Trump’s choice for national intelligence director withdraws
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s pick for national intelligence director, Texas Rep. John Ratcliffe, withdrew from consideration Friday as he faced growing questions about his qualifications.
Democrats openly dismissed the Republican congressman as an unqualified partisan, and Republicans offered only lukewarm and tentative expressions of support.
Multiple stories in the last week have questioned Ratcliffe’s qualifications and suggested that he had misrepresented his experience as a federal prosecutor in Texas.
With verdict looming, rapper A$AP Rocky will head home
STOCKHOLM — Rapper A$AP Rocky and two other American suspects were temporarily freed from a Swedish jail and planning to head back to the U.S. on Friday as judges mull a verdict in the assault case against them. The 30-year-old rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, was released until Aug. 14, when a verdict is expected. He and his codefendants are accused of beating 19-yearold Mustafa Jafari on June 30 outside a fast-food restaurant in Stockholm.
Puerto Rico governor resigns as promised; successor sworn in
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló resigned Friday, clearing the way for veteran politician Pedro Pierluisi to be sworn in as his replacement. Rosselló had promised to step down in response to weeks of protests over mismanagement and a series of leaked chats in which he and advisers denigrated a range of Puerto Ricans.
U.S. to test new missile
WASHINGTON — With the scrapping of a landmark arms control agreement Friday, the U.S. announced plans to test a new missile amid growing concerns about emerging threats and new weapons. U.S. officials said they are no longer hamstrung and could now develop weapons systems previously banned under the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces treaty with Russia, a Cold War-era agreement that both sides repeatedly accused the other of violating.