AP News Digest 7 a.m.
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ONLY ON AP
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INVESTIGATION-TRACKED-GLOBAL SURVEILLANCE — An Associated Press investigation found that authorities have used data gathered to help stop coronavirus’ spread to halt travel for activists and ordinary people, harass marginalized communities and link people’s health information to other surveillance and law enforcement tools. In some cases, data was shared with spy agencies. The issue has taken on fresh urgency as China’s ultra-strict zero-COVID policies ignited the sharpest and largest public rebuke of the country’s authoritarian leadership since the pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989, now three years into the pandemic. By Garance Burke, Josef Federman, Huizhong Wu, Krutika Pathi and Rod Mcguirk. SENT: 3,900 words, photos, video. With an abridged version. WITH: TRACKED-GLOBAL-SURVEILLANCE- CHINA (sent); TRACKED-GLOBAL-SURVEILLANCE-INDIA (sent); TRACKED-GLOBAL-SURVEILLANCE- AUSTRALIA (sent).
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TOP STORIES
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US MIGRATION-ASYLUM BAN — Suspense mounted at the U.S. border with Mexico about the future of restrictions on asylum seekers as the Supreme Court temporarily blocked a lower-court order to stop turning back migrants based rules set in place at the outset of the coronavirus pandemic. Chief Justice John Roberts has granted a stay pending further order and asked the administration of President Joe Biden to respond Tuesday. Conservative-leaning states won a reprieve with Monday’s order as they push to keep limits on asylum seekers, warning of an “unprecedented calamity” at the southern border. El Paso is rushing to expand its ability accommodate more migrants with more shelters as the Red Cross brings in 10,000 cots. By Morgan Lee, Giovanna Dell’Orto and Rebecca Santana. SENT: 750 words, photos.
CAPITOL RIOT-INVESTIGATION — The House Jan. 6 committee has urged the Justice Department to bring criminal charges against former President Donald Trump for the violent 2021 Capitol insurrection, calling for accountability for the former president and “a time of reflection and reckoning.” By Mary Claire Jalonick, Eric Tucker and Farnoush Amiri. SENT: 1,310 words, photos, video. With CAPITOL-RIOT-INVESTIGATION-TAKEAWAYS (sent); CAPITOL-RIOT-INVESTIGATION-GOP-LAWMAKERS (sent); CAPITOL RIOT-TRUMP REFERRAL (sent).
RUSSIA UKRAINE WAR-ERASING RUSSIA — Ukraine is accelerating efforts to erase the vestiges of centuries of Soviet and Russian influence from the public space by pulling down monuments and renaming hundreds of streets to honor home-grown artists, poets, military chiefs, and independence leaders, even heroes of this year’s war. It is part punishment for crimes meted out by Russia, and part affirmation of a long-overlooked national identity. By Jamey Keaten. SENT: 750 words, photos. WITH: RUSSIA UKRANE WAR - Ukraine's president visits embattled city of Bakhmut in the east. (sent).
MUSK-TRUMP — Donald Trump and Elon Musk share a reputation as disrupters. Now, they’re grappling with tribulations that may be unlike anything thrown at them before. Trump and Musk are known for their egos and have used Twitter to showcase their eccentricities. This week they face a reckoning, brought on in part by their relationship to the social media site now owned by Musk, the Tesla CEO. By Calvin Woodward. SENT: 950 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-CHINA — TSeveral local governments in China have encouraged people with mild cases of COVID-19 to go to work this week. That’s another sign of the difficulty the country faces as its rollback of virus-containment measures sets off a wave of infections — and a growing number of deaths. Health authorities reported Tuesday that five people died in the latest 24-hour period. That is fueling concern that the toll could rise sharply after the lifting of most “zero-COVID” restrictions. The official toll likely understates the actual number, and it’s unclear how the unleashing of the virus will play out in China and whether the health care system can handle a surge in cases nationwide.. By Dake Kang and Ken Moritsugu. SENT: 800 words, photos.
WCUP-ARGENTINA-PLAYERS RETURN — Thousands of fans lined the street and greeted the arrival of Argentinian team overnight after they brought home the first World Cup since 1986 in what’s the start of a day of celebrations in the capital. By Daniel Politi. SENT: 700 words, photos, video.
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TRENDING
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FTX-BANKMAN-FRIED-ARRESTED — Sam Bankman-Fried may be ready to come to the U.S. to face criminal charges related to the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX following a chaotic court appearance in the Bahamas. A lawyer for Bankman-Fried was quoted as saying that the disgraced FTX founder has agreed to be extradited to the United States. SENT: 725 words, photos.
CHILDREN’S MEDICINE-SHORTAGE – Caring for sick children has become extra stressful recently for many U.S. parents due to shortages of Children’s Tylenol and other medicines. Doctors and other experts say the problem could persist through the winter cold-and-flu season but should not last as long as other recent shortages of baby formula or prescription drugs. SENT: 696 words, photos.
