AP News in Brief at 6:04 p.m. EDT

President Donald Trump said Saturday that he will send troops to Portland, “authorizing Full Force, if necessary” to handle “domestic terrorists” as he expands his deployments to more American cities.

Oregon Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek responded by saying Trump is abusing his authority by ordering troops to the a city, which she said is doing “just fine” on its own.

Trump made his announcement on social media, writing that he was directing the Department of Defense to “provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland.” Trump said the decision was necessary to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, which he alleged is “under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for details on Trump’s announcement, such as a timeline for the deployment or what troops would be involved.

The sparse indictment of Comey by Trump's Justice Department belies a complicated backstory

WASHINGTON (AP) — The indictment of former FBI Director James Comey is only two pages and alleges he falsely testified to Congress in 2020 about authorizing someone to be an anonymous source in news stories.

That brevity belies a convoluted and contentious backstory. The events at the heart of the disputed testimony are among the most heavily scrutinized in the bureau's history, generating internal and congressional investigations that have produced thousands of pages of records and transcripts.

Those investigations were focused on how Comey and his agents conducted high-stakes inquiries into whether Russia was helping Republican Donald Trump’s campaign during the 2016 presidential race against Democrat Hillary Clinton and her use of a private email server while she was secretary of state.

Here are some things to know about that period and how they fit into Comey’s indictment:

The indictment alleges that Comey made a false statement in testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The single quote from the indictment appears to be from an interaction with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.

Trump asks Supreme Court to uphold restrictions he wants to impose on birthright citizenship

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump 's administration is asking the Supreme Court to uphold his birthright citizenship order declaring that children born to parents who are in the United States illegally or temporarily are not American citizens.

The appeal, shared with The Associated Press on Saturday, sets in motion a process at the high court that could lead to a definitive ruling from the justices by early summer on whether the citizenship restrictions are constitutional.

Lower-court judges have so far blocked them from taking effect anywhere. The Republican administration is not asking the court to let the restrictions take effect before it rules.

The Justice Department's petition has been shared with lawyers for parties challenging the order, but is not yet docketed at the Supreme Court.

Any decision on whether to take up the case probably is months away and arguments probably would not take place until the late winter or early spring.

Airstrikes and gunfire kill at least 59 people in Gaza as pressure grows for ceasefire, hostage deal

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes and gunfire killed at least 59 people across Gaza, health officials said Saturday, as international pressure grows for a ceasefire and hostage return deal while Israel's leader remained defiant about continuing the war.

Among the dead were those hit by two strikes in the Nuseirat refugee camp — nine from the same family in a house and, later, 15 in the same camp, including women and children, according to staff at al-Awda Hospital, where the bodies were brought. Five others were killed when a strike hit a tent for the displaced, according to Nasser Hospital, which received the dead.

Israel’s army said it was not aware of anyone being killed by gunfire Saturday in southern Gaza, nor of a strike in the Nuseirat area during the time and at the location provided by the hospital.

The director of Shifa Hospital in Gaza City told The Associated Press that medical teams there were concerned about Israeli “tanks approaching the vicinity of the hospital,” restricting access to the facility where 159 patients are being treated.

“The bombardment has not stopped for a single moment," Dr. Mohamed Abu Selmiya said.

Russian foreign minister: Any aggression against our country will be met with a 'decisive response'

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — As new tensions rise between Russia and NATO powers, Moscow's top diplomat insisted to world leaders Saturday that his nation doesn't intend to attack Europe but will mount a “decisive response” to any aggression.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke at the U.N. General Assembly after weeks in which unauthorized flights into NATO’s airspace — intrusions the alliance blames on Russia — have raised alarm around Europe, particularly after NATO jets downed drones over Poland and Estonia said Russian fighter jets flew into its territory and lingered for 12 minutes.

Russia has denied that its planes entered Estonian airspace and has said the drones didn’t target Poland, with Moscow’s ally Belarus maintaining that Ukrainian signal-jamming sent the devices off course.

But European leaders see the incidents as intentional, provocative moves meant to rattle NATO and to suss how the alliance will respond. The alliance warned Russia this week that NATO would use all means to defend against any further breaches of its airspace.

At the U.N., Lavrov maintained it’s Russia that’s facing threats.

As Democrats prepare for a possible federal shutdown, their endgame is uncertain

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats who have struggled for months to counter President Donald Trump have settled on a bold, one-step strategy if they do not get significant concessions on health care before government funding runs out Wednesday: voting to shut down the government.

