The crisis forced 50,000 people to evacuate in and around the Orange County city of Garden Grove last week. A crack that formed by chance on the tank relieved pressure and helped avert a catastrophic explosion, allowing most evacuees to return home over the Memorial Day weekend.

But the risk of a smaller explosion or potential spill kept orders in place for about a third of the evacuees. Many are living out of hotel rooms, tents, emergency shelters at schools or staying with family or friends.

Isabel Mendez was among those still waiting to return to her mobile home. She said she broke out in a rash on her face and developed tingling lips and a sore throat while evacuating last week. After spending several expensive nights in a hotel, she is now staying with her mother in the Los Angeles area.

She remains uncertain about returning home because she does not trust official assurances that the area is safe.

“Of course it is still dangerous,” she said.

Exposure to methyl methacrylate — a highly flammable chemical used to make plastics — can cause serious respiratory problems, neurological problems and irritation to the skin, eyes and throat, according to the federal Environmental Protection Agency. The tank at GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems, which makes cockpit windows, canopies and windshields, contains 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 to 26,500 liters) of the chemical.

“We apologize for the ongoing disruption this incident is causing and our priority remains its safe resolution,” the company said, “so that residents can return to their homes as quickly as possible.”

Separately, an implosion of a chemical tank Tuesday at a pulp and paper mill in Washington state injured at least 10 people, while an undisclosed number of others had been killed or remained missing.

Crews at the California plant worked overnight to ensure two nearby tanks were neutralized and would not be affected by the compromised tank, Orange County Fire Capt. Brian Yau said.

The tank overheated because a valve on the cooling system failed, fire officials said.

“That’s what kept it at 50 degrees,” or 10 degrees Celsius, said TJ McGovern, interim chief of the Orange County Fire Authority.

“Due to that failure, the tank went into the heating-up process because it wasn’t continuing to be chilled,” he said at a news conference Monday evening.

Crews sprayed water on the tank until the interior temperature stabilized to 92 F (33.3 C), down from 100 F (37.7 C) over the weekend, the fire department said Tuesday. The hoses put out 1,250 gallons a minute over five days, which meant they used about 9 million gallons of water.

The sprinkler system at the facility continues to douse the tank, and the company said its technical specialists and firefighters removed insulation from the tank to help cool it.

Fire officials also tested storm drain water and found it was clean, McGovern said.

“There was no contamination,” Orange County Health Director Regina Chinsio-Kwong said at a Monday news conference. “You should feel comfortable going home even if you’re across the street from that new zone line.”

Concern among residents

The crisis occurred in central Orange County, which is a densely populated area made up of a cluster of cities including Garden Grove. The city of 170,000 people, along with neighboring Westminster, is home to Little Saigon, the largest Vietnamese community outside Vietnam. It is also next to Anaheim, home to Disneyland’s two theme parks, which were not under evacuation orders.

The crisis interrupted Memorial Day plans, graduation ceremonies and daily life.

Henry Nguyen, a 56-year-old auto mechanic, and his family spent the first two nights sleeping in their car.

Days into the evacuation, Nguyen said he sneaked back in their Stanton home, which was filled with fumes, to rescue the family’s dog, cat and betta fish.

He also got a tent, which he pitched by an emergency shelter that officials set up in a nearby park building in Fountain Valley. Nguyen said he’s trying to focus on the experience like it’s a camping trip in the heart of densely populated Orange County.

He even brought archery equipment to use at a range in the park to help his teenage daughter, who was back at high school Tuesday, keep busy until they can go home.

“There’s no time frame,” he said.

Environmental risks remain

The South Coast Air Quality Management District will monitor the air for several months and the EPA will be checking sewer and storm drains for spills, Orange County Supervisor Janet Nguyen said.

As the tank heated up, the chemical converted from liquid to gas, ramping up the pressure and explosion risk, said Andrew Whelton, a Purdue University engineering professor who has studied environmental contamination. Some of the methyl methacrylate may already have hardened into a stable plastic similar to plexiglass, reducing the danger, he said.

“The tank was on track for a catastrophic explosion,” Whelton said. “The formation of a crack seems to have allowed pressure to vent.”

The risk remains of a smaller blast that could send projectiles or even a chemical plume toward nearby homes, he said.

The tank needs to get closer to 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6 to 21.1 degrees C) before conditions are considered significantly safer, he said.

The California crisis is reminiscent of a 2014 chemical spill in Charleston, West Virginia, caused when storage tanks failed. That spill prevented the capital city and surrounding areas from using their tap water for several days. Businesses were temporarily shut down and hundreds of people headed to emergency rooms for issues from nausea to rashes. The disaster inspired a new state law requiring more inspections and registrations of aboveground storage tanks.

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An earlier version of this story was corrected to attribute a quote to TJ McGovern, interim fire chief of the Orange County Fire Authority, not to division chief Craig Covey.

___

Weber reported from Los Angeles and Bellisle from Seattle. Associated Press journalists Leah Willingham in Boston; Jamie Stengle in Dallas; and Ethan Swope in Garden Grove, California, contributed to this report.

According to county officials, the issue was fixed in part at approximately 5:07 p.m. Voters are now encouraged to return to voting centers if they were not able to vote earlier in the day.

• CHECK: Fort Bend County Primary Runoff Election results for May 26, 2026

The outage lasted roughly two hours and was traced to a problem within the voter check-in system, not the voting machines or ballot tabulation systems themselves.

The disruption was reportedly identified following a software update that triggered the system failure. During the outage, voters at multiple polling sites experienced delays, confusion, and inconsistent access to provisional ballot options.

Despite the interruption, election officials emphasized that the integrity of the voting process was not compromised.

Even after restoring the system, county officials said they are still working to determine how to extend polling hours at affected locations to account for the time lost during the shutdown.

Interim Fort Bend County Judge Daniel Wong and several election officials are expected to make an announcement at 6 p.m. to address the ongoing voting machine issues and are hoping to extend voting hours.

Earlier in the day, voters across Fort Bend County reported issues checking in at polling sites, with some locations briefly unable to process voters while others handled the outage differently depending on available procedures.

Officials say they will continue coordinating with the system vendor as they review the cause of the glitch and assess any additional impacts on Election Day operations.

Officials confirmed Tuesday afternoon that Joshua Lahai’s body was recovered around 1:30 p.m. near the intersection of Oyster Street and Beach Drive along the Surfside coastline.

Lahai went missing Sunday around 5 p.m. while swimming at Surfside Beach with a friend during a trip with his youth football team and family members.

According to authorities, the boys were in the water when Joshua went under and never resurfaced.

On Tuesday afternoon, search crews received word that a body had been located near the 300 block of Beach Drive.

KPRC 2 was alongside Texas EquuSearch founder Tim Miller when the call came in.

Multiple law enforcement agencies quickly responded to the area, blocking it off with yellow caution tape as recovery efforts began.

Surfside police told reporters that a fisherman in the water first discovered Joshua’s body after feeling something brush against him in the surf.

Unsure what he had encountered, the fisherman alerted a nearby officer, who immediately jumped into the water to retrieve the child.

“I disconnected my holster, took off my shoes, took my cell phone out of my pocket, put all that in my truck, and then jumped in the water,” the officer said.

“He jumped down on the rocks, and he jumped in the water. When I made contact with the body, he was floating. From there, I just grabbed him and brought him back in. It was a challenge, but I didn’t think at all. My job was to get the body in, bring closure to the family.”

Authorities said Joshua’s family has since been notified.

The recovery marked the end of an extensive search operation involving Texas EquuSearch, Surfside Police Department, Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Coast Guard.

“We’ve been here all night. Nobody’s gotten any sleep,” Miller told KPRC 2 earlier during the search effort. “We’re doing what we’re doing.”

Crews had spent days searching by helicopter, drone, boat, and on foot along the shoreline after Joshua vanished in the Gulf waters Sunday evening.

Officials previously confirmed the child had been visiting Surfside Beach from Richmond, Texas, with his football team, friends, and relatives over the holiday weekend.

The incident remains under investigation.

“I’ve been dancing my whole life, it’s the best,” said Ross, who founded the Rodeo City Wreckettes group 23 years ago at an age when many people are getting ready for retirement.

Now 87, Ross and her husband and lifelong dance partner John, also 87, have long known what more older adults are now discovering: Moving to music is one of the best ways to stay healthy. Medical professionals say it doesn’t matter if it’s Western line dancing, ballroom steps, salsa, tap, Zumba at the gym, or with a group like the Wreckettes.

“Dancing is one of the most powerful activities for older people,” said Julio Loya, a nurse and geriatric program coordinator at the Tucson Medical Center.

Why dancing helps balance, strength and more

Dance, like other exercise, can help people lose weight, get stronger, reduce fall risk, increase mobility and flexibility, and even improve brain health.

“ It engages their brain, it changes their mood, and it connects them socially while getting them moving,” said Loya. “And it’s fun. Everybody has a good time.”

Dr. Thomas Johnson, a geriatrician at the UCHealth Seniors Clinic in Aurora, Colorado, said he remembers one man in particular whose passion for dance was so strong that he willed himself to attend one last class before he died in his late 80s.

“His No. 1 priority was that he danced until the day that he died," Johnson said of his patient.

Johnson said dance can improve the balance of his patients at the clinic, which serves about 2,500 people 75 and older a year.

He said older patients can benefit from adding two to three dance sessions to the 150 minutes of aerobic exercise he recommends for them each week, because dancing often involves movements that help with balance, such as walking backward or standing on one foot.

Meeting people by dancing together

The Wreckettes practice their routines during two-hour sessions at least twice a week in a rented dance studio.

After studying ballet as a girl, then moving on to everything from ballroom to tap as an adult, Ross said it made sense to keep dancing when she and her husband moved from Philadelphia to retire in Tucson.

John Ross is a key part of the Wreckettes' routines, typically joining his wife for at least one number. At one recent practice, it was a saucy saunter to Merle Haggard’s “Let’s Chase Each Other Around the Room.”

“I learned early on that dancing was a great way to attract the chicks,” joked John Ross, who slid across the floor like a much younger man.

Wreckettes member Cindy Soffrin said that watching her mother suffer as she aged convinced her to stay active as she got older.

“My mom was sedentary the last 20 years of her life. It was pretty rough,” said Soffrin, 74.

For 67-year-old Gail Kowalski, joining the Wreckettes three years ago meant finding new friends after her husband died and she moved from Utah to Tucson.

“Plus, it’s so dang fun,” Kowalski said.

The fun of performing

The Wreckettes perform throughout the year, from holiday events to rodeo shows, dressing up in a series of matching sparkly costumes.

But they all said what they love the most is being hired by retirement homes to perform for memory care patients. Wreckette members take turns picking a favorite charity to donate their earnings.

“When we first arrive, people will be distracted or sleeping,” said Soffrin. “But once the music comes on, they perk up right away.”

A similar dance group for older women in Las Vegas, the Vegas Golden Gals, also performs at retirement homes, said Cheryl Cortez, the group’s president. They add pompoms to their routines.

“I must now know close to 40 routines,” said Cortez, 69. “And that alone has to be great for the memory.”

How to begin dancing when you're older

If you want to start moving to music, here are some tips from health professionals and dance instructors:

BEFORE STARTING: Check with your health provider before starting a dance or any exercise program. Choose something simple to start, like line dancing rather than intricate tango steps.

FIND A CLASS: Check with a YMCA, parks and recreation department, or senior or community center. Community colleges often have dance classes, sometimes tailored for older people. Local dance studios and YouTube videos are other options. If you have Medicare Advantage insurance with the Silver Sneakers benefit, find out if your local gym has Zumba or other dance classes you can attend for free.

BEFORE THE SESSION: Dress comfortably for easy movement, and warm up and stretch before class.

MOST IMPORTANTLY: Have fun! You are doing great things for your mind and body.

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For more AP stories about healthy aging, go to https://apnews.com/hub/aging

“Leaving the training ground and walking to my car with a box full of bobbleheads to take home to my kids,” the 38-year-old defender recalled, “my WhatsApp started to go a little bit crazy.”

Ream was among 26 players who received a video from Sam Zapata, the U.S. national team administrative manager, informing the 26 players selected for the World Cup roster.

“It made me stop on my tracks,” said Ream, hoping to become the oldest U.S. player to appear in soccer's top tournament.

Midfielders Gio Reyna and Sebastian Berhalter, sons of a former captain and an ex-coach, were picked by coach Mauricio Pochettino along with forward Alejandro Zendejas.

Midfielders Diego Luna and Tanner Tessmann were left off.

Holding American jerseys with wavy red and white stripes, players were introduced Tuesday at a made-for-TV event on the roof of the South Street Seaport’s Pier 17 with the Brooklyn Bridge as a backdrop. They were announced in the numerical order of jersey numbers assigned by equipment manager Kyle Robertson, taking seniority into account. All were on hand except for defender Chris Richards, in Germany with Crystal Palace for Wednesday’s UEFA Conference League final.

“We want this so bad,” said forward Christian Pulisic, the biggest American star. “If you're not a little bit nervous, you don’t feel a little, you don’t care. So, we care so much.”

Defender Sergiño Dest, midfielder Tyler Adams and forward Haji Wright were added after missing March friendlies because of injuries. Zendejas was bypassed for the March roster after a knee injury last fall.

A few minutes after the Friday video arrived, emails were sent to all 55 players on the preliminary roster informing them of their fate. Pochettino didn't give explanations to those omitted, comparing the rejection with how he felt when Tottenham executive chairman Daniel Levy fired him as manager in 2019 and then asked to speak.

“What do you want to talk about (with) me?” Pochettino said. “I don't want to hear nothing.”

Luna missed the March matches because of a knee injury after playing in 17 of 18 international games last year.

“It’s painful because I really know what it means to be out of the roster,” said Pochettino, who failed to make Argentina's roster as a defender in 1994 and 1998, then was chosen in 2002.

“During two weeks I didn’t sleep," the coach said. "And today still I cannot enjoy the 26 guys that are in front of me because I am thinking in players that are out.”

Final rosters are submitted to FIFA on June 1 and injuries could cause a change until one day before the U.S. opener against Paraguay on June 12.

“Things can happen. They need to be ready because maybe we can call,” Pochettino said.

Reyna, a son of former U.S. captain Claudio Reyna, nearly was sent home from the 2022 World Cup by then-coach Gregg Berhalter for lack of hustle and made just four starts this season for Borussia Mönchengladbach — none since Dec. 19.

“I don’t say that he’s going to play the game, but he can help,” Pochettino said. “He can help because he’s a different player, different talent, and I think in all the roster you need to have a player like him.”

Sebastian Berhalter, a 25-year-old son of the former coach, made his national team debut last June and became the Americans' best corner-kick taker.

Players dropped who had been on the March roster included goalkeeper Patrick Schulte, Tessmann and fellow midfielder Aidan Morris. Two players were sidelined by recent injuries: midfielder Johnny Cardoso (right ankle surgery) and forward Patrick Agyemang (torn right Achilles). Defender Cameron Carter-Vickers is recovering from a torn Achilles in October.

Who is back from 2022?

Half the roster returns from the last World Cup: goalkeeper Matt Turner; Dest, Ream and fellow defenders Antonee Robinson and Joe Scally; Adams and fellow midfielders Weston McKennie, Reyna and Cristian Roldan; and Pulisic and Wright at forward with Brenden Aaronson and Tim Weah.

Richards and Miles Robinson were picked after injuries sidelined them ahead of the 2022 tournament.

Richards is a health concern after tearing two left ankle ligaments on May 17. Pochettino said he won't know Richards' status until he arrives in the U.S. for training because clubs “hide things.”

“Was really, really tough to have the real information to make our best decision,” Pochettino said. “How selfish, no, is the people in soccer or in football?”

Among the final cuts four years ago, Ricardo Pepi made it this time.

Players from 2022 left off included goalkeepers Ethan Horvath and Sean Johnson; Carter-Vickers and fellow defenders Aaron Long, Shaq Moore, DeAndre Yedlin and Walker Zimmerman; midfielders Kellyn Acosta, Luca de la Torre and Yunus Musah; and forwards Jesús Ferreira, Jordan Morris and Josh Sargent.

This year's average age of 26 years, 332 days as of the U.S. opener is up from 25-216 four years ago and the fifth-youngest for an American World Cup roster.

Where are players from?

Just eight players were taken from Major League Soccer, the fewest since four in 2010. Five players are based in England, three each in Germany’s Bundesliga and France’s Ligue 1, two apiece in Italy’s Serie A and the Dutch Eredivisie, and one each in Mexico, Scotland and Spain.

Pulisic ended his AC Milan season scoreless in 19 games since Dec. 28 and has gone eight U.S. matches without a goal since November 2024.

Pochettino's three strikers finished their club seasons in form, combining for 56 goals: Folarin Balogun and Pepi scored 19 each and Wright 18.

For the first time since 1990, no American goalkeepers are from European clubs.

Ream will be 38 years, 250 days on the day the U.S. plays its opener, older than defender Fernando Clavijo when the U.S. was knocked out by Brazil in 1994.

Defender Alex Freeman, a son of former Super Bowl champion Antonio Freeman, is the youngest American this year at 21.

No. 3 goalkeeper Chris Brady is the first player on the U.S. World Cup roster with no international experience since backup goalkeeper Juergen Sommer in 1994.

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

A temperature of 35.1 degrees Celsius (95.2 degrees Fahrenheit) was recorded at London's Kew Gardens, Britain's Met Office weather service said, breaking the 34.8 C (94.6 F) record set a day earlier at Kew. The provisional readings smashed the long-standing record of 32.8 C (91.4 F) set in 1922 and matched in 1944.

London also recorded a rare “tropical night,” defined as one in which the temperature does not fall below 20 C (68 F).

Records also fell in France, where temperatures reached 36 C (97 F) on Monday in the country's southwest and widely remained above 20 C at night.

The national weather service, Météo-France, said a “heat dome,” with heat held in place by a high-pressure weather front, was producing temperatures more than 10 degrees Celsius above what is usual for this time of year.

Unpredictable and extreme weather is becoming more frequent as Earth warms. Experts say unprecedented and deadly weather extremes that sometimes strike at abnormal times and in unusual places are putting more people in danger.

“We know beyond a shadow of a doubt that heat wave events such as this have been made more likely and more severe due to climate change arising from our emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases,” said Peter Thorne, director of the ICARUS Climate Research Centre, at Maynooth University, in Ireland.

“But, nevertheless, many of the records being set, particularly in the U.K. and France, are mind-bogglingly crazy,” he said.

After a long weekend that sent people in Britain flocking to beaches, pools and shady parks, London commuters sweltered on Tuesday in subway carriages without air conditioning. Trains to and from the busy Waterloo station were disrupted by a report of smoke on the tracks.

In Scotland, firefighters worked through the night to douse a grass fire that sent smoke billowing from Arthur’s Seat, the rocky hill that looms over Edinburgh.

The U.K. Health Security Agency issued an amber health alert for large parts of the country through Thursday, warning of a potential health risk, particularly among older people, at the hottest times of the day. The U.K. is used to moderate temperatures and many homes, schools and businesses do not have air conditioning.

At least four teenagers died in apparent drownings in U.K. lakes and reservoirs, and a 60-year-old man died in the sea in southwest England, authorities said.

French government spokesperson Maud Bregeon said there have been reports of at least seven deaths potentially related to high temperatures, including five drownings and two deaths in sports competitions.

The early heat wave has struck before the annual summer window when lifeguards watch over bathers at popular beaches, increasing risks.

On France’s Atlantic seaboard, where magnificent beaches have powerful riptides, officials reported a rash of emergencies in the surf, with two drowning deaths on Sunday at popular resorts in the Gironde region in the southwest.

The top regional administrator, Sophie Brocas, urged beachgoers “to exercise the utmost caution.”

The unseasonable heat extended to Spain, where weather service spokesperson Rubén del Campo said: “We find ourselves with temperatures we normally see in the middle of the summer now in the month of May.”

He said Seville hit 38 C (100 F) over the weekend, while large parts of the Iberian Peninsula saw temperatures 5 to 10 degrees Celsius higher than normal.

And in Rome, temperatures were expected to reach 32 C (89.6 F) on Tuesday.

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Associated Press writers John Leicester in Paris and Joseph Wilson in Barcelona, Spain, contributed to this report.

From struggle to strength

Meaghanne began her higher-education journey at Lone Star College while overcoming domestic violence, using coursework and campus supports as the foundation for rebuilding her life. That resilience set the stage for further study at the University of Houston and a career path shaped by both service and scholarship.

Service that serves the world

After earning her degree, Meaghanne commissioned as an officer in the United States Air Force. She led major disaster-relief efforts and served with NATO, applying leadership skills learned in classrooms and on the job to real-world crises. Her military service amplified the impact of a Lone Star education, demonstrating how community-college roots can grow into global leadership.

Innovation and impact

Today, Meaghanne is pursuing a Ph.D. at Purdue University and leads defense innovation as the founder of Praxis Innovation Group. Her work spans research, technology development and building teams that address national security challenges - a career arc that began at a neighborhood college campus.

A stronger alumni network for Houston

Carolyn Donovan, associate vice chancellor for alumni relations & engagement at Lone Star College System, says the new Lone Star College System Alumni Association will bring graduates together to mentor students, celebrate successes and strengthen community ties across the Houston region. The association aims to turn stories like Meaghanne’s into inspirations and opportunities for current students and fellow alumni.

Find what’s next

Whether you’re a future student or a graduate, discover what’s next at Lone Star College System and connect through the Lone Star College System Alumni Association.

Learn more at www.lonestar.edu.

As early in-person voting began Tuesday in South Carolina’s primaries, the state Senate rejected a Republican plan to cancel those congressional votes and instead schedule a new primary under revised districts designed to help the GOP oust a longtime Democrat.

Some senators said it was simply too late to make a change.

“South Carolina citizens are going to the polls today. And neither my conscience or common sense is going to let me stop an election that is already underway,” Republican state Sen. Richard Cash said.

The political drama in South Carolina is part of a Republican strategy — propelled by Trump — to redraw voting districts to the GOP’s advantage in an attempt to hold on to a slim House majority in the midterm elections. Republicans have moved quickly to try to leverage a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that weakened minority protections under the federal Voting Rights Act.

But in Alabama, a three-judge federal panel issued a preliminary injunction blocking the state from using a Republican-drawn congressional map that could help the GOP win an additional seat. The court said the plan “intentionally discriminated based on race” by including only one Black-majority district, and it ordered the continued use of a court-imposed map that includes two districts with a significant proportion of Black residents.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, a Republican, vowed a quick appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and predicted an eventual victory.

Republicans, who remain ahead in a national mid-decade redistricting battle, also notched some victories in lower courts on Tuesday.

A state judge in Florida declined to block new congressional districts passed by the Republican-led Legislature from being used in the midterm elections. Republicans stand to gain as many as four seats under the new map. The judge said voting rights groups that sued hadn't shown they were likely to succeed on their claim that the map was drawn with political intent in violation of Florida's Constitution. The groups said they were quickly appealing to a higher court, and vowed to keep pursuing the case all the way to the state Supreme Court, if necessary.

A federal court also declined to issue a temporary restraining order in a lawsuit contending that Tennessee's new U.S. House districts are racially discriminatory. The new Republican-drawn map carves up a majority-Black district in Memphis, giving Republicans an improved chance to win the state's only Democratic-held seat. The case is one of several brought against the map.

A redistricting battle that has spanned 10 months

Voting districts typically are redrawn after a census at the start of a decade. But Trump has urged Republican-led states to redistrict ahead of the November elections to try to rebuff political headwinds, which typically result in lost congressional seats for the president’s party in midterms.

Since Trump first urged Texas to redraw its voting districts last summer, Republicans also have enacted new House districts in Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Florida and Tennessee. Republicans think they could gain as many as 14 seats from those efforts, and perhaps 15 if they eventually win the ability to use a different map in Alabama.

Meanwhile, Democrats think they could win five additional seats from new voter-approved districts in California, plus one more from a new court-imposed map in Utah. Democrats suffered a setback earlier this month in Virginia, where the state Supreme Court invalidated a voter-approved redistricting plan that could have helped Democrats win additional seats.

Redistricting discussions are ongoing in Louisiana following an April high court ruling that struck down a majority-Black congressional district as an illegal partisan gerrymander. The Louisiana House could vote later this week on a new map that could eliminate a seat held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Cleo Fields and improve Republicans' chances of winning six of the state's seven seats.

The Congressional Black Caucus on Tuesday called on major corporations, including those that previously expressed support for voting rights and racial justice, to oppose redistricting efforts by Republican-led states that seek to eliminate majority-Black U.S. House districts. The caucus last week called for Black athletes to boycott public universities in states that are gerrymandering congressional maps to eliminate districts held by Black lawmakers.

Clyburn decries White House role in redistricting

More than 55,000 ballots were cast Tuesday on South Carolina's first day of early voting for the June 9 primary after Democrats called for people against a proposed new map to turn out in force. In the 2022 midterms, about 125,000 early votes were cast in the entire two weeks.

Among the first to cast an early ballot in the small city of Orangeburg was U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, the Democrat whose district Republicans were trying to reshape in their quest for a clean sweep of South Carolina’s congressional seats. A defiant Clyburn insisted he would run for reelection, regardless of what the district looks like.

“I’m OK if it’s Trump plus 20,” Clyburn said while describing the potential Republican advantage in a reshaped district. “I would be running where I live.”

The Republican-led House already had passed a plan that would reconfigure Clyburn's district, void the results of current congressional primaries and instead hold new U.S. House primaries in August.

Trump had lobbied for the plan, making at least two phone calls to Republican state Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey and also phoning in to a private meeting of Republican senators earlier this month. He also had maintained the pressure on social media.

But debate stalled in the Senate, where Democrats were staunchly opposed and some GOP lawmakers were concerned that aggressive redistricting could backfire by making some Republican-held seats vulnerable to losses because of the addition of Democratic voters.

Clyburn noted that when state lawmakers last redrew congressional districts, after the 2020 census, they spent months holding meetings across the state to gather public suggestions. Although that map resulted in a 6-1 seat advantage for Republicans over Democrats, the process was orderly and fair, he said.

“When the map was challenged, the U.S. Supreme Court said, yes, this is constitutional,” Clyburn said. But now, “this White House says, to hell with the process, to hell with the Constitution, just do what we want done.”

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Chandler reported from Montgomery, Alabama, and Lieb from Jefferson City, Missouri.

Trump’s endorsement of Paxton, who he called "a true MAGA Warrior," came late in the race and marked another effort by the president to punish Republican lawmakers he sees as insufficiently loyal.

The winner of the Republican nomination will run against Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in November.

Here is the Latest:

Angela Paxton doesn’t endorse in Texas Senate race

The Texas state senator posted several endorsements on social media for the Republican primary runoff. But there was no mention of the U.S. Senate campaign between her husband, Attorney General Ken Paxton, and incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn.

Angela Paxton was a key fixture in Ken Paxton’s previous campaigns. She stood by him throughout his Texas Senate impeachment trial in 2023 and allegations of an extramarital affair. But she’s now seeking a divorce and has cited “biblical grounds” among her reasons for the split.

Angela Paxton urged Republicans to vote in several statewide offices, including the one her husband is leaving behind.

Democrat votes for Paxton to boost Talarico’s chances

Jessica Shaw, 46, who swung out of a polling place in a brightly colored dress in the hot Austin sun, had a strategy in mind.

“I voted for Ken Paxton because I think he is most likely to lose against Talarico,” she said, because Paxton is “such a morally bankrupt person” that he’ll turn general election voters away.

It’s an argument that Cornyn has made frequently on the campaign trail, saying he’s the better contender to face Talarico. In this case, a registered Democrat agreed.

“If this strategy doesn’t work and (Paxton) wins” in the general election, said Shaw, who then raised her hands in a shrug. “Something needs to change, or I think people will move out of Texas.”

Shaw gave a parting message before loading into her Volvo: “Vote against Trump at all costs!”

Cornyn voter: Trump’s endorsement 'doesn’t have any effect'

Debbie Burdeaux strode out of the Haggard Library in Plano sporting a fresh “I voted” sticker. Her choice in the Texas Republican Senate runoff? John Cornyn.

“Because he’s done a good job for this state, and I am not a fan of Paxton,” she said.

Trump endorsed the four-term incumbent senator's opponent, Paxton, last week.

“I don’t have a problem with Trump,” she said. “But he doesn’t have any effect on my vote.”

Burdeaux, a 69-year-old retired substitute teacher and geologist, expressed what others who have voted for Cornyn have said in this precinct: a strong distaste for Paxton.

Some Republicans have said Paxton's previous scandals could discourage GOP voters from backing him in November.

“He is a disgrace,” Burdeaux said. “I want nothing to do with him.”

Trump’s endorsement is enough for this Paxton voter

Paul Olson was quick to say why he voted for Paxton: “He’s conservative and backed by Trump.”

The 72-year-old retired finance executive elaborated a little, saying, “I just think he represents more of what middle-class America needs.”

Olson said he was perturbed that Cornyn, the incumbent, had been airing ads projecting himself as a Trump devotee despite Trump’s endorsement of Paxton.

“He claims he’s got Trump’s backing, and he most certainly doesn’t,” he said.

Olson was among a steady stream of voters arriving over the noon hour at the Haggard Library in Plano.

Confident in his choice, Olson still expressed some worry that some conservatives might be less inclined to vote in November if costs for daily expenses, most notably fuel, remain elevated.

“If they end this war soon, then good. Energy drives the cost of everything, and prices will settle,” he said. “But they have to end this war quickly.”

‘He’s just a toady for Trump’

Lee Rodriguez, a 76-year-old registered independent, said he planned to vote for Cornyn outside a polling place in Austin, Texas, mainly because he is a “stable person; he’s willing to reach across the aisle.”

To Rodriguez, that’s in stark contrast to Paxton, who “is too corrupt” and an “extremist,” he said, echoing Cornyn’s talking points about past Paxton scandals, including allegations of an affair.

Trump’s endorsement of Paxton reaffirmed his fears that “he’s just a toady for Trump,” said Rodriguez, who did not vote for Trump in 2024.

Cornyn ‘definitely the lesser of two evils’

Linda Williams walked into the steamy, sundrenched parking lot outside of Haggard Library in Plano, outside of Dallas, on Tuesday around noon.

“Paxton is a no-go!” she said of the state attorney general, but was little more enthused about Cornyn, for whom she voted and who is fighting for his political future in the Republican Senate runoff.

“It was definitely the lesser of two evils,” the 73-year-old, retired administrative support staffer from Plano said.

“Cornyn has not been the check on Trump we need. He used to be more respectable,” Williams said. “But the way he has coddled Trump and bragged about voting with him? It’s an embarrassment.”

It was all out of Williams’ sense of pragmatism.

“At least he’ll have a better chance against Talarico,” she said with reference to the Democratic nominee, state Rep. James Talarico.

“Because Paxton is a crook.”

Trump is wrapping up a month of reshaping the GOP

This has been a big month for Republican primaries and Trump’s influence over his party.

On May 5, he successfully campaigned against five out of seven Indiana state senators who rejected his redistricting plan there.

On May 16, he helped dislodge Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who voted to convict Trump in the Jan. 6 impeachment trial five years ago. Cassidy finished third in the primary, failing to make the runoff, while Trump’s choice, Rep. Julia Letlow, finished first.

On May 19, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky lost his primary to Ed Gallrein, who Trump endorsed. Massie had frustrated the president by voting against his signature tax legislation and pushing to release the Jeffrey Epstein files.

If Paxton wins, it would be a dramatic punctation mark on the month.

Paxton’s supporters brush off years of scandals

The attorney general has faced an impeachment effort and criminal investigations, but his supporters say they’re not concerned.

“He’s had his flaws, but so have we; we all make mistakes,” said Daniel Vega, 18, adding, “He’s repented; let’s move on.”

Others said they appreciated his aggressive conservative politics.

“He’s a fighter. He’s a person of action. He’s proven that as attorney general,” said Jeffrey Sonnier, 72.

Cornyn and his allies have dumped money into the race

Throughout the campaign, Cornyn has had the cash advantage. The senator and his allies have spent roughly $90 million in advertising, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact.

That includes more than $20 million since the March 3 primary.

Paxton is supported by a single super PAC, and combined they’ve spent about $10.5 million on advertising. Roughly $6.1 million has been spent since March 3.

What we’re watching: the geographic split between Cornyn and Paxton

There wasn’t a clear geographic divide in the March 3 primary results. The tight margins in Houston, Dallas and their surrounding areas underscore how the battle lines cut across, rather than neatly between, Texas’ urban and suburban regions.

Cornyn — whom Paxton attacked as too aligned with D.C. Republicans and not loyal enough to Trump — led in the state’s largest counties, including those encompassing the metro areas of Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio, Austin and Houston. But Paxton remained competitive, trailing by roughly 1,900 votes in Harris County, home to Houston, and 4,100 votes in Bexar County, home to San Antonio. Tonight’s runoff could be decided by who builds a stronger geographic base, particularly in the Houston area, where Rep. Wesley Hunt, who finished third, outperformed his state average.

A GOP voter who backed Cornyn leans toward supporting Democrat Talarico

Dallas-area contractor Raymond Schramm said Tuesday that he’s concerned about healthcare and Republican-authored cuts in subsidies for Affordable Care Act coverage, and he has misgivings about how the war with Iran has been conducted.

He voted for President Donald Trump but thinks the Senate needs someone who will “have a little bit of a difference.” He likes Talarico because he seems kind.

“I like him. He’s a nice guy. He speaks well,” he said. “I don’t believe in the party system.”

Cornyn says Trump’s attacks on him are misplaced

“My situation is a little different than Massie’s or Cassidy’s,” said Cornyn, referencing two other Republican incumbents who were more critical of Trump and recently lost their primaries under pressure from the president and candidates he backed.

In his case, Cornyn said on Fox News Radio’s The Brian Kilmeade Show, Trump is “frustrated I think with the Senate as a whole.”

There are “grifters,” the senator continued, who are “claiming I am opposed to the president’s agenda and I think that’s caused some confusion with the president himself, but I’ve been supportive.”

‘We might as well start term limits now’ for Cornyn, one Dallas-area voter says

Legal assistant Calise Perry considers herself “100%” Republican and voted Tuesday for challenger Ken Paxton over incumbent Cornyn in Texas’ GOP runoff.

The 65-year-old Garland resident said Paxton, the Texas attorney general, is a fighter, “and that’s what we need right now.” The runoff came a week after President Donald Trump endorsed Paxton.

“Cornyn’s been in way too long, and it’s time for him to retire,” she said. “He’s been in office a long time and really hasn’t done much, as far as I can see.”

How Cornyn and Paxton ended up in a runoff

The Republicans were the top two vote getters in the March 3 primary, but neither candidate won the majority needed to secure the GOP nomination outright.