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NATIONAL
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SEXUAL MISCONDUCT-HARVEY WEINSTEIN — Jurors in Los Angeles have found Harvey Weinstein guilty of rape at his second sexual misconduct trial. The verdict Monday following a monthlong trial represents a victory for the #MeToo movement five years after Weinstein became its central figure. Lacking forensic evidence or eyewitness accounts of the assaults Weinstein’s accusers said happened from 2005 to 2013, the California case hinged heavily on the stories and credibility of the four women at the center of the charges. By Andrew Dalton. SENT: 1,100 words, photos.
HAWAII FLIGHT TURBULENCE — A passenger on board a Hawaiian Airlines flight hit by severe turbulence over the weekend says it was the most terrifying experience in her life. The Phoenix-Honolulu flight encountered severe turbulence shortly before landing, sending some unrestrained people and objects flying about the cabin and seriously injuring 11. SENT: 948 words, photos.
CLASSIC-VEHICLES-ELECTRIC-CONVERSIONS — A small but expanding group of tinkerers, racers, engineers and entrepreneurs across the country are converting vintage cars and trucks into greener electric vehicles, in part due to recent advances in battery technology. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.
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WASHINGTON
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ELECTION 2024-TRUMP — Donald Trump is facing a new legal threat, but there is little sign that the Republican Party is defending the former president with the same intensity and urgency that defined his previous legal clashes. SENT: 1,200 words, photos.
TRUMP-TAXES — The Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee is expected to vote Tuesday on whether to publicly release years of former President Donald Trump’s tax returns. The meeting could be the last opportunity for Democrats to disclose information about Trump’s filings as Republicans prepare to take control of Congress next year. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.
CONGRESS-BUDGET — Congressional leaders have unveiled a $1.7 trillion spending package early Tuesday that includes another large round of aid to Ukraine, a nearly 10% boost in defense spending and roughly $40 billon to assist communities across the country recovering from drought, hurricanes and other natural disasters. Lawmakers are working to stuff in as many priorities as they can into what is likely to be the last major bill of the current Congress. SENT: 700 words, photos.
ELECTIONS 2022-ARIZONA — A judge has dismissed part of a lawsuit filed by the defeated Republican candidate for Arizona governor, Kari Lake, but will allow her to call witnesses in an attempt to prove that she lost because of misconduct by election officials. SENT: 500 words, photos.
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INTERNATIONAL
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KOREAS-TENSIONS — The United States flew nuclear-capable bombers and advanced stealth jets near the Korean Peninsula for joint drills with South Korean warplane after the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un derided doubts about the North’s military and threatened a full-range intercontinental ballistic missile test. SENT: 700 words, photos.
CHINA-RUSSIA-DRILLS — China says Chinese-Russian naval drills beginning Wednesday aim to “further deepen” cooperation between the sides whose unofficial anti-Western alliance has gained strength since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
THE GLACIER HUNTER — As Earth’s glaciers melt at an alarming rate, aviator and photographer Garrett Fisher is on a mission to document them all before they disappear. By Nat Castañeda. SENT: 1,700 words, photos, video.
GERMANY-NAZI TRIAL — A German court on Tuesday convicted a 97-year-old woman of being an accessory to murder for her role as a secretary to the SS commander of the Nazis’ Stutthof concentration camp during World War II. SENT: 500 words, photos.
PERU-POLITICAL CRISIS — Peru’s Congress will vote for the second time in a week to hold early elections after days of violent disturbances triggered by the ousting and imprisonment of former President Pedro Castillo.
NKOREA-JAPAN — North Korea is threatening to take “bold and decisive military steps” against Japan as it slammed Tokyo’s adoption of a national security strategy as an attempt to turn the country into an aggressive military power. SENT: 400 words, photos.
GERMANY-HOLOCAUST-HANUKKAH — Several Holocaust survivors are marking the third day of Hanukkah together with a virtual ceremony. Their observance comes as Jews worldwide worry about a sharp increase in antisemitism in Europe, the U.S. and elsewhere. SENT: 600 words, photos.
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BUSINESS
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TWITTER-MUSK — Millions of Twitter users asked Elon Musk to step down as the head of Twitter in a poll the billionaire created and promised to abide by. But Monday afternoon there was no word on whether Musk would step aside. SENT: 1020 words, photos. WITH TWITTER-MUSK-TIMELINE (sent).
FINANCIAL MARKETS — Global stock markets and Wall Street futures are lower amid gloom about weaker global economic growth as central banks raise interest rates to cool inflation. London and Frankfurt opened lower. SENT: 650 words, photos.
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SPORTS
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FBN--RAMS-PACKERS — THE injury-riddled defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams visit the Green Bay Packers in a matchup of two of the NFL’s most disappointing teams. Baker Mayfield makes his first start for Los Angeles a week after rallying the Rams to a 17-16 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. SENT: 810 words, photos. The game starts at 7:15 p.m. Central.
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