AP-Newswatch

Trump’s perceived enemies worry about losing pensions, getting audited and paying steep legal bills

WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s not just criminal prosecutions that worry those who have crossed President Donald Trump. There are more prosaic kinds of retaliation: having difficulty renewing passports, getting audited by the IRS and losing federal pensions. For the many people who have made an enemy of Trump, his return to the presidency this week sparked anxiety. Some are concerned they could go bankrupt trying to clear their names. Less than 24 hours after taking office, Trump fired an opening shot, ordering the revocation of security clearances held by dozens of former intelligence officers who he believes sided with Joe Biden in the 2020 campaign or have turned against him.

White House sidelines 160 National Security Council staffers, aligning the team with Trump’s agenda

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s national security adviser has sidelined about 160 National Security Council staffers, telling them to work from home while the administration reviews staffing and tries to align it with Trump’s agenda. That’s according to administration officials who talked to The Associated Press. The career government employees were summoned Wednesday to a staff call and were told they’ll be expected to be available to NSC senior directors but won’t need to report to the White House. Trump national security adviser Mike Waltz has signaled he’s looking to move holdover civil servants from President Joe Biden’s administration back to their home agencies to ensure the council is staffed by those who support Trump’s agenda.

Winter storm spreads across the Deep South, creating icy danger and snowy fun

A major winter storm that slammed Texas and the northern Gulf Coast is spreading heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain across parts of the Florida panhandle and eastern Carolinas. Warning areas included big cities like Jacksonville, where snow, sleet and ice could accumulate Wednesday. Blowing and drifting snow was expected in eastern North Carolina with near-blizzard conditions in the state’s Outer Banks, where up to 8 inches of snow was predicted to fall. The National Weather Service says New Orleans set a record for snowfall on Tuesday, with nearly 10 inches. A blast of Arctic air has also plunged much of the Midwest and the eastern U.S. into a deep freeze.

To secure Gaza ceasefire, dealmakers overcame enemies’ deep distrust

The story of how Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza stretches back over more than a year. The timing and unlikely partners who coalesced to push negotiations across the line help explain why it finally happened. The outgoing and incoming occupants of the White House simultaneously pushed to free dozens of hostages in Gaza and bring an end to a conflict that began with the killing of about 1,200 in Israel and that Palestinian health officials say has killed more than 47,000 in Gaza. In tiny but wealthy Qatar, the talks had a steward that positions itself as a go-between in a region on edge. And Egypt, eager to ease instability along its border, worked to keep the talks on track.

A 17-year-old shooter killed a female student and himself at a Nashville high school, police say

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Police say a 17-year-old shooter killed himself after fatally wounding a female student in a shooting at a Nashville high school. MNPD spokesperson Don Aaron said during a news conference Wednesday that two others who were injured in the shooting at Antioch High School are being treated at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Aaron says there were two school resource officers in the building when the shooting happened. He says they were not in the immediate vicinity of the cafeteria where the shooting took place, and by the time they got down there, the shooting had stopped and the shooter had shot himself.

Afghans who fled Taliban rule urge Trump to lift refugee program suspension

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Afghans who fled after the Taliban seized power have appealed to President Donald Trump to exempt them from an order suspending the relocation of refugees to the United States, some saying they risked their lives to support U.S. troops. An estimated 15,000 Afghans are waiting in Pakistan to be approved for resettlement in the U.S. via an American government program. It was set up to help Afghans at risk under the Taliban because of their work with the U.S. government, media, aid agencies and rights groups. Trump’s administration announced the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program would be suspended from Jan. 27 for at least three months.

Justice Department orders prosecutors to probe local efforts to obstruct immigration enforcement

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department is directing its federal prosecutors to investigate for potential criminal charges against any state or local officials who stand in the way of beefed-up enforcement of immigration laws under the Trump administration. That’s according to a memo to the entire workforce obtained by The Associated Press on Wednesday. The memo was written by Emil Bove, the acting deputy attorney general. The memo says the department will return to the principle of charging defendants with the most serious crime it can prove, a staple position of Republican-led departments meant to remove a prosecutor’s discretion to charge a lower-level offense. The three-page memo signals an immediate and sharp turnabout in priorities from President Joe Biden’s administration.

Former El Salvador President Mauricio Funes dies in exile in Nicaragua at age 65

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — Former El Salvador President Mauricio Funes, who spent the final years of his life in Nicaragua to avoid various criminal sentences, died late Tuesday. He was 65. Nicaragua’s Health Ministry said in a statement that Funes had died of a serious chronic illness. Funes governed El Salvador from 2009 to 2014. He lived his final nine years under the protection of Nicaragua President Daniel Ortega, whose government had given him citizenship, allowing him to avoid extradition. Funes had pending sentences in El Salvador for corruption and making deals with the country’s powerful street gangs that amounted to more than 26 years, but he never set foot in prison.

Murdoch’s UK tabloids apologize to Prince Harry and admit intruding on the late Princess Diana

LONDON (AP) — Prince Harry claimed a monumental victory Wednesday as Rupert Murdoch’s U.K. tabloids made an unprecedented apology for intruding in his life over decades and agreed to pay substantial damages to settle his privacy invasion lawsuit. Harry’s lawyer David Sherborne read a statement in court Wednesday saying News Group offers a “full and unequivocal apology” for years of unlawful intrusion. It was the first time News Group Newspapers has acknowledged wrongdoing at The Sun, a paper once known for featuring topless women on Page 3. The statement even went beyond the scope of the lawsuit to acknowledge intruding on the life of his mother, the late Princess Diana.

Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn agrees to terms with Jets to be head coach, AP source says

A person with knowledge of the hiring says the New York Jets and Aaron Glenn have agreed to terms on making the Detroit Lions defensive coordinator their head coach. Glenn oversaw the Lions’ defense the past four years and beat out 15 other candidates for the job as the Jets went through an extensive search to find their next coach. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team had not yet announced the hiring. ESPN first reported that Glenn agreed to coach the Jets.