North America

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and his allies hope big recent wins on climate, health care and more will at least temporarily tamp down questions among top Democrats about whether he will run for reelection.

That optimism may be short lived, at risk if and when former President Donald Trump announces another White House campaign. But for now, the “Will he or won’t he” Washington parlor game appears to be on hold.

“I think the naysayers are pretty quiet right now,” said former Democratic Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. “I think they’ve seen reality.”

ATLANTA (AP) — Rudy Giuliani said Wednesday that he had “satisfied his obligation” after facing hours of questioning Wednesday before a special grand jury in Atlanta as a target of an investigation into attempts by former President Donald Trump and others to overturn his 2020 election defeat in Georgia.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Giuliani said Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis ended his appearance by saying he had “satisfied his obligation under the subpoena.”

“So I was very happy that I satisfied my obligation,” he said.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Attorneys for many of the nation’s largest media companies will try to persuade a federal magistrate judge on Thursday afternoon to make public the affidavit supporting the warrant that allowed FBI agents to search former President Donald Trump’s Florida estate last week.

PONTIAC, Mich. (AP) — Thundering gas-powered muscle cars, for decades a fixture of American culture, will be closing in on their final Saturday-night cruises in the coming years as automakers begin replacing them with super-fast cars that run on batteries.

Stellantis’ Dodge brand, long the performance flag-bearer of the company formerly known as Fiat Chrysler, is officially moving toward electricity. On Wednesday night, Dodge unveiled a battery-powered Charger Daytona SRT concept car, which is close to one that will be produced in 2024 as the sun sets on some petroleum models.

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s chief financial officer is expected to plead guilty to tax violations Thursday in a deal that would require him to testify about illicit business practices at the former president’s company, two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

Allen Weisselberg is charged with taking more than $1.7 million in off-the-books compensation from the Trump Organization over several years, including untaxed perks like rent, car payments and school tuition.

NEW YORK, Aug 17 (APP): The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a prominent Washington-based Muslim advocacy group, Wednesday joined Indian-American Muslim Council (IAMC) in condemning the use of a bulldozer at the India Independence Day parade in South Plainfield in the U.S. state of New Jersey, this year.

UNITED NATIONS, August 17. /TASS/: UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres arrived in Lvov on Wednesday where on August 18 he will meet with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the secretary general’s office told TASS.

"Yes, the secretary general is in Lvov," the source said. Later, the office of the secretary general posted a photo of Guterres visiting this Ukrainian city on Twitter.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug 17 (NNN-Xinhua) — British pharmaceutical company GSK has been awarded a contract to produce the world’s first malaria vaccine so that millions more children will be protected against the killer disease, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) announced.

The landmark award, valued at up to 170 million U.S. dollars, will lead to 18 million doses of the RTS,S vaccine available over the next three years, potentially saving thousands of young lives annually.

RICHLAND, Wash. (AP) — The man accused of fatally shooting a man inside Richland’s Fred Meyer store was ordered to take mental health medications.

Superior Court Judge Joe Burrowes ruled Tuesday that Eastern State Hospital can require Aaron Kelly, 40, to take the anti-psychotic Abilify to treat an unspecified schizophrenia spectrum or other psychotic disorder, Tri-City Herald reported.

The treatment is scheduled to last until late September when he will return to court to determine if he is competent to stand trial for murder and attempted murder.

CHICAGO (AP) — Opening statements set for Wednesday give prosecutors and R. Kelly’s attorneys their first chance to address jurors directly about charges that accuse the R&B singer of enticing of minors for sex, producing child pornography and rigging his 2008 pornography trial.

Both the prosecution and Kelly’s legal team told the judge earlier in the week that they would like about an hour each to tell jurors about the kind evidence they can expect to see and hear. The evidentiary stage of the federal trial is expected to last about a month.