upheld.

In his recent encyclical, he said the journey for justice for victims included “just reparation” and he included not only victims of sexual abuse but also spiritual, economic, institutional and power-based abuse, as well as abuses of conscience.

Ahead of the expected meeting with Leo, several groups representing survivors that were not included said they were left in the dark about the encounter, and held a small protest outside the Vatican’s embassy in Madrid.

“Our associations are pleased that a group of victims from the reparation plan can be heard by the pope, but they do not represent all the victims, and deep down they are being used by the church, by the bishops conference, to clean up the image of a Spanish church that has never been able to live up to its victims,” said Juan Cuatrecasas, a spokesperson for the Robbed Childhood association.

Leo addresses abuse to bishops and parliament

Before the meeting, Leo told Spanish bishops that they must offer reparations to survivors and that the entire church community should have an "ever more determined commitment to prevention and a culture of care.”

“Faced with this scourge, the ecclesial community is called to respond with listening, truth, justice, reparation," Leo said. “Every wounded person must be able to find sincere listening, welcome, protection and real paths to healing.”

Amid public outrage over the abuse crisis, Spain launched a reparations system earlier this year for clerical abuse cases too old to be prosecuted that requires the participation of the Catholic Church and the Spanish government.

Other countries and churches have set up reparations mechanisms to compensate survivors and provide therapy, but the Spanish one is unusual in that it gives the government a strong role in the process and the final say in payouts.

The system, which is not legally binding, has drawn praise and some skepticism from advocacy groups and survivors. It gives people a year to apply.

Leo reaffirms church’s right to confessional secrecy

Leo also reaffirmed the right of the Catholic Church to maintain secrecy involving the sacrament of confession, amid efforts in Europe and elsewhere to force Catholic priests to report abuse that they learn about during the one-to-one conversations.

Independent investigations into clergy abuse around the world have identified the seal of confession as a major impediment to exposing and preventing abuse, and called for it to be abolished. The investigations have documented how abusers used the confessional to solicit sex from minors and then relied on the seal of confession to keep it secret.

In his speech to the Spanish parliament Monday, Leo framed the right of the church to keep priest-penitent conversations confidential as a matter of freedom of religion.

“To protect it legally, as is done in a similar way in some professions, means preserving a sacred space of inner freedom, where the believer can open his or her soul to God without fear of external pressures,” he said.

Several mostly low-rise buildings collapsed or sustained heavy damages in the hard-hit city of General Santos. Tsunami damage was reported in at least one southern coastal village. Smaller waves were measured in Indonesia and Palau and as far away as southern Japan.

The quake also triggered a landslide in Glan, a municipality in the province of Sarangani, that killed 13 villagers, Rene Punzalan, a provincial disaster-mitigation official, told the DZBB radio network. Four other villagers died in Sarangani, he said.

The major earthquake was the strongest to hit the Philippines this year, Teresito Bacolcol, the director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, said. He warned people to seek advice before returning to damaged buildings and houses, which could collapse due to aftershocks.

The United States, a treaty ally of the Philippines, said it was coordinating with Manila and was ready to support Philippine response efforts. France, Japan and New Zealand also expressed support.

“Our pickup truck suddenly jerked and I thought we had a flat tire,” Rod Sosmeña, a regional director of the Office of Civil Defense, told The Associated Press from General Santos, where he was traveling when the quake struck at 7:37 a.m.

“The shaking was very strong and people dashed out of houses into the streets,” Sosmeña said.

Epicenter in sea off Mindanao

More than 100 students in uniforms and a dozen teachers had gathered for a flag-raising ceremony in a coconut tree-ringed grade school compound in the rural town of Malita in Davao Occidental province when the ground shook, turning the first day of school after a two-month summer break into chaos.

“Their excitement on the first day of school turned to trauma,” school principal Rosavel Cachuela told the AP.

Some of the young students screamed in panic and wept but most remained seated and still, preventing any injuries, Cachuela said, adding that a motorcycle was damaged when a shed crumbled to the ground.

At least four people remained missing in General Santos, a port city of more than 700,000 people and a regional hub for the tuna export industry. Search and rescue teams worked to find people who may have been trapped in a supermarket, a warehouse, a grade school, and other small buildings that either collapsed or were severely damaged, officials said.

The international airport in General Santos was temporarily shut due to the earthquake and 17 domestic flights were canceled, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines said.

The quake was centered at sea off Mindanao, the second most populous island in the Philippine archipelago. According to Bacolcol, the quake occurred at a depth of 33 kilometers (20 miles), about 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of Maasim town in Sarangani province.

Assessing damage and casualties

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. ordered the cancellation of classes and directed disaster-response agencies to immediately get to work in quake-hit provinces, saying “the national government is moving and we will not leave Mindanao behind.”

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the threat of a tsunami largely passed about five hours after the quake. Philippine officials also lifted a tsunami warning by mid-afternoon. Six shanties on stilts were damaged in a coastal village in Zamboanga del Sur province due to the quake and taller waves, officials said.

Aside from the landslide in Sarangani, most of the other deaths were caused by collapsing buildings and falling debris, including in a damaged mosque, in the southern provinces of South Cotabato and Davao Occidental, and on Balut Island, according to Sosmeña and another disaster-mitigation official, Ednar Dayanghirang.

The DZRH radio network in Manila reported that a four-story commercial building where its provincial station was located partly collapsed and staffers dashed to the ground floor without injuries.

Tsunami waves near 3 feet measured

Waves of 1 meter (3 feet) were monitored in the provinces of Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani. A 1.4-meter (4.6-foot) wave hit at one time in Kiamba town, Bacolcol said.

The quake was also felt in Malaysia’s Sabah state on Borneo island. Sabah is just a boat ride away from southern Philippines. An 83-centimeter (2.7-feet) tsunami was measured by a gauge off Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, and the PTWC said 30-centimeter (1-foot) waves were measured in Palau.

Waves up to 20 centimeters (7.8 inches) were detected on the remote Japanese island of Chichijima and the central Japanese town of Kushimoto, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.

The Philippines is often hit by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of seismic faults around the ocean.

The archipelago is also battered by about 20 typhoons and tropical storms each year, making it one of the world's most disaster-prone countries.

___

Gomez reported from Manila, Philippines. Associated Press writers Edna Tarigan in Jakarta, Indonesia, Eileen Ng in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo and global executive producer Kiko Rosario in Bangkok contributed to this report.

The administration announced the much-higher fee as a way of preventing foreign workers from taking American jobs.

But U.S. District Court Judge Leo Sorokin in Boston sided with 20 states and struck down the visa policy, concluding that the executive branch exceeded its authority and violated the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs how federal agencies develop and issue regulations.

“The Court finds that the Policy imposes a tax on H-1B petitions without the requisite delegation by Congress,” Sorokin wrote.

H-1B visas are meant for high-skilled jobs that are difficult to find American workers to fill. Deep-pocketed technology companies are the biggest users, with nearly three-quarters of approvals going to workers from India. The states argued that using the H-1B program to fill vacancies for much-needed doctors and teachers was already difficult before the higher fee.

Most H-1B visa applications cost several thousand dollars before the announced increase set off a wave of panic among confused employers, students and workers in the United States and abroad and led to several lawsuits, including in Boston.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce also sued, in federal court in Washington, D.C., and has appealed a denial of a summary judgment against the fee hike. That left the higher fee in effect, at least until September 2026, when it is scheduled to expire. Monday's ruling is also a summary judgment, to the opposite effect. Still another lawsuit was filed in federal court in San Francisco, by religious groups and labor organizations, setting up the possibility of divided rulings in three appellate court circuits.

In the Boston case, the states argued that the policy impedes their ability to hire primary and secondary school educators and to staff public colleges and universities, will stymie academic research and will lead to a decline in medical workers.

“Today’s victory protects the integrity of the H-1B visa program as a tool to address severe labor shortages in vital industries like education, healthcare, and medical research," Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell said in a statement. "In Massachusetts, this win will ensure we can fill critical vacancies and hire world-class faculty and researchers at colleges and universities across the Commonwealth."

Bobby Mukkamala, the president of the American Medical Association, called the ruling “a victory for patients.”

“At a time when communities across the country face physician shortages and growing barriers to care, we should be removing obstacles — not creating new ones — to attract talented physicians and other highly skilled professionals,” Mukkamala said. “International medical graduates play a vital role in caring for patients, particularly in underserved and rural areas.”

A Department of Homeland Security statement said the agency disagrees with “this blatant judicial activism dismantling President Trump’s historic efforts for immigration reform.”

“Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, our immigration system is being reformed to serve American citizens, American workers, and American families and to preserve our national identity — not to rapidly import foreigners who take American jobs, commit crimes, burden our welfare system, and erode our cultural and social fabric," the statement said, referring to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

In a separate statement, White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said the administration "is confident this order will be reversed on appeal.”

The Texans are waging a punter battle between veteran Kai Kroeger and strong-legged rookie Jack Stonehouse to find the replacement for former punter Tommy Townsend, now with the Tennessee Titans.

Kroeger was the New Orleans Saints’ punter last season and was acquired in an offseason trade, a swap of a 2028 sixth-round pick from the Texans in exchange for Kroeger and a 2028 seventh-round selection.

Stonehouse went undrafted out of Syracuse and signed a rookie free agent deal that includes $75,000 guaranteed.

A former undrafted free agent from South Carolina where he was an All-American selection and All-Southeastern Conference selection, Kroeger averaged 44.8 yards for the Saints. He had 18 punts land inside opponents’ 20-yard lines. He had two blocked punts, impacting his average.

An All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection at Syracuse who averaged a school-record 47.1 yards per punt last season, Stonehouse had a long punt of 64 yards last season.

“Each guy has their own skill set,” Texans special teams coordinator Frank Ross said. “Jack has a really, really strong leg. He’s raw and needs time to develop. Kai Kroeger has a year in the NFL. Extremely fluid, extremely athletic, with some ups and downs as every rookie goes through. So, he got a chance to flush through some of those, and his launch point now is a clean slate with me and the Texans.

“As far as sorting it out, man, somebody’s got to take that job. I want whoever it is on our football team, running and covering the kicks, blocking for the kicker, rushing a field goal, or punting the football, I want somebody to go take that job and take it aggressively. It’s an even competition until somebody separates themselves out.”

Stonehouse, whose father and cousin played in the NFL, had six touchbacks, and 25 fair catches. He set a school career record with a 45.8 yards per punt average.

Stonehouse went to the NFL scouting combine and East-West Shrine Bowl. He participated in the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers’ local prospect days and met privately with the San Francisco 49ers. A Missouri transfer, his average hang time was 4.29 seconds, fourth in the nation.

Stonehouse has shown a lot of power and distance so far, but it’s early in the competition. The preseason games will likely be a major determining factor in the winner.

“For Jack,we saw a guy that’s very consistent,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said of Stonehouse, the third-highest graded punter in the nation last year. “He has a very strong leg. He does a great job of booting the ball. He had a really good first day today. You can hear the ball coming off his foot. That’s the thing that stood out about him today.”

“Having that healthy competition is only going to make that position better when it comes to the punter position,” Ryans said. “We’ve got Kai Kai’s done it in the league and now adding Jack is going to be really healthy competition coming through training camp.”

The Texans have back Ka’imi Fairbairn on an extension that averages $6.5 million annually as one of the highest paid kickers in the league.

Fairbairn tied David Akers’ NFL record with 44 field goals last season.

“Watching him him grow has been it’s part of the reason that the Texans are at the launch point we’re at right now,” Ross said. “Proud of where he is.

Long snapper Austin Brinkman returns after a strong rookie season as the replacement for Jon Weeks.

“Austin Brinkman, super proud,” Ross said. “He’s changed his body for the better, so very proud of that, the process. Nobody’s doing it, he’s doing that work.”

The Texans added former starting running back Woody Marks to the mix as a kickoff returner candidate, joining primary returner Jaylin Noel. The Texans plan to have two kickoff returners. Marks, the leading rusher for the Texans last season, could wind up as the main kickoff returners and third-down back behind starter David Montgomery

“Who do you want back there?” Ross said. “I want a fast player, right? Good vision, good ball security, but I want guys that can do it on repeat, sustain running through the smoke with physicality and falling forward. Receivers don’t necessarily run in the trash as much as running backs.

“So having a guy like Woody to be in our depth and as potentially a starter if he can win that job, man, that really benefits our team. Woody’s been dynamic with his running skill set. Now let’s continue to master fielding the ball, running your tracks, and setting up your blockers.”

Noel has run the 40-yard dash in 4.39 seconds. He averaged 10.8 yards per punt return as a rookie and 27.6 yards per kickoff return.

And he’s been tutored this spring by former NFL All-Pro returner Darren Sproles, who’s with the Texans on a Bill Walsh coaching fellowship.

“You can’t coach speed, right?” Ross said. “Dynamic speed. We’re going to start there, and that’s going to make up for a lot of it. Jaylin Noel is tougher than his size or stature may look. I don’t get star stuck very often, but that was unique for me.

“What he and I have been talking about is how can we get Jaylin to slow down instead of try to circle everybody like he’s been doing his whole life. We’ve been doing some drills with him, and he is tough, and he is a worker and willing to listen. Everything that we’ve asked to learn how to cut vertically, he’s been working on. So, I think you’re going to see dividends of that come this season.”

The Texans signed a formidable special-teams contributor during free agency, adding linebacker Jack Hummel on a two-year, $4.75 million deal.

“One my favorite things now is pulling from that bag when I’m watching and preparing for opponents, I’m evaluating what we have to defend or stop,” Ross said. “We played against that guy. Man, he was good. You talk to your players, ‘Hey, what was he like to go against? That guy’s a horse.’ So, when we’re playing against Baltimore a year ago, when we’re watching the Rams tape from Jake Hummel, he shows up, and it’s hard for our guys to go against him.

“So, when we’re game planning for that specific player a year ago and he comes up in free agency and then he gets in your building. So, fired up to have him. He gets in your building, and he’s everything I could ask for: Super hard worker, cares about the kicking game, wants to get better on defense, going to contribute to the Texans’ recipe on football Sundays to get a win. Sign me up. Just proud and happy to have him here. He’s done a great job this spring. Fired up for Hummel.”

The Texans added rookie linebackers Wade Woodaz and Aiden Fisher in the fourth round and seventh round, respectively. Both are slated for special teams duties.

“Just watch the tape and watch the tenacity and ferocity those two play with,” Ross said. “Those two guys have done an outstanding job of setting their own table up for success by building good habits. Man, they’re meeting with the special teams coach extra. They’re staying after.

“I’m sweating and getting in the rain because I’m staying after doing work on the field with one of those rookie linebackers. That, to me, is how you build your team. Those guys have done it at the highest level of college football. Excited to see where they can go. Sign me up for those guys.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com

Since conflict erupted in the Middle East earlier this year after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran, much of the shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz — a critical oil transit route bordering Iran — has remained effectively halted, pushing up the price of oil and jet fuel.

In an effort to contain costs, airlines around the world have raised airfares and fees, cut other perks and canceled flights or trimmed schedules.

U.S. carriers spent nearly $6.5 billion on fuel in April, compared with about $3.6 billion a year earlier, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Fuel consumption in April totaled 1.573 billion gallons, down slightly from 1.575 billion gallons a year earlier.

The latest figures came as the International Air Transport Association released a report on Sunday saying it now expects airlines worldwide to earn a combined $23 billion in net profit in 2026, far below its previous forecast of $41 billion and down from $45 billion in 2025.

“Airlines are bearing the brunt of the fuel price shock,” said Willie Walsh, director general of IATA, which represents most of the world's carriers. “While airfares are rising, airlines are still absorbing part of the hike in their bottom lines.”

The group said jet fuel prices are expected to average $152 a barrel in 2026, nearly 70% higher than in 2025, pushing the global airline fuel bill to about $350 billion from $252 billion a year earlier. IATA said that fuel is forecast to account for more than 31% of airline operating expenses in 2026, up from about 25% last year.

In the U.S., the cost of a gallon of jet fuel in April was $4.11, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics said. Last April, it cost $2.31.

In a sign of the conflict’s ongoing repercussions for travel, American Airlines said last week it was suspending some of its routes this summer. In April, Lufthansa Group said it would cut 20,000 short-haul flights through October and Air Canada announced it was suspending its service to New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport from June until late October.

Other airlines, ranging from U.S. carriers like United and Delta to Air France-KLM, Philippine Airlines and Cathay Pacific in Europe and Asia, have either cut flights, readjusted their schedules or halted plans to add more seats and routes this year.

Monday, June 8

• Meet Saxboy Billy, the man behind the viral “Puerto Rico Song”
• • Follow Saxboy Billy on Instagram
• Celebrate Culture through music and movement with Tx2 Dance Company
• • T2 Dance Company
• NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior”
• Visit San Antonio
• Texas Dental Implant Center

Friday, June 5

• The music collective behind the Houston remix for FIFA World Cup 2026™
• • Bombón
  • Official FIFA World Cup 26™ Houston Sonic ID
• Misery at Alley Theatre
• Young Houstonians will learn how to train like a pro at the Simple Truth Will Anderson Jr. ProCamp
• • Will Anderson Jr. Football ProCamp

Thursday, June 4

• Magician Michael Carbonaro is ready to wow fans in Houston with his new show ‘WONDERBOY’
• • Michael Carbonaro at Houston of Blues
• HCC Southwest ramps up hands-on training in AI, robotics and cybersecurity
• • Houston City College
• The Travel Mom’s tips for planning and booking a breathtaking Alaskan cruise
• • The Travel Mom
  • Holland America Cruises
• Spice Routes: Cardamom Challenge a culinary passport awaits at Houston’s stunning Ismaili Center
• • Ismaili Center

Wednesday, June 3

• Celebrate Freedom Festival returns to Emancipation Park this Saturday
• • Juneteenth Houston
• Why this red velvet cornbread recipe belongs on your Juneteenth table
• • Chef Cassi
• Houston Rockets Skills Camp returns to various locations this summer
• • Houston Rockets Youth Skills Camp
• KPRC 2’s 2026 Hurricane & Flood Survival Guide
• IMDB “Masters of the Universe”

Tuesday, June 2

• CPR and AED basics: Simple skills that can help save a life
• • Register for FREE CPR webinar on June 3
  • Gail Gould
• Meet the local break dancers uplifting women and youth through hip-hop, culture, and the arts
• • BGirl City Worldwide
• Cool Treats in the Heights: Where to find Hawaiian shaved ice and frozen cocktails
• • Happy Go Lucky

Monday, June 1

• Houston Author Jenny Block drops new book about finding authenticity, success and joy in life
• • Follow Jenny Block on Instagram
• The laughs keep coming in season 2 of Netflix’s ‘The Four Seasons’
• • Netflix’s “The Four Seasons”
• Discovery Green celebrating summer with free family fun and soccer-inspired events
• • Discovery Green
• Why natural looking dental implants are the new luxury in facial rejuvenation
• • Texas Dental Implant Center

Friday, May 29

• Texas Teen Pageant Queens use their platforms to empower foster kids, fight bullying, and inspire future farmers
• • Kyleigh’s Kidz
• Immersive Gamebox is launching ‘Soccer Arcade,’ the world’s first immersive soccer experience
• • Immersive Gamebox
• Tanji Patton reveals what’s next after 11 seasons of Goodtaste TV
• Sweet, Savory & Spicy: Creative cantaloupe recipes worth trying this Summer
• • Goodtaste with Tanji Patton

Thursday, May 28

• Game day skin care tips for FIFA World Cup 2026™ watch parties and summer heat
• • Board-Certified Dermatologist Dr. Sherry Ingraham
• A Quick Drive From Houston, This Louisiana Resort Delivers Vegas-Style Luxury Without the Flight
• • Coushatta Casino Resort
• Licasa Treatment Center Opens in Conroe to expand compassionate mental health and addiction care
• • Licasa Treatment Center

Wednesday, May 27

•  Powering Houston’s future: Electrical apprentices showcase skills at annual Wire-Off Competition 
• • IEC Texas Gulf Coast
• Los Souldees is the local band bringing the sounds you love from the past with a fresh Houston twist
• • Los Souldees

Tuesday, May 26

• Lone Star College
• A Houston little boy’s toughest battle led to a monster surprise!
• • Gexa Energy
• Captain MC’s Seafood
• The Window Source Houston

Friday, May 22

• Get your bike ready for summer rides with these simple safety tips
• • Sun & Ski Sports
• This easy road trip from Houston comes with luxury suites, gaming, and a powerful legacy
• • Coushatta Powwow
  • Coushatta Casino Resort
• Hear the hits - ‘Beautiful: The Carole King Musical’ in Houston
• • “The Carole King Musical” at Theatre Under the Stars
• Support local veterans while having fun at the Patriots Charity Classic
• • Patriots Charity Classic Event

Thursday, May 21

• The World comes to Houston! Here’s what to expect ahead of the FIFA Fan Festival™ kicking off in EaDo
• • FIFA Fan Festival™
• This easy road trip from Houston comes with luxury suites, gaming, and a powerful legacy
• • Coushatta Casino Resort - New Legacy Tower
• SUMMER SWEEPSTAKES: Enter to win 3 weeks of free airport parking from The Parking Spot
• • The Parking Spot
• Train for Houston’s in demand jobs at HCC Northeast - Public Safety, Automotive, & more
• • HCC Northeast
• Schlotzsky’s Deli launches new stacked subs in Houston - Try three bold flavors
• • Schlotzsky’s Deli

Wednesday, May 20

• Schlotzsky’s Deli launches new stacked subs in Houston - Try three bold flavors
• • Schlotzsky’s Deli
• Swap, shop, sustain: Houston’s eco-friendly clothing event returns this Sunday
• • The Houston Clothing Shop
• A Houston little boy’s toughest battle led to a monster surprise!
• • Gexa Energy
• Early detection, AI tools, personalized care redefine preventive health
• • Fountain Life Houston Clinic
• Get your backyard summer ready with pest control, pool upgrades, trampolines and whole home backup power
• • Kathryn Emery
• Need summer plans? This easy Galveston getaway has dinosaurs, beaches & lazy rivers
• • Moody Gardens

Tuesday, May 19

• In the Kitchen with Kroger: Memorial Day hosting doesn’t have to start from scratch
• • KPRC 2 INSIDERS: Enter for your chance to win a $250 Kroger gift card!
  • Kroger
• Moody Gardens
• Houston Ballet closes 2025-2026 season with two standout productions
• • Houston Ballet
• From award-winning tv to action-packed films, Bob Odenkirk chats ‘Normal’
• • Follow Bob Odenkirk on Instagram

Monday, May 18

• Celebrate World Ocean Day in Galveston with art, music & ocean fun for free 🌊 🌊
• • Artist Boat
• A collector’s dream: U.S. Coins & Jewelry opens brand new showroom for buying and selling
• • U.S. Coins and Jewelry
• Mental Health Awareness Month: How to spot the signs when stress becomes something more
• • The Harris Center for Mental Health and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD)
• Spring couple transforms builder-grade patio into beautiful backyard with Allied Outdoor Solutions
• • Allied Outdoor Solutions
• Why natural looking dental implants are the new luxury in facial rejuvenation
• • Texas Dental Implant Center

Friday, May 15

• HL Rhythm Energy Question of the Week
• At Houston’s Alley Theatre, “Dear Alien” explores the beautiful weirdness of being human
• • “Dear Alien at Alley Theatre
• Gear up inside the newly renovated and relocated Sun & Ski Sports Memorial City
• • Sun & Ski Sports Memorial City
• The Travel Mom on the perks of RV life on the road
• • The Travel Mom
  • Go RVing

Thursday, May 14

• Musaafer Houston Beekeeper cocktail program highlights honey from local neighborhoods
• • Musaafer
• Help us save lives at the KPRC 2 Community Blood Drive with Gulf Coast Blood
• • Schedule an appointment
• Port Aransas
• Children’s Museum Houston

Wednesday, May 13

• Why one Fulshear homeowner calls his generator “The Easy Button”
• • GenPro.com
• Family fun meets coastal charm in Port Aransas, Texas’ premier Gulf Coast getaway
• • Port Aransas
  • Red Dragon Pirate Cruises
• Local chef turns pandemic setback into a thriving Filipino food pop-up business
• • Aleng Nina’s
  • Chef Nina’s Pop-up Event at Third Place

Tuesday, May 12

• Rob Riggle among authors featured in ‘A Celebration of Reading’ 2026
• • Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation
• Texas’ legendary 1877 tall ship ELISSA joins Sail250 voyage to New York Harbor
• • The Official Official Tall Ship of Texas
  • Galveston 250 Kickoff Party Tickets
• The Future of noninvasive wellness is in Sugar Land
• • Oasis Aesthetics & Wellness and Oasis Dry Eye Center
• Chef Jose Hernandez on his roots, restaurants, and fresh pasta
• • Savoir Restaurant
  • Patton

Monday, May 11

• Texas breweries shine at World Beer Cup as American Craft Beer Week kicks off
• • What’s on Tap Radio
• Could Retirement Living Actually Feel Like a Resort? Inside Life at Eagle’s Trace
• • Eagles’ Trace by Erickson Senior Living
• Empty Bowls Houston returns for its 20th anniversary
• • Empty Bowls Houston
  • Houston Food Bank

Friday, May 8

• HL Rhythm Energy Question of the Week
• Children’s Museum Houston and Houston Life present a first look inside the ‘Gallery of Wonder’ on KPRC 2
• Easy at-home kitchen STEM activities to spark curiosity with Children’s Museum Houston
• • Children’s Museum Houston
• Rung Film Festival returns to Houston, highlighting Pakistani storytellers on the big screen
• • Rung Film Festival
• Scammed out of $90,000: Houston woman shares warning for seniors
• • AARP Houston
• KPRC 2’s “Eat Like a Local”

Thursday, May 7

• Celebrate National Hamburger Month with OMG! Burger
• • OMG! Burger
• How Houston City College Is Building the City’s Workforce
• • Houston City College
• The Insperity Invitational presented by United Healthcare happening in The Woodlands this weekend
• • Insperity Invitational
• Bridge the Gaps

Wednesday, May 6

• From local finds to feel-good vibes, ‘Shop Fulshear First’ family-friendly night market
• • “Shop Fulshear First”
• Why you keep repeating the same unhealthy relationship patterns and how to change them
• • Jenn Pinkerton
• Houston Grand Opera

Tuesday, May 5

• Bun B announces “UGK Been Ridin’ Dirty,” Celebrating 30 Years of a Southern Hip-Hop Classic
• • Bun B Presents “Been Ridin’ Dirty” Tickets
• From classroom to center stage: The Tommy Tune Awards showcase Houston’s rising theatre talent
• • Tommy Tune Awards Finalists List
• Houston Life co-hosts learn calligraphy with live event artist Jenny Blaschke
• • Jenny Blaschke

Monday, May 4

• “Houston’s Enchilada Queen” Sylvia Casares serving up big flavor & family tradition
• • Sylvia’s Enchilada Kitchen
• This Houston program uses comedy to build confidence and change lives
• • Comedy Unlocked
  • The Opportunity Center
• Hot products: Summer grillin’ and chillin’ with Lifestyle and Home Improvement expert Kathryn Emery
• • Kathryn Emery
• New Smile: AI-driven design at Texas Dental Implant Center
• • Texas Dental Implant Center

Friday, May 1

• HL Rhythm Energy Question of the Week
• Teatro Indigo
• Teatro Indigo at Hobby Center for the Performing Arts
• Mahjong for a Cause
• Sam Houston Race Park

Thursday, April 30

• St‑Germain Elderflower Liqueur
• National Pet Month is here! Houston SPCA offers tips for responsible pet ownership
• • Houston SPCA
• From Knee Replacement to the Boston Marathon: A Story of Movement, Medicine, and Meaning
• • Dr. Richard A. Berger Outpatient Hip and Knee Surgery
• Tyler Henry “The Hollywood Medium” heading to Houston for unforgettable live show
• • Tyler Henry Live at Smart Financial Center
  • Connect with Tyler Henry

Wednesday, April 29

• In the Kitchen with Kroger: Celebrate Mother’s Day with Kroger, the world’s largest florist
• • KPRC 2 INSIDERS: Enter for your chance to win a $250 Kroger gift card!
• Sail into Alaska with Princess Cruises - tips from The Travel Mom, Emily Kaufman
• • The Travel Mom
  • Princess Cruises
• How wearing denim became an international symbol of supporting assault survivors and victims
• • National Denim Day
  • Fort Bend Women’s Center
• Country superstar Parker McCollum surprises nurses ahead of National Nurses Week

Tuesday, April 28

• Inside Golden Roastery: A popular Middle Eastern shop serving traditional desserts and coffee
• How to make a popular Arab dessert Kunafa
• • Golden Roastery (Walk-in offer only; get 20% off Kunafa items from now to May 10)
• Help us save lives at the KPRC 2 Community Blood Drive with Gulf Coast Blood
• • Community Blood Drive at KPRC 2
• Cedric The Entertainer brings the laughs in new Netflix animated film ‘Swapped’
• • Netflix’s ‘Swapped’

Monday, April 27

• Summer safety for kids: what parents need to know
• • Bivona Law Firm
• From Blueprint to Backyard Oasis: A Missouri City Transformation Designed for Real Life
• • Allied Outdoor Solutions
• First annual AAPI Fest coming to Alief
• • AAPI Fest
  • Kaminari Taiko of Houston,
• The story behind Agnes and Sherman where Asian flavors meet American comfort food
• • Agnes and Sherman
  • AAPI Restaurant Weeks
• Hosts Mike “The Miz” Mizanin and Rocsi Diaz chat reboot of ‘American Gladiators’
• • American Gladiators

