10 things you need to know today: May 25, 2016

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Jump to category:

1. Trump and Clinton win Washington primary, but only Trump gains delegates
2. Taliban confirms leader's death and names replacement
3. Trump slams critics as anti-Trump protesters clash with police
4. Sanders calls for Kentucky recount
5. Prosecutors to seek death penalty for accused Charleston church gunman
6. Netanyahu reaches deal to expand coalition government
7. Greece gets new debt relief deal
8. Santorum endorses Trump, and campaign says Ryan will, too
9. Judge orders Bill Cosby to stand trial in 2004 sexual assault case
10. NFL owners pick hosts for 2019, 2020, and 2021 Super Bowls

published 25 May 2016

1. Trump and Clinton win Washington primary, but only Trump gains delegates

Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump won Washington state's presidential primaries on Tuesday. Trump collected at least 27 of the state's 44 GOP delegates, putting him extremely close to the 1,237 he needs to lock up the GOP nomination. Clinton gained only bragging rights. Washington Democrats allocated their delegates at caucuses in March, which Bernie Sanders won. Sanders got 74 delegates to Clinton's 27.

The Taliban confirmed Wednesday that their leader, Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansour, had been killed in a U.S. drone strike. President Obama said Monday that Mullah Mansour had been killed just over the border in Pakistan on Saturday, but the Taliban said nothing about the attack for several days. In its Wednesday statement, the Islamist group said Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada, a deputy to Mullah Mansour, had been selected as the Taliban's new leader, with Sarajuddin Haqqani and Mullah Muhammad Yaqoub as his deputies.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump slammed critics Tuesday at an Albuquerque, New Mexico, rally that was disrupted several times by protesters. Anti-Trump crowds outside briefly clashed with police, throwing rocks and bottles. Trump criticized the record of New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez (R), a critic of his immigration policies. He also countered Democratic rival Hillary Clinton's accusation that he once celebrated the housing collapse as a business opportunity, saying, as a businessman, "That's what I'm supposed to do."

Bernie Sanders on Tuesday requested a recount of Kentucky Democratic primary votes. The Vermont senator lost the May 17 contest by just 1,924 votes to frontrunner Hillary Clinton. Clinton had not been expected to win the state. Sanders aide Larry Cohen said a recount would increase transparency in the primaries and "build confidence among voters, particularly younger voters, that this is not rigged." Kentucky splits delegates proportionally, so a recount won't slow Clinton's progress toward the nomination.

Federal prosecutors said Tuesday that they would seek the death penalty against Dylann Roof, who is accused of killing nine parishioners in a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina, last year. "The nature of the alleged crime and the resulting harm compelled this decision," Attorney General Loretta Lynch said. In a court filing, prosecutors explained the decision, saying Roof was motivated by animosity toward African Americans, targeted a Bible study group to "magnify the societal impact," and showed no remorse.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached a deal Wednesday to expand his coalition government. Netanyahu started the week negotiating with the moderate Labor Party as he faced international pressure to resume peace efforts. Instead he named hawkish Avigdor Lieberman of the ultranationalist Yisrael Beitenu party as his new defense minister, giving Israel its most right-wing government ever. Netanyahu said he was committed to pursuing peace, and "a more stable government will make it easier to do so."

Eurozone finance ministers have approved a new round of bailout money to allow Greece to pay its bills for the next few months. Greece, which recently approved new financial reforms and austerity measures to satisfy its creditors, also won pledges of more debt relief, but only if it follows through on painful reforms. The deal eases tensions on Greece as it contends with a massive influx of refugees, and on the region as Britain heads into a June 23 vote on whether to leave the European Union.

Former Republican senator and presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Tuesday that he was backing presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump. Santorum had thrown his support to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio when he ended his own campaign in February. Now, he told Fox News, "I'm 100 percent" behind Trump. An unidentified Trump campaign aide said House Speaker Paul Ryan also would endorse Trump. Ryan is the highest-ranking Republican official, and his support would be a sign the GOP is unifying after a divisive primary.

A Pennsylvania judge ruled Tuesday that there was enough evidence to bring Bill Cosby to trial in a 2004 sexual assault case. Cosby faces three counts of felony indecent assault against Andrea Constand, an employee at Cosby's alma mater, Temple University. Constand said Cosby invited her to his home, where he gave her pills to "take the edge off." She said Cosby assaulted her while she was drugged. Cosby, now 78, has said the encounter was consensual, and his lawyers said the prosecution's case is based on "hearsay," and not evidence.

National Football League team owners at their Tuesday spring meeting chose Atlanta to host the 2019 Super Bowl, South Florida to host in 2020, and Los Angeles in 2021. All three cities plan to host the big games in new — or in the case of Miami, newly renovated — stadiums. "These are large investments," said L.A. Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who is building $2 billion-plus showplace in Inglewood, California. "I think they are telling the communities and the owners who stick their necks out, that it's worthwhile."

Explore More

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.