AP News In Brief At 12:04 A.m. EDT

Biden's shift on F-16s for Ukraine came after months of internal debate
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Joe Biden's decision to allow allies to train Ukrainian forces on how to operate F-16 fighter jets - and eventually to provide the aircraft themselves - seemed like an abrupt change in position but was in fact one that came after months of internal debate and quiet talks with allies.
Biden announced during last week's Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, Japan, that the U.S.

would join the F-16 coalition. His green light came after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spent months pressing the West to provide his forces with American-made jets as he tries to repel Russia's now 15-month-old grinding invasion.
Long shadowing the administration's calculation were worries that such a move could escalate tensions with Russia.
U.S. officials also argued that learning to fly and logistically support the advanced F-16 would be difficult and time consuming.
But over the past three months, administration officials shifted toward the view that it was time to provide Ukraine's pilots with the training and aircraft needed for the country's long-term security needs, according to three officials familiar with the deliberations who requested anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
Still, the change in Biden's position seemed rather sudden.
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No debt ceiling agreement in White House meeting, though Biden and McCarthy call talks productive
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy both said they had a productive debt ceiling discussion late Monday at the White House, but there was no agreement as negotiators strained to raise the nation's borrowing limit in time to avert a potentially chaotic federal default.
It's a crucial moment for the Democratic president and the Republican speaker, just 10 days before a looming deadline to raise the debt limit.
As soon as June 1, Treasury Secretary Janel Yellen said in a letter to Congress, "it is highly likely" the government will be unable to pay all the nation's bills.

Such an unprecedented default would be financially damaging for many Americans and others around the world relying on U.S. stability, sending shockwaves through the global economy.
Each side praised the other's seriousness, but basic differences remained.
They are at odds over how to trim annual budget deficits. Republicans are determined to cut spending while Biden's team offered to hold spending levels flat. Biden wants to increase some taxes on the wealthiest Americans and some big companies, but McCarthy said early on that that is out of the question.
"The time of spending, just spending more money in America and government is wrong," McCarthy said after the Oval Office meeting.
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Judge dismisses Kari Lake's final claim in election loss for Arizona governor
PHOENIX (AP) - A judge on Monday dismissed the only remaining legal claim in Republican Kari Lake´s challenge of her loss in last year's race for Arizona governor, affirming the election of Democrat Katie Hobbs.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter A.

Thompson said Lake failed to prove her claim that Maricopa County did not verify signatures on mail ballots as required by law.
Lake was among the most vocal of last year´s Republican candidates promoting former President Donald Trump´s election lies, which she made the centerpiece of her campaign. She has built a loyal following among Trump supporters and is openly considering a run for the U. If you have any concerns about where by and how to use redtupe (www.bhhs.com), you can speak to us at our own web page. S.

Senate seat now held by Kyrsten Sinema, an independent and former Democrat. Lake is also often mentioned as a potential vice presidential pick for Trump.
While most other election deniers around the country conceded after losing their races in November, Lake did not.

She has touted her legal battle in fundraising appeals and speeches around the country.
Lake did not immediately comment on the ruling.
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E. Jean Carroll adds Trump's post-verdict remarks to defamation case, seeks at least $10M
NEW YORK (AP) - E.

Jean Carroll, the advice columnist who won a $5 million sexual abuse and defamation award against former President Donald Trump, is seeking at least $10 million more in a court filing Monday that seeks to hold him liable for remarks he made after the verdict.
The amended lawsuit was filed in Manhattan by Carroll's lawyers, who said Trump "doubled down" on derogatory remarks about the former Elle magazine columnist during a cable television appearance a day after the verdict.
"It is hard to imagine defamatory conduct that could possibly be more motivated by hatred, ill will, or spite," they wrote of Trump's remarks at a CNN town hall.

"This conduct supports a very substantial punitive damages award in Carroll´s favor both to punish Trump, to deter him from engaging in further defamation, and to deter others from doing the same."
A nine-person jury two weeks ago decided Trump had sexually abused Carroll at an upscale Manhattan department store in early spring 1996.
It also found that Trump had made false statements that damaged her reputation after she went public with her allegations in a 2019 book.
Carroll testified during the trial that Trump raped her in a department store dressing room. Trump, who is campaigning for the presidency, did not attend the trial or testify.
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FACT FOCUS: Fake image of Pentagon explosion briefly sends jitters through stock market
An image of black smoke billowing next to a bureaucratic-looking building spread across social media Monday morning, with the claim that it showed an explosion near the Pentagon.
The posts sent a brief shiver through the stock market and were quickly picked up by news outlets outside the U.S., before officials jumped in to clarify that no blast actually took place and the photo was a fake.
Experts say the viral image had telltale signs of an AI-generated forgery, and its popularity underscores the everyday chaos these now increasingly sophisticated and easy-to-access programs can inflict.
Here´s a closer look at the facts.
CLAIM: An image shows an explosion near the Pentagon.
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Jokic leads Denver Nuggets past LeBron's Lakers 113-111, into their first NBA Finals
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Nikola Jokic had 30 points, 14 rebounds and 13 assists, and the Denver Nuggets advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time in team history Monday night, sweeping the Western Conference finals with a 113-111 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Jamal Murray scored 25 points for the top-seeded Nuggets, who overcame LeBron James´ 31-point first half and a 15-point halftime deficit with a tenacious finish in Game 4 to earn their first conference title in their 47 NBA seasons.
James finished with 40 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists after the highest-scoring postseason half of his career, but even the top scorer in NBA history couldn´t keep the deep, dynamic Nuggets from their sixth consecutive victory overall.
James missed two tying shots in the final seconds, with Aaron Gordon appearing to block his shot at the buzzer.
Jokic earned his eighth triple-double of the playoffs by the third quarter, breaking Wilt Chamberlain´s 1967 NBA record for triple-doubles in a single postseason. The Serbian big man also led the Nuggets´ tenacious defensive effort despite picking up his fifth foul midway through the fourth quarter - and when Denver needed a big basket, Jokic delivered that as well.
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Guam braces for hit from Typhoon Mawar as storm heads toward the Pacific US territory
HONOLULU (AP) - Guam's governor urged residents to stay home and warned the island could take a direct hit from Typhoon Mawar as the storm strengthened on a path toward the U.S.

