DNA evidence found near scene of Charlie Kirk's shooting matches suspect, FBI director says
OREM, Utah (AP) — DNA on a towel wrapped around a rifle found near where conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated matched that of the 22-year-old accused in the killing, FBI Director Kash Patel said on Monday.
Investigators also have used DNA evidence to link the suspect, Tyler Robinson, with a screwdriver recovered from the rooftop where the fatal shot was fired, Patel said Monday on the Fox News show “Fox & Friends.”
Authorities in Utah are preparing to file capital murder charges against Robinson as early as Tuesday in the killing of Kirk, a dominant figure in conservative politics who became a confidant of President Donald Trump after founding Arizona-based Turning Point USA, one of the nation's largest political organizations.
Kirk, who brought young, conservative evangelical Christians into politics, was shot Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University during one of his many campus stops. The shooting raised fears about increasing political violence in a deeply polarized United States.
Officials have said Robinson carried a hatred for Kirk and ascribed to a “leftist ideology” that had grown in recent years. Robinson’s family and friends said he spent large amounts of time scrolling the "dark corners of the internet,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Sunday.
JD Vance says national unity is impossible with those celebrating Charlie Kirk's killing
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President JD Vance said Monday while hosting Charlie Kirk’s radio show that he is “desperate” for national unity after the conservative political activist’s killing but that finding common ground with people who celebrated the assassination of his friend is impossible.
The Republican vice president filled in as host of “The Charlie Kirk Show” from his ceremonial office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building next to the White House. The livestream of the two-hour program was broadcast in the White House press briefing room and featured a series of appearances by White House and administration officials who knew the 31-year-old Kirk.
Vance, who transported Kirk’s body home from Utah to Arizona aboard Air Force Two last week, opened by saying he was “filling in for somebody who cannot be filled in for, but I’ll do my best.” He recounted his conversations with Kirk’s widow, Erika, and her remembrances of him as a kind, loving husband.
In his closing remarks, Vance criticized what he said were lies about Kirk that he blamed for the killing. He also promised that the Trump administration will act to stop anyone who would kill another person because of their words. Kirk made comments over the years that some Democrats and others said were anti-immigrant, racist, misogynistic or offensive in other ways.
“I’m desperate for our country to be united in condemnation of the actions and the ideas that killed my friend,” Vance said on the program. “I want it so badly that I will tell you a difficult truth. We can only have it with people who acknowledge that political violence is unacceptable.”
Trump deploys National Guard to Memphis, calling it a 'replica' of his crackdown on Washington
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump signed an order Monday sending the National Guard into Memphis to combat crime, offering another major test of the limits of presidential power by using military force in American cities.
With Republican Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee visiting the Oval Office, Trump said troops would be deployed and join a special task force in the city comprised of officials from various federal agencies, including the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Marshal’s service.
He said the goal would be to stamp out crime in a way that he says sending in the National Guard and federalizing the local police force has in Washington, D.C.
“This task force will be a replica of our extraordinarily successful efforts here,” Trump said of the District of Columbia. “And, you’ll see it’s a lot of the same thing.”
The presidential memorandum Trump signed did not include details on when troops would be deployed or exactly what his promised surge in law enforcement efforts would look like.
Trump says the US military again targeted a boat allegedly carrying drugs from Venezuela
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said the U.S. military on Monday again targeted a boat allegedly carrying drugs from Venezuela, killing three aboard the vessel, and hinted that the military targeting of cartels could be further expanded.
“The Strike occurred while these confirmed narcoterrorists from Venezuela were in International Waters transporting illegal narcotics (A DEADLY WEAPON POISONING AMERICANS!) headed to the U.S.,” Trump said in a Truth Social post announcing the strike. “These extremely violent drug trafficking cartels POSE A THREAT to U.S. National Security, Foreign Policy, and vital U.S. Interests.”
The strike was carried out nearly two weeks after another military strike on what the Trump administration said was a drug-carrying speedboat from Venezuela that killed 11.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office later on Monday, Trump said he had been shown footage of the latest strike by Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Asked what proof the U.S. has that the vessel was carrying drugs, Trump replied, “We have proof. All you have to do is look at the cargo that was spattered all over the ocean — big bags of cocaine and and fentanyl all over the place.”
US and China reach a framework deal for the ownership of TikTok
MADRID (AP) — A framework deal has been reached between China and the U.S. for the ownership of popular social video platform TikTok, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said after weekend trade talks in Spain.
Bessent said in a press conference after the latest round of trade talks between the world's two largest economies concluded in Madrid that U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping would speak Friday to possibly finalize the deal. He said the objective was to switch to U.S. ownership from China’s ByteDance.
“We are not going to talk about the commercial terms of the deal,” Bessent said. “It’s between two private parties. But the commercial terms have been agreed upon.”
Li Chenggang, China's international trade representative, told reporters the sides have reached “basic framework consensus” to resolve TikTok-related issues in a cooperative way, reduce investment barriers and promote related economic and trade cooperation.
The meeting in Madrid is the fourth round of trade talks between U.S. and Chinese officials since Trump launched a tariff war on Chinese goods in April. A fifth round of negotiations is likely to happen “in the coming weeks,” Bessent said, with both governments planning for a possible summit between Trump and Xi later this year or early next year to solidify a trade agreement.
