Nation news briefs

CINCINNATI HELPS STRANDED INDONESIAN COLLEGE CHOIR: CINCINNATI (AP) - An Indonesian choir stuck in Cincinnati after a traveling mishap forced them to miss the World Choir Games was embraced by city residents determined to open their hearts and wallets to get the singers to perform and then to return them home.

Repealing Obama's health care law won't be all that easy

Trans fat ban made fast food a bit healthier in New York City

3 teens charged in fatal beating of Chicago man they videotaped, posted in Facebook

Millions spent on upkeep of empty Katrina lots bought with tax dollars

Guns of outlaws Bonnie and Clyde to be auctioned

MANCHESTER, NH (AP) - She kept a Colt .38-caliber revolver close, while he preferred a .45-caliber pistol from the same maker.

Microsoft, NBC dissolve MSNBC.com joint net news venture

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Microsoft is pulling out of the joint venture that owned MSNBC.com, freeing the world's largest software maker to build its own online news service.

Woman sues Justin Bieber, says concert harmed her hearing

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - An Oregon woman has filed a $9.2 million lawsuit against pop star Justin Bieber, alleging she suffered permanent hearing loss at his Portland concert two years ago.

National news briefs

ALASKA TOWN: FELINE MAYOR IS THE CAT'S PAJAMAS: TALKEETNA, Alaska (AP) - The mayor of a sleepy Alaska town is feline fine.

Weather stops tandem lawn chair balloon flight

BEND, Ore. (AP) - Hours into their lawn-chair balloon flight, two men made a hard landing after they were hit by hail and snow as thunderstorms swept into central Oregon. But their back-yard aircraft floated away.

Obama says no apology to Romney over Bain attacks

WOLFEBORO, N.H. (AP) - Mitt Romney's campaign said Sunday that President Barack Obama is willing to say anything to win a second term and should say he's sorry for attacks on the Republican's successful career at a private equity firm. "No, we will not apologize," the president responded, adding that if Romney wants credit for his business leadership, he also needs to take responsibility.

Space workers struggle a year after last shuttle costs them their jobs

TITUSVILLE, Fla. (AP) - A year after NASA ended the three-decade-long U.S. space shuttle program, thousands of formerly well-paid engineers and other workers around the Kennedy Space Center are still struggling to find jobs to replace the careers that flourished when shuttles blasted off from the Florida "Space Coast."

Governors put off health care questions until after election

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (AP) - Millions of uninsured people may have to wait until after Election Day to find out if and how they can get coverage through President Barack Obama's health care law.

Idaho farm hosts 'weed dating' for singles

BOISE, Idaho (AP) - For one night a year, a neighborhood farm in northwest Boise turns into a respite for singles who are tired of the same old dating scene.

Nation news briefs

SAN FERNANDO COUNCILWOMAN CHARGED IN BEATING OF EX: SAN FERNANDO (AP) - A San Fernando councilwoman has been charged with destroying a laptop computer and picture frame in a fight with a fellow councilman who resigned after their scandalous affair and an ugly breakup that resulted in mutual restraining orders.

WWII vet receives long-lost dog tag from France

ROCHESTER, NY (AP) - Irving Mann has been in business long enough to be skeptical of out-of-the-blue offers that seem too good to be true.

Killed World War II Marine’s diary offers a brief look at his brief life

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Before Cpl. Thomas "Cotton" Jones was killed by a Japanese sniper in the Central Pacific in 1944, he wrote what he called his "last life request" to anyone who might find his diary: Please give it to Laura Mae Davis, the girl he loved.

Woman who flew in WWII finally gets honors

TROY, Mich. (AP) - One of the 1,000-plus women who flew for the armed forces during World War II but waited decades to earn full military recognition was the focus of her family's thoughts at a Memorial Day graveside ceremony.

NY mayoral hopeful would be a first

NEW YORK (AP) - It was an unscripted moment made for Christine Quinn.

Teen accused of plot spoke about bombs

ALBANY, Ore. (AP) - Classmates of an Oregon teenager accused of planning to blow up his high school say the 17-year-old discussed bomb-making in the weeks before his arrest, but did not speak of a plot to inflict damage.

Fire breaks out aboard cruise ship

BALTIMORE (AP) - A fire that broke out aboard a Royal Caribbean ship Monday did enough damage that the rest of the cruise was canceled and the company said the more than 2,200 passengers will be flown from the Bahamas back to Baltimore where the trip began.

NYC launches bike share program

NEW YORK (AP) - The nation's biggest bicycle-sharing program got rolling Monday, as thousands of New Yorkers got their first chance to ride a network billed as a new form of public transit in a city known for it.

Gunman in Texas rampage was Marine

EDEN, Texas (AP) - A man suspected in a West Texas shooting rampage that left one woman dead and five others wounded was a Marine who was wanted for questioning in a slaying in North Carolina, officials said Monday.

Senator: New Statue of Liberty security risky

NEW YORK (AP) - New security plans for the Statue of Liberty could leave visitors vulnerable when it reopens July Fourth, New York officials said Monday.

Medical pot laws & treats may send more kids to ER

CHICAGO (AP) - Increased use of medical marijuana may lead to more young children getting sick from accidentally eating food made with the drug, a Colorado study suggests.

Man charged with raping toddler is sex offender

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A man who has been charged with killing an elderly Alaska couple and raping their 2-year-old great-granddaughter is a registered sex offender convicted of breaking into a home and assaulting an 11-year-old girl four years ago.

Nation news briefs

• SURGING WILDFIRE FORCES EVACUATIONS IN CALIFORNIA: SANTA BARBARA (AP) - A surging wildfire has forced dozens of residents and Memorial Day campers to evacuate the mountains of Santa Barbara County in California.

Deal helping Valeant cash on increase in diabetes rate

NEW YORK (AP) -Canadian drugmaker Valeant Pharmaceuticals said Monday that it will pay $8.7 billion to buy Bausch + Lomb, one of the world's best-known makers of contact lenses, in a massive expansion of Valeant's smaller ophthalmology business.

Coastal Commission imposes property ‘caps

SOLANA BEACH (AP) - Atop the ocean bluff are the homes of those fortunate to own a piece of land overlooking the dramatic California coastline. Down on the beach are the surfers, swimmers and beachcombers lucky for a sliver of sand that skirts caves and coves in this paradise north of San Diego.