Friday, April 24

• HL Rhythm Energy Question of the Week
• Step inside August Wilson’s “Fences” at Houston’s Alley Theatre - A timeless story of love, legacy, and second chances
• • August Wilson’s “Fences” at Alley Theatre
• Prime Video’s ‘Cocaine Quarterback’ Owen Hanson visits Houston, shares incredible comeback story
• • “Cocaine Quarterback” on Prime Video
• National Bucket List Day: A Trafalgar River Cruise with The Travel Mom
• • The Travel Mom
  • Trafalgar

Thursday, April 23

• Silambam Houston highlights the beauty of Indian classical dance at the Hobby Center
• • Silambam Houston
• A preview of Great Age on the Green, Houston’s new festival celebrating aging boldly
• • Great Age on the Green
• Kids learn money the fun way with Financial Fortunes card game
• • Financial Fortunes Card Game
• Teeing off for the LPGA’s first major of the season - The Chevron Championship
• • The Chevron Championship

Wednesday, April 22

• Houston is driving the Biotech future - starting with students
• • Texas Medical Center BioPath Program
• From ‘Dance Moms’ to the stage and page: Nia Sioux’s next act
• • Follow Nia Sioux on Instagram
• From ‘Dance Moms’ to the stage and page: Nia Sioux’s next act
• • Nia Sioux’s Memoir “Bottom of the Pyramid”
• Wildflowers, western heritage, and a Mother’s Day to remember at The George Ranch
• The George Ranch

Tuesday, April 21

• Orchid care 101: Simple tricks to keep your orchids blooming longer
• • Ace Berry
  • Flora & More
• Affordable luxury: New upholstered bed collection unveiled at Texas Mattress Makers
• • Texas Mattress Makers
• Music, food and rodeo fun for all at the Galveston County Fair & Rodeo
• • Galveston County Fair & Rodeo
• Texas Dental Implant Center

Monday, April 20

• Robins Landing Neighborhood Floor Plans - Houston Habitat for Humanity
• Homeownership Process - Houston Habitat for Humanity
• Volunteering - Houston Habitat for Humanity
• ReStore - Houston Habitat for Humanity
• Third Ward - Houston Habitat for Humanity

Friday, April 17

• ‘Houston Life’ is live today at the Houston Ballet Nutcracker Market Spring
• • Houston Ballet Nutcracker Market® SPRING
  • Dog Collar World
  • Linked by Stevi
  • The Hive
  • Big Creek Farms
  • EK The Boutique
  • House of Cottonwood
  • ParkerJoe

Thursday, April 16

• TUTS presents ‘Monty Python’s Spamalot’ rides into the Hobby Center
• • Monty Python’s Spamalot at TUTS Tickets
• One ticket, endless fun at the Galveston County Fair and Rodeo
• • Galveston County Fair and Rodeo
• Carpet Giant celebrates 50 years of proudly serving generations of Houstonians
• • Carpet Giant Website (mention Houston Life to get $150 off your purchase of $1,000)
• Faith ‘One Arm Wonder’ Malton and Zack ‘Pitbull’ Ruhl rappel 30 stories for non-profit Camp For All
• • Camp For All
  • Faith Malton

Wednesday, April 15

• Brush up on your makeup routine at Blushington River Oaks
• • Houston Life Deals (Get 20% off beauty services at Blushington River Oaks)
  • Blushington River Oaks
• The King himself shares how to save 20% on tickets to the Texas Renaissance Festival
• • Texas Renaissance Festival
• Ethan’s Ohana
• Cube Against Cancer 2026 Houston
• Cube Against Cancer
• Fortis College

Tuesday, April 14

• Former Texans WR Steven Sims Jr. to host FREE youth football camp
• • Must See Foundation
• Why it’s not just the generator - it’s the company behind it
• • Gen Pro
• How the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce helps local companies grow
• • Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
• Step Onward Foundation uses music to fight homelessness in Texas
• • Step Onward Foundation
  • Sunday Funday Community Celebration

Monday, April 13

• Robins Landing Neighborhood Floor Plans - Houston Habitat for Humanity
• Homeownership Process - Houston Habitat for Humanity
• Volunteering - Houston Habitat for Humanity
• ReStore - Houston Habitat for Humanity
• Third Ward - Houston Habitat for Humanity

Friday, April 10

• Your guide to the Houston Barbecue Festival this weekend: Top pitmasters, unlimited BBQ samples, and more
• • Houston BBQ Festival
• Texas CASA’s partner agencies train volunteers to be a voice and a lifeline for children in the foster care system
• • Become a CASA
• ‘Grow the Game’ Initiative expands soccer access in Houston ahead of the World Cup with Guinness World Records attempt
• • Airbnb GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™
• Houston’s Garden Theatre celebrates 5 years with Stephen Sondheim’s “Company”
• • The Garden Theatre
• Father daughter duo Steve Zahn and Audrey Zahn chat new film ‘She Dances’

Thursday, April 9

• The Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary kicks off 22nd annual ‘Chic Boutique’
• • Chic Boutique
• Aramie Payton brings Broadway pedigree to Alley Theatre’s revival of “Fences”
• • Alley Theatre
• Layoff leads Houston creator to viral small business mission
• • Follow David on Instagram
• At just 19, Jalyn Hall is stepping into his moment
• • NBC’s “The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins”
• KPRC 2’s “Eat Like a Local”

Wednesday, April 8

• Houston Underwater Film Festival returns this weekend with stunning ocean films 🌊🌊
• • School, college and scuba students: claim a free ticket by emailing huff@hups.org
  • Houston Underwater Film Festival Tickets
• Celebrate Earth Month by sipping sustainably!
• • Wine and Travel Contributor Daniela Garrido
• Shred Day Houston: Safely destroy documents and fight hunger on April 18
• • Comerica Shred Day Houston
• Trade-show-tested home picks: Coffee, Water, Bidets and Moving Gear
• • Kathryn Emery Home Improvement & Lifestyle Expert
• A kid’s guide to top play picks to cut screen time and spark creativity
• • Kid-trepreneur Dylan Emery

Tuesday, April 7

• Grand Marshals Kam Franklin & Brian Ching preview the 39th annual Art Car Parade
• • Houston Art Car Parade
• This Texas artist is turning Titanic artifacts into art
• • Souls of the Titanic
• In Houston, Your Windows May Not Last as Long—Here’s What to Know (and What to Do About It)
• • Pella Windows and Doors
• Houston’s Trillest Chef bringing bold flavors of H-Town the national stage
• • Follow Chef Machete on Instagram
• Texas Dental Implant Center

Monday, April 6

• Houston’s Garden Theatre celebrates 5 years with Stephen Sondheim’s “Company”
• • The Garden Theatre
• Sysco’s World Cup-themed food show is a preview of how Houston plans to feed the world
• • Sysco World Cup-themed food show
• The Houston Art Car Parade

Friday, April 3

• HL Rhythm Energy Question of the Week
• WWE Wrestler Je’Von Evans
• WWE Monday Night Raw at Toyota Center Tickets
• IBEW Local 66
• KPRC 2’s “Eat Like a Local”

Thursday, April 2

• Disney on Ice
• The Chevron Championship
• Maxine Sharf brings ‘Maxi’s Kitchen’ to Houston Life with her mom
• • Follow Maxine Sharf on Instagram
  • "Maxi’s Kitchen: Easy Go-To Recipes to Make Again and Again"
• Father daughter duo Steve Zahn and Audrey Zahn chat new film ‘She Dances’

Wednesday, April 1

• Spring gets sweeter with two easy recipes: Carrot cupcake and blueberry crumble bun
• • Follow Cookbook Author Florence Jackson on Instagram
• This Houston Restaurant Hasn’t Raised Prices Since Its Food Truck Days
• • Black Restaurant Week
  • Chitalian Pizzeria
• Tarot, the Fool card and finding meaning on Derrick’s birthday (April Fool’s Day)
• • Tarot Card Reader Amber Ambrose
• Theatre Under the Stars presents ‘Back to the Future: The Musical’ through April 5th
• • TUTS “Back to the Future: The Musical”

Tuesday, March 31

• Send Well Wishes to Tessa on her last day
• • Tessa Barrera announces she’s leaving ‘Houston Life’
• Calling all book lovers: Houston indie bookstore crawl returns for its third year of literary adventure
• • 2026 Houston Bookstore Crawl
• Preview the 13th annual Insperity Invitational presented by United Healthcare
• • Insperity Invitational
• Texas roots and coastal growth, how the Oyster Bros in Palacios are redefining the gulf oyster
• • Oyster Bros
• Goodtaste with Tanji Patton

Monday, March 30

• How Autism Moms of Houston became a lifeline for families raising children who are neurodivergent
• • Autism Moms of Houston
  • Autism Awareness Festival
• An offer fit for a new you! Grab the Alloy Personal Training Houston Life Deal
• • Alloy Personal Training Houston
  • Houston Life Deals
• Who’s responsible when a child is hurt at daycare?
• • Bivona Law
• At just 19, Jalyn Hall is stepping into his moment
• • NBC’s “The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins”

Friday, March 27

• Family fun, charity, & of course golf shine at Texas Children’s Houston Open ⛳
• • Texas Children’s Houston Open
  • TCHO Cleats for Kids

Wednesday, March 25

• Tessa Barrera announces she’s leaving ‘Houston Life’
• Plan aims to turn Garden Oaks Theater into an arts hub before it’s too late
• • Save the Garden Oaks Theater
• Fore! Preview the 2026 Texas Children’s Houston Open
• • Texas Children’s Houston Open
• Women, Wealth, and breaking ‘The Success Lie’
• • Chantell Preston
  • “The Success Lie” by Chantell Preston
• McGovern Allergy & Asthma Clinic
• Gexa Energy

Tuesday, March 24

• From puppy playtime to pesky nipping, helpful springtime tips for dog owners
• • Stephanie Bennett’s Believe in Dog Training
• How one Houston program is helping kids discover confidence—and their future
• • Sam Houston Area Council Boy Scouts of America
• Houston Ballet’s Busy Spring: Nutcracker Market, Sons de L’âme & YAGP Finals
• • Houston Ballet
• Breaking barriers and popping corks with CEO and Master Sommelier June Rodil
• • Master Sommelier June Rodil
  • Goodnight Hospitality

Monday, March 23

• Blooming Wonders at ARTECHOUSE
• • Spring arrives at ARTECHOUSE Houston with ‘Blooming Wonders’
• Texas Dental Implant Center
• • Trusted Dental Implant Care in Houston — Board-Certified Periodontist Helps Complex Cases
• Disability Attorney Marc Whitehead
• • Expert tax advice: Are your Social Security and Disability benefits taxable?
• Allied Outdoor Solutions
• • From basic to beautiful: See this stunning backyard transformation in Weston Lakes

Thursday, March 19

• Springtime fun at the Houston Zoo
• • Zoo Bloom
  • All you can Zoo
  • Saving the Galápagos Islands

Wednesday, March 18

• Houston Latino Film Festival celebrates 10 Years with Cheech Marin
• • Houston Latino Film Festival
• Find the good vibes every weekend for Jazzy Sundays in the Parks
• • Jazzy Sundays in the Parks
• Get to know Dash rising star, Avery Patterson
• • Houston Dash
• Kevin Williamson makes fans SCREAM all over again in latest franchise installation
• • Kevin Williamson
• Self Employed? Tax Filing Moves That Help You Qualify for a Mortgage
• • Habayit Home Loans
  • Mortgage Expert Rich Bonn’s Upcoming Webinar

Tuesday, March 17

• Houston’s Mezclada Dance Company blends hip hop, Latin and contemporary dance forms into high-energy performances
• • Performing Arts Houston New/Now featuring Mezclada Dance Company
• METRO rolls out systemwide changes: A first look at the new technology to help streamline your ride
• • Metro Houston
• Houston Life Deals: Fun & savings for the entire family
• • HoustonLifeDeals.com
• Frontier Utilities teams with Kids’ Meals Houston to pack thousands of meals
• • Frontier Utilities

Monday, March 16

• Affordable rodeo-ready outfits you can find at Target this season
• • Target.com
• Houston’s growing need for linemen: Why the trade pays and how to start
• • IBEW Local 66
• ET hosts Nischelle Turner and Kevin Frazier share highlights from the 98th Academy Awards
• • Entertainment Tonight Oscars Coverage
• Houston Ballet principal dancer Karina González brings Frida Kahlo to life in Broken Wings
• • “Broken Wings” at Houston Ballet Tickets
• The Largest Indoor Waterpark in the U.S.? It’s Just a Road Trip from Houston
• • Kalahari Resorts and Conventions

Friday, March 13

• HL Rhythm Energy Question of the Week
• Houston Life Deals: Fun & savings for the entire family
• Outriding the Devil: Angela Ganter’s incredible rodeo comeback
• • Outriding the Devil premieres at River Oaks Theatre
• ‘Aliens’ 40th anniversary cast reunion and more at Pop Culture Con 2026
• • Pop Culture Con
• Alley Theatre brings Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest” to Houston with a fresh twist
• • “The Importance of Being Earnest” at Alley Theatre Tickets
• Bounce your way to better fitness: trampoline workouts in West U
• • Motiv Fitness at West University
• Moon 2 Mars Festival returns to Space Center Houston with out-of-this-world fun and concerts this spring break
• • Space Center Houston

Thursday, March 12

• KPRC 2 INSIDERS: Enter for your chance to see Tim McGraw at RODEOHOUSTON
• The Birthday Joy Program helps kids in foster care, shelters and group homes celebrate their special day
• • the Birthday Joy Program Website
• Inside “The Feminine Universe” Houston’s new all-women immersive art experience
• • The Feminine Universe Art Show Tickets
• Bring the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo home with these sips and bites
• • Entertaining Expert Paul Zahn
• Spring is in full swing at CITYCENTRE Houston
• • CITYCENTRE
• Kalahari Resorts and Conventions

Tuesday, March 10

• Enjoy Spring Break at the Houston Museum of Natural Science
• • Houston Museum of Natural Science
• Honoring the fallen & recognizing community heroes
• • Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
  • BP America
• Houston author Margie Seaman proves it is never too late to chase a dream
• • Margie Seaman
  • “Someday Is Our Horizon” by Margie Seaman on Amazon

Monday, March 9

• NestFest beach cleanup invites volunteers to protect nesting sea turtles on the Galveston Coast
• From bumper boats to STEAM activities, enjoy a FUNonmenal spring break at Discovery Green
• • FUNomenal Spring Break at Discovery Green
• This veteran-owned business is helping Houstonians keep the heat the out and the savings in with new windows
• • The Window Source
• You’ve been diagnosed with cancer, now what? Non-profit CanCare pairs you with survivors who can help
• • CanCare
• Spring Break Staycation: Why The Travel Mom says Houston families love Great Wolf Lodge
• • The Travel Mom
  • Great Wolf Lodge

Friday, March 6

• Houston Life Deals
• Pickle vs. anime: Largest pickle festival in Texas comes to Rosenberg with anime-inspired food
• • In A Pickle Festival
• Expedia’s 2026 Air Hacks: Best days to book, when to fly and top savings
• • Expedia Air Hacks Report
• The Parking Spot making airport parking a breeze
• • The Parking Spot
• A rustic dream venue just outside Houston
• • Country Oaks Venue
• Rare Texas artifacts step out ‘From the Vault’ at The Bryan Museum
• • The Bryan Museum
• Rhythm Energy Question of the Week

Thursday, March 5

• Gold Buckle Foodie Awards at Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
• Houston Life Deals
• Avoiding vacation headaches: New Vrbo survey on group travel reveals common pet peeves
• • Vrbo
• Houston wellness trend: A local body sculpting technique focused on lymphatic health
• • The Tox
• Catching up with Russell Dickerson ahead of debut RODEOHOUSTON performance
• • RODEOHOUSTON

Wednesday, March 4

• Houston Life Deals
• Moon 2 Mars Festival returns to Space Center Houston with out-of-this-world fun and concerts this spring break
• • Space Center Houston
• What to Wear to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo: Your Ultimate Style Guide 
• • Boot Barn
• Destin-Fort Walton Beach, more than beaches: reefs, fishing, little adventures
• • Visit Destin-Fort Walton Beach
• Baz Luhrmann’s ‘EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert’ gives fans a front-row seat to The King
• • “EPiC: Elvis Presley In Concert” Film

Tuesday, March 3

• Diana Ross coming to Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land
• Learn about the untold history of Black baseball
• • Houston Freedmen’s Town Conservancy
• Houston Life Deals
• Modern dental implants give Houston patients natural, comfortable smiles
• • Texas Dental Implant Center
• Houston native Kyrie McAlpin Talks ‘The Burbs’, Keke Palmer & a very Seth MacFarlane Christmas party

Monday, March 2

• Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
• • Houston Life kicks off opening day at 2026 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
• Suits & Boot Injury Lawyers

Friday, February 27

• Gabriel Basso takes us behind the scenes of Netflix’s ‘The Night Agent’
• • Netflix’s “The Night Agent”
• Mudbug Mania: Tanji Patton celebrates crawfish season in Houston
• • Goodtaste with Tanji Patton
  • Crawfish Shack
  • Crawfish Hideaway
• Theatre Under The Stars reveals 2026-27 season with Broadway tours & local shows
• • Theatre Under the Stars
• Boot Barn
• What to see and do in Malta — beaches, history and booking tips from The Travel Mom
• • The Travel Mom

Thursday, February 26

• Diana Ross at The Sugar Land Smart Financial Center
• KPRC 2 INSIDERS: Enter for a chance to see Creed perform at RodeoHouston
• Get a peek inside RodeoHouston’s World Championship BBQ Cookoff
• • Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
• Soulful river cruises that connect Black travelers to heritage and culture
• • AmaWaterways Soulful Experience River Cruise
• Houston Life Deals
• Allied Outdoor Solutions
• HCC Southeast College

Wednesday, February 25

• Behind the scenes of TUTS’ ‘Million Dollar Quartet’
• • Tickets to ‘Million Dollar Quartet’ at Theatre Under the Stars
• Houston influencers share their best thrifting tips for Rodeo
• • Find your nearest Goodwill store
• Plan the ultimate spring break getaway for everyone at Moody Gardens
• • Moody Gardens
• Ride along: METRO Police Chief explains new safety measures for Houston transit
• • Metro Houston

Tuesday, February 24

• Spring Break, but make it San Antonio
• • Visit San Antonio
• Alley Theatre’s ‘English’ explores identity, belonging, and the weight of learning a new language
• • Tickets to ‘English’ at Alley Theatre
• Looking for a Career Change? Here’s How You Could Be Job-Ready in 10 Months
• • Learn more about programs at United Education Institute Houston

Monday, February 23 (WE ARE BACK!!!)

• Indian Film Festival of Houston celebrates France with film, food and culture
• • Indian Film Festival of Houston Website
• KPRC 2 INSIDERS: Enter for a chance to see Riley Green perform at RodeoHouston
• • Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
• Chris Hemsworth will keep you on the edge of your seat in ‘Crime 101’
• • “Crime 101” Movie Times
• Modern dental implants give Houston patients natural, comfortable smiles
• • Texas Dental Implant Center

February 6 - 20

• Houston is off air due to the Winter Olympics, but that doesn’t mean we’ll stop entertaining you. Be sure to follow us on social media to see all the HL fun. We’ll be back Feb. 23.
• • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Pinterest

Thursday, February 5

• Papa Johns Pizza
• The Cody Stephens Foundation saves lives with free heart screenings for young athletes
• • Cody Stephens Foundation
• Get ready for the return of the one and only Monster Jam in Houston
• • Tickets to Monster Jam at NRG Stadium
• Getting your best night’s sleep: How the latest materials and technology can help you sleep better
• • Texas Mattress Makers
• What is an “Orphan Generator”? And why it could put Houston homes at risk during an outage
• • GenPro.com
• Follow Mersha the Mini Panther on Instagram (Use MERSHA20 to get a discount at PrettyLitter)

Wednesday, February 4

• Simon & Garfunkel Story at The Sugar Land Smart Financial Center
• Behind the scenes of ‘Real Women Have Curves’ on stage at Alley Theatre
• • Tickets to ‘Real Women Have Curves’ at Alley Theatre
• Decoding body language: How to spot liars, read subtle signals, and communicate with confidence
• • Jan Hargrave
• In the Kitchen with Kroger: Why they are your one stop shop for the Big Game and Valentine’s Day
• • Kroger

Tuesday, February 3

• MFAH’s new exhibit explores Frida Kahlo’s lasting legacy
• • ‘Frida: The Making of an Icon’ at MFAH
• United Way of Greater Houston’s 211: Help is one call away
• • United Way of Greater Houston’s 211 Helpline
• After the freeze - now what? How to care for perennials and shrubs in Houston
• • Gardening with Skip
  • Houston Home and Garden Show
• Go back in time at Popfancy Dessert Bar’s new retro 80’s sci-fi arcade cafe
• • Popfancy Fan Cafe

Monday, February 2

• Kenny G at The Sugar Land Smart Financial Center
• The relationship advice that helps couples feel closer — even during hard conversations
• • Connection Expert Jenn Pinkerton
  • Connectin Cards Couples Edition on Amazon
• Paris Hilton’s “Infinite Icon”
• Arandas Bakery
• Texas Dental Implant Center

Friday, January 30

• Monster Energy Supercross heads into Houston featuring the world’s fastest racers
• • Monster Energy Supercross at NRG Stadium This Weekend
• From Trinidad and Tobago to Top Chef: Tristen Epps’ journey is rooted in culture
• • Chef Tristen Epps
  • A Classically Black Dinner - Vibrant + Modern + African
• Few physicians leave a legacy like this: Houston honors cancer pioneer Dr. Philip Salem
• • Salem Oncology Center
• The Travel Mom: Family-Friendly Wave-Season Deals from Princess
• • The Travel Mom
  • Princess Cruises

Thursday, January 29

• The Simon & Garfunkel Story at The Sugar Land Smart Financial Center
• Former KPRC 2 reporter shares ‘With Love From Harlem’: The story behind America’s First Black power couple
• • ReShonda Tate’s new book ‘With Love from Harlem’
• American Home Buyer
• How personalized aesthetics - Botox, fillers & lasers - can help you age better
• • Anti Age Institute
• The cast of ‘Bridgerton’ takes us behind-the-scenes of the ton for season 4
• • Netflix’s Bridgerton Season 4

Wednesday, January 28

• KPRC 2’s new evening anchor Stephania Jimenez makes her Houston debut with passion and purpose
• • Follow Stephania on her KPRC 2 Instagram Account
• Cars, boats and more: What to know about this year’s Houston AutoBoative Show 2026
• • Houston Autoboative Show (Save $20 with Family Four Pack Option)
• Get a taste of Old Town Katy with Tanji Patton of Goodtaste TV
• • Goodtaste with Tanji Patton
  • Peanut Butter Pie from Southern Dough
  • Southern Dough Baking Co.
  • Humble Grounds Coffeehouse
  • Harvest Kitchen & Bakery
• A Family Business Built on Trust: Luke’s Plumbing & Air Conditioning Serves Houston for Over 30 Years
• • Luke’s Plumbing & Air Conditioning

Tuesday, January 27

• Remembering the iconic artist David Adickes on his 99th birthday and his lasting legacy in Houston
• • David Adickes Art Website
  • Follow ‘Adickes Art’ on Instagram
• Plan a Vacation Day: Experts share 2026 travel trends and how to protect your trip
• • The Travel Mom
  • Follow The Travel Mom Emily Kaufman on Instagram
  • Travel Guard Insurance
• Texans Serving Texans: Gexa Energy gives back
• • Gexa Energy
• Bill Skarsgård steps beyond horror roots in new film, ‘Dead Man’s Wire’

Monday, January 26

• Houston relationship and intimacy expert dishes on the small relationship habits that make love last
• • Houston Relationship Therapy
  • VIVID Relationships app
• Crawfish & Noodles gearing up for a busy crawfish season
• • Crawfish & Noodles
• Traveling smarter in 2026: What travel experts say to book now
• • Travel Expert Jeanenne Tornatore
  • Follow the Outside Insider on Instagram

Friday, January 23

• Discover why Sam Houston Race Park is a top spot for family outings with “Houston Life”
• • Sam Houston Race Park
  • Corgi Races
  • Shannon Jewelers Presents Diamond Dig
  • Wiener Dog Races

Thursday, January 22

• WEIGH IN: What are your must have products during a freeze?
• Cars, boats and more: What to know about this year’s Houston AutoBoative Show 2026
• • Houston Autoboative Show (Save $20 with Family Four Pack Option)
• Honoring Dr. Philip A. Salem for innovations in cancer care and research
• • Salem Oncology Center
• Bert Kreischer talks fatherhood, fame, and his new scripted comedy series, “Free Bert”
• • Netflix’s “Free Bert”
• Last chance to enjoy the Green Mountain Energy Ice at Discovery Green
• • Ice at Discovery Green

Wednesday, January 21

• Seth Rogen, Ike Barinholtz & Chase Sui Wonders chat comedy series ‘The Studio’
• • Apple Tv+’s ‘The Studio’
• Allied Outdoor Solutions
• Living Designs Furniture
• The Women’s Resource empowers women and girls through free financial and career coaching services
• • The Women’s Resource
• Houston woman helps bring Black cowboy history to PBS
• • Alma’s Way on PBS Kids
  • Black Cowboy Coalition

Friday, January 16

• School Makes You Super: KPRC-TV reporter and mom Haley Hernandez debuts first children’s book to ease school anxiety
• • Buy ‘School Makes You Super" here
• Children’s Museum Houston celebrates the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
• • MLK Day Celebration at Children’s Museum Houston
• Two experts explain why Key Largo, Florida should be on your 2026 travel list
• • The Travel Mom
• The man known as “the human lie detector” works to keep serial killers behind bars
• • Killer Confessions

Thursday, January 15

• Young voices, lasting legacy: Houston students honor Dr. King in 30th Annual Oratory Competition
• • Foley MLK Jr. Oratory Competition
• Breaking through the plateau with Dr. Ian Smith’s ‘The Last 15′
• • Follow Dr. Ian Smith on Instagram
  • Purchase “The Last 15″ on Amazon
• Mindful eating tips and a pesto vinaigrette recipe to kickstart a healthier new year
• • Leaf & Grain
• Stay powered and protected with GenPro.com, Houston’s premier generator specialists
• • Call or log on to book an estimate and receive a functional mini generator worth $50 for FREE

Wednesday, January 14

• Check out the fun, food and giveaways for Houston Rockets fans this week
• • Houston Rockets Game Day Tickets
• A Kroger pharmacist’s guide to everyday wellness in 2026
• • Enter for a chance to win a Kroger gift card
  • Kroger
• Mix-MATCH Festival returns with over 20 performances celebrating Houston’s creative spirit
• • Tickets to 3rd Annual Mix-MATCH Festival
  • Daisies & Pancakes

Tuesday, January 13

• Kick off the new year with magic: Magician Curt Miller returns with his show “The Conjurer”
• • Curt Miller
  • Tickets to The Conjurer: An Intimate Magical Experience with Curt Miller
• Brad Meltzer Book Signing
• • Follow Brad Meltzer on Instagram
• Innovative Lasers of Houston

Monday, January 12

• Turn to tea this year to slow down, reset, and satisfy without regrets
• • Tea Please
• The Travel Mom: Family fun at Knott’s Berry Farm - a California getaway everyone will love
• • The Travel Mom
  • Visit Buena Park
  • Knott’s Berry Farm
• Pet adoption events for the new year at Fort Bend County Animal Services
• • Fort Bend County Animal Services
• New Year, New Smile: AI-driven smile design at Texas Dental Implant Center
• • Texas Dental Implant Center

Friday, January 9

• Shop The Sale Houston with proceeds benefitting childhood cancer research
• • The Sale Houston
• A new chapter begins: Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones chat about their new pairing
• • TODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle
• Former radio personality, Sarah Pepper returns to Texas to emcee 2026 Chevron Houston Marathon
• • Follow Sarah Pepper on Instagram

Thursday, January 8

• Belle comes to Houston - Kyra Belle Johnson stars in Disney’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’ now at the Hobby Center
• • Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast” Tickets at Hobby Center
• Mathew Knowles launches new Destiny’s Child nationwide tribute tour; Houston is first stop
• • Destiny’s Child: Iconic Reimagined Tribute Tickets
• Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo

Wednesday, January 7

• The story behind Luke’s Plumbing and Air Conditioning serving Houstonians since 1991
• • Luke’s Plumbing & Air Conditioning
• Where karaoke meets claw machines: Welcome to Klaw‑Oke Kingdom in Pearland
• • Klaw-Oke Kingdom
• Brace yourself, the 1993 Oilers vs. Bills game is featured in new docuseries ‘Don’t Call it a Comeback’
• • VICE TV’s “Don’t Call It A Comeback”
• New Year, Strong Start: EōS Fitness Experts Share Tips to Crush 2026 Goals
• • EōS Fitness

Tuesday, January 6

• Houston bagel pros talk schmear, slices and specials ahead of National Bagel Day
• • Bagel Shop Bakery
• Comedian Chinedu Ogu takes H-Town-rooted comedy on a national tour
• • Chinedu at Punch Line Houston
• Start your new year weight loss journey at Health Solutions and Weightloss
• • Health Solutions and Weightloss
• Enroll Now: Key deadlines and tips for 2026 Marketplace coverage
• • Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas

Monday, January 5

• Rosca de Reyes Season is here - and this Houston bakery is busy
• • Arandas Bakery
• Damp or Dry January? These non-alcoholic wines actually taste like wine
• • Daniela Garrido | Wine and Travel Expert
• New Year, New Smile: AI-driven smile design at Texas Dental Implant Center
• • Texas Dental Implant Center
• Freeze Miser

Friday, January 2

• Tough but fair: NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Llamas visits Houston Life
• • NBC Nightly News
  • Tom Llamas
• Tarot Card Reader Amber Ambrose
• Opening weekend kicks off at Sam Houston Race Park TODAY!
• • Sam Houston Race Park

Thursday, January 1

• New Year’s fitness made simple: Tips and a low-impact workout for beginners
• • Hoodfit
• Chantell Preston
• HiFi at The Finn

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The S&P 500 added 0.3%, coming off a drop of 2.6% from Friday that was its worst since October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 80 points, or 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.9%.

