AP-Newswatch

Will the attacks on Walz’s military service stick like they did to Kerry 20 years ago?

WASHINGTON (AP) — To some Democratic Party strategists, last week felt like déjà vu. Donald Trump’s presidential campaign was aggressively questioning aspects of the Democratic vice presidential nominee’s military service — attacks that were reminiscent of charges leveled two decades earlier on Sen. John Kerry shortly after he became the party’s presidential pick. The comparisons end there, however. The onslaught on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and that on Kerry actually highlight how much campaigning has evolved over 20 years and the media environment has changed — in ways that appear to diminish the effectiveness of assailing such aspects of a candidate’s biography. “It is a very different world,” said Tad Devine, a senior adviser to Kerry’s 2004 campaign.

Trump and Musk talk about assassination attempt and deportations during glitchy chat on X

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump recounted his assassination attempt in vivid detail and promised the largest deportation in U.S. history during a high-profile return to the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. The conversation with X’s owner Elon Musk was plagued by technical glitches Monday night. The rare public conversation, which was overwhelmingly friendly, revealed little new about Trump’s plans for a second term. Musk, a former Trump critic, said the Republican nominee’s toughness, as demonstrated by his reaction to last month’s shooting, was critical for national security. Trump said, “I need an Elon Musk — I need somebody that has a lot of strength and courage and smarts.”

How X owner Elon Musk uses his social platform to amplify his right-wing views

As X’s owner and most followed user, Elon Musk has increasingly used it as a microphone to amplify his political views and those of the often right-wing figures he’s aligned with. There are few modern parallels to his antics, but then again there are few modern parallels to Elon Musk himself. As with his fixation on a “population collapse,” threatening to wipe out humanity and his warnings about artificial intelligence doing the same, Musk has framed the free speech argument as another existential crisis looming over the the world. And he is going to try his best to save it.

Russia says it thwarted a Ukrainian charge to expand its incursion. Kyiv says it won’t occupy land

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The Russian Defense Ministry says its forces have checked an effort by Kyiv’s troops to expand a stunning weeklong incursion into Russia’s Kursk region. A Ukrainian Foreign Ministry official said Tuesday that Kyiv has no intention of occupying Russian territory in the operation that has been shrouded in secrecy. The Russian Defense Ministry said army units, fresh reserves, army aircraft, drone teams and artillery forces stopped Ukrainian armored mobile groups from moving deeper into Russia. A Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman said the cross-border operation was aimed at protecting Ukrainian land from long-range strikes launched from Kursk. He said that Ukraine isn’t interested in taking the territory of the Kursk region.

A year later, sprawling Georgia election interference case against Donald Trump has stalled

ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia grand jury in August 2023 accused Donald Trump and others of illegally trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election in the state. A year later, the case is largely stalled with no chance of going to trial before the end of this year. When Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis secured the indictment a year ago Thursday, it was the fourth and most sprawling of the criminal cases against the former president. Willis’ team notched some early victories in the case, but explosive allegations raised by one of Trump’s co-defendants early this year have caused a delay and could even derail the prosecution.

Officer faces murder charge in shooting of pregnant Black woman who was accused of shoplifting

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio police officer was indicted Tuesday on charges including murder in the shooting of Ta’Kiya Young. The Black mother was 21 and pregnant when she was killed by police in a grocery store parking lot last August. A Franklin County grand jury indicted Blendon Township police officer Connor Grubb on charges of murder, involuntary manslaughter and felonious assault. Young was suspected of shoplifting when another officer ordered her out of her car. Instead, she rolled toward Grubb, who fired a single bullet through her windshield into her chest. The daughter she was expecting three months later also died. A police union leader calls the indictment deeply disappointing.

Tropical Storm Ernesto drenches northeast Caribbean and takes aim at Puerto Rico

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Tropical Storm Ernesto is battering the northeast Caribbean as it takes aim at Puerto Rico, where officials have shuttered schools and government agencies. The storm was located about 300 miles east-southeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Tuesday morning. It had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph and was moving west at 18 mph. Forecasters have warned of widespread flooding and possible landslides. Tropical storm warnings were in place for Puerto Rico, Vieques, Culebra, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, St. Kitts, Nevis, Montserrat, Antigua, Barbuda, Anguilla, Guadeloupe, St. Martin, St. Barts and St. Maarten.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom nudges school districts to restrict student cellphone use

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom is sending letters to school districts, urging them to restrict smartphone use on campuses. In South Carolina, education officials are expected to approve guidelines to restrict student phone use. The efforts are part of a broader push by states across the country to address digital distractions in the classroom and the impacts of social media on the mental health of teens. Cellphone bans are already in place at many schools but are not always enforced. The issue has garnered renewed attention after the U.S. surgeon general called on Congress to require warning labels on social media platforms that address mental health risks for young people.

Older Americans prepare themselves for a world altered by artificial intelligence

NORTHFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Older adults are grappling with how artificial intelligence is changing the world. The technology offers them significant benefits, from the ability to curb loneliness to making it easier to get to medical appointments. But it also has drawbacks that could be particularly dangerous for older people. A series of studies have found that senior citizens are more susceptible to both scams perpetrated using artificial intelligence and believing the types of misinformation that are being supercharged by the technology. To learn more about how AI works, seniors are taking classes to figure out how AI is transforming their world — and the threat it poses.