The plan is heartily endorsed by many frustrated voters in the base and party activists, some of whom called on Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York to resign in March after he provided support for Republicans to keep the government open at that time.

“America’s ability to endure this moment requires a Democratic Party driving a vibrant, impactful and public resistance,” Katie Bethell, executive director of liberal grassroots group MoveOn, wrote in a letter to party leaders.

Less clear is what’s in the minority party's playbook after 12:01 a.m. EDT Wednesday, when the shutdown would start and the administration could begin laying off hundreds or even thousands of federal workers, if it carries through with plans laid out by the White House this week.

How does it all end? And what do Democrats do then?

Stampede at a political rally for popular actor Vijay in southern India kills 36, injures 40

NEW DELHI (AP) — A stampede at a rally for a popular Indian actor and politician in the southern state of Tamil Nadu killed at least 36 people and injured 40 others, the state’s health minister said late Saturday.

Ma Subramanian told The Associated Press that the victims were dead by the time they were taken to a hospital and that the injured were stable. The dead included eight children, Subramanian said.

The rally, which officials say was attended by tens of thousands of people, was being addressed by Vijay, one of Tamil Nadu’s most successful actors-turned-politician in the district of Karur.

Indian media reports, quoting local officials, said as Vijay spoke to the surging crowd, a group of his supporters and fans fell while trying to get close to his bus, causing the stampede. Supporters had gathered at the political rally amid intensely hot temperatures and Vijay arrived hours late, officials said.

“There was indiscipline” at the rally, Subramanian said, adding that an investigation had been ordered.

Thieves steal $1M worth in craft whiskey from Washington distillery

Thieves who made off with 12,000 bottles of craft whiskey in a rare U.S. liquor heist this summer did more than just snag nearly $1 million worth of product -- they also spirited away nearly half the stock of a single malt distillers had worked for more than a decade to make.

Now the Skagit Valley Sheriff’s Office is investigating, and whiskey aficionados are wondering if — and where — the coveted bottles of Westland Distillery's first 10-year Garryana whiskey might turn up.

The bottles disappeared July 31, when someone in a freight truck showed up at Westland Distillery’s warehouse in Burlington, Washington, holding the paperwork that purportedly gave them the right to pick up a shipment of Westland single malt, Watchpost blended, and Garryana whiskies bound for New Jersey.

But the bottles never arrived at their intended destination, and the “sophisticated, fraudulent carrier scheme” was discovered a week later, said Jason Moore, the managing director of the Seattle-based distillery.

The 10th anniversary edition bottles of Garryana are irreplaceable, said Moore.

Some people tape their mouths shut at night. Doctors wish they wouldn't

Having your mouth taped shut is the stuff of nightmares — but some people are doing just that to themselves. And in an attempt to sleep better, no less.

Doctors say don't do it.

Some on social media say it's a hack for getting more and better sleep and to reduce snoring. The claims — which are not backed by science — are taking off on places like TikTok, sometimes pushed by people working for companies selling related products.

“The studies behind mouth tape are small, the benefits are modest and the potential risks are there,” said Dr. Kimberly Hutchison, a neurologist and sleep medicine expert at Oregon Health & Science University. Some of those risks include making sleep disorders like sleep apnea worse, or even causing suffocation.

Mouth breathing in adults is not a major health problem, but it is better to breath through your nose, experts say. Your nose is a natural filtering system, trapping dust and other allergens before they can get to your lungs.

Europe romps to another session win in Ryder Cup for a commanding 5-point lead

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (AP) — President Donald Trump did not attend Day 2 at the Ryder Cup. That was about the only difference Saturday as Europe sent out its same foursomes teams, filled the scoreboard with blue points and delivered a crushing blow to the Americans.

Rory McIlroy told the crowd to shut up — he used a few other words — for shouting before he could hit a shot. More powerful was his partnership with Tommy Fleetwood that produced seven birdies in another romp over Harris English and Collin Morikawa.

Jon Rahm improved to 6-0 in foursomes, teaming with Tyrrell Hatton again in a 3-and-2 victory over Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, the first loss of the week for either American.

“You need your superstars to perform at their highest, and they certainly have showed that so far,” European captain Luke Donald said of Rahm and McIlroy.

That wasn't the case for the American superstar.