Some of the best performers were companies that sell computer chips, memory and other products fueling the AI boom. They had plunged Friday amid worries that their prices had shot too high due to AI euphoria. Such worries dragged South Korea’s Kospi index down 8.3% early Monday, pummeling tech stocks there like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.

But prices recovered as trading moved westward through Europe to New York. Micron Technology rose 9.9% after sliding 13.3% Friday for the largest loss in the S&P 500. That resumed a run where its stock has more than tripled so far in 2026.

Marvell Technology climbed 9.6% in its first trading after S&P Dow Jones Indices said the semiconductor company’s stock has grown enough to join its widely followed S&P 500 index. Marvell’s stock has also more than tripled so far this year, aided by a 32.5% surge in one day last week. That was its best day since it began trading in 2000, and it came after Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, suggested at a conference in Taiwan that Marvell could be “the next trillion-dollar company.”

That such a comment could add billions of dollars to a company’s value in an instant suggests to critics that AI stocks are running too hot. Chip and memory companies are indeed reaping big growth in revenue and profit because of the AI boom, but their stock prices have been soaring at astounding speeds. A widely followed index of semiconductor stocks surged nearly 85% for the year so far through Thursday, for example.

Now, the question is whether Friday’s drop was the start of a downturn or just a pause that helps shake out excessive optimism.

Michael Wilson, a strategist at Morgan Stanley, is relatively optimistic. “Markets rarely move in a straight line at the pace seen since the March lows,” he wrote in a report. “In our view, a correction was inevitable and ultimately healthy if this bull market is going to extend into year-end” and pull the S&P 500 to his baseline target of 8,000. That would be an 8.3% rise from Friday’s close.

Corning climbed 5.6% after Amazon announced a multibillion dollar deal where Corning will produce optical fiber, cable and other products for its data centers across the country.

That helped offset a 0.9% dip for Campbell’s, which reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected but also a worse decline in revenue. The company’s stock is also set to drop out of the S&P 500 index when Marvell Technology’s stock joins it.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 21.99 points to 7,405.73. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 80.77 to 50,786.01, and the Nasdaq composite gained 220.23 to 25,929.66.

In the oil market, prices jumped after Israel and Iran launched strikes against each other, threatening to drag the region back into full-scale war. The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil, the international standard, briefly topped $98 overnight.

But it later regressed after Israel and Iran appeared to back away from further strikes. Brent’s price settled at $94.25 per barrel, up 1.2% from Friday.

High oil prices caused by the war with Iran have already sent inflation higher, which increases not only bills for households but also yields in the bond market. High yields worldwide recently have threatened to slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and all kinds of other investments.

On Monday, Treasury yields ticked a bit higher following their jump on Friday. The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged up to 4.56% from 4.55%.

In stock markets abroad, indexes edged lower Europe following sharp losses in Asia.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 3.8%, while stocks fell 1.7% in Shanghai and 1.2% in Hong Kong.

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AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed to this report.

Tx2 Dance Company is inviting Houstonians of all ages and experience levels to get moving with its fun and interactive Bollywood and Bhangra dance experiences. The group is dedicated to sharing the joy of dance while creating opportunities for people from all backgrounds to connect, learn, and celebrate culture together.

Whether you’re stepping onto the dance floor for the first time or have years of experience, Tx2 Dance Company welcomes all ages, backgrounds, and skill levels. Their classes and events are designed to inspire, motivate, and bring people together through movement.

For more information about classes, performances, and upcoming dance experiences during the FIFA World Cup 2026™ festivities, click HERE.

Watch as Lauren Kelly and Mel Camp chat with Co Director of Tx2 Dance Company, Sonali Patel, all about how you can join the fun.

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Karmelo Anthony, now 19, is charged with murder in the death of Austin Metcalf, 17, at a school stadium in Frisco, a Dallas suburb, in April 2025.

After a midday break that lasted three hours, the prosecutor and defense lawyers said they had no more evidence to offer on the fourth day of trial. Anthony did not testify in his own defense, and closing arguments were set for Tuesday.

Prosecutors say the stabbing of Metcalf was an unjustified attack related to a dispute over whether Anthony could be under the tent of Metcalf's team during a rainy track meet. Defense attorneys insist Anthony felt threatened and believed he needed to defend himself when physical contact was made.

One of Anthony’s teammates, testifying Monday for the defense, said Anthony was “distraught” after the stabbing.

“I was hearing him say, ‘I told him not to touch me,’” the witness said.

Judge John Roach Jr. has said young witnesses can’t be publicly identified.

Metcalf's death drew wide attention, in part because of social media posts that amplified the case in racial terms. Anthony, who attended Frisco Centennial High School, is Black, while Metcalf, who attended Frisco Memorial High School, was white.

Prosecutors rested their case Saturday in Collin County court. Jurors last week heard from a number of people who were at the track meet, including students who said Anthony had been asked to leave the tent and was the aggressor in the confrontation.

The courtroom was packed again Monday with spectators, including the parents of Anthony and Metcalf, and younger people.

The jurors will be sequestered in a hotel if they don't reach a verdict Tuesday and return to court Wednesday. The judge told them not to discuss the case with anyone, and “for God’s sake do not go on social media."

The renewed hostilities raised concerns that the Middle East could plunge back into a full-scale war.

Since the U.S. and Israel began striking Iran on Feb. 28, the war has shaken the global economy, driven up energy prices around the world and made many basics, including food, more expensive. Officials have been unable to turn the April ceasefire into a deal to permanently end the conflict.

The new attacks prompted U.S. President Donald Trump to call for an immediate stop to fighting between Israel and Iran.

Soon after, the Iranian military’s joint command issued a statement that said it was halting offensive strikes. The statement said further “aggression and hostile acts” by Israel and its supporters, including in southern Lebanon, would be met with “much more severe and crushing measures than before.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaking in a videotaped statement, implied that the current round of fighting was over. But he also warned that if Iran “makes the mistake and returns to attacking us, we will respond with force.”

Netanyahu said Israel is continuing to operate in Lebanon against the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah, and that Israel “has full right to self-defense, and we will exercise it to the full extent necessary.”

Meanwhile, the Lebanese Health Ministry said an Israeli airstrike on the village of Zefta killed seven people Monday, including a Syrian child. Eight people were wounded. Another strike on the coastal city of Tyre killed five and wounded eight, some of them members of the Lebanese Red Cross, the ministry said.

Both countries lift restrictions

Both countries lifted restrictions they had imposed as safety precautions. The Israeli military said most schools in Israel that closed Monday would reopen. Iran's official Mizan news agency reported that the Islamic Republic had lifted airspace restrictions affecting civilian flights.

During the truce, Iran has maintained its stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz — a crucial passage for the world’s oil and natural gas whose closure was the primary reason global fuel prices skyrocketed. Israel has continued to strike Hezbollah, Iran’s ally in Lebanon, and pushed deeper into that country.

The U.S. military continues to impose a blockade on Iranian ports. U.S. Central Command said its forces on Monday fired on and disabled a Palau-flagged oil tanker, the M/T Marivex, in the Gulf of Oman after the ship attempted to breach the blockade.

Officials in India said the tanker’s crew of 24 Indian sailors were all reported safe after a fire broke out on the vessel. It was the seventh commercial vessel the U.S. military has disabled to enforce its blockade, which began in mid-April.

Diplomats race to save the ceasefire

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed concern Monday over the surge in violence. In a post on X, Sharif urged all parties to “exercise restraint and give peace a little more chance.”

Two regional officials said Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan and Qatar had all urged the Trump administration to pressure Israel to halt strikes on Iran and Beirut.

Those countries also pushed for Iran to stop attacking Israel, the officials said. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters.

Iran's ambassador to the United Nations said Monday that Iran and the U.S. are still working to negotiate a peace deal. After speaking at a U.N. Security Council meeting, Amir Saeid Iravani told The Associated Press he was hopeful that “very soon” the two sides would reach “a conclusion.”

Explosions sound in Tehran and central Israel

Iran launched waves of attacks on Israel on Monday, and Israel launched strikes on central and western Iran.

Iranian state media reported at least 15 people were wounded after explosions sounded in Tehran and other cities. There were no immediate reports of fatalities.

The semiofficial Fars and Mehr news agencies said Israeli strikes hit a petrochemical factory in the city of Mahshahr. They did not elaborate on any damage. The Israeli military confirmed the strike on the plant, saying it targeted sites that produce materials for ballistic missiles. Israel said it also targeted truck-based missile launchers.

Israel said its strikes were in response to an Iranian missile attack. Tehran warned Sunday that it would retaliate after Israel struck Beirut’s southern suburbs without warning. When Israel struck back, Iran fired again.

Explosions could be heard in central Israel as air defenses sought to intercept incoming Iranian fire. Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said it had targeted two military bases in Israel.

Iran blamed the United States for the escalation.

“No one believes that the Israeli regime would take any action without coordination with the United States,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told journalists in Tehran.

Tensions appear to grow between Trump and Netanyahu

Trump and Netanyahu launched the war in a closely coordinated attack, with Israeli officials proudly boasting of unprecedented “shoulder to shoulder” cooperation.

The conflict reached 100 days on Monday, and the two leaders have moved in opposite directions, with tensions sometimes spilling out into the open.

Netanyahu appears to have openly defied Trump with the strike Sunday in Beirut and subsequent attacks in Iran. Trump has voiced his displeasure with Israel, including belittling Netanyahu by declaring to the Financial Times that “I call all the shots.”

Their differences appear to be rooted in each leader's domestic considerations. Netanyahu faces elections this fall and is under public pressure to strike back against ongoing Hezbollah attacks on northern Israel. He also is wary of appearing too subservient to Trump.

The U.S. president also faces elections — for Congress in November — and is eager to end a war that has jolted the global economy and raised prices for consumers.

The Houthis claimed an attack on Israel

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed an attack on Israel on Monday and said Israel-affiliated vessels would again be a target in the Red Sea, putting the waterway in danger along with the Gulf of Aden and the narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait connecting them. The statement from Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree was broadcast on the Houthis’ al-Masirah satellite news channel.

The Houthis made a similar threat during the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip and launched attacks that killed at least nine mariners and sank four ships. They often targeted vessels with tangential or no ties to Israel.

The assaults upended shipping in the Red Sea, through which about $1 trillion of goods passed each year before the war.

___

This story has been updated to correct the day the Iran war started to Feb. 28.

___

Lidman reported from Tel Aviv, Israel. AP journalists Munir Ahmed in Islamabad; Matthew Lee in Washington; Michelle L. Price in Bridgewater, New Jersey; Elena Becatoros in Athens, Greece; Samy Magdy in Cairo; Josef Federman in Jerusalem; Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations; and Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia, contributed.

The song has become one of the internet’s biggest feel-good sensations, racking up millions of views and inspiring countless singalongs, vacation videos, and celebrity shoutouts. Behind the viral hit is content creator and comedian, Bill Stiteler - better known online as Saxboy Billy.

What started as a fun social media post quickly took on a life of its own. The song’s infectious melody and upbeat energy resonated with viewers around the world, helping it spread across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and beyond. Before long, celebrities and influencers (Jennifer Love Hewitt, Charlie Puth, Luke Combs, and O-Town to name a few) were joining the trend, creating their own videos and introducing the song to even larger audiences.

Despite its massive success, Saxboy Billy says the song’s popularity came as a surprise. Like many viral moments, there was no master plan—just a catchy idea that connected with people at the right time. (Think how fun the old Mentos commercials were!)

Watch as Derrick Shore and Lauren Kelly chat with Bill about the story behind the song’s creation, what it was like watching it explode online, and how his life has changed since becoming an internet sensation.

Siri AI, which was introduced at the start of Apple's annual World Wide Developers Conference, has been highly anticipated by users and developers. While Siri was launched in 2011, it fell behind other voice assistants and was derided even by Apple fans.

It is the last WWDC featuring CEO Tim Cook before he turns his post over to John Ternus in September. Cook received an extended standing ovation and told the audience he is “deeply grateful to have been on this journey with you” and said “the energy around Apple platforms has never been stronger.”

The conference, which drew developers from some 65 countries to Apple’s Silicon Valley headquarters, focuses on software, in contrast to the fall unveiling of the latest iPhones.

Apple steps up its AI game

Apple has sought to distinguish itself from its peers by stressing a privacy-centered approach and integrating AI across its devices and apps. There was no mention of AI superintelligence or companion chatbots. Rather, Apple sought to demonstrate how its AI tools can make life easier.

Apple software chief Craig Federighi took some swipes at AI companies — without naming them — that seem to be “pursuing AI for the sake of AI” without clear regard for the people it is supposed to serve. At Apple, he said, “we believe that truly helpful AI should be centered around you and your needs,” which means integrating AI into the products people use every day, with a focus on privacy.

The conference unveiled updates to Apple Intelligence, which was first announced in 2024. It now uses Google’s Gemini AI model to help power its features and processes users' requests and interactions on their own device and privately on the cloud, making them inaccessible to anyone else.

At the center of it is the new Siri, which Apple said is now a “much more capable assistant” that can help users find what they need and get things done across various Apple devices. For instance, it can create a menu and gather recipes from the web or from your own text messages for a World Cup viewing party and invite friends from a group chat. Siri mode on your camera, meanwhile, can tell you what you are looking at and give you relevant information, such as the nutritional details of a plate of food.

Siri's visual intelligence also works with images on your screen. For example, it can tell you whether a backpack you are thinking of getting will work as a carry-on for a flight or whether a pair of bulky hiking boots will fit inside it.

Apple also announced improvements to its popular AI photo editing tools, including spatial reframing that lets you adjust how a photo is framed after it was taken — as if you had moved the camera to a better position while you were snapping the picture.

A standalone Siri AI app will launch later this year, though Apple said it will not initially be available in Europe and it won't be available in China while the company works out regulatory issues.

Tim Cook's last WWDC

Cook announced his retirement in April, ending a 15-year run that saw the company’s market value soar by more than $4 trillion during an iPhone-fueled era of prosperity. Ternus has been with Apple for the past quarter century, including the past five years overseeing the engineering underlying the iPhone, iPad and Mac — a role that made him a prime candidate to succeed Cook.

Ternus did not take the main stage during Monday’s event.

The transition to a new CEO comes at a pivotal time for Apple. Artificial intelligence has unleashed the most upheaval within the industry since Jobs unveiled the first iPhone in 2007. Apple has gotten off to a rough start in AI after stumbling in its efforts to deliver new features built on the technology, as promised nearly two years ago.

Cook called his time at Apple “the honor of a lifetime.”

“I truly believe the best is still ahead.”

The Clearwater Police Department released a 72-page report on Friday summarizing an exhaustive review of statements, medical records, surveillance footage and a visual inspection of the body. Hogan, whose real name was Terry Bollea, died last July 24 at age 71.

“There has been no evidence to indicate the death of Terry Bollea was anything other than natural,” the report said. “Through the course of the investigation, there has been no evidence to indicate any criminal wrongdoing related to his death. This case will be closed, and will be considered solved, non-criminal.”

According to the report, Hogan's wife, as well as a home health aide and an occupational therapist, were all with Hogan at his home when he stopped breathing. His wife, Sky Daily Hogan, called 911, and then the trio performed CPR on Hulk Hogan until firefighters and paramedics arrived.

Family members told investigators that Hogan had been suffering from multiple heath issues in the weeks before his death, including leukemia, an irregular hearth rhythm, pneumonia and kidney failure. He had also undergone many hospitalizations and surgeries in the years before his death.

Early statements made by the occupational therapist to police led to speculation that Hogan's death was related to damage done to his phrenic nerve during a recent surgery. But the occupational therapist later said that he was still rattled from performing CPR and was speaking out of turn.

The local medical examiner had concluded Hogan died from a heart attack and declined to perform a full autopsy. A private autopsy paid for by the family backed up the initial assessment, finding “no reasonable traumatic or terminal toxicologic contributions.”

Hogan was perhaps the biggest star in WWE’s long history, known for both his larger-than-life personality and his wrestling exploits. He was the main draw for the first WrestleMania in 1985 and was a fixture for years, facing everyone from Andre The Giant and Randy Savage to The Rock and even WWE co-founder Vince McMahon.

Hogan won at least six WWE championships and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005 and reinstated there in 2018. He had been removed from the Hall of Fame in 2015 after he was recorded making racial slurs against Black people, for which he apologized.

A well-attended but private funeral service was held several weeks after Hogan's death at a church in Largo, Florida.

The New York Knicks announced that was the winning bid in an auction for two seats for Game 3 on Monday night, the first NBA Finals game at Madison Square Garden since 1999.

The winning bid was split by the law firm Gibson Dunn and private equity firm Veritas Capital. The fundraiser benefited the Garden of Dreams Foundation, and the Knicks said it was the largest single donation in the history of the foundation, which works with MSG’s companies to assist children at need in the tristate area.

The seats are located in section VIP 10, row AA, seats 25 and 26, right off center court. It’s impossible to know what they would usually cost, because the team doesn’t sell them. Instead, they are given to the celebrity fans such as Tracy Morgan and Timothée Chalamet who are courtside fixtures.

Seats everywhere in the building are expensive. The cheapest upper-deck seats available Sunday night were going for more than $6,000 on secondary markets like StubHub, SeatGeek and VividSeats. The experience of being courtside went for more than $75,000.

___

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

Talarico on Monday drew attention to his campaign winning the endorsement of Houston attorney Dan Cogdell, who was part of Paxton's defense team during the Republican's historic impeachment trial in 2023 that ended in acquittal.

The legal troubles that shadowed Paxton in public office in Texas are a central attack line of Talarico's campaign, though in his endorsement, Cogdell didn’t cite concerns about his client's past.

Cogdell said he didn’t dislike Paxton as a person and felt that Texas lawmakers were right to eventually acquit the attorney general. But as a politician, Cogdell said, Paxton is too focused on appeasing President Donald Trump.

“I worked my ass off for the man for nine years,” Cogdell said in an interview with The Associated Press. “But that’s a different inquiry. My obligation to Ken ended at the courthouse steps and my obligation as a citizen is to do what I think is the right thing.”

Cogdell said Texas needs a lot of work, pointing to education and health care, “and to simply bootlick or rubber stamp Trump, that’s not what we need in D.C. right now.” He also recently spoke to Talarico at length on Cogdell's podcast.

Asked for comment, an aide to Paxton’s campaign said Cogdell is a Democrat and called the endorsement unsurprising.

The lead defense attorney in Paxton's impeachment trial, Tony Buzbee, reiterated that on X. Buzbee added that he was supporting Paxton in the race.

Cogdell described himself as a registered Democrat, although voters in Texas do not register by political party. He added, however, that he considers himself a moderate who has given more campaign contributions over the years to Republican candidates than Democrats.

Talarico has given Democrats hope of flipping the statewide seat in Texas blue as the party scrambles to retake control of the U.S. Senate in November.

Paxton’s insurgent campaign beat Sen. John Cornyn in the Republican Senate primary runoff last month, helped by a Trump endorsement in the final days of the race.

With 94% of ballots tallied, the figures showed Sánchez earned 8.79 million votes, or 50.015%, while Fujimori received 8.78 million votes, or 49.985%.

The winner will be the South American country's ninth president in 10 years. Fujimori, daughter of a disgraced former president, and Sánchez, an ally of an imprisoned ex-president, were on the runoff’s ballot after beating 33 other candidates in the vote in April, but neither earned even 20% of support. Electoral authorities took more than a month to declare them winners of that contest.

Roberto Burneo, the country’s chief electoral authority, asked voters and political organizations to “act with democratic responsibility” as the tallying process continues. He said the outcome will be available within 30 days.

In the capital, Lima, voter turnout throughout the day appeared lower than in the previous contest, with practically no lines in many voting centers, despite voting being mandatory. The slow counting pace is due to a law that requires each ballot and each tally sheet, which summarizes the votes from each polling station, to be taken to one of more than 100 offices to be tallied. Additionally, ballots and tally sheets must arrive in Lima from 63 countries to be counted.

Many voters associate candidates with controversial politicians

Crime, particularly extortion, was the overarching concern for voters. A 2025 national survey carried out by the state’s National Institute of Statistics and Informatics found that 84% of respondents in urban areas feared becoming victims of a crime in the following 12 months.

Experts attribute the increasing power of organized crime in Peru to the profits that decades-old criminal groups are earning from illegal gold mining in the Andes and the Amazon.

And the candidates' crime-fighting proposals were not enough to make inroads with voters, many of whom associate each aspiring president with controversial Peruvian politicians.

Fujimori is linked to the authoritarian and corrupt legacy of the government of her late father, Alberto Fujimori, in the 1990s. She became Peru's first lady in 1994 after her parents’ separation.

Sánchez is one of the closest allies of imprisoned former President Pedro Castillo, whom many perceive as corrupt and chaotic. Castillo’s 16-month term saw more than 70 Cabinet changes.

Official results from April’s election showed Fujimori received 17% of the vote and Sánchez got 12%. A nationwide poll conducted a week before the election by the firm Ipsos found that similar shares of voters were supporting the candidates, with about 3 in 10 saying they were undecided.

Food vendor Magali Quiquia said she cast a blank ballot because she did not find either candidate convincing,

“Five years ago, I was disappointed by Castillo with his corruption, and ... Roberto Sánchez is the same," Quiquia, 44, said. She added that she believes “Fujimori hasn’t done anything either” despite her party having multiple seats in Congress.

Voting is mandatory for Peruvians aged 18 to 70. Failure to do so results in a fine of up to $32.

More than 27 million people are registered. Of those, about 1.2 million were expected to cast ballots from abroad, mainly in the United States and Argentina.

Proposals include prison labor and a police purge

For most of her fourth presidential campaign, Fujimori promised to crack down on crime. Her proposals included implementing technology to track extortion, militarizing borders and increasing the presence of police and military personnel in high-risk areas. Fujimori, 51, also said that prisoners will be required to work and “repay society” should she win.

In the only debate before the runoff, Fujimori defended her father’s government and promised to defeat crime just as he defeated the Shining Path, a violent extremist group. After the vote counting began, she told her supporters to remain calm.

Fujimori on Monday told her more than 100 legal representatives throughout Peru that they would have to “fight” and “analyze” any ballot under dispute, but that she would respect “the results, whoever the winner may be.” She said results show a great division among voters, adding that party leaders must “build bridges” after the election is over.

Meanwhile, Sánchez, a former minister now popular with rural voters, during the campaign pledged to combat corruption within the police force and promote reforms that would enable the military to support security efforts. The 57-year-old, who wears a wide-brimmed peasant hat gifted by Castillo, told debate viewers that he would be open to “all options to generate jobs and progress” but also emphasized his support for Chinese investments.

He appeared on a Lima hotel balcony on Sunday and thanked the Indigenous communities, farmers and other supporters “who have decided to come and reclaim the government for the people.”

The runoff’s winner will be sworn in to a five-year term on July 28.

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Garcia Cano reported from Mexico City.

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

Wood, a professor emeritus at Brown University, died Sunday after being struck by a car in a supermarket parking lot in East Providence, Rhode Island, according to police.

Author of dozens of books and essays, Wood never gained the mass audience of historians like David McCullough and Doris Kearns Goodwin, but his findings became standard references for discussions about the formation of the U.S. and the legacy of the revolution that continue as the country approaches its 250th anniversary. Many peers regarded the white-haired, mild-looking Wood as the embodiment of the learned, traditional historian, guided by facts rather than ideology.

In 2011, President Barack Obama presented him a National Humanities Medal “for scholarship that provides insight into the founding of the nation and the drafting of the U.S. Constitution.”

In recent years, younger academics increasingly alleged that Wood was too well-established, the epitome of the old-school historian who minimized the lives of slaves, women and Indigenous people. John L. Brooke, a history professor at Ohio State University, would fault him for “a distinct avoidance of interpretative paradox and complexity,” even as he cited Wood’s “scale and scholarly enterprise.”

In an email to The Associated Press, filmmaker Ken Burns praised Wood as a “teacher of generations of students and other historians.”

Woody Holton, an author and historian who clashed at times with Wood, told the AP that he admired his “willingness to encourage even a younger scholar like me who viewed the American revolutionary era very differently from him.”

“The tragic accident that killed him is especially heartbreaking in denying him, by less than a month, the chance to celebrate the country’s 250th birthday,” added Holton, a history professor at the University of South Carolina.

His success was immediate and lasting. His first book, "The Creation of the American Republic," won the Bancroft Prize in 1970 and lived on with generations of students who embraced and contended with Wood's findings that the Constitution was unintentionally subversive, a document devised by elites that led to “the destruction of the very social world they had sought to maintain.”

His "The Radicalism of the American Revolution" won the Pulitzer in 1993 and the epic "Empire of Liberty" was a finalist in 2009.

Silver screen moment

Wood's name also was familiar to moviegoers through the Academy Award-winning "Good Will Hunting," released in 1997. The lead character, a pugnacious, self-taught genius played by Matt Damon, taunts a Harvard undergraduate: "You're gonna be in here regurgitating Gordon Wood, talking about, you know, the pre-revolutionary utopia and the capital-forming effects of military mobilization." (Ideas, Wood would point out, that he did not endorse).

A few years earlier, Wood received an unexpected and uncomfortable compliment from then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who listed "The Radicalism of the American Revolution" as an essential work of history. Wood would remember how the Georgia Republican's blessing was a "kiss of death" among his many liberal peers and perceived as an affirmation of conservative policies.

Regarding himself as neither radical nor reactionary, Wood claimed a middle ground between conventional "great man" narratives and the more egalitarian scholarship that emerged in the 1960s.

He acknowledged that historians had overlooked the contributions of women and minority groups, but worried that "headline political events" were being ignored entirely. He disputed Progressive era historian Charles Beard's influential portrait of the U.S. Constitution as a cynical triumph for the rich, but didn't regard the founders as infallible sages above looking after their own interests.

"I don't think our history should be seen as a moral tale, either good or bad," he once wrote. "I think historians should try to understand where we came from as honestly as we can, without trying to say this was a great celebration or that this was a disaster. I don't think either of those extremes is true of our history."

Battles with the past

Wood did welcome scholarly breakthroughs, notably Annette Gordon-Reed’s “persuasive contextual case” that the enslaved Sally Hemings bore some of Thomas Jefferson’s children. In “Empire of Liberty,” which covered the years 1789 to 1815, he included lengthy passages on slavery and called it a cancer “eating away at the message of liberty and equality.”

At other times, Wood angrily resisted new approaches. He was a prominent critic of The New York Times’ Pulitzer Prize winning 1619 Project and its contention — later amended — that maintaining slavery was a key motivation for the American Revolution. He alleged that the project encouraged a sense “victimhood” and feeling “aggrieved," even as he acknowledged he hadn't read most of it. He would counter that the founders, including such plantation owners as Jefferson and James Madison, believed — mistakenly — that slavery would die a natural death and the revolution itself energized the American abolitionist movement.

“We all want justice, but not at the expense of truth,” he wrote in 2019, adding, in a widely disputed statement, “I don’t know of any colonist who said that they wanted independence in order to preserve their slaves.”

In "Radicalism" and other books, Wood rejected conservative and liberal theories that the American Revolution did not immediately lead to any substantial new freedoms and was essentially a political event — a mere "mental shift" — that otherwise reinforced the status quo.

The new country's early years, Wood stated, were a time of transformation and democratization in everything from how people dressed to the way they greeted each other in the streets. The shifts were so profound that even the revolution's leaders didn't expect or want them.

"One class did not overthrow another; the poor did not supplant the rich," Wood wrote. "But social relationships, the way people were connected one to another — were changed and decisively so. By the early years of the 19th century the Revolution had created a society fundamentally different from the colonial society of the 18th century. It was in fact a new society unlike any that had existed anywhere in the world."

Fellow historian and Pulitzer winner David Hackett Fischer would later write that Wood's scholarship "altered the way historians thought about their field."

Wood's other books included "Revolutionary Characters" and "The Americanization of Benjamin Franklin" and his essays and reviews appeared frequently in The New York Review of Books, The New Republic and other publications. Wood also appeared in Burns' PBS documentary about the American Revolution, consulted on Burns' film about Jefferson and chaired an advisory panel for the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.

Wood married Louise Goss in 1956. They had three children, two of whom became history professors.

Gordon Wood was a self-described "simple hedgehog" who stuck to writing about the revolution, which he regarded as "the most important event in American history, bar none." He was unhappy that students attending college knew far more about the Civil War, noting that it was impossible to understand any U.S. conflict without understanding the country's birth.

"We Americans have such a thin and meager sense of history that we cannot get too much of it," he once wrote.

High school boredom, college passion

Wood was born into history: His hometown, Concord, Massachusetts, had been the residence of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau and Louisa May Alcott among others. But his passion for the subject he later mastered did not arise until college. Wood found his high school history education unbearable, suffering through classes in which the teacher simply read from a textbook.

Wood did admire his Latin instructor, who encouraged him to attend Tufts University, from which he graduated summa cum laude. He received a master's and Ph.D. from Harvard University and studied under a celebrated Revolutionary War historian Bernard Bailyn, whose documentation of the intellectual forces behind independence in his landmark “The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution” Wood would build upon in “The Creation of the American Republic.”

In his introduction to "The Idea of America," published in 2011, Wood looked back on his own work and the evolution of scholarship in his lifetime. He noted the many errors of the country's founders but warned against scolding historical figures because of mistakes which seem obvious now, what he and others call “Presentism.”

"The drama, indeed the tragedy of history, comes from our understanding of the tension that existed between the conscious wills and intentions of the participants in the past and the underlying conditions that constrained their actions and shaped their future," he wrote.

“If the study of history teaches anything, it teaches us the limitations of life. It ought to produce prudence and humility.”