Cornyn finished with 42% of the vote, while Paxton won 40.5%, according to certified results.

Three other candidates were on the primary ballot. They included U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt, who won 13.5% of the vote.

The revised contract reflects Collins’ value and a dramatic increase in average wide receiver salaries across the league.

That includes the Seattle Seahawks’ Jaxon Smith-Njigba ($42.15 million), the Cincinnati Bengals’ Ja’Marr Chase ($40.25 million), the Minnesota Vikings’ Justin Jefferson ($35 million), the Dallas Cowboys’ CeeDee Lamb ($34 million), the Pittsburgh Steelers’ D.K. Metcalf ($33 million), the New York Jets’ Garrett Wilson ($32.5 million), the Washington Commanders’ Terry McLaurin ($32.333 million), the Philadelphia Eagles’ A.J. Brown ($32 million), the Detroit Lions Amon-Ra St. Brown ($30.002 million), the San Francisco 49ers’ Brandon Aiyuk and then Collins.

Originally ranked 18th in average compensation per year for 2026, Collins is now due $29 million total this year. He ranks 11th in terms of annual average per year. He’s due $29.8 million in 2027. It’s considered highly likely that Collins will get a contract extension with additional years added to his deal after this season.

During the NFL draft, Texans general manager Nick Caserio delivered an unequivocal message to anyone potentially interested in trading for Collins: Don’t bother.

Caserio was asked about trade rumors that NFL teams had made inquiries regarding Collins, the Texans’ most dangerous offensive skill player.

Instead, Collins’ deal has been boosted.

“Look, teams call teams all the time to ask about players,” Caserio said in response to a question from KPRC 2. “We’re not trading Nico Collins. Whoever reported it, whatever information they had, I mean, they can take it and shove it. We’re not trading Nico.”

Collins signed a three-year, $75 million maximum-value deal two years ago that included a $17 million signing bonus.

Collins was due $20 million fully guaranteed in 2026 and $21.25 million guaranteed for injury in 2027. That money is now fully guaranteed.

Collins, for his part, while not discussing anything specific regarding private financial matters, wants to remain a Texan for as long as possible — preferably for his entire career.

“I love the Texans,” Collins told KPRC 2 at his youth football camp. “I got drafted here. It’s somewhere I want to end. I love the city, the people, the community. There’s a lot of great positive vibes coming out of the city of Houston. So, it’s definitely a place I would like to retire.”

In February, Collins struck a similar stance when it came to his future in Houston.

“Yeah, for sure, just keep this thing rolling, for sure, 1,000 percent,” Collins told KPRC 2. “I love the city of Houston, man. I want to be here long-term, forever. My mom says every day, continue to be myself, continue to prove myself and get better. When the time is right, it will come.”

In the first season under offensive coordinator Nick Caley, the Texans averaged 23.8 points per game, ranking 13th in the NFL in scoring offense. They finished 18th in total offense, 14th in passing offense and 22nd in rushing offense.

The running game struggled to complement the passing attack after Joe Mixon missed the entire season due to a foot injury involving an infection that ultimately required surgery. With Montgomery in the backfield, there should be more balance overall and more options for Caley as a play-caller.

“Absolutely, you got to take one play at a time,” Collins said. “We know what our mission is. We know where we want to go. At the end of the day, we got to take one play at a time.

“We’ve got to move the sticks. We’ve got to continue to put points on the board for the defense because we know the type of defense we’ve got. So, I’m excited about this year, second year with Caley, and let’s rock.”

Collins’ value was underscored by his absence during the playoff game.

He caught 71 passes for 1,117 yards and six touchdowns during the regular season on 120 targets.

Not having a prototypical 6-foot-4, 222-pound wide receiver with 4.44 speed in the 40-yard dash dramatically changed the equation for the Texans’ suddenly ineffective passing game.

As off as C.J. Stroud was, Collins could have potentially steadied the damage. Playing without Collins — and losing Dalton Schultz, the team’s leading receiver during the regular season with 82 receptions — proved too much to overcome.

Now, Collins is determined to elevate his game even further.

“Not get complacent, not get comfortable, continue to find the things I need to improve on,” Collins said. “Even though you have success, it’s still not good enough. Continue to aim for the stars and continue to be the best version of yourself every day.”

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com .

The fatal crash was reported on I-10 outbound lanes at John Ralston Road.

The person was pronounced dead at the scene.

Traffic is being diverted off the Federal Road exit.

On Houston Life, David Mallette, owner of The Window Source of Houston, explained how upgrading your windows can make a big difference before the scorching Texas heat sets in.

For many homeowners, replacing windows can be a game-changer.

RELATED: How new windows and doors can help Houstonians beat the heat and keep costs down this summer

One common issue in older homes is heat coming directly through the glass. Builder grade windows often have single strength glass without protective coatings, which allows heat and UV rays to pass through.

Modern replacement windows are designed differently.

According to Mallette, every replacement window they install has a low-E coating that knocks out about 95 percent of UV rays, stating that “when you stand next to the window, you’re not going to feel that heat like you used to.”

That difference can be especially noticeable in Houston, where sunlight and high temperatures can make certain rooms feel like they’re radiating heat.

RELATED: Spring into new windows for your home

Homeowners may also be surprised to learn that window replacement projects often move faster than they expect. While the manufacturing process can take a couple of weeks, the installation itself is usually much quicker.

“Typically we receive the windows in about two to three weeks,” Mallette said. “Once they arrive and we check everything, we schedule installation. Depending on the home, our crews can usually complete the job in a day or two.”

Today’s vinyl windows have also come a long way from earlier versions that many homeowners remember. Modern materials include built-in UV protection and are designed to hold up well in Houston’s climate.

For Mallet, quality installation is just as important as the window itself.

“We take a lot of pride in the installation process, from protecting floors and furniture to using the best sealants possible.”

Mallette, a former Marine, says his military background also shapes how he runs his business. The focus is on honesty, fairness, and making sure customers receive a high quality product at a fair price.

RELATED: Veteran-Owned Window Company Helps Houston-Area Homeowners Cut Energy Bills and Stay Cool 🏡☀️🌬️✨

If homeowners are considering an upgrade, there may also be some seasonal savings available. The company is currently offering a March Rodeo promotion that includes $200 off each window and $500 off exterior doors, along with a “peace and quiet” package designed to reduce outside noise.

For more information about window replacement options and current specials, visit The Window Source of Houston online.

Mallette explained that outdated windows can allow heat, dust, and air leaks into the home, especially in older properties with worn seals or aluminum frames.

He says one of the biggest complaints they hear is that certain rooms are much hotter or colder than others. New windows can help block out heat and improve comfort throughout the home, and there are a lot to choose from at the Window Source of Houston’s Showroom in Tomball.

RELATED: This veteran-owned business is helping Houstonians keep the heat the out and the savings in with new windows

The windows come in a variety of materials, including vinyl, aluminum, and composite options, with designs tailored to different homes and budgets. Mallette also said newer windows can improve functionality for homeowners struggling with windows that are difficult to open or close.

The process, he explained, is often quicker than people expect. After an in-home consultation and measurements, windows are typically ready within two to three weeks, and installation can usually be completed in just a few days.

In addition to windows, the company also offers entry doors and siding designed to improve insulation and energy efficiency. Financing options are available, including some plans with no interest for an introductory period.

Mallette, a former Marine, says integrity and quality workmanship remain central to the company’s approach.

“We focus on doing things right the first time,” he said. “We want customers to feel confident they’re getting a quality product and honest service.”

For more information about window replacement options and current specials, visit The Window Source of Houston online or give them a call at (281)-547-6900

The proposal from parents' group Protect Girls Sports in Maine was slated to go before voters in November. It would have asked voters if they wanted to require public schools to restrict access to bathrooms and sports based on the gender denoted on a child's birth certificate.

Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who is running for governor as a Democrat, said Tuesday her staff found that more than 12,000 signatures on the petition for the referendum were invalid. That leaves the petition drive a few hundred short of the 67,682 required for the initiative to make the ballot, Bellows said.

Bellows' decision is a setback for the nationwide movement to limit or ban transgender students in sports. Maine emerged as a battleground for the issue last year following a public disagreement between Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, who is in her final year of office due to term limits, and President Donald Trump.

“We take the integrity of the petitions just as seriously as we take the security of voting. It's really important that anyone seeking to place a initiative on the ballot follow the law,” Bellows said.

Leyland Streiff, principal officer of Protect Girls Sports in Maine, said in a statement that the group “disagrees with the secretary of state’s decision declaring the Protect Girls Sports initiative ineligible for the November ballot.” The group “is working to ensure full judicial review of the secretary’s decision with the understanding that the courts, not the secretary, should have the final word on this important matter,” Streiff said.

The petitioners have 10 days to appeal Bellows’ decision. The group will also have the ability to try to get the initiative on a future ballot, Bellows said. The secretary of state’s office released a recommended decision about the initiative last week that said the petition “does not meet the constitution threshold” of valid signatures.

At least 19 states have laws banning transgender girls and women from using girls’ and women’s bathrooms at public school, and in some cases, other government facilities, private schools or public places. Enforcement of one of the laws – in Montana – has been put on hold by a court.

At least 30 states have laws or other statewide policies that seek to keep transgender girls and women from competing in girls and women’s sports. Courts have blocked enforcement of some of the laws.

None of the laws on bathrooms or sports restrictions came about through ballot measures. Two other Democratic-controlled states – Colorado and Washington – have sports-related laws on the ballot for November.

The restrictions on both fronts have been adopted in the past five years, and have been championed by Trump. Since his return to office last year, he has terminated agreements with school districts to protect transgender students and signed an executive order to limit sports participation by transgender athletes.

Opponents of the Maine ballot initiative said Tuesday they agreed with Bellows' decision. The petitioners “failed to follow the rules,” said David Farmer, campaign manager for the Campaign for Free and Fair Schools, which opposed the question.

___

Mulvihill reported from Haddonfield, New Jersey.

The rally is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at Rich’s Houston located at 2401 San Jacinto Street.

• Fort Bend County voting centers down due to bug within voter check-in systems

This will be Talarico’s first rally after the Texas GOP Senate runoff election which will determine who his opponent will be in the November midterm elections.

In the GOP runoff, incumbent Sen. John Cornyn is facing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to be the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate.

Kennedy shared the clip of himself grabbing the tails of the non-venomous black racer snakes on his personal social media accounts, noting in the caption that he was removing them from the patio of Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz.

An avid outdoorsman, Kennedy has posted numerous photos and videos over the years of himself interacting with wild animals. He's also shared tales of such interactions, including admitting once planting a bear carcass in New York's Central Park as a prank.

Internet users reacted with joy, incredulity and outcry at Kennedy's latest clip, which shows the snakes biting in the direction of his fingers as Oz asks questions about the snakes. Kennedy’s wife, actress Cheryl Hines, can be heard saying “Why?” and telling her husband to let them go.

Herpetologists said the species in the clip is largely harmless to humans, even if it bites. But they said people should be mindful of the stress that handling snakes can put on the creatures, and to avoid grabbing them by the tails as Kennedy does in the video, because it can cause injuries to their spines.

“That is not how I would handle the snakes, but I’m a trained professional,” said Bonnie Keller, a herpetologist and former board member of the Virginia Herpetological Society.

Sean McKnight, director of programs at the nonprofit Rattlesnake Conservancy, said he encourages people to minimize the duration that they’re handling any kind of wildlife, because they are “potentially stressing out the animals more than needed.”

Earlier this month, Kennedy posted a snapshot of himself holding a bird in his enclosed hand in what he wrote was the rescue of a starling at Dulles Airport in northern Virginia.

In 2024, while running for president, he posted a video of himself using a small net and a trowel to capture a rattlesnake in his California driveway. In that video, he cautiously secures the venomous snake in his bare hands and displays its fangs to the camera. McKnight said he doesn’t advise anybody to handle rattlesnakes like that, because there’s no way to restrain them safely with your hands.

Also in 2024, Kennedy generated criticism when he admitted to taking a bear carcass from the side of the road and placing it in Central Park as a prank in 2014. He said at the time that he had been picking up roadkill his “whole life” and once had a “freezer full of it” at home. His campaign spokesperson Stefanie Spear, now a top adviser at the nation's health department, said roadkill was how Kennedy, a longtime falconer, fed his birds.

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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In Washington, the president is scheduled for a medical checkup. The redistricting war also continues as the Congressional Black Caucus is urging corporate America to get involved to save voting rights, ending a collective retreat during Trump’s second presidency. In Texas, the Trump-backed, scandal-plagued Ken Paxton is favored over Sen. John Cornyn in Tuesday's GOP primary runoff election.

The Latest:

Trump says his administration should regulate prediction markets, not states

The president said the Commodity Futures Trading Commission should continue to have “exclusive authority” over prediction markets, as he attacked state leaders who seek to restrict the use of the online markets that can hinge on insider information.

“Under my leadership, we are setting ‘rules of the road’ that are the Gold Standard for the States,” Trump posted on social media. “We cannot have SCUM like Chris Christie, Letitia James, Tim Walz, and JB Pritzker setting the rules!”

Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., has invested in the prediction market Polymarket through his venture capital firm and he has been a strategic adviser for another market, Kalshi.

The CFTC currently regulates prediction markets, and that federal oversight enables them to operate in all 50 states, even those where gambling is illegal.

“It is a major Industry, and we must protect it,” Trump said in his post.

Trump calls off holding a Cabinet meeting at Camp David

The president wrote on his social media site that Wednesday’s planned meeting with his Cabinet had been set to take place at the remote presidential retreat in the mountains of Maryland but would instead be happening at the White House.

“Based on the possible bad weather conditions tomorrow, we will be having our Cabinet Meeting in the White House,” he wrote “and will be postponing the Cabinet trip to Camp David.”

Trump has visited Camp David sparingly, making just one visit there so far in his second term last fall.

Chinese foreign minister says he hopes US-Iran ‘stay committed’ to a deal as progress remains murky

At a press conference at the United Nations in New York, Wang Yi told reporters that despite the uncertainty between Washington and Tehran after a series of U.S. strikes this week, “every step forward in the negotiations brings more hope to peace.”

“We hope that the parties concerned can stay committed to pursuing a ceasefire and continue to meet each other halfway, so that peace can return to the Middle East as early as possible,” Wang said.

He added, “As we have been saying, it takes more than one cold day to freeze three feet of ice, and longstanding issues cannot be resolved overnight.”

Vance praises pope’s AI message as ‘very profound’

The vice president made the comment in a Tuesday interview with NBC News, saying he had read excerpts and summaries of Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical.

“What I read of it sounds very profound, and the sort of thing that you would expect and hope from a leader of the church,” Vance said. “The thing about morality is that the principles never change, but the way you apply those principles does, because the world changes, right?”

He said with new technology “you have to kind of rethink the entire Catholic social teaching in light of the new world that we live in. And I think that’s exactly what the pope is trying to do.”

Vance, who is Catholic, previously said the Trump administration is trying to strike a balance that encourages innovation in AI while protecting data and privacy. The American pope’s message calls on AI developers to work for the common good over profit.

South Carolina Senate rejects President Trump’s call to redraw congressional maps

The South Carolina Senate on Tuesday rejected President Donald Trump’s push to redraw the state’s congressional district in hopes Republicans could gain an additional seat in the midterm elections.

Senators had political concerns, worrying that any map in a state where Democrats got at least 40% of votes in the past eight presidential elections couldn’t guarantee Republican wins in all seven districts.

And there were logistical worries. Statewide primaries are June 9, with early voting starting Tuesday. The plan had called for throwing out any congressional votes already cast and holding another statewide primary just for U.S. House races in August.

Election officials said holding three statewide elections in five months would require employees to work around the clock to prepare voting machines and ballots and to meet legal requirements.

The proposal passed the South Carolina House last Wednesday after two days of long debate.

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Trump says everything checked out ‘PERFECTLY’ at his medical exam

The president made the comment after spending more than three hours at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for what the White House described as annual preventive medical and dental checkups.

Trump called it a “6 month physical” and thanked the medical center’s doctors and staff. He returned to the White House shortly after.

The White House did not immediately release results from his physical. It was Trump’s fourth publicly disclosed medical exam since he returned to office for a second term.

Top Rubio aide moves to White House

One of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s top aides is moving to the White House to serve in a position he has held informally since Rubio became Trump’s national security adviser last year.

U.S. officials said Tuesday that Mike Needham would leave his post as director of policy planning at the State Department to work full-time at the White House as a deputy national security adviser.

Needham, a veteran of the conservative Heritage Foundation who served as Rubio’s chief of staff at the beginning of Trump’s second term before moving to the policy planning position, had already been spending large amounts of time at the White House with Rubio.

Dan Holler, Rubio’s current chief of staff, will take over the policy planning post at the State Department, officials said.

Rubio set to testify in Congress on June 2

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to testify before Senate and House committees on June 2 as the conflict in Iran remains a top concern for lawmakers.

Although the hearings are officially focused on the State Department’s budget, lawmakers are expected to press Rubio on a broad range of issues tied to the war.

News over the weekend of a potential deal to end the conflict drew mixed reactions from Republicans in Congress, with some — including Texas Sen. Ted Cruz — urging Trump not to ease pressure on Iran. Cruz sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, before which Rubio is scheduled to testify.

Rubio told reporters Tuesday that negotiations over extending the ceasefire and reopening the Strait of Hormuz could take several more days.

Jeffries implores Supreme Court to ‘do the right thing’ after Alabama ruling

The House Democratic leader said his party “will continue to fight the corrupt Republican scheme to racially gerrymander congressional maps in order to rig the midterms.”

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York issued the statement after a federal court blocked Alabama’s plan to use a Republican-backed congressional map that the three-judge panel said “intentionally discriminated based on race” by including only one Black-majority district.

Alabama is expected to swiftly appeal to the Supreme Court.

More clashes outside an immigration detention center in New Jersey

Several dozen people were demonstrating Tuesday outside the Delaney Hall Detention Facility in Newark, where advocates say some detainees have been on a hunger strike to protest conditions since last week. The Homeland Security department denied any hunger strike, abuse or poor conditions inside the center.

Protesters, including a woman draped in a Mexican flag, kneeled and chanted “ICE out” in front of a line of federal officers who stood alongside an armored vehicle. At one point, an officer appeared to tackle a protester as he and other officers started walking slowly toward the crowd, attempting to have it move back.

It was a tamer scene than what U.S. Sen. Andy Kim said he experienced on Monday, saying he was pepper-sprayed as he and Gov. Mikie Sherrill led a delegation of Democratic officials seeking to meet with detainees.

Homeland Security rejects Democrats’ protest outside detention center as ‘political stunt’

“Instead of engaging with me and others about the poor conditions, ICE sent in an armored vehicle and a line of armed agents that only poured gasoline on the fire,” Kim posted on social media after Monday’s clashes. “Civilians were tackled and restrained, and agents fired pepper balls and spray into the crowd.”

Federal officials denied entry to the newly elected governor, who joined the first-term senator in demanding that Delaney Hall be shut down. “In New Jersey, we believe in the rule of law and that everyone deserves to be treated with basic dignity,” Sherrill’s statement said.

“This is nothing more than a political stunt by New Jersey sanctuary politicians for fundraising clicks,” Acting Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement.

Alabama will appeal voter discrimination ruling to US Supreme Court

The federal judges’ ruling says Republicans “intentionally discriminated based on race” by redrawing the state’s House map to remove a Black-majority district.

“Ultimately, we cannot see our way clear to requiring Alabamians to cast their votes in the 2026 elections under a districting plan tainted by intentional race-based discrimination,” the judges wrote.

Attorney General Steve Marshall, a Republican, described the GOP-drawn map as “blandly unobjectionable” and said Alabama will immediately appeal.

“Know this — in my mind, it is not a matter of whether we win this case, only when,” Marshall said.

Republicans in several Southern states, including Alabama, have sought to reshape voting districts with large minority populations that have elected Democrats following the Supreme Court’s ruling that struck down a Black-majority district in Louisiana and weakened the federal Voting Rights Act.

Rubio says Iran deal talks will take several more days

Secretary of State Marco Rubio says talks with Iran on extending a ceasefire and re-opening the Strait of Hormuz will take several more days.

Speaking to reporters before leaving India on Tuesday after the U.S. launched new strikes against Iran in the south despite the ceasefire, Rubio said there is “a lot of talking back and forth going on about specific language in the initial document.”

“So, it’ll take a few days,” he said. He added that Trump would not accept a bad deal and said the critical point at the moment is reopening the Strait of Hormuz without Iran being allowed to charge a toll for ships to pass through the crucial waterway.

“The straits need to be open, unimpeded, without tolls,” he said.

FCC’s sole Democrat warns media companies against yielding to Trump

Anna Gomez wakes up every morning and checks her phone to see if Trump has fired her yet.

The sole Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission is urging urge media companies fight back against efforts to silence free speech. In an extraordinary four-page letter to Josh D’Amaro, the CEO of Disney, which is the parent company to ABC, Gomez described the FCC’s “sustained, coordinated campaign of censorship and control” against the company under Chairman Brendan Carr, a Trump ally.

She noted probes touching on diversity practices, ABC’s moderation of a 2024 presidential debate, guest bookings on “The View” and calls for late-night host Jimmy Kimmel to be fired. She said the FCC’s move for early reviews of ABC’s local broadcast licenses is “the most egregious assault on the First Amendment this FCC has taken to date.”

▶ Read more from her Q&A with the AP

Iranian World Cup team will play in US but sleep in Mexico

The Iranians will return each night to a base in Tijuana, Mexico, after their U.S. group stage matches, President Claudia Sheinbaum has confirmed.

Sheinbaum said at a news conference Monday that she was told by a FIFA representative that the U.S. was reluctant to have the Iranian soccer team spend time in the U.S. outside the stadiums while the war launched by the U.S. and Israel continues.

“The United States doesn’t want the Iranian national team to stay overnight in the United States,” Sheinbaum said. A FIFA representative then asked, “Can they stay overnight in Mexico?” “And we said, ‘Yes, no problem. We have no issue with that’,” she said.

A U.S. State Department statement Monday said Trump made it clear the Iranian team is welcome to participate. The statement did not address where the team might stay, or Sheinbaum’s comments.

Lebanon hopes for an agreement that sees Israeli withdrawal

Israel’s military clashed with Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants Tuesday along the strategic Litani River in Lebanon as Israeli troops tried to push farther north, just three days before Lebanese and Israeli military delegations are set to meet for direct talks in Washington.

A previously reached ceasefire appears more nominal by the day, complicating efforts at a broader peace in the Iran war, as Tehran wants an end to the fighting to include Lebanon. Israel says it will not withdraw until Hezbollah no longer poses a threat to residents of its northern towns. Hezbollah has vowed to continue fighting until Israel stops its daily airstrikes and withdraws its troops from Lebanon.

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Trump turns 80 next month as more Americans express concerns about his age

A Washington Post/ABC News/Ipsos poll in April found that less than half of U.S. adults think Trump has the mental sharpness or physical health to serve effectively.

“I think concern for the president’s physical health is probably at an all-time high, and I think advanced physical age is the No. 1 concern,” said Dr. Jeffrey Kuhlman, who served as a White House physician under Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

Kuhlman said a complete physical would include advanced heart testing, screening for common cancers and a cognitive assessment. The White House has not disclosed what Trump’s checkups will entail.

“President Trump is the sharpest and most accessible President in American history who is working nonstop to solve problems and deliver on his promises, and he remains in excellent health,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said in a statement.

US consumer confidence is dented as gas prices remain high

U.S. consumer confidence declined slightly as gas prices remained at or above a national average of $4.50 a gallon in May and inflation remained elevated, a sharp contrast to soaring stock prices that have neared record levels.

The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index slipped 0.7 points to 93.1 in May, the first decline after three months of gains.

The index follows a separate gauge of consumer sentiment compiled by the University of Michigan, which fell to a record low this month. Spikes in gas prices as well as higher food costs have worsened inflation, which has outpaced the growth in average paychecks in recent months, reducing most Americans’ purchasing power. Polls show Americans have soured on Trump’s economic policies, which could harm Republicans in this year’s elections.

Iran denounces US strikes as a sign of bad faith, with impact on peace talks unclear

Iran on Tuesday denounced U.S. strikes a day earlier as a sign of “bad faith and unreliability” as negotiations continue toward a possible deal to end the war.

The U.S. military said it acted with restraint in defensively targeting missile launch sites and boats placing mines. Iran’s foreign ministry called the strikes a ceasefire violation and warned that “The Islamic Republic of Iran will leave no act of aggression unanswered.”

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard on Tuesday said it had shot down and deterred drones and a fighter jet that entered its airspace, according to Iran’s official Mizan news agency, which did not say when this happened.

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf went to Qatar as part of the talks. The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Center said an explosion was reported Tuesday morning aboard a tanker in the Gulf of Oman. No one was injured and there was no immediate information on the cause.

Federal court blocks Alabama’s plan for new US House map

The new congressional map would give Republicans an advantage in a key House race this November. But the preliminary injunction issued by a three-judge panel requires the state, at least for now, to instead use the same court-ordered districts under which congressional representatives were elected in 2024.

Lawyers representing Black voters argued that Alabama’s map intentionally discriminates against Black voters and that trying to change lines in the middle of an election year creates chaos.

The state could appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Republicans want to use a new map that will give the GOP a chance to reclaim the seat now held by Democratic Rep. Shomari Figures.

US stocks rise, oil falls after Trump said Iran talks are ‘proceeding nicely’

The price for a barrel of U.S crude oil fell 3.8% to $92.99 on Tuesday after resuming trading following the Memorial Day holiday, and U.S. stocks were catching up to others around the world that climbed after Trump said Iran talks were “proceeding nicely.”

The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq composite all rose Tuesday to near their all-time highs even though fighting continued in the Mideast and the U.S. military said it struck Iranian missile launch sites and boats placing mines on Monday. Markets have rallied in the past on hopes for a coming end to the war with Iran, only to see the conflict drag on, causing painful inflation around the world.

Congressional Black Caucus presses US corporations to oppose Republican redistricting push

The Congressional Black Caucus is calling on major U.S. corporations to oppose Republican-led redistricting efforts that seek to eliminate majority-Black U.S. House districts.

Their letter sent Tuesday urges more than 250 companies to condemn “coordinated efforts to silence Black voices at the ballot box.” Some had cosigned their own message to Congress five years ago urging lawmakers to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, a Democratic proposal to restore and update the Voting Rights Act.

That 2021 coalition, Business for Voting Rights, included Apple, Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Tesla, Salesforce, Target, PayPal, Intel and Starbucks.

“Corporations that have profited from Black consumers, relied on Black workers, and amassed wealth in part from Black communities cannot look away while Black political power is dismantled in plain sight,” the caucus chair, Rep. Yvette Clarke, said in an interview.

Trump arrives at Walter Reed military hospital for his latest physical

The White House said Trump would participate in a greeting with service members and hospital staff before he spends hours being examined by a team of doctors.

It is the Republican president’s fourth publicly disclosed medical exam since he returned to office in January 2025, and it comes as the nearly 80-year-old Trump tries to project strength going into November elections that will test his sway with voters.

The White House says the visit is an annual preventive medical and dental checkup. Trump was last at Walter Reed in October and also had a physical there in April 2025.

Last July, the White House said he’d been diagnosed with a condition common in older adults that causes blood to pool in his veins, causing the swollen ankles seen in some photos of Trump.

The White House also has blamed handshaking for visible bruising on Trump’s hands.

Presidents aren’t required to disclose health information

There’s no law requiring these disclosures and the degree of transparency varies.

Presidents for decades have released medical test results to try to reassure the public that they are up to the high-pressure job.

But the president signs off on what is released, which raises questions about what isn’t being shared.

Trump’s past medical reports have been criticized for offering scant detail and including statistics that some medical experts eyed with skepticism.

It will be several hours before the White House releases any information about Tuesday’s exam.

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A proposed notice, announced Tuesday on the Office of Personnel Management website, is expected to be officially published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, seeking comment on a draft NDA to be used by federal agencies for “both new and existing employees."

"The form is intended to document Federal employees’ acknowledgment of, and agreement to comply with, current legal obligations to safeguard non-public, confidential, or proprietary information, created or obtained through their official duties, while expressly preserving the right to make disclosures authorized by law,” the notice said.

The proposed notice seeks comment on several questions, including whether the NDA should cover only unclassified information and what appropriate actions, if any, agencies should consider for new or current employees who choose not to sign the agreement.

The OPM noted “several recent instances” where internal agency communications related to rulemaking and policy development were disclosed without authorization. It also discussed specific instances in which federal employees at the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security disclosed information about planned immigration enforcement actions without authorization.

In one case, The New York Times and The Washington Post received unauthorized information on the U.S. raid on Venezuela this past January and delayed “publishing what they knew to avoid endangering U.S. troops,” the OPM request for comment said.

A Washington Post spokesperson declined to comment.

Charles Stadtlander, executive director of Media Relations and Communications for the Times, said in an email that the paper had extensive reporting on operations targeting Venezuela and preparations for land-based military operations. “Contrary to some claims, however, The Times did not have verified details about the pending operation to capture Maduro or a story prepared, nor did we withhold publication at the request of the Trump administration.”

Ferreting out leaks that the administration deems harmful to its messaging has been a priority across multiple agencies since President Donald Trump returned to the White House. As part of that crackdown, the FBI in January seized the electronic devices of a Washington Post reporter, a move that alarmed media organizations and advocates of press freedom.

One other notable incident occurred last year when dozens of reporters turned in their access badges at the Pentagon, rejecting new rules imposed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that would leave journalists vulnerable to expulsion if they sought to report on information — classified or otherwise — that had not been approved by Hegseth for release.

Michael L. Vogelsang Jr., an attorney at the Employment Law Group, said he has questions, among them: “What gap is an NDA supposed to fill that doesn’t already exist?”

He noted that statutes already exist regarding the leaking of classified and sensitive information. There’s also a law passed by Congress, he noted, that prohibits employers from implementing or enforcing an NDA.

He said: "So Congress has already said NDAs are a no-go. So how can OPM make a regulation that violates the law?”

The American Federation of Government Employees National President Everett Kelley said in a statement that OPM’s proposed rule is part of a continuing effort to silence federal employees.

“This proposed NDA is another attempt by the administration to purge the civil service of nonpartisan career employees and replace them with loyalists who won’t speak out against waste, fraud, and abuse," Kelley said.

The Alabama-based nonprofit was indicted in April on fraud and money laundering charges that accuse it of misleading donors by paying informants inside white supremacist and other extremist organizations to obtain inside information about their activities.

Lawyers for the SPLC have already argued that law enforcement agencies have long known that the nonprofit paid informants to report on the movements of hate groups. They have also said acting Attorney General Todd Blanche made a false statement at a news conference and in interviews when he said the organization had not shared with law enforcement information it had learned from informants. Blanche later appeared to walk back that claim in a television interview, saying it was true that the SPLC had “selectively” shared information with law enforcement over the years.

The attorneys for the center expanded on those arguments Tuesday, saying in a motion to dismiss the case that the prosecution was the “culmination of a top-down, retributive campaign" in which Trump pushed the Justice Department "to go after those individuals and groups he deemed his political enemies, including the SPLC.”

Defense says indictment fits broader retaliation campaign

The motion was filed against the backdrop of other politically charged prosecutions that have raised concerns that the Justice Department is operating as a weapon to target Trump's opponents. It aims to draw a parallel between the SPLC indictment and the human smuggling prosecution of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, which was dismissed Friday on similar vindictive prosecution grounds by a judge who called the case an “abuse of prosecuting power.”

The SPLC has said its now-defunct program of paying informants to infiltrate hate groups was developed to glean key insights into their activities so that potential victims could be protected. An earlier federal investigation into the practice was closed without charges, but the motion paints the current Justice Department as pursuing the case with renewed — and rushed — vigor.

The department decided to pursue the indictment without having interviewed any current SPLC employees, and did not seek any documents from the group until after it had told defense lawyers that criminal charges were forthcoming, the defense motion states. During a meeting requested by defense lawyers who hoped to avert to indictment, Justice Department officials informed them that the decision had already been made to pursue charges, according to the motion.

“These procedural irregularities show that the charges against the SPLC were a foregone conclusion based on prosecutorial vindictiveness — driven by the White House and FBI leadership’s retribution campaign — rather than the result of a good faith examination of the evidence,” the motion states, saying the indictment was “premised on conclusory accusations but devoid of provable facts or a proper statement of the law.”

The motion also cites whistleblower accounts that accused top Justice Department officials of rushing forward with an indictment despite internal concerns about the merits of the case and the strength of the evidence.

“For weeks, we have been arguing against these false allegations levied against the SPLC — an organization that for 55 years has stood as a beacon of hope fighting white supremacy and various forms of injustice to create a multiracial democracy where we can all live and thrive,” Bryan Fair, the interim president and CEO of SPLC, said in a statement. “The government can’t prosecute the SPLC as payback for its protected speech — it violates basic constitutional rights.”

The administration has painted SPLC as partisan

Founded in 1971 as a civil rights organization, the SPLC over the decades has used litigation to fight white supremacist groups. It also tracks the activities and locations of domestic extremists. But its work has made it a popular target among Republicans who see it as overly leftist and partisan.

The center, for instance, received fresh attention last year after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk because the SPLC had included a section on the group that Kirk founded and led, Turning Point USA, in a report titled “The Year in Hate and Extremism 2024."

FBI Director Kash Patel announced in October that the bureau would be severing its relationship with the SPLC, saying it had turned into a “partisan smear machine,” and he accused it of defaming “mainstream Americans” with its “hate map” that documents alleged anti-government and hate groups inside the United States.

The defense motion says “animus” from senior levels of the administration helped shape the indictment.

It cites, among other comments, a statement from Trump himself deriding the SPLC as “a total scam run by the Democrats,” as well as a news media interview in which Harmeet Dhillon, the Justice Department's top civil rights official, said the indictment was “personal” to her because she had “a lot of journalist friends ... and groups that I’ve represented who have been targeted by the Southern Poverty Law Center.”

The top-ranked Sabalenka looked light on her feet on Court Philippe-Chatrier, despite wearing two thick necklaces in a 6-4, 6-2 win against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.

“Diamonds, I don’t really feel the heaviness, but I can imagine how it looks from the outside,” said Sabalenka, the tournament runner-up last year to Coco Gauff. “So I feel pretty comfortable. For me, it’s important to look good.”

The four-time major winner was initially going to wear three necklaces but said she thought that might be too much.

“It probably sounds a bit crazy, but when I feel good about what I’m wearing, how I look on court, I tend to perform much better,” Sabalenka said. "I like to bring a little bit of a fashion on the tennis court. I know the dress that I will wear on the Grand Slam, and I just try to come up with something to match the outfit."

