10 things you need to know today: June 8, 2016

Hillary Clinton claims the Democratic nomination, Paul Ryan disavows Trump's 'racist' comments, and more

Hillary Clinton at a rally in Brooklyn
(Image credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

1. Hillary Clinton makes history, sealing Democratic nomination

Hillary Clinton claimed victory in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination on Tuesday with primary victories in California, New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Dakota, making history as the first woman to top the ticket of a major U.S. political party. "Thanks to you, we've reached a milestone," she said, declaring that her victory "belongs to generations of women and men who struggled and sacrificed and made this moment possible." Her rival, Bernie Sanders, won in North Dakota and Montana. He plans to lay off half his staff but vowed to stay in the race until the July convention.

The New York Times

2. Paul Ryan disavows 'racist' comment Trump says was 'misconstrued'

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said Tuesday that Donald Trump's assertion that a federal judge can't be fair to him in court because of his Mexican heritage is "the textbook definition of a racist comment." Ryan said the presumptive Republican nominee's remarks should be "absolutely disavowed," but that he still supported Trump's candidacy. Trump, facing criticism from political foes and allies alike, said his comments about the judge in the Trump University fraud lawsuit had been "misconstrued," and that he would stop commenting on the case.

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The New York Times The Washington Post

3. Two Democrats win spots on ballot for Senate in California

Two Democrats won the right to face off in the November election to fill the Senate seat of retiring Sen. Barbara Boxer. State Attorney Gen. Kamala Harris came out of the primary as the top vote-getter, leading the second-place candidate, Orange County Rep. Loretta Sanchez, by more than 800,000 votes, a 23 percent gap. The fall election will mark the first time since the state began directly electing senators that the Republican Party will not have a candidate on the ballot.

Los Angeles Times

4. GOP senator takes back Trump endorsement

Senator Mark Kirk.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) rescinded his endorsement of Donald Trump on Tuesday, saying he "cannot and will not" support the presumptive Republican nominee for president. Kirk, who last month said he would back Trump if he won the nomination, attributed his reversal partly to Trump's comments regarding Mexican-American judge Gonzalo Curiel. Kirk is one of the most vulnerable GOP senators this election cycle, as he is facing a Democratic challenger in Rep. Tammy Duckworth who has made a concerted effort to link Kirk to Trump.

CNN The Hill

5. Aide who set up Hillary Clinton's email server gets partial immunity

Federal prosecutors have granted limited immunity to Bryan Pagliano, the former State Department worker who set up Hillary Clinton's private email server, his lawyers said Tuesday. Pagliano does not have blanket immunity related to the FBI investigation of the possible mishandling of government secrets in the system — he just can't be prosecuted based on his own testimony. Conservative watchdog Judicial Watch subpoenaed Pagliano for testimony in its lawsuit over whether Clinton's system while she was secretary of state sidestepped the Freedom of Information Act.

The Washington Post

6. Turkey detains four over deadly Istanbul bombing

Turkish authorities detained four people on Tuesday in connection with a car bombing that killed 11 people in Istanbul. The blast hit part of the city's historic Fatih district at rush hour. The area is popular with tourists. Seven of the dead were police; four were civilians. Thirty-six people were injured, three critically. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the bombing a terrorist attack. Another car bombing on Wednesday killed two officers at a police station in the southeastern Turkey town of Midyat.

CNN Reuters

7. U.S. says Chinese fighter jets unsafely intercepted reconnaissance plane

The U.S. on Tuesday said a Chinese jet intercepted an American spy plane in an "unsafe" maneuver over the East China Sea. The U.S. Air Force RC-135 reconnaissance plane was on routine patrol when two Chinese fighter jets zoomed close by, the U.S. Pacific Command said. China's Defense Ministry responded by repeating a call for the U.S. to stop its surveillance flights in the region, and accused the U.S. of "deliberately hyping up the issue."

Reuters

8. Hacker briefly takes over NFL Twitter account

The NFL said Tuesday that somebody had hacked its Twitter account and falsely posted that commissioner Roger Goodell had died. The tweet said, "We regret to inform our fans that our commissioner, Roger Goodell, has passed away. He was 57. #RIP." It was deleted after just minutes. "We have engaged law enforcement to look into the matter," said Brian McCarthy, NFL vice president of communications. "We are reviewing and strengthening our cyber-security measures."

ESPN

9. Truck plows into bicyclists, killing five

A pickup truck slammed into a group of bicyclists north of Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Tuesday, killing five of the riders and seriously injuring four others. At the time of the crash, police were searching for the blue Chevy 2500 pickup after receiving calls from people who said the person at the wheel was driving erratically. The driver, a 50-year-old man, was taken into police custody. Police did not immediately release the names of the driver and victims. A decision on possible charges is expected Thursday.

Detroit Free Press

10. Obesity rate increases despite efforts to reduce it

The U.S. obesity epidemic has hit a new high, according to two reports released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obesity has increased by 5 percent among women over a decade, with 40 percent now qualifying as obese. Obesity rates among teenagers are also on the rise. Overall, 38 percent of adults are obese, which means they have a BMI of at least 30. The increase came despite hundreds of millions of dollars in spending on research, hospital programs, and drugs aiming to reverse the trend.

NBC News

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