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AP writer Michael Casey contributed to this report from Boston.

The move comes days after Abbott expanded a state disaster declaration related to the threat posed by the parasitic pest, which can infest livestock, wildlife and other animals.

• Second screwworm case in Texas confirmed as Abbott expands state disaster declaration

“I have activated the full use of all state resources to respond to the New World Screwworm threat,” Abbott said in a statement. “The protection of our ranchers, livestock producers, deer breeders, and the Texas economy from this pest is a top priority. We have eradicated this pest before, and we will do it again in close cooperation with our federal partners.”

The New World screwworm is a parasitic fly whose larvae feed on the living tissue of warm-blooded animals. If left untreated, infestations can cause severe injury or death in livestock and wildlife.

At the governor’s direction, representatives from several state agencies and emergency management partners have been called to the State Operations Center, including:

• Texas Animal Health Commission
• Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
• Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory
• Texas Department of Agriculture
• Texas Department of State Health Services

State officials are urging ranchers, livestock producers, hunters and pet owners to remain vigilant and inspect animals daily for wounds or signs of infestation.

Suspected cases in livestock should be reported immediately to the Texas Animal Health Commission at 1-800-550-8242. Suspected cases involving wildlife should be reported to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department at 512-389-4505.

• Flesh-eating parasite confirmed in Texas. What Houston residents need to know about the new world screwworm

The state said it is coordinating closely with federal partners as officials work to prevent the pest from spreading into Texas and impacting the agriculture industry, wildlife populations and the state’s economy.

Texans can find the latest information and resources through the Texas Animal Health Commission, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Pashinyan was looking for a strong mandate for a new geopolitical course that includes distancing Armenia from Moscow and deepening cooperation with the West. “The European Union is our main partner in democratic reform implementation, and we will continue that path,” Pashinyan said as he cast his vote on Sunday.

European election observers said the election was divisive but “well-run," while noting concerns that Russia had sought to sway the outcome with economic pressure and suggesting that Pashinyan's incumbent government had sought to stifle the largely pro-Russian opposition.

Pashinyan's Civil Contract party came in first with 49.82% of the vote, according to the latest preliminary results on Monday.

His main opponent, Samvel Karapetyan, is a billionaire who made his fortune in Russia and is under house arrest, accused of advocating for the government’s overthrow. Karapetyan, whose Strong Armenia bloc was the runner-up with 23.28% of the vote, rejects that charge as politically motivated.

Armenian investigators said they also issued six arrest warrants for members of Strong Armenia the day before the election, accusing them of buying votes. The party seeks to develop close business ties with Moscow and has accused Pashinyan of attempting to start a war with the Kremlin.

While the Central Election Commission says it has counted ballots from all electoral precincts, full results are not expected until Sunday. This is to give parties time to lodge complaints about any perceived irregularities.

‘Referendum on the future of the country'

Richard Giragosian, who heads the Regional Studies Center think tank in Armenia’s capital, Yerevan, said that despite concerns that Russia was trying to sway the election, the vote had been “genuinely free and fair” and “stands as a referendum on the future of the country.”

“Much of the Russian efforts at interference fell flat and were ineffective,” Giragosian told the AP on Monday.

Russia has warned Armenia it would suffer economic consequences if it continues moves toward the EU. Moscow controls a significant portion of Armenia’s energy and infrastructure, a point that has been driven home by Russian President Vladimir Putin in his meetings with Pashinyan.

Russia recently banned the import of a number of Armenian products, including, flowers, wine and fish. Moscow has cited violations of import rules, but the European Commission has called the measures “economic coercion.”

Putin and other Russian officials also have made thinly veiled threats comparing Armenia’s path to that already taken by Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia.

Pashinyan's party set to rule on its own

Armenia’s National Assembly must consist of at least 101 members elected for five-year terms. Parties must win at least 4% of the vote to enter, while blocs made up of three or more parties must hit 8%.

The Hayastan (Armenia) bloc led by former President Robert Kocharyan is also set to take seats, receiving 9.93% of the vote. The Prosperous or Blossoming Armenia party, led by pro-Russia businessman Gagik Tsarukyan, has hovered around the 4% threshold.

Turnout stood at 58.94%, according to the latest announcement by the election commission.

Preliminary results from the election commission suggested the governing party has won 61 seats in the National Assembly.

According to Giragosian, the analyst, this will allow Pashinyan's party to rule on its own and pass most laws independently, but not to secure constitutional amendments without a referendum.

PM vows to continue peace process with neighboring Azerbaijan

Opposition parties have strongly criticized the government for attempting to normalize relations with neighboring Azerbaijan. Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev initialed a document on moving toward a peace deal at the White House alongside U.S. President Donald Trump in August.

Armenia and Azerbaijan were locked in a decades-long conflict over Karabakh, a breakaway region that had been controlled for decades by ethnic Armenian forces backed by Yerevan. Azerbaijan took control of the entire Karabakh region during a rapid offensive in 2023.

Pashinyan announced on Monday that Armenia intends to move toward “institutionalizing” a peace deal, and ratifying an agreement with the White House that would create a major transit corridor through Armenian territory to be named after Trump.

“This is a truly transformative project, as Armenia is becoming a crossroads of the world,” Pashinyan said.

International observers say the election offered genuine choice

Observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the European Parliament said in a joint statement that the election had offered voters genuine alternatives “in a well-run process.”

The observers noted concerns about pressure from Russia, while also noting that the campaign domestically was “highly confrontational” and marked by allegations of electoral violations that led to many criminal cases against opposition candidates, raising a perception of “selective justice."

"This, along with pressure on public sector employees to attend ruling party events, and recently introduced social and economic measures, raised concerns about the equality of opportunity to campaign,” the statement said.

Responses from Brussels and Moscow

Top officials of the EU, which is preparing an economic support package for Armenia, congratulated Pashinyan following the tightly contested race.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on social media that the EU deeply values the partnership with Armenia as it draws “ever closer to Europe.”

Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Armenia's elections were held “amid unprecedented pressure on the opposition and interference from the West, primarily the EU.”

The ministry's spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, did not give examples of such interference, but said the elections "demonstrated that Armenian society is extremely polarized.” She added that Moscow's approach to future relations will “take into account actual steps taken by the Armenian leadership."

Giragosian said that Russia is not necessarily surprised at the election outcome and that its lack of direct support for the Armenian opposition indicates that it is open to continue working with the Pashinyan government while also increasing pressure on it.

——

AP writers Sam McNeil in Brussels and Menelaos Hadjicostis in Nicosia, Cyprus contributed.

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An earlier version of this story wrongly stated that according to an earlier announcement by Armenia's election commission, turnout in the general election on Sunday stood at 97%. The correct figure at that time was 59.97%.

Ranging in age from seven to 17, some donning jeweled jumpsuits, they took the stage at the Tupelo Elvis Festival's youth tribute artist competition last week.

In contrast to their peers, some of whom may have never heard of Elvis, the competitors have dedicated an enormous amount of time and energy studying the king's voice, mannerisms and style.

They are careful to specify they are Elvis tribute artists. Unlike impersonators, who pretend to be Elvis and sometimes present a characterized version of the king, tribute artists strive for authenticity. Some wore costumes created by B&K Enterprises Costume Co., a company licensed to recreate Elvis' outfits and provide costumes for Elvis movies, musicals and TV shows.

“We're not trying to be him,” said Tucker Gladden, 17, from Madison, Mississippi. “We want to recreate the experience as much as we can for people that maybe didn't get to see Elvis in their lifetime.”

As for their fascination with a long-dead musician, several of the tribute artists credited the 2022 “Elvis” movie with sparking their interest. A couple said their admiration began after discovering they were distantly related to Elvis. Others said it was Elvis' faith and charity that inspired them. Some said they had been performing Elvis songs since they were 3 years old.

For 16-year-old Ayden Maloy from Logansport, Indiana, it was the way Elvis' music helped him during a difficult time in his life that helped motivate him to begin performing as an Elvis tribute artist three years ago.

“I just broke down in tears because it healed me,” Maloy said. “I think Elvis is the healer.”

In an afternoon of dazzling outfits and daring dance moves, the performers paid their tributes, getting the audience clapping, singing and swaying along to their Elvis covers. Ultimately, RJ Hursey, a 14-year-old from Bloomington, Illinois, won the competition.

“It means the world to me,” Hursey said.

Before the competition, the tribute artists toured the Elvis Presley Birthplace, a sprawling complex that includes the home where Elvis was born and the church where he was first exposed to Southern gospel music.

“It feels so surreal to pay tribute to Elvis in his hometown,” said 15-year-old Charles Session from Morrilton, Arkansas. “I hope that he’s looking down and smiling at all these young performers.”

Kepler can start a minor league assignment Wednesday, when the suspension is scheduled to have 15 days remaining. If no Arizona games are postponed, he would be eligible to play for the Diamondbacks on June 25 at St. Louis.

If Kepler returns to the major league roster on June 25, he would receive $396,257 in salary for the remainder of the season. He would earn a $100,000 bonus for 35 days on the active roster and $200,000 each for 55 and 75.

Kepler remains on the restricted list for the remainder of the suspension and will not occupy a spot on the 40-man roster during the ban.

He is ineligible to appear in the postseason this year.

Kepler was suspended in January for a positive test for Epitrenbolone, a metabolite of Trenbolone that's contained in some products used in body-building stores and has been used in products to promote cattle growth. Kepler was the first player suspended by MLB for the substance since public announcements of the penalty details began in 2005.

The 33-year-old hit .216 with 18 homers and 52 RBIs with Philadelphia last year after agreeing to a $10 million, one-year contract. He was slowed in 2024 by left patellar tendinitis and had core surgery after the season to repair a sports hernia.

Kepler grew up in Germany and signed with the Twins at age 16 in 2009. He has a .235 average with 179 homers and 560 RBIs during an 11-year big league career.

___

This story has been corrected to show that Kepler is eligible to play on June 25, not report to the team then, and that he was suspended in January, not tested positive then.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB

Three more cases of the New World screwworm were confirmed in Texas by the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Monday, bringing the total number of cases to five.

One new case is in Andrews County, nearly 400 miles north of Zavala County, where the first case was reported last week.

The two new cases are in different animals. In La Salle County, about 80 miles northwest of Zavala, a calf has been infected. In Andrews County, a veterinarian submitted the samples from an infested dog. According to the Andrews Veterinary Clinic, the case was seen on Saturday, and neither the dog nor its owner is local to Andrews. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, a USDA service, said the dog is from a household in Lea County, New Mexico, making it the state’s first screwworm case.

The APHIS said the dog’s travel history and exposure history is unknown. The USDA is inspecting additional animals in the household and increases outreach.

The third case is in a goat out of Gillespie County, about 170 miles north of Zavala County.

The screwworm is a parasitic fly that infests living mammals, especially cattle. State and federal officials are racing to contain the insect that has been on a northern migration track since at least 2023. Agriculture leaders fear if the fly is not contained, it could cost the state’s cattle economy at least $1.8 billion.

Dudley Hoskins, Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs with the USDA, urged animal owners to stay vigilant, check their animals closely, and report anything that looks suspicious.

“We need the partnership of animal owners across the region,” Hoskins said in a statement. “Together, we can protect our livestock, our communities, and the health of animals nationwide.”

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins also announced Monday that President Donald Trump appointed John Bellinger, a member of the Texas A&M University Board of Regents, to be the new senior adviser for New World screwworm preparedness. Bellinger is expected to help explore all available technologies to combat the screwworm. Bellinger was appointed to the A&M board in 2023, where he serves as chair of the committee on research.

Rollins and Gov. Greg Abbott are expected to hold a news conference about the screwworm later today.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

On Monday morning, Red Raiders quarterback Brendan Sorsby was granted a temporary injunction in his battle with the NCAA.

The decision came from a Lubbock County court and was issued by visiting Judge Ken Curry.

Sorsby, who had been ruled ineligible because of gambling violations, can now play during the 2026 season for Texas Tech. He was one of the top-rated quarterbacks in the transfer portal before joining the Red Raiders after starring for the Cincinnati Bearcats.

After starting 24 games and recording more than 5,600 passing yards and 45 touchdown passes in two seasons at Cincinnati, Sorsby reportedly received an NIL package worth more than $5 million after transferring to Texas Tech.

According to previous court documents, Sorsby placed bets involving the Indiana Hoosiers while he was a member of the program in 2022. Over a four-year period, he reportedly wagered nearly $100,000.

After arriving in Lubbock, his gambling issues continued, leading Sorsby to seek treatment at a gambling rehabilitation center in April. The Red Raiders quarterback also spent more than a month at a treatment facility in Arizona.

According to Judge Curry’s ruling and court documents, Sorsby will be allowed to return but must sit out the first two weeks of the season, causing him to miss games against Abilene Christian and Oregon State.

Sorsby would be eligible to return to the field and make his Texas Tech debut in the Red Raiders’ Big 12 opener against the Houston Cougars on Sept. 18 in a nationally televised Friday night game in Lubbock.

“This court finds that applicant [Sorsby] has demonstrated that he will suffer a probable, imminent, and irreparable injury if this court does not issue this temporary injunction because he will be unable to participate as a member of Texas Tech University’s 2026 football team,” Judge Curry wrote in the injunction order.

The NCAA is unhappy with Monday’s ruling and plans to appeal. However, that process could take months — and potentially close to a year — to resolve.

By that point, Sorsby’s 2026 season, and potentially his collegiate career, would be over as he prepares to take the next step toward the NFL in 2027.

The truce in the Iran war that was reached in April has not spread to Lebanon, where Israel has been battling Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants. Israel says it is defending its northern communities that face Hezbollah drone and rocket fire.

Iran sees Israel’s ground invasion, with thousands of troops, and airstrikes in Lebanon as a ceasefire violation. It insists that any deal with the United States must end the fighting there. Israel disagrees.

Here’s a timeline of key events.

Feb. 28

The United States and Israel attack Iran. War begins.

March 2

Hezbollah enters the war by firing rockets at Israel. Israel retaliates.

April 7

A fragile ceasefire in the Iran war is announced, with talks to continue. Israel is not included in negotiations.

April 8

Israel bombards Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, killing over 300 people in a 10-minute attack.

April 14

Lebanon and Israel hold their first direct diplomatic talks in decades in Washington.

April 17

A fragile ceasefire is announced between Israel and Lebanon, but Hezbollah plays no part. Fighting soon resumes from both sides.

May 31

Israel’s ground invasion of Lebanon makes its deepest incursion in over a quarter-century as Hezbollah continues to pound northern Israel and Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon with drones and missiles.

June 1

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatens to strike Beirut if Hezbollah attacks against Israel don’t stop. U.S. President Donald Trump says Israel and Hezbollah agree to calm the fighting.

June 3

Israel and Lebanon say they agree to renew the fragile ceasefire and create security zones that exclude Hezbollah.

June 4

Hezbollah’s leader rejects the ceasefire agreement and demands that Israel withdraw from Lebanon. Both Hezbollah and Israel continue firing at each other.

June 5

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard says “there will be no calm in the region ” if Israel doesn’t withdraw from Lebanon. The fighting since March 2 had killed more than 3,500 people in Lebanon. Almost 30 Israeli soldiers and a defense contractor were killed in or around southern Lebanon, and two civilians were killed in northern Israel.

June 7

Hezbollah continues firing at Israel. Israel strikes Beirut’s southern suburbs. Iran fires at Israel.

June 8

Israel launches airstrikes in the early morning targeting central and western Iran in response to Iranian missile fire. By evening Israel and Iran both appear to have backed down. Netanyahu threatens to resume strikes if Iran launches any more missiles, and says Israel will continue operating against Hezbollah.

The center disclosed the list Monday in an email sent to members, who were offered packages ranging from $99 for a seat reservation to $1,500 and more for seating and admission to pre- and post-show receptions. The announcement also marks a notable change in how the center is identifying itself: The news came from the Kennedy Center, not the "Trump Kennedy Center," a switch that also appears on the center's home page.

Last month, a federal judge ruled that President Donald Trump's handpicked board of trustees had acted illegally when they voted to add Trump's name to the venue, which Congress in 1964 named for the recently assassinated President John F. Kennedy.

“The Kennedy Center’s organic statute makes crystal clear that the Center is to be named for President Kennedy, and it cannot bear any other formal name or public memorial based on the Board’s unilateral say-so. Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it,” wrote U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper.

Although a Kennedy spokesperson suggested the venue might appeal the decision, the center received an email last week from its general counsel that laid out steps for cooperation, including the removal of Trump's name. After mostly ignoring the Kennedy Center during his first term, Trump soon made the center a key part of his overall mission to purge federal cultural institutions of so-called “woke” influences. He ousted the leadership, filled the board of trustees with supporters and presided over such signature events as the Kennedy Honors ceremony.

In response, numerous performers cancelled planned appearances at the center, including Issa Rae, Bela Fleck and Renée Fleming.

Maher is the 27th recipient of the Twain Award, which has previously been given to Leno, Steve Martin and Tina Fey among others. Trump and Maher have publicly feuded in recent years, but the HBO host is otherwise the kind of comedian that many Republicans have found palatable — a self-styled independent who regularly attacks Hollywood as “woke” and has interviewed everyone from liberal stalwarts like Jane Fonda to conservative commentators like Ben Shapiro and Charlie Kirk to such “cancelled” cultural figures as Woody Allen.

Other guests expected at the Twain ceremony include the comedian Louis C.K., who has been touring regularly since allegations of sexual misconduct briefly upended his career after they were reported in 2017, and the controversial ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith, whose blunt comments on sports and beyond have led to fierce exchanges with NBA star Jaylen Brown and commentator Keith Olbermann among others.

Jonathan Rinderknecht, 29, appeared in court for jury selection wearing a white shirt and blue tie, having pled not guilty to starting what became one of the most destructive wildfires in California history. Prosecutors say Rinderknecht started a fire on Jan. 1, 2025, and it burned undetected deep in root systems before flaring back up on Jan. 7.

The Palisades Fire ultimately killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes as it incinerated hillside neighborhoods in Pacific Palisades and the city of Malibu. Rinderknecht faces at least five years in prison if convicted of charges that also include malicious destruction by means of a fire.

Lead defense attorney Steve Haney has said Rinderknecht is being made as a scapegoat for the Los Angeles Fire Department’s failure to fully extinguish the Jan. 1 blaze. The trial is likely to take about two weeks.

A group of more than 80 potential jurors were sworn in Monday. Jurors will fill out a questionnaire and return to the courthouse Tuesday, where attorneys on both sides will have the opportunity to question them and dismiss ones they believe are unsuitable to be on the jury.

News of the trial drew mixed reactions from residents of the Pacific Palisades, who have spent the last year and a half tussling with insurance claims and red tape for building permits as they try to regain normalcy in their lives.

“It drums up all of the emotions over this past year and makes me think about all of the suffering and chaos of all of our neighbors and friends’ lives,” said Meghan Wald, whose home was among the few left standing in her block.

Palisades streets are now crowded with construction vehicles and workers, and charred trees have recovered their luscious green. But vacant lots abound, filled with weeds and wildflowers and the skeletal frames of homes. Of the more than 450 construction projects, only 17 homes have been certified for occupancy.

Wald and her family now live in nearby Brentwood, but she visits weekly to support the handful of businesses that have reopened, including her hair salon, her usual CVS pharmacy and the Palisades Garden Cafe, where her kids used to grab snacks after school.

“It’s great to see the shops that we know and love coming back,” Wald said. “It’s also hard to imagine what it’s going to be like. It will never be the same.”

The fire has been a central theme in incumbent Mayor Karen Bass 's reelection bid as she defends the city's recovery process. Bass was in Ghana as part of a presidential delegation when the flames ignited. One of her challengers, reality TV personality Spencer Pratt, lost his home in the blaze and has made what he calls municipal ineptitude a central campaign message. It's not yet clear if Pratt won enough votes in the primary to face Bass in November's runoff election.

Judge Anne Hwang has ruled that the defense can't introduce evidence or arguments about alleged negligence by the fire department, saying it was irrelevant and could confuse the jury.

Defense attorneys had planned to include testimony from a firefighter that the earlier fire was visibly smoldering when first responders left the scene. That was gathered as part of a lawsuit filed by fire victims against the city.

Haney said he also plans to argue that the government lacks solid evidence or witness testimony linking Rinderknecht to the first fire, and that first responders heard fireworks in the vicinity of where the blaze started.

Prosecutors say geolocation data from Rinderknecht's phone shows that he was in the area of the fire as it rapidly grew, and investigators later seized a Bic barbecue lighter from his car that he admitted to having with him on the trail. They will claim he was upset about a failed relationship as well as thwarted plans for New Year's Eve, and that he ranted to his Uber passengers that evening about being angry at the world, according to an April 29 pretrial memo filed by the U.S. attorney’s office.

Lena Loh, who opened a skin care clinic in the Palisades three months before the fire, said Rinderknecht’s prosecution gives her no sense of relief. She has been struggling to reopen and is looking to leave because she can't sustain the business financially anymore.

“I don’t necessarily think putting him on trial is gonna fix anything,” she said. “This is a city issue. The city needed to manage that small speck of fire better.”

Wood, a professor emeritus at Brown University, died Sunday after being struck by a car in a supermarket parking lot in East Providence, Rhode Island, according to police.

Author of dozens of books and essays, Wood never gained the mass audience of historians like David McCullough and Doris Kearns Goodwin, but his findings became standard references for discussions about the formation of the U.S. and the legacy of the revolution. Many peers regarded the white-haired, mild-looking Wood as the embodiment of the learned, traditional historian, guided by facts rather than ideology.

In 2011, President Barack Obama presented him a National Humanities Medal “for scholarship that provides insight into the founding of the nation and the drafting of the U.S. Constitution.”

In recent years, younger academics increasingly alleged that Wood was too well-established, the epitome of the old-school historian who minimized the lives of slaves, women and Indigenous people. John L. Brooke, a history professor at Ohio State University, would fault him for “a distinct avoidance of interpretative paradox and complexity,” even as he cited Wood’s “scale and scholarly enterprise.”

His success was immediate and lasting. His first book, “The Creation of the American Republic,” won the Bancroft Prize in 1970 and lived on with generations of students who embraced and contended with Wood’s findings that the Constitution was unintentionally subversive, a document devised by elites that led to “the destruction of the very social world they had sought to maintain.”

His “The Radicalism of the American Revolution” won the Pulitzer in 1993 and the epic “Empire of Liberty” was a finalist in 2009.

Wood did welcome scholarly breakthroughs, notably Annette Gordon-Reed’s “persuasive contextual case” that the enslaved Sally Hemings bore some of Thomas Jefferson’s children. In “Empire of Liberty,” which covered the years 1789 to 1815, he included lengthy passages on slavery and called it a cancer “eating away at the message of liberty and equality.”

At other times, Wood angrily resisted new approaches. He was a prominent critic of The New York Times’ Pulitzer Prize winning 1619 Project and its contention — later amended — that maintaining slavery was a key motivation for the American Revolution. He alleged that the project encouraged a sense “victimhood” and feeling “aggrieved,” even as he acknowledged he hadn’t read most of it. He would counter that the founders, even such plantation owners as Jefferson and James Madison, believed — mistakenly — that slavery would die a natural death and the revolution itself energized the American abolitionist movement.

“We all want justice, but not at the expense of truth,” he wrote in 2019, adding, in a widely disputed statement, “I don’t know of any colonist who said that they wanted independence in order to preserve their slaves.”

Wood was born into history: His hometown, Concord, Massachusetts, had been the residence of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau and Louisa May Alcott, among others. But his passion for the subject he later mastered did not arise until college. Wood found his high school history education unbearable, suffering through classes in which the teacher simply read from a textbook.

Wood did admire his Latin instructor, who encouraged him to attend Tufts University, from which he graduated summa cum laude. He received a master’s and Ph.D. from Harvard University and studied under a celebrated Revolutionary War historian Bernard Bailyn, whose documentation of the intellectual forces behind independence in his landmark “The Ideological Origins of the American Revolution” Wood would build upon in “The Creation of the American Republic.”

In his introduction to “The Idea of America,” published in 2011, Wood looked back on his own work and the evolution of scholarship in his lifetime. He noted the many errors of the country’s founders but warned against scolding historical figures because of mistakes which seem obvious now, what he and others call “Presentism.”

“The drama, indeed the tragedy of history, comes from our understanding of the tension that existed between the conscious wills and intentions of the participants in the past and the underlying conditions that constrained their actions and shaped their future,” he wrote.

“If the study of history teaches anything, it teaches us the limitations of life. It ought to produce prudence and humility.”

___

Associated Press writer Michael Casey contributed to this report from Boston.

As Congo battles an Ebola disease outbreak that has killed nearly 100 people out of the more than 500 confirmed cases, local authorities have raced to slow the disease with strict measures, including by limiting public gatherings and enforcing social distancing.

For Jean Claude Érable and his bride Solange Hahati, celebrating their wedding on Saturday in such conditions meant having some family members and friends absent on one of their happiest days.

“We had planned 300 guests (but) only 50 people were allowed to enter,” Hahati told The Associated Press. “It was really difficult because we wanted to celebrate with our friends.”

The latest Ebola outbreak, which is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, is concentrated in Congo’s eastern province of Ituri. There have been 515 confirmed infections so far, including 91 deaths, according to Congolese health authorities. The number of cases is believed to be higher because the outbreak was confirmed weeks late, and the response has been challenging also because the virus has no approved vaccine or treatment.

To help slow the spread, local officials have urged people to limit physical contact, wash their hands regularly and report suspected cases quickly.

At the Catholic Church in Bunia, the capital of Ituri, where Érable and Hahati celebrated their love story, the Mass featured a number of couples who were present for their weddings.

The precautions, though not always adhered to, are reshaping social life in a country where weddings are typically vibrant, daylong celebrations bringing together hundreds of relatives, friends and well-wishers.

As the choir chorused and as brides in white gowns walked down the aisle, the handful of relatives and friends present inside the church maintained social distance, cheered and snapped photos. Outside, a crowd sang excitedly.

“We are adhering to the preventive measures and respecting social distancing,” said Érable. “I must say that there is no problem, no obstacle, because we are doing our best to respect all the measures dictated by the state.”

His bride smiled as he slipped a wedding ring onto her finger. Outside, after the wedding Mass, she proudly displayed the ring as her husband walked her to the car.

The couple moved part of their reception outdoors, where guests could spread out more easily.

Church leaders say adapting has become essential.

Some families have already postponed their scheduled weddings in light of the new health measures, said the Rev. Aimé Lokanabego, the priest who officiated their wedding Mass.

The church is not holding other religious events that involve higher risks of exposure, such as baptism, he said.

“This is, in a way, how we are dealing with this Ebola epidemic at our level. The situation is critical,” said Lokanabego.

On Saturday, Georgia Southern University announced that it had signed Chace Calicut.

Signed, sealed, delivered ✍️

Welcome #2THE6ORO, @CalicutChace!#HailSouthern pic.twitter.com/F8952SBg7S

— Georgia Southern Football (@GSAthletics_FB) June 6, 2026

Calicut, a standout safety who played for North Shore Senior High School in 2024, had been listed as a “hard commit” to the University of Georgia since June 2025.

PREVIOUS: ‘He will be leaving for Georgia soon’: Charges against former North Shore star football player Chace Calicut dismissed

He was rated as a four-star recruit by 247Sports at the time but is now listed as a three-star prospect.

Less than a month after committing to Georgia, Calicut was arrested and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for his alleged role in a roadway shooting on July 6, 2025.

Civil rights activist Quanell X, who spoke on Calicut’s behalf, said, “[Calicut] was a victim that night, not a criminal.”

READ MORE: North Shore football star Chace Calicut denies role in Houston shooting, claims he was threatened

Isaiah Phillip, a North Shore football teammate, was also alleged to have been involved. However, he was killed in an unrelated shooting before charges were filed.

Calicut left the North Shore football program and transferred to a local alternative school ahead of his senior season. He did not play football in 2025.

KPRC 2 reached out to the University of Georgia at the time, but the school did not respond.

In January 2026, court records revealed that the charges against Calicut had been dismissed. When asked about Calicut’s football future at the time, Quanell X said, “He will be leaving for Georgia soon.”

Instead, Calicut ultimately signed with Georgia Southern, signaling a final pivot in a recruitment journey that took several dramatic turns.

The recently released report provides the first official accounting of the scale of the IRS-ICE information transfer and documents security concerns surrounding an arrangement that has been the subject of multiple lawsuits and significant controversy inside both agencies.

Also known as TIGTA, Treasury’s inspector general found that the controversial 2025 data-sharing agreement crafted between ICE and the Treasury, which allowed ICE to submit names and addresses of immigrants inside the U.S. illegally to the IRS for cross-verification against tax records, resulted in inconsistent formatting in ICE’s data and the IRS’ matching criteria which led to errors.

The deal led the then-acting commissioner of the IRS to resign.

The report states that after the agreement was signed, ICE requested address information on more than 1.2 million people, and the IRS ultimately provided last-known addresses for about 47,000 people.

TIGTA concluded that the IRS’s automated matching process was flawed. Inconsistent formatting in ICE’s data led to questionable matches, including in cases where incomplete or inaccurate addresses were labeled as valid, the report says.

Representatives from Treasury and the IRS did not respond to an Associated Press request for comment.

The plan to cross-verify tax and immigration data is part of President Donald Trump’s agenda to secure U.S. borders and his larger nationwide immigration crackdown, which has resulted in deportations, workplace raids and the use of an 18th century wartime law to deport Venezuelan migrants.

However, this is not the first time it's been revealed that tens of thousands of taxpayers' information was revealed to ICE.

In February, a federal judge said that the IRS broke the law by disclosing confidential taxpayer information to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, referring to the same 47,000 disclosures that TIGTA points out.

U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly found that the IRS had erroneously shared the taxpayer information of thousands of people with the Department of Homeland Security as part of the agencies’ controversial agreement to share information on immigrants for the purpose of identifying and deporting people illegally in the U.S.

