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May 16, 2025

AP Afternoon Wire

Advancing the Power of Facts

Spectators watch as fireworks are launched over the East River and the Empire State Building in New York

In a polarized US, how to define a patriot increasingly depends on who's being asked

Millions of Americans will attend parades, fireworks, barbecues and other Independence Day events on Tuesday, celebrating the courage and sacrifices of the nation’s 18th century patriots who fought for independence from England and what they considered an unjust government. That is only one version of a “patriot.” Today, the word and its variants have morphed beyond the original meaning. Read More.

Legitimacy of 'customer' in Supreme Court gay rights case raises ethical, legal flags

A Christian graphic artist who the Supreme Court said can refuse to make wedding websites for gay couples pointed during her lawsuit to a request from a man named “Stewart” and his husband-to-be. The twist? Stewart says it never happened. The revelation has raised questions about how Lorie Smith’s case was allowed to proceed all the way to the nation’s highest court. Read More.

Shots fired into a crowd of hundreds after a holiday festival in Texas leaves 3 dead, 8 injured

Three people were killed and eight others injured when shots were fired into a crowd of hundreds following a festival in in the Fort Worth neighborhood of Como, authorities said. One of the 11 victims is a juvenile, police said. Read More.

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Police on the scene of a shooting Monday, July 3, 2023 in Philadelphia. Police say a gunman in a bulletproof vest has opened fire on the streets of Philadelphia, killing several people and wounding two boys before he surrendered to responding officers.

Five dead in Philadelphia shooting that’s nation’s worst violence yet around July 4

A 40-year-old man with a rifle, a pistol, extra magazines, a police scanner and a bulletproof vest fatally shot four men in a Philadelphia neighborhood and chased and killed a fifth man inside a house, police said. Read More.

A Texas man who went missing as a teen has been found alive, his family and police say

Rudolph “Rudy” Farias IV, a Texas man who went missing as a teenager in 2015 after last being seen walking his dogs in Houston, has been found alive. It was not immediately known where Farias had been the last eight years. Read More.

Suspicious powder found at the White House when Biden was gone was cocaine, AP sources say

The White House was briefly evacuated Sunday evening while President Joe Biden was at Camp David after the Secret Service discovered suspicious powder in a common area of the West Wing, and a preliminary test showed the substance was cocaine, two law enforcement officials said Tuesday. Secret Service agents found the white powder in an area accessible to tour groups. Read More.

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People gather to watch others playing in the mud in a paddy field on Asar Pandra, or paddy planting day at Bahunbesi, Nuwakot District, 30 miles north of Kathmandu, Nepal

Farmers in Nepal celebrate rice planting day with special feasts and festivities

Thousands of farmers and their families across Nepal celebrated an annual paddy festival by planting rice, splashing in the muddy fields and enjoying a special feast. The crop is generally planted once a year in July and harvested about four months later. Read More.

UK village marks struggle against US Army racism in World War II

The village of Bamber Bridge in northwestern England is proud of the blow it struck against racism in the U.S. military during World War II. Read More.

Joey Chestnut defends title at Nathan’s Fourth of July hot dog contest

Eating superstar Joey “Jaws” Chestnut shook off a rain delay and gobbled his way to another win at Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest, downing 62 franks and buns in 10 minutes. In the women’s contest, defending champion Miki Sudo forced down 39 1/2 hot dogs and buns to collect her ninth Mustard Belt. Read More.

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