AP News Digest 3 a.m.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.All times EDT. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org
——————————
TOP STORIES
——————————
CONGRESS-INFRASTRUCTURE — The Senate is on track to give final approval to the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan, lifting the first phase of President Joe Biden’s rebuilding agenda to passage. All told, some 70 senators appear poised to vote for the package, a potentially robust tally of lawmakers eager to tap the new spending for their states and to show voters back home they can deliver. By Congressional Correspondent Lisa Mascaro. SENT: 890 words, photos, video. UPCOMING: 990 words after vote, expected around 11 a.m.
GUATEMALA-LEAVING NUEVO QUEJÁ — The 1,000 survivors of a mudslide that buried a Guatemalan town are living in squalor, in a makeshift settlement that offers only hunger and death. To many, it seems emigration to the United States is the only way out. Their shacks are partly constructed with wooden planks made from pine trees the villagers cut down, adding to the deforestation that, coupled with the climate change-fueled storm, led to the disaster. Children suffer from malnutrition; there is not enough farmland to till, and not enough food. By Alberto Arce and Rodrigo Abd. SENT: 2,320 words, photos.
ISRAEL-TRAUMATIZED TOWN — No place in Israel has been hit harder by Palestinian rocket fire than Sderot, a working-class town just three miles from the Gaza border. Although Sderot is enjoying an economic boom and revival, a generation of children and parents are suffering from the traumatic effects of two decades of rocket fire. By Josef Federman. SENT: 1,090 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-INFLUENCERS-VACCINES — Colorado is part of a growing U.S. state- and city-based movement that’s paying local social media influencers to try and reach the most vaccine-hesitant people at a neighborhood level. The state’s #PowertheComeback is especially tailored to Latino, Black, Native American, Asian and other local communities of people of color who’ve historically been underserved when it comes to health care and are the focus of health authorities trying to raise vaccination rates. By James Anderson. SENT: 1,190 words, photos.
CALIFORNIA-DRY-MENDOCINO — Tourists flock to the picturesque coastal town of Mendocino for its Victorian homes and cliff trails, but visitors this summer will also find public portable toilets and dozens of signs on picket fences announcing the quaint Northern California hamlet: “Severe Drought Please conserve water.” By Olga R. Rodriguez and Haven Daily. SENT: 960 words, photos.
DUBAI-FILIPINA COMEDIAN — A Filipina comedian’s rapid-fire punchlines in Dubai offer a glimpse at the life, sly triumphs and slights faced by her 2.2 million compatriots who care for children, wait tables and otherwise power economies across the wider Middle East. By Jon Gambrell. SENT: 760 words, photos.
—————————————-—————————————-
WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
—————————————-—————————————-
EPSTEIN-PRINCE ANDREW LAWSUIT — Jeffrey Epstein accuser sues Prince Andrew, citing sex assault when she was 17. SENT: 730 words, photos.
TROPICAL WEATHER-ATLANTIC — Tropical storm warnings issued for Caribbean islands. SENT: 280 words.
DRAFTKINGS-GOLDEN-NUGGET-ONLINE — Betting website DraftKings buys Golden Nugget Online. SENT: 190 words.
———————————
MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
—-——————————
VIRUS OUTBREAK -BANGLADESH ROHINGYA VACCINATION — The Bangladesh government plans to begin vaccination of Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar in a walk-in mass inoculation drive. SENT: 510 words, photo. With VIRUS-OUTBREAK-THE-LATEST.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-MEXICO-US — Mexico’s president says that he discussed the reopening of the U.S.-Mexico border, immigration and cooperation in facing the COVID-19 pandemic in a call with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris. SENT: 240 words, photos.
—————————————-
WASHINGTON/POLITICS
—————————————-
CONGRESS-BUDGET — Senate Democrats unwrap a budget resolution envisioning a $3.5 trillion, 10-year cascade of federal resources aiming historic sums at family support, health and education programs and mounting an aggressive drive to heal the quickly changing climate. SENT: 1,090 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-MILITARY VACCINE — Members of the U.S. military would be required to have the COVID-19 vaccine beginning next month under a plan announced by the Pentagon and endorsed by Biden. SENT: 1,260 words, photos.
—————————————-
INTERNATIONAL
—————————————-
CHINA CANADA — A Chinese court has rejected an appeal by a Canadian whose sentence in a drug case was increased to death after an executive of tech giant Huawei was detained in Vancouver. SENT: 540 words, photos.
KOREAS-TENSIONS — The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ripped South Korea for proceeding with military exercises with the United States she claimed are an invasion rehearsal and warned that the North will work faster to strengthen its preemptive strike capabilities. SENT: 870 words, photos.
CHINA-RUSSIA — Chinese and Russian military forces are engaged in joint exercises in northwestern China as ties grow between the two autocratic states amid uncertainty over instability in Afghanistan. SENT: 440 words, photo.
——————
NATIONAL
——————
WESTERN WILDFIRES — California’s largest wildfire in recorded history is continuing its run through forestlands as fire crews try to protect rural communities from flames that have destroyed hundreds of homes. SENT: 700 words, photos, video.
ROBERT DURST-MURDER TRIAL — A frail-looking Robert Durst has denied killing his best friend two decades ago as he takes the stand at his Los Angeles murder trial. By Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton. SENT: 590 words, photos.
POLICE-CHOKEHOLD DEATH — The family of a man who died after a police officer in Antioch, California, knelt on his neck for nearly five minutes during a mental health crisis has filed a federal lawsuit against the police department and four officers who were involved. SENT: 640 words, photos.
______________
BUSINESS/ECONOMY
_______________
FINANCIAL-MARKETS — Asian shares were mixed as optimism about a gradual economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic were tempered by worries over the variants spreading rapidly in some nations. By Business Writer Yuri Kageyama. SENT: 780 words, photos.
———————
SPORTS
———————
TIM DAHLBERG-VACCINE TROUBLE — It’s time for players, some of them high-profile NFL quarterbacks, to decide: Get vaccinated or take their ball and go home. By Sports Columnist Tim Dahlberg. SENT: 810 words, photos.
—————————————-
HOW TO REACH US
—————————————-
At the Nerve Center, Jerome Minerva can be reached at 800-845-8450 (ext. 1600). For photos, Wally Santana (ext. 1900). For graphics and interactives, ext. 7636. Expanded AP content can be obtained from http://newsroom.ap.org. For access to AP Newsroom and other technical issues, contact apcustomersupport@ap.org or call 844-777-2006.