REUTERS AMERICA NEWS PLAN FOR WEDNESDAY AUGUST 3/THURSDAY AUGUST 4

08/03/2016 17:29

REUTERS AMERICA EVENING NEWS PLAN FOR WEDNESDAY AUGUST 3/THURSDAY AUGUST 4

LATEST AND PLANNED U.S. NEWS COVERAGE (ALL TIMES ET)

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BREAKING

U.S. Supreme Court blocks bathroom choice for transgender student

A Virginia school board may temporarily block a transgender student who was born a girl from using the boys' bathroom while a legal fight over transgender rights proceeds on appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court said on Wednesday. (USA-COURT/TRANSGENDER (UPDATE 1), moved at 4:52 p.m., by David Ingram, 163 words)

TOP STORIES

Texas in deal to remedy 'discriminatory' voter ID law -court papers

AUSTIN - Texas has reached a deal to remedy ahead of the November general election a voter identification law that a U.S. appeals court last month ruled was discriminatory and violated the U.S. Voting Rights Act, court papers filed on Wednesday showed. (USA-COURT/TEXASVOTING (UPDATE 2), moved at 4:30 p.m., 415 words)

Obama cuts short prison sentences for 214 convicts

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama cut short the prison terms of 214 convicts on Wednesday, the largest number of commutations a U.S. leader has granted in single day since at least 1900, the White House said. (USA-JUSTICE/OBAMA (UPDATE 2), moved at 4:56 p.m., by Timothy Gardner, 329 words)

Storm Earl pounds Honduran coast, bears down on Belize

BELIZE CITY - Tropical Storm Earl dumped heavy rains on the coast of Honduras as it barreled toward Belize, where it is expected to hit the coast as a hurricane on Wednesday night or early Thursday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. (STORM-EARL/NHC (UPDATE 1, PIX, TV), moved at 3:33 p.m., 360 words)

Washington police officer charged with helping Islamic State

WASHINGTON - A Washington transit police officer was arrested on Wednesday on charges he attempted to help the Islamic State, the U.S. Justice Department said, the first member of law enforcement facing such charges involving a government-designated terrorist group. (USA-JUSTICE/OFFICER (UPDATE 3, TV), moved at 2:59 p..m., by Julia Harte, 439 words)

Torch alights on Rio shore ahead of Games' opening

RIO DE JANEIRO - Brazilian sailors delivered the Olympic torch to Rio de Janeiro's mayor on Wednesday, two days before South America's first Olympic Games open under tight security. (OLYMPICS-RIO/ (UPDATE 1, PIX, TV), moved at 3:09 p.m., by Pedro Fonseca, 629 words) See also: Brazil to deploy military to tourist sites, stadium security lax (OLYMPICS-RIO/SECURITY-STADIUM (PIX), moved, by Pedro Fonseca and Rodrigo Viga Gaier, 454 words); Baseball, surfing among sports approved for Tokyo 2020 - IOC (OLYMPICS-TOKYO/SPORTS (UPDATE 2, PIX, TV), moved, 505 words)

CAMPAIGN

Trump's refusal to back House speaker angers Republican Party chief

WASHINGTON - Donald Trump's White House campaign was in turmoil on Wednesday after he angered senior Republican Party leaders with his criticism of a dead soldier's family and his refusal to back the re-election campaign of House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan. (USA-ELECTION/ (UPDATE 4, PIX, TV, GRAPHIC), moved at 2:27 p.m., by Doina Chiacu and Steve Holland, 884 words)

WASHINGTON

Obama administration denies Iran cash payment was a ransom

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration said on Wednesday that $400 million in cash paid to Iran soon after the release of five Americans detained by Tehran was not ransom as some Republicans have charged. (USA-IRAN/INSTALLMENT (UPDATE 1), moved, 540 words)

U.S. regulators urged to scale back fuel efficiency fines

TRAVERSE CITY - Two major auto trade associations want U.S. regulators to reconsider plans to more than double fines for failing to meet fuel efficiency requirements, saying it could increase industry compliance costs by $1 billion annually. (AUTOMAKERS-EMISSIONS/, moved at 3:24 p.m., by David Shepardson, 382 words)

OTHER U.S. NEWS

Chicago mayor's plan to fix municipal pension fund seeks water, sewer tax

CHICAGO - Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel unveiled a plan on Wednesday that he called "an honest approach" to save the city's biggest retirement system from insolvency with a water and sewer tax to be phased in over five years starting in 2017. (CHICAGO-PENSIONS/ (UPDATE 1), moved at 3:59 p.m., by Karen Pierog and Dave McKinney, 384 words)