No recommendations were made in the new TIGTA report, according to a letter written by Nancy A. LaManna, deputy inspector general for inspections and evaluations.

“However, we plan to share some concerns we identified during our review with the DHS Office of Inspector General,” her letter states.

Iran fired at Israel after warning against Israel's attacks in Lebanon, including strikes on Beirut on Sunday. Israel says it is targeting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group. Its Beirut strike defied Washington’s request days ago to stand down.

The Israeli strikes against Iran came after U.S. President Donald Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he didn't think Israel needed to respond further.

Here's the Latest:

Netanyahu says Israel to strike ‘with force’ if Iran strikes again

The Israeli prime minister’s brief statement added that “right now, the fire has been halted.” It was his first public statement since Iran fired missiles at Israel late Sunday. They were intercepted.

Netanyahu asserted Israel’s right to self-defense, “and I say this with appreciation and respect in my good conversations with my friend President Trump.” He appears to have openly defied Trump with a strike in Beirut on Sunday and then retaliatory attacks against Iran.

Israeli defense minister warns against attacks on Israel’s northern settlements

Defense Minister Israel Katz said Monday night that any attack on Israel’s northern settlements will immediately prompt an attack on Beirut’s Dahiyeh suburbs.

Katz warned Iran that any attempt to use Israel’s attacks against Hezbollah as an excuse to launch missiles against Israel would be “met with great force, as happened yesterday.”

Turkey will push for an end to the war in the Middle East

Turkey is pressing ahead with its contacts with both the United States and Iran to end the war while also consulting with countries in the region, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said.

“It is essential to leave behind this war that has brought our region and the world to the brink of disaster,” Fidan said during a news conference following meetings in Istanbul with his Azerbaijani and Georgian counterparts.

He added: “Turkey will continue to support diplomacy and dialogue during this critical period.”

Turkey, together with Egypt and other regional partners, is backing Pakistan’s initiative to mediate an end to the conflict.

Israeli strikes on Iran wound 15

Israeli strikes on Iran Monday wounded at least 15 people, the National Emergency Medical Organization said in a statement published by the Iranian official news agency.

No fatalities have been reported so far, the organization said. The statement did not specify whether the wounded were civilians or military personnel, noting that 14 of the injured were from Mahshahr in the province of Khuzestan, while one was from Tehran.

Pakistan’s prime minister calls for restraint

Shehbaz Sharif on Monday expressed concern over the recent surge in violence in the Middle East and urged all parties to “exercise restraint.”

In a post on X, Sharif said the latest escalation was “a stark reminder of the dangers associated with a tenuous ceasefire and the unbearable consequences it may lead to.”

Sharif also called for diplomacy over further escalation.

Israeli strikes on Gaza kill at least 5 people, including a child

Israeli strikes on Monday killed at least five people, including a child, across Gaza, according to hospital officials.

A strike killed two people in Khan Younis in southern Gaza on Monday morning, according to Nasser Hospital, while another left three people dead in Jabaliya in northern Gaza, including Jad Soleiman, an 8-year-old boy, according to Shifa Hospital. Several were also wounded.

Jad’s father, Yusuf, clutched his son’s backpack and kissed his face as the child’s body, wrapped in a white burial shroud, lay before him.

“He was coming home from school,” Soleiman said. “I ran to him and found him lying down with his bag still on. It’s covered in his blood. He was wounded and bleeding from the neck. He was taking his last breaths."

Gaza City and Deir al-Balah in central Gaza were also hit. Casualty figures were not immediately available.

The Israeli army said it struck some Hamas and Islamic Jihad operatives, adding it would give further details later.

The attacks were the latest in a series of strikes that have hit homes and shelters across Gaza since October’s fragile ceasefire that sought to halt the more than two-year war.

US tells Iran no more Israeli attacks if Tehran halts strikes, official says

The U.S. told Iran there would be no more attacks by Israel if Tehran halted its missile strikes, and that Israel has agreed to halt attacks for now, according to a regional official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.

The White House and Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Israeli army says 3 projectiles fired at Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon

The army said two projectiles were intercepted, while one landed near the soldiers, adding there were no injuries.

The launches triggered air raid sirens in northern Israel.

Schools across Israel will remain closed for a second day

Education Minister Yoav Kisch said in a post on X Monday afternoon that schools would not open on Tuesday.

On Sunday evening, Israel’s military updated its guidelines for civilians, limiting large gatherings and canceling school across the country for the first time since the earlier round of fighting with Iran in April.

Kisch said the Ministry of Education aims to reopen classrooms on Wednesday under guidelines that would ensure students have access to close shelter.

Iraq reopens its airspace

Iraq’s Civil Aviation Authority announced that the country’s airspace has reopened after earlier announcing a 72-hour closure in response to the renewed exchange of fire between Israel and Iran.

Syrian man finds a missile partially buried in his field

A missile lay partially buried in a field on the outskirts of the Syrian capital of Damascus on Monday, surrounded by scorched earth after overnight exchanges of fire between Israel and Iran sent projectiles across the region.

The missile’s impact left a blackened patch of ground where a fire broke out, according to the field’s owner, Mahmoud Ataya. He said residents heard a loud explosion during the night but did not immediately know what had happened. When they went to put out the fire, they found half of the missile protruding from the ground. No casualties were reported.

State media in Syria reported explosions in the skies over Damascus Sunday night, attributing them to Israeli air defenses intercepting missiles fired from Iran. Associated Press journalists in the Syrian capital also reported hearing loud explosions overnight

US ambassador to Lebanon says Washington does not want Israel-Hezbollah war to expand

Ambassador Michel Issa made his comments after meeting President Joseph Aoun Monday, a day after Israel struck a southern Beirut suburb.

Issa also hinted at disagreements between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Lebanon.

He described the Israeli airstrike on Beirut’s suburb and Iran’s missile attack on Israel as a “political message,” adding that “we in the United States decided that the confrontation does not expand more.”

Issa later met Lebanon’s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and, after the meeting, told reporters Trump follows Lebanon’s news daily, adding in Arabic that Trump “almost got into a fight with Netanyahu over Lebanon.”

Iranian military’s joint command says it is halting its offensive operations

The Iranian military’s joint command said Monday it was halting its offensive operations after Israel and Iran exchanged fire in their first attacks since the U.S. struck a ceasefire with Tehran two months ago.

The joint command said that if Israel or its supporters carried out any further “aggression and hostile acts,” including in southern Lebanon, then “much more severe and crushing measures than before will follow.”

EU approves sanctions against Iranian individuals and entities

The European Union’s foreign policy chief said the 27-member bloc approved sanctions against Iranian individuals and entities involved in disrupting transit through the Strait of Hormuz.

Kaja Kallas said after a meeting with EU defense ministers on Monday that this is the first time the EU has applied a new freedom-of-navigation sanctions system “and where necessary will apply it again.”

“Ministers were clear today that Iran’s actions are unacceptable,” Kallas said.

Trump claims negotiations are ongoing

Trump later posted again to his Truth Social website, insisting that both Israel and Iran were “looking to do an immediate CEASEFIRE!”

He claimed negotiations were ongoing, “subject to ignorance or stupidity getting in its way.”

Israel says it targeted Iranian petrochemical facilities

The Israeli military said it targeted petrochemical facilities in Mahshahr to hit sites used to produce “unique materials that serve as critical components for the development of ballistic missiles.”

Trump says Israel and Iran must stop shooting

In his first comments since Iran and Israel traded fire, Trump wrote online: “Israel and Iran must immediately stop ‘shooting.’”

Iraq closes airspace for 72 hours

Iraq’s Civil Aviation Authority on Monday said the closure was a “precautionary measure” to preserve the safety and security of civil aviation.

It added that the decision will be subject to continuous review and reassessment and airlines and relevant sides will be notified of any new developments.

29 Lebanese army members have been killed in Israeli strikes since March

Lebanese Information Minister Paul Morcos released the toll Monday, two days after an Israeli airstrike on a vehicle in southern Lebanon killed three members of the Lebanese army, including a brigadier general and a captain.

Morcos said that since the Israel-Hezbollah war began on March 2, three police, one member of the General Security Directorate and 13 state security members have been killed in Israeli attacks. Also killed was a member of the parliament’s security.

A total of 3,613 people have been killed, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

The Israeli military has said it operates against Hezbollah and not against the Lebanese army.

▶ Read more

Syria temporary closes Damascus airport as Iran and Israel trade fire

Damascus International Airport will remain closed until 11 p.m. (2200 GMT) Monday.

Syria’s General Authority of Civil Aviation closed the country’s southern airspace, which includes Damascus. The measure is related to the latest exchange of fire between Iran and Israel, it said.

Air defenses in Tehran and other cities open fire

Just before noon, air defense systems around Tehran and multiple Iranian cities opened fire, with some claims of attacks ongoing.

Oil prices rise sharply

Oil prices surged as Israel launched airstrikes early Monday targeting central and western Iran in response to missile fire.

Brent crude, the international standard, jumped $4.40 to $97.49 a barrel. Benchmark U.S. crude surged $3.95 to $94.49 a barrel.

The latest spate of attacks was straining efforts to end the conflict as a tentative deal reached last week to extend a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran has not yet been finalized.

▶ Read more

Israel says it targeted Iranian missile launchers

Israel’s military said it targeted truck-based surface-to-air missile launchers in its strikes Monday on Iran.

It said Iran had deployed the systems across the country in a bid to restore its capabilities that were degraded earlier in the war.

Iran says US responsible for any escalation caused by Israel

An Iranian official warned Monday that the United States is “responsible for the consequences of any escalation” in the Middle East caused by Israel.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei made the comment in a briefing with journalists on Monday in Tehran.

“No one believes that the Israeli regime would take any action without coordination with the United States,” Baghaei said. “The United States bears responsibility for the Israeli regime’s aggression, and it will also be responsible for the consequences of any escalation in tensions.”

Israeli rescue services say no injures so far from Iranian missile attack

Israel’s rescue services said there were not any known injuries from the latest round of missiles from Iran.

Rescue services are searching a number of sites for possible fragments from interceptions.

Iran launches third wave of missiles at Israel

The Israeli military urged people to take shelter. Similar alerts sounded in neighboring Jordan.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels claim missile attack on Israel

The Iran-backed rebels also said that Israel-affiliated vessels would again be a target in the Red Sea.

The statement from Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree was broadcast on the Houthis’ al-Masirah satellite news channel.

It’s another new escalation as the nominal ceasefire in the Iran war is being challenged by crossfire between Israel and Iran.

Iran claims attacks, says it targeted military bases

Iran claimed the attacks on Israel, saying their fire targeted two military bases in Israel.

The paramilitary Revolutionary Guard described the attack as being part of Operation Nasr, or “Victory.” The Guard said it launched the missile fire after Israel targeted radar sites in three areas of Iran, without elaborating.

The Israeli military says it hit petrochemical complex in Iran

Israel’s military says it him a petrochemical complex in southwestern Iran. It did not provide details.

The semiofficial Fars and Mehr news agencies said Israeli strikes hit a petrochemical factory in city of Mahshahr in Khuzestan province. It did not elaborate on the damage done.

Israel issues all clear after a second wave of Iranian missiles

Israel issued an all-clear after warning of a second wave of inbound missiles from Iran.

It was the second alert without any interceptions being heard in the country.

The Iranian fire comes after Israel launched strikes on Iran early Monday in the most-serious crossfire since an April 8 ceasefire was reached in the Iran war.

Sirens sound near Israel’s main nuclear research site

Israel said it detected a barrage of missiles from Iran toward central and southern Israel on Monday morning. Loud explosions were heard over central Israel, and missiles also targeted southern Israel, near the city of Dimona and Arad.

The remote desert city of Dimona houses Israel’s main nuclear research center, which opened in 1958. Israel is widely believed to possess nuclear weapons, though its leaders neither confirm nor deny this.

Iran targeted Dimona and Arad during the last round of conflict, injuring more than two dozen people.

No impact or casualties in Israel from Yemen missile launch

Israel’s rescue services said there were no reports of casualties or impacts from the launch from Yemen.

Israel cancels school nationwide as conflict escalates

Israel’s military updated its guidelines for civilians on Sunday evening, limiting large gatherings and canceling school across the country.

It is the first time school has been canceled across Israel since the earlier round of fighting with Iran in April, though schools in Israel’s northern border had been closed for much longer due to the threat of Hezbollah fire.

Israel says missile launched from Yemen

Israel said Monday that it detected a missile launched from Yemen targeting the country. Sirens sounded across Israel after the Yemen missile fire warning.

Yemen is home to the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. The Houthis have fired missiles at Israel during the Israel-Hamas war and later, but haven’t been fully involved in the Iran war.

Saudi Arabia sounds missile alerts

Saudi Arabia sounded missile alert sirens Monday morning in an area home to an air base that hosts U.S. forces. Saudi state media reported the alert around its Al Kharj governorate, home to Prince Sultan Air Base.

It did not elaborate. The alert came after Israel launched strikes targeting Iran.

Trump had urged Israel not to respond

Speaking to The Financial Times, Trump before the Israeli strike on Iran insisted he dictated terms to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on how the war should be prosecuted.

“He won’t have any choice,” Trump told the newspaper in a telephone interview. “I call the shots. I call all the shots. He (Netanyahu) doesn’t call the shots.”

White House has no immediate comment

The White House did not respond to messages Sunday about the strikes and whether they were done in coordination with the U.S.

Iran closes airspace around its main airport following Israeli strikes

Iran closes airspace around Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport, country’s main airfield, after Israeli attack.

Israel strikes central and Western Iran

Israel says it strikes central and Western Iran after missile fire; Tehran says explosions heard in several cities

Lawmakers and electric customers skewered Wells and the utility company for their disastrous response to restoring power after the Category 1 hurricane hit Houston on July 8th, 2024. At least ten people died from heat-related illnesses stemming from prolonged power outages after the storm.

SEE MORE: Houston community members react after KPRC 2’s exclusive interview with CenterPoint CEO

Wells described the power company’s actions as “inexcusable” in a special Senate Committee hearing in Austin after the storm.

“Our response to the impacts of Hurricane Beryl and communications were not acceptable,” said Wells on July 29, 2024. Wells told lawmakers he would not resign because doing so would only delay CenterPoint’s work to improve operations.

Pay Raise Instead of Resignation

CenterPoint’s annual proxy statement to its shareholders in March 2026 shows that Jason Wells’ compensation increased to more than $12 million in 2025, up from $9.2 million in 2024.

Part of the raise is performance pay, usually awarded to executives who meet important goals or metrics. CenterPoint failed on two keys metrics: Electric customers experiencing multiple interruptions and customer satisfaction.

On page 49 of the 96-page document, it reads, “Performance was below target for our operational excellence composite goal (which represents at 10% of the plan’s metrics) and below threshold for our customer satisfaction goal (which represents the remaining 10% of the plan’s metrics), which moderated overall achievement.”

Despite those failures, Wells still got the pay raise.

“It’s a huge deal, and it’s even more interesting when you consider that at the very top of their latest proxy report, they said the emphasis is on customer affordability, but their profits are increasing and the compensation is increasing,” said Energy and Policy Institute researcher Krysti Shallenberger.

The watchdog organization has tracked executive compensation of investor-owned utilities across the country since 2017.

• They found that since 2017, average utility CEO compensation has risen 47 percent.
• This outpaces inflation, which rose 31 percent from 2017 to 2025, and average wage growth for American workers, which has risen 38 percent in the same span.
• The Energy and Policy Institute found if you live in the Houston area, 14 Cents of every dollar of your electric bill goes straight to CenterPoint Energy profit.

Tyson Slocum is director of Public Citizen’s Energy Program. He said the profit margins investor-owned utilities are seeing are large compared to the net single digit profit margins in most industries.

“We’re not saying they shouldn’t make money, but is a 14.5% profit margin in 2025 reasonable considering how many Texans are struggling to make ends meet?” Slocum asked.

Profit margins of this scale are high relative to most sectors of the U.S. economy. Companies in most industries typically report net profit margins in the single digits, making the margins reported by many electric utilities comparatively large.

The only people who can change the rates CenterPoint Energy charges ratepayers are the Texas Public Utility Commission. We’ve requested an interview. None of the commissioners has accepted.

CenterPoint Energy Response

When we asked CenterPoint Energy why Wells received such a large increase.

CPE spokesperson Augusto Bernal sent the following statement by email: “None of Jason Wells’ compensation and retirement expenses are borne by CenterPoint Energy’s electric customers in Texas. Those are paid by shareholders. CenterPoint Energy continues to have the lowest average price per kilowatt hour among Texas investor owned utilities in other parts of the state.”

MORE: CenterPoint disputes KPRC 2’s investigation into power outage hot spots

On Saturday, Argentina and Honduras faced off in an international friendly as some of the world’s top soccer players continue preparing for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The match took place at Kyle Field on the Texas A&M University campus in College Station. Argentina handled business with a 2-0 victory.

10 OUT OF 10 👍 pic.twitter.com/EHQIh7AoKm

— Texas A&M Aggies 👍 (@12thMan) June 7, 2026

After the match, Lionel Messi posed for a photo with Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed.

The Texas A&M football account posted an image of the pair, with Reed holding an Aggie football jersey signed by Messi. The post was captioned, “Elite company.”

Elite Company pic.twitter.com/zARLYlnwzg

— Texas A&M Football (@AggieFootball) June 7, 2026

Messi did not take the field during the friendly as he continues to recover from a mild left hamstring strain, according to a report from the Associated Press. He is one of the most decorated players in football history and is looking to help Argentina defend its 2022 World Cup title.

Argentina’s first formal World Cup match is scheduled for June 16, when the defending champions open their tournament against Algeria at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.

Several other current and former Aggies also made appearances during the friendly, including Von Miller, Rueben Owens and Isaiah Horton.

MORE ON MARCEL: ‘MAR-CEL REED’: Aggie fans chant star QB’s name in viral trend after dominant win over Missouri

In the first-ever papal address to Spanish lawmakers, the American pope said a “moral renewal” was necessary in legislatures and public life to ensure respect for the inherent dignity of all people, including migrants, the unborn and the most vulnerable.

“The moral greatness of a nation is manifested, above all, in its capacity to accompany, protect and love those lives that are most fragile,” Leo said.

Speeches by popes to foreign legislatures are rare, since they can imply recognition of a religious leader by lawmakers. Pope Francis addressed a joint session of the U.S. Congress in 2015, and Pope Benedict XVI addressed his native German Bundestag in 2011.

That Leo was invited to speak to Las Cortes Generales showed a level of acceptance for the Catholic Church in a political setting that might have been unthinkable even a few years ago. The Catholic Church was a pillar of Gen. Francisco Franco’s dictatorship, enjoying broad control and influence over Spanish society, but that waned after democracy took root in the 1970s.

While many Spaniards still identify as Catholic, religious observance has dropped sharply amid secularizing trends seen in other once-staunchly Christian countries.

And yet lawmakers gave Leo a 7-minute standing ovation with chants of “Viva el Papa!” — “Long live the pope!”

Leo's weeklong visit to Spain — the first since Benedict visited in 2011 — has drawn large crowds, with an estimated 1.5 million people turning out for Mass on Sunday in a downtown plaza and 600,000 young people for a prayer vigil.

Pope calls for peace as Israel and Iran trade strikes

Leo's speech came Monday as Israel and Iran traded fire, threatening to drag the Middle East back into a full-scale regional war. The pope repeated his demand for dialogue, “diplomatic courage” and the "the obligation of states to resolve their disputes through the peaceful means offered by international law.”

He also lamented that European defense budgets were being built up as countries confront the threat posed by Russia following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the Trump administration’s threats to reduce financial and military support for the continent.

“It is therefore a cause for concern that, in various parts of the world — and in Europe as well — rearmament is once again being presented as an almost inevitable response to the fragility of the international situation,” Leo said.

He repeated his demand for “rigorous ethical oversight” of automated weapons systems created by artificial intelligence “so that decisions regarding life and death are never left to automated systems nor removed from the moral responsibility of the human person.”

Pope urges dignity, acceptance and integration for migrants

Spain’s Socialist-led government has bucked a trend in Europe and the United States by defending immigration on economic and humanitarian grounds, launching a legalization push earlier this year for hundreds of thousands of immigrants without authorization. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has highlighted the benefits to the economy with an aging workforce and low birth rate.

Leo called for strengthened international efforts to prevent the smuggling of migrants and create conditions where they can choose to stay home.

For those who flee conflict, poverty and climate change, he called for welcome and integration. Pope Francis made the plight of refugees reaching Europe a hallmark of his papacy, and Leo has insisted especially on the dignity of migrants in his native United States amid the Trump administration’s crackdown.

“This gives rise to a twofold demand for social justice: to offer safe and legal pathways, a respectful welcome and real opportunities for integration; and, at the same time, to promote the right to remain in one’s own land, working to ensure that no one has to leave their home due to a lack of peace, security or decent living conditions, including economic inequalities and the effects of the climate crisis,” Leo said.

Leo references the Spanish conquest and the slave trade

Leo cited the 16th century Spanish intellectual tradition, known as the School of Salamanca, that gave rise to concepts of international law and inherent human rights after Spain’s colonial conquests of the Americas.

He praised the theologians involved in the movement who “understood that reason could not be invoked to legitimize whatever force or self-interest that seemed convenient” and that there were “moral limits of power.”

“It must be acknowledged that society and the church herself did not always live up to these insights found in their own Christian tradition,” Leo said.

It was a reference to the Catholic Church’s own role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade and colonial conquest, and recalled Leo’s recent apology for the role the Holy See played in legitimizing slavery.

Pope visits at a delicate political moment

Leo's visit comes at a delicate time for Sánchez.

Sánchez’s Socialist Party has been hammered by corruption scandals, though none have directly implicated him. Probes have touched some of Sánchez's closest confidants, as well as his wife and brother.

As they play out in the courts, Spain is increasingly frayed by political polarization. Sánchez's minority government has been unable to pass legislation, including a budget for the past three years.

Leo, in an apparent reference to polarization, warned that “political pluralism should not degenerate into the constant disparagement of one's adversary."

Spain's progressive leader, who is an atheist, and the pope have converged on major issues including opposing the war in Iran. Both have been outspoken critics of the Trump administration.

Last month, after visiting Leo in the Vatican, Sánchez called the pope's voice “a moral compass in the fight against injustice."

Traditionally, the Catholic Church in Spain has been closer to the conservative Popular Party than the Socialist Party, which championed social issues including same-sex marriage and abortion rights.

However, by placing issues of justice at the center of their public discourse, Pope Francis and now Leo have narrowed the gap between the Vatican and progressive governments, said Rafael Ruiz Andrés, a sociology professor at Complutense University of Madrid who specializes in religious dynamics.

___

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.

Dan Cogdell, a veteran Houston attorney who represented Paxton in his long-running felony securities fraud case and his 2023 impeachment, announced his support for Talarico in an interview with the attorney general’s Democratic opponent on the lawyer’s podcast.

“I defended Ken Paxton for years in the impeachment trial and in state criminal cases,” Cogdell said on his podcast. “But in my view, respectfully, I think Ken has lost sight of his core mission, which is to represent the people of Texas. And unlike Ken, I believe to my core, James, that you believe in unity over division and that you know how to assemble not only Democrats, but independents and Republicans — and we need that right now.”

The news was first reported by NOTUS.

Well-known in Texas courtrooms, Cogdell helped steer Paxton through legal battles for nearly a decade. The attorney general first hired him in 2015 after he was indicted for securities fraud, a case that went on until 2024, when prosecutors dropped the charges in exchange for Paxton taking legal ethics courses, completing 100 hours of community service and paying six figures in restitution. And he served on Paxton’s defense team in his 2023 impeachment trial, which ended in an acquittal by the Republican-controlled Texas Senate.

Cogdell said on his podcast that unity in politics is needed today more than at any point in his lifetime, and that he believed Talarico could achieve it.

In a statement, Talarico said he was grateful for Cogdell’s support and that it was evidence of the broad coalition he wants to build.

“If you voted for John Cornyn, you have a place in this campaign,” Talarico said, reprising his message the night Paxton locked up the nomination. “If you’re a Republican tired of the corruption you’re seeing in government, you have a place in this campaign. Even if you’re Ken Paxton’s impeachment lawyer, you have a place in this campaign. We are building a people-powered movement that welcomes Republicans, Democrats and Independents alike.”

Talarico is hoping to be the first Democrat to win a statewide race in Texas in over 30 years — a difficult task that the party is nonetheless enthused about because they see Paxton, given his legal and ethical baggage, as a uniquely compromised candidate.

Paxton defeated U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a 24-year incumbent, in a primary runoff last month, after a brutal campaign in which about $130 million was spent, mostly to boost Cornyn and bash the attorney general. But Paxton has strong support among the Republican grassroots, which powered him to a landslide victory in the runoff.

Polling has indicated a close race between Paxton and Talarico, with a slew of statewide surveys showing the Democrat with a narrow lead — a rare sight.

The Paxton campaign dismissed Cogdell’s endorsement as a predictable development.

“Dan is a Democrat and voted in the Democratic primary in 2024,” an aide close to Paxton told the Tribune. “Why is anyone shocked?”

Harris County vote rosters from 2024 confirm Cogdell voted in the Democratic primary that year.

The longtime trial lawyer has donated to both Paxton and Talarico this cycle. He gave $6,500 to Paxton’s Senate campaign nearly a year ago, then donated $1,000 to Talarico’s campaign in March, after he won the Democratic primary.

Cogdell’s endorsement of Talarico is not the first time his name has come up in the U.S. Senate race. The Cornyn campaign and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which backed Cornyn, attacked Paxton over his ties to Cogdell, noting the Houston attorney’s past anti-Trump comments and that he represents the East Plano Islamic Center, or EPIC City, in legal proceedings. The housing development has come under attack from members of the Texas GOP, including both Cornyn and Paxton, during the campaign amid a broader surge in anti-Islam rhetoric on the right.

In a since-deleted ad and social media posts from the primary, the NRSC bashed Cogdell as a “Trump-hating Democrat” and attacked Paxton for his affiliation with him.

Rep. Mitch Little, R-Lewisville, who also served on Paxton’s defense team before becoming a state representative, said Cogdell is a Democrat.

“I love Dan, but he is a Democrat, and he doesn’t vote very much,” Little said. “This impeachment defense lawyer is 100% behind Ken Paxton.”

The Internet is truly undefeated, as they say. The truth, though, is that the Texans’ All-Pro defensive end has simply been working out intensely and concentrating on a healthy diet. Anderson said he weighs 258 to 260 pounds.

“I did not put on 25 pounds of muscle!” Anderson said during his youth football camp inside the Texans’ practice bubble. I do not know where that came from. No, I would just say I did take a better job this offseason of dieting and getting with my self and just toning my body.

“I appreciate the Texans and the team that I work with in the offseason is just dialing in the little things. So, just toning my muscles up, getting more flexible, getting more mobile and stuff like that.”

The full Will Anderson Jr. experience is a nightmare for opposing quarterbacks and the blockers tasked with slowing down the Texans’ star pass rusher.

Anderson is rapidly becoming unblockable as the scourge of offenses across the league and the Texans’ newly-minted $150 million man as the highest paid non-quarterback in NFL history.

As much as the Texans enjoy watching Anderson crash into quarterbacks and stonewall running backs, it’s a tough deal to practice against him and run their plays on a daily basis. It’s akin to how the Texans ultimately had three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year selection and future Hall of Fame first-ballot pick J.J. Watt sit out some plays in full-team work so they can run plays without constant disruption.

Anderson makes no apologies for simply being this good.

“Naturally, that’s just who I am,” Anderson said. “I’ve been like that since high school. They’ve been trying to slow me down, but I love the preparation.

“I love the process. For me, the preparation, the process, it has to be consistent. And the only way it would be consistent is if you practice the way you want to play in the game. I approach practice in a way that I’m playing in the game. So, when the game comes, it’s a little easier.

Basically, it’s a good problem to have. Anderson is just that dominant.

He has 30 career sacks and was a finalist for NFL Defensive Player of the Year with the crown going to his occasional workout partner: Los Angeles Rams defensive end Myles Garrett, the NFL single-season sack record holder.

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans joked about Anderson wrecking his practices with his disruption, but it does make things difficult for offensive coordinator Nick Caley.

“Did you ask Caley? You’d have to ask him,” Texans defensive coordinator Matt Burke said. “He doesn’t mess up my practice. That’s what I want. I think we held him out the other day, We don’t want to train bad habits for our defensive line and our get-off and the way we approach it. I think Will doesn’t know any different. I think he doesn’t want to backslide or take a step in the wrong direction. So, when you tell people like, ‘Hey, kind of half-speed this,’ it just doesn’t register for him.

“There’s a part of it that we don’t want to build bad habits for those guys because sometimes if you’re not in your stance and locked and loaded to get out and explode, that’s creating bad footwork. Will is such a believer and a convert in that that he doesn’t want to do anything differently. So, it’s on DeMeco [Ryans] to make sure he’s controlling it. At the end of the day, we don’t want to take away what his super power is and that’s it. It’s fun for me to coach."

The Texans have made the playoffs each season under Ryans’ tenure. And they have won three wild-card playoff games before exiting in the AFC divisional round and are now 0-7 all-time at that stage of the postseason.

Anderson is openly discussing the Texans’ bigger ambitions to become a championship squad.

“The mindset is just to swarm, not lose the sight of what the mission is,” Anderson said. “The mission is always a Super Bowl. But right now, we got to take it one thing at a time, one process at a time. And right now, it’s just get over that hump of the second round.

“The goal is the goal. It’s never going to change. It’s just about how much better can we get at achieving that goal? Just be us and hopefully get over that hump of that second round and get to the Super Bowl.”

The Texans have made several upgrades across the roster this offseason.

That includes signing offensive linemen Wyatt Teller and Braden Smith, trading for running back David Montgomery and adding safety Reed Blankenship.

