NATION & WORLD WATCH

Dreaming of lottery riches? Virus could cut big jackpots

DES MOINES, Iowa – Hoping to escape all the coronavirus-caused economic uncertainty by winning a giant lottery jackpot? Think again. Those jackpots are going to shrink as the pandemic tamps down lottery sales. The group that oversees the Powerball game announced Wednesday night that it would cut minimum jackpots in half, from $40 million to $20 million, after the current big prize has been won. The jackpot also could grow more slowly, with minimum increases of $2 million instead of the normal $10 million.

Trump camp threatens local TV stations over Democratic ad

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign is threatening legal action against TV stations in Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin if they don’t pull an anti-trump commercial that uses clips of the president talking about the coronavirus. Priorities USA Action Fund, the Democratic super PAC that created the 30-second spot, responded by soliciting contributions to keep the ad on the air. Trump’s campaign said the ad contains the “false assertion” that Trump called the virus a “hoax.”

New Zealand mosque gunman pleads guilty to murder, terrorism

WELLINGTON, New Zealand – The man accused of the slaughter of 51 worshippers at two Christchurch mosques unexpectedly pleaded guilty to all charges Thursday. The attacks a year ago shocked the nation and prompted new laws banning the deadliest types of semi-automatic weapons. They also prompted changes to social media protocols after the gunman livestreamed his attack on Facebook. Brenton Harrison Tarrant, 29, pleaded guilty to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and one count of terrorism.

Canada tells US not to put troops at border during pandemic

TORONTO – Canada has told the United States it is strongly opposed to a Trump administration proposal to put troops at their border amid the pandemic and said such a move would damage relations between the allies. “Canada and the United States have the longest un-militarized border in the world and it is very much in both of our interests for it to remain that way,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said. Few people cross into the border into the U.S. from Canada illegally. And COVID-19 cases are surging more in the U.S. than in Canada.