Sabalenka said she wasn't worried about protecting her jewelry when she's off the court.

“I have my fiancé. He’s kind of like my security,” she said, smiling. “My physio does jujitsu, so I feel pretty secure walking around. If I go somewhere, I don’t go alone.”

Gauff began her title defense with a 6-4, 6-0 victory over fellow American Taylor Townsend, while four-time major winner Naomi Osaka beat Laura Siegemund 6-3, 7-6 (3) on Court Suzanne-Lenglen wearing a sequined gold playing dress.

Frenchwoman Lois Boisson, who made a surprise run to the semifinals last year when she was ranked 361st, lost 6-2, 6-2 to the 22nd-seeded Anna Kalinskaya.

For a third consecutive day, the temperature in Paris rose far above normal, reaching a scorching 35 degrees Celsius (95 Fahrenheit).

“I’m from Florida, so this is nothing. Shout-out Delray Beach,” said Gauff, who kept her spare rackets in a court-side cooler during the match.

Medvedev loses early again

The unusually hot conditions made the courts faster than usual.

Daniil Medvedev usually thrives in such conditions but he struggled in a five-set loss to 97th-ranked Australian opponent Adam Walton.

Walton, who received a wild card invitation from tournament organizers, beat Medvedev 6-2, 1-6, 6-1, 1-6, 6-4. It was Medvedev's second straight first round exit here and third in four years.

“I know why I don’t really play my best in Roland Garros, but if I say it, it’s (making) excuses,” he said. “So I keep it to myself.”

Playing in the night session, top-ranked Jannik Sinner routed 171st-ranked French wild card entry Clement Tabur 6-1, 6-3, 6-4 to extend his winning streak to 30 matches as he chases the only big title missing in his tennis career.

Stefanos Tsitsipas, the 2021 runner-up to Novak Djokovic, was leading 6-2, 3-0 against Alexandre Muller when his French opponent retired. Muller injured his right calf, three months after injuring his left calf.

Ninth-seeded Alexander Bublik was beaten 7-5, 6-7 (6), 6-4, 7-5 by Jan-Lennard Struff.

Alexander Blockx withdrew from the tournament with a right ankle sprain, making Alex de Minaur — his scheduled second round opponent — the first player into the third round.

Rising star

French teenager Moïse Kouamé made the perfect start to his French Open career with a 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-1 win over Marin Cilic.

The 17-year-old Kouamé won one day after 39-year-old Frenchman Gael Monfils made his last appearance at Roland Garros.

The teenager raised his arms in triumph after defeating the 37-year-old Cilic, who won the 2014 U.S. Open, finished runner-up at two other majors, and reached the French Open semifinals in 2022.

The ATP Tour said No. 318-ranked Kouamé became the first man born in 2008 or later to win a Grand Slam match.

In March, he became the youngest winner in Miami Masters history when he beat Zachary Svajda in the first round — earning a congratulatory message from Djokovic.

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

Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth shared key numbers and reminders as voters cast ballots Tuesday.

Here’s the runoff election “by the numbers” breakdown:

• More than 145,000 early voting ballots were cast ahead of Election Day in Harris County.
• More than 88,000 Republican voters cast ballots during early voting.
• More than 57,000 Democratic voters voted early.

There is only one location where voters can directly return a completed mail-in ballot on Election Day: 1019 Congress in downtown Houston.

Voters can also take their mail-in ballot to any county vote center, surrender it, and then vote in person instead.

This marks the eighth election held in the last eight months in Harris County, highlighting what election officials say has been an unusually busy voting cycle.

• Some Houston-area voters report ‘election fatigue’ as early voting begins in Texas runoff elections

There are more than 160 vote centers available across Harris County for Election Day voting. Voters can cast a ballot at any countywide vote center.

There are two key runoff voting rules voters should know:

• You can still vote in the runoff election even if you did not vote in the March 3 primary.
• If you did vote in the March 3 primary, Texas law requires you to vote in the same party’s runoff election.

Election officials say voters can find polling locations, wait times, sample ballots and more through HarrisVotes.com.

Voters with questions can contact the Harris County Elections hotline at 713-755-6965.

The space agency outlined the first phase of its moon base plans on Tuesday, awarding hundreds of millions of dollars in contracts to four U.S. companies.

Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin will provide a pair of landers to deliver moon buggies to the lunar surface, at a spot near the moon’s south pole. These so-called lunar terrain vehicles will be built by Astrolab and Lunar Outpost. Firefly Aerospace, which landed successfully on the moon last year, will deliver the first drones to the moon.

All this hardware is ideally supposed to arrive before the first Artemis astronauts land on the moon, planned for as early as 2028.

During April's Artemis II mission, four astronauts flew around the moon, traveling deeper into space than the Apollo moon crews did during the late 1960s and early 1970s. For next year's Artemis III, another team of astronauts will practice docking NASA's Orion capsule in orbit around Earth with the lunar landers being developed for crews by Blue Origin and Elon Musk's SpaceX.

NASA is targeting Artemis III for mid-2027, with a landing by two astronauts following as soon as 2028. The moon base's second phase, from 2029 into the early 2030s, will start building up the permanent infrastructure, including a power grid. As for when the base will be ready to support astronauts for extended periods in specialized permanent habitats, that's expected sometime in the 2030s, during the third phase.

“Then we'll be able to say, 'Hey, we're permanently here and we're not giving it up,'” said NASA's moon base program executive Carlos Garcia-Galan.

Garcia-Galan envisions a moon base sprawling over hundreds of square miles, with a perimeter marked by drones, dubbed MoonFall, stationed at the corners.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said these territory markers are meant to be respectful of other countries' spacecraft and equipment that might be nearby. He expects reciprocity in the matter.

The goal of the moon base is to encourage a lunar economy while conducting scientific research and laying the foundation for a Mars expedition, Isaacman stressed.

“For those waiting patiently, the grand return is close at hand and we will not slow down,” Isaacman said. “We are really just getting started.”

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

The first bee was held in 1925, when the Louisville Courier-Journal invited other newspapers to host spelling bees and send their champions to Washington. After a long run at a convention center in suburban Maryland, the bee returns to the nation's capital this year at Constitution Hall, a few blocks from the White House.

Another change for this year: ESPN NFL analyst and recent “Celebrity Jeopardy!” champion Mina Kimes has joined the bee as its television host.

This is the 98th bee; it was canceled from 1943 to 1945 because of World War II and again in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s champion will be the 111th, because the bee ended in a two-way tie several times and an eight-way tie in 2019.

Thirty of the past 36 champions have been of Indian heritage, including last year’s winner, Faizan Zaki.

How can I watch the Scripps National Spelling Bee?

The bee is broadcast and streamed on channels and platforms owned by Scripps, a Cincinnati-based media company.

Wednesday's quarterfinals will stream on Scripps Sports Network and spellingbee.com from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and semifinals can be watched on those platforms from 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tape-delayed semifinals will be broadcast on ION from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Finals will be broadcast Thursday on ION from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. The semifinals and finals will also air or be streamed on these Scripps-owned channels or services: ION Plus, Bounce, Grit, Laff, The Spot, Bounce XL, Grit Xtra, Laff More, Scripps News and Scripps Sports Network.

What are the rules of the Scripps National Spelling Bee?

Spellers qualify by advancing through regional bees hosted by sponsors around the country. In order to compete, spellers must not have advanced beyond the eighth grade or be older than 15.

Competitors must get through two preliminary rounds, where they are quizzed on words from a list provided in advance. There is one spelling round and one multiple-choice vocabulary round.

Those who make it through the preliminaries sit for a written spelling and vocabulary test, with the top 100 or so finishers advancing to the quarterfinals. The words for the test, and for all subsequent rounds, are taken from the Merriam-Webster Unabridged dictionary.

Throughout the quarterfinals and semifinals, spellers are eliminated at the microphone through oral spelling or vocabulary questions.

About a dozen spellers advance to the finals. When only two remain, Scripps has the option to use a lightning-round tiebreaker known as a “spell-off” to determine the champion.

Who is competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee?

This year's bee has 247 spellers representing all 50 states, the District of Columbia, three U.S. territories and five other countries: The Bahamas, Canada, Ghana, Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates. After the preliminary rounds, 167 were left.

The top returning finisher from 2025 is Sarv Dharavane of Dunwoody, Georgia, who finished third last year as an 11-year-old fifth-grader. Even if he falls short this year, he has two years of eligibility left.

Other possible contenders:

— Shrey Parikh, a 14-year-old eighth-grader from Rancho Cucamonga, California, who finished third in 2024. He has dominated the bee circuit in the past year, winning the South Asian Spelling Bee, the SpellPundit National Spelling Bee and the Words of Wisdom Spelling Bee.

— Oliver Halkett, a 14-year-old eighth-grader from Los Angeles who finished in a tie for seventh last year.

— Esha Marupudi, a 14-year-old eighth-grader from Chandler, Arizona, who also tied for seventh last year.

What are the prizes for the Scripps National Spelling Bee champion?

The winner receives a custom trophy and more than $50,000 in cash and prizes. Here are the prize payouts:

— First place: $52,500 in cash, reference works from Encyclopaedia Britannica and Merriam-Webster, a custom trophy and commemorative medal, and $1,000 in flight credits from Delta Air Lines.

— Second place: $25,000.

— Third place: $15,000.

— Fourth place: $10,000.

— Fifth place: $5,000.

— Sixth place: $2,500.

— All other finalists: $2,000.

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Ben Nuckols has covered the Scripps National Spelling Bee since 2012. Follow his work here.

In a joint statement, Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. and local first response agencies confirmed there had been fatalities.

Cowlitz Fire and Rescue Chief Scott Goldstein later told a news conference that it was unclear how many workers had been killed. Asked how many remained missing, he replied: “We have information on that, but we’re not releasing that information.”

Among those injured was a responding firefighter. Authorities said some victims had suffered burns or inhalation injuries, and that the severity of the injuries ranged from minor to critical. There was no immediate threat to the public, they said.

The statement, issued more than four hours after the tank imploded at 7:15 a.m., said crews were continuing recovery operations and that no identifying information would be released about victims pending notification of relatives.

Some people waited at the company’s visitor entrance on Tuesday, seeking information about loved ones who worked at the facility. They declined to comment to an Associated Press reporter.

The Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. facility is a pulp and paper mill and liquid packaging plant along the Columbia River in Longview, a city of about 38,000 that has had a relationship with the paper and lumber industries since its founding by a Kansas City timber baron in the 1920s.

The facility, which employs about 1,000 people, makes material for tissues, printing paper, cups, plates, cartons and other goods. It is located in an industrial zone shared by other timber, paper and chemical businesses, and it remains central to the community.

“The people who are responders here have friends and relatives that work on site,” Goldstein noted. “It is something that is impactful, and we have support networks to support the workers as well as the emergency responders.”

The 80,000-gallon (303,000-liter) tank that imploded was about 60% full, Goldstein said. It contained a chemical brew known as "white liquor,” a corrosive substance that consists mainly of sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide and is used to break down wood to make kraft paper, a durable paper used in packaging, shopping bags and other products.

It was too early to determine the cause of the implosion, Goldstein said.

In a written statement, U.S. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington called the implosion an “absolute tragedy.”

“My heart is with everyone who lost a loved one today — as well as the injured workers,” she said.

Mike Gorsuch, battalion chief with the fire department in Longview, Washington, described it as a “mass casualty scene.” He said first responders had decontaminated patients and taken them to hospitals in Longview and Vancouver, Washington.

About 40 firefighters and paramedics had responded, along with a regional hazmat team, Gorsuch said.

Following the tank's rupture, the white liquor spilled into a drainage ditch, said Brittny Goodsell, a state Ecology Department spokesperson. The department sent a team to evaluate the impacts, Goodsell said.

Thousands of residents of Southern California remained evacuated Tuesday due to a damaged chemical tank at an aerospace plant.

Just over 40 people died between January 2021 and mid-October 2023 as a result of hazardous chemical incidents, according to a paper released by a network of environmental justice organizations in late 2023.

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Boone reported from Boise, Idaho. Associated Press reporters Gene Johnson in Seattle and Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque, New Mexico, contributed.

Not everyone at this week's competition appreciates the change.

“I feel like they should not have moved it. The old venue was better. Because it's a bit of a hassle, getting on the bus and going there and then coming back,” said 14-year-old Yahya Mohammed, a three-time speller from Hoffman Estates, Illinois. “The old venue was more spacious, and it feels kind of isolated in the hotel.”

As the National Spelling Bee began with Tuesday's preliminary rounds, spellers and their families marveled at the historical significance of their new venue and the nearby cultural opportunities while also dealing with logistical hurdles: crowded hallways, limited dining options and shuttle bus rides to and from their hotel.

Built in 1929 by the Daughters of the American Revolution, Constitution Hall sits a few blocks from the Washington Monument and the White House. Spellers and their families are staying at the nearby J.W. Marriott, a favored haunt of lobbyists and interest groups, and the quickest route to the competition venue would normally be a stroll across the Ellipse, the grassy expanse south of the Executive Mansion.

However, the Ellipse is surrounded by temporary fencing and security checkpoints as crews construct an outdoor octagon on the South Lawn of the White House for UFC Freedom 250, a June 14 event timed for President Donald Trump's 80th birthday and marking the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding.

“Two very disparate forms of entertainment,” said Rajeev Malhotra of Boston, the father of speller Rajeev Malhotra, describing the bee and the mixed martial arts extravaganza.

Venue change brings heavy security but plenty of history and culture

Security was beefed up at the hall, with guards and metal detectors stationed at every entrance and explosive-sniffing dogs patrolling the hallways. Three blocks away and three days earlier, a man opened fire at a White House security checkpoint, injuring a bystander before he was fatally shot by Secret Service officers.

At the prior venue, the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in Oxon Hill, Maryland, spellers moved freely throughout the building, roaming between their hotel rooms, the ballroom that housed the competition stage and a massive food court where they grabbed quick meals between last-minute study sessions.

“Last year was better,” said Arpit Aggarwal of Columbia, Missouri, whose daughter, Ananya, is competing for the second time. “Everything was in one place.”

“It's an adjustment,” Ananya's mom, Deepti Bahl, said diplomatically.

Other spellers appreciated the buzz of gathering downtown, saying it was more appropriate for a national competition. The bee began in 1925 and was held at a series of Washington hotels before it moved to the suburbs in 2011.

“I just love being here, right next to the National Mall. You can see the Smithsonian, you can see the Jefferson Memorial. It's such a lively and unique city and I love being in the heart of it,” said three-time speller Oliver Halkett, a 14-year-old from Los Angeles. “There's so much history, there's so much culture. The memorials and the museums are fascinating to go to.”

Speller Andie Seavey of Fairbanks, Alaska, and her mom, Kristin, went to see the musical “The Great Gatsby” at the National Theater next door to the hotel.

After 80 spellers were eliminated Tuesday during onstage spelling and vocabulary rounds, the remaining 167 competitors reconvened at the hotel for a high-stakes written test that determined the 100 or so who would move on to Wednesday morning's quarterfinals. The competition concludes Thursday night.

At the spelling bee, the bell is not necessarily the end

Last year, Faizan Zaki won the National Spelling Bee even though he misspelled a word and heard the dreaded bell rung by head judge Mary Brooks. In fact, he knew it after a few letters. He stopped spelling and told Brooks, “Just ring the bell.”

Faizan's flub let his two remaining competitors back in, since all three misspelled during the round.

Kushi Gottimukkala of Morrisville, North Carolina, is one of a few spellers competing this year who know what that feels like.

At her regional bee, sponsored by the NFL's Carolina Panthers, it was down to Kushi and two other spellers for the final spot at nationals. She misspelled “anchialine,” and she thought it was over, only to see the other two spellers mess up.

Kushi rode the emotional roller coaster and ultimately got through.

“I was still thinking about the mistake, but I was also really grateful that I got a second chance, and so I took that into consideration and decided to focus on my next word,” she said.

Spellers have to prepare for the possibility that missing a word isn't necessarily the end.

Oliver Halkett, too, has competed in a bee where he got a word wrong but wasn't eliminated. He battled through the disappointment by focusing only on the word in front of him.

“It's a peculiar situation, but I think, above all, mental clarity is so important, especially in those latter rounds,” he said. “I close my eyes and do some deep breathing and I visualize the word, and it's just me and the word. That's how you have to approach every single word.

“Treat every word as if it's your first and last word.”

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Ben Nuckols has covered the Scripps National Spelling Bee since 2012. Follow his work here.

• CHECK: Harris County Judge Primary Runoff Election results
• CHECK: Fort Bend County Primary Runoff Election results

Runoff elections determine each party’s final nominee for races in which no candidate received more than 50% of the vote in the March 3 primary.

Polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day, while early voting for the runoff election was held May 16–22.

Voters who participated in one party’s primary election in March were required to vote in the same party’s runoff election, according to Texas election law.

Visit the Politics page of Click2houston.com for complete election results and news.

The 79-year-old president spent more than three hours at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for what the White House described as preventive medical and dental checkups. It was Trump's fourth publicly disclosed medical exam since he returned to office for a second term, and it comes as he tries to project strength ahead of midterm elections that will test his sway with voters.

In a social media post after the visit, Trump said that he had just finished his “6 month physical” and that “Everything checked out PERFECTLY.”

The White House did not immediately release a written report from Trump's doctors.

For decades, administrations have released selected results from presidential physicals, offering the public a glimpse at the commander-in-chief’s health. But the results are filtered through the White House and must be approved by the president, raising questions about what the public does and doesn't get to see.

Trump, a Republican, turns 80 next month and was the oldest person elected U.S. president. His immediate predecessor, President Joe Biden, a Democrat, was 82 when he left office, dropping out of the 2024 presidential race because of widespread concerns he was too old for the job.

A Washington Post/ABC News/Ipsos poll conducted in April found that less than half of U.S. adults think Trump has the mental sharpness or physical health to serve effectively as president.

“I think concern for the president’s physical health is probably at an all-time high, and I think advanced physical age is the No. 1 concern,” said Dr. Jeffrey Kuhlman, who served as a White House physician for more than a decade under Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

For a president of Trump’s age, a complete physical would be expected to include advanced heart testing, screening for common cancers and a cognitive assessment, along with basics like height, weight and blood pressure, Kuhlman said.

The White House has not disclosed what the visit entailed but expressed confidence in what it will show.

“President Trump is the sharpest and most accessible President in American history who is working nonstop to solve problems and deliver on his promises, and he remains in excellent health,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said in a statement.

No law requiring presidents to disclose their medical records

In the weeks leading up to his visit, Trump has been saying he feels as good as he did five decades ago — even as he jokes about his fondness for fast food and his minimal exercise regimen. Yet he’s also sensitive to perceptions about his age, noting that he takes extra caution descending the steps from Air Force One to avoid headlines about a stumble.

There is no law requiring presidents to publicize their health records, and the degree of transparency has varied by administration. Trump’s past reports have been criticized for offering scant detail and for providing statistics that some medical experts have viewed with skepticism.

At public appearances, Trump is often seen wearing makeup to conceal bruising on his hands, which the White House attributes to handshaking and regular aspirin use. He has sometimes appeared drowsy during meetings and closed his eyes for long stretches, though he denies having fallen asleep.

Trump often boasts of having “aced” cognitive tests while frequently deriding Biden, who faced questions about his mental acuity. Biden and his aides pushed back aggressively against doubts raised about his fitness for office.

Some of Trump’s previous physicals have included the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, used to screen for dementia and cognitive impairment. Trump's physicians reported a score of 30 out of 30 for him at his 2018 and 2025 checkups.

Yet critics have pointed to Trump’s meandering speeches and sometimes bellicose rhetoric as evidence of cognitive decline.

Last month, a statement from more than 30 neurologists, psychiatrists and other medical experts — who acknowledged they’ve never examined him — said Trump was mentally unfit to serve and warned of an “increasingly dangerous decline” in his behavior based on what they called “objectively observable signs of serious medical concern.″

“Any so-called medical professionals engaging in armchair diagnosis or false speculation for political purposes are clearly breaking the Hippocratic Oath they’ve sworn to,” Ingle said.

Just like any other patient, presidents get to choose what’s disclosed about their health, said Sara Rosenthal, a bioethicist at the University of Kentucky who studies presidential health. Questions about transparency have become more acute as America elects aging presidents like Trump and Biden, she said.

“I think we can expect very little disclosure about the true health status of any president unless they’re in perfect health,” said Rosenthal, who has suggested an independent medical organization to review and report on the health of the president and those in the line of succession.

'Nothing should be hidden'

Trump's first medical report in his second term was released last April. In July, he was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, a common condition in older adults that causes blood to pool in his veins. Photographs have shown the president with swollen feet, ankles and calves, described by the White House as a symptom of chronic venous insufficiency leading to “mild swelling” in his lower legs.

Following his last publicly disclosed exam, described as a routine follow-up last October, Trump’s physician issued a one-page summary saying the president was in “exceptional health” without divulging many specific results.

The frequency of Trump's medical checkups is not uncommon for someone his age, according to S. Jay Olshansky of the University of Illinois-Chicago, who has studied the health of past presidents. It's part of a strategy to catch problems while they’re still treatable, Olshansky said.

Olshansky says the public deserves to see more than White House medical summaries that “may be subject to editorial discretion.” Full, unredacted medical records should be made public, he said: “Nothing should be hidden.”

Despite the sweltering heat, the pilgrims gathered on the rocky hill and the surrounding plain for worship that often marks a spiritual peak for the faithful, fervently murmured prayers and poured their hearts out in supplication.

Many raised their hands in worship. It is common for pilgrims on that day, some with tears streaming down their faces, to ask God for forgiveness, mercy, blessings and good health.

The Hajj, one of the Five Pillars of Islam, is required once in a lifetime for every Muslim who can afford it and is physically able to perform it.

For pilgrims, the Hajj, performed over several days, can be a deeply moving spiritual experience and a chance to seek God’s forgiveness and the erasure of past sins. As they brave the intense heat to perform religious rituals, many pilgrims have been using umbrellas for shade.

A Saudi official said on Friday that more than 1.5 million pilgrims have arrived in the country from abroad.

This year, Muslims have been pouring into Saudi Arabia for the Hajj against the backdrop of a tenuous ceasefire in the Iran war and related uncertainty in the region.

The U.S. military said Monday that it carried out “self-defense” strikes in southern Iran, including on missile launch sites and boats used to lay mines, even as President Donald Trump said on social media that negotiations with Tehran were “proceeding nicely." Iran on Tuesday denounced the most recent U.S. strikes as a sign of “bad faith and unreliability” as negotiations pressed on toward a possible deal to end the war.

For many, performing the Hajj can be a realization of a lifelong dream as they spend years hoping and praying to one day be able to undertake the pilgrimage or saving up money and waiting for a permit to embark on the trip.

“This happens once in a lifetime,” Mohammad Asal, an Egyptian pilgrim, said. “People here have prepared their prayers, hoping that God will respond to them, because we know that ... the most important ritual of the Hajj is being in Arafat.”

The Hajj brings together large numbers of Muslims of diverse races, ethnicities, languages and socioeconomic classes, creating a sense of unity for many. It’s a mass, communal experience, with Muslims performing rituals together. But it is also deeply personal, as every pilgrim brings their own yearnings and experiences.

“It was incredible,” Ahmed Sufyan, a pilgrim from the United States, said on Tuesday. “The unity and peace that we feel is something I’ve never experienced before,” he added via WhatsApp.

“Our wishes are many,” Mohammad Obaid, a Sudanese pilgrim, said, adding he was praying for Sudan and Muslims everywhere.

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Fam reported from Winter Park, Florida.

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

The S&P 500 climbed 0.6% after trading resumed following Monday’s holiday and set an all-time high. The Nasdaq composite rallied 1.2% to set its own record, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 118 points, or 0.2%, from its all-time high.

Stock markets in much of the rest of the world pulled back from their gains the day before, as fighting continued in the region and the U.S. military said it carried out “self-defense” strikes in southern Iran, including on missile launch sites and boats placing mines. Markets have rallied in the past on hopes for a coming end to the war with Iran, only to see the conflict drag on.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, rose 3.5% to $96.67, but that reclaimed only some of its plunge from Monday. The price for a barrel of U.S crude oil, meanwhile, fell 2.8% to settle at $93.89.

Oil prices have been at the center of financial markets' action since the United States and Israel attacked Iran in late February. The ensuing war has closed the Strait of Hormuz and kept oil tankers pent up in the Persian Gulf instead of delivering crude to customers worldwide. That in turn has driven up oil’s price and sent a wave of painful inflation around the world.

Hopes for a deal to improve the flow of oil helped lift stocks of companies with big fuel bills. United Airlines rose 6%, and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings steamed 4.9% higher.

Big technology stocks also continued their big runs. Micron Technology's stock leaped 19.3% to top $895.88 and was the strongest force lifting the S&P 500 after analysts at UBS led by Timothy Arcuri raised their 12-month price target for the stock to $1,625 from $535.

The analysts are forecasting continued strength in demand for computer memory, and Micron’s stock has already more than tripled so far this year. It's the latest Big Tech company to top an overall value of $1 trillion and joined such behemoths as Nvidia, Apple and Microsoft, which have each blown past $3 trillion.

On the losing side of Wall Street was AutoZone, which dropped 9% after reporting slightly weaker revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. CEO Phil Daniele said performance for the retailer’s stores in Brazil and Mexico was below its plan, though its overall profit topped analysts' expectations.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 45.65 points to 7,519.12. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 118.02 to 50,461.68, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 312.21 to 26,656.18.

Lower oil prices helped pull yields down in the U.S. bond market, which eased the pressure on Wall Street. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.49% from 4.56% late Friday.

It’s a respite following recent gains for yields in bond markets worldwide, which threatened to slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and all kinds of other investments. High yields have already forced the average long-term U.S. mortgage rate to its most expensive level since last summer, and they could curtail companies’ borrowing to build the artificial-intelligence data centers that have supported the U.S. economy’s growth recently.

Most big U.S. companies have been reporting both profit and revenue for the start of 2026 above what analysts expected. The strong performances have helped vault U.S. stocks to records, even with all the uncertainty around oil prices and the war with Iran.

U.S. households have been feeling discouraged about the economy because of accelerating inflation, and a report on Tuesday said consumer confidence edged downward in May, though the number was not as bad as economists expected. It followed a report on Friday that said sentiment among U.S. consumers hit its lowest level on record.

In stock markets abroad, many indexes slipped, including a 0.2% dip for Japan’s Nikkei 225 from its all-time high set the day before.

South Korea’s Kospi jumped 2.5% as it caught up with other markets following its closure on Monday for a holiday. London’s FTSE 100 added 0.2% even though British petroleum giant BP fell 4% there. BP ousted its chairman over what it called serious concerns related to “important governance standards, oversight and conduct.”

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AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.

Current timing brings storms into western areas around 2 to 3 a.m., moving through the Houston metro area around 5 a.m., then shifting east by around 7 a.m. Conditions should begin improving by roughly 9 a.m., although exact timing could still shift by a couple of hours in either direction.

The timing is especially important because the strongest activity is expected to overlap with the Wednesday morning commute. Drivers should be prepared for reduced visibility, ponding on roads, and occasional slowdowns where heavier downpours develop.

You can check radar here if you’re headed out today:

Wednesday’s Storm Timeline:

2–3 a.m. | Storms arrive west of Houston:

The first showers and thunderstorms are expected to move into western parts of Southeast Texas during the overnight hours. Most people will still be asleep, but some could begin hearing thunder before sunrise.

Around 5 a.m. | Storms move through Houston metro:

This appears to be the window when storms move through the Houston area itself. Heavy downpours and frequent lightning are expected to be the primary concerns, with some roads potentially seeing ponding and reduced visibility.

Around 7 a.m. | Storms shift east:

Storms should continue pushing southeast and east of Houston during the morning commute. Some lingering showers remain possible, but conditions should gradually improve as we head toward mid-morning.

By around 9 a.m., much of the organized activity should be moving out of the area, with improving conditions expected through the rest of Wednesday.

The biggest concerns with this system appear to be heavy rain and frequent lightning.

Rainfall totals for most locations are expected to stay manageable, generally around 1 to 2 inches, though some isolated spots could pick up locally higher amounts where storms repeatedly move across the same area. Because these storms are expected to move fairly quickly, the flooding threat currently appears minor and widespread flooding is not anticipated.

A few stronger storms are possible, but the severe weather threat remains low at this time.

Next Three Days:

Wednesday starts active with widespread showers and thunderstorms likely during the morning hours. Storms are expected to move through before and during the morning commute, bringing periods of heavy rain, lightning, and locally reduced visibility on roads. Conditions should steadily improve through late morning with rain chances dropping through the afternoon. High temperatures will stay cooler, near the lower 80s.

Thursday won’t be a washout, but a few scattered showers and thunderstorms could redevelop during the afternoon and evening as daytime heating kicks in. Coverage should be much lower than Wednesday, with many areas staying dry. Highs return to the upper 80s.

By Friday and into the weekend, the pattern starts looking much more like a typical early summer setup across Southeast Texas. Temperatures climb back toward 90 degrees with warm, humid mornings and isolated afternoon shower chances. Most areas should stay dry most of the time, but the occasional pop-up storm will remain possible.

10-Day Forecast:

Rain chances drop significantly by Friday with highs climbing back into the upper 80s and lower 90s. We’ll still keep a few isolated afternoon shower and thunderstorm chances around at times, especially Sunday through early next week, but most areas should stay dry more often than not.

Humidity will also continue ramping up as we head into June, meaning those warm, sticky mornings and summer-like afternoons are definitely returning.

And speaking of June — hurricane season officially begins next week on June 1st.

To help you get prepared before the season ramps up, be sure to catch our KPRC Hurricane & Flood Survival Guide live next Wednesday at 8 p.m., where we’ll cover what you need to know heading into the 2026 season.

The victory could provide a model for similar campaigns gaining traction in states including California and Illinois, where labor organizers are increasingly targeting app-based industries as drivers also grapple with the rapid expansion of self-driving technology.

As drivers waved signs and chanted with the gold dome of the Massachusetts State House providing a backdrop, labor leaders described Friday's certification as the largest private-sector organizing win since Ford autoworkers unionized in 1941.

Jean Fredo, who has driven for Uber for more than seven years, said he hopes the union will bring better pay, stronger protections against sudden deactivations and more stability for drivers.

“With the union, it will not feel like we’re working for nothing,” he said in French through a translator. “Now the money will not only stay in the billionaire’s pockets. The money will actually come to the workers who work very hard.”

Uber and Lyft said they planned to work with the new bargaining framework as negotiations move forward. Uber said it would work with the union and regulators while preserving “driver flexibility and hard-won benefits,” while Lyft said it was committed to “engaging in good faith” and “helping drivers succeed while keeping rideshare affordable and dependable for everyone who counts on it.”

The certification became possible after the state's voters approved a 2024 ballot measure creating a first-in-the-nation framework allowing ride-hailing drivers to unionize and bargain collectively while remaining independent contractors. Organizers say the union will ultimately represent nearly 70,000 drivers statewide.

Drivers hope for relief on wages, deactivations

“Without the support of the drivers, we wouldn’t be here,” Victoria Acosta, a mother who drives for both Uber and Lyft, said in Spanish through a translator. She said she hopes the victory inspires drivers in other states.

Uber and Lyft drivers are generally classified as independent contractors rather than employees, meaning they are not covered by many traditional labor protections under federal law. Drivers typically use their own vehicles, pay for expenses such as gas and maintenance themselves and can choose when and how long they work through the apps.

Fredo said when he started driving for Uber he appreciated the flexibility and the ability to make his own schedule while still being present for his family. But over time, he said, he found himself working longer hours while earning less as gas and maintenance costs climbed.

Drivers can also lose access to the apps with little warning, he said.

“I live with stress — always scared to lose my app. This is not a way to live," said Fredo, who helped sign up hundreds of other drivers at airports and gathering spots around the Boston area.

“This is my family,” he said, holding up a photo of his four children. “I’m fighting for a better life for them — just like everyone else is fighting for their families. My dream is to save and send my kids to college, and I believe we will get there.”

A labor fight shadowed by automation fears

Supporters say rising vehicle costs, fluctuating pay and opaque app algorithms have fueled frustration among drivers who pay many work expenses themselves. Uber and Lyft have argued that drivers value the flexibility of app-based work and have opposed efforts that could reclassify workers or alter the industry’s business model.

Massachusetts regulators are considering new ride-hailing rules involving safety standards and driver oversight. Days before the union certification, Uber warned in a blog post that some of the proposals could raise costs and reduce flexibility for drivers, while supporters said the changes are intended to strengthen safety and accountability.

The organizing effort has also unfolded alongside the rapid expansion of autonomous vehicle technology. Massachusetts still requires a licensed human operator inside autonomous vehicles tested on public roads.

Waymo has expanded driverless taxi operations in cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix, heightening anxiety among some ride-hailing drivers about the future of their jobs.

Julie Blust of the App Drivers Union said drivers across the country regularly communicate with one another about changing conditions in the industry, including the expansion of autonomous vehicles.

“Drivers now have an official organization and can speak with one voice about what’s happening in this industry,” Blust said. “We cannot let billions of dollars leave Massachusetts and go to Silicon Valley. That money feeds people’s families, that money pays the rent."

The U.S. military characterized Monday's strikes in southern Iran as defensive, with targets that included missile launch sites and minelaying boats, and said the U.S. acted with “restraint" in light of the weekslong ceasefire.

Iran's foreign ministry called the strikes a ceasefire violation and warned that Washington would bear responsibility for “all consequences,” without elaborating.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran will leave no act of aggression unanswered,” it added in a statement.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said Tuesday that it shot down at least one drone and deterred another drone and a fighter jet that entered its airspace, according to Iran’s official Mizan news agency. It didn't specify when the incidents occurred.

Iran's supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, used a statement about Islam's annual Hajj pilgrimage to address his country's confrontation with the U.S. and Israel, declaring that other Mideast nations “will no longer serve as a shield” for U.S. military bases. Iran has previously complained about U.S. military facilities in the region and targeted them.

It was not immediately clear what the developments would mean for negotiations.

Iranian state TV reported Tuesday that Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi left Qatar, where talks had been taking place. The report did not elaborate or point to any next steps.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio projected that talks on extending the ceasefire and reopening the crucial Strait of Hormuz will “take a few days."

Iranians get back online, to some extent

Meanwhile, Iranian authorities eased a monthslong internet shutdown that they cast as a wartime necessity, but that has cost the country's economy an estimated $30 million to $40 million a day. Internet users reported that access was gradually being restored, at least in some places. State media said fixed broadband service was back. It was unclear when mobile internet would be widely restored.

Iran has long enforced filters and policed content on platforms such as YouTube and Instagram. But before the war, Iranians could bypass restrictions with cheap virtual private networks, known as VPNs, and other easy workarounds.