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Little daylight between US and Israel evident as Rubio and Netanyahu meet
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel and the United States showed a unified front on Monday in the face of growing international anger over Israel’s airstrikes on Hamas leaders in Qatar and its intensifying bombardment of Gaza City.
As Arab and Muslim leaders met in Doha to condemn Israel’s attack last week in Qatar and new rounds of criticism were aired over Israeli plans to occupy Gaza City, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stood shoulder-to-shoulder in Jerusalem and downplayed the furor that had, at least for a short time, taken the Trump administration aback.
Rubio plans to pay a quick visit to Qatar on Tuesday, as the administration appears keen to ease tensions between its two close allies, before flying on to London to join President Donald Trump on his state visit to Britain.
“We understand they’re not happy about what happened,” Rubio told Fox News. But “we still have Hamas, we still have hostages, and we still have a war. And all those things still have to be dealt with, and we are hopeful that Qatar and all of our Gulf partners will continue to add something constructive.”
There were no signs of U.S. frustration with Israel’s latest actions, although Trump had made clear his displeasure with Israel’s unilateral strike on Hamas in Qatar.
Summit leads to little action after Israeli strike on Hamas in Doha
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Qatar hosted a summit of Arab and Islamic nations Monday in the hopes of presenting a united response to Israel’s attack on Hamas leaders last week in Doha. But leaders offered different views about what to do, and the group agreed to take only minimal action.
Israel, which launched its invasion of Gaza in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, has retaliated against the militant group and other members of Iran’s so-called Axis of Resistance elsewhere, including in Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and now Qatar. That’s fueled wider anger among Mideast nations already enraged by the deaths of more than 64,000 Palestinians during the war in Gaza and contributed to growing concern that the U.S. commitment to protect Gulf Arab states may not be strong enough.
However, significant differences among the nations likely blunted any attempt at cooperation.
Condemnations came from countries that Israel considers enemies, like Iran. Meanwhile, the nations that have diplomatic recognition deals with Israel were reluctant to sever those ties. Monday was the fifth anniversary of the signing by Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates of the Abraham Accords that marked their formal recognition of Israel.
“Condemnations will not stop the missiles. Declarations will not free Palestine," Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “Severe, punitive actions must be put in place.”
Nvidia violated antimonopoly laws, China says
LONDON (AP) — China accused Nvidia on Monday of violating the country’s antimonopoly laws and said it would step up scrutiny of the world’s leading chipmaker, escalating tensions with Washington as the two countries held trade talks this week.
Chinese regulators said a preliminary investigation found that Nvidia didn't comply with conditions imposed when it purchased Mellanox Technologies, a network and data transmission company.
The one-sentence statement from the State Administration for Market Regulation statement did not mention any punishment, but said it would carry out “further investigation."
An Nvidia spokesperson said, “We comply with the law in all respects. We will continue to cooperate with all relevant government agencies as they evaluate the impact of export controls on competition in the commercial markets.”
Regulators said in December that they were investigating the company for suspected violations stemming from the $6.9 billion acquisition of Mellanox. The deal was completed in 2020 after the Chinese regulator gave conditional approval for Nvidia to buy the Israeli company.
Wall Street rises to more records as Tesla vrooms higher
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street rose to more records on Monday at the start of a week that could show whether the U.S. stock market’s big recent rally has been overdone or prescient.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.5% and topped its prior all-time high, which was set last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 49 points, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite added 0.9% to its own record.
Tesla helped lead the way and rose 3.6% after Elon Musk bought stock worth roughly $1 billion through a trust. The electric vehicle company’s stock price came into the day with a slight loss for the year so far, and the purchase could be a signal of Musk’s faith in it.
Alphabet was the single strongest force lifting the S&P 500 after gaining 4.5%, which brought the total value for Google’s parent company above $3 trillion. Nvidia, Microsoft and Apple are the only other companies on Wall Street worth that much.
The market’s main event for the week will arrive on Wednesday. That’s when the Federal Reserve will announce its latest decision on interest rates, and the unanimous expectation is for the first cut of the year. Such a move could give a kickstart to the job market, which has been slowing.
Spanish prime minister wants Israel banned from sports events after chaos at cycling race
MADRID (AP) — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Monday called for Israel to be banned from sports events after pro-Palestinian activists disrupted the end of the Spanish Vuelta cycling race in chaotic scenes in Madrid.
Israel's foreign minister responded by calling Sánchez an "antisemite and a liar."
Tensions between the countries have escalated in recent weeks as Spain's left-wing government expressed support for protesters who interrupted several stages of the Vuelta, including Sunday's final stage in Madrid, because an Israeli team was taking part.
Speaking to members of his Socialist Party, Sánchez said Israel, just like Russia, should not be allowed to compete in international sports because of its military campaign in Gaza.
“The sports organizations should consider whether it’s ethical for Israel to keep participating in international competitions. Why expel Russia after the invasion of Ukraine and not expel Israel after the invasion of Gaza?” Sanchez said. “Until the barbarity ends, neither Russia nor Israel should be in any international competition."
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