territory in the Pacific.
Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero urged residents in a YouTube message to remain calm and prepare for Mawar, which the weather service said could hit the southern part of Guam around midday local time on Wednesday.
"We may take a direct hit," Patrick Doll, lead meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Tiyan, Guam, told The Associated Press.
"If we don´t take a direct hit, it´s going to be very close."
The center of the Category 3 storm was about 195 miles (313.8 kilometers) southeast of Guam Tuesday, and moving northwest at 9 to 10 mph (14.4 to 16 kph) toward Guam, according to the weather service.
It was expected to arrive as a 140 mph (225 kph) Category 4 typhoon, weather officials said, possibly delivering the biggest hit in two decades.
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Suspect 'stands silent' in slayings of 4 Idaho college students; judge enters not guilty pleas
BOISE, Idaho (AP) - The suspect in the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students opted Monday to "stand silent" to murder charges, prompting the judge to enter not guilty pleas on his behalf ahead of a trial in which he could face the death penalty.
The Nov.

13, 2022, killings stunned the rural community of Moscow, Idaho, and prompted many students to leave campus early, switching to remote learning for the remainder of the semester.
Bryan Kohberger, 28, was arrested late last year and charged with burglary and four counts of first-degree murder in connection with with the slayings of Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin at a rental home near the University of Idaho campus.
Kohberger declined to enter pleas in Latah County District Court, with his defense attorney Anne Taylor telling the judge that they were going to "stand silent" at this time.

In response, 2nd District Judge John Judge entered not guilty pleas on Kohberger's behalf.
It's uncommon but not unheard of for defendants to "stand silent" in criminal cases. Sometimes it is done because defendants and their attorneys feel they need more time to weigh the ramifications of entering a plea of guilty or not guilty; other times it can be part of a broader legal strategy or simply a defendant's personal choice.
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'Mother Nature has no mercy': Man gets stuck waist-deep in Alaska mud flats, drowns as tide comes in
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A man who was walking on tidal mud flats with friends in an Alaska estuary got stuck up to his waist in the quicksand-like silt and drowned as the tide came in before frantic rescuers could extract him, authorities said.
Zachary Porter, 20, of Lake Bluff, Illinois, was submerged Sunday evening as the tide came in, and his body was recovered Monday morning, Alaska State Troopers spokesperson Austin McDaniel told The Associated Press.

A member of Porter's group called 911 when they couldn't get him out, but it was too late, authorities said.
The accident was the latest tragedy at Turnagain Arm, a 48-mile-long (77-kilometer-long) estuary carved out long ago by glaciers that travels southeast from the Anchorage area and parallels a major highway.
At low tide, the estuary is known for its dangerous mud flats made of silt created by glacier-pulverized rocks. At least three other people have gotten stuck and drowned there over the years. Many more have been rescued, including someone who was fishing there last month.
"It´s big, it´s amazing, it´s beautiful, and it´s overwhelming," Kristy Peterson, the administrator and lead EMT for the Hope-Sunrise Volunteer Fire Department, said of Alaska.

"But you have to remember that it´s Mother Nature, and she has no mercy for humanity."
Peterson, who responded to the call, spoke with others in Porter's party but didn´t talk to him during the desperate rescue attempt.
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Ray Stevenson, of 'Rome' and 'Thor' movies, dies at 58
Ray Stevenson, who played the villainous British governor in "RRR," an Asgardian warrior in the "Thor" films, and a member of the 13th Legion in HBO´s "Rome," has died.

He was 58.
Representatives for Stevenson told The Associated Press that he died Sunday but had no other details to share on Monday.
Stevenson was born in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, in 1964.
After attending the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and years of working in British television, he made his film debut in Paul Greengrass´s 1998 film "The Theory of Flight." In 2004, he appeared in Antoine Fuqua´s "King Arthur" as a knight of the round table and several years later played the lead in the pre-Disney Marvel adaptation "Punisher: War Zone."
Though "Punisher" was not the best-reviewed film, he'd get another taste of Marvel in the first three "Thor" films, in which he played Volstagg.

Other prominent film roles included the "Divergent" trilogy, "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" and "The Transporter: Refueled."
A looming presence at 6-foot-4, Stevenson, who played his share of soldiers past and present, xxx real once said in an interview, "I guess I'm an old warrior at heart."