Wisconsin

State appeals voter ID suit, seeks stay

Wisconsin says it will appeal a federal judge's ruling that its voter identification law illegally burdens the ability of minority citizens to vote. The state, which contends the 2011 law is needed to combat potential voter fraud, said it will challenge the decision before the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Washington, D.C.

Taxpayers bring in budget surplus

The U.S. government ran a big surplus in April, thanks to a flood of tax payments that helped keep the budget on track for the lowest annual deficit in six years. April's surplus totaled $106.9 billion, down from last April's $112.9 billion surplus. There typically is a surplus during April, when individual and corporate quarterly taxes are due.

Energy savings bill falls to politics

A bipartisan energy savings bill has fallen victim in the Senate to election-year politics and the Obama administration's continued indecision on the Keystone XL oil pipeline. A procedural motion to send the measure to the floor without amendments fell five votes short of the 60 votes needed. The bill would tighten efficiency guidelines for new federal buildings and provide tax incentives to make homes and buildings more efficient.

Italy

At least 14 die as migrant boat sinks

A boat packed with hundreds of migrants trying to reach Europe sank in the Mediterranean Sea about 45 miles off Libya. At least 14 people died, but more than 200 were rescued by the Italian navy.

Britain

Kerry to meet Palestinian leader

Secretary of State John Kerry plans to meet in London on Thursday with Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority, the State Department said. It will be Kerry's first meeting with Abbas since the Obama administration said in April that it was going to reassess the Middle East peace process. Kerry's trip will include disccusions about Syria and Ukraine.

Afghanistan

Taliban starts deadly spring offensive

Taliban assailants stormed a government complex in eastern Afghanistan and raided police checkpoints in a series of attacks that killed at least 13 people and marked the start of the group's spring offensive.

Some shelter from the storm A 7-week old puppy was protected from Colorado’s weekend snowstorm. The storm brought more than a foot of snow to parts of Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska, and spawned thunderstorms and tornadoes in the Midwest. While snowfall is common in the mountains in May, significant snowfall at lower elevations like Denver in May only occurs every five or 10 years, climatologist Nolan Doesken said. Denver got 4 to 7 inches of typical heavy, wet snow. In the West, high winds sent dust blowing across Arizona and New Mexico, and the Los Angeles area had been under “red flag” fire warnings, with authorities saying blazes could quickly spread out of control. MARK REIS • The Gazette

news services

In Ohio, rare twins are breathing on their own

Twin girls born with a rare condition are breathing on their own and their mom said she and her husband were able to hold them on Mother's Day. Sarah Thistlethwaite, above, said Jillian and Jenna — who were born holding hands — were removed from ventilators after they were able to breathe comfortably. "It's just hard to put into words how amazing it feels to know the girls are OK," she said. The identical twins shared the same amniotic sac and placenta. Such births are called monoamniotic, or "mono mono," and doctors say they occur in about one of every 10,000 pregnancies.