1. South Carolina House votes to remove Confederate flag
After more than 13 hours of debate, the South Carolina House voted 94-20 early Thursday morning to remove the Confederate flag from statehouse grounds. The bill now heads to the desk of Gov. Nikki Haley (R), where she is expected to sign it quickly. "It is a new day in South Carolina, a day we can all be proud of, a day that truly brings us all together as we continue to heal, as one people and one state," she said in a statement.
The Washington Post
2. New York Stock Exchange stops trading for several hours
After an unexpected technical glitch caused the New York Stock Exchange to halt all trading for nearly four hours Wednesday, the NYSE resumed shortly before the 4 p.m. closing bell. An anonymous trader on the floor told The New York Times the glitch, which the NYSE said was not the result of a cyber breach, was likely related to new software rolled out earlier Wednesday morning. The malfunction reportedly forced exchange employees to manually cancel about 700,000 orders that were in the system.
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3. United briefly grounds all flights after computer glitch
United Airlines grounded all its U.S. flights — about 150 — for two hours Wednesday morning due to issues with "network connectivity." United Chief Executive Jeff Smisek said the airline is investigating the cause of the glitch. This isn't the first time United has grounded planes due to computer issues. Last month, the airline grounded 150 flights because pilots couldn't access their digital flight plans.
The New York Times
4. Greece faces deadline for finalizing bailout request
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras must finalize a bailout request from the eurozone by midnight. The one-page proposal he filed Wednesday called for a three-year loan package, but didn't offer specifics on economic reforms Greece would implement. The International Monetary Fund has estimated Greece would need at least 60 billion euros (about $66 billion) through 2018. The tight deadline for Greece comes after the country voted to reject the last bailout deal from creditors in a Sunday referendum.
The Washington Post
5. Baltimore mayor fires police commissioner
Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony W. Batts has reportedly been let go by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. The dismissal comes hours after the city's police union released a report claiming rioting after the death of unarmed black man Freddie Gray in police custody was "preventable," and that the Baltimore Police Department's response to the riots was "lacking in many areas." Rawlings-Blake said the move came in response to a surge in the crime rate, not the union's report.
The New York Times The Baltimore Sun
6. The Chinese stock market rallies
The Chinese stock market on Thursday rebounded after a weeks-long slide. The main Shanghai index closed 5.8 percent higher, and the Shenzen and Hong Kong indexes both rose almost 4 percent. Analysts believe the rally can be attributed to the Chinese government banning major stockholders from selling late Wednesday, but economists warn that valuations on small companies still remain too high and the market probably has further to fall.
The New York Times The New York Times
7. Judge upholds Redskins trademark cancellation
A federal judge in northern Virginia upheld last summer's cancellation of the Washington Redskins' trademark registration Wednesday. For more than two decades, the NFL team have been fighting to keep the trademark on the name, which has faced strong opposition from Native Americans for its racial implications. Last summer, the federal Trademark Trial and Appeal Board voted in favor of that opposition, declaring the name offensive to Native Americans and therefore ineligible for recognized status in the federal trademark registry.
The Washington Post
8. Execution dates set for Oklahoma inmates that brought Supreme Court case
Oklahoma set execution dates for three death row inmates who challenged the use of a lethal injection drug, midazolam. The inmates wanted their executions put on hold due to concerns about the humanity of the drug, part of a cocktail that gave death row inmate Clayton Lockett a heart attack during an agonizing 43-minute execution. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 the drug did not constitute cruel and unusual punishment. Now the inmates could receive that very drug in their own executions.
The Associated Press
9. Disney removes statue of Bill Cosby from Florida theme park
Disney has removed Bill Cosby's statue from its Hollywood Studio theme park in Orlando, Florida, following the release of documents revealing the comedian had admitted under oath he acquired Quaaludes to give women he wanted to have sex with. Cosby's bronze bust had formerly been on display at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame Plaza. Forty-seven women have publicly accused him of sexual assault. He has never been criminally charged.
USA Today
10. FIFA bans whistleblower Chuck Blazer for life
FIFA banned former Executive Committee member Chuck Blazer from national and international soccer activities for life, soccer's governing body announced Thursday. In 2013, he pleaded guilty to bribery, tax evasion, and money laundering charges. Blazer has worked as a confidential informant for the FBI and IRS, feeding them secret information gleaned from FIFA meetings. In May, the U.S. Justice Department indicted 14 FIFA officials on charges of corruption.
BuzzFeed News The Guardian