Authorities cut off internet access in January during massive anti-government demonstrations and later began to relax those restrictions before imposing a complete internet blackout after the U.S. and Israel attacked on Feb. 28.

The internet outage made it difficult for Iranians outside the country to maintain contact with loved ones, and the lack of connectivity devastated the country’s relatively vibrant online businesses, putting further pressure on an already battered economy.

An execution in Iran

In other developments, Iran hanged a man it convicted of spying for Israel, the latest of more than two dozen allegedly espionage- and security-related executions since the war intensified a crackdown on dissent.

The Iranian judiciary’s news outlet, Mizanonline, identified the man as Gholamreza Khani Shakarab, calling him “a ringleader” for operations for Israel’s intelligence agency, the Mossad, and accusing him of recruiting members inside and outside Iran to work against the nation’s security. He was involved in sports and traveled to neighboring countries, according to the news agency.

Activists and rights groups say Iran routinely holds closed-door trials in which defendants are unable to challenge accusations and often are forced to confess.

The official judiciary agency said the country’s Supreme Court had upheld Shakarab's death sentence.

Global food official concerned about strait closure

The U.S. strikes were the latest flare-up in the fragile ceasefire that began April 7 and has largely held.

Negotiations center in part on the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway off southern Iran through which a fifth of the world's crude oil and natural gas passed before the war began. Once the fighting started, Tehran retaliated by effectively closing the strait, stranding hundreds of ships, shocking the global economy, disrupting energy markets and squeezing fertilizer supplies worldwide.

Iran has let a limited number of ships pass and has charged tolls. The Revolutionary Guard navy said Tuesday that 25 oil tankers, container ships and other commercial vessels were allowed to pass in the previous 24 hours, according to state broadcaster IRIB. Before the war, over 100 ships a day went through the strait.

The full effect of the fertilizer crunch might not become clear until harvests that are months away. U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization Director-General Qu Dongyu warned Tuesday at an event in Rome that “the decisions we make now will determine whether this remains a manageable shock or evolves into a deeper global food security crisis in 2026 and 2027 and beyond."

The strait has become a powerful lever for Tehran in talks, joining the long-running issue of Iran's nuclear program and its highly enriched uranium. Iran wants the U.S. to lift its military blockade of Iranian ports that began on April 17.

In the nearby Gulf of Oman, an explosion was reported Tuesday aboard a tanker, according to the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Center. No one was injured, and there was no immediate information on the cause.

The justices overturned a lower-court ruling that had allowed the case to proceed and raised questions about whether a complaint system for federal employees is still working as intended after the Republican president fired some of its top officials.

Immigration judges are federal employees, unlike those in federal courtrooms. They want to sue over a policy restricting their public speeches that started in Trump's first term in office and continued under President Joe Biden's Democratic administration. The judges argue it is a free speech issue that belongs in federal court.

The Trump administration disagreed, saying the judges must instead take their dispute to the complaint system for federal employees overseen by the Merit Systems Protection Board.

The court ruled on procedural grounds, but Justice Clarence Thomas, joined by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, wrote to rebuke the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for responding to “political controversies of the day.”

Tuesday's decision comes as the court weighs another lawsuit about Trump’s power to fire heads of independent agencies. The outcome is also expected to affect firing power over Merit Systems Protection Board members.

The judges first sued in 2020, and the Supreme Court previously temporarily sided with them on an emergency basis in December 2025. A union said in a statement that the judges were disappointed by the decision, but the case is “far from over.”

“Justice cannot endure when judges are intimidated into silence, nor can a nation remain free when the rule of law is subordinate to the whims of political ambition,” the National Association of Immigration Judges said.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche applauded the decision, saying it "sends a clear message: lower courts must accept that the law is the law, no matter the 'political controversies of the day,'” he wrote in a social-media post.

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Follow the AP's coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court at https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court.

Trump's endorsement of state Attorney General Ken Paxton over four-term Sen. John Cornyn gives the challenger a boost and puts Cornyn at risk of becoming the first Republican senator in Texas history to seek the party's nod and lose.

That's despite Cornyn's campaign and allied groups spending roughly $90 million in advertising since last year, the vast majority of it attacking Paxton.

It's the latest GOP contest where Trump has sought to punish a Republican he sees as insufficiently loyal. This month, he has successfully backed challengers to incumbents in Louisiana, Kentucky and Indiana, a sign of his enduring influence among primary voters.

Paxton's campaign and a pro-Paxton super PAC began airing ads promoting the endorsement within 24 hours of Trump's announcement. Cornyn acknowledged Trump's move would have an impact but said he wasn't giving up.

“I know who gets to choose our senators, and it’s the people of Texas,” he said hours after the endorsement.

The winner will face Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in November, when Democrats see hope of winning a statewide Texas office for the first time in decades.

Tuesday's runoffs also will decide Democratic U.S. House nominees for districts in Dallas and Houston that overwhelmingly support Democrats, and a San Antonio-area seat the party wants to flip.

The primary has been long and costly

Cornyn led Paxton in the March primary but failed to win a majority. That was after Cornyn and his supporters waged a monthslong ad campaign, mostly attacking Paxton over ethical and personal questions. The two-term attorney general was acquitted on corruption charges in a 2023 impeachment trial, where allegations of extramarital affairs surfaced. Paxton’s wife filed for divorce last year, citing “biblical grounds.”

The alliance of pro-Cornyn groups has continued its attack, outspending Paxton's campaign and two allied super PACs $16.5 million to $5.9 million since March 3, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact.

Trump promised to endorse immediately after the primary but didn’t act until after early voting began last week.

“Ken Paxton has gone through a lot, in many cases, very unfairly, but he is a Fighter, and knows how to win,” Trump wrote in a social media post endorsing him.

David Jacobson, a retired 70-year-old Dallas-area resident, said Trump's endorsement was a factor in his decision to back Paxton on Tuesday. While Cornyn has for the most part been a strong Trump supporter, Jacobson generally thinks most politicians have remained in office too long.

“Maybe it’s time for a change,” he said after voting near Dallas.

Linda Williams said she voted for Cornyn, calling him “the lesser of two evils.” She thinks Cornyn has a better chance to beat Talarico this fall.

“Because Paxton is a crook," Williams said after voting in Plano, outside Dallas.

Trump snubs Cornyn amid retribution campaign

The negative tenor could diminish turnout in an election already complicated by coming the day after Memorial Day, Texas Republican strategist Tyler Norris said.

The dynamic could favor Paxton, whose support draws from the most loyal Trump base in Texas, or “the hardest of the hard core,” Norris said.

Trump, in his endorsement, also poked at Cornyn, saying he “was not supportive of me when times were tough” and that “John was very late in backing me.”

Cornyn suggested in 2023 that Trump could not win the presidency again in 2024 and that his “time has passed him by.” He also was an early critic of Trump’s plan for a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico — a project he now supports.

Cornyn said Tuesday on Fox News Radio's “The Brian Kilmeade Show” that the president's ire was misplaced. There are “grifters," he said, "claiming that I am opposed to the president's agenda, and I think that’s caused some confusion with the president himself. But I’ve been supportive.”

Some GOP strategists have argued that a Paxton nomination would cost millions of dollars more to promote in the fall, when money could be spent defending Republican seats in more competitive states. Democrats need to gain a net of four seats to take the majority. Cornyn has the support of Senate GOP leaders.

Democrats also will choose US House nominees

Newly elected Rep. Christian Menefee and veteran Rep. Al Green are vying for the party nod in Texas' 18th District, which the Republican-led Texas Legislature redrew last year. The new map led to a runoff between incumbents and marks the end of a dizzying series of elections in the Houston area.

Former Rep. Colin Allred and U.S. Rep. Julie Johnson are competing in the Dallas-area 33rd District. Johnson was elected to the seat in 2024, the year Allred lost his U.S. Senate challenge to Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. Allred was running for Senate again this cycle but dropped his bid and instead is looking to return to the House.

Near San Antonio, Democratic leaders are trying to prevent Maureen Galindo, who has expressed antisemitic views, from winning the party's runoff with Johnny Garcia. While Texas lawmakers redrew the 35th District to help Republicans, Democrats view it as within reach and don't want Galindo's past comments to impede them.

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This story has been corrected to show that voter David Jacobson is 70, not 71.

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Bedayn reported from Austin, Texas. Associated Press reporter Jamie Stengle contributed from Sasche, Texas.

Traffic is being diverted off the highway at FM 1960.

Prepare for delays or seek an alternate route if you are in the area.

Parent company Meta Platforms Inc. appealed after Vermont’s highest court allowed a suit filed by its attorney general in 2023 to move forward. The company is facing similar lawsuits from states across the country, accusing it of knowingly designing addictive features.

Meta had argued that it can’t be sued in Vermont court because neither the company nor the app design has specific ties to the state. Vermont countered that the sites’ large number of teen users gives its courts jurisdiction.

The Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal in a brief, unexplained order, as is typical. The procedural decision comes after court losses for Meta and YouTube in social media addiction lawsuits in California and New Mexico.

Vermont's lawsuit was filed after an investigation by a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general in several states. Newspaper reports based on Meta’s own research also found that the company knew about the harms Instagram can cause teenagers — especially teen girls — when it comes to mental health and body image issues. One internal study cited 13.5% of teen girls saying Instagram makes thoughts of suicide worse and 17% of teen girls saying it makes eating disorders worse.

Almost all teens ages 13 to 17 in the U.S. report using a social media platform, with about a third saying they use social media “almost constantly,” according to the Pew Research Center.

Meta, for its part, has said that it has already introduced dozens of tools to support teens and their families and suggested it would have worked with the states on standards for youth social media use.

Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark applauded the decision, saying it affirms “that companies that choose to do business in Vermont, like Meta, can be held accountable when they harm kids.”

The 2023 Ferrari Coupe, stolen out of Florida, was found at a residence in the 12100 block of Via Toscano Ct.

The homeowner was detained and the investigation remains ongoing at this time.

The luxury sports car, valued at approximately $330,000, will be returned to its rightful owner in Aventura, Florida.

Runoff races in Fort Bend County included the Democratic nominations for Fort Bend County Judge, Fort Bend County Clerk and Fort Bend County Treasurer. The winners of Tuesday’s runoff elections will advance to the November general election.

The Fort Bend County Judge position oversees the county’s Commissioners Court and county administration, while the county clerk manages public records and election-related duties. The county treasurer is responsible for overseeing county funds and financial operations.

Polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day, while early voting for the runoff election was held May 16–22.

Under Texas election law, voters who participated in one party’s primary election earlier this month were required to vote in the same party’s runoff election.

Visit the Politics page of Click2houston.com for complete election results and news.

The Harris County Judge position oversees the Commissioners Court and plays a major role in managing county government, emergency response and the county budget.

The runoff election determined which candidates would advance as the Democratic and Republican nominees ahead of the November general election.

Polling places ae open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day, while early voting for the runoff election was held May 16–22.

Under Texas election law, voters who participated in one party’s primary election earlier this month were required to vote in the same party’s runoff election.

Visit the Politics page of Click2houston.com for complete election results and news.

In a letter sent to more than 250 companies, members of the Black Caucus urge them to condemn the redistricting efforts, which the lawmakers describe as “coordinated efforts to silence Black voices at the ballot box.” Some of the companies had cosigned their own message to Congress five years ago urging lawmakers to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, a Democratic proposal to restore and update the Voting Rights Act.

That 2021 coalition, Business for Voting Rights, was backed by many of the country’s most valuable and influential companies, including Apple, Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, Tesla, Salesforce, Target, PayPal, Intel and Starbucks.

Tuesday's letter is the latest effort by the Congressional Black Caucus and its allies to gather support for preventing more Republican-led states from redrawing their legislative maps in ways that would dilute Black political representation. Several states have moved to eliminate congressional districts represented by Black Democratic lawmakers after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last month that severely weakened a key provision of the Voting Rights Act.

“Corporations that have profited from Black consumers, relied on Black workers, and amassed wealth in part from Black communities cannot look away while Black political power is dismantled in plain sight,” Rep. Yvette Clarke, chair of the Black Caucus, said in an interview.

Clarke described the letter as “putting corporate America on notice,” but she said the caucus was not seeking an adversarial relationship with corporations. Among those receiving Tuesday's letter were companies based overseas that have a significant presence in the U.S.

The caucus last week called for Black athletes to boycott public universities in states that are gerrymandering their congressional maps to eliminate districts held by Black lawmakers. The 59-member Congressional Black Caucus consists entirely of Democrats, including more than a third from Southern states.

Some lawmakers have said mass protests and federal legislation might be necessary to undo the efforts underway in Republican-led states. Any new federal voting rights law would almost certainly require Democrats to secure majorities in both chambers of Congress and win the presidency.

It is unclear how companies will respond to the demands. The Associated Press reached out for comment to dozens of companies that were sent a letter by the caucus, but did not receive a response from most firms. Microsoft declined to comment.

“Many companies that previously issued statements after the murder of George Floyd, pledged billions toward racial equity initiatives, and spoke forcefully in defense of democracy following January 6 now face a defining test of whether those commitments were rooted in principle or convenience,” the caucus' letter states.

It also represents the latest instance of the caucus expressing frustrations with corporate America. A 2024 Black Caucus report noted that lawmakers were “troubled that some corporations that made pledges in 2020 have taken several steps in the opposite direction,” such as rolling back or failing to follow through on pledges to diversify their workforces.

“We understand who the occupant in the White House is and the reality of Republicans being in charge,” Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford of Nevada said of the caucus’ message. “But what corporate America also understands is that there will be a shift at some point.”

The letter calls on companies to publicly condemn the redistricting plans, meet with Black Caucus members to discuss corporate America's role in protecting voting rights and disclose their political donations to Republican politicians in states that are redistricting their congressional maps.

President Donald Trump last year kicked off the unusual mid-decade round of congressional redistricting when he pushed Texas lawmakers to redraw their maps in a way that would add Republican seats. Democratic-led California responded, but it has been mostly Republican states redrawing their lines since as the party tries to maintain its majority in the U.S. House during this year's midterm elections.

The effort was supercharged by the Supreme Court decision, which allowed even more Republican states to redraw congressional maps that previously had protected minority communities.

Horsford, who chaired the Black Caucus during President Joe Biden's Democratic administration, said the caucus is demanding that companies “stand on the side of democracy, fairness and equal representation.”

“This is about power, who holds it and what it’s used for,” he said. “And when you’re diluting Black economic and political power, we need to know where these companies stand in this moment, and what side of history they’re on.”

Barcelona said Tuesday that Putellas will officially bid farewell at an event at Camp Nou stadium on Wednesday, giving the club a “chance to recognize the legacy created by a player who has become a role model on and off the field and who has helped women's football to grow across the globe.”

The 32-year-old Putellas on Saturday helped Barcelona win the Champions League title for the fourth time in six seasons.

There was no immediate announcement about her next move, with speculation in Spain that she may join the fast-emerging London City Lionesses. Putellas attended a Lionesses game in London in January.

Putellas played 507 games for Barcelona — second on the all-time list — since arriving at age 18 in 2012 from Levante, the Catalan club said.

Putellas scored 232 goals for Barcelona, a club record, and won 38 trophies, including four Champions Leagues and 10 Spanish league titles.

“The time has come to acknowledge that I’ve given everything for these colors,” Putellas said in a video posted on her social media accounts. "It’s been a perfect story.”

She was Barcelona's best player when it won its first Champions League in 2021 and helped put women’s soccer in Spain on the global map when she won back-to-back Ballon d’Or awards in 2021 and 2022. Her boost to the sport was considered key to helping Spain win the 2023 World Cup.

When Spain was embroiled in crisis after its then soccer federation president Luis Rubiales kissed a player without consent during the World Cup awards ceremony, it was Putellas who led the player revolt that prompted his downfall.

“We’ve taken the women’s team further than we ever imagined,” Putellas said. “At the beginning, being a soccer player wasn’t even recognized as a profession. Now I feel privileged to have been part of this change.”

Serious leg injuries put her star status in doubt for Barcelona and Spain. She was sidelined for months and, when she returned to the field, she was reported to be considering a move from Barcelona due to her limited playing time but eventually signed a contract extension.

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

A three-judge panel in the state’s long-running redistricting case issued a preliminary injunction that prevents the state from switching maps, ruling that the Republican-backed plan “intentionally discriminated based on race” by including only one Black-majority district. The judges instead required Alabama to continue using a court-ordered map in place for the 2024 elections that includes two districts where Black residents compose a majority or close to it.

“Ultimately, we cannot see our way clear to requiring Alabamians to cast their votes in the 2026 elections under a districting plan tainted by intentional race-based discrimination,” the judges wrote.

The ruling is a setback for Republicans, who want to use a map for the November midterms that would give the GOP a chance to reclaim the seat now held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Shomari Figures.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, a Republican, said the state will immediately appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. He contended the judges had no basis for their decision to block what he described as a “blandly unobjectionable congressional map.”

“Know this — in my mind, it is not a matter of whether we win this case, only when,” Marshall said.

Figures said he is pleased with the ruling, adding: “This is a significant step in the right direction, but there is still a long way to go before this fight is settled.”

The court order is the latest development in the twisting legal and political saga following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that struck down a Black-majority district in Louisiana and weakened the federal Voting Rights Act. That ruling has led Republicans in several Southern states, including Alabama, to take steps to reshape voting districts with large minority populations that have elected Democrats.

The redistricting frenzy is part of a broader push by President Donald Trump to try to hold on to Republicans’ slim House majority in the November elections.

Alabama court fight stretches back several years

The three-judge panel in 2023 ruled that a map drawn by Republican state lawmakers intentionally diluted the voting power of Black citizens. The court said the state, which is about 27% Black, should have two districts where Black voters are the majority or close to it. The court-selected map was used in 2024.

After the Supreme Court's recent ruling in the Louisiana case, Alabama officials moved to implement the 2023 state-drawn map. The Supreme Court’s conservative majority agreed to lift the injunction that had blocked the map's use and sent the case back to the three-judge panel for reconsideration in light of the Louisiana ruling.

In the meantime, voters cast ballots in Alabama's May 11 primaries, and Republican Gov. Kay Ivey set new special primaries for Aug. 11 in four congressional districts affected by the map switch.

Upon further review, the judicial panel said there was “undisputed evidence” of intentional racial discrimination. It said the special congressional primaries should instead proceed under the previous court-approved districts.

The decision to temporarily block the map switch came after a seven-hour hearing Friday in which judges sharply questioned state lawyers about the timeline and the impact of the Louisiana ruling.

Using the same districts that had been in place for the previous election would prevent “an expensive, aggressive, and perhaps logistically impossible voter reassignment effort,” the judges wrote.

“Candidate and voter confusion is troublesome and warrants significant consideration, but we do not see that a preliminary injunction will worsen it. To the contrary, we expect a preliminary injunction to lessen it,” the judges said.

Deuel Ross, director of litigation for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, said the court ruling “again vindicated the constitutional rights of voters in the Black Belt, and our clients look forward to voting under a fair map this fall.”

Redistricting changes affect primaries in several states

Other states also have considered adjustments to their primary elections to allow time for congressional redistricting after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision affecting the Voting Rights Act. Louisiana’s congressional primaries, scheduled for May 16, were postponed until later this summer by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry so that state lawmakers could consider a new U.S. House map that would eliminate a majority-Black district.

In South Carolina, where early voting began Tuesday for its June 9 primaries, the Republican-led Senate rejected a plan that would have thrown out the votes and instead held a new congressional primary in August under revised districts that could have improved Republicans’ chances of winning an additional seat.

Tennessee also moved quickly to enact new U.S. House districts after the Supreme Court’s ruling, carving up a Black-majority district based in Memphis that had elected the state’s only Democratic representative. The new map gives Republicans a chance to sweep all nine of the state’s seats. As part of the plan, Tennessee temporarily reopened the candidate qualifying period for its August congressional primaries, allowing new candidates to enter the race and existing ones to either switch districts or drop out.

Since Trump first urged Texas to redraw its U.S. House districts last summer, about a half-dozen Republican-led states have enacted new voting districts, though some still face legal challenges. Democrats countered with new districts in California and also expect to gain a seat from new court-imposed districts in Utah.

Trump suspended the refugee program on his first day in office and, since then, has turned it into a vehicle to allow Afrikaners — a group of white South Africans descended mainly from Dutch settlers — into the U.S. Advocates say the decision to focus a decades-old program on one group has left people around the world fleeing war and strife stranded and with few options.

The administration says Afrikaners are subject to persecution in their home country, a charge the government in South Africa denies.

In the Tuesday announcement on the Federal Register, President Donald Trump said that because of “an unforeseen emergency refugee situation” he was raising the refugee cap. He blamed the South African government for “recent increases in the incitement of racially motivated violence" but gave no specific information.

“I hereby determine that the admission to the United States of Afrikaners from South Africa in response to this emergency is justified by the grave humanitarian concerns and is otherwise in the national interest,” Trump said in the announcement.

Democrats criticize refugee cap

The administration indicated last year that it would approve up to 7,500, mostly Afrikaners, during the fiscal year stretching from October 2025 through September 2026, but last week, in a notice to Congress informing it of the increase, the administration said that “unforeseen developments in South Africa created an emergency refugee situation.” The change raises the limit to 17,500.

Christopher Landau, the deputy secretary of state, and Troy Edgar, the deputy secretary of Homeland Security, met with key congressional committees on Thursday as part of the legally required consultation process with lawmakers, according to two people who were granted anonymity to discuss a private meeting.

During the hour-long session, Landau told lawmakers that one of the ways that Afrikaners had faced persecution at home was the erasure of their history in school textbooks, according to the people with knowledge of the meeting. The discussion infuriated Democrats, who called the approach and the consultation “indefensible.”

The State Department did not return a request for comment on the interaction.

“The administration’s shameful approach to refugee resettlement is organized around prioritizing white-only Afrikaners and betraying everyone else, including thousands of Afghan allies who risked their lives for our nation, and thousands of other approved and vetted refugees twisting in the wind,” said Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin of Illinois and Alex Padilla of California, and Democratic Reps. Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Pramila Jayapal of Washington in a statement.

Inside the meeting, Democrats also pressed the administration on religious minorities in other nations, particularly in Iran, and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan indicated that it was an issue the administration should look at, the people said. Jordan raised the case of Saleh Mohammadi, a 19-year-old star wrestler who was hanged in Iran with two other young men in March after being sentenced on charges of “moharabeh,” or “waging war against God,” another person with knowledge of the meeting said.

Thousands of mostly white South Africans already admitted

The State Department has already approved more than 6,000 people through the refugee program since the beginning of the fiscal year in October, according to official data. All of those were from South Africa except for three people from Afghanistan.

Presidents set the cap on how many refugees the U.S. will approve through the program each year, and historically, they’ve allocated those numbers across various geographic regions while factoring in wars or conflicts that spark humanitarian needs around the globe.

The refugee program, administered by the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security, is distinct from asylum. People hoping to come through the refugee program must be living abroad and undergo vetting and other checks before being admitted to the U.S., whereas those seeking asylum are already on U.S. soil. A visa, however, is not a guarantee that the holder will be allowed to enter the U.S.

During his first administration, Trump slashed the number of refugees approved every year. Then the Biden administration built the system back up, setting a goal of admitting 125,000 refugees in his last year in office.

Groups that have for decades helped resettle refugees in the U.S. have sued to allow people who were in the refugee application process but are now stranded to be allowed to come to the U.S.

“For nearly half a century, the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program embodied a simple but powerful, bipartisan idea: that the United States would offer safety to the world’s most vulnerable refugees,” said Beth Oppenheim, President & CEO of HIAS, in a statement. “This administration is now dismantling that legacy in plain sight."

A U.S.-brokered ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict appeared more nominal by the day, complicating efforts at a broader peace in the Iran war as Tehran wants an agreement to include an end to the fighting in Lebanon.

The Litani River has been a de facto boundary in Lebanon, with large areas to the south under Israeli military control despite the ceasefire that's been in place for over a month.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after meeting with his defense minister and senior military officials that Israel will expand its operations in Lebanon.

“The (Israeli Defense Forces) are operating with large forces on the ground and seizing strategic areas,” he said, adding that Israel is trying to fortify an area of southern Lebanon under its control, which it says is necessary to protect residents in its northern border towns from Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks.

An Israeli strike kills 12, including several relatives

Meanwhile, an Israeli security official said the military had called up an additional battalion to Lebanon, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Israel's military said it struck more than 100 Hezbollah sites across southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley area overnight, adding that it targeted storage facilities, command centers and observation points used to attack Israeli troops and residents in northern Israel.

One strike hit the eastern village of Mashghara, killing 12 people, including several members of a family, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said.

Israel in recent days has intensified strikes in the city and province of Nabatiyeh, just north of the river. On Tuesday it warned city residents to leave.

Hezbollah, meanwhile, said it launched several rocket, artillery and exploding drone attacks on Israeli troops and vehicles mobilizing along the river toward the Nabatiyeh villages of Yohmor al-Shaqif and Zawtar al-Sharqieh. Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV said the militant group repelled attacks along the river banks.

Elsewhere in eastern Lebanon, Israel struck an area near the Qaraoun Dam, the country's largest along the Litani River. The Litani River Authority said there was no direct damage to the dam.

Beirut, the Lebanese capital, has been spared from strikes since the start of the ceasefire, but Israel's latest moves have caused fear.

“By just saying a few words on TV, (Netanyahu) causes everyone to panic and flee their homes,” said Tony Aboud in Beirut’s bustling Hamra district. “I don’t know what’s going to happen and how long we can live like this.”

Lebanon hopes for an agreement that will see Israeli withdrawal

The Lebanese government, which came to power on a platform of reform and disarming Hezbollah and other armed groups, hopes that the direct talks with Israel — which Hezbollah opposes — will lead to a permanent ceasefire and withdrawal of Israeli troops.

Israel says it will not withdraw until Hezbollah no longer poses a threat to residents of its northern towns. Hezbollah has vowed to fight until Israel stops its daily airstrikes and withdraws its troops from Lebanon.

In recent weeks, Hezbollah has boasted that it is using new fiber-optic drones that Israeli troops have struggled to intercept, hitting both Israeli forces and northern Israeli villages.

Israel has told people there not to gather in large numbers.

“What this requires of us now is to increase the blows, to increase the intensity. We will smite them hip and thigh,” Netanyahu said Monday.

Over 1 million people in Lebanon have been displaced in the war, sparked when Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel on March 2 in solidarity with Iran, two days after the Iran war began.

At least 3,213 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since the start of the war, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry, with over 9,700 wounded.

According to Netanyahu’s office, 23 Israeli soldiers and a defense contractor have been killed in or near southern Lebanon, and two civilians have been killed in northern Israel, the vast majority by drones.

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Associated Press writers Sam Mednick and Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel; Koral Saaed in Herzliya, Israel, and senior video producer Malak Harb in Beirut contributed to this report.

To fight off predators of the humpback chub, a threatened fish native to the river, Glen Canyon Dam in northern Arizona would need to do what is known as a “cool mix flow,” where cold water is released from deep in its reservoir to cool the river below. But there are no hydropower turbines in the cool, deep section, so significant power generation would be lost.

The proposal comes after the worst snowpack on record for the Colorado River Basin, relied upon by farmers, industries, wildlife and more than 40 million people in seven U.S. states, tribal nations and Mexico. It also comes as those states fail to reach a long-term agreement on how to share the river's dwindling resources beyond this year, when the guidelines expire.

“There is a limited water supply. It’s getting even lower. And with that, a lot of hard decisions need to be made,” said John Berggren, regional policy manager for the environmental nonprofit Western Resource Advocates.

Utilities that buy this hydropower say the cool water releases would be costly because they would have to spend millions to buy alternative energy and would increase financial hardship for customers. But supporters say that without cool releases, the warm waters projected downstream this summer would allow non-native predatory fish to spawn, further threatening the humpback chub, and would destroy a world-famous trout fishery nearby.

The Bureau of Reclamation, which is expected to announce a decision in the next couple of weeks, said in a statement that it is weighing several factors including the ecological health of the river and the hydropower production of the dam. The Interior Department, which oversees the bureau, declined to comment. If the cool water release is approved, it would likely happen from June to October through jet tubes, bypassing the turbines near the warmer surface.

How mixing cool water protects fish

Lake Powell, one of two massive reservoirs on the Colorado River, is just 23% full after decades of overuse and evaporation of water as average temperatures rise because of climate change. A record low inflow is expected this summer. With such a low reservoir, warm water near the surface gets sucked through the generators and sent downstream.

Smallmouth bass, introduced in Lake Powell in the 1980s for sport fishing, live at that warm surface, and also get sucked through the hydropower generators and into the river below. That's a problem for the humpback chub and other federally protected fish in the Grand Canyon, a 278-mile (447-kilometer) stretch farther south on the river that's world-famous for its geologic formations. A recent study shows that roughly half the bass survive the generators. If the river below is warm enough, they spawn.

Smallmouth bass already feast on humpback chub in the river’s upper section, where agencies spend millions of dollars annually to keep the intruders in check. Native fish have been safer below Glen Canyon Dam because it blocks the path to the Grand Canyon — but that may not be true for long.

Water temperatures just downstream of the dam are expected to shatter records set in 2022, when smallmouth bass were first found there. Officials project that water will consistently exceed 60 degrees Fahrenheit (15.5 Celsius) by mid-June due to the warm water being pulled in from Lake Powell. Any higher than that, and non-native predatory fish that pass through the dam could reproduce.

Officials say cool water releases from Lake Powell in 2024 and 2025 successfully prevented spawning.

It’s critical to consider the cost of not doing the cool mix, Heather Whitlaw, field supervisor with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said during a recent meeting on managing the issue. “We are certainly just giving up on the future for any kind of recovery for humpback chub and all of the other pieces of the system that rely on those cooler water temperatures.”

With no long-term solution to keep the predators from passing through the dam, withholding cool water would force officials to rely solely on manually removing them downstream.

More hydropower loss could further impact utilities

Utilities reliant on hydropower from federal generators are worried.

If the cool water releases are approved, it could mean bypassing about half the generation at Glen Canyon Dam, forcing utilities to buy power elsewhere that would likely be more expensive, according to the Utah utility group Heber Light & Power.

“We keep hearing comments that we must continue Cool Mix because the cost of not doing it will be even greater,” the Colorado River Energy Distributors Association, which represents about 155 customers who buy federal hydropower generated from the river and opposes the releases, said this month in a letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. “We would like to understand what remediation would consistently cost more than $20 to $30 (million) per year.”

The association said the releases are not a sustainable solution to prevent smallmouth bass from reproducing and threaten a critical fund used to operate, maintain and invest in hydropower and transmission facilities.

During the cool water releases in 2024, nearly 900,000 acre-feet of water bypassed the generators, costing $19 million in replacement energy costs, according to the Bureau of Reclamation. It’s unclear how much water would bypass the generators this year, although the cost to replace it is anticipated to be around $25 million — roughly the total cost to hydropower users from the prior two years.

The ongoing loss of hydropower due to Lake Powell's decline has brought challenges to Heber Light & Power as the population grows, said Emily Brandt, the utility’s energy resource manager. The overall decline has led to rate hikes the past five years.

Ann Moulton, who lives in Heber City, has seen her residential electricity bill from Heber Light & Power steadily rise. Her bill this April was $125.98, up from $103.24 and $86.14 for the same month in the previous two years. That's impacting her budget, she said.

Other customers are struggling to pay. So far this year, the utility has seen a jump in late payments over the past two years, from 10% to 12%.

Brandt said the utility supports caring for fish, “but this particular experiment seems unnecessary.”

“We’re already seeing reduced generation from drought, and now we’re seeing even further reduced generation because of this environmental experiment,” Brandt said.

Fisheries downstream are also in limbo

Dave Foster still remembers the 2022 trout die-off in Glen Canyon, a remote stretch of river between the dam and the start of the Grand Canyon. Warm water killed nearly half the rainbow trout the world-renowned fishery relies on, said Foster, who has been working on or around that stretch of river since age 13.

He and other guides are still recovering from the die-off, he said, as “the population has simply not rebounded.” But cool water releases in recent years have offset more negative impacts, and more this year would get them through the fall and winter.

Foster has warned customers booking trips after mid-June that he might cancel if the water gets too warm, which can stress fish. Without cool water releases this year, “that's it for the trout fishery,” he said. “There's no ambiguity about it. It will destroy it.”

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The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment

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In the third to last paragraph, corrects the name of a stretch of the river to Glen Canyon instead of Marble Canyon.

The departure was abrupt and unexpected, with Albert Manifold having been appointed to the position late last year.

“Albert has helped bring a welcome focus and pace to BP’s transformation," Amanda Blanc, senior independent director, said in a statement Tuesday. "However, the board has been surprised and disappointed to learn of governance oversight and conduct issues it deems unacceptable and has taken decisive action.”

BP's board was unanimous in the decision and Ian Tyler, a member of the board, was named interim chair, effective immediately. The company did not elaborate on Manifold's sudden departure.

BP, based in London, is a “supermajor,” one of the five largest oil production and exploration companies in the world when measured by revenue and profit.

After a new focus on renewable energy by BP in 2020, the company was seeking a return to its roots by 2025. CEO Murray Auchincloss said last year that optimism over opportunities in renewable energy was misplaced, with the company moving “too far and too fast.”

Manifold, who had been the top executive at Dublin-based global building materials company CRH for 10 years, became the chair at BP in October. BP was looking for someone to redirect the oil giant and went with an industry outsider in Manifold, who had made major strategic changes at CRH.

BP's hard reset last year was criticized by environmentalists, as well as some shareholders. Zigzagging goals within BP have been accompanied by tumultuous changes in leadership, though not specifically tied to strategy.

CEO Bernard Looney resigned in late 2023 after BP determined that he had misled the company over past relationships with colleagues.

Auchincloss stepped down in December and the company named Meg O'Neill as his successor, two months after Manifold became chair.

Manifold was challenged almost immediately when shareholders defeated company resolutions this spring that would have allowed BP to reduce climate reporting requirements and move its annual meetings fully online. Some 18% of shareholders voted against Manifold’s election as chairman, a high level of opposition for an appointment that is generally rubber-stamped by investors.

Legal & General, one of Britain’s largest insurers and investment companies, said at the time that Manifold was responsible for resolutions that would have had “a negative impact on shareholders’ insight into how the company is addressing financially material long-term risks, and seizing long-term value creation opportunities, associated with the energy transition,” the Times of London reported on April 23.

Glass Lewis, an influential shareholder adviser, urged investors to vote against Manifold’s election. It held that BP took “unprecedented action” by refusing to consider a resolution from a group of climate activists and pension funds hoping to force the board to create an alternative strategy should demand for fossil fuels decline, the Times reported.

Like other big oil companies, BP has struggled with falling demand in recent years.

