Nation & World Glance

AP source: FBI searched U. of Delaware in Biden docs probe

WASHINGTON – The FBI searched the University of Delaware in recent weeks for classified documents as part of its investigation into the potential mishandling of sensitive government records by President Joe Biden.

The search, first reported by CNN, was confirmed to The Associated Press by a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. The person would not say whether anything was found.

A Justice Department special counsel is investigating how classified documents from Biden’s time as vice president and senator came to wind up in his home and former office – and whether any mishandling involved criminal intent or was unintentional. Biden’s personal lawyers disclosed in January that a small batch of documents with classified markings had been found weeks earlier in his former Washington office, and they have since allowed FBI searches of multiple properties.

The university is Biden’s alma mater. In 2011, Biden donated his records from his 36 years serving in the U.S. Senate to the school. The documents arrived June 6, 2012, according to the university, which released photos of the numbered boxes being unloaded at the university alongside blue and gold balloons.

Under the terms of Biden’s gift, the records are to remain sealed until two years after he retires from public life.

China threatens US entities over downing of balloon

BEIJING – China said Wednesday it will take measures against U.S. entities related to the downing of a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the American East Coast.

At a daily briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin gave no details and did not identify the targets of the measures.

China says the balloon was a unmanned weather airship that was accidentally blown off course and accuses the U.S. of overreacting in bringing it down with a missile fired from an F-22 fighter jet.

Since the Feb. 4 downing of the balloon, the United States has sanctioned six Chinese entities it said are linked to Beijing’s aerospace programs.

The U.S. House of Representatives subsequently voted unanimously to condemn China for a “brazen violation” of U.S. sovereignty and efforts to “deceive the international community through false claims about its intelligence collection campaigns.” Secretary of State Antony Blinken also canceled a visit to Beijing that many hoped would stabilize ties that have cratered amid disputes over trade, human rights, Taiwan and China’s claim to the South China Sea.

Upset Ohio town residents seek answers over train derailment

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio – Residents of the Ohio village upended by a freight train derailment packed a school gym on Wednesday to seek answers on whether they were safe from toxic chemicals that spilled or were burned off.

Hundreds of worried people gathered to hear state officials tell them – as they did earlier in the day – that testing so far has shown that local air is safe to breathe and to promise that safety testing of the air and water would continue.

But residents had lingering questions over health hazards and they demanded more transparency from the railroad operator.

Norfolk Southern, the rail operator, did not join what was billed as an open house gathering with local, state and federal officials because of safety concerns to their staff. In a statement, the railroad said there had been a “growing physical threat to our employees and members of the community around this event.”

The meeting came amid continuing concerns about the huge plumes of smoke, persisting odors, questions over potential threats to pets and wild animals, any potential impact on drinking water and what was happening with cleanup.

California’s Rep. Lee files to seek Feinstein’s Senate seat

LOS ANGELES — U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee filed federal paperwork Wednesday to enter the race for the California seat held by long-serving Sen. Dianne Feinstein, potentially adding another Democrat and a nationally recognized Black woman to a growing field that already includes two other House members.

Though Lee has not made a formal announcement, her entry into the contest is widely expected. She filed paperwork creating a Senate fundraising committee one day after Feinstein — at 89 the oldest member of Congress — announced she would step down after her term ends next year.

Lee “is filing preparatory paperwork and her announcement will come before the end of the month,” spokeswoman Katie Merrill said.

Lee would join Democratic U.S. Reps. Katie Porter and Adam Schiff in the contest, who earlier announced their candidacies for the seat that Feinstein has held for three decades.

Lee, 76, is perhaps best known for being the only member of Congress to vote against the authorization for the use of military force after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

She is the highest-ranking Black woman appointed to the House Democratic leadership, serving as co-chair of the Policy and Steering Committee.

She has long been on outspoken defender of abortion rights. In 2021, she was one of several members of Congress who shared personal testimony about their own abortions during a congressional hearing.

Black Hawk helicopter crashes in Alabama, killing 2 crew

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A Black Hawk helicopter from the Tennessee National Guard crashed Wednesday in Alabama, killing two crew members, the Tennessee National Guard said.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of two Tennessee National Guardsmen, and our prayers are with their families during this heartbreaking tragedy,” Brig. Gen. Warner Ross, Tennessee’s Adjutant General, said in a statement. “We ask Tennesseans to join us in supporting their families during this time of unthinkable grief.”

According to Ross, two members of the Tennessee National Guard were killed during a flight- training mission. The helicopter crashed around 3 p.m. local time and caught fire.

The Madison County sheriff’s office said there were no injuries to anyone on the ground when the helicopter crashed.

“We have no survivors,” sheriff’s Investigator Brent Patterson said. “We have a crime scene here. We have it taped off.”

The UH-60 helicopter, more widely known as a Black Hawk, crashed in the unincorporated community of Harvest along Alabama Highway 53, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said in a statement.

The highway along which the crash happened passes through commercial areas northwest of Huntsville that are bounded by subdivisions, forests and fields south of the state line with Tennessee. The sheriff’s office said in a statement that the crash was causing heavy traffic delays that are expected to last into Thursday.

Harvest is just northwest of Huntsville, which is home to NASA’S Marshall Space Flight Center and the U.S. Army’s Redstone Arsenal. The once rural area has become increasingly suburban and is about 90 miles south of Nashville.