“The enthusiasm in the building, the energy in the building has been great,” Anderson said. “I love the new additions that we’ve gotten. The urgency’s been high. Just like one of the best OTA’s I’ve been a part of since I’ve been here just as a close team on all the new additions being here.

“The chemistry has always been great. This year, they added some new people, but it’s like we’ve all been playing together for a very long time already. We had a team event that was really great and everybody interacted. I think this is a really close-knit team that I’m really excited to be a part of.”

As the highest paid non-quarterback in NFL history and the highest paid defensive player in the game, Anderson received a deal with a $50 million annual average compensation per year in new money, surpassing Green Bay Packers edge Micah Parsons’ $46.5 million average. The contract, which runs through 2030, includes $134 million total guaranteed, $100 million fully guaranteed for skill, injury and salary cap, a $32 million signing bonus and a rare no-trade clause.

For Anderson, this watershed moment represents the culmination of all of his hard work. From moving from running back as a young football player to defensive end. To his time as an All-American at Alabama and Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Year and Bronko Nagurski Award winner. To becoming the third overall pick of the draft four years ago after a dramatic trade with the Arizona Cardinals and becoming the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Anderson recorded a career-high dozen sacks and 20 tackles for losses and 23 quarterback hits last season, 30 career sacks in three seasons, 46 tackles for losses, 64 quarterback hits, four forced fumbles. Plus, eight sacks, eight tackles for losses and 11 quarterback hits in six career playoff games.

Can Anderson get even better?

“There’s definitely more for Will,” said Ryans, who referenced Anderson getting additional practice time with defensive line coach and run game coordinator Rod Wright and assistant defensive line coach Frank Okam. “On the field, he’s always fine-tuning his craft. He’s working extra. He’s working on the small intricacies of hand placement and those things as a pass rusher.

“But where I’ve seen him take another step this year is just his leadership of being vocal as a leader for our team. Being that guy, he has no issue bringing the team up, letting everybody know, ‘Hey, this wasn’t a good day. Let’s pick it up.’ He does a great job as well of encouraging guys when he sees it done the right way. So, him taking that step as a vocal leader is where I’ve seen his growth already happen this year.”

Watching Anderson execute his craft is a treat for his defensive teammates.

They love the infectious enthusiasm and relentless nature he plays the game with, and his expansive repertoire of moves.

Even at the expense of the offensive timing.

“Will is Will,” Texans nickel Jalen Pitre said. “He’s going to wreck practices, wreck games, wreck meetings. He’s going to wreck everything. That’s why he’s the best because he shows up every day ready to work, ready to push others, inspire others.

“He’s a great leader for this team, a great player for this team. He’s definitely already, like you said, wreaking havoc out there in t-shirt and shorts. Coach is always on a tipping point of like, ‘Do I slow him down?’ It’s like, that’s just Will, you can’t really slow him down.”

What’s next? Well, Anderson is beyond tired of losing in the AFC divisional round, including defeats against the New England Patriots, Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens.

The Texans have never reached an AFC championship game.

Anderson is extremely motivated to help his team reach that milestone.

“Ask me about contract, yeah, the contract is cool, but ask me about winning, that’s more important,” Anderson said. “How we get over this hump, how we can get past the second round is what’s been on my mind.”

Anderson was a finalist for NFL Defensive Player of the Year with the crown going to Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who set the record for most sacks in a single season.

Anderson is truly an elite player, though, regardless of not winning the award. He’s already a three-time Pro Bowl selection, at age 24.

A national champion at Alabama drafted third overall in 2023, Anerson was a two-time Bronko Nagurski trophy winner who also won the Lombardi, Chuck Bednarik and Lott awards and was a two-time All-American and Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the Year.

“Nothing that Will does surprises me,” Texans Pro Bowl corner Kamari Lassiter said. “During football, outside of football, nothing that he does surprises me. He’s one of a kind. So, I feel like whenever I see Will wreck a play up in practice or in a game, I’m just like, ‘Good job, do it again,’ because I know he’s like, he’s going to do it again and again and again. I feel like he hasn’t even tapped into the level that he really wants to tap into and that’s the scary part.”

For Anderson, the watershed moment of his contract represents the culmination of all of his hard work. From moving from running back as a young football player to defensive end.

“I’ve been so overwhelmed with joy these last couple days, nonstop tears, and it’s been a blessing,” said Anderson after a lengthy, emotional statement as he thanked his parents, Will Sr. and Tereon, his five older sisters, Texans coach DeMeco Ryans, Caserio, the McNair family, his coaches, agent Nicole Lynn and everyone at Klutch Sports and, of course, his late grandmother, who was instrumental in molding the 24-year-old All-Pro defensive end. “I love what I do. I tell people all the time. It’s really never, ever been about the money for me. It’s always just been about walking in my purpose and doing what God has called me to do.

“To be able to be here right now and be in this moment and enjoy this moment, it means everything to me. I just think about my family, everything that we endured growing up, all the hard times, everything, to get to retire my parents early, to get to see my sisters thrive, my nieces and nephews, the rest of my family. I think that’s the biggest blessing for me.”

#Texans Will Anderson Jr., celebrates blockbuster deal with his parents and agent Nicole Lynn @AgentNicoleLynn @KlutchSports @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/ZAx2PwnG5G

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) April 21, 2026

The decision to reward Anderson and make him the highest paid non-quarterback in NFL history was rooted in his standing as a foundational piece of the Texans.

And hammering out this contract couldn’t have made Ryans any happier. Earned, not given embodies the situation.

“Will is an outstanding young man, outstanding player,” Ryans said. “He shows up every single day, working how we expect guys to work and doing all the things a leader does. He’s a guy that you want guys following.

“He embodies everything that it means to be a Texan and he’s definitely deserving of the contract situation that he’s gotten. He’s earned it and he’s done an outstanding job of leading.”

Growing up in Georgia, Anderson was initially a running back. He wanted to be the next Adrian Peterson.

When he was shifted to defensive end, Anderson didn’t like the change at first.

“I cried,” Anderson said.

Several years later, Anderson is coming off a stellar third NFL season. He was named All-Pro for the first time and was a finalist for NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

“It worked out,” Anderson said while smiling.

When the Texans drafted Anderson in 2023, they maneuvered to acquire him one pick after drafting quarterback C.J. Stroud third overall. The trade between Caserio and Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort involved a 2024 first-round selection and landed Anderson.

Now, Anderson is the ultimate chess piece in the Texans’ top-ranked defense.

“The name got him where he is, so we’ll keep him as the Terminator,” Texans defensive line coach and run game coordinator Rod Wright said. “He’s definitely lived up to that name. He’s a guy that has been disruptive and made a lot of plays for us, won us a lot of games, and that’ll continue. At the end of the day, he’s gonna reach whatever he wants to do, because he takes it very seriously. It’s really, really cool to watch him continue to grow.”

#Texans defensive line coach-run game coordinator Rod Wright on how 'deserving' Will Anderson Jr., is of mega contract @KPRC2 https://t.co/UOyb76hHx8 pic.twitter.com/AeuzJdhELI

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) April 21, 2026

For Lynn, this deal after negotiating other huge contracts for her clients, including Garrett, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts and Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, was a thrilling moment.

“It’s surreal,” Lynn said. “I never take any of it for granted. I’m very honored to do the job that I do, and I represent a lot of different players across the league, and every one of these moments feels like the first.

“He is the absolute most deserving person. That is who he is every single day. So, it’s really a blessing to represent someone that’s incredible on the field, but off the field. So, deserving and puts everyone else first. I was so excited to give him that news.”

The contract didn’t come as a surprise. KPRC 2 reported for months that the deal was an eventuality and would average as much $50 million annually.

The talks between Lynn and Caserio ran smoothly.

“Nick and I have a really good relationship,” Lynn said. “I don’t know exactly where it started. I think Nick called me, but I think we kind of all knew that it was time for him to get paid. Nick is incredible to work with. And the reason is that Nick, he obviously, is doing his job as a general manager, but he cares about the players.

“You can feel that, and that actually starts at ownership. You can feel that with the McNairs that they want to do right by the players. With Nick starting the deal early, I think, for him, was showing Will the belief that this organization has in him long-term, right? They didn’t want to play any games. They knew how important he was to the organization. They wanted him to know that through the deal.”

Anderson ranked second in the NFL with 85 total pressures last season, according to Next Gen Stats. Recording 48 pressures on third down marked the most since that statistic has been tracked.

“I haven’t even reached to the period of where I want to be at in my game,” Anderson said. “And I think this offseason I’ve continued to build my body up to be able to bend or to be able to finish on the quarterback. That’s the next step is just be able to finish on the quarterback.”

Anderson doesn’t plan to go on a major spending spree.

He does plan to purchase a speed boat for his fishing trips with his father.

Growing up as the baby of the family with five older sisters, Anderson learned the value of having a strong work ethic and traditional values and a deep religious faith from his parents.

“I think that’s why I got so emotional because these two right here, being in a three-bedroom house with six kids wasn’t easy,” Anderson said. “Working long nights. My mom got to work overtime. My dad working overtime. It meant the world for me to do what I do.”

Anderson is pivotal to the Texans’ present and future as a game-wrecking defensive end capable of harassing quarterbacks and shutting down runs, doubling as a team captain and leader.

And his success all started at home with his parents’ loving example.

“He’s always been humble, always been disciplined, didn’t give us no problems, just a really sweet kid,” Tereon Anderson said. “Now, the sisters might say something differently, but the parents, that’s he week, pretty much was just a typical young man.”

The pride of the family was obvious, just as it has been throughout his time in Houston.

“The growth and maturity,he’s just a natural,” Will Anderson Sr. said. “Everything that he did, he grew up pretty fast. We don’t have any baby pictures of Will because he grew up so fast. We missed a lot of that time so, but he just matured really fast.”

Extremely proud parents of #Texans Will Anderson Jr.: Tereon and Will Sr. @KPRC2 https://t.co/UOyb76hHx8 pic.twitter.com/22vtXC1WxE

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) April 21, 2026

Anderson spent a lot of time with his grandmother, his father’s mother.

‘She was very instrumental," Tereon Anderson said. “He learned very early on how to give back to others. We hope we were great parents, but God already had all those things instilled in him. His character was built from the womb.”

Anderson used to accompany his father to the food market, learning how to work hard from his example that included cutting fish and other blue-collar tasks.

“It was very intentional, because I took not just only Will, I took my daughters also so, and I told all of them, this is not what I want for you guys,“ Will Anderson Sr. said. ”Free education, go to college.”

“We always told them if you are not better than us, that we failed,” Tereon Anderson said. “Because the work that we did was to raise them so we wanted to give them an opportunity to be better.

“His junior year, he got his first college offer, and I think that’s when he started to say, ‘Well, maybe I’ll go to school if I’m gonna get a scholarship.’ And we kind of took off from there, but he really wanted to do the same things that his dad did.”

Anderson is deeply spiritual and open in discussing his Christian faith.

During the Pro Bowl Games, Anderson partnered with the ministry group, God Behind Bars, in February to share his faith with inmates at San Quentin State Prison. He spoke to over 150 inmates about his faith and personal journey. Several inmates chose to get baptized after listening to Anderson’s inspirational message.

“It was a life-changing experience, very life-changing,” Anderson said. “Anybody that’s deep in their word; the journey is something. Once you get close with God and you start on your journey, it’s like that’s when you start to see so much impurity in yourself and start to see the ways the world will pull you in. When I walked in there, these guys are facing life. They don’t get to see their kids, don’t get to see their families, but their faith was so strong in Jesus Christ.

“It literally changed my life because I’m out here. I’m free. I have so much free will. I can do what I want, but these guys are incarcerated and can’t do much. But they’re like, ‘The one thing that I can cling on to is my faith, and I know that my situation will get better.’ To be able to speak to those guys and to speak life into them is just as much as they speak life into me. It was just a very wholesome moment.”

Although the Texans ultimately lost in the AFC divisional round playoffs to the Patriots, it wasn’t because of Anderson. He recorded three sacks, two forced fumbles and two tackles for losses.

The extremely high value of Anderson as a pass rusher and run-stopper was underscored again, just as it was all season.

And the big trade with the Cardinals changed the course of the Texans. Anderson has arguably emerged as the face of the franchise.

“The 2023 draft is probably one of the most exciting drafts that I’ve been a part of, and I would say one of the most exciting drafts in Texans history,” said Ryans, a former NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year selected in 2006 out of Alabama. “It was exciting just to know what we were doing. We pick C.J. at the second pick and to know we’re back on the phones trying to trade up to get Will, it was just an exciting moment, a tense moment.

“The adrenaline is pumping in the room. It was awesome. Nick executed the trade. It was about the guy we were getting. As we all see, fast forward to where we are now, it was well worth the move. We knew the type of man that Will was, and it was worth moving up to get him and it has paid off big time for us.”

When Anderson got the call from Ryans while he was in the green room, he didn’t know what to think at first.

He had visited the Texans and had struck up a good relationship with Ryans. He was hoping they would come get him.

“In the green room, Arizona was still on the clock, and that’s a whole other conversation for another time, but Arizona’s still on the clock,” Anderson recounted. “I tell this story all the time. I promise you I’m not lying. DeMeco had called me, because at the time me and DeMeco, we had a pretty good relationship.

“I’m thinking he’s calling me like, ‘Yeah, man, I’m sorry we couldn’t get you.’ Then, he told me he was drafting me, and I just went crazy, like went crazy. I really wanted to be here. I really wanted to be a part of something very special. As you can see, we’ve been on the up and up and I think we’re trending in the right way to get it done.”

PHOENIX -- #Texans Cal McNair and Hannah McNair on potential long-term deals for Will Anderson Jr., C.J. Stroud: 'Exciting, really good players, we'll hope to have them around a long, long time. .. It's a good problem to have when you have so many guys you want to keep under… pic.twitter.com/WunQinzX0g

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) April 1, 2026

The rest is history.

Anderson plans to stay grounded and not alter his hard-nosed, relentless approach to football and his fun-loving life enjoying the outdoors

“I think it’s staying to the process, not changing,” Anderson said. “I think it’s about growth and obviously maturity. You just keep going in your same process. I’m young at this, but guys will want to change or do more. I think the biggest thing that I’m going to keep with me is what DeMeco told me when I first got here:

“‘You don’t got to be Superman, just go be the same person you’ve been when we drafted you, when you were at Alabama, the leader, the player that you were.’ That’s what’s been helping me succeed so far. So, just continue to be myself, continue to grow my game, grow up my teammates, have fun with them and just go play for them.”

What would his late grandmother have to say now about what has transpired, of this groundbreaking achievement?

“’Look at little Willy go,’” Anderson said. " hat’s what she would have said. ‘Look at little Will go.’ She would be so proud, She was a big influence in my life as well. Walking me out the door every morning before going to school. I still hold her closely to my heart and what I do, a lot of tears that they see before the games, a lot of that is for her, too.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com

The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research highlights many Americans' feeling of unease over the future of its representative government — particularly among young people. It presents a jarring contrast as communities around the country commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary.

Only about one-quarter of Americans say the U.S. stands above all other countries in the world, the new poll found, while 44% say it’s one of the greatest countries in the world, along with some others. About 3 in 10 say there are better countries than the U.S., an increase from 19% in an AP-NORC poll conducted in June 2016.

Americans remain divided about whether diversity is an essential feature of the U.S.'s identity, and agreement about other aspects of the country's underlying character appears to be eroding, the survey found. Americans are less likely to see a democratically elected government as “extremely” or “very” important to the United States’ identity as a nation than they were just a few years ago. About two-thirds of U.S. adults now say a democratically elected government is highly important to the U.S.’s identity as a nation, down from 80% in 2021.

“It’s not that the democracy part is not working," said Derricka Wall, 24, of Chickasaw, Alabama. "It’s the people that are actually being put in office that is the problem.”

Wall believes politicians have damaged America’s governing system, which was designed to ensure representation and guard against government misuse.

America, she said, “is not what it used to be. I feel like our founding fathers would be kind of disappointed with how it is now.”

Rising belief that democracy is not essential to American identity

Young adults are much less likely than older Americans to believe the U.S. is special, compared with other nations, the poll found.

About 4 in 10, 44%, of U.S. adults under 30 say there are other countries better than the U.S., compared with 22% of U.S. adults ages 60 and older.

Fewer, too, see democracy as a key element of the U.S.’s identity. Only about half of Americans under 30 believe this, compared with 81% of those 60 and older.

Wall said the people who established the government with co-equal branches thought they were erecting safeguards to keep any one person or group from attaining too much power. But she believes they didn’t foresee how easily those guardrails would crumble if the people in the system stopped enforcing them.

“I feel like they would actually roll out of their graves," she said. "I feel they would be very disappointed in us.”

The belief that politics isn't working for everyday people extends beyond the youngest generations. Kent Stage, 62 and a retired senior enlisted man in the Army, is a registered Republican in Indiana. He does not think the current political system addresses the country's problems. He’d like to see term limits on politicians and more working-class people serving.

“I’ll trust the ambulance-chasing lawyer and a shady used car salesman before I trust the politician,” he said.

Stage, who is also a former Marine, believes public servants make self-serving choices for their families “while mine and yours still got to hit the old grindstone."

Many feel it's harder to get ahead in the US

The survey also finds widespread cynicism about America as the land of opportunity. About half of U.S. adults, 51%, say the American Dream — the idea that if you work hard, you’ll get ahead — once held true but does not anymore. About one-third say it “still holds true” while 15% say it never held true.

Jack Hermanson, a 27-year-old software developer in Denver, said his belief in the American Dream changed when he saw his engineer husband struggle to find a job. “That really shattered my impression that if you work hard, you get what you deserve,” Hermanson said.

Only 22% of Americans under 30 say the American Dream still holds true, compared with 46% of Americans ages 60 and older.

Angela Toombs, 31, works at a senior living facility in Atlanta where her clients talk about how easy it was to buy a house while working their first regular jobs in their 20s and are incredulous about the obstacles facing Toombs’ generation. Toombs recently gave up her own apartment to rent a room in order to save money.

Skepticism about the American Dream is more widespread among Democrats and independents, compared with Republicans. Most Republicans, 57%, say the American Dream still holds true, compared with about one-quarter of independents and 17% of Democrats.

Republicans are also much likelier than Democrats to see the U.S. as exceptional. About half of Republicans say the U.S. stands above all other countries in the world, compared with only 7% of Democrats.

Quintin Sharpe, 28, lives in a resort town on Lake Geneva in Wisconsin. A financial planner who is Republican, he said the American Dream remains accessible and he is proud of the country. “It's been a great experiment.”

"The opportunity is there for those who want to work for it,” he said. Sharpe believes the country is “a meritocracy, and the best ideas, the best work ethic, those with the best succeed regardless of race, skin color, any of those factors.”

He and his wife will celebrate the country's 250th anniversary watching the fireworks over the lake.

Divides on whether diversity is essential to US

Just over half of U.S. adults — 56% — say a shared American culture and set of values are “extremely” or “very” important to the country's identity, down from 65% in 2017. Younger Americans are less likely than older ones to say a singular set of values is important to U.S. identity.

But Americans remain sharply divided on the centrality of welcoming diverse perspectives: About half of adults, 51%, say the ability of people to come from other places in the world to escape violence or find economic opportunities is “extremely” or “very” important to American identity, while 55% say this about the mixing of cultures and values from around the world.

Only about 4 in 10 Republicans see the mixing of cultures and values from around the world as central to the country's identity, compared with 76% of Democrats.

Rose Nunez, 70, of San Antonio, was a small business owner but now is a caregiver for family members. Nunez, who tends to vote for Democrats, said there is an unease and tension that are just beneath the surface, especially focused on Hispanics. She said some people have started carrying their papers showing their immigration status in case they are challenged.

“It is hard to celebrate when the feelings towards immigrants and communities of color are so strong,” she said of the upcoming America 250 celebrations.

She said even citizens are questioned now. If it gets to a point where being naturalized is challenged, “guess what, my mom would be leaving. She’s been living in this country since she was maybe four years old. She’s 93.”

____

The AP-NORC poll of 2,596 adults was conducted April 16-20 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 2.6 percentage points.

Staged at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater, the musical is in its third run on Broadway — and earned 11 Tony nominations, including for best revival. It's resonating the most with audiences this time, they said. “Three is the charm,” Ahrens said.

“When we originally did it on Broadway, which was 1998, I think a lot of people, if not most people, were thinking about this piece as a period piece,” Flaherty said. “I think now, people are responding to it as a contemporary story.”

Adapted from the 1975 novel by E.L. Doctorow, the show's book is by the late playwright Terrence McNally. It depicts a wide swath of the American experience in New York at the turn of the 20th century, from Black Americans in Harlem to Jewish immigrants on the Lower East Side to the white upper-class residents of the suburbs of Westchester County.

The story that unfolds is fiction, but features historical figures like activist Emma Goldman, educator and leader Booker T. Washington, banker J.P. Morgan, auto founder Henry Ford and illusionist Harry Houdini. The show's breadth — encompassing immense tragedy as well as great optimism — and the depth of the actors' performances has been bringing Broadway audiences to their feet, often mid-act.

It also has people returning. “They’re like, ‘I’m coming back with my parents,’ ‘I'm coming back with my grandchildren,’ ‘I’m coming back with my grandparents,’ and it’s not even like they have to see it. They want to experience it with them,” said Brandon Uranowitz, who had his own return to the show, decades after he acted as a child in the pre-Broadway production.

Now, he's nominated for best lead actor in a musical for playing the role of Tateh, a Jewish immigrant from Latvia. “I think it’s sort of speaking to this generational reckoning that we’re having with America and our national identity.”

‘Ragtime’ at the Tony Awards

The original production lost the best new musical Tony Award to “The Lion King,” but Ahrens and Flaherty took home the prize for best original score, McNally best book and William David Brohn best orchestrations in a competitive year. It also won Audra McDonald, the Tonys' most decorated performer, her third award. A 2009 revival received six nominations, but lost best revival to “La Cage aux Folles.”

This could be the year it finally wins a best show award: “Ragtime” is a front-runner for best musical revival, against strong competition from “Cats: The Jellicle Ball” and “The Rocky Horror Show.” Among its other nods are nominations for all three leads, and for featured performers Nichelle Lewis and Ben Levi Ross.

Portraying a range of American experiences

Joshua Henry, nominated alongside his costar for best lead actor, plays Coalhouse Walker Jr., a celebrated Black pianist at the center of his community in Harlem. Caissie Levy, nominated for her role of Mother, is the matriarch of a wealthy white family in a suburb outside New York City.

A cast of supporting characters, and a large ensemble, flesh out the lead trio's lives, relationships and eventual connections: Lewis plays Sarah, Coalhouse’s beloved; Ross is Mother’s Younger Brother and Colin Donnell her husband, Father; Shaina Taub is Goldman, the real-life activist.

Emotions in the first act peak during “Wheels of a Dream,” Lewis' iconic duet with Henry, which draws standing ovations, mid-song, nearly every night.

“She is a person who represents women — especially women of color — who don’t have a voice, women of color who are fighting to have a voice, women of color who find strength in other ways because we weren’t allowed to have it,” Lewis said of Sarah. But above all, she said, the character represents the power of trust, love and hope as a buoying force.

That hope is also what propels Uranowitz's Tateh. “Despite everything he goes through, despite the rejection, despite the oppression, despite the othering, despite antisemitism,” it’s what persists.

In the song “Journey On,” his character arrives in New York with his young daughter just as Mother's husband, Father, leaves on an expedition to the North Pole.

“You depart on a ship from a country like this,” Tateh sings, watching Father leave. “Why on Earth would you want to be leaving?” The two men are perched on separate, moving staircases on a sparsely furnished stage, but sing from the same height, emphasizing the valley between their experiences.

Like many of the characters, Father and Tateh (also “father,” in Yiddish) are nameless. The intention, Uranowitz said, is for aspects of Tateh's journey — from immigrant artist to successful moviemaker — to reflect the experience of Jewish Americans, and to resonate with people from other backgrounds as well. “If you pan out, which ‘Ragtime’ does so beautifully, it also holds just a capital ‘I’ immigration experience. And I think that’s really important for people to see right now.”

Holding a mirror to the current moment

The musical feels so relevant to 2026 that audience members have asked director Lear deBessonet, also Tony-nominated, if the creative team rewrote the script for this production. Lyrics by Ahrens and dialogue by McNally about the discrimination and brutality that Black Americans and immigrants face can seem straight out of the current moment. There are also references to keeping the country “great,” and commentary on celebrity culture and the power of industry leaders.

But the text hasn't changed. “We, in the audience, are hearing it differently,” deBessonet said. “There’s something that actually, I think is very unifying about coming together with a community of our time to look at this other time, and to look at the promise and the wound of America right next to each other.”

A 2027 tour, with deBessonet and the Broadway run’s creative team at the helm, will bring the show to a wider audience around the country.

“It does not feel like we’re looking back. It feels like we're looking in a mirror at ourselves,” Flaherty said.

There is one small change, however. When “Wheels of a Dream” is reprised in the final number, the ensemble sings “Our son will ride on the wheels of a,” and then takes a long pause before a final, resonant, “dream.” The goal is not to prescribe a particular emotional response, but to allow viewers — and the actors themselves — space for their own interpretations.

“In that moment, every single actor, every artist on that stage is invited to fill that moment with whatever feels honest to them that night,” deBessonet said. “Sometimes you can really feel that there is exuberant hope in the air. And sometimes there is grief or rage or confusion,” she added.

Ahrens said it's been a “revelation” to see how audiences have responded to the production, before and after the 2024 presidential election — and throughout this Broadway run, which concludes on Aug. 2. “It's such a visceral thing,” she said. “I don't think we've ever experienced anything like it.”

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This story was first published June 6. It was updated on June 8 to correct that “Ragtime” won Audra McDonald her third Tony, not her first.

Above-average temperatures could be on the books this summer, according to forecasters, and a developing El Nino event could spell out warmer weather later in the year or next summer. Sizzling temperatures are more than an inconvenience: They can cause heat exhaustion and life-threatening heat stroke.

Travelers can take precautions to have fun with heat preparedness in mind.

“The same way that we prepare for more extreme travel in the cold, we should start to consider those tips to keep us safe in the summer months,” said Dr. Alexander Azan with NYU Langone Health, who co-directs the Project HEATWAVE initiative.

Check the forecast and survey your travel companions

Before taking off, check the air temperatures for both day and night as well as the heat index, which takes humidity into account, Azan said.

If temperatures look scorching, stay flexible. Relocate to cooler regions along the coast or at higher elevations. Plan more strenuous outdoor activities like hiking or long walks during early morning or late evening hours, outside of peak heat windows. A midday movie, museum visit or coffee shop break may be more suitable.

Check whether your lodging will have reliable conditioning and whether the region has had recent power blackouts or brownouts. You can also search for public facilities like cooling centers, and note key phone numbers to report medical emergencies.

In addition to what you're bringing, think about who you're bringing. People with certain medical conditions or medications may be more vulnerable to heat while traveling.

“A lot of the prescription drugs that we take for common conditions like high blood pressure, anxiety, depression, they actually interrupt our body’s ability to thermoregulate,” said Ashley Ward, director of the Heat Policy Innovation Hub at Duke University.

Older adults, those who may be pregnant, young children and infants are also especially susceptible — so adjust plans accordingly. Carrying a baby against your body can transfer additional heat, for example.

Pack a reusable water bottle and bring light-colored, breathable clothing that will keep you cool. Don’t forget sunscreen, sunglasses, a wide-brimmed hat and a cooling towel. A portable fan can be useful too, but avoid using it during particularly high temperatures since it’ll just blow hot air back at you.

Keep car safety in mind during road trips

If you're planning a road trip, get your vehicle inspected a few weeks before to make sure everything is in good condition, especially the engine cooling system and the car battery. If you'll be driving abroad, ask whether the rental car will have air conditioning.

Pack water and snacks to keep passengers and pets energized during the drive and take breaks to hydrate and stretch — but don't leave young children, pets or older adults alone in the car even for a few minutes.

Keep the car as cool as possible by parking in shaded areas and using a windshield protector. When entering a steamy car, turn on the air conditioning but turn off recirculation to keep stale air from cycling. Roll down the windows a bit, then close them and turn recirculation on once the car starts to chill.

To avoid getting stuck in the heat, don’t drive on less than a quarter tank of gas, said AAA senior automotive manager David Bennett. If you do get stuck and the engine is still running, you can cycle it on and off every few minutes so AC can still cool the car. Don't walk along the side of the road in searing temperatures to search for help: instead, stay in the car or nearby shade and put reflectors or cones in front of the vehicle. Bring an extra charger that plugs into the car so you can call for help if needed.

Stay flexible and recognize signs of heat illness

Travelers should be mindful of how their behavior changes on vacation. Spending long hours outdoors, participating in intense activities or consuming more alcohol than usual can increase heat-related risks.

People often get into trouble when they ignore both environmental conditions and the warning signals their bodies are giving them. “They think they can push through. That is a mistake,” Ward said.

During the day's exploring, employ the buddy system and look out for signs of heat illness like feeling dizzy, experiencing nausea or muscle cramps and sweating with cool and clammy skin. If you or a travel partner start to feel sick, get to a shaded area and take sips of water while loosening tight clothing.

If symptoms worsen to slurred speech, falling unconscious, extreme confusion or feeling hot to the touch, seek help immediately. That could indicate something more serious, like heat stroke.

If extreme heat makes a trip untenable, there are ways to recoup costs. Adding a cancel-for-any-reason benefit to your travel insurance can offer partial reimbursement if things get too hot. There are also services like Sensible Weather and WeatherPromise which reimburse travel and lodging costs for every day a trip is dashed by rain, heavy snowfall or high heat. Customers can add a weather guarantee to their cart at extra cost when booking with these organizations' registered travel and hotel partners.

