AP-Newswatch

Supreme Court restores Trump to ballot, rejecting state attempts to ban him over Capitol attack

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump says the Supreme Court opinion unanimously restoring him to 2024 presidential primary ballots is a “BIG WIN” for America. The court Monday rejected state attempts to hold the Republican former president accountable for the Capitol riot. The justices ruled a day before the Super Tuesday primaries that states cannot invoke a post-Civil War constitutional provision to keep presidential candidates from appearing on ballots. The court wrote in an unsigned opinion that that power resides with Congress. The court’s move ends efforts in Colorado, Illinois, Maine and elsewhere to kick Trump off the ballot because of his attempts to undo his loss in the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden.

Takeaways from Trump’s Supreme Court win on procedural grounds: His legal peril is just starting

DENVER (AP) — Former President Donald Trump scored a clear win at the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, which unanimously ruled that states don’t have the ability to bar him — or any other federal candidates — from the ballot under a rarely-used constitutional provision that prohibits those who “engaged in insurrection” from holding office. The decision shuts down a push in dozens of states to end Trump’s candidacy through a clause in the 14th Amendment, written to prevent former Confederates from serving in government after the Civil War. But it may open the door to further electoral uncertainty, exposing more state officials to disqualification under the provision and setting up a constitutional showdown should Trump win the election.

Settlement in Wisconsin fake elector case offers new details on the strategy by Trump lawyers

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Two attorneys for then-President Donald Trump orchestrated a plan for fake electors to file paperwork falsely saying he won Wisconsin in a strategy to overturn Joe Biden’s 2020 victory there. That’s according to a lawsuit settlement reached Monday that makes public months of texts and emails. Kenneth Chesebro and Jim Troupis turned over more than 1,400 pages of documents, emails, texts and other materials that offer a detailed account of the scheme’s origins in Wisconsin. The communications show how they, with coordination from Trump campaign officials, replicated the strategy in six other states including Georgia. The agreements settle a civil lawsuit brought by Democrats in 2022 against the two attorneys and 10 Republicans in Wisconsin who posed as fake electors.

A 4-year-old Gaza boy lost his arm – and his family. Half a world away, he’s getting a second chance

NEW YORK (AP) — A severely wounded 4-year-old boy from Gaza has come to the U.S. for medical care and a prosthetic arm after an Israeli airstrike killed his family. Omar Abu Kuwaik’s surviving relatives and a chain of strangers have made courageous, loving sacrifices to help the traumatized child get aid. Two U.S.-based charities facilitated his exit from Gaza and his treatment. And he’ll come back each year for a new prosthetic as his body grows. Yet no one knows what future awaits Omar. For the aunt who accompanied him to America, it was a painful choice leaving her own family behind in Gaza. She knows she might never see them again, and feels she has no home to return to.

Harris will meet with Israeli Cabinet official who is in Washington despite Netanyahu’s rebuke

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris is planning to host a member of Israel’s wartime Cabinet who is visiting Washington in defiance of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Benny Gantz, a centrist political rival of Netanyahu, is sitting down with several senior Biden administration officials this week. Among them are Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser. President Joe Biden is at Camp David, the presidential retreat just outside Washington, until Tuesday. An official from Netanyahu’s far-right Likud party said Gantz did not have approval from the prime minister for his meetings in Washington.

Abortion is enshrined as a constitutional right in France after lawmakers approve an amendment

PARIS (AP) — French lawmakers have approved a bill that will enshrine a woman’s right to an abortion in the French Constitution during a historic joint session of parliament in at the Palace of Versailles. There were jubilant scenes of celebrations all over France as women’s rights activists hailed the measure. It was promised by President Emmanuel Macron following a rollback of abortion rights in court rulings in the United States. Both houses of French parliament, the National Assembly and the Senate, approved the measure by an overwhelming 780 votes to 72. It says a woman’s right to an abortion is guaranteed.

Former Trump CFO Weisselberg admits to perjury and will not have to testify in hush-money trial

NEW YORK (AP) — The former chief financial officer of Donald Trump’s company has pleaded guilty in New York to lying under oath during his testimony in the ex-president’s civil fraud case. Allen Weisselberg will not have to testify at Trump’s hush-money criminal trial as part of his plea Monday. The 76-year-old Weisselberg will be sentenced to five months in jail in his second stint behind bars after an unrelated tax fraud case. His plea to perjury is further evidence that he is willing to again spend a chunk of his golden years in jail rather than testify truthfully or flip on his old boss.

More mountain snow expected even as powerful blizzard moves out of Northern California

TRUCKEE, Calif. (AP) — A powerful blizzard that closed highways and ski resorts has moved through the Sierra Nevada but forecasters warn that more snow is on the way for Northern California mountains. A stretch of Interstate 80 from west of Lake Tahoe to the Nevada state line finally reopened to all but big rigs late Monday morning after a lengthy closure. Blizzard warnings have expired but a new system is expected to bring periods of moderate mountain snow. Several ski resorts were closed all weekend. Power has been restored to thousands who lost service but some outages continue.

Massachusetts Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira pleads guilty to leaking military secrets

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts Air National Guard member Jack Teixeira has pleaded guilty in federal court to leaking highly classified military documents about Russia’s war in Ukraine and other national security secrets. Teixeira pleaded guilty in Boston’s federal court on Monday to six counts of willful retention and transmission of national defense information under the Espionage Act. The plea by the 22-year-old Teixeira comes nearly a year after he was arrested in the most consequential national security leak in years. Teixeira admitted illegally collecting military secrets and sharing them with other users on the social media platform Discord. The plea agreement says prosecutors plan to seek nearly 17 years in prison for him.

Black women struggle to find their way in a job world where diversity is under attack

BOSTON (AP) — With attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives raging, Black women looking to climb the corporate ladder face a more hostile landscape than ever. Claudine Gay’s resignation in January as Harvard’s first Black president was just the latest in a revolving door of Black women who have been especially and aggressively questioned or abandoned after achieving a career pinnacle. This has led some women to build networking groups or mentorship, even as some question whether it’s worth trying for top positions. For others, it has triggered an exodus to entrepreneurship and reinvention.