BP’s 2025 earnings fell 16% from a year earlier to $7.49 billion as the price of Brent crude, a benchmark for international oil prices, dropped 16.9%. The company’s preferred measure of earnings is underlying replacement cost profit, which adjusts for one-time items and fluctuations in the market value of inventories.

Last year there were media reports that British oil giant Shell was in talks to buy rival BP. Shell denied the reports at the time.

The search for a new chair is underway, BP said Tuesday.

Shares of BP Plc slid 5% on the NYSE.

____________

Danica Kirka in London contributed to this report.

The American Civil Liberties Union announced the settlement in a federal lawsuit it filed last year on behalf of Suzanne Swierc against Ball State University President Geoffrey Mearns.

Swierc worked as director of health promotion and advocacy at Ball State's campus in Muncie, Indiana, before she was fired last September. Ball State cited Swierc's private Facebook post about Kirk as the sole reason for her termination, saying it caused “significant disruption” to the campus.

Swierc's firing violated her constitutional rights because she was “speaking as a private citizen on a matter of public concern,” said Stevie Pactor, an ACLU attorney in Indiana.

“The First Amendment does not allow government institutions to retaliate in those circumstances, and this settlement reflects that,” Pactor said in a statement.

Mearns defended firing Swierc in a statement sent Tuesday to campus leaders, which a Ball State spokesperson shared with The Associated Press.

Mearns said backlash over Swierc's post threatened to harm the school's student enrollment and fundraising. He said the settlement's “modest monetary payment” to Swierc was substantially less than fighting her lawsuit would have cost.

Kirk, founder of the conservative organization Turning Point USA, was killed by a gunman Sept. 10 on the campus of a Utah university. Before his death, Kirk was credited with galvanizing the conservative youth vote to help President Donald Trump win a second term.

Others fired for Kirk posts have won six-figure settlements

Swierc was among a wave of workers who lost their jobs in both the public and private sector after posting social media comments and memes about Kirk’s assassination. And she isn't the first to win a legal settlement in court.

Earlier this month, a Florida state agency agreed to pay $485,000 to settle a lawsuit by a former state biologist who was fired after she reposted a meme that claimed Kirk wouldn’t care about children being shot in school.

In January, Austin Peay State University in Tennessee reinstated a professor and paid him a $500,000 settlement after he sued over his firing for posting a 2023 news headline that read: “Charlie Kirk Says Gun Deaths ‘Unfortunately’ Worth it to Keep 2nd Amendment.”

Lawsuits by other fired workers are still pending.

Ball State says employee's post led to a flood of outrage

In her Facebook post, Swierc referred to Kirk's killing as a “tragedy.” But she also called it a “reflection of the violence, fear, and hatred he sowed.” She wrote: “If you think Charlie Kirk was a wonderful person, we can't be friends.”

Swierc's attorneys said her Facebook page's privacy settings walled off her posts from the general public, but someone took a screen shot of her comments on Kirk that was shared widely online.

Ball State's president said Swierc's post resulted in a flood of outraged phone calls and emails to the university. Some warned they would withhold donations and at least one parent said she planned to withdraw her children from the school. Some callers threatened violence, Mearns said.

“The reaction was extraordinarily damaging to our University’s reputation and image, and it was exceptionally disruptive to our mission and our people,” Mearns said in his statement.

___

Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia.

Inspired by Gisèle Pelicot ’s decision to make her harrowing drug and rape trial public, the parents of the children agreed to open the proceedings. In France, trials involving minors are usually held behind closed doors.

According to their lawyers, some parents said they were following the example of Pelicot and her motto that “shame must change sides” to abusers, not victims.

The Paris case emerged in April 2025 after several children told their parents they allegedly had been sexually abused at a nursery school.

The defendant, 36, who has not been publicly identified, is accused of assaulting children while supervising them in bathrooms, during lunch breaks and in after-school care between August 2024 and April 2025. He has denied any sexual abuse against children.

The children were between 3 and 5 years old at the time. They do not have to attend the trial. A judge has read their testimonies to investigators.

The defendant is also accused of sexually harassing two co-workers and sexually assaulting one of them. He faces up to 10 years in prison. His lawyer would not speak with The Associated Press before the trial.

Barka Zerouali, co-founder of parents' group MeToo Ecole, or MeToo School, said at a protest outside the courthouse that “there needs to be a national wake-up call at some point." Protesters carried a banner reading: “Because no child should be afraid to go to school.”

Families said the trauma of the alleged assaults was compounded by what they described as a struggle to be taken seriously by authorities. An initial warning raised by a mother months earlier was apparently ignored by the school.

Rebecca Royer, a lawyer representing several families, said that “what we are expecting is a real turning point in child protection, meaning we expect the government and municipalities to implement real measures to protect children, but also to provide real resources."

Similar cases in Paris and across France have drawn media attention in recent months.

Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau last week said investigations were underway involving 84 nursery schools, about 20 elementary schools and about 10 daycare centers in the capital.

Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire said 78 school and after-school staff members have been suspended in the city since the beginning of 2026, including 31 over suspicions of sexual violence.

While teachers in France are employed by the government in state-run schools, school assistants and after-school activity leaders are hired by city authorities.

Grégoire, elected in March, has made combating child abuse an “absolute priority” and unveiled a 20 million euro ($22 million) plan to address what he described as “major dysfunction” in the city’s school supervision system. He pledged to immediately suspend any school employee suspected of abusing children.

Before being elected, Grégoire publicly revealed that he had been sexually abused as a child while attending elementary school between the ages of 9 and 10.

Child abuse became a major issue in the mayoral campaign after a series of allegations involving public schools emerged earlier this year.

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Associated Press journalists Nicolas Garriga and Masha Macpherson contributed to this report.

In a written statement, Oceanwide Expeditions said the extra work is being carried out on the advice of the GGD local health authority in the port city of Rotterdam, where the vessel returned early last week. It's home port is in nearby Vlissingen in the southern Netherlands.

“Based on their inspection findings, GGD has advised additional cleaning,” the cruise company said. “Following completion of this work, GGD will conduct a final inspection before the vessel can depart from Rotterdam.”

It did not elaborate on why extra cleaning was required and the health authority did not immediately have a comment on the reason it asked for the additional measures.

Yvonne van Duijnhoven, the director of public health in Rotterdam, said when the Hondius arrived in the city's sprawling port eight days ago that it would likely take three days to clean and disinfect the vessel.

In a message posted Sunday on X, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said so far, 12 hantavirus cases and three deaths have been reported to the organization, with no deaths reported since May 2.

“All passengers and crew remain in quarantine and under close monitoring to ensure they receive care if needed. The situation is stable for now. We continue to remain vigilant and in close contact with all relevant governments,” he added.

Hantaviruses usually spread when people inhale contaminated residue of rodent droppings. But the hantavirus that has caused the current outbreak, called the Andes virus, may be able to spread between people in rare cases. The risk to the general public from the cruise ship outbreak is low, according to public health officials.

Oceanwide Expeditions had previously said it didn't foresee any changes to the Hondius' operations. The ship had an Arctic cruise setting sail from Keflavik, Iceland, on May 29. But in Tuesday's statement, the company said that “all voyages from 13 June onwards will proceed as scheduled. No further disruption to the sailing schedule of m/v Hondius is expected.”

The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index slipped 0.7 points to 93.1 in May, the first decline after three months of gains. The measure hasn't fallen as much this year as other gauges of consumer attitudes, but it has been stuck at a low level since the pandemic. Before COVID-19, it regularly reached 130.

A separate gauge of consumer sentiment released last week by the University of Michigan fell to a record low this month. Soaring gas and food costs have worsened inflation that is outpacing the average growth in paychecks, reducing most Americans’ purchasing power. Americans have soured on President Trump’s economic policies, polls show, potentially creating problems for Republicans heading into the midterm elections.

Consumer sentiment is mostly gloomy even as the economy is still growing and the unemployment rate has stayed low. Some economists argue that the gap reflects inequality in a “K-shaped” economy, with higher-income Americans benefitting from rising stock prices and still spending while lower-income households struggle.

Tuesday's consumer confidence survey showed that confidence grew among households with incomes at or above $100,000, while it fell for most others.

“The prospect of higher prices and faster inflation continues to loom over confidence readings with many households taking a more cautious approach to purchases this year,” Ben Ayers, Nationwide senior economist, said.

There were some positive signs, Ayers noted: Americans' expectations for growth six months in the future improved, potentially a sign they expect the Iran war to be over by then.

Still, Americans' outlook on the job market worsened slightly. The proportion of respondents who said jobs are “plentiful” dropped to 25.5%, the lowest in three years. At the same time, just 18.6% said jobs were “hard to get,” the smallest percentage since October. The findings reflect the “low-hire, low-fire” job market that has made it harder for those out of work to obtain new jobs.

Gas prices have soared to a nationwide average of $4.49 a gallon from $2.98 just before the war began at the end of February, and have been at or above $4.50 a gallon for nearly all of May.

This month, the Conference Board added special questions to its survey, which found rising prices have caused most Americans to change their spending habits. Two-thirds of respondents said they are cutting back spending in response to the increases, with most of those reducing overall purchases and delaying more expensive acquisitions.

Many consumers are also planning to economize on clothes, shoes, hobby items, and toys and games, the survey found.

Inflation jumped to 3.8% in April, the highest in three years and far above the Federal Reserve's 2% target. In addition to more expensive gas, grocery prices have also started rising more quickly, likely driven by higher shipping costs. Beef prices have also risen sharply, as drought and other factors have reduced cattle herds.

The higher prices are reducing Americans' average inflation-adjusted incomes. Average hourly earnings, adjusted for price changes, shrank in April from a year earlier for the first time in three years.

Other data also suggests consumers have grown more cautious amid rising prices. Adjusted for inflation, retail sales actually declined in April, after a solid increase in March.

And the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index fell to a record-low 44.8 in May, its third straight decline, as a majority of respondents said rising prices were hurting their personal finances.

It appeared that the minibus drove through the closed crossing barrier, officials said. A security camera showed the bus, carrying nine people, was moving when the train hit it. The collision happened during morning rush hour near Buggenhout town, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) northwest of the capital, Brussels.

The bus driver and an escort were killed along with two children aged 12 and 15, said Lisa De Wilde, spokesperson for the East Flanders public prosecutor’s office. She said the injured children were hospitalized in serious condition.

De Wilde told journalists the cause of the crash hadn't been established.

“What we do know is that the barrier was closed and the red light was on,” she said.

Federal Police spokesperson An Berger said the minibus driver appeared to have plowed through the barrier. Infrabel said the crossing was working correctly.

The train had been traveling at an estimated 120 kph (75 mph) as it approached the crossing and had “no time to brake," said Frédéric Sacré, a spokesperson for Belgian rail operator Infrabel.

“The impact was extremely violent,” Sacré told the RTBF public broadcaster.

An Associated Press journalist at the scene said the bus was toppled on its side with its front section crushed. The train was relatively unscathed.

It was believed about 100 passengers were aboard the train and that none were hurt. Rail traffic in the area was halted. Local officials stood for a minute's silence after a news conference.

In a post on social media, Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said he was “deeply moved by the horrific accident in Buggenhout. My thoughts go out to the affected families.”

Children played basketball and rode bicycles at a school not far from the scene.

——

Cook reported from Brussels. Mike Corder contributed to this report from The Hague, Netherlands.

Now, the conversation has flipped. After pouring billions of dollars into laptops, tablets and learning apps, many schools are facing a digital reckoning. Classrooms have become saturated with screens, and a growing number of parents, teachers and school districts are saying it is time to scale back.

“The Chromebook is just a world of distraction,” says Soffer, who teaches sixth-grade English and history. She favors pen-and-paper assignments but is required to use laptops and online apps for certain activities. “Every day, I’m battling, ’Who would you rather listen to, Ms. Soffer or Minecraft?'”

The Los Angeles Unified School District, where Soffer teaches, recently became the first major school district to say it will stop giving devices to its youngest students. It is part of a new screen time policy taking effect in the fall across the country’s second-largest school system.

A sweeping resolution passed last month by the Los Angeles school board requires the district to eliminate devices until second grade; set daily and weekly screen limits for all higher grades; block YouTube on school devices; and ban the use of devices at lunch and recess in elementary and middle school. The district will also audit its education technology contracts, which the teachers union says amount to $1.6 billion.

The Los Angeles crackdown is adding momentum to calls for reform emerging around the country. In many cases, parents lobbied a few years ago for school cellphone bans, which have now become the norm. Realizing phones weren’t the only classroom distraction, they pivoted to a new target: school-issued devices.

The campaign for change is becoming a public policy issue. At least 14 states have proposed laws to limit screen time in schools, according to Ballotpedia. The federal government issued an advisory last week warning that excessive screen use among youth is becoming a growing public health concern.

Parents say school-issued devices undermine screen limits at home

In Los Angeles, concerned parents last year formed a group, Schools Beyond Screens, and pressured the district by speaking out at school board meetings, on social media and in private talks with administrators. Many are frustrated by trying to curb screen time at home, only to have screens mandated by school.

As a mother of three, Katie Pace does everything in her power to limit screens. There is one family iPad and one television at home, no screen time during the week and no screens allowed in bedrooms. Her eighth grade daughter, Clementine, does not have a phone.

But as soon as Clementine gets on the Wi-Fi-enabled school bus, her day takes a turn for the digital.

For the 30-minute ride to school, Clementine watches YouTube videos on her school Chromebook.

In Spanish class, assignments are on the app Duolingo, but many students use Google Translate for answers, Clementine said. Often, kids are playing games on their phones, which are supposed to be locked away. In algebra, Clementine writes with her finger on a touch screen to solve equations. In history, quizzes, tests and writing assignments are on the computer.

Almost all homework is online. Until recently, Clementine would come home and read a book, her mother said, but not anymore. On her daughter’s device history, Pace sees she spends hours a day streaming music, making Spotify playlists, and watching makeup tutorials and cat videos on YouTube.

“It makes me furious,” said Pace, a member of Schools Beyond Screens. “My daughter went to middle school and was sent home with a screen addiction in her backpack.”

The pandemic supercharged student access to devices

A push to put a device in every child’s hand and close the “digital divide” started over a decade ago, but it accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Overnight, education shifted online in March 2020. Schools raced to get kids the devices needed to connect to school. When the 2021-2022 school year started, 96% of U.S. public schools reported they had given digital devices to students who needed them, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Many schools switched funding away from textbooks, workbooks and paper printouts to digital alternatives. Educational technology, or “edtech,” exploded into a multibillion-dollar industry.

“During the pandemic, getting kids devices was a lifeline. Now, it’s time that we reset,” said Nick Melvoin, the LAUSD school board member who drafted the new resolution.

Melvoin estimates that few Los Angeles classrooms are using screens effectively in ways that benefit learning. Too often, he said, teachers are replacing instruction with online apps and using screens “as a crutch.”

Some schools are introducing new limits

The challenge, educators say, is that technology has become so entwined with learning, especially for older students, that unplugging from screens at school is complicated.

In the affluent Philadelphia suburb of Lower Merion, parents launched a petition campaign for the right to opt their children out of digital devices during school, citing questions about edtech’s benefits. The district has said that opting out is not possible.

“If there’s really no evidence that it helps, and in fact there’s evidence that it’s harmful, what are we doing? Test scores are at their lowest point,” said Alex Bird Becker, one of the founders of the group PA Unplugged.

Other schools are finding that it makes financial sense to stop sending a device home with every child.

Fresno Unified School District, the third-largest in California, is spending $4 million a year to repair and replace laptops. Partly to cut costs, the district has told its 40,000 elementary school students to return their take-home laptops and it will shift computer access to in-class only in the fall, spokesperson A.J. Kato said.

The Simi Valley Unified School District, near Los Angeles, stopped sending devices home for its younger students this year, partly because of costly repairs but also because they were being used for “inappropriate Google searches” and video games, according to a memo to parents. The district now stores the devices in carts at school.

A group of parents in Arlington, Virginia, gathered on a recent Saturday night to share their children’s struggles with screen addictions and other side effects of school-issued devices.

“None of us are Luddites. I know that technology adds value, but I also don’t want my son on YouTube all the time,” said LuAnn Oliver, who hosted the group in her living room. Her sixth grade son struggles to keep track of online assignments and resist the temptation the iPad offers for video games. “We get reports on websites he’s visited. He’s visiting a game site in nearly every class.”

The Arlington Public Schools district has stopped giving iPads out before first grade and is setting new limits in elementary school, but students in 6th to 12th grades will still be required to have school-issued devices.

Another mother, Jenny Sullivan, said she has noticed her fourth grade son capitalizing random letters and not getting corrected because there is so little work on paper. She also worries about social implications: Her sixth grader doesn’t want to go to the after-school program because everyone is on their iPad. “I’d rather be home,” he tells his mother.

After a three-hour gathering, the parents made a plan to approach the school in the fall with a unified request to “opt out of technology and opt in to textbooks and paper.”

“Ten years from now,” said one of the mothers, Kristina Jackson, “I can’t imagine us looking back with any other reaction than: How could we have been so naive that we just handed these devices to our kids.”

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Associated Press writer Sharon Lurye contributed to this report from Philadelphia.

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The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

One Houston-area business owner is doing just that by combining cosmetology, creativity, and entrepreneurship into a unique summer camp experience for kids.

The Look Salon owner, Tamika Sturgis, joined KPRC 2 on Tuesday alongside 8-year-old camper Taylor to talk about the program, now entering its sixth year.

Sturgis said the idea for the camp came from her passion for mentoring young girls and helping children explore entrepreneurship at an early age.

Campers participate in hands-on beauty and cosmetology activities while also learning business skills such as branding, confidence-building, and public speaking.

One of the camp’s signature experiences is a “Shark Tank”-style business pitch competition, where campers create and present their own business ideas.

Sturgis said the exercise is designed to help children think creatively, develop leadership skills, and learn how to confidently present their ideas in front of others.

Taylor, one of this year’s campers, said her favorite part of camp is getting to be creative while making new friends.

Sturgis also shared her own journey of leaving a corporate job to pursue entrepreneurship full-time, saying that experience played a major role in building the camp and inspiring children to dream big.

She said teaching kids about entrepreneurship at a young age is important because it helps them build confidence, independence, and problem-solving skills that can carry into adulthood.

The summer camp includes multiple sessions throughout the summer, with activities focused on beauty, business, and empowerment.

Parents interested in registering or learning more about the camp can visit The Look Salon.

The justices rebuffed an appeal from the league, which wanted the case handled through its arbitration process rather than open court in New York. Justice Brett Kavanaugh dissented from the decision not to hear the case.

Flores, who's Black, sued the league and three teams in February 2022, alleging the league was “rife with racism” regarding its hiring practices when it comes to Black coaches. He was later joined in the lawsuit by fellow Black coaches Steve Wilks and Ray Horton.

Flores, who was fired by the Dolphins shortly before the suit was filed, is now the Minnesota Vikings' defensive coordinator.

The NFL has argued Flores should go through arbitration rather than the legal system, but lower courts have sided with the plaintiffs. The league said it respected the Supreme Court decision, which allows lower-court rulings to stay in place, but is "fully prepared to defend ourselves as this matter proceeds.”

David Gottlieb and Douglas Wigdor, attorneys for the plaintiffs, said they were pleased with the decision. “The NFL must now accept that its commissioner cannot be the arbitrator over discrimination claims against the league and its teams. We look forward to litigating these claims in court,” they said in a statement.

Flores was fired after posting a 24-25 record over three years without a playoff appearance. The Dolphins did have back-to-back winning seasons before Flores was dismissed.

Flores sued the NFL as well as the Denver Broncos, the New York Giants and the Houston Texans. He interviewed with the Broncos in 2019 and the Giants and Texans in 2022.

Wilks, who was fired as the New York Jets' defensive coordinator in December, joined the lawsuit by claiming the Arizona Cardinals in 2018 hired him as a “bridge coach” — promoting him to interim coach after they fired another coach but then passing over him for the full-time role. He said the Cardinals didn’t provide him with a realistic chance to succeed.

Horton, who last coached in the NFL in 2019, alleged the Tennessee Titans didn’t offer him a genuine interview for the head coaching position in 2016.

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Associated Press writer Michael R. Sisak in New York contributed to this story.

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Follow the AP's coverage of the U.S. Supreme Court at https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court and the NFL at https://apnews.com/hub/nfl.

The case stems from a crash in Florida last year that killed three people. The driver, Harjinder Singh, is accused of making an illegal U-turn that caused the accident. Singh, who is from India, was carrying a valid commercial driver's license from California and had earlier been granted one by Washington state.

Republican-led Florida has accused the Western states, led by Democrats, of openly defying immigration laws and asked the justices to rule that states lack the authority to issue CDLs to people who are not citizens or legal permanent residents.

The Supreme Court typically hears appeals of lower-court decisions, but it sometimes takes on what are known as original lawsuits in which states sue each other in the nation's highest court.

Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented from Tuesday's order, as they often do when the court rejects an original lawsuit, saying that the court has no choice but to hear such cases.

Separately, a federal appeals court has blocked a Trump administration proposal to impose new restrictions that would severely limit which immigrants can get commercial driver’s licenses to drive a semitrailer truck or bus.

The villagers entered the cave in Xaisomboun province on May 19, but heavy rain triggered flash flooding that blocked their exit, according to Lao and Thai rescue teams involved in the operation.

The Lao organization Rescue Volunteer for People, which is working closely with the local authorities, posted on its Facebook page that Tuesday’s operation plan included exploring air shafts above the cave in hopes of identifying possible access points and locating the trapped people.

Rescue workers from neighboring Thailand arrived at the site over the weekend to assist the operation. Those helping out include divers from several nations who took part in the complicated 2018 rescue in northern Thailand of 12 schoolboys and their soccer coach who were trapped for more than two weeks in a cave before being safely extricated.

Challenging conditions hamper rescue efforts

According to rescuers, divers have navigated about 100 meters (330 feet) into the flooded, narrow cave. They believe the villagers may be trapped about 30 meters (100 feet) beyond the furthest point currently accessible and are also working to pump water out of the cave to aid the rescue operation.

The site is in a rugged, remote area in Xaisomboun province's Longcheng district, which is about 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of the capital, Vientiane. Rescuers at the scene have detailed on social media the challenging mountainous terrain and heavy rain that is hampering their work.

Videos shared online by Thai rescuers showed that reaching the cave's entrance requires a steep hike on foot of roughly 4 kilometers (2.5 miles). The entrance is also steep and rocky, and barely wide enough for a single person at a time to climb through.

Inside, rescuers must make their way through muddy passageways, flooded sections and narrow tunnels that forced them to crawl.

Claus Rasmussen, a diving instructor based on the Thai island of Phuket who took part in the 2018 rescue in Thailand's Chiang Rai province, told The Associated Press he has been following the situation in Laos, although he is not currently involved.

“The villagers up there are used to living on very little, but that also means that they may not have a lot of sustenance in their body to actually deal with whatever is going on," he said in a video interview.

He noted that other circumstances also weigh against them: the possibility of collapsed tunnels, physical injuries "and everything else, which obviously increase that risk of them not coming through it in a safe manner.”

Villagers were reportedly mining

There has been no official confirmation on why the villagers went into the cave.

However, Bounkham Luanglath of the Lao rescue group said that the cave was frequented by local residents looking for gold, even though authorities had repeatedly warned them against entering the cave out of safety concerns.

The average per capita income in Laos of about $2,000-2,500 is among the lowest in Southeast Asia, and it is much less in rural areas.

Laos is not known as a major gold producer, but its mining industry is sizable considering the country’s developing economy. The mining sector is fueled by foreign direct investment, largely from neighboring Thailand and China. Copper is a major export, and mining for rare earth elements, needed for most modern technologies, has become more common in Laos recently.

The Laos Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said it has no official information to share with the media. The Southeast Asian nation is a one-party communist state with no organized opposition and the government keeps a tight lid on information.

Cave rescues are risky business

The cave crisis quickly drew headlines in Thailand because of its resemblance to the dramatic 2018 cave rescue in northern Thailand, which became a global sensation. A former Thai navy SEAL diver died during that search and rescue effort.

A major health risk for those trapped in a cave is cold conditions quickly leading to hypothermia. The body can cope for weeks without food, but clean water is necessary to prevent dehydration. A contaminated water supply could cause diarrhea, hastening dehydration.

Declining oxygen levels cause symptoms similar to altitude sickness and in the long run can damage the lungs and other organs, while carbon dioxide buildup causes exhaustion and eventual unconsciousness.

Constant darkness disrupts time perception and the body’s circadian rhythms. It also causes extreme sensitivity when the eyes have to adjust again to light.

Recalling the 2018 rescue operation in Thailand, when fears were high for the boys' fate, diver Rasmussen said it showed survival is possible even when it appears unlikely.

“Here it is still a rescue until proven otherwise,” he said. "And that’s the way that people have to go forward.”

——

Associated Press journalists Grant Peck, Anton L. Delgado and Haruka Nuga in Bangkok contributed to this report.

HCSO deputies responded to a call for service at Patch Street and Waldine Street, where they found a man, believed to be the driver, inside a vehicle with possible gunshot wounds.

@HCSOTexas deputies responded to a call for service at Patch/Waldine in East Harris County. Upon arrival, units found a man (driver) in a vehicle with possible gunshot wounds. The man has been confirmed deceased on scene. CSI and Homicide Detectives are responding to the scene.… pic.twitter.com/pTvtqq0WHw

— Ed Gonzalez (@SheriffEd_HCSO) May 26, 2026

The man was pronounced dead at the scene.

Crime Scene Investigators and homicide detectives are responding and working the investigation.

Sky 2 was briefly over the scene as authorities continued to gather evidence in the area.

At this time, no suspect information has been released.

The investigation remains ongoing.

Mondelez, Oreo’s parent company, said Tuesday that BTS-themed Oreos will go on sale June 1 online and June 8 in stores. The cookies, which feature purple wafers in a nod to the band’s signature color, will be sold in more than 80 markets around the world, making the partnership the brand's biggest to date.

The band also designed 13 embossments for the wafers, including the names of the seven members and an outline of the light stick that fans hold at BTS concerts.

The white-and-tan creme center of the sandwich cookies was formulated to taste like hotteok, a warm, brown sugar-stuffed pancake that’s a popular Korean street food.

“For Oreo to be the first snacking brand we’ve collaborated with globally is a huge honor. We ate them as kids, we eat them in the studio and now Oreo is helping us share a taste of home with the world,” BTS said in a statement.

BTS Oreos will be sold for a limited time. Chicago-based Mondelez wouldn’t say how many packages it’s making.

Martin Renaud, Mondelez’ chief marketing and sales officer, said the BTS cookies strike a balance of staying true to Korean culture and food while remaining consistent with Oreo’s brand and flavoring.

“You want to be authentic, you want to be differentiated and live an experience. But when you are Oreo, you need to be pleasing a large group of people,” Renaud told The Associated Press. “You cannot come up with something that will be liked only by 20% of the population because it would alienate some of our customers.”

Renaud said Oreo spent around two years developing the BTS cookie, eventually narrowing the possible flavors to three before settling on hotteok.

“I think Korean food is an incredible cuisine. I’m French, maybe I should not say that, but I believe it,” Renaud joked.

BTS Oreos arrive at a time when consumers are increasingly eager to sample new and authentic global cuisines and flavors. Datassential, a food and beverage consulting company, said U.S. restaurants featuring global flavors — Asian and South American, specifically -- have been gaining market share since 2019. In Europe, West African restaurants are growing in popularity, the company said.

Social media is spurring the international taste trend. There are more than 11,700 TikTok videos under the hashtag “hotteok,” for example. Seeking out global foods or learning to make them is a low-risk and low-cost way to enjoy other cultures, said Russell Zwanka, the director of the food marketing program at Western Michigan University.

“You can experience the world without spending $2,000 on a ticket,” Zwanka said.

Delivery services and speciality grocery stores like the Asian supermarket chain H Mart have also made it easier for consumers to sample international foods, he said.

“People have a much more proactive stance on trying to find flavors they can attribute to certain regions of the world,” Zwanka said. “I think that’s beautiful. It’s way the world should be.”

In recent years, Oreo has partnered with Coca-Cola, singer and actress Selena Gomez, and the K-pop girl band Blackpink, among others. The brand also offers limited-time flavors in specific markets, like cherry sakura in Japan and red bean paste in China.

BTS is also no stranger to food collaborations. The band partnered with McDonalds in 2021 for a global meal promotion in 50 countries. BTS also worked with the Korean food companies Paldo and Hy to develop Arih, a line of noodles and drinks sold at Walmart.

Renaud said partnerships and playful, interesting flavors help Oreo expand its appeal beyond families.

“We want to be making sure we also keep our older children and Gen Zs and keep the brand up to date,” he said.

Renaud said Oreo is already working on its next collaborations, which may or may not be as big as the BTS partnership.

“We’re not obsessed to be more, more, more, more, markets. I think if we can, yes, let’s go for it,” he said. “But the key point is we need to be really resonating with the local culture.”

While there's no longer a risk of a major explosion at the GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems plant in Garden Grove, there's still a chance for a smaller blast or a fire, Orange County Fire Authority division chief Craig Covey said during a news conference.

An overnight evaluation of the tank containing 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 to 26,500 liters) of methyl methacrylate, which is highly flammable, showed a reduction of pressure inside the tank thanks to a crack that was discovered Sunday. About two-thirds — roughly 34,000 — of the evacuated residents can go home as a result, Covey said.

“It’s not over yet. We still have work to do,” TJ McGovern, interim fire chief of the Orange County Fire Authority, said. “We still have to mitigate a fire and very small explosion concern, and also a spill potential.”

Officials began ordering residents of Garden Grove, near Los Angeles, to evacuate their homes on Thursday after the tank overheated, and by the weekend about 50,000 residents had been told to leave.

Officials said they needed to cool the tank to prevent a toxic leak or explosion. The tank’s interior had cooled to 93 degrees F (33.9 degrees C), Covey said Monday, down from 100 degrees (37.7 degrees C) a day earlier.

Orange County Health Director Regina Chinsio-Kwong said she wanted to reassure everyone who is returning home that they can feel safe. Exposure to methyl methacrylate can cause serious respiratory problems, neurological problems and irritation to the skin, eyes and throat, according to the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

“There was no contamination. There were no fumes. There were not vapors that came from this incident,” she said at the news conference. “There was not a leak. So it should be, you should feel comfortable going home even if you’re across the street from that new zone line.”

Environmental risks remain

The tank might eventually cool enough for crews to safely stabilize and drain the remaining material without triggering a spark or ignition, said Andrew Whelton, a Purdue University engineering professor who has studied environmental contamination.

Whelton cautioned there is still some risk of an explosion while the chemical inside the tank remains hot and reactive. He said temperatures need to fall closer to ambient levels — roughly 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6 to 21.1 degrees C) — before conditions are considered significantly safer.

As the interior temperature of the tank increased, methyl methacrylate — which is used to make plastics — converted from liquid to gas, ramping up the pressure and risk of explosion, Whelton said.

Some of the methyl methacrylate may already have hardened into a stable plastic similar to plexiglass, reducing the risk inside the tank, he said.

Orange County Supervisor Janet Nguyen said the South Coast Air Quality Management District will be monitoring the air for several months and the EPA will be checking the sewer and storm drains.

County health officials have said the chemical is easy to smell and people may notice it over a large area without being harmed.

Relief among residents after hearin

g the latest update

Authorities have not defined what a catastrophic explosion might mean, but said Monday the worst-case scenario is off the table.

Kim Yen, a retiree who had to evacuate her Garden Grove home, said she has been closely following the news and is relieved to learn that the worst has passed.

“I am happy and many of us are happy but, still, we are still on our evacuation,” she said.

Yen, who lives two blocks from the plant, said she’s ready to return home but first wants to be sure it’s safe. And, she said, she’s been worried about the emergency crews.

“They are really our heroes,” Yen said.

The parking lot was full Monday at a large park in Fountain Valley, just southwest of Garden Grove, as people sought refuge in an ad hoc shelter there or pitched tents outside. Other people gathered in the park to enjoy Memorial Day.

GKN is a British company that supplies aircraft manufacturers

GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems, which owns the plant, is a British company that makes cockpit windows, canopies and windshields for military and commercial aircraft.

GKN Aerospace technical specialists and the Orange County Fire Authority removed external insulation material from the tank to help cool its contents, according to a GKN Aerospace statement released Monday.

“We apologize for the ongoing disruption this incident is causing and our priority remains its safe resolution, so that residents can return to their homes as quickly as possible,” the statement said.

GKN Aerospace says on its website that it employs about 16,000 people across 32 manufacturing sites in 12 countries and supplies technologies and components used by major commercial and military aircraft manufacturers worldwide.

It remained unknown when the operation would reopen.

GKN Aerospace agreed in 2025 to pay state regulators more than $900,000 to settle violations involving recordkeeping, permitting issues and nitrogen oxide emissions, according to a report on the South Coast Air Quality Management District website.

Aircraft manufacturing vulnerable to supply chain disruptions

Disruptions at facilities producing specialized aircraft components can be difficult for the global aerospace industry to absorb because supply chains are highly concentrated and already strained, said Richard Aboulafia, managing director of the aerospace consulting firm AeroDynamic Advisory.

Aboulafia said aerospace manufacturing differs from many other industries because aircraft production rates are relatively low, leaving only a small number of suppliers for many specialized parts and systems.

“There’s just not a lot of margin in the system,” he said.

___

This story was first published on May 25, 2026. It was updated on May 26, 2026, to correct the attribution of a quote to TJ McGovern, interim fire chief of the Orange County Fire Authority, not to division chief Craig Covey.

___

Willingham reported from Boston. Stengle reported from Dallas. Associated Press journalist Ethan Swope in Garden Grove, California, contributed to this report.

___

This story has been corrected to say the evacuations were ordered Thursday, not Friday.

The cleanup procedure for the North Shore graduate should allow him to rehab the knee and get back on the field at some point.

He is currently on the Texans’ injured reserve list after being waived-injured. He can be removed from injured reserve with an injury settlement and then sign with the Texans or another team after an undetermined amount of weeks.

Carter joined the Texans last season and was primarily on the practice squad. He played in two regular-season games.

Carter is a former University of Houston and North Shore player who went undrafted and signed with the Kansas City Chiefs. He played 20 snaps on special teams against Tennessee for 74 percent participation.

A Utah State transfer, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound former all-district wide receiver tied for third on the Coogs last year with three pass breakups and allowed one or no catches in six games. He played 453 snaps, 360 on defense and 92 on special teams.

At Utah State, he intercepted four passes overall.

He had 33 catches for 495 yards and seven touchdowns in high school on a state championship squad, beating Duncanville as part of a 16-0 season. He also played baseball and ran track.