Icahn to close Trump Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City

Atlantic City's Trump Taj Mahal casino, owned by Carl Icahn, will close at the end of the summer, the billionaire investor's company said on Wednesday. (ATLANTIC CITY-CASINO/ (UPDATE 1), moved at 4:32 p.m., by Hilary Russ, 336 words)

New Jersey lawmaker seeks probe of union contribution threat

New Jersey Senate President Stephen Sweeney, the state's top elected Democrat, on Wednesday asked state and federal prosecutors to investigate alleged threats by a labor union that he said amounted to bribery and attempts to corrupt public officials. (NEW JERSEY-UNIONS/ (UPDATE 1), moved at 4:49 p.m., by Hilary Russ, 411 words)

Gunman in deadly Austin, Texas shooting arrested in Atlanta

AUSTIN - A man suspected of killing one person and wounding four others when he fired shots from a handgun into a crowd on the streets of a nightclub area of Austin early Sunday was arrested without incident in Atlanta on Wednesday, the U.S. Marshals Service said. (TEXAS-SHOOTING/, moved at 1:12 p.m., by Jon Herskovitz, 216 words)

Pokemon no-go: New Jersey resident sues over trespassing players

NEW YORK - A New Jersey man has a message for the millions of players obsessed with the mobile game Pokemon Go: "Get off my lawn!" (NINTENDO-POKEMON/LAWSUIT, moved at 2:19 p.m., 300 words)

Man convicted in deadly 1963 Alabama church bombing denied parole

An 86-year-old white man convicted in the infamous 1963 Birmingham, Alabama church bombing that killed four young black girls during Sunday morning service was denied parole on Wednesday, prosecutors said. (ALABAMA-CHURCH/, moved at 1:57 p.m., by Laila Kearney, 350 words)

SPECIAL REPORT-'Massive' breach exposes hundreds of new SAT questions

BOSTON - Shortly after David Coleman took over as CEO in 2012, the College Board began redesigning its signature product, the SAT college entrance exam. The testing company also hired a consultancy to identify the risks associated with the monumental undertaking. Among the red flags that consultant Gartner Inc raised in an October 2013 report: The not-for-profit College Board needed to better protect the material being developed for the new SAT. Just months after the College Board unveiled the new SAT this March, a person with access to material for upcoming versions of the redesigned exam provided Reuters with hundreds of confidential test items. The questions and answers include 21 reading passages - each with about a dozen questions - and about 160 math problems. (COLLEGE-SAT/SECURITY (SPECIAL REPORT), moved, 1,900 words)

Ex-NFL player Rucker gets nearly 2 years for embezzling from charities

(NFL-RUCKER/, moved ta 12:24 p.m., by Kim Palmer, 355 words)

Famed flamingo Pinky dead in Florida after man attacks it

(FLORIDA-FLAMINGO/ (PIX, TV), moved at 12:06 p.m., 205 words)

WORLD

U.S. strikes easing advance against Islamic State in Sirte, says commander

SIRTE - U.S. air strikes are easing the passage of Libyan forces as they seek to clear Islamic State from the militant group's former North African stronghold of Sirte, a senior field commander said on Wednesday. (LIBYA-SECURITY/SIRTE (TV, PIX, GRAPHIC), moved at 4:40 p.m., by Aidan Lewis, 547 words)

North Korea missile lands near Japanese waters

SEOUL - North Korea launches a ballistic missile that lands in or near Japanese-controlled waters for the first time, the latest in a series of launches by the isolated country in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions. (NORTHKOREA-MISSILE/ (UPDATE 5), moved at 12:24 p.m., 510 words)

Venezuelan women seek sterilizations as crisis sours child-rearing

CARACAS - Venezuela's food shortages, inflation and crumbling medical sector have become such a source of anguish that a growing number of young women are reluctantly opting for sterilizations rather than face the hardship of pregnancy and child-rearing. (VENEZUELA-STERILIZATIONS/ (WIDER IMAGE, PIX), moved, 1,175 words)

EXCLUSIVE-Indian officials order investigations after exposé into cover-up of child deaths in mica mines

DELHI/MUMBAI, India - Indian officials launched investigations on Wednesday into child deaths in India's mica mines after the Thomson Reuters Foundation revealed children were being killed in illegal mines and their deaths covered up. (INDIA-MICA/CHILDREN-INVESTIGATION (EXCLUSIVE), moved, 764 words)

