USS ARIZONA MEMORIAL CLOSES INDEFINITELY

HONOLULU» Engineers say damage to the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu was worse than expected and it will remain closed indefinitely.

Hawaii News Now reports boat transportation to the attraction was suspended May 6 after one of the vessel operators noticed a crack on the outside of the memorial.

Tourists were allowed to disembark at the memorial after crews completed interim repairs. But the cracks reappeared hours later, indicating a more serious issue.

Engineers are working to figure out possible long-term solutions.

Other areas of the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center remain open.

Trump’s “phony” source turns out to be a White House official. President Donald Trump on Saturday accused The New York Times of inventing a source for a story who, in fact, was a White House official conducting a briefing for reporters under the condition that the official not be named.

Trump tweeted that the Times quoted an official “who doesn’t exist” and referenced a line in the story about a possible summit with North Korea, which read: “a senior White House official told reporters that even if the meeting were reinstated, holding it on June 12 would be impossible, given the lack of time and the amount of planning needed.”

Said Trump: “WRONG AGAIN! Use real people, not phony sources.”

The Times reported in a story about the tweet that it had cited “a senior White House official speaking to a large group of reporters in the White House briefing room.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump repeatedly has criticized the use of unnamed sources and labeled information related by unnamed officials “fake news.” Still, his White House regularly arranges briefings with officials who demand anonymity before relaying information, a practice also used by previous administrations.

Dunford implores West Point grads to embrace change. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff urged graduating cadets at the U.S. Military Academy Saturday to “embrace the constant changes” facing the military as the best route to success.

Gen. Joseph Dunford, the commencement speaker Saturday at West Point’s graduation, told cadets that armies that are slow to adapt to changes often find themselves on the wrong side of history.

“There’s no substitute for taking a clear-eyed look at the threats we’ll face and asking how our force will adapt to meet those threats,” said Dunford, who became chairman in October 2015. “To be successful, you have to anticipate and embrace the constant changes.”

He urged the almost 950 cadets who were commissioned as second lieutenants in the Army during the ceremony at the academy’s football stadium to challenge themselves to be the kind of leader who continually thinks about change, especially in a world where “the pace of change and the speed of war has greatly accelerated.”

His remarks came at a ceremony that featured among its graduates the first black woman to lead the Long Gray Line.

Simone Askew of Fairfax, Va.,, last year assumed duties as first captain of the 4,400-member Corps of Cadets, the highest position in the cadet chain of command.

United Airlines settles with owner of a French bulldog that died in overhead bin. United Airlines has settled with the owners of a French bulldog puppy that died after a flight attendant insisted the carrier containing the dog be stowed in an overhead bin for a 3½-hour flight.

The dog’s death in March prompted animal rights groups to call for the flight attendant to be fired and United to change its rules for transporting pets. The furor even led to the introduction of federal legislation.

United declined to discuss the terms of the settlement but said, “We are deeply sorry for this tragic accident.”

New York attorney Evan Oshan, who represents the dog’s owners, the Robledo family of New York, said the airline and the family reached an “amicable settlement” but declined to discuss the terms.

“We hope the death of Kokito won’t be in vain,” he said, referring to the bulldog. “We hope all airlines will be moving in the direction of adopting the best safe transport policies.”

The incident began when a flight attendant on a flight from Houston to New York ordered an animal carrier to be put in the overhead bin, saying it was too big to fit under the seat. — Denver Post wire services