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com

The Texans are also re-signing linebacker and Conroe native K.C. Ossai, who was with the team last year as an undrafted rookie before being released, per a league source. Ossai was released from the Miami Dolphins this spring after spending time on their practice squad and the Texans’ practice squad last year.

Jackson was part of a five receiver workout a week ago as the team sought depth at the position, per league sources.

The audition included former Miami Dolphins wide receiver River Cracraft, former Seattle Seahawks wide receiver D’Wayne Eskridge, former Green Bay Packers wide receiver Samori Toure, Jackson and former Marshall wide receiver Demarcus Lacey.

Jackson is represented by Aura Sports Group’s David Canter and Ness Mugrabi.

Jackson played in 12 games for the Tennessee Titans in 2024, catching one pass for eight yards He returned 28 punts for a 7.7 average and 16 kickoff returns for a 25.8 average.

Jackson (5-9, 188) has run the 40-yard dash in 4.42 seconds.

Jackson, 26, has also played for the New Orleans Saints. He played collegiately at Tulane.

He was waived last year by the Titans and signed with the Saints practice squad and was then waived a day earlier. He spent time this year with the St. Louis Battlehawks in the United Football League and was waived on March 19.

Jackson’s uncle is former Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

At Tulane, he has 109 career receptions for 1,743 yards and 17 touchdowns.

Ossai is a Conroe native and the younger brother of Joseph Ossai.

Last year, he signed a three-year deal that includes a $15,000 signing bonus, plus $160,000 of his base salary fully guaranteed for $175,000 total guaranteed after going undrafted out of Louisiana.

Ossai (6-foot-2, 241 pounds) is an Oak Ridge graduate who was named All-Sun Belt Conference. As a junior, he had 95 tackles, 4 1/2 for losses and one sack with two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. In high school, he had 93 tackles, 10 for losses, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.

He chose Louisiana over Arizona, Army, Air Force, UTSA and Nevada.

Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com

Russia on Monday urged foreign citizens, including members of diplomatic missions, to leave the Ukrainian capital as quickly as possible and told residents to steer clear of military and government facilities. It said that “systemic strikes” on Kyiv were being prepared.

Russia has regularly bombarded Kyiv, often causing dozens of civilian casualties with every attack, since it launched an all-out invasion of neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio by phone Monday that the U.S. should evacuate its diplomatic staff from Kyiv, a foreign ministry statement said. Rubio didn’t say whether the U.S. State Department would take that step, but expressed concern during a trip to India that the “terrible” war in Ukraine could escalate further.

The Trump administration has tried for more than a year to stop the war. But its efforts yielded no significant breakthrough and are now on ice as Washington focuses on the Iran war.

No diplomats say they are leaving Kyiv

There were no announcements of diplomatic departures from Kyiv. The European Union, French and Polish delegations publicly said that they would not leave.

The European Union summoned Russia’s representative in Brussels to convey its concerns Tuesday, with European Commission spokesperson Anitta Hipper accusing Russia of “trying to sow panic.”

French Foreign Ministry spokesman Pascal Confavreux called the Russian threat “new intimidation from Moscow.”

The level of security threats posed by Russia to Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities “remains the same as in previous years and months,” Ukraine’s foreign ministry said in a statement late Monday.

Russia has continuously launched missile and drone attacks on the capital, it pointed out, adding that Ukraine was prepared to assist diplomatic missions seeking additional security measures.

Russia could target bunkers, official says

Andrei Kartapolov, head of the defense affairs committee in Russia's State Duma, said that the Ukrainian parliament and presidential office aren’t among potential targets.

Kartapolov said that possible attacks could aim at underground bunkers used by various branches of Ukraine’s armed forces, security agencies and other government structures.

“Those are well-concealed and fortified facilities, and our task is to spot and target them with the weapons we have,” Kartapolov said in remarks carried by Parlamentskaya Gazeta, the official publication of the Russian parliament.

Russia said its biggest missile attack of the year last weekend was in response to Friday’s deadly Ukrainian drone strike on what Moscow said was a college dormitory in Starobilsk, a city in Ukraine’s Russia-occupied Luhansk region.

But the Ukrainian General Staff said that its strike in Starobilsk hit the local headquarters of the Russian military’s special drone unit.

Ukraine remains short of air defense missiles

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that sophisticated American-made air defense systems that Ukraine needs in order to stop Russian ballistic missiles are in short supply because of the Iran war.

“Unfortunately, there has been no progress for a long time with America on expanding the production of anti-ballistic capabilities,” Zelenskyy said on social media late Monday, adding that Kyiv is working with Europe to improve its own anti-ballistic capabilities in sufficient quantities.

He said that Ukrainian battlefield gains in recent months have enabled it to “stabilize” the 1,250-kilometer (780-mile) front line in eastern and southern Ukraine, suggesting that Kyiv's forces are holding their own against Russia's bigger army.

Russia’s spring offensive is floundering as Ukraine’s midrange drone strikes disrupt its rear supply lines, according to the Institute for the Study of War.

Moscow’s warning of major strikes aims to distract public attention from its “poor battlefield performance” and an economic pinch caused by war costs and international sanctions, the Washington-based think tank said late Monday.

___

Barry Hatton reported from Lisbon, Portugal. Elise Morton in London, John Leicester in Paris, and Lorne Cook in Brussels, contributed to this report.

___

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

KPRC 2 habló exclusivamente con la familia de Ryan Maziol, de 15 años, quien fue descrito por sus seres queridos como un joven amable que amaba la programación, los videojuegos y la jardinería.

La madre de Ryan dijo que su hijo era autista y que asistieron a múltiples reuniones con funcionarios escolares sobre su progreso académico. Sin embargo, asegura que nadie de la escuela ni del distrito mencionó posibles preocupaciones relacionadas con bullying.

• Huffman ISD family says they were never told about possible bullying before autistic teen’s death

Padres de la comunidad de Huffman ISD dijeron a KPRC 2 que creen que el distrito no notifica consistentemente a las familias cuando se reportan casos de acoso escolar.

Según la ley de Texas, los distritos escolares deben contar con procedimientos para reportar, investigar y responder a denuncias de bullying. La Texas Education Agency informó a KPRC 2 que los distritos también están obligados a notificar a los padres cuando se presenta un reporte de bullying.

La madre de Ryan dijo que nunca recibió una llamada del distrito sobre presuntas situaciones de acoso relacionadas con su hijo.

KPRC 2 también habló con uno de los amigos de Ryan, quien afirma que Ryan sí habló con maestros sobre el bullying, pero que, según él, nada cambió.

Familiares aseguran que Ryan era el tipo de persona que trataba de manejar los problemas por sí solo.

Su hermana, Ashley Maziol, contó a KPRC 2 que ella fue quien encontró a su hermano menor después de que se quitó la vida.

La familia asegura que no supieron de posibles problemas de bullying hasta después de la muerte de Ryan.

En un comunicado enviado a KPRC 2, Huffman Independent School District indicó que está revisando lo que describió como “reportes no verificados” de que el bullying pudo haber contribuido a la muerte del estudiante.

KPRC 2 también habló con una experta en salud conductual de Memorial Hermann Health System, quien explicó que muchos niños muestran señales de advertencia mucho antes de expresar abiertamente que están sufriendo emocionalmente.

Expertos en salud mental señalan que algunas señales de alerta pueden incluir:

• Aislamiento de amigos o actividades
• Cambios en el estado de ánimo o comportamiento
• Mayor ansiedad o tristeza
• Bajo rendimiento escolar
• Hablar sobre desesperanza o sentirse aislado

Más tarde este martes, padres de familia y miembros de la comunidad planean manifestarse frente al edificio administrativo de Huffman ISD.

Aseguran que buscan más transparencia por parte del distrito y acciones más firmes cuando los estudiantes reportan bullying.

Si usted o alguien que conoce está pasando por una crisis o necesita ayuda emocional, puede llamar o enviar un mensaje al 988, la línea nacional de ayuda para crisis y suicidio, disponible las 24 horas del día y de manera confidencial.

Now, as parents and students in the community speak out, mental health experts are warning families to pay attention to signs that children may be suffering in silence.

KPRC 2 spoke exclusively with the family of 15-year-old Ryan Maziol, described by loved ones as a kind teen who loved coding, video games, and gardening.

Ryan’s mother says her son was autistic and attended multiple meetings with school officials regarding his educational progress. However, she says no one from the school or district ever raised concerns about possible bullying.

Parents in the Huffman ISD community told KPRC 2 they believe the district does not consistently notify families when bullying concerns are reported.

Under Texas law, school districts are required to have procedures for reporting, investigating, and responding to bullying complaints. The Texas Education Agency told KPRC 2 that districts are also required to notify parents after bullying reports are made.

Ryan’s mother says she never received a call from the district about any alleged bullying involving her son.

KPRC 2 also spoke with one of Ryan’s friends, who claims Ryan told teachers about bullying, but said nothing ever changed.

Family members say Ryan often tried to handle problems on his own.

His sister, Ashley Maziol, told KPRC 2 she was the one who found her younger brother after he took his life.

The family says they did not learn about possible bullying concerns until after Ryan’s death.

In a statement to KPRC 2, Huffman Independent School District said it is reviewing what it described as “unverified reports” that bullying may have contributed to the student’s death.

KPRC 2 also spoke with a behavioral health expert from Memorial Hermann Health System, who said children often show warning signs long before they openly talk about emotional distress.

Mental health experts say warning signs can include:

• Withdrawal from friends or activities
• Changes in mood or behavior
• Increased anxiety or sadness
• Declining school performance
• Talking about hopelessness or isolation

Later Tuesday morning, parents and community members plan to protest outside the Huffman ISD administration building.

They say they want more transparency from the district and stronger action when students report bullying.

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 for free and confidential support 24 hours a day.

Election leaders are encouraging residents to make their voices heard after Harris County saw significantly lower turnout during early voting.

According to election officials, early voting turnout in Harris County dropped roughly 56% compared to the March primary election, despite record participation earlier this year.

Voters in Harris County can cast their ballot at any of the county’s 160 polling locations, regardless of precinct.

Several closely watched races are on the ballot, including:

• The Republican nomination for U.S. Senate
• The Democratic runoff for Texas’ 18th Congressional District
• The Republican runoff for the newly created 9th Congressional District
• The Democratic primary runoff for Harris County judge

Election officials remind voters to bring an approved form of photo identification before heading to the polls.

Polling locations will remain open until 7 p.m. Tuesday.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average retail price for beef reached a record $9.64 per pound in April, up about 13% from the same time last year.

The American Farm Bureau Federation says strong consumer demand and historically low cattle inventories are driving prices higher heading into peak grilling season. Economists say the U.S. cattle herd is currently at its lowest level in 75 years after years of drought and rising operating costs forced many ranchers to reduce herd sizes.

Despite the higher prices, Americans are still buying meat in large numbers. Industry data shows meat sales topped $112 billion in 2025, with more than 98% of U.S. households purchasing meat for meals.

Experts say beef remains the centerpiece of many summer cookouts, but shoppers looking to save money may want to consider cheaper alternatives.

Chicken continues to be one of the most affordable options, with prices remaining relatively stable compared to beef and pork. The USDA says boneless chicken breast averaged about $4.17 per pound in April, slightly lower than a year ago.

Consumers can also cut costs by:

• Choosing lower-cost meats like hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, or pork
• Looking for grocery store promotions and holiday sales
• Checking markdown sections for discounted meat nearing sell-by dates
• Buying in bulk and freezing meat for later summer cookouts

Economists say grocery stores often increase promotional discounts around major summer holidays, which could help families save ahead of Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day gatherings.

The new screenings are part of a directive issued by the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Under the order, all flights to the United States carrying passengers who recently traveled from or were present in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan within the last 21 days must arrive at one of three designated airports for enhanced health screening.

• ‘We are okay’: Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo addresses Ebola concerns ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026 in Houston

Beginning after 11:59 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time Tuesday, Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport officially joins the list alongside Washington Dulles International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Federal officials say travelers arriving from those countries will be escorted to a separate screening area.

According to the CDC, the screenings will include:

• A questionnaire about travel history and symptoms
• A temperature check using a non-contact thermometer
• Additional evaluation by a CDC public health officer if a traveler has a fever or other symptoms

Officials say travelers who do not show symptoms will receive instructions to monitor their health upon arrival. Their contact information will also be shared with state and local health departments for follow-up monitoring.

The federal order applies to anyone who has been in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan within 21 days before entering the United States.

Cargo-only flights and flight crews are exempt from the restrictions.

Authorities describe the enhanced screenings as a proactive safety measure to protect the American public during the ongoing Ebola outbreak overseas.

Travelers heading to Bush Airport for summer travel should be aware of the additional screening measures, though officials have not announced any broader impacts to airport operations or domestic travel.

According to police, officers responded to a 911 call around 12:40 a.m. in the 10200 block of West Bellfort near Dover Street.

When officers arrived, they found a 40-year-old man suffering from multiple gunshot wounds inside a pickup truck.

Investigators say the man may have been shot 30 to 40 minutes before the 911 call was made.

The victim was transported to a hospital in critical condition.

At this time, police say they do not know who shot the man or what led up to the shooting. No weapons were recovered at the scene.

The investigation remains ongoing, and no arrests have been made.

The government earlier confirmed seven women and 12 children were heading home on Qatar Airways flights, less than three weeks after a group of 13 people in similar situations returned to Australia’s two largest cities.

Two women with seven children flew to Melbourne. Four women with six children landed about an hour later in Sydney, a joint police and intelligence agency statement said.

No one had been charged on arrival, but investigations into their activities in Syria were continuing, the statement said. Three of four women who returned home earlier were charged with slavery and terrorism offenses and remain behind bars.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said anyone among the 19 on their way to Australia who has committed crimes "can expect to face the full force of the law.”

“The government has not and will not provide any assistance to this group,” Burke said in a statement.

“These are people who have made the horrific choice to join a dangerous terrorist organisation and to place their children in an unspeakable situation,” he added.

Australian law enforcement and intelligence agencies have been preparing for their return since 2014 and have long-standing plans in place to manage and monitor them, Burke said.

“The priority of the government, as always, is the safety of the Australian community,” he said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had earlier told Parliament: “I have nothing but contempt for anyone who has any sympathy for ISIS,” referring to IS by an acronym for the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

The bid by general practice doctor Jamal Rifi, a community leader in Sydney’s Lebanese Muslim diaspora, to return 34 Australian women and children from Syria failed in February. Syrian authorities blocked their convoy's route to Damascus and turned them back to Roj camp, a location in northeast Syria near the Iraq border where people linked to IS have been held since IS forces in the Middle East were defeated in 2019.

Riji told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Tuesday that Syrian authorities had since been persuaded that the majority of Australians in Roj were children who had a legal right to grow up in Australia.

“These women are caring mothers,” he said of the 19 women who just landed in Australia.

“Definitely joining willingly the death cult of the un-Islamic caliphate, it’s a terrible decision. Some of these women, I believe they were tricked to go there. Some of them are victims of the death cult and others are not," Riji said.

After the departure of the latest group, at least two Australians remain in Roj camp, including a mother who was prevented from returning to Australia in February by a temporary exclusion order.

Exclusion orders were created by laws introduced in 2019 to prevent defeated IS fighters from returning to Australia for up to two years.

The woman, aged around 29, had remained at Roj with her daughter, who had been disabled by shrapnel wounds, The Australian newspaper reported. She left her Sydney home at the age of 18 in 2015 to marry an IS fighter in Syria, the newspaper reported.

Her family has engaged a Sydney lawyer to challenge the order, which bars the mother from Australia until February 2028.

The last Australian cohort returned from Syria on May 7, similarly without government help.

Kawsar Ahmed, also known Kawsar Abbas, 53, and her daughter Zeinab Ahmed, 31, were arrested when they landed in Melbourne over allegations that their family had bought a female Yazidi slave.

Janai Safar, 32, was arrested at Sydney Airport when she arrived with her 9-year-old son on charges of being a member of a terrorist organization and of entering or remaining in a region controlled by a terrorist organization.

Australian governments have repatriated Australian women and children from Syrian detention camps on two occasions. Other Australians have returned quietly without government assistance.

The girls’ aunt, who now has guardianship of both children, is speaking out and urging others to stay alert and report warning signs of child abuse.

Jamesha Wilson and her girlfriend, Kevonnisha Jones, are charged with injury to a child and injury to a child with serious physical and mental harm.

Both are in the Harris County Jail.

The arrests came roughly eight months after the 3-year-old was found barely breathing.

KPRC 2 News spoke with the girls’ aunt, Asherah Henderson, about the night everything changed and the road ahead for the two toddlers.

“My girls almost didn’t make it. It’s hard,” Henderson said.

Henderson says she received a call from a social worker one night in September. She recorded the call on her cell phone when her 2-year-old niece’s small voice was audible in the background, saying “I don’t know” when her aunt asked, “What is this?”

“That’s where she was, in the fetal position. There was a little small bowl of chicken next to her, like she was a stray animal,” Henderson said. “She crawled to me once she saw me, and once I picked her up, she did not let me go.”

Henderson says the home was in disarray, and her other niece, the 3-year-old, was fighting for her life in the hospital.

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office says the 3-year-old had a brain bleed and a skull fracture so severe that doctors were forced to remove part of her skull. The 2-year-old also had broken ribs, a broken wrist, bruising, and possible liver damage.

“From head to toe, it was bad,” Henderson said.

Investigators say Jones called 911, claiming the 3-year-old fell off a bed. But doctors determined the injuries were far too severe to be caused by a fall.

“One of the doctors said it was close to a child falling off a two-story building,” Henderson said.

Jones later admitted to disciplining the girls with a belt and forcing them onto their knees with their hands behind their backs. Court records show the 3-year-old had a pattern of bruising and scars resembling marks from a looped cord and a possible belt buckle.

Detectives also uncovered text messages showing Wilson allegedly instructing Jones on what to say about who cared for the children.

People who lived at the home told KPRC 2 News they rarely saw the girls and that the children were often kept away from others inside the house.

“These bruises were in stages of healing. So you’re telling me that nobody knew something was going on with these kids?” Henderson said.

Officials with Children at Risk say warning signs of abuse can include children being isolated from others, sudden behavioral changes, and unexplained bruising or scars.

KPRC 2 News asked the Harris County Sheriff’s Office why it took eight months before Wilson and Jones were arrested. A spokesperson explained the complexity of such cases.

“These types of cases are very long and complex. They require extensive interviews, medical records of all proceedings, all hospitalizations, doctor notes, and all forensic interviews. Also, electronic evidence takes a while to get, and then it’s all presented to the DA, who reviews everything before accepting charges. The Institute of Forensic Science, also CPS, is all involved,” the spokesperson said.

The 3-year-old now relies on a feeding tube and a wheelchair. Despite their difficult road to recovery, Henderson says both girls are in good spirits.

Henderson, who had not seen the girls in months before the night she was called, now has guardianship of both children.

She hopes their story inspires the community to stay watchful and speak up.

“These bruises were in stages of healing. You’re telling me nobody knew something was going on with these kids?” she said.

Let’s jump straight into the news of the morning.

It’s Election Day! Voters who did not vote during the early voting times last week will head to the polls today.

Republican primary voters will decide whether to nominate U.S. Sen. John Cornyn or his challenger, Attorney General Ken Paxton.

There are also heated races for attorney general on the Republican and Democratic sides. And on the Democratic ticket, Houston voters will pick between U.S. Reps. Al Green and Christian Menefee for the city’s newly redrawn 18th Congressional District.

The winners of the primaries will go on to represent their party on the November midterm election ballot.

Voters can only participate in one party’s runoff election, and it must align with the party they chose in the March 3 primary, if they participated in that election.

To read more, click here.

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YOUR MORNING FORECAST ☀️

TODAY: 89° TONIGHT: 72°

KPRC 2 Meteorologist says:

“Today will be mostly dry, with a mix of sun and clouds as afternoon temperatures climb into the upper 80s. A few isolated showers and thunderstorms could develop during the afternoon, but rain coverage should remain limited through most of the day.”

Get your forecast details here.

TOP STORIES

1 dead, 2 injured after overnight shooting in west Houston parking lot, police say

One person is dead, and two others are injured, including a woman, after a shooting in west Houston Tuesday morning. The shooting happenedin a parking lot along South Highway 6 near Westheimer Road.

Investigators say dozens of young people had gathered in the area and were preparing to head to a nearby lounge when someone started shooting, sending people running for cover.

According to police, two men in their late teens or early 20s were shot during the incident. One man was pronounced dead at the scene. The second victim was shot several times and transported to the hospital in critical condition.

Man found shot multiple times inside pickup truck on Houston’s southwest side

A man in his 40s was found shot multiple times while sitting inside his vehicle in southwest Houston Tuesday morning.

The man was found in the 10200 block of West Bellfort just before midnight. It’s not clear why the man was shot or by whom.

Texas’ raucous primary runoffs end today. Here’s what to watch.

Texans are returning to the polls Tuesday to pick their party’s nominees in an array of runoffs, capping one of the liveliest primary seasons in the state’s recent political history.

Several statewide, congressional and legislative contests required an overtime round between the top two finishers in various races after no candidate received a majority of the votes in the March primary.

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

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Let’s jump straight into the news of the morning.

If you’re headed out this morning, make sure you grab your umbrellas, because although it’s not raining right now, it’s set to begin sometime this morning.

And unfortunately, we are not done with the rain after today; it looks like we will be seeing rain pop up on our radar throughout the weekend into next week.

To read more, click here.

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YOUR MORNING FORECAST ☀️

TODAY: 80° TONIGHT: 71°

KPRC 2 Meteorologist says:

“Houston is waking up to a dry start, but don’t let that fool you. Rounds of rain and storms will move in from the west later this morning and continue through the afternoon. The concern with these storms is the speed. The trend over the last few days has been storms slowing down and not moving out of our area quickly. There is a flood watch that starts Thursday morning, lasting through Memorial Day. This pattern is with us through at least Tuesday of next week.”

Get your forecast details here.

TOP STORIES

TIMELINE: Stormy weather, heavy rains expected in Houston through Memorial Day weekend

We are tracking a multi-day period of heavy rain that began Monday night and continues through Friday, possibly into Memorial Day Monday. A series of storm systems will move across Southeast Texas, bringing the potential for significant rainfall totals. The forecast indicates widespread amounts of 2 to 4 inches, with isolated areas north of I-10 potentially receiving over 7 inches. Because we expect multiple rounds of rain, the ground will become saturated quickly, increasing the risk for runoff and street flooding.

Houston woman says road rage incident on Katy Freeway ended with gunshot caught on camera

A road rage shooting is now under investigation after a Houston mother said she and her teenage daughter were shot at while driving on the Katy Freeway. The mother said she was driving when she was all of a sudden cut off by another driver, who then pointed a gun and released a single gunshot.

Houston says 99% of reported potholes are patched within a day. KPRC 2 put that claim to the test

Umm, are you tired of potholes around the city? Well, according to Houston Public Works, the city is fixing reported potholes pretty fast.

“We resolve 99% of resident-reported pothole problems within the next business day,” Houston Public Works Director Randy Macchi said in a podcast hosted by the Houston Mayor’s office.

So, what did we do? We tested that claim by reporting a pothole on Monday through Houston’s 311 system.

ARE YOU A KPRC 2 INSIDER? HERE’S SOME EXCLUSIVES

Houston ISD students pitch businesses at NRG Arena in ‘Hustle Tank’ competition

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Police say the shooting happened just before midnight in a parking lot along South Highway 6 near Westheimer Road.

Investigators say dozens of young people had gathered in the area and were preparing to head to a nearby lounge when someone started shooting, sending people running for cover.

According to police, two men in their late teens or early 20s were shot during the incident. One man was pronounced dead at the scene. The second victim was shot several times and transported to the hospital in critical condition.

Authorities say a woman driving nearby was also hurt when a stray bullet shattered her car window, causing glass to fly into the vehicle. She was taken to the hospital and is expected to recover.

Detectives spent hours overnight collecting evidence and interviewing witnesses as they worked to determine where the shots came from.

At this time, investigators do not know whether the gunfire came from someone inside the parking lot or from a passing vehicle in a possible drive-by shooting.

Houston police say they are continuing to canvass the area for surveillance video and additional witnesses as they work to piece together what led up to the shooting.

No arrests have been made.

And the 2024 Olympics were held in July and August.

Temperatures for the opening two days of the clay-court Grand Slam have soared to 33 degrees C (91 F) — far beyond normal for late May in the French capital. And it’s forecast to stay that way for the entire first week.

Besides making it uncomfortable for fans and players alike, the sultry conditions have also created faster conditions on court — changing the pace of the game.

“It is much different. Maybe it was that hot in the Olympics but the balls were different, so I wouldn’t treat it as the same tournament,” four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek said after routing Emerson Jones 6-1, 6-2 in the first round on Monday.

Players have been putting bags of ice around their necks on changeovers to stay cool, while fans refreshed themselves under sprinklers.

When workers water the clay courts between sets, they have taken to directing their hoses at spectators begging to be doused, too.

“I don’t remember the last time it was so hot at Roland Garros,” Russian-born Australian player Daria Kasatkina said after beating Zeynep Sonmez 6-4, 6-4. “Maybe one day. But we’re going to have it for the whole week.”

Kasatkina said the energy-sapping temperatures made for more up-and-down matches.

“You can suddenly just get out of the bench and feel that your focus dropped,” she said. “So this is a battle which you have to also win. … Whoever adapts better to today’s conditions gets it.”

A retirement and medical timeout

Canadian player Gabriel Diallo said the heat was the main reason why he retired midway through his match against James Duckworth on Sunday.

Both Andrey Rublev and opponent Ignacio Buse called for the trainer on separate occasions during the second set of their 3-hour, 39-minute match on Monday, which Rublev won in four sets.

Buse took a medical timeout and had salts and minerals added to his water bottle as a stethoscope was placed on his chest. Rublev received treatment a few games later.

Also during the same match, a weary looking ball girl had to be helped off the court and received medical attention.

Heat protocol

The French Open is usually cool compared to the heat at the Australian Open and U.S. Open.

But like in Australia and New York, the French Open has adopted an extreme weather policy.

If the Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) — which takes into account temperature, humidity, sun, wind and other factors — reaches 30.1 degrees C (86 F) or higher, 10-minute cooling breaks can be installed between the second and third sets for women’s matches and between the third and fourth sets for men’s matches.

If the WBGT hits 32.2 C (90 F), play is suspended. It would require an air temperature of about 38 C (100 F) for play to be suspended.

Fast-court players like the heat

Some players were embracing the hotter air.

“I’ve always preferred hot and lively conditions to chilly on a clay court, because I feel like I can bring a little bit more of my all-court tennis on this type of surface,” Australian player Alex de Minaur said after beating Toby Samuel 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.

“It’s easier to be a little bit more aggressive. The ball is jumping. I don’t necessarily have to use as much spin or heaviness, and I can let the conditions do the job for me. And it’s quite physical. I don’t mind the heat,” De Minaur added.

Same goes for American player Alex Michelsen, who eliminated Alexander Shevchenko in straight sets.

“It’s definitely good for us Americans,” Michelsen said. “Generally we’re big serve, big forehand, big ground game and like to play offense. When it’s super hot, the ball is moving through the air very fast. … I was so happy when I saw the forecast.”

___

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

Several statewide, congressional and legislative contests required an overtime round between the top two finishers in various races after no candidate received a majority of the votes in the March primary.

The most closely watched race will be the GOP runoff between U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton, the latter of whom is favored to win after landing an eleventh-hour endorsement from President Donald Trump. Also on the ballot are the Democratic and Republican runoffs to decide who will succeed Paxton as Texas’ attorney general.

Here are three things we’re watching Tuesday.

Marquee Senate race

The bruising Republican primary for U.S. Senate between incumbent John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will finally come to an end tonight, after more than $135 million in ad spending and a buzzer-beating endorsement from President Donald Trump.

The two Republicans — neither of whom has ever lost an election — have been locked in a heavyweight bout for over a year. Cornyn, a four-term senator seeking a fifth, beat Paxton in the primary by a narrow margin, but a runoff period was triggered when neither candidate cleared the 50% mark.

In the months since March 3, Trump pledged to endorse swiftly but then kept both campaigns on ice, despite repeated overtures — especially from the Senate Republican establishment, who see Cornyn as the safer (and less expensive) bet in the general election. At the last minute, the president weighed in for Paxton, giving the loyal attorney general his stamp of approval one week before election day.

Cornyn and Paxton have fought bitterly over their records, electability, levels of conservatism, allegiance to Trump and personal character. Cornyn, who calls himself a Reagan Republican, says GOP control of Texas is at stake. Paxton, who has pledged to take a sledgehammer to the Republican establishment, says he is the fighter better aligned with Trump’s Make America Great Again base.

The winner will go on to face Democratic nominee James Talarico, an Austin state representative and fundraising powerhouse.

Texas’ next top lawyer

The race to replace Ken Paxton as attorney general has been expensive and contentious, especially on the GOP side.

Galveston state Sen. Mayes Middleton finished first in the March 3 primary but did not clear 50%, so he is facing U.S. Rep. Chip Roy in the runoff. Middleton has put almost $17 million of his own money into pushing his “MAGA Mayes” message, touting his allegiance to President Donald Trump and conservative causes. Middleton and his slate of powerful endorsers, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, have criticized Roy for his tempestuous relationship with Trump and Paxton.

Roy has hit Middleton for his thin legal resume — Middleton is a lawyer, but has worked exclusively for his family oil and gas company, while Roy was a federal prosecutor and first assistant at the attorney general’s office. He’s gotten a surge in funding to get that message out in the homestretch, including $2.75 million from Amarillo billionaire Alex Fairly.

The Texas attorney general’s office has become the engine room for the national effort to push conservative causes through the courts, and the GOP is expected to fiercely protect this seat against any incursions from the Democrats.

Democratic state Sen. Nathan Johnson of Dallas nearly won his party’s nomination outright, but fell just short of the 50% threshold. He is facing former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski to determine who will vie for the chance to reclaim the office for the blue team. Each promises to restore the strength of the office’s apolitical functions and use the agency to support Democrats’ litigation aimed at reining in Trump.

A big test for Texas’ hard right

Primaries for a seat on the state’s Railroad Commission, the regulatory state agency that oversees Texas’ oil and gas industry, are typically sleepy affairs.

But this year, the GOP primary has exploded into a million-dollar contest that is testing the limits of the majority party’s far right flank and caused apprehension among some that a victory for the far-right candidate could create an opening for a Democrat to win statewide office.

Former Tarrant County GOP Chair Bo French, who has long made controversial, racist and antisemitic statements, is challenging Commissioner Jim Wright, who is entering election day with endorsements from top GOP officials including Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.

French’s campaign has been bankrolled by some of the biggest hardline conservative donors in the state: oil billionaire Tim Dunn, his son Luke Dunn, and Farris Wilk, according to campaign finance reports filed with the state.

Wright, meanwhile, received a massive $500,000 donation from casino magnate Miriam Adelson. Dallas real estate giant Harlan Crow also gave the incumbent $10,000.

French has often come under scrutiny, including from his GOP peers, for his remarks like asking on social media last summer whether Jews or Muslims posed a greater risk to the nation. At a conservative conference this spring, he called for the deportations of 100 million people.

Wright knocked French for campaigning on social issues — like the “Islamification” of Texas — that the commission has no authority over.

Whoever wins will face Democratic state Rep. Jon Rosenthal of Cypress.

The team will still play its group stage matches in the U.S. but its base has been moved to Tijuana, Mexico, just south of San Diego, California, a move that Iran's soccer federation announced recently and that was formally confirmed by FIFA, the sport's governing body, on Monday.

Moving the training base comes against the backdrop of the war in Iran, which the U.S. and Israel launched on Feb. 28.

Sheinbaum said at a news conference Monday that she was told by a FIFA representative the U.S. was reluctant to have the Iranian soccer team spend time outside the games on U.S. territory.

“The United States doesn’t want the Iranian national team to stay overnight in the United States,” Sheinbaum told reporters. She said a FIFA representative had then asked, “Can they stay overnight in Mexico?”

“And we said, ‘Yes, no problem. We have no issue with that',” she said.

Iran's soccer team is slated to play matches in Inglewood, California, against New Zealand on June 15 and against Belgium six days later, before facing Egypt on June 26 in Seattle.

Before the war broke out, the team was originally planned to set up its base in Tucson, Arizona. But with tensions simmering, Iran's team moved its base to Tijuana in Mexico, Sheinbaum said, confirming an announcement by the Iranian federation over the weekend. The federation said the Iranians had received approval from FIFA, which made the move official on Monday when it released the lists of all 48 base camp sites.

Teams use base camps to train before and after matches. This year’s World Cup runs from June 11 to July 19 and will be co-hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

The possibility of a move had simmered for months in the uncertainty surrounding the war in the Middle East and security concerns. U.S. sanctions on Iran were likely to only make the team’s stay in the U.S. more complex.

The U.S. State Department said in a statement on Monday that President Donald Trump had made it clear the Iranian team was welcome to participate in the tournament.

The department’s statement did not address where the team might stay, or Sheinbaum's comments.

Sheinbaum said that her government was working with FIFA to hash out all the details before the competition.

___

AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds in Miami contributed to this report.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup

Minutes after the Knicks finished their four-game sweep of the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals, the DJ at Radio City Music Hall played Prince's “1999.”

That was the last time the Knicks had reached the NBA Finals. And as fans sang along to, “So tonight I’m gonna party like it’s 1999,” they could forget the more than a quarter of a century of mostly bad years since and enjoy the record-setting run the current team is on.

“There is no precedent right now as far as point differential. That’s how good this Knicks team is,” said Ari Levine, who was carrying part of a broom as the Knicks swept their second straight series.

He's right. The Knicks have outscored Atlanta, Philadelphia and Cleveland by a combined 262 points during their playoff winning streak, the largest margin in any 11-game span in NBA history.

They will try to continue it against Oklahoma City or San Antonio in the NBA Finals. Fans seemed to have a clear preference for Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs as they poured out of the famous Manhattan venue onto city streets, chanting “We want Wemby! We want Wemby!”

But whether it's him or the defending champion Thunder, Knicks fans believe the run will continue.

“We're taking everything! We're taking the whole thing!" rapper Fat Joe posted on Instagram from the court in Cleveland, where he was one of the Knicks' celebrity fans who made the trip.

It wasn't that long ago when fans had no reason for such confidence. The Knicks went 17-65 in 2018-19, the worst record in the league, during a stretch when they had a losing record for seven straight seasons.

“That year we won 17 games I thought we had reached rock bottom,” longtime fan Anthony Mills said at the Radio City party. "I wasn’t sure that we could ever get this back again."