Most water tests safe after Canada oil spill, but no all-clear

Out of 900 water samples tested from a major Canadian river polluted by an oil spill last month, five exceeded drinking water guidelines, officials said on Wednesday, cautioning it was unclear when the river would be safe to drink from again. (PIPELINE-SPILL/HUSKY ENERGY, moved at 3:46 p.m., by Rod Nickel, 325 words)

Fire guts Emirates jet after hard landing; one firefighter dies(EMIRATES-AIRPLANE/CRASH (UPDATE 6, TV, PIX), moved, by Noah Browning, 733 words)

Bitcoin exchange confirms second-biggest heist in U.S. dollar terms

(BITFINEX-HACKED/HONGKONG (UPDATE 2) moved, by Clare Baldwin, 300 words)

HEALTH AND SCIENCE

Pregnant in Miami: Zika's arrival adds new anxieties

TAMPA - Since Florida officials declared that the Zika virus is circulating in the state, Miami-area resident Karla Maguire has avoided taking her toddler son to a playground where mosquitoes may be biting. She walks her dogs less frequently and vigilantly applies bug repellant when she must go outside. (HEALTH-ZIKA/WOMEN (PIX), moved at 3:59 p.m., by Letitia Stein and Jilian Mincer, 695 words)

U.S. health researchers test Zika vaccine as funds run low

WASHINGTON - U.S. government researchers said on Wednesday they have begun their first clinical trial of a Zika vaccine while the Obama administration told lawmakers funds to fight the virus would run out in the coming weeks due to congressional inaction. (HEALTH-ZIKA/USA (UPDATE 1, PIX, TV), moved at 4:38 p.m., by Will Dunham, 738 words)

Drink developed for military boosts cycling performance

A drink that provides energy for the body in the form of ketones, rather than sugar or fat, helped competitive cyclists ride farther during a half-hour ride, according to a new study. (HEALTH-KETONES/SPORT, moved at 3:53 p.m., by Kathryn Doyle, 582 words)

ENTERTAINMENT AND LIFESTYLE

Pokemon Go creators strive to launch game in Rio ahead of Games

RIO DE JANEIRO - Creators of Pokemon Go said on Wednesday they were doing everything possible to release the blockbuster mobile game in Brazil in time for the Rio Olympics which start on Friday. (OLYMPICS-RIO/POKEMON, moved at 3:46 p.m., 388 words)

Denver Broncos to acquire naming rights to Mile High Stadium

(SPORTSAUTHORITY-BANKRUPTCY/BRONCOS (UPDATE 1), moved at 12:21 p.m., by Jessica DiNapoli and Tom Hals, 367 words)

BUSINESS AND MARKETS

Energy, financial stocks give Wall St modest lift

NEW YORK - Wall Street advanced modestly on Wednesday after a sharp rise in oil prices boosted energy shares, while better-than-anticipated data on the labor market helped financial stocks. (USA-STOCKS/ (UPDATE 6), moved, 437 words)See also: Stocks slip for third day, dollar recovers ground (GLOBAL-MARKETS/ (WRAPUP 7), moved, 524 words)

Oil up 3 pct on big U.S. gasoline draw; WTI back above $40

NEW YORK - Oil prices jumped more than 3 percent on Wednesday, with U.S. crude futures returning to above $40 a barrel, after a larger-than-expected gasoline draw offset a surprise build in crude stockpiles in the No. 1 oil consumer. (GLOBAL-OIL/ (UPDATE 9), moved, 469 words)

Tesla posts 13th straight loss, says on track for H2 deliveries

Tesla Motors Inc reported its 13th straight quarterly loss as a rise in sales of its Model S and Model X electric cars failed to make up for the huge cost of ramping up production. (TESLA-RESULTS/ (UPDATE 1), moved at 4:24 p.m., 386 words)

U.S. frackers surprise themselves as tweaks keep adding barrels

HOUSTON - Nimble U.S. shale oil producers continue to show an uncanny ability to squeeze more and more crude from new wells, allowing them to do more with less as they try to weather another dip in oil prices to $40 a barrel. (USA-FRACKING/, moved at 1:24 p.m., by Terry Wade and Ernest Scheyder, 576 words)

Fed penalizes Goldman Sachs for use of confidential data

(GOLDMAN SACHS-FED/ (UPDATE 1), moved at 12:12 p.m., by David Ingram, 254 words)

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08/03/2016 17:29