As temperatures continue to climb, experts say the most important thing vacationers can do is listen to their bodies and remain flexible.

By staying aware, taking steps to cool down and adjusting plans where necessary, travelers can help ensure their trip remains both safe and enjoyable.

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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’s climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. The 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 proposal comes as concerns over data center development continue to emerge in communities across Texas and just days after the Alvin City Council unanimously approved a similar resolution expressing concerns about future projects and calling for additional review and safeguards.

While the proposed resolution stops short of opposing all data centers, it draws a clear line on future development.

“The Brazoria County Commissioners Court supports responsible economic development, including appropriately designed and sited data centers and related facilities,” the resolution states. “However, the Court opposes future data center development that fails to incorporate adequate safeguards to protect county resources and citizens.”

Brazoria County Resolution On Data Centers by Gage Goulding

The resolution appears on Tuesday’s Brazoria County Commissioners Court agenda under items brought forward by the County Judge.

County leaders cite concerns about the significant electricity and water demands associated with data centers, as well as potential impacts on agricultural land, drainage, flooding, infrastructure, public safety and quality of life.

The resolution states that data centers require “extraordinary levels of electric generation and transmission capacity” and significant amounts of water for cooling, which can affect grid reliability and regional water availability.

It also warns that large-scale development could result in “increased flooding in already flood-prone areas” if projects are not properly sited, mitigated and planned.

The document further states that data centers can create “excessive light and noise pollution,” increase damage to existing infrastructure and increase fire risk, creating what commissioners describe as “a nuisance and hazard to surrounding citizens.”

The resolution also notes that counties do not possess broad zoning authority or other land use regulatory powers comparable to municipalities, limiting their ability to address concerns related to infrastructure, drainage, water use and compatibility with surrounding development.

One of the resolution’s most significant statements reads that “no future data center or related facility should proceed without an independent impact assessment.”

County officials are also urging state regulators to require public reporting of anticipated electricity demand, water usage and environmental impacts associated with future developments.

Another Government Body Against Data Centers

Just last week, the City of Alvin took a similar measure, formally opposing data centers from being built within city limits.

“We are aware that that data centers, you know, create noise pollution, other pollution, strains on grids and things like that,” said Alvin Mayor Gabe Adame at a council meeting.

While there was no formal proposal, a potential builder contacted the city about a site near the outskirts of the city limits.

“One hundred to 200 acres, it was close to 200 MW day one, and it would scale up to one gigawatt. Two hundred megawatts is the daily power consumption for the city of Alvin, so I wasn’t a fan right away,” said Alvin Councilman Scott Salter.

After opposition from city leaders and residents, the builder moved on to another area, according to Salter.

What’s News?

The resolution will be discussed at Tuesday’s County Commissioner meeting.

If approved, copies of the resolution would be sent to Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, members of the Texas Legislature, the Public Utility Commission of Texas, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and other state and regional agencies.

Tuesday’s meeting is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. at the Brazoria County Administration Building in Angleton.

Boris was located about 85 miles (135 kilometers) southeast of Acapulco and 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Punta Maldonado, according to the Miami-based weather center. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) and was moving northeast at 2 mph (3 kph).

Boris was expected to turn to the north, bringing rainfall of 4 to 10 inches (10 to 25 centimeters) to coastal areas of the states of Guerrero and Oaxaca through Monday night. The storm was forecast to make landfall along the coast of Guerrero by Monday evening, the center said.

“This rainfall may produce life-threatening flooding and mudslides, especially in areas of steep terrain,” the center said.

A tropical storm warning was in effect from Laguna de Chacahua in Oaxaca to Tecpan de Galeana in Guerrero, with tropical storm conditions expected in the area within 24 hours.

Boris was forecast to weaken once the center reaches the coast and dissipate inland by Tuesday. The storm isn’t expected to impact Mexico’s three World Cup host cities.

Boris is the second named storm of the Pacific hurricane season, which started May 15. Tropical Storm Amanda formed June 3 far out to sea, posing no threat to land.

The Atlantic hurricane season began June 1, but no cyclones have formed in that basin yet this year.

The resolution, approved June 4, formally expresses the city’s opposition to data center development in Alvin while officials evaluate potential impacts on infrastructure, public services and long-term community planning.

Alvin Data Center Resolution by Gage Goulding

City officials said the measure reflects Alvin’s commitment to responsible growth, transparency and protecting the community’s long-term character.

The item was placed on the agenda at the request of Mayor Gabe Adame following recent discussions surrounding proposed large-scale data center projects in Alvin’s extraterritorial jurisdiction and elsewhere in Brazoria County.

“We are aware that that data centers, you know, create noise pollution, other pollution, strains on grids and things like that,” said Alvin Mayor Gabe Adame at the council meeting.

The vote follows growing local discussion about potential large-scale data center projects being explored in Alvin’s extraterritorial jurisdiction and elsewhere in Brazoria County.

According to the city, large-scale data centers can require substantial electrical capacity, water consumption, wastewater infrastructure, drainage accommodations, transportation access and public service support depending on the size and operational demands of a facility.

City leaders said additional time is needed to evaluate how such projects could affect municipal infrastructure, utilities, public services, land use compatibility, environmental resources and long-term development plans.

The resolution does not establish a permanent prohibition or regulatory ban on data centers. Instead, it serves as a policy statement outlining the City Council’s current position while further analysis is conducted.

Under the resolution, City Council formally opposes the construction, development, expansion or approval of data center facilities within Alvin’s corporate limits until additional information, studies and policy considerations have been reviewed.

Areas identified for further evaluation include electrical demand, water consumption, wastewater capacity, drainage systems, transportation networks, emergency services, land use compatibility, environmental sustainability, tax base and economic development goals, and long-term community character and livability.

The city said the resolution aligns with Alvin’s Strategic Plan and Comprehensive Plan, which emphasize responsible growth, infrastructure planning, sustainability, transparency and preservation of community character.

“It puts on paper that we’re opposed,” said Alvin Councilman Scott Salter. “We don’t want them to lower home value. We don’t them to nuisance residents with noise pollution or natural resource affected.”

On May 15, Salter publicly voiced opposition to the concept after the city received preliminary information about a possible development.

In a statement, Salter said representatives working with CenterPoint and a data center developer were evaluating sites ranging from approximately 100 to 200 acres.

According to information shared with the city, he said, the project could require an initial electrical load of about 200 megawatts, with the possibility of growing to as much as 1 gigawatt over time.

“At this point, I am opposed to a project of this type in our region,” Salter said in the statement.

Salter said he was concerned that a project with that level of electrical demand could place additional strain on the regional power grid and contribute to higher electricity costs for residents and businesses.

He also pointed to approximately $100 million in water infrastructure investments made by the city in recent years, saying those improvements were intended to serve residents, support responsible growth and strengthen the community’s long-term reliability.

Salter further stated that he opposed lowering standards or providing special treatment to attract data center developers and said any project should be evaluated based on whether it benefits Alvin residents.

“No final decision has been made by the City of Alvin regarding this potential project,” Salter said. “However, I believe residents deserve to know where I stand early in the process.”

Gage Goulding: "I gotta ask you is it a matter of not in my backyard put these things in somebody else’s backyard? It might not be fair."

Scott Salter: “You know, I 100% agree with that. My first response is I’m elected to support Alvin residents.”

In approving the resolution Thursday, council members formally expressed concerns about infrastructure capacity, utility demand and long-term planning considerations while calling for additional study before any future consideration of data center development within city limits.

The city said any future consideration of data centers should be deliberate, transparent, data-driven and aligned with Alvin’s infrastructure capabilities and long-term planning goals.

Users of credit cards that accrue airline miles and points toward various travel perks are likely to find their balances won’t take them as far this summer.

As jet fuel prices have jumped during the Iran war, so have the cost of airline tickets and fees for checking bags. Airfares in April were 21% higher than a year earlier, the Labor Department reported last week. Flights already are more expensive during the summer since there’s more demand.

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That means travelers who wanted to use an airline-branded credit card or a travel rewards card from a bank with a specific trip or a first-class seat in mind may have to shell out some cash, choose a different destination or fly at inconvenient times to get the most out of their accounts, travel experts say.

Frequent flyers

In the early years of frequent flyer programs, airlines published tables that showed customers how much a higher class of service or flying a certain distance would cost in miles. Nearly all airlines now continuously adjust their airfares, an algorithim-powered strategy known as dynamic pricing.

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Flights priced in points are based on overall demand, just like regular fares. The cash value of those seats often will roughly equal the same in points. Higher airfares typically translate into needing more miles or points to buy a ticket.

Long before the current disruption to global oil supplies, consumers, a pair of U.S. senators and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg cried foul over the airline practice of increasing the number of points or miles needed to earn a free flight or offering fewer redeemable seats before people could cash in their loyalty stockpiles.

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“There’s no question that dynamic award pricing, higher redemption rates on some domestic routes, and added fees have made it harder to find the outsized deals that travelers enjoyed a decade ago,” said Brian Kelly, the travel and credit card rewards expert better known as The Points Guy. “But that doesn’t necessarily mean points have lost value. It just means consumers need to be more strategic about how they redeem them.”

Earning loyalty

Now, the better news.

There are a lot of ways to accrue airline miles, and most don’t come with an expiration date. Signing up for an airline’s frequent flyer program is the simplest method and usually doesn’t cost anything. Depending on the carrier, members can earn miles when they fly with the airline or its partners and can redeem them for perks like discounted flights, seat upgrades or checked bags. Higher tiers of loyalty programs can also unlock benefits like priority boarding or waived baggage fees.

Major airlines also partner with banks to market co-branded credit cards that carry an annual fee. The cards earn users miles whenever they buy something.

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“When you’re going to spend money anyway, you might as well get something back for it,” said Adam Morvitz, a credit card miles expert and CEO of point.me, a travel loyalty platform. “If you’re already buying groceries, paying for gas or booking a hotel, a travel rewards card turns that everyday spending into points that can fund your next trip.”

This is where being a frequent flyer or having an airline credit card might yield summer savings. To offset their jet fuel costs, some U.S. airlines have raised the checked baggage fees for domestic flights and many short-haul international flights. United Airlines raised the price of the first checked bag from $40 to $50. Delta Air Lines’ first checked bag fee went from $35 to $45.

The airlines still are allowing customers in the upper tiers of their loyalty programs or who hold credit cards like the Delta SkyMiles Card from American Express or United’s card with Chase to check a bag for free.

Extra miles

Financial institutions like American Express, Chase Bank and CitiBank issue their own travel credit cards that supply points with purchases. Travelers that want the option of flying with more airlines tend to favor these. Depending on the card, perks can include airport lounge access, travel insurance, no foreign transaction fees and TSA PreCheck or Global Entry credits.

“For those who spend responsibly, the value is incredible as you’re able to get more in value from the perks, even if there is an annual fee,” he said.

For beginners, Morvitz recommends flexible points cards over airline-specific options because they can be transferred across loyalty programs and provide more redemption options if an airline changes its award pricing. He said consumers should match a card to their actual spending habits — such as choosing cards with bonus categories for groceries or dining — while also considering whether annual fees are justified by the benefits they’ll actually use.

A lot of banks are promoting sizable sign-up bonuses while people make summer plans, such as offering 100,000 miles or even 150,000 miles or points to new customers who qualify and spend a certain amount of money within a specific period — usually the first three months. Kelly said the bonuses make it a good time to get one of these cards, which might make trips more affordable for people needing extra points.

Those sign-up offers also can be among the most valuable features of rewards cards, sometimes worth more than $1,000 in travel, Morvitz said. But consumers should carefully track minimum spending requirements to qualify. He also recommends using category bonuses and shopping portals to maximize rewards and always attaching a frequent flyer number to airline reservations.

Pay as you go

The important thing to remember is that the value of a bank travel card or an airline loyalty card evaporates if you carry a balance. The average credit card interest rate is between 21% and 24%, so even carrying a $1,000 balance can quickly wipe out any savings from a complimentary checked bag.

“Travel rewards cards are one of the best financial tools available to responsible cardholders, but they’re designed for people who treat them like a debit card,” Morvitz said. “Spend what you’d spend anyway and always pay the balance in full each month. The moment you start carrying a balance and paying interest, the math works against you.”

Hotels are another place where travelers may not get as much from their rewards points this summer. Hyatt overhauled its loyalty program this week to take it from three tiers to five. While some lower-cost hotel stays will require the same number of points, the same might not be true for Hyatt’s more upscale properties.

The travel blog One Mile at a Time estimated that some of Hyatt’s most elite properties would cost as much as 67% more with points under the new system.

“If you’re sitting on hotel points, don’t sit and hoard them. ... They quickly seem to be getting less valuable,” said Sally French, who covers credit cards and loyalty programs for Nerd Wallet.

The recall affects Up & Up Fragrance Free Baby Wipes and Up & Up Cucumber Scented Baby Wipes sold at Target stores nationwide.

According to the retailer, the recall was initiated after the company received consumer complaints about some wipes becoming discolored. Subsequent testing by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration detected the presence of a bacteria that may cause serious and potentially life-threatening infections, particularly in babies and young children.

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Target said it has also received reports of eye irritation, skin irritation and some infections that may be associated with the use of the recalled wipes.

Health officials warn that exposure to contaminated products can be especially dangerous for infants, young children and people with weakened immune systems.

Customers who purchased the affected baby wipes are urged to stop using them immediately and check product information to determine whether their packages are included in the recall.

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Consumers can return recalled products to Target for a refund and should contact a healthcare provider if they believe they or their child experienced an adverse reaction after using the wipes.

Additional information about the recalled products, including lot numbers and refund details, is available through Target and the FDA.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released guidance for states on how to implement Medicaid work requirements, including new standards for determining which recipients qualify for exemptions based on medical conditions.

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Under the new framework, having a medical condition alone may not be enough to receive an exemption from work requirements.

CMS said enrollees seeking a medical frailty exemption must demonstrate that their illness, disability or medical condition significantly impairs their ability to meet work or community engagement requirements.

The guidance is intended to help states administer the work mandate and establish consistent standards for determining eligibility for exemptions.

How to get reimbursed for repairs when bad gas leaves you stranded

Supporters of work requirements argue the policy encourages workforce participation and self-sufficiency among able-bodied adults receiving Medicaid benefits.

Critics, however, contend that stricter eligibility standards could result in vulnerable individuals losing health coverage, particularly those with chronic illnesses or conditions that may not meet the new threshold for exemption.

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The work requirement framework is scheduled to begin in January, with states responsible for implementing and overseeing compliance among eligible Medicaid recipients.

Health policy experts say the changes could have a significant impact on Medicaid enrollment nationwide as states begin applying the new rules.

Instead of spending hours browsing travel websites and comparing options, travelers are increasingly using AI-powered tools to create customized itineraries in a matter of seconds.

Travel experts say AI can help streamline the planning process by taking information such as a destination, budget and personal interests and generating recommendations for hotels, restaurants, attractions and daily activities.

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However, experts caution that the quality of the results depends largely on the information users provide.

“The more specific you are, the better the recommendations will be,” experts say.

Travelers are encouraged to include details such as who is traveling, the ages of family members, preferred activities, dietary needs, travel dates and spending limits when asking AI to create a trip plan.

For example, a request for a family-friendly beach vacation on a set budget will typically produce more useful results than a broad request for vacation ideas.

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While AI can save time and offer personalized suggestions, travel experts recommend double-checking details such as prices, operating hours, reservations and local attractions before finalizing plans.

As technology continues to evolve, many travelers are finding AI a helpful tool for organizing trips and discovering new destinations.

London Hogan is charged with murder, aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in connection with the shooting death of Louis Erebia.

Investigators say the deadly chain of events began Saturday afternoon with an armed robbery and ended hours later with Erebia being shot and killed outside a north Houston gas station.

Suspect appears in court

During a probable cause hearing Monday morning, a judge informed Hogan of the charges filed against him.

“Mr. Hogan, sir, you’re here for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon and murder,” the judge said during the hearing.

Court records show the case has been assigned to the 339th District Court.

The judge also noted Hogan is currently on a five-year felony deferred adjudication stemming from an assault case filed in March 2024.

When asked whether he would be requesting legal representation, Hogan told the court he plans to seek a court-appointed attorney.

The judge said the trial court will make bond decisions.

Arrest update to Car Jacking Murder:

On Saturday, June 6, 2026, at approximately 2pm, @HCSOTexas deputies responded to the 11800 blk of Tidwell in reference to a carjacking. While detectives were conducting their investigation, the owner of the stolen vehicle located his… pic.twitter.com/HHrhGIW97s

— Ed Gonzalez (@SheriffEd_HCSO) June 8, 2026

• Father killed after tracking son’s stolen truck to north Houston gas station, investigators say

Investigators say truck was stolen at gunpoint

According to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, the investigation began around 2 p.m. Saturday after deputies responded to the 11800 block of Tidwell Road for an aggravated robbery.

Investigators said a man was putting gas into his blue Chevrolet Silverado when a suspect approached him and began asking questions about the truck.

Authorities said the suspect then pulled out a gun and stole the pickup.

The victim was able to track the truck using a GPS application that provided real-time location information.

Family members track down stolen truck

Authorities said the victim contacted family members and friends after the robbery.

Investigators said Louis Erebia and a family friend later used the GPS information to locate the stolen Silverado near Loop 610 and Airline Drive.

According to detectives, the truck became disabled after a crash.

Investigators said two suspects then got out of the vehicle and ran toward a nearby Chevron gas station.

What happened next turned deadly.

Confrontation ends in gunfire

Detectives said Erebia chased after the suspects.

During the confrontation, investigators said one of the suspects pulled out a gun and opened fire.

“The male suspect had produced a firearm, discharging the firearm and the victims sustained a gunshot wound,” Harris County Sheriff’s Office Detective Sergio Torres said.

Erebia and a family friend were both struck by gunfire.

Both men were transported to a hospital.

Investigators said Erebia later died from his injuries.

The second victim survived and was listed in stable condition.

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Witnesses describe chaotic moments

Witnesses said the situation quickly turned chaotic after the crash.

“I think the people that robbed the truck, they panicked. They were trying to get away. They crashed. They ran that way down North Loop, towards the freeway,” one witness said.

The witness said seeing the shooting unfold was difficult to process.

“It was shocking. Nothing like that ever happened like that in front of me,” the witness said.

Investigators said the suspects eventually fled in another vehicle.

Authorities previously said they were searching for a male and female suspect who left the area in a black pickup truck.

Family remembers Louis Erebia

On Monday, Erebia’s family gathered alongside Crime Stoppers Houston to share more about the man they lost.

In a statement, relatives described Erebia as a devoted husband of 22 years, a father of five, and a grandfather of three.

They said he spent years volunteering at North Shore Little League, coaching children, maintaining fields, and helping families throughout the community.

Family members also said he served at his church and regularly volunteered whenever help was needed.

“He never held grudges, never met a stranger, and had a way of lighting up every room he entered,” the family said.

According to relatives, Erebia was known for helping neighbors, supporting community events, and putting others before himself.

His wife currently serves as a trustee with Galena Park ISD, where their children attended school.

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‘He lost his life because he was courageous’

Family members said Erebia immediately sprang into action after learning his son had been robbed at gunpoint.

“When his son called in a panic after being robbed at gunpoint, Louis did what he had always done. He ran toward the people he loved,” the family’s statement said.

The family also addressed questions surrounding Erebia’s decision to pursue the suspects.

“Louis did not lose his life because he was reckless. He lost his life because he was courageous,” the statement continued.

Relatives said they believe Erebia was trying to protect a young man who remained in the parking lot when gunfire erupted.

“He spent his last minute on this earth exactly as he spent his life, protecting others, putting others first, and fighting for the people he loved,” the family said.

Family demands justice

The family is now calling for those responsible to be held fully accountable.

“We do not want watered-down sentences, lenient treatment, or easy bail,” the statement said.

The family added that five children lost their father, three grandchildren lost their grandfather, and a wife lost her husband.

“Louis gave his life protecting someone else. He deserves to be remembered for the hero he was,” the family said.

Investigation remains active

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate the shooting.

Investigators previously said they were searching for additional suspects, including a male and female who allegedly fled the scene in a black pickup truck after the shooting.

Detectives continue reviewing surveillance video and interviewing witnesses as they work to determine the role each person played in the incident.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers Houston at 713-222-TIPS or the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.

London Hogan enfrenta cargos de asesinato, robo agravado con arma mortal y asalto agravado con arma mortal en relación con la muerte de Louis Erebia.

Investigadores aseguran que la cadena de eventos comenzó la tarde del sábado con un robo a mano armada y terminó horas después con Erebia muerto tras un tiroteo afuera de una gasolinera en el norte de Houston.

• Man charged with murder after father killed while trying to recover son’s stolen truck, authorities say

Sospechoso comparece ante la corte

Durante una audiencia de causa probable celebrada el lunes por la mañana, una jueza informó a Hogan sobre los cargos que enfrenta.

“Señor Hogan, usted está aquí por asalto agravado con arma mortal, robo agravado con arma mortal y asesinato”, dijo la jueza durante la audiencia.

Los registros judiciales muestran que el caso fue asignado a la Corte de Distrito 339.

La jueza también señaló que Hogan actualmente se encuentra bajo adjudicación diferida por un delito grave relacionado con un caso de asalto presentado en marzo de 2024.

Cuando se le preguntó si solicitaría representación legal, Hogan respondió que pedirá un abogado de oficio.

La decisión sobre una posible fianza será tomada por el tribunal asignado al caso.

• Person killed, 3 injured in 2-vehicle crash along Beltway 8 in Pasadena

Investigadores dicen que la camioneta fue robada a punta de pistola

De acuerdo con la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado Harris, la investigación comenzó alrededor de las 2 p.m. del sábado después de que agentes respondieran a un robo agravado en la cuadra 11800 de Tidwell Road.

Los detectives informaron que un hombre estaba cargando gasolina en su Chevrolet Silverado azul cuando un sospechoso se acercó y comenzó a hacerle preguntas sobre la camioneta.

Las autoridades dijeron que el sospechoso sacó un arma y robó el vehículo.

La víctima logró rastrear la camioneta utilizando una aplicación de GPS que proporcionaba información de ubicación en tiempo real.

Familiares localizaron la camioneta utilizando GPS

Las autoridades informaron que la víctima contactó a familiares y amigos después del robo.

Investigadores dijeron que Louis Erebia y un amigo de la familia utilizaron la información del GPS para localizar la Silverado robada cerca de Loop 610 y Airline Drive.

Según los detectives, la camioneta quedó inutilizada después de verse involucrada en un choque.

Las autoridades dijeron que dos sospechosos salieron corriendo del vehículo y se dirigieron hacia una gasolinera Chevron cercana.

Lo que ocurrió después terminó en tragedia.

Confrontación termina en un tiroteo

Los detectives dijeron que Erebia persiguió a los sospechosos.

Durante la confrontación, los investigadores aseguran que uno de ellos sacó un arma y abrió fuego.

“El sospechoso masculino sacó un arma de fuego y la disparó, causando heridas de bala a las víctimas”, dijo el detective Sergio Torres de la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado Harris.

Erebia y un amigo de la familia fueron alcanzados por los disparos.

Ambos fueron trasladados a un hospital.

Investigadores informaron que Erebia murió posteriormente debido a las heridas sufridas.

La segunda víctima sobrevivió y fue reportada en condición estable.

Testigos describen una escena caótica

Testigos dijeron que la situación se volvió caótica después del choque.

“Creo que las personas que robaron la camioneta entraron en pánico. Estaban tratando de escapar. Chocaron y corrieron hacia la autopista”, dijo un testigo.

El mismo testigo aseguró que nunca había visto algo parecido.

“Fue impactante. Nunca había visto algo así frente a mí”, dijo.

Investigadores informaron que los sospechosos escaparon en otro vehículo.

Las autoridades habían informado previamente que buscaban a un hombre y una mujer que huyeron del lugar en una camioneta negra.

• 1 dead, 1 critically hurt after shooting at crawfish boil in northeast Houston, HPD says

La familia recuerda a Louis Erebia

El lunes, familiares de Erebia se reunieron junto a Crime Stoppers Houston para compartir quién era el hombre que perdieron.

En un comunicado, describieron a Erebia como un esposo dedicado durante 22 años, padre de cinco hijos y abuelo de tres nietos.

También señalaron que pasó años colaborando con North Shore Little League, ayudando a entrenar niños, mantener campos deportivos y apoyar a familias de la comunidad.

La familia dijo que también servía activamente en su iglesia y siempre estaba dispuesto a ayudar cuando alguien lo necesitaba.

“Nunca guardaba rencor, nunca conoció a un extraño y tenía una manera especial de iluminar cualquier lugar al que llegaba”, señaló la familia.

Según sus seres queridos, Erebia era conocido por ayudar a vecinos, apoyar eventos comunitarios y poner a los demás antes que a sí mismo.

Su esposa actualmente sirve como síndica de Galena Park ISD, donde estudiaron sus hijos.

“Perdió la vida porque fue valiente”

Los familiares dijeron que Erebia actuó de inmediato después de recibir la llamada de su hijo informándole que había sido víctima de un robo a mano armada.

“Cuando su hijo llamó desesperado después de haber sido asaltado a punta de pistola, Louis hizo lo que siempre hacía. Corrió hacia las personas que amaba”, dice el comunicado.

La familia también respondió a quienes han cuestionado la decisión de Erebia de perseguir a los sospechosos.

“Louis no perdió la vida porque fue imprudente. Perdió la vida porque fue valiente”, escribió la familia.

Sus seres queridos aseguran que Erebia estaba tratando de proteger a otra persona que permanecía en el estacionamiento cuando comenzó el tiroteo.

“Pasó su último minuto en esta tierra exactamente de la misma manera que vivió su vida: protegiendo a otros, poniendo a los demás primero y luchando por las personas que amaba”, agregó la familia.

La familia exige justicia

Ahora, la familia pide que todos los responsables enfrenten las consecuencias.

“No queremos sentencias reducidas, trato preferencial ni fianzas fáciles”, dice el comunicado.

La familia señaló que cinco hijos perdieron a su padre, tres nietos perdieron a su abuelo y una esposa perdió a su compañero de vida.

“Louis dio su vida protegiendo a otra persona. Merece ser recordado por el héroe que fue”, concluye el comunicado.

La investigación continúa

La Oficina del Sheriff del Condado Harris continúa investigando el caso.

Las autoridades han dicho previamente que otras personas podrían haber estado involucradas y que aún buscan a sospechosos adicionales, incluyendo un hombre y una mujer que presuntamente huyeron del lugar en una camioneta negra.

Los detectives continúan revisando videos de vigilancia, entrevistando testigos y reuniendo evidencia.

Cualquier persona con información sobre el caso puede comunicarse con Crime Stoppers Houston al 713-222-TIPS o con la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado Harris.

The updated findings, released by the WHO, highlight the significant impact of unsafe food and show that young children face the greatest risk of severe illness and death from contaminated food.

• Sugar Land police searching for man accused of attacking Houston nanny with baseball bat

Foodborne diseases can be caused by bacteria, viruses, parasites and harmful chemicals found in food and beverages. According to health experts, many cases can be prevented through proper food handling and preparation practices.

Experts recommend avoiding foods that are more likely to carry harmful pathogens, including undercooked meat, undercooked eggs, raw flour and unpasteurized dairy products.

They also advise thoroughly washing fruits and vegetables before eating them and keeping perishable foods refrigerated. Foods that require refrigeration should not be left at room temperature for more than two hours, experts say, as bacteria can multiply rapidly.

• Man charged with murder after father killed while trying to recover son’s stolen truck, authorities say

The WHO said improving food safety practices at home, in restaurants and throughout the food supply chain could help reduce the global burden of foodborne disease and save lives.

Health officials encourage consumers to follow basic food safety measures, including cleaning surfaces, separating raw and cooked foods, cooking foods to safe temperatures and storing foods properly.

Hope you had a great weekend. Welcome back!

Let’s dive into some news on the morning, shall we. Our biggest story of the morning is coming out of one of Houston’s most popular suburbs, Sugar Land.

Police are searching for the man who is accused of assaulting a nanny with a baseball bat. The incident happened on Sunday, according to the Sugar Land Police. Police said the woman was walking when an unknown man approached her and assaulted her with a bat before fleeing in an SUV. The woman’s husband said she was caring for a child when the attack happened.

Police are searching for the suspect.

To read more, click here.

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YOUR MORNING FORECAST ☀️

TODAY:88° TONIGHT: 77°

KPRC 2 Meteorologist says:

“We’re waking up in the mid-70s with a high in the upper 80s. There was limited rain on Monday. Isolated to spotty showers move in from the coast and move northeast. This is a much-needed break from the widespread daily downpours, and it is all thanks to high pressure. This pattern will heat Houston; with temperatures and humidity combined, there will be several days when it feels like 100 degrees!”

Get your forecast details here.

TOP STORIES

Man charged with murder after father killed while trying to recover son’s stolen truck, authorities say

An arrest has been made in the shooting death of a Houston-area father who investigators say was killed while trying to help recover his son’s stolen truck in north Harris County.

According to authorities, 37-year-old London Hogan made his first court appearance Sunday night and is facing multiple charges, including murder, aggravated assault and aggravated robbery.

Person killed, 3 injured in 2-vehicle crash along Beltway 8 in Pasadena

An investigation is underway after a crash along Beltway 8 leaves one dead and three injured Sunday afternoon, according to Pasadena Police Department.

The two-vehicle crash was reported at 3:11 p.m. on Pasadena Boulevard and Beltway 8 service road.

Trader Joe’s shoppers could get nearly $100 from $7.4 million settlement, deadline to file claim is approaching

Trader Joe’s customers who may have received receipts containing too much payment card information could be eligible for a cash payment from a $7.4 million class-action settlement, but the deadline to file a claim is quickly approaching.