He became a Knicks fan when Bernard King was playing for them in the mid-1980s, a decade removed from their second and most recent championship in 1973. The drought is now so long he believes if the Knicks end it this season, star guard Jalen Brunson would earn a spot among New York's most fabled champions.

“If Jalen Brunson wins this championship, he should be Joe Namath. And if you’re old enough, you understand what Joe Namath means," Mills said, referring to the iconic quarterback who guaranteed the New York Jets would beat the favored Baltimore Colts in the third Super Bowl in 1969, and then delivered.

Brunson's team, like Namath's, will be the underdog. But the Knicks sure aren't playing like one.

“This team is hungry and they know what it would mean to this city,” Mills said. “They’re going to win the championship.”

___

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

Chung, chairman of Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea, bowed three times during a televised statement as he pleaded for forgiveness from the families of democracy activists killed by the country's former military dictatorship and from the broader public.

The coffee chain sparked public outrage when it attempted to promote a large size of tumbler it calls a “tank” by declaring May 18 to be “Tank Day.” That's the anniversary of a democratic uprising in the southern city of Gwangju that was brutally suppressed by troops, tanks and helicopters, killing or injuring hundreds.

The campaign compounded outrage by using the slogan “Thwack it on the table!,” which many read as a reference to a notorious 1987 police statement that attempted to cover up the torture death of student activist Park Jong-chol. Police claimed that Park died suddenly after investigators “hit the desk with a thwack.”

The promotion was met with immediate outrage and within hours Shinsegae canceled it and fired the chief executive of Starbucks Korea. Police also opened an investigation based on complaints by families of people killed at Gwangju.

“I take it very seriously the fact that many people felt deep pain and anger because of Starbucks Korea’s inappropriate marketing campaign,” Chung said Tuesday.

He also asked people not to take out their frustration on staff at Starbucks shops, saying the responsibility lies with management. There were no immediate reports of major incidents at stores.

Chung issued his first apology on May 19, saying in a statement that the campaign caused “deep pain to the victims and bereaved families of the May 18 Democratization Movement as well as to the public.”

Jeon Sangjin, a senior Shinsegae Group executive, said the company has yet to find conclusive evidence that Starbucks Korea marketing employees intended to mock the pro-democracy movement, an accusation the employees have denied.

However, he said some employees refused management requests to hand over their smartphones during a weeklong internal review. Jeon said the company would look at results from the police inquiry and any employee found to have intended to ridicule protesters would be fired.

The anger over the campaign has triggered public calls for boycotts, amplified by government officials, including Interior and Safety Minister Yoon Ho-jung, who said Starbucks products will no longer be used at government events and lamented the chain’s “anti-historical behavior.”

President Lee Jae Myung said on X last week that the campaign displayed “inhumane and disgraceful behavior by cheap profiteers who deny the values of the South Korean community, basic human rights and democracy.”

The crackdown in Gwangju came months after General Chun Doo-hwan seized power in a coup in late 1979. Government records show about 200 people died in Gwangju, but activists say the true death toll was much higher. Chun’s government also imprisoned tens of thousands, saying it was rooting out social evils.

Public anger over Chun’s dictatorship led to massive nationwide protests in 1987, forcing him to accept a constitutional revision introducing direct presidential elections, which is widely seen as the start of South Korea’s transition to democracy.

The missile fired from Jongju, a city near the North's west coast, flew about 80 kilometers (50 miles), South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. North Korea launched other kinds of projectiles, it said, but didn't elaborate.

South Korean media, citing the military, reported the other weapons systems mobilized included multiple rocket launch systems. The reports said that the simultaneous launches of different kinds of weapons were likely meant to test an ability to evade South Korean and U.S. defenses.

South Korea's military said that it closely monitors activities in North Korea. It said that South Korea, with a solid alliance with the U.S., maintains a readiness to repel any provocations by North Korea.

It was North Korea's first weapons launch event since April 19, when the country fired multiple short-range missiles in what state-media described as a demonstration of cluster bomb warheads.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has focused on modernizing his nuclear and missile arsenals since his nuclear diplomacy with U.S. President Donald Trump collapsed in 2019. In recent years, Kim has expanded ties with Russia by sending troops and conventional arms to support its war efforts against Ukraine. Kim has also pushed to cement cooperation with China, North Korea's economic pipeline.

In their summit in Beijing last week, Russian President Vladmir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed their opposition to “foreign policy isolation, economic sanctions, military pressure and other methods of creating threats to the security” of North Korea, according to a statement from the the Kremlin.

Russia and China, both veto-wielding members of the U.N. Security Council, have previously frustrated the U.S. and others' efforts to toughen international sanctions on North Korea, despite its banned weapons tests.

Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to resume talks with Kim, but Pyongyang has responded that Washington must first drop demands for the North’s nuclear disarmament as a precondition for talks.

Kim has taken an increasingly hard-line stance toward South Korea, calling it his country’s most hostile enemy and taking steps to terminate all ties with its neighbor. In a meeting with military commanders last week, Kim discussed efforts to strengthen military units along the border with South Korea in line with a state objective to turn the border line into “an impregnable fortress,” according to state media.

On Tuesday, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called for stronger efforts to advance the country’s military. In televised remarks during a regular Cabinet meeting, he emphasized artificial intelligence and drone capabilities, and the potential acquisition of a nuclear-powered submarine, an issue that has been part of his diplomacy with Washington.

Lee, a liberal who espouses improved ties with North Korea, didn't specifically comment on the threats posed by the North. But he stressed the importance of South Korea demonstrating the “resolve to take responsibility for and protect our own security ourselves,” saying such a posture would also strengthen the country’s alliance with the United States.

___

Elise Morton contributed to this report from London.

The announcements by the group of nations known as the Quad came after talks in New Delhi between India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong.

Speaking after the meeting, Rubio announced a new Indo-Pacific maritime surveillance initiative to integrate the four countries’ surveillance capabilities and strengthen real-time information sharing across the region. He said the Quad would work with Fiji to upgrade port infrastructure in the Pacific islands, marking its first joint regional infrastructure project.

The ministers also launched an Indo-Pacific energy security initiative aimed at strengthening regional fuel and energy supply chains, with the U.S. set to host a Quad fuel security forum later this year, Rubio said.

“We are deeply committed to this partnership. It is a linchpin in a cornerstone of our global strategy as a nation,” he said.

Separately, India and the U.S. signed a deal to strengthen cooperation on critical minerals as global concerns grow over reliance on China-dominated supplies.

Asked about the Quad agreements, China said that cooperation among countries should promote regional peace and stability and not target third parties.

“We do not support forming exclusive small groupings or bloc confrontation. Any cooperation should not undermine mutual trust and cooperation among regional countries," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said in Beijing.

The Quad group is a key strategic partnership for cooperation on maritime security, supply chains and regional strategy as China expands its military and economic influence in the Indo-Pacific.

Its members have repeatedly accused China of flexing its military muscles in the South China Sea and aggressively pushing its maritime territorial claims. Beijing maintains that its military is purely defensive to protect what it says are China’s sovereign rights and calls the Quad an attempt to contain its economic growth and influence.

The Quad meeting comes days after U.S. President Donald Trump visited China, a trip closely watched in New Delhi for signs of any shift in Washington’s approach toward Beijing.

Ahead of Tuesday's talks, Rubio said that Washington wants the Quad to move beyond being a dialogue platform and take more concrete action on issues including maritime security and critical minerals. He also said officials were working toward a summit of the four leaders later this year, although no date has been announced.

The four countries had hoped to hold a leaders’ summit in India last year, but the plan was delayed because of strains in U.S.-India relations, including disagreements over tariffs.

Jaishankar described the talks as “an exercise of considerable value,” saying the ministers also discussed maritime trade, energy and fertilizer supplies, as well as critical minerals. He added that as economic activity, energy, trade and maritime commerce in the region grow, “the responsibilities of the Quad will grow commensurately, and we must prepare for that.”

The leaders also discussed the Iran war and halted energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.

Australia's Wong said the Indo-Pacific was facing “acute economic stress” and warned that any closure of the strait would have serious consequences for regional energy security.

“We recognize the importance of maintaining the principle of freedom of navigation and our opposition to any tolling proposition,” Wong said, referring to Iran’s plan to charge vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

She said the Quad reflects a shared commitment among four sovereign nations to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

“There is great alignment between our interests. We all share a vision for the Indo-Pacific, a region that is free and open,” she said.

——

Associated Press journalist Eduardo Castillo in Beijing, China contributed to this report.

One is the rare Bundibugyo type of Ebola, with no vaccine or treatment. The other is the anger and suspicion of residents who have pelted her with stones and verbal abuse in Bunia, a city at the heart of the outbreak.

“We continue to tell them that the disease is out there. Some accept, and others don’t,” Birungi told The Associated Press on Monday as she and colleagues spoke with groups of people in a working-class neighborhood under the scorching sun.

Aid workers are especially at risk in this volatile region where residents, like Birungi, have long been under threat of armed groups that have killed thousands of people and displaced many more in recent years.

Trust is hard to find among the traumatized population that is wary of outsiders, even those trying desperately to contain the rapidly spreading outbreak that experts say was discovered weeks late. Surveillance for such diseases has been weakened by U.S. and other aid cuts.

The World Health Organization says that a family of fruit bats is believed to be the natural hosts of the viruses that cause Ebola. But some people don’t believe the virus exists, or are skeptical about its origins.

“These people should stop bothering us. They just want to get rich. Let’s not forget that Ebola is a white man’s invention,” declared Pierre Basola, a 56-year-old resident of Bunia, who added: “Stop talking to me anyway.”

Cases are nearing 1,000 but health centers are burned

Three times in the past week, healthcare facilities have been attacked. On Sunday, angry young men stormed a hospital treating Ebola patients, forcing medical staff to evacuate them as gunfire rang out.

On Saturday, a group of residents set fire to a tent for suspected and confirmed Ebola cases run by Doctors Without Borders in Mongbwalu, and more than a dozen people suspected to have the virus fled. On Thursday, a center in Rwampara was burned after relatives were barred from retrieving the body of a man suspected to have Ebola.

Anger is amplified as virus prevention practices keep loved ones from handling bodies in final rites following an illness some have described as sudden and dramatic, with vomiting and bleeding.

The Ebola virus is spread through close contact with sick or deceased patients’ bodily fluids, such as sweat, blood, feces or vomit. Experts say healthcare workers and family members caring for patients face the highest risk.

“Trust is almost as important as the health response, because if you get this massive distrust in the communities, they’re not going to go to the health centers,” said Heather Kerr, country director for the International Rescue Committee in Congo.

Armed conflict in the region poses another challenge. To travel from Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, to Mongbwalu, aid groups risk potential attacks in a region more than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from Congo’s capital, Kinshasa.

Meanwhile, the outbreak now has more than 900 suspected cases and more than 220 suspected deaths, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Monday.

“We are now playing catch-up with a very fast-moving epidemic,” he said.

‘We leave everything to God’

Mado Nditamba, a 70-year-old Bunia resident, said that she has seen students running away from aid workers.

“The last time Ebola came, it was not on the scale that we see today,” Nditamba said. “But this epidemic today is worse. We go to the doctors in the hospitals, but they also die. That’s what worries us. We don’t know what to do and we leave everything to God.”

Congo has had 17 Ebola outbreaks, and WHO says the country is equipped to respond. But early tests in this outbreak were conducted for a more common type of Ebola, losing valuable time. Experts are still trying to determine when this outbreak began.

There are few places to test for this Bundibugyo type in a region where clinics can run on generators, and a major airport serving as a humanitarian hub has been in the hands of rebels for more than a year.

Health workers on the ground have told the AP that they are underprepared and underprotected. An unknown number of responders have been infected, and some have died.

A Congolese doctor was reported dead on Sunday in Rwampara, Rubens Dhedgia, coordinator of the Ebola response in the region, told the AP. In neighboring Uganda, where a far smaller number of cases has begun to spread after Congolese traveled there, at least three health workers have been infected.

And perhaps most worryingly, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies says three volunteers died in Mongbwalu, after it believes they handled bodies on March 27 during work unrelated to Ebola.

If confirmed, that would significantly push back the timeline of the outbreak from the first confirmed death in late April in Bunia.

Some residents still believe Ebola is a myth

Even as at least one funeral home manager dusted off coffins for sale alongside a road in Bunia, experts reported a lack of trust among some residents of the region who don't believe the virus exists.

Action Aid, another of the international humanitarian groups responding, said that a high level of skepticism and lack of understanding remains, citing residents it questioned in mid-May in Ituri province just after the outbreak was announced.

"The only way to go, as far as this particular virus is concerned, is community engagement,” said Yakubu Mohammed Saani, country director for Action Aid in Congo.

How that will be improved, and quickly, is still not clear. Meanwhile, both WHO and Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believe the outbreak is larger than the cases reported so far.

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Ope Adetayo reported from Abuja, Nigeria. Jean-Yves Kamale contributed to this report from Kinshasa.

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For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse

___ The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. 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.

Japanese right-hander Tatsuya Imai threw six spotless innings after walking three of the first four batters he faced Monday night. Steven Okert then got three outs before Alimber Santa made his major league debut and fired two perfect innings to complete the Astros' 17th regular-season no-hitter — four of them combined efforts — in a 9-0 win over the Texas Rangers.

“The first inning, you never thought that this was going to be the outcome of the game,” manager Joe Espada said. “Imai, he continued to compete. ... He continued to pound the zone, he fought through it. Six strong innings, and then the rest is history."

It was the first no-hitter in the major leagues since Shota Imanaga and two Chicago Cubs relievers combined for a 12-0 win over Pittsburgh on Sept. 4, 2024. No pitcher has tossed a complete-game no-hitter since Blake Snell for the San Francisco Giants against Cincinnati on Aug. 2, 2024.

The 23-year-old Santa became the first pitcher since 1900 to participate in a no-hitter during his big league debut, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

“Yeah, there was some adrenaline,” Santa said through a translator. “I was aware of the no-hitter, but I was just trying to calm myself down from the bullpen.”

Ronel Blanco tossed the previous no-hitter for the Astros in a 10-0 victory over Toronto on April 1, 2024, which also marked Espada’s first win as manager. In fact, Houston has authored three of the past seven and five of the last 11 major league no-hitters — including one in the 2022 World Series when four pitchers combined against Philadelphia.

Okert worked the seventh after Imai got 16 outs over the last 16 batters he faced. He benefited from a double play in the first, then settled into a groove after issuing his third walk.

“During pregame, our focus was attacking the zone,” Imai said through a translator. “But in the first inning, I felt unbalanced, the timing was off. But after that inning, I was able to adjust the timing, all the rhythm and stuff.”

Santa entered in the eighth and retired all six batters he faced. His 24th pitch was a called third strike against Brandon Nimmo, ending the game with his first career strikeout. That was confirmed after an ABS challenge by Nimmo of the final pitch.

“I wasn't sure,” Santa said, but catcher Christian Vázquez was already on the mound telling him, “`Hey stud, that's a strike.'”

Texas was held without a hit for the sixth time, and third at home since moving into Globe Life Field in 2020. The previous one was Corey Kluber's no-hitter for the New York Yankees on May 19, 2021, about six weeks after San Diego right-hander Joe Musgrove threw one in Texas for his hometown team on April 9.

These Rangers, hitting .232 with 201 runs through 53 games, have two of their best players on the injured list in two-time World Series MVP shortstop Corey Seager (lower back inflammation) and outfielder Wyatt Langford (right forearm strain). Plus, third baseman Josh Jung (.302 batting average) missed his second game in a row because of left shoulder soreness.

“When you get no-hit, it’s a team thing,” first-year Texas manager Skip Schumaker said. “It’s not just the players who feel it, all of us feel it. ... I have to find different ways to message on the offensive side to get this team going, to get this offense going."

The Rangers struck out only four times, a night after whiffing 16 times in a 2-1 loss to the Angels.

Imai’s fourth walk was to Nimmo leading off the fourth inning, but Ezequiel Duran then grounded into a double play.

Imai (2-2) threw 57 of his 97 pitches for strikes. He struck out two.

The 28-year-old Imai, who said his only previous no-hitter came in middle school, is in his first big league season after coming over from Japan. He was 1-2 with an 8.31 ERA in his first five starts for Houston.

Imai agreed in January to a $54 million, three-year contract. He was a three-time All-Star during eight seasons in Japan, and went 10-5 with a 1.92 ERA last season for the Pacific League’s Seibu Lions.

Joc Pederson was retired on a nifty play in the third when Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña made a backhanded stop on a hard one-hopper and a twisting throw to first. Justin Foscue and Danny Jansen had deep flyouts into the left-center gap in the Texas fifth.

Okert walked Nimmo leading off the seventh before retiring the next three batters.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

They weren't ready for the Knicks or the big stage.

The lights were too bright again.

Cleveland's season ended with a resounding, demoralizing and embarrassing 130-93 loss on Monday night in Game 4 to the New York Knicks, who swept the series and advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.

Playing on tired and wobbly legs after failing to put Toronto and Detroit away before seven games in the earlier rounds, the Cavs, whose fate was sealed when they blew a 22-point lead in the fourth quarter and lost Game 1 at Madison Square Garden, had no answer for anything the Knicks threw at them.

They got out-played, out-shot, out-rebounded and out-coached.

“We did this to ourselves,” said Mitchell, who scored 31 in the close-out loss. "We didn't give our team a chance because we didn't take care of business. You can't play with your food. We had an opportunity in Game 1 and we blew that.

“We had an opportunity, but give credit where credit is due.”

And now that they've fallen short, the Cavs head into what will likely be a tumultuous summer that will trigger a major roster overhaul and perhaps other moves.

This wasn't the plan. Cleveland made a blockbuster trade at the deadline in February, sending guard Darius Garland, part of its “Core Four” to the Los Angeles Clippers for James Harden, who was supposed to take pressure off Mitchell.

It never happened.

Cleveland's top player approved the Garland swap, but other than a few games here and there, he and Harden never truly meshed as intended. The Cavs, who shot just 28.9% (48 of 166) on 3-pointers in the series, never outgrew their growing pains.

“This was the first time going through what we were going to go through,” said Harden. “Now we have to take another two steps and get even better. ... I feel like we didn't have a fair chance. We did play one quarter of Cavs basketball offensively. If you're not making shots, you're not going to beat anybody."

Harden has a $42.3 million player option for next season that he's expected to decline to re-sign with the Cavs as a free agent. But the 36-year-old didn't perform up to offensive expectations and was a virtual turnstile on defense.

Mitchell's future is more complicated. He can be offered a five-year, $350 million super-max extension by the Cavs as early as this offseason, but the team will likely wait due to several financial factors, and still must decide if the seven-time All-Star is worth the investment.

With the Knicks up by 33 in the fourth, Mitchell and Cleveland's other starters were mercifully replaced. The 29-year-old went to the bench and watched a team he once cheered for as a kid win its 11th straight playoff game.

Mitchell feels the Cavs took a significant step this season, and he's determined to get Cleveland a title.

“I love it here,” he said when asked about the extension. “I don't know how else to say it. I have no doubt these guys can get there. We have unfinished business.”

Cleveland's stunning flame-out in the conference finals is only going to fuel more speculation about coach Kenny Atkinson's future. He guided the team to a No. 1 seed in his first season a year ago before a disappointing, second-round exit against Indiana.

Atkinson helped the Cavs take a step deeper into the postseason, but it's not certain that will be enough to satisfy demanding owner Dan Gilbert, who has dropped more than $400 million on a team that hasn't delivered him a second title.

Not long after the game, Gilbert went on social media to give a brief assessment of the season.

“We took a step ahead this spring, but we are nowhere near where we need to be,” he posted. “I can’t thank the fans enough for the support this year. We will dig in all summer and do everything we possibly can to take the next step. We will grind until we get there.”

Harden and Mitchell staunchly defended Atkinson.

“We did something we haven't done since 2018,” Mitchell said. “I love Kenny. We love Kenny. We ride with Kenny. That's all that matters. We're in this together.”

New York exposed all of Cleveland's on-court flaws and may have set the stage for Gilbert to make even bolder moves. There's little doubt that seeing his team get completely overwhelmed in Game 4 — with thousands of New York fans chanting “Knicks in 4!” — stung badly.

The Cavs will closely monitor superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo's unsettled situation in Milwaukee. The Bucks have reportedly had past interest in 24-year-old Cleveland forward Evan Mobley.

And then there's LeBron James and the possibility the NBA's all-time scoring leader could bring his storied career full circle by coming back home a second time. He's a free agent, currently at odds with the Los Angeles Lakers and surveying the landscape.

At the moment, Cleveland appears to need him again.

When asked, Mitchell wouldn't even entertain the possibility of joining forces with James. His primary concern was what went wrong against the Knicks.

“We got swept,” he said. “We've got to own it.”

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

This weekend the University Interscholastic League will host the best softball programs in all of Texas as state champions are set to be crowned.

The Houston area will be well represented and many are favored to win the state titles in their respective classifications.

Here is a look at the matchups this week!

6A Division 1: Pearland (37-6) vs Waco Midway ( 35-5-1) / Saturday 1pm

6A Division 2: Katy ( 38-5) vs Forney ( 37-3) / Saturday 4pm

5A Division 1: Barbers Hill ( 39-5) vs. Aledo (30-10) / Friday 4pm

5A Division 2: Lake Creek ( 39-1) vs. Brewer (27-9) / Friday 7pm

4A Division 2: Liberty ( 38-6) vs. Brock (32-10) / Friday 1pm

Utilityman Kiké Hernández made his season debut in a 5-3 win against the Colorado Rockies on Monday night. He went 2 for 2 with an RBI double down the third base line while batting ninth and starting at third base in place of injured Max Muncy in the series opener. He was lifted for a pinch hitter in the seventh, when the Dodgers rallied with four runs to pull out their 18th comeback win.

“It was good to have him back,” manager Dave Roberts said. “There’s a lot of emotion and adrenaline and anticipation. That’s probably the thing you got to guard against, but he did a good job managing those emotions.”

Hernández, 34, missed the first 53 games of the season recovering from offseason elbow surgery.

“It’s fixed and I’m feeling pretty good right now,” he said in the dugout before the game.

Hernández will see playing time at second and third base and possibly relieve an outfielder at times. He'll also be available off the bench to pinch hit. Muncy is sidelined with a right wrist injury, but could return Wednesday.

Hernández had surgery to repair a torn muscle and torn extensor tendon in his left elbow during the offseason. The operation was done to fix an injury he originally suffered during the season and subsequently worsened.

“He’s a tough competitor, tough player,” Roberts said. “I don’t think anyone appreciated how severe the injury was.”

Despite the tear, Hernández gritted through the pain and helped the Dodgers win their second consecutive World Series. He appeared in all 17 playoff games, batting .250 with nine runs, one homer and seven RBIs. However, the extended play caused the tendon to detach from the bone, forcing him to undergo corrective surgery.

“It was a rough year,” he said. “The best description that I can put on it is every time I would get in my batting stance I would feel like I had a blowtorch on.”

After the World Series, an MRI revealed a lot of swelling and Hernández was left with the option of either rehab or having surgery. Not knowing what choice to make, he left the final decision to his family and his agent.

They reminded him that he'd try to play through a core injury for three years and ended up blowing out the other side of his body, leading to multiple surgeries. They urged him to make another trip to the operating room with Dr. Neal ElAttrache.

“I woke up with ElAttrache telling me, ‘This is the worst injury I’ve ever seen of this kind and I don’t know how you played,’” he said. “I told him, ‘Thank you, I take it as a compliment.’”

In a post-surgery narcotic haze, Hernández FaceTimed with Andrew Friedman and urged ElAttrache to repeat to the president of baseball operations what he had just told his patient.

Before his phone was taken away, Hernández told Friedman: "I did this for you so you better bring me back.”

Hernández signed a $4.5 million, one-year contract in February to return for his 10th season with the Dodgers.

Because of the surgery and his recovery timeline, Hernández missed the World Baseball Classic for his native Puerto Rico.

“That hurt my soul a little more than I was in pain physically last year just because I’ve been dreaming about playing in the WBC in Puerto Rico since I was 13 years old and it kind of felt like it got taken away from me," he said. ”You got to find a way to look at positives in life. I was like, it would have sucked a lot more if we’d lost the World Series and I still didn’t get to play in the WBC. It was a fair trade."

Last October, Hernández became the franchise leader in postseason appearances with his 87th game. He ranks eighth all-time in major league history with 103 postseason games.

He's the fourth player of Puerto Rican descent with 100-plus career postseason appearances, joining Jorge Posada (125), Bernie Williams (121) and Yadier Molina (104).

“Doing that as a Latino is very important, especially in the city where there’s such a big Latino community and we’re living in some rough times,” he said. “Especially in this city, the last two years there’s been a lot of weird things going on, so I take the responsibility to not only represent this organization but the Latino community, the Puerto Rican community. It’s something that’s very touching to my heart.”

Starting the season on the IL was a blessing in disguise. Hernández was able to spend time with his son born in February and his daughter.

When he wasn't waking up in pain anymore, he realized he could be back at the end of his IL stint.

“It didn’t feel like I had to rush, it didn’t feel like I was going to lose my spot,” he said. “That was very key.”

He played in 12 rehab games with Triple-A Oklahoma City, batting .214 with two doubles and three RBIs.

“I had lot of fun with those guys,” he said. “Now I'm back with my guys here and I'm ready to go.”

As the Dodgers chase a third consecutive World Series championship, Hernández will have his eye on his younger teammates when he's not cracking everyone up.

“I’m in charge of checking guys,” he said. “I think guys know if I’m on them, and I’m tough on them, it means I care a lot about them.”

To clear a spot for Hernández, utilityman Santiago Espinal was designated for assignment.

The 31-year-old former All-Star hit .220 with three doubles, one home run and four RBIs in 26 games for the Dodgers.

“I'll lob a call to him in the next couple days to thank him for everything he did for us,” Roberts said. “He was fantastic. Obviously, we had a tough decision to make. We were very forthright up front about the expectations. I think he respected that.”

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

“'What about the stock trading in Congress? What about people getting rich in Congress?’” Allred said they ask him regularly. “And I have to say to them, you’re absolutely right about that, too. We need to be better.”

He's challenging Rep. Julie Johnson in the Democratic runoff for a Dallas-area House seat on Tuesday, and he's one of several candidates trying to harness populist anger over congressional stock trading. Allred has denounced Johnson for trades involving companies like Palantir, a data analytics firm with ties to President Donald Trump's administration.

Johnson said her trades were handled by a financial manager, and she accused Allred of being “only out for himself.” She pointed to financial disclosures that showed Allred's wealth nearly doubling during his own time in Congress, although Allred said his assets were in a blind trust and the money came from his wife's income as a partner at a law firm.

“To be clear, the sum total I made on that trade was only $90,” Johnson said of her Palantir stock. “My opponent is trying to make it seem like it was hundreds or thousands.”

The bitter campaign is emblematic of broader debates within the Democratic Party over the role of money in politics. Long a refrain of strident progressives and good-government reformers, accusations that political rivals are self-dealing or bought by special interests have become a mainstay of Democratic primaries. The heightened criticism of lawmakers’ personal wealth comes as the party looks to sharpen its anti-corruption message against Trump and to develop a platform for overhauling Washington if Democrats take power in the midterms.

Some are tracking congressional stock trading

Trump campaigned on a promise to “drain the swamp,” capitalizing on Americans' disdain for the Washington establishment. Now that his family is profiting while he's back in the White House, Democrats are eager to regain the upper hand on an issue that could prove potent with voters.

“The difficulty is that right now, no party has the mantle on anti-corruption,” said Daniel Lobo-Lewis, a political consultant in Washington. “Many voters outside of the beltway see both parties as corrupt, because they see all politicians as bought by the donors or by their own self-interest.”

Lobo-Lewis and Nico Agosta founded the Political Integrity Project last year to track stock trading and corporate donations involving members of Congress.

The organization asks candidates to sign an “integrity pledge” to refrain from trading stocks or accepting corporate donations while in Congress and vow not to work as a lobbyist after they leave office. So far, about 90 challengers and seven sitting lawmakers have taken the pledge.

“If we want to, in any way, start rebuilding trust in our political institutions, it starts with no-brainer changes like this that have an approval rating above and beyond any other issue you could imagine,” Lobo-Lewis said.

Congress has yet to enact a stock trading ban for its members, though insider trading is already illegal for members just like it is for anyone else. There are multiple proposals on Capitol Hill, but none have gained traction.

A bipartisan bill to ban congressional stock trading stalled this year despite receiving Trump’s blessing during his State of the Union. And Democrats remain divided over the number of alleged loopholes in their competing proposals.

Anti-corruption messages spread in Democratic primaries

A crowded race in a Democratic-leaning Utah congressional seat has featured attacks over candidates’ personal wealth. State Sen. Nate Blouin criticized his main rival, former Rep. Ben McAdams, for having equity in a Utah data center firm, and excoriated others in the race for past investments and jobs.

McAdams said the equity of several thousand dollars was payment for a past contract completed by his government consulting firm while he was a private citizen. His campaign defended the data center project by saying it would use no water and run on clean energy.

A spokesperson for McAdams also claimed Blouin “is currently hiding his corporate donations” by removing them from campaign disclosure reports, which McAdams' campaign claims “is not only deceitful, it breaks campaign finance law.”

In an interview, Blouin rejected the claim that he broke the law, and said that he removed the donations because he returned the money to each donor.

“It was actually quite uncomfortable to return some of those,” said Blouin, because some of the firms included local firms and clean energy companies. “But there is a perception that campaign contributions from lobbyists and companies influence votes, and I think there is some truth to that.”

In a New York City congressional district that includes both Wall Street and the Democratic Socialists of America’s headquarters, the city’s former comptroller, Brad Lander, has accused Rep. Dan Goldman of trying to buy another term by using his own wealth to match campaign contributions. Goldman, an heir to the Levi Strauss family fortune, says he entered all of his assets into a blind trust after taking office in 2023.

A spokesperson for Goldman said Lander is “running a deceitful campaign based on absurd lies that Dan is beholden to special interests” and that Goldman has raised more campaign funds than Lander “without taking a dime of corporate PAC money.” Goldman has spent his own money on the race, the spokesperson said: “To ensure that the NY-10 voters can be sure that he is beholden only to them and his principles.”

Lander said Goldman's spending is “not illegal, but it is certainly anti-democratic when a quarter-billionaire like Dan Goldman not only dumps millions of his own inherited wealth into his elections but also solicits money from the same forces who are rigging the economy and worsening the affordability crisis.”

More candidates are fighting over stocks in California

Even representatives who support a ban on congressional stock trading are feeling the heat.

Democratic Rep. Brad Sherman of California is facing multiple primary challengers who have criticized the congressman for holding stocks while serving in Congress. Sherman does not trade individual stocks and supports a ban on stock trading.

“I only own three individual stocks, which I inherited from my mother when she passed away, which were originally acquired by my grandmother,” Sherman said. “I have never sold them because I made a promise to my constituents that I would not buy and sell individual stocks.”

One of Sherman's primary challengers is Jake Levine, a former climate adviser to President Joe Biden, who signed the pledge from the Political Integrity Project. But Sherman said Levine “refuses to disclose key elements of his $18 million stock portfolio, and actively bought and sold stocks while serving on the National Security Council.”

Levine said in a statement shortly after midnight on Tuesday that Sherman “knows he’s losing because voters are sick of politics as usual and ready for a new generation of leadership.”

He added: “He’s chosen to close his campaign with desperate, unfounded attacks against me rather than make a real argument of why he deserves to be reelected. We look forward to the results next week.”

In the race to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California State Sen. Scott Wiener has critiqued his progressive opponent, Saikat Chakrabarti, over his personal wealth. Chakrabarti is a former software engineer who earned millions as an early employee at the tech firm Stripe. He later served as the first chief of staff to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

Wiener said that Chakrabarti “has enormous investments” and “is trying to buy this seat” while “spreading bogus conspiracy theories” with his own wealth. He criticized Chakrabarti for not disclosing the last decade of his stock trades.

“If you’re making a ban on stock trades a central part of your campaign — as Saikat is doing, running around saying that everyone under the sun is corrupt — how about you tell the voters about your own stock trading history,” Wiener said.

Chakrabarti retorted that his wealth as a private citizen is not relevant to his future time in office and that he would place all of his assets into a blind trust should he be elected. He critiqued Wiener for being supported by super PACs funded by the AI firm Anthropic and other major corporations.

“This is all part of a larger problem, which is just the whole idea of corruption in our politics,” Chakrabarti said. “If you’re in Congress, you sit on committees that oversee a lot of these industries, and it’s unethical to be using that insider information, that knowledge to make stock trades. But that doesn’t apply to a private citizen.”

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This article has been updated to correct the last name of the co-founder of the Political Integrity Project. It is Agosta, not Agosto. The article was also updated to correct that Jake Levine did not say that his family manages his financial assets.

Landry Shamet scored 16 off the bench while Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson had 15 apiece for the Knicks, who became the fourth team to have an 11-game winning streak during their postseason run. The last to do it was Golden State, which had a 15-game run en route to its second title in three seasons in 2017.

All but one of the Knicks’ wins have been by double digits, with an average margin of victory of 23.7 points.

“I feel like the word ‘hope’ has been gone from the New York Knicks name for a long time and for me to be part of this team that revives hope is something special,” Towns said.

The Knicks pulled their starters with 7:47 remaining and a 35-point lead as their large contingent of fans loudly chanted “Knicks in four!” New York fans easily outnumbered Cleveland fans as die-hard celebrity fans director Spike Lee, comedian Tracy Morgan and actor Timothée Chalamet and his girlfriend, Kylie Jenner, made the trip.

“Our guys played great. You’re in the conference finals and score 65 points off of offensive rebounds and fast break points. I don’t know if I’ve seen that at this point of the year. We wanted to push the pace," coach Mike Brown said.

The Knicks dominated in second-chance points, outscoring the Cavaliers 32-5. They also had a 33-9 advantage in fast break points.

New York will play the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder or San Antonio Spurs in the finals. The Western Conference finals is tied at two games apiece with Game 5 to be played in Oklahoma City on Tuesday. The Thunder or Spurs will have homecourt advantage when the finals start on June 3 because of a better regular-season record.

This will be the Knicks third appearance in the finals since winning their last title in 1973. They lost in seven games to Houston in 1994 and in five to San Antonio in 1999.

Knicks legends Walt “Clyde” Frazier and Patrick Ewing presented the Bob Cousy Trophy to the Knicks on the court.

It is the 15th time since the NBA-ABA merger in 1976 that a coach has reached the finals in his first year with a team. The Knicks hired Brown after parting ways with Tom Thibodeau after they reached the Eastern Conference finals last year, but lost in six games to Indiana.

It will be Brown's second trip to the finals as a coach. His last trip was with Cleveland in 2007.

The Knicks have won all three of their clinching games during the playoffs by at least 30 points. They routed the Atlanta Hawks by 51 in Game 6 of the first round (140-89) and then defeated the Philadelphia 76ers by 30 (144-114) in Game 4 of the second round to complete a sweep.

Brunson was named the MVP of the series after averaging 25.5 points and 7.8 assists.

Donovan Mitchell had 31 points for Cleveland, which was swept in a postseason series for the first time since the 2018 NBA Finals against Golden State.

“They’re playing better basketball. You got to give them credit. They’re on a heater. I don’t want to detract from what we’ve done, but sometimes you’ve got to give the other team credit," Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson said.

Mitchell scored the Cavaliers first eight points as they jumped out to an 8-2 lead. Cleveland led for most of the first six minutes before New York took control.

Evan Mobley's putback dunk gave the Cavaliers a 17-14 advantage before the Knicks scored nine straight points.

A floater by Mitchell got Cleveland within 30-26 with 2:12 remaining in the first quarter when New York went on a 20-0 run over a five-minute span. The Knicks were 8 of 14 from the field, including four 3-pointers. The bench scored 15 points, including a pair of 3-pointers by Shamet. The seventh-year guard was 11 of 12 from beyond the arc during the series.

Cleveland was 0 for 9 from the field during its drought, including missing all three shots from beyond the arc, and committed four turnovers.

The Knicks led by as many as 29 in the first half and were up 68-49 at halftime. It was the fourth time this postseason the Knicks were up by at least 19 after 24 minutes.

Knicks already had four players in double figures in the first half. Towns had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

New York's largest lead was 45 points in the fourth quarter.

James Harden, who finished with 12 points but was 2 of 8 from the field, lamented Cleveland's missed opportunities. Besides not making open shots throughout the series, the Cavaliers blew a 22-point lead in the fourth quarter in Game 1 before losing 115-104 in overtime.

“Yes, it was 4-0, but we didn’t give ourselves a chance. Genuinely, I think we are the better team. but series wise we didn’t show it," he said.

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The French sports minister, Marina Ferrari, posted condolences to the loved ones of a runner who died Sunday in a Paris race. Le Parisien newspaper reported that the 53-year-old man suffered a heart attack during the run in the capital’s 20th arrondissement, and that firefighters were unable to revive him.

It wasn’t yet known if the cause of the runner's death was heat-related, but Ferrari suggested a possible link. Temperatures in Paris went as high as 32 C ( 90 F) in the afternoon.

“The events that occurred today (Sunday) during running races are a reminder that practicing sports in extreme heat requires absolute vigilance,” Ferrari said in an X post. “My thoughts are with the family and loved ones of the runner who died in Paris, as well as with the people who were treated by emergency services.”

In the southeastern city of Lyon, local media Actu Lyon on Monday reported the death of a woman who suffered heat stroke there during another sports competition, also on Sunday.

The national weather service, Meteo France, said temperatures are breaking records for the month of May, soaring past 30 C (86 F) in many parts of the country and forecast to last into the week.

The United Kingdom broke its record Monday for the hottest temperature recorded in May, after a heat wave was declared in several parts of the country.

Residents and tourists sought relief at beaches, parks and searched for shade on the holiday as the temperature hit 34.8 C (94.6 F) at Kew Gardens in southwest London, breaking the previous record of 32.8 C (91.4 F) set in 1922 and matched again in 1944.

The U.K. Health Security Agency has issued its first amber health alert of the year, warning of a rise in deaths, particularly among the elderly, at the hottest times of the day.

Next-level weather wildness is occurring ever more frequently as Earth’s warming builds. Experts say unprecedented and deadly weather extremes that sometimes strike at abnormal times and in unusual places are putting more people in danger.

For now, she remains the sole Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission, where she's on an increasingly urgent mission to press media companies to more forcefully combat an administration she says is cracking down on free speech.

Her immediate focus is Disney, the parent of ABC. It is the subject of investigations launched by the FCC under Chairman Brendan Carr, a Trump ally.

In an extraordinary four-page letter earlier this month to Disney CEO Josh D'Amaro, Gomez outlined what she described as the FCC's “sustained, coordinated campaign of censorship and control” against the company. She noted probes touching on everything from diversity practices to ABC's moderation of a 2024 presidential debate and the guests booked on “The View” along with the administration's calls for late-night host Jimmy Kimmel to be fired.

She's particularly worried that the FCC's move for early reviews of ABC's broadcast licenses in the markets where it owns local stations is an effort to intimidate the network. She called it “the most egregious assault on the First Amendment this FCC has taken to date.”

Her message was simple: Fight back. She argued that Disney's controversial decision to pay a $15 million defamation settlement shortly before Trump returned to office did the company little good and set a bad precedent for the rest of the industry

“That settlement did not buy you peace,” she wrote in the letter, which she also posted to social media. “It only bought you time.”

D'Amaro hasn't publicly responded to Gomez. But he has signaled a new approach in a filing this month, accusing the FCC of taking actions that could “chill critical protected speech.”

In an interview from her Washington office, Gomez said she was heartened by Disney's response and encouraged other broadcasters to prepare for similar fights. She's an exceedingly rare figure in the nation's capital, one of just a few Democrats who have held onto their seats at federal agencies after Trump fired most of them in a bid to bend the bureaucracy to his will.

The Supreme Court is considering the constitutionality of Trump's moves and could issue a decision in the coming weeks.

While that plays out, Gomez's term is slated to end June 30. But unless Trump fires her, she's likely to remain at the agency, where her presence allows for a quorum that gives Carr the opportunity to keep enacting his agenda. Given the Senate's narrow divide and dwindling calendar ahead of the midterms, it would be hard for Trump to muscle through a replacement.

Here are highlights of the interview, edited for length and clarity.

A letter to Disney ... and a warning

AP: What prompted you to write the letter to Disney?

GOMEZ: At the beginning of this administration, I was growing increasingly alarmed by what I saw as this administration’s campaign to control and censor speech. And so I embarked on a tour across the country where I was talking to journalists, local broadcasters, legal scholars, press freedom advocates. And what I came back with was more of a conviction that we really needed to do something.

Then I started watching the capitulation. We saw CBS settle its lawsuit with the president and then agree to terms that basically require an ombudsperson to oversee the content of the network in order to get its transaction approved by the FCC. We saw ABC, of course, settle its lawsuit and I grew more and more and more concerned about the fact that this capitulation breeds capitulation.

And so I wrote the letter and the letter had two goals in mind. One was to basically put on the record and call out everything that this FCC has done to try to bring Disney to heel but also to encourage it and other broadcasters to stiffen their spine. We know, based on the record of this administration, every time it gets taken to court for these violations of the First Amendment and against the freedom of the press, it loses.

AP: Is your ultimate goal to get a court to rule against the FCC?

GOMEZ: In the end, what I want is for companies to push back because if this gets to court, any entity that challenges what this FCC is doing is going to win.

Regulation in a changing media environment

AP: The media landscape has changed so dramatically from when the FCC was founded. What is the government’s role in this space now?

GOMEZ: Traditionally, the FCC has licensed the local broadcast stations, and what we license is actually their spectrum, their airwaves over which they broadcast their television, their radio. And it has done so with three basic principles in mind. Competition, because competition’s always good for consumers and for viewers and for the market. Localism, which really means serving your local market, whether that means actually airing 24 hours a day the content, but truly local content. And finally, viewpoint diversity. We want to encourage more voices, not fewer.

And that is, I think, the right role for the FCC. Being a censor is not the right role for the FCC.

Life as the FCC's sole Democrat

AP: You’ve been in and out of the FCC for decades. You’re a lawyer, some might even say a technocrat. When you look back at your career, did you think you would take such a vocal stand against the actions of the agency and ultimately an administration?

GOMEZ: No, never in my entire career did I think that I would be having to speak up this strongly for the First Amendment in our Constitution and our democracy.

As you said, I’m a bit of a technocrat. I’m used to talking about the airwaves and I’m used to talking about broadband and how important it is for everyone to have access to broadband. I'm used to talking about really boring things like how to attach to light poles. But media wasn’t something that I particularly thought I would have to really delve into. But, like I said, this administration has just been alarming me so much and so I’ve had to pivot.

AP: You and Chairman Carr have a cordial relationship even though you disagree quite intensely. Is there a secret you want to share with the rest of Washington on how to do that?

GOMEZ: You know, we do have a collegial relationship and we do work well together. He has been in my position and he understands my need to speak out and I do so freely, knowing that some day I may face the consequences for it. But we do work at maintaining a cordial relationship.

AP: You're talking about the potential of being fired by the president?

GOMEZ: Yes, especially when I saw last year when the administration was firing all the Democratic members of different independent commissions and bodies. I just checked my email every day. Literally every day I pick up my phone and I say, “Am I going to work today?” And so far, so good.

AP: Your term lasts through June 30 and you're needed for a quorum. Absent an email that you wake up to in the morning, what are your plans?

GOMEZ: I can continue serving for another year and a half-ish after my term expires as long as no one else is nominated and confirmed for my particular slot. So I intend to continue working and to continue speaking out as long as I can.

The denial of bond for many held on immigration charges has unleashed tens of thousands of lawsuits since July, alleging violations of constitutional rights against illegal confinement. The Trump administration suffered a legal setback this month when an appeals court knocked down its policy after two other appeals courts had agreed with it, setting up a likely showdown at the Supreme Court.

The practice had already played out for years in Tacoma, where immigration judges at the Northwest ICE Processing Center started denying bond early this decade. Few people noticed outside the immigration attorneys there. But when the Trump administration adopted the theory last year, it echoed the judges' reasoning.

The Tacoma judges decided Congress never authorized them to grant bond

Neil Floyd, the only one of the four Tacoma judges who agreed to talk to The Associated Press, said clerks researched the issue for about six months before the judges decided Congress never authorized them to grant bond.

“We made the decision that we were going to do it collectively because it was too big a decision for someone to step out that far on their own,” said Floyd, who became the top federal prosecutor in Seattle during President Donald Trump’s second term.

The judges took their cue from a 1996 law that states that “applicants for admission” to the United States must be detained. The law was long interpreted as affecting people recently crossing the border without legal permission. People living here for years were categorized under a different statute that allowed bond hearings.

The Tacoma judges may seem like unlikely figures to spearhead such radical change. While all four — Theresa Scala, the chief Tacoma judge at the time; John Odell; Tammy Fitting; and Floyd — started their careers as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lawyers, they each granted asylum at rates slightly higher than the national average.

Floyd, who left Tacoma after Trump took office last year to advise the FBI on immigration law before moving to his current position, said the judges' conclusion was a matter of fairness based on the law.

“It is the right interpretation of the law, and it’s the only fair one, because if you enter the United States the right way, by coming and knocking on the door to ask for asylum at a port of entry, the law is 100% clear,” Floyd said. “And it has been from the beginning that you are detained until we decide whether or not we’re going to let you in.”

Immigration lawyers in Tacoma were stunned. They scoured the nation for anything similar and found nothing.

“It was from our perspective, a pretty blatantly prosecutorial push to keep people locked up,” said Matt Adams, an attorney for Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, which sued over the practice. The case has not yet been scheduled for trial.

The lawsuit, filed in March 2025, alleges that the Tacoma judges ignored decades of precedent.

The Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review, which operates more than 70 immigration courts nationwide, did not respond to requests for comment.

The Trump administration adopted the judges’ legal theory

In July, ICE announced a major change that mirrors the Tacoma judges' view, stating that immigrants who have been in the U.S. for years are “applicants for admission” if they didn’t enter the U.S. legally and, as a result, were subject to mandatory detention.

It began arguing against all bond hearings. The Justice Department’s Board of Immigration Appeals, which sets policy for courts, agreed with ICE’s arguments in September.

The number of people in ICE custody roughly doubled last year, peaking at about 75,000 in January. ICE plans to spend $38.3 billion to increase detention to 92,300 beds by the end of November, largely by opening warehouses, or “megacenters,” that house up to 10,000 people each. Judges say massive ICE raids have compounded the strain.

Once eligible for bond consideration, some 2 million immigrants now face mandatory detention if arrested. Immigrant detainees have filed more than 40,000 lawsuits since Trump returned to office 16 months ago, according to an AP tally.

Immigrants’ lives are disrupted

Despite the Trump administration's stance, many immigrants have succeeded in the courts. Some federal judges have ordered immediate freedom, while others send cases back to immigration court for bond hearings.

Victor Cruz, a handyman in Portland, Oregon, spent 24 days in the Tacoma detention center after ICE agents arrested him without a warrant. An immigration judge granted him a bond hearing, and he was released in October. He won his immigration case in February.

Cruz, 56, has U.S. citizens in his immediate family and spends weekends playing with his grandchildren. He keeps a folder in his car with all his immigration documents, wary that immigration authorities could detain him again. He said that he met people in detention who had “been there six months, nine months.”

On a recent Friday in Tacoma, Fitting — one of the original four judges — held bond hearings under orders of a federal judge.

She denied bond for an Oregon dishwasher with a 2002 drunken-driving conviction. But she granted $14,000 bond to another immigrant with no criminal record, while saying that his pathway to legal status is tenuous.

___

Attanasio is a former Associated Press reporter.

The strikes were done “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” but the military was “using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” Capt. Tim Hawkins, the spokesman for the U.S. military's Central Command, said in a statement.

Further details were not immediately available, including more specifics on the threats from Iran and what this means for negotiations. There was no official response from Iran, which had sent its parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf to Qatar for negotiations over the possible deal with the U.S.

Qatar, which faced intense attacks from Iran during the war, holds billions of dollars in frozen Iranian funds.

In Iran, the news website Tabnak, believed to be close to former Revolutionary Guard chief Mohsen Rezaei, identified four dead Guard troops it said had been killed in American strikes on boats. Iranian state television separately reported blasts around Bandar Abbas, a city on the Strait of Hormuz home to a military port and a dual-use airport.

The strikes were the latest attacks to shake the weekslong ceasefire in the war. The Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of all crude oil and natural gas traded once passed, remains effectively in Iran's chokehold, disrupting global energy markets.

Trump brings up recognition of Israel

Earlier, Trump said any agreement to end the Iran war should include a requirement for several additional countries, including Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, to join the Abraham Accords, the U.S.-brokered agreements from Trump’s first term aimed at normalizing relations with Israel.

The proposal came as the emerging Iran deal faced criticism from fellow Republicans who favor a harder line on Iran, and it could add new diplomatic complications to the negotiations.

Trump pointed to Saudi Arabia and Qatar as countries that should “immediately” sign on. Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates became the first countries to join in 2020, diplomatically recognizing Israel.

He wrote that “after all the work done by the United States to try and pull this very complex puzzle together, it should be mandatory that all of these Countries, at a minimum, simultaneously, sign onto the Abraham Accords.”

Trump has long hoped Saudi Arabia would join. Saudi Arabia in particular has for decades called on Israel to return to its 1967 borders and allow the formation of a Palestinian nation with east Jerusalem as its capital. Israel’s conduct in the war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip also has alienated Gulf Arab states and the wider Muslim world as well.

Pakistan remains key mediator

Recognition of a Palestinian state also remains key for Pakistan, which is among the countries that do not have diplomatic relations with Israel.

Islamabad-based analyst Syed Mohammad Ali said Pakistan’s position on Israel remains unchanged despite Trump’s latest proposal.

The president said he brought up the Abraham Accords plan with leaders during negotiations on Saturday. He said he would accept “one or two” countries declining to sign, but said most should be willing. Egypt and Jordan already formally recognize Israel and have long-standing peace treaties. Turkey first recognized Israel in 1949.

Masood Khan, Pakistan’s former ambassador to the United States, said it remains to be seen how workable the proposal might be for the countries on Trump's list.

“The invocation of the Abraham Accords at this stage gives an altogether new dimension to the diplomatic and mediatory processes because this issue was not on the agenda,” he said, pointing to the domestic pressure Trump is facing to strike a favorable deal.

Still, Khan said, “the diplomatic track is still working, and I believe Pakistan is very much at the center of it, supported by regional countries.”

It remains unclear when or how any deal with Iran might be completed. Trump suggested even Iran could eventually sign on to the accords, if an agreement is reached.

The accords are a series of diplomatic, economic and security agreements created with U.S. influence during Trump’s first term, which also saw Sudan, Morocco, and, more recently, Kazakhstan, join.

___

Ahmed reported from Islamabad. Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.

Savannah Dansby said she was shopping Sunday night at Pyburns, located at 12675 Fondren Road near Fonmeadow Boulevard, when something felt unusual as she swiped her card.

“When I went to go swipe my food stamp card, something snugged my food stamp card,” Dansby said. “That’s when I found out it was a skimmer.”

Dansby said she pulled on the device and it came off the machine.

“It wasn’t really that hard,” she said. “I kind of pulled down and then it popped off.”

According to Dansby, the store was busy at the time with shoppers preparing for the holiday weekend.

“This is real,” she said. “A lot of people come to this location, and they were especially really busy yesterday, people trying to get their food for the holidays.”

Dansby said she alerted store employees and later posted photos of the device on Nextdoor before contacting Houston police the next day.

During a 911 call, Dansby told dispatchers she believed the device was attached to a payment terminal inside the grocery store and said she had already notified a manager.

Houston police were dispatched to the store Sunday, according to the call log.

Credit card skimmers are devices designed to fit over legitimate payment terminals and capture card information from unsuspecting customers. While skimmers are commonly associated with gas pumps, authorities say they can also be installed on grocery store checkout machines and ATMs.

Last week, the U.S. Secret Service announced investigators found more than a dozen skimmers across the Houston area during a large scale operation targeting card fraud devices.

Experts recommend customers inspect payment terminals before using them by checking for loose parts, unusual attachments or anything that appears tampered with. Customers who suspect a skimmer is attached to a machine are advised not to use the terminal and to contact law enforcement immediately.

Dansby said she checked her account after discovering the device and planned to lock her card.

“I was shocked,” she said. “I’ve never seen anything like this, especially at a grocery store.”

If you think you’ve found a skimmer, call police immediately. You can also file a report with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation on their website.

The Astros threw a combined no-hitter, cruising to a 9-0 victory over the cross-state rival Texas Rangers in the road series opener.

Rookie Japanese phenom Tatsuya Imai (2-2) got the start for Houston. Across 6.0 innings, he threw 97 pitches while recording two strikeouts and four walks.

Steven Okert pitched the seventh inning for Houston, tallying one walk and one strikeout in his lone frame.

To begin the eighth inning, Alimber Santa, a 23-year-old right-hander from the Dominican Republic, made his MLB debut. Santa was selected from Triple-A Sugar Land last Friday and sported a Santa Claus belt during his first major league appearance.

Santa threw 24 pitches across the game’s final 2.0 innings. He recorded one strikeout and did not allow a baserunner, completing the no-hitter in historic fashion in his MLB debut.

Houston got on the board in the opening frame when a sacrifice fly from Yordan Alvarez brought Jeremy Peña home. Alvarez added a solo homer in the fourth inning to extend the lead to 2-0.

The Astros added two more runs in the fifth before Christian Walker blew the game open with a three-run homer to left-center field in the seventh inning.

A single by Nick Allen later in the inning plated the game’s final run, making the score 9-0.

Kumar Rocker (2-5) started for Texas, recording five strikeouts while allowing four hits, four earned runs and two walks across 5.0 innings.

The win lifts Houston to 24-31 on the season, while Texas falls to 24-29.

Game 2 of the series in Arlington is scheduled for Tuesday, with first pitch set for 7:05 p.m.

Its new report is the latest by an international rights group accusing the wealthy Gulf monarchy of financially and militarily aiding the Rapid Support Forces that have been widely accused of committing atrocities amounting to war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

The United Arab Emirates denied the latest accusations in response to questions from The Associated Press.

Report adds to a ‘growing body of evidence’

“The recruitment of Colombian private military contractors adds to a growing body of evidence that the UAE provides military support to the Rapid Support Forces, which have repeatedly carried out heinous atrocities in Sudan,” said Mausi Segun, executive director of HRW’s Africa Division.

Sudan’s war broke out on April 15, 2023, when a power struggle between the military and RSF exploded into fighting in the capital, Khartoum, and elsewhere in the sprawling northeastern African country.

The RSF was born out of feared Arab Janjaweed militias that were notorious for atrocities in the early 2000s against people identifying as East or Central African in Sudan’s western region of Darfur.

In the new report, Human Rights Watch said hundreds of Colombian mercenaries were trained by Emirati nationals at a military base in Al Dhafra region, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) west of the UAE capital of Abu Dhabi, and at another facility in Abu Dhabi, before being deployed to Sudan to fight alongside the RSF.

The rights group quoted an unnamed Colombian mercenary as saying he trained RSF recruits at camps around Nyala, the provincial capital of South Darfur, in April last year.

Many recruits were “young children,” the mercenary was quoted as saying. The rights group said it interviewed another Colombian mercenary and other sources, including former Colombian military officers.

A United Nations panel of experts in a report to the U.N. Security Council in September said Colombian mercenaries fought in multiple areas across Sudan, including in Khartoum, its sister city of Omdurman and the regions of Darfur and Kordofan, among other areas. The experts said the mercenaries’ combat roles included the operation of RSF drones, artillery and armored vehicles, as well as participation in direct attacks.

RSF commander Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo acknowledged in video comments in February that Colombian mercenaries have aided his group to operate drones.

Report urges countries to press the UAE to end RSF support

The mercenaries were hired by Abu Dhabi-based Global Security Services Group, a private security firm, Human Rights Watch said. According to the U.N. experts, the firm was chaired by Mohammed Hamdan Al-Zaabi, an Emirati national.

Human Rights Watch said Emirati authorities and the firm didn’t respond to its requests for comment. The UAE’s Foreign Ministry, however, denied the allegations in an email to the AP.

“The UAE does not permit its territory to be used for the recruitment, training, financing or transit of foreign fighters to any conflict, including Sudan,” the ministry said.

It said any private individual or entity, Emirati or foreign, that provides support to non-state armed groups “would be doing so without state authorization, in violation of Emirati law, and would be subject to criminal investigation and prosecution.”

Human Rights Watch said it verified videos showing mercenaries, apparently Colombian, fighting alongside the RSF when it captured the Darfur city of el-Fasher in October in an offensive the U.N.-commissioned experts said bore “ the hallmarks of genocide. ” At least 6,000 people were killed in three days, according to the U.N.

The rights group called for the international community, including the European Union, to press the UAE to end its support to the RSF though suspending military cooperation and arms sales.

“Other countries need to stop accepting the UAE’s blanket denials of support to the RSF which fly in the face of the facts, and should put an end to its impunity for war crimes and crimes against humanity,” Segun said.

The U.S. has imposed sanctions on many people and firms based in Colombia’s capital, Bogota, over allegedly recruiting and deploying Colombian mercenaries to fight with the RSF. But it hasn't addressed reports of the UAE’s alleged support to RSF which it accused of repeatedly carrying out “summary executions, ethnically motivated attacks, sexual and gender-based violence, and torture throughout areas under its control” during the war.

At least 59,000 people have been killed over the three years, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, known as ACLED. The U.S.-based tracking group, however, said its toll was almost certainly an underestimate given the difficulty in reporting.

Spokesperson Terri Hinte told The Associated Press that Rollins died at his home in Woodstock, New York. She cited no specific cause of death, but said he had been largely housebound over the past couple of years because of various physical problems.

From his early days as a teen phenom to his more measured solo work and experimentation with free jazz, Rollins was revered for his improvisational skill. He was one of the last living greats of the bebop era and — along with John Coltrane and Charlie Parker — one of the most influential saxophonists of his time.

Rock fans got a dose of his music with the Rolling Stones’ 1981 album “Tattoo You,” which features’ Rollins’ wistful sax solo on the ballad “Waiting on a Friend," devised after watching Mick Jagger dance.

Despite his enduring success, Rollins was never quite satisfied with his art, occasionally taking lengthy hiatuses from playing and consistently adopting eclectic new styles.

He always referred to himself as “a work in progress,” saying he wasn’t one of those artists who settle into one way of playing.

While his early bebop work was the most popular with his fans, Rollins never looked back, saying he found it “excruciating” to even listen to the flaws in his older recordings.

“I don’t consider myself a musician that has learned as much as I want to learn,” he told The Associated Press in 2007.

Enduring achievements

In the 1990s and 2000s, Rollins released a string of critically acclaimed albums. He maintained a rigorous practice regimen, and continued to tour, into his 80s. Pulmonary fibrosis, a thickening and damaging of the lungs, would eventually force him into retirement. He played his last concert in 2012 and stopped playing altogether in 2014.

While he missed the adoration of crowds, he missed the actual playing more.

“I played a couple of concerts early on where I was out in the open in the afternoon,” He told the New York Times in 2020. “I was able to look up in the sky, and I felt a communication; I felt that I was part of something. Not the crowd. Something bigger.”

His 2001 album “This is What I Do,” earned him a Grammy award for best jazz instrumental album. He won again in 2006 for best jazz instrumental solo for “Why Was I Born?”

“Why Was I Born” was from the album “Without a Song: The 9/11 Concert,” a live recording from a performance in Boston just four days after the Sept. 11 attacks. Rollins, who had been evacuated from his apartment a few blocks from ground zero, had gone ahead with the concert at the urging of his wife and manager, Lucille. She died in 2004.

His survivors include a nephew, Clifton Anderson, and nieces Vallyn Anderson and Gabrielle DeGroat.

Meeting the greats

Rollins had gotten his first major break in his late teens when he was invited to join Thelonious Monk’s band. He soon was jamming with Miles Davis and Bud Powell, who introduced him to the recording world even before he finished high school.

But like many jazz musicians in the late 1940s and early 1950s, Rollins’ rising star almost faded when he became hooked on heroin at the age of 19. As his addiction grew steadily worse, Rollins served two stints in jail — 10 months in 1950 and three months in 1953 — and ultimately found himself living on the streets in Chicago. In 1954, Rollins checked himself into a hospital in Lexington, Ky., to undergo drug treatment.

He left underwent a spiritual awakening as he kicked drugs.

“I began to have a deeper philosophy of what life was about,” he told the AP in 2007. “From that point on is when my consciousness awoke.”

After being discharged, he returned to Chicago and signed on as a member of the Max Roach-Clifford Brown quintet. In 1956 he recorded a solo album, “Saxophone Colossus.” Its stripped-down, hard bop sound announced him as one of jazz’s premier sax players and remained one of his most influential works.

In the following two years Rollins hit upon a different approach, switching to a pianoless trio on three more landmark albums: “Way Out West,” “A Night at the Village Vanguard” and “Freedom Suite.”

Then, at the peak of his popularity, Rollins went into seclusion, spending the next two years practicing alone on a solitary niche above the East River on a Williamsburg Bridge walkway.

“The thing that I am most proud of in my career is that fact that I was able to see beyond being popular and all that stuff," he told the AP in 2007, “and do what my inner self told me to do.”

During his absence, jazz moved away from the fast-paced, tightly woven sound of bebop to the more frenetic and chaotic free jazz. When Rollins chose to return to the scene in 1961, he embraced the new sound — a move that divided his fans. In the mid-’60s, Rollins toured heavily in Europe, switching back and forth between more traditional and avant garde approaches. He contributed original music to the soundtrack of “Alfie,” the 1966 British film that made Michael Caine a star.

It was during a trip to Japan when Rollins discovered Zen Buddhism, prompting another lengthy sabbatical that would last into the early 1970s.

A living legend

When he chose to record again in 1972, he was now regarded as a legend and gained mainstream acceptance. He was granted a Guggenheim fellowship that year, and was inducted into the Downbeat Hall of Fame the next. He appeared on the “Tonight Show” and began playing in concert halls instead of nightclubs.

Theodore Walter Rollins was born into a musical household in Harlem on Sept. 7, 1930. His father, a naval petty officer, played the clarinet, his sister played the piano, and his older brother was a violinist.

When he was eight, his parents insisted he study the piano, but, as he recalled, “it didn’t take.” Instead, he said, he’d rather be outdoors playing baseball. But by age 11, Rollins became fascinated with the saxophone, and persuaded his parents to buy him one — an alto.

He had difficulty affording lessons and was largely self-taught, but Rollins quickly became an all-star, switching to tenor sax and playing the clubs at night.

He leaves behind many unreleased recordings, and said he didn't plan to leave behind instructions for what to do with them.

“After I get out of this planet I’m not going to have any say about what’s going on, so I’m not worried about that,” he told the New York Times in 2020. “And, boy, I agonize over my music; I won’t have to agonize about it anymore. Thank God.”

The next big storm chance arrives late Tuesday night into Wednesday, bringing a higher chance for showers and thunderstorms across the region. Some storms could produce locally heavy rainfall, and we’ll continue monitoring the potential for isolated flooding concerns where repeated downpours develop.

Tonight’s Forecast:

Only a few isolated showers or thunderstorms remain possible through the evening, mainly before midnight, but most areas should stay dry.

Skies will become partly cloudy overnight with temperatures falling into the low 70s.

You can check radar here if you’re headed out tonight:

Tuesday’s Forecast:

Tuesday brings another mostly dry day for much of Southeast Texas. We’ll see a mix of sun and clouds with afternoon temperatures climbing into the upper 80s.

A few isolated showers and thunderstorms could develop during the afternoon, but rain coverage should remain limited through most of the day.

Clouds begin increasing Tuesday night as our next weather system approaches from the west. Rain chances will begin increasing late Tuesday night, especially after midnight.

Wednesday’s Wet Forecast:

Wednesday is shaping up to be the most active weather day of the week.

A disturbance moving into Southeast Texas will bring a widespread chance for showers and thunderstorms throughout the day. Deep tropical moisture will also be returning, allowing some storms to produce heavy downpours.

It’s still too early to pin down exact locations or timing, but right now it looks to be in the morning. We’ll be watching for the potential for localized flooding and a few stronger storms as we move closer.

Current forecast rainfall amounts generally range between 1 and 2 inches for many areas, although some isolated spots could pick up locally higher totals where storms repeatedly move over the same location.

10-Day Forecast:

Rain chances should begin decreasing Wednesday night into Thursday, with a less active pattern expected for the second half of the week. It will continue to feel like summertime through the weekend with hot afternoons and pop-up thunderstorm chances.

Have you captured a dramatic rain photo or video? Share your weather moments with the KPRC 2 community through Click2Pins at Click2Houston.com/pins.

Sen. John Cornyn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton had no public campaign events scheduled for the final day of their more-than-yearlong quest for the GOP nomination. Instead, their fight for Tuesday's runoff continued as it has for months — intense and unabated — through advertising that has topped $109 million, heavily from Cornyn's side.

Cornyn hosted an annual, non-campaign event in San Antonio to recognize high school graduates attending the nation's service academies. The senator seeking a fifth term held his last public campaign event in Corpus Christi on Friday, ahead of Tuesday’s voting.

Paxton headlined his last events Thursday in the Austin area and in San Antonio, content to let his campaign and a super PAC carry his primary message: that President Donald Trump endorsed him on May 19.

Trump's announcement and accompanying dismissal of Cornyn, who has had an awkward public relationship with the president, came on the second day of early voting, which ended Friday.

Though the candidates' campaigns were quiet over the weekend, Trump reaffirmed his support for Paxton on Sunday, and disparaged Cornyn as insufficiently loyal to him.

Paxton, Trump posted on social media, “was also very loyal to your favorite President, ME,” while calling Cornyn “VERY disloyal to me.” It was Trump's strongest rebuke of Cornyn, who had dismissed his 2024 comeback chances, and echoed the president's reproach of Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy before he lost in the May 15 GOP Senate primary.

After Trump's jabs, Cornyn still leaned into his support for the president just before Monday's event. The senator said that 99.3% of his votes aligned with Trump, that he “wants him to be successful” and then he referenced Trump’s previous comments “where he called me a good man and a friend.”

As for endorsing his opponent, “obviously the president is entitled to make his pick," he said, but “Texans are a pretty independent breed and people will be making their own choices.”

Following Trump's call for retribution, Republican voters in Indiana and Kentucky have also chosen GOP primary challengers over incumbent GOP officeholders who have crossed the president or opposed his agenda.

For a contest that is expected to draw a fraction of Texas’ 18.7 million voters, the two candidates’ campaigns and supporting groups were continuing to bombard all Texans with advertising, though more by Cornyn's backers than Paxton's.

"It’s just a slug fest, with the campaigns and third-party groups slugging it out,” said Wayne Hamilton, a former executive director of the Texas Republican Party.

The combination of Cornyn's campaign and supporting super PACs has far outspent pro-Paxton groups over the past year, by almost nine-to-one. But the gap has shrunk as the runoff has approached. In the final week of the campaign, the combination of pro-Cornyn ad spending was less than twice that of Paxton's group.

Cornyn's network continued to air spots attacking Paxton over ethical and personal questions that have shadowed him with little effect throughout the campaign. The senator's consequent argument to voters is that Paxton would struggle in the general election and threaten to flip the seat blue.

“Paxton’s flaws and the baggage he brings to the general election is going to be exploited to the fullest by James Talarico,” he told reporters, before heading into Monday's ceremony and giving a speech devoid of campaign politics to the assembled graduates.

Cornyn’s campaign also had reprised an ad noting his tendency to vote in the Senate for Trump’s priorities.

Paxton's campaign and groups supporting him transitioned midweek to all ads noting Trump's endorsement, though Paxton's primary super PAC, Lone Star Liberty Fund, began airing one over the weekend aimed at raising questions about state Rep. James Talarico, the Texas Democratic Senate nominee.

Thousands of flags lined the grounds, each representing a veteran, and the family left behind to carry their memory forward.

SEE ALSO: Local volunteer groups host flag planting at Houston National Cemetery ahead of Memorial Day

For Kristi Capuano, the visit was doubly personal. Her father’s birthday falls on Memorial Day, making the annual trip to the cemetery both a holiday observance and a family celebration.

“We try to come out for his birthday, and for Memorial Day, which happens to be on the same day, so 2 in 1,” Capuano said.

She remembered her father not just for his service, but for the humor he passed down through generations.

“We get the humor from him, try to pass that onto my kids. They think I’m goofy at times,” she said.

Capuano also reflected on the weight that each flag on the grounds carries.

“Every single one of these flags is a story,” she said.

Bruce Wright came to honor both his mother and his father, a Korean War veteran, buried at the cemetery.

“This is my mom and dad buried here. My father was a veteran, he served in the Korean War,” Wright said.

For Wright, the true meaning of Memorial Day is something he worries is slipping away in modern culture.

“In my personal opinion, I think a lot of it’s lost in the celebration. You know? People think of barbecue, or days off from work and everything like that. But, this is it. This is my memorial celebration right here, thinking about my father and all the veterans that I passed,” he said.

Wright didn’t confuse why that matters.

“We have the freedoms we have, because of the people that are here,” he said. “This is important. This can’t be forgotten.”