The lawsuit, filed in California, alleged that Trader Joe’s printed the first six and last four digits of customers’ credit or debit card numbers on receipts from a limited number of transactions at certain store locations.

ARE YOU A KPRC 2 INSIDER? HERE’S SOME EXCLUSIVES

Get 2 know Bombón: The music collective behind the Houston remix for FIFA World Cup 2026™ 🎵🎵⚽

CLICK2PINS: SHOW US WHAT YA GOT 📷

See a news story in your neighborhood? Capture a great weather moment? Just want to share a photo of your pet? Send your photos and videos to Click2Pins, and you may see them on air and online!

of

Happy one day closer to Friday HA!

I have a few surprises for you today, so make sure you read all the way to the end for a special edition of today’s newsletter!!!

Jumping straight into what you need to know this morning, if you’re an early sleeper like me, you may have missed our Hurricane and Flood special. But no worries. If you missed this, I got you!

As you know, Houston weather can change in the drop of a dime, so we must always be prepared for severe weather during hurricane season. If you need some tips or want to watch the special from last night, you know what to do.

To read more, click here.

➡️ Love our morning newsletter? Share it with your family and friends!

YOUR MORNING FORECAST ☀️

TODAY:84° TONIGHT: 75°

KPRC 2 Meteorologist says:

“Similar to Wednesday, there will be more afternoon thunderstorms. We’ll wake up in the 70s with a high in the mid-80s. We’ll keep a close eye on the radar as we get into the afternoon. ”

Get your forecast details here.

TOP STORIES

3 injured in drive-by shooting outside north Houston convenience store

Two people have been hospitalized, and another was grazed with a bullet after a drive-by shooting at a convenience store on Wednesday night. Police said someone in a red vehicle drove by the store and started shooting. It’s not clear what prompted the shooting or if it was targeted.

TEA launches public dashboard showing over 13,000 educator misconduct cases

The Texas Education Agency has launched a new public dashboard that reveals the agency has received more than 13,000 reports of educator misconduct, giving parents and taxpayers an unprecedented look into investigations involving Texas school employees.

The newly launched Educator Misconduct Dashboard shows that as of May 2026, the agency had received 13,390 misconduct reports, averaging approximately 1,674 reports per month. The online tool allows the public to view misconduct reports submitted to TEA, active investigations, disciplinary actions by the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC), and placements on the state’s Do Not Hire Registry.

3 arrested after mother hears intruders breaking into home while child is inside

Three suspects were arrested Thursday morning after a mother said she heard intruders inside her home where her child slept. Deputies responded, located the suspects and arrested them

ARE YOU A KPRC 2 INSIDER? HERE’S SOME EXCLUSIVES

SUMMER SWEEPSTAKES: Enter to win 3 weeks of free airport parking from The Parking Spot

HoustonMoms+KPRC 2

Friday on KPRC 2+ Morning News: The team behind Houston Moms is joining us to talk about the resources, events, and family-friendly guides that help Houston parents stay connected and informed. Houston Moms is a community-driven platform created by local moms, for local moms, covering everything from parenting tips to things to do around town. Tune in Friday morning to meet the team and learn more about what they offer Houston families.

CLICK2PINS: SHOW US WHAT YA GOT 📷

See a news story in your neighborhood? Capture a great weather moment? Just want to share a photo of your pet? Send your photos and videos to Click2Pins, and you may see them on air and online!

The lawsuit, filed in California, alleged that Trader Joe’s printed the first six and last four digits of customers’ credit or debit card numbers on receipts from a limited number of transactions at certain store locations.

• Listeria found in Walmart, Trader Joe’s meals may be linked to deadly outbreak

Plaintiffs claimed the practice violated the federal Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA), which restricts the amount of payment card information that can appear on printed receipts.

Trader Joe’s denied any wrongdoing or liability in the case. However, the company agreed to a $7.4 million settlement to resolve the claims.

Eligible customers who submit approved claims could receive approximately $100, though the exact amount will depend on the total number of valid claims filed.

• Sugar Land welcomes Trader Joe’s sixth Houston-area location

According to settlement information, the deadline to submit a claim is June 9.

Customers who believe they may qualify are encouraged to review the settlement details and file a claim before the deadline expires.

Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson’s unexpected departure only a few months before the November midterm election, which includes one of the most hotly contested U.S. Senate races the state has seen in years, has some local election officials and voting rights advocates worrying the transition will complicate their ability to administer a smooth election.

“It’s the unknown, the uncertainty that is scary,” said Tandi Smith, the Kaufman County elections administrator. “Are we going to continue to receive guidance? Are we going to be ensured that we’ll be prepared for any coming changes? We just don’t know.”

Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, is required by law to appoint a new secretary as soon as possible. His office, in an emailed statement, said the new appointee would be announced “at a later date.”

Nelson, who has been the state’s chief election official for more than three years, last week announced that she’d be stepping down from the role effective July 17. Nelson’s departure will happen just as election officials across the state are preparing in earnest for the November general election. In the summer months, they’ll be recruiting election workers, seeking polling locations, and processing voter registration applications, among other duties.

Some voting rights advocates say a new appointee may want to direct local election officials to change election procedures, which could lead to chaos and confusion for voters. Although the secretary of state’s office has no law enforcement authority and can’t change the law, it can issue election law opinions on how to implement election and voting rules.

“If the new secretary of state has a laundry list of demands that election administrators can’t meet, that’s going to throw our elections into disarray,” said Emily Eby French, policy director at Common Cause Texas. French noted that there were three secretaries of state between 2017 and Nelson’s appointment in 2023, some of whom remained in the role only for about a year before resigning.

“I am very concerned that we are going to go back to that period of instability that we were in before Jane Nelson,” she said.

In the months leading up to the March primary election, county election officials across the state navigated challenges including a rare mid-decade residistricting cycle and issues with the statewide election management and voter registration system, known as TEAM. The majority of counties in the state rely on the system, which was overhauled last summer by the secretary of state’s office, to manage elections and to maintain voter registration lists.

The Texas Association of County Election Officials has twice publicly asked Nelson’s office in the past six months to act and resolve the problems. The secretary of state’s office has said that problems with a new version of the system were expected, especially given that the system handles the data of more than 18 million voter registration records. They’ve also said the situation was aggravated by the unexpected midcycle redistricting and problems with an outside vendor that forced some counties to suddenly add large amounts of data to the state system with little warning.

But despite these tensions, state election officials have consistently remained supportive of local election officials through politically tense periods and have maintained a nonpartisan approach when interpreting the law, said Chris McGinn, the executive director of the Texas Association of County Election Officials.

The agency has also often promoted the idea that county election officials are the election experts in each of their communities.

“There’s a fear that that could change to where the office is dictating how counties should operate with a more political approach,” he said.

Others, including some local election officials, are less concerned about top-down interference and say that a leadership transition in the office now won’t affect election officials’ ability to conduct a smooth election in November. That’s because ultimately, the election is handled by local officials in each of the state’s 254 counties.

Nelson’s sudden departure “shouldn’t have any noticeable impact on the ability of the election officials in Texas to run free and fair elections,” said Joshua Ferrer, an assistant professor of government at American University. Ferrer has done research on the recent heightened turnover of state and local election officials across the country.

“Even when officials leave, the replacements, and the staff that are still there are able to do an equally good job,” Ferrer said.

Smith, the Kaufman County elections administrator, said she’d like to see the incoming secretary of state advocate for more funding and resources for county election departments.

“Funding is something we’ve talked about for years,” Smith said, recalling when a tornado touched down in the North Texas county during the 2024 primary runoff election and her office had to scramble to ensure polling locations stayed open. “We want to be able to provide secure facilities for our voters and to make sure that there are no delays when there are storms of that nature, but funds are limited.”

Disclosure: Texas Secretary of State has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

Natalia Contreras covers election administration and voting access for Votebeat in partnership with the Texas Tribune. Natalia is based in Corpus Christi. Contact her at ncontreras@votebeat.org.

ERCOT President and CEO Pablo Vegas called it “an unprecedented change in the pace of growth.”

Developers and speculators had been buying up land across the state, looking to cash in on a chance to construct massive warehouses filled with computers to power artificial intelligence for companies such as Meta, Amazon and Google. Older, smaller data centers ran the Internet. Artificial intelligence and cloud computing demanded much more. 

The proposals kept coming. ERCOT in the last two years received 519 requests to connect large electricity users, compared to 24 such requests the year before that, according to its records as of May. The estimated electricity that large projects could need added up to a gobsmacking 438,595 megawatts — which would equal roughly a third of all the power generation in America. 

Ninety percent of that was for data centers, most of which aimed to start operating by 2030.

ERCOT maintains that not all of those projects will come to fruition. But no one knows the real number that will ultimately connect to the grid, or how much power they’ll need. ERCOT’s board last week voted to change its policies for how it will review data center requests, partly in an effort to get to a more realistic expectation of how many will be built. 

“The projections are insane,” said Dominic Boyer, a cultural anthropologist at Rice University who studies energy politics. “Not all of that will be built, but just even the fact that that much is being proposed sort of suggests that there is this absolute sea change happening in terms of electricity demand.”

The explosion in data center projects is tied to Texas becoming “one of the national leaders in digital infrastructure,” said Dan Diorio, vice president of state policy for the industry association, the Data Center Coalition. The state’s business-friendly regulatory environment and ability for companies to build needed energy infrastructure relatively easily attracted projects. So did its strong workforce and available land, water and fiber infrastructure, Diorio said. The Dallas-Fort Worth region in particular grew as a major market.

So many of these bigger, next generation data center projects are planned for Texas that the state could surpass Virginia for the title of the world’s largest data center market by 2030, according to a report by real estate and investment management firm JLL. Gov. Greg Abbott has touted Texas as “the epicenter of AI development” and some local officials have celebrated their arrival. 

“Our competitive advantage as a state is also the source of our biggest planning challenge,” said Matt Boms, executive director for the Texas Advanced Energy Business Alliance, which advocates for clean energy policies and represents some technology companies. “So there’s a bit of a paradox there. But it’s a good problem to have. I think a lot of other states would kill to have that kind of problem.”

Not everyone agrees. Community advocates fighting to stop data centers fear the projects will spike Texans’ electric bills and make the grid less reliable. They envision a nightmare in which data centers suck up massive amounts of water, emit constant noise and spew pollution from on-site, gas-fueled power plants and backup generators. 

Industry leaders say data centers create jobs, especially during construction of the behemoth sites. The facilities, which by the state’s count will receive billions of dollars worth of tax breaks, still pay billions of dollars more in state and local taxes. 

There are at least 248 planned data centers coming to Texas, based on a review of facilities compiled by two companies that track the industry, along with Tribune research. ERCOT does not share detailed site information publicly, and the companies’ findings only found power use estimates for less than half of the projects.

Among the new projects, 86 are planned in North Texas, 56 in Central Texas and 45 in West Texas. The vast majority are planned in urban and suburban counties with more than 50,000 people. About half are aimed at unincorporated areas, which have limited means for regulating them compared to cities. 

Some massive projects are already under construction: A sprawling facility in Abilene plans to use grid power plus on-site gas power and batteries to get up to 1,200 megawatts of electricity — enough to power roughly a third of the households in the city of Houston, according to census data. 

Another huge campus outside Amarillo planned by former Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s company, Fermi America, could need up to 11,000 megawatts of power — enough to power 2.75 million homes, which is more than the number of households in Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio combined. A third project in oil-and-gas-dominated Pecos County could use more than 5,000 megawatts. 

All three will build at least some on-site, gas-fueled power plants, which emit carbon dioxide that contributes to climate change. Two of the project websites say they will cycle water through their systems. The project in Abilene said it will require 8 million gallons of city water to fill initially — which it said is the amount a large office uses in a year.

“Texas has been one of the best and easiest places to move those projects forward,” said Cully Cavness, co-founder of data center developer Crusoe, which is building the Abilene project, at a panel in March. “It’s never easy, but it is relatively smoother here than many other states.”

A potential strain on resources

The sudden propagation of data centers reaching every corner of the state threatens issues that matter to Texans. 

It raises triggering questions about the reliability of the grid, which failed during a 2021 winter storm when ERCOT cut power to millions in the freezing cold. It could transform quality of life, from suburban subdivisions to rural farms, where Texans want to protect their communities from construction traffic, noise pollution and industrial blight. And it renewed fears about water supply, as some parts of the state navigate an impending crisis. 

“A lot of the sentiment that I’m hearing from those that don’t want data centers… is like, ‘You’re telling me, you know, you want to build this big thing in my community that’s going to take all the energy and take the water to build the technology that’s going to take the jobs away from my kids?” said Joshua Rhodes, a research scientist at the University of Texas at Austin. “That’s what I’m hearing a lot of people are feeling, and some of that’s just because this technology is so new. We just don’t know what it’s going to do.”

Some experts warn data centers have the potential to help push the state’s fragile water supply to the brink — especially in Texas’ more arid regions. Population and economic growth are already driving more demand for water, and scientists have found climate change is intensifying droughts. 

Texas made its largest financial commitment to expanding water supply last year, dedicating up to $20 billion for water projects over the next two decades. But that amount falls short of the $174 billion needed over the next 50 years, according to a projection in the draft of the 2027 state water plan. 

Water experts say data centers will put more pressure on Texas’ water supply. One estimate shows data centers could account for between 3% and 9% of Texas’ total water use by 2040 — up from less than 1% today, according to a recent white paper from The University of Texas at Austin. By comparison, manufacturing accounts for about 7% of the state’s water use, according to the current state water plan. 

Data centers demand significant amounts of water to keep their systems cool, though the industry argues its technology is improving with time to require less water. Some are proposing to use closed loop systems — which draw a large amount of water at the start but reuse it over some period of years — but Texas does not require projects to use that technology. Others run instead on cheaper evaporative cooling systems that more consistently replenish their water supply.

How much water a project can use is governed locally by various entities such as utilities, special districts and river authorities.

“Data centers are among the most efficient water users,” Diorio said, citing research that he said found they use less water than semiconductor manufacturing, food and beverage production and annual municipal water system leaks. “Data centers will continue to deploy advanced cooling technologies that are water efficient and continue to invest in water sustainability practices.” 

Higher demand for electricity

The new data center projects are requesting considerably more power than those of yesteryear. 

A Tribune analysis found that of the planned and existing data centers that provided information about their power draw, the average facility will require five times more capacity than the average existing data center in Texas. 

Among the existing data centers in the analysis, the upper limit for power capacity is 1,200 megawatts. But among planned data centers coming online, the max is nine times that. 

Historically, developers went to regional utilities with their connection requests, and the utilities studied whether they had enough infrastructure to supply each project and communicated with ERCOT. But that process became untenable as requests piled up.

Pending approval from regulators, ERCOT now is proposing to study proposals itself in batches so it can better evaluate how much overall power demand they will represent. Vegas, the ERCOT CEO said Tuesday that projects seeking to draw about 100,000 megawatts of power would qualify to be in the first group to be reviewed by ERCOT by April. 

“It’s just this big tsunami wave (of projects) that is impending, and trying to crash down, and historically that was coming directly on the utility,” said Beth Garza, a senior fellow with the R Street Institute who also represents residential customers on an ERCOT committee. “Now with the implementation of the batch process, ERCOT is a little bit of that seawall in front of the utilities.”

Under the new rules, to be considered by the Public Utility Commission of Texas, developers would first have to pay ERCOT $50,000 per megawatt proposed and prove they have leased or purchased the land for their facilities. Vegas described the new process as a potential solution to a national problem of how to balance economic benefits with grid reliability.

“This is an issue that is affecting the whole globe and certainly the country,” Vegas said. “Everybody is trying to figure out how to do this in a reliable, stable way.”

In their review, ERCOT will figure out how many more power lines and related infrastructure need to be built to meet the additional demand. Some of that cost could be added on top of what researchers found are already rising electric bills for Texas power customers — residential consumers currently pay more of those costs than industrial ones. 

It’s not clear how much of the infrastructure bill data centers will pick up, and regulators are evaluating the issue. Some experts have advocated for more of it to fall on companies to ensure affordability and support a variety of additional, local solutions such as investment in energy efficiency so people use less electricity at home.

“We can solve it,” said Margo Weisz, executive director of the Texas Energy Poverty Research Institute, a nonprofit that works on making electricity more affordable. “Whether we will solve it is another question.”

Other data center projects could meanwhile sit apart from the grid entirely by building their own power generation, such as gas-fueled power plants. Some projects also plan to install back-up diesel generators in case of power outages. 

ERCOT won’t be assessing whether there’s enough electricity available to serve data centers’ needs. It’s operating on the assumption that the market will meet the demand: the opportunity to make money selling power to these new customers will incentivize other companies to build more power generation, whether it’s gas-fired power plants, solar and wind farms or battery facilities. 

Legislators also passed a provision last year allowing ERCOT to direct large data centers that have backup power to cut back their grid use during emergencies.

Andrew Mahaleris, spokesperson for Abbott, said in a statement that protecting water and power needed by Texans will take priority over attracting investment. 

“Governor Abbott will continue to work with the Legislature to protect Texans and ensure their voices are heard,” Mahaleris said.

Local resistance

In February in San Marcos, just south of Austin, residents packed City Hall to protest a proposed data center that would have consumed more than 25 million gallons of water annually — in their view, threatening the city’s beloved namesake river that flowed through town.

One protester wore a blow-up salamander costume, referencing the endangered Texas blind salamander native to the river. A crowd of hundreds outside sang, chanted and held signs that read “Keep San Marcos wet” and “2 dry 4 AI.” 

Inside, residents told council members over an eight-hour meeting to reject the zoning change needed for the project to move forward. 

“All of us met at the water, and that’s what brought us here,” said Randi Finn, who was running a childcare station at the protest for parents who wanted to testify against the center. “We want these springs to be here for our kids and for our grandkids.”

Similar scenes have played out across Texas, from Round Rock to Waco to Athens. Residents aren’t willing to wait for legislators, who have vowed to look at data center issues before the next regular session begins in January.

The trouble is, when it comes to protecting quality of life, Texas gives cities and counties markedly different powers. Cities such as San Marcos have zoning powers that allow them to deny projects. San Marcos council members voted the proposal down.

But outside of city limits, counties — where a large number of the proposed data centers plan to build — have little power to control where or how projects are built.

County leaders can vote down tax abatement agreements, removing some of the economic incentive, but that wouldn’t block a company from building a data center. 

State lawmakers — many of them Republicans stuck between outcry from communities that don’t want these projects and a president who does — have not shown much interest in giving counties more regulatory power.

Roughly two-thirds of the projects are slated for counties that voted in 2024 for President Donald Trump, according to the Tribune’s analysis, creating headaches for Texas’ Republican majority.

Some county leaders have considered how to block or slow projects. But when Hood County commissioners tried to pass a moratorium on data center projects, Republican State Sen. Paul Bettencourt fired off a threatening letter to the attorney general arguing they had no right to do so. Other counties weighing moratoriums dropped the idea; one that went through with it got sued by the developer and revoked its own moratorium.

“There’s an underlying no-growth philosophy — that’s not a majority of the party but it’s there — that’s driving this,” said Bettencourt, who represents part of the Houston area. “That’s not good public policy long-term.”

In Caldwell County, where at least three data center projects plan to locate, County Judge Hoppy Haden said he’s lost so much sleep over the issue that he now has big bags under his eyes. He’s taken heat from citizens at town halls where he feels made out to look like he’s pro-data center when really he just has little authority to slow or stop problematic projects in his county south of Austin best known for Lockhart barbecue. 

“I would be a liar if I said that didn’t bother me because it does,” Haden said. “I’m just as concerned as everybody else and we’re doing what we can and certainly we’re not just sitting around hoping they go away.

“All the town halls in the world are not going to make these guys go away, unfortunately,” he added. “We have to come up with solutions to the issues that they create. Because they’re going to still come.”

In Hays County, which straddles Interstate 35 south of Austin and includes San Marcos, Judge Ruben Becerra wanted to set up his own county department to review the projects to make sure they can be run sustainably. He knew the county’s existing development services office that usually handles requests for say, an H-E-B distribution center, wasn’t equipped to understand the impacts of a data center.

“Theres no world where I’m going to sit idle, sit on my hands, and watch it happen, without at least fighting for our communities,” Becerra said, adding, “Do I have the statutory authority to do X, Y, Z? I really don’t care. I’d rather push hard and ask for forgiveness than to lay down and say, well I can’t do it, and throw my hands up in the air and say well it’s up to the [Legislature] and I’ll wait for 10 more years to see if something actually happens.”

ABOUT OUR DATA SET 

The Texas Tribune acquired information on data centers from Cleanview and Data Center Map, two companies that compile and sell data on operating and planned data centers. The Tribune joined these datasets based on location and manually identified and removed duplicates that appeared in both sources. This data was filtered to data centers that had latitude and longitude coordinates, which were used alongside Census data to determine the types of areas data centers are being built in. The data was supplemented with other data centers identified with Tribune reporting.

Paul Cobler and Alejandra Martinez contributed reporting.

Disclosure: Google, H-E-B, Rice University and the University of Texas at Austin have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

The 28,000-acre Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge that spans Burnet, Travis and Williamson counties on Monday announced it has added nearly 300 acres, about a year after a 317-acre addition through an initiative by The Conservation Fund in partnership with Friends of Balcones.

The expansion was supported by a mix of public and private funding, including donations from the Woodnext Foundation and the Land and Water Conservation Fund, a national coalition that protects national parks. Both new tracts were purchased from landowners in Burnet County.

A medley of wildlife and greenery call the refuge home. Goldfinches and wrens live within the rolling hills’ thick blanket of oaks, elms and juniper trees. Below are caves and sinkholes where tooth cave spiders and tiny pseudoscorpions crawl around.

But most people visit the refuge to catch a glimpse of a pocket-sized songbird with a striking gold head.

The 4-inch tall golden-cheeked warbler is the only bird species whose population nests exclusively in Texas; they only breed in Central Texas’ ashe juniper and oak woodlands.

“I always like to say that golden-cheek warblers are all Texans,” said Ellen Gass, Texas field representative at The Conservation Fund. “That’s why we work so hard to protect them.”

This warbler draws birders from across the nation who travel to the Hill Country just to hear its unique, buzzy song for themselves.

Nicole Sarkar, executive director at Friends of Balcones, said expanding the golden-cheeked warbler’s habitat is important because they have been on the national endangered list since 1990. Development and flooding has caused their habitat to shrink, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Securing more than 600 more acres will help protect where warblers nest, along with hundreds of other bird species that live in the refuge, Sarkar said.

In addition to expanding the refuge, which is protected and owned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Gass said the woodlands greenery is also a natural flood buffer.

”By protecting habitat in this area, we get this added benefit of helping flood mitigation and flood prevention,” Gass said. “Especially in an area that’s seeing really, impactful and quick development.”

The new 600 acres don’t have a public trail, but elsewhere in the refuge, visitors can trek 10 miles of trails and birdwatch from its many observation decks.

The refuge was created in 1992 to protect the golden-cheeked warbler and the black-capped vireo, a small songbird with a dark head and red eyes that likes to hop between low bushes and short trees. After more than 30 years of being on the endangered species list, the black-capped vireo was removed in 2018.

Sarkar said she hopes the same happens for the golden-cheeked warbler, which she spotted for the first time in April.

“​​I’ve heard the song, I’ve listened to it, and then I’ve seen photos of the bird,” she said. “But to be able to hear it and see it at the same time while at the refuge was really exciting.”

That was certainly the vibe on Sunday night, where the crowd delighted in familiar Broadway heroes finally winning their Tonys, and where the biggest award went to a Broadway musical that celebrates, well, Broadway musicals: “Schmigadoon!”

There were reunions within the reunion, too. For example, the original cast of “The Book of Mormon,” including Josh Gad, Nikki M. James and Andrew Rannells, was on hand to perform a number marking the show’s 15th anniversary — a definite highlight of the night, especially seeing Gad move to the song “Man Up.”

As for the acceptance speeches, many moms and dads and spouses and kids were thanked, of course. But one winner refreshingly thanked all the babysitters that made their career possible.

Some highlights of the night:

Pink sure got that party started

In the show's first bit, new host Pink, who has not performed on Broadway, pretended she didn't know what she was doing, and dangled uncomfortably from a wire, trying to be Peter Pan. Then Neil Patrick Harris, who's hosted multiple times, came out and told her she just needed to be herself: “You’re Pink! You can do anything,”

Of course he was right. The consensus was that Pink killed it, starting with the opening number, where she led an enormous ensemble of some 170 Broadway performers in a version of “Lady Marmalade” that was a love letter to this season's shows, with current casts performing onstage and lots of actors name-checked in the audience, too. As in: “Gitchie Gitchie Lesley Manville, Gitchie Gitchie Carrie Coon."

The number was written by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (the duo behind “Dear Evan Hansen” and “The Greatest Showman”) and Mark Sonnenblick (who co-wrote “Golden” in “Kpop Demon Hunters”), and the reaction in the theater was ecstatic.

Thank you for … canceling us?

This was a new kind of thank-you. When “Schmigadoon!” won best musical, producer (and “Saturday Night Live” creator) Lorne Michaels spoke first, saying “Sometimes singing, dancing, jokes and a happy ending are all you need.”

Then producer Christine Schwarzman spoke and thanked Apple TV for canceling the third season of the TV show it was adapted from.

“Without them dropping it, we couldn’t have picked it up and ran with it. So, thanks Apple TV,” she said, to laughs.

A voice teacher gets a deserved thank-you

There was no award that had the audience cheering louder and longer than when Joshua Henry finally won a Tony, after four nominations during a stellar Broadway career.

Henry won best actor in a musical for his career-topping turn as Coalhouse Walker Jr., a Black pianist who suffers the horrors of racism in the current revival of “Ragtime,” an adaptation of E.L. Doctorow’s novel.

In addition to his wife and kids, Henry thanked his first voice teacher, which got huge applause from the crowd. He also thanked Audra McDonald and Brian Stokes Mitchell, legendary Broadway actors who preceded him in the 1998 run of “Ragtime.”

Babysitters deserve gratitude, too

Henry’s “Ragtime” co-star, Caissie Levy, was waiting for him for a long hug backstage. Levy, who was the original Elsa in the Broadway version of “Frozen,” had just won her own first Tony, for leading actress in a musical. In her own speech, Levy thanked a lot of people, but one unusual shoutout was to her family's babysitters: “Thank you to … every babysitter who’s made it possible for me to be both a Broadway actor and a mother.”

Levy, a mother of two, plays the character called Mother.

A play about history makes some of its own

The winner for best play, “Liberation” by Bess Wohl, toggles between the present time and the ’70s, exploring the roots of second-wave feminism through a consciousness-raising group that meets in an Ohio gym.

But it was a different kind of history that playwright Wohl addressed in her acceptance speech — the fact that she was the first American woman to win the category since Wendy Wasserstein won for “The Heidi Chronicles” in 1989.

She told women and girls who were listening; “May you speak your truth and may the world be wise enough to listen.”

“Liberation” also won the Pulitzer Prize this year.

If anyone can make 'Oedipus' funny, it’s Cole Escola

There is literally not one single thing that is funny about the story of Oedipus, the Sophocles classic tragedy with a shocking ending.

But Cole Escola, the mastermind behind the hit comedy “Oh Mary,” found a way. Presenting along with Maya Rudolph, who is now playing Mary Todd Lincoln in Escola’s play, the writer-actor noted of Oedipus:

“(It’s) a play that asks the question: Can women really have it all?”

If you don't get the reference, ask Manville. The veteran British actor won for leading actress in a play for her devastating turn as Jocasta in Robert Icke's modern retelling of the tragedy — her Broadway debut. As she noted in her own speech, she plays Oedipus’ wife and, also, it turns out, his mother.

To which someone in the audience called out: “Spoiler!”

This is New York. They support the Knicks

When actor John Leguizamo introduced a segment on the show, he couldn’t resist ending his remarks with “Knicks in four!”

The crowd at Radio City Music Hall gave a huge cheer. You thought they were going to root for the other guys?

The Knicks lead the San Antonio Spurs by 2-0 in the NBA Finals.

Learning some moves during commercial breaks

The audience at Radio City Music Hall doesn't just sit there in silence when the Tony telecast goes to commercials. There's usually something happening, and this time, there were opportunities to learn some moves.

During one break, the audience was instructed on how to use the paper fans that many found under their seats, meant for the number featuring “Cats: The Jellicle Ball,” which reimagines the 1980s feline musical as a celebration of queer ballroom culture.

And during another break, the crowd was shown how to dance to the upcoming “Time Warp” number from “The Rocky Horror Show.”

A suspect was taken into custody after the attack, which unfolded around 7 p.m. in one of the nation’s busiest transportation hubs. The sprawling rail complex beneath Madison Square Garden serves Amtrak, Long Island Rail Road, NJ Transit and New York City subway lines and is used by hundreds of thousands of commuters and travelers each day.

Paramedics found one victim with serious injuries, two with moderate injuries and two with minor injuries, according to the city’s fire department. All five were taken to Bellevue Hospital. Another person, whose condition was not immediately known, was transported to a separate hospital.

Authorities did not immediately release details about what led to the stabbing or whether the victims were targeted.

By late Sunday, the immediate chaos had given way to a familiar Penn Station scene. Travelers wheeled luggage past a roped-off area near Tracks 5 and 6 where medical gloves, discarded bandages and traces of blood still marked the floor.

The violence erupted as New York prepared for one of its biggest sports events in decades. Monday night’s matchup between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs will be the first NBA Finals game at Madison Square Garden since 1999 and is expected to draw massive crowds to the arena.

President Donald Trump has said he plans to attend the nationally televised game, prompting extensive security involving the Secret Service, New York Police Department and other agencies around Madison Square Garden and the surrounding blocks. Authorities did not immediately indicate whether the stabbing would affect security plans for the game.

Amtrak police said they were investigating the stabbing and had taken a suspect into custody. Authorities did not immediately release the suspect’s identity or provide information about potential charges.