MBA for mom who went to all classes with quadriplegic son
ORANGE, Calif. (AP) — A Southern California university has awarded an honorary degree to the mother of a quadriplegic student after she attended every class with him and took his notes while he pursued his Master of Business Administration.
Judy O’Connor, a retired elementary school teacher, pushed her son Marty in his wheelchair for him to receive his degree during commencement Saturday at Chapman University in the Los Angeles suburb of Orange.
Then a choked-up graduation announcer said the school’s faculty, administrators and board of trustees had decided to give her an MBA. The idea for the surprise honorary degree came from her son.
A stunned but composed Judy O’Connor blew a kiss to the crowd giving her a standing ovation.
“I’m a geek. I love being in school,” she said before the ceremony. “I’m not going to lie. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”
Duterte declares martial rule in besieged south Philippines
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte declared the country’s south under martial rule for 60 days and cut short a visit to Moscow on Tuesday after Muslim extremists allied with the Islamic State group laid siege to a southern city.
Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella told a news conference in Moscow that martial rule took effect Tuesday evening in the southern region of Mindanao “on the grounds of existence of rebellion.”
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said troops raided the hideout of a top terrorist suspect in southern Marawi city on Tuesday, sparking a gunbattle that prompted the militants to call for reinforcements from an allied group, the Maute. He said dozens of gunmen occupied city hall, a hospital and a jail and burned a Catholic church, a jail, a college and some houses in a bold attack that killed at least two soldiers and a police officer and wounded 12 others.
Several militants were killed in the fighting in Marawi city in Lanao del Sur province, about 830 kilometers (520 miles) south of Manila, but others continued to lay siege to the largely Muslim city of more than 200,000 people, officials said, adding that power was cut in the city in a chaotic scene.
“The whole of Marawi city is blacked out, there is no light, and there are Maute snipers all around,” Lorenzana said in the news conference in Moscow, which was broadcast live in the Philippines.
Philippine Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said he informed his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, of Duterte’s decision to fly home early to deal with the crisis. Cayetano said he would stay behind in Moscow, where a number of agreements are to be signed between the governments.
Duterte met late Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin and said he is counting on Russia to supply weapons for the Philippines to fight terrorism.
Trump, Francis: After clashing, a search for common ground
VATICAN CITY (AP) — They are stylistic opposites, one a bombastic tycoon-turned-president, the other a famously modest pope. They disagree openly on such weighty issues as immigration, climate change and economic policy.
But President Donald Trump and Pope Francis share a trait that adds drama to their first meeting Wednesday: unpredictability. And when they greet each other — in a Vatican ceremony laden with history and symbolism — they may well find common ground, particularly in denouncing religiously inspired violence and demanding Muslim leaders take a greater stand in rooting out fanaticism from their places of worship.
To reach public harmony, the two men, unquestionably two of the most famous figures on the planet, will have to set aside their past and very public conflicts.
When Trump took his oath of office on Jan. 20, Francis sent him a telegram of congratulations, offering his prayers for wisdom and strength that the new president’s decisions would be guided by ethical values.
“Under your leadership, may America’s stature continue to be measured above all by its concern for the poor, the outcast and those in need, who, like Lazarus, stand before our door,” the message read.
10 people seated on jury in Bill Cosby’s sex assault trial
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The jury that will hear Bill Cosby’s sexual assault case was filling up quickly Tuesday as lawyers and prosecutors worked to select panelists who they believe would be favorable to their side.
A black woman who said she knows only “basic information” about the case and a young white man who initially expressed a tendency to believe police were the latest to be added to the panel. The man said he could put that bias aside if instructed to do so, leading defense lawyers to accept him on the panel.
The jury so far consists of six men and four women — all but one of them white — in a case that Cosby says may have racial undertones.
The actor-comedian once known as America’s Dad for his beloved portrayal of Dr. Cliff Huxtable on “The Cosby Show” is charged with drugging and molesting a Temple University women’s basketball team manager at his home near Philadelphia in 2004. He has called the encounter consensual.
Dozens of other women have made similar accusations against Cosby, 79, but Judge Steven T. O’Neill is allowing only one of them to testify at the June 5 trial in suburban Philadelphia. The jury from Pittsburgh will be sequestered nearly 300 miles from home.
In Trump’s private moments, it is small talk and compliments
JERUSALEM (AP) — What do world leaders talk about when they are alone? Not much it seems.
President Donald Trump spent part of his two-day visit to Israel with open microphones nearby, giving the world a small glimpse into his private banter with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu between official appearances.
They chatted about paint on the walls, their wives and where to stand during a ceremony. And they exchanged compliments — lots of compliments.
This presidential small talk provided just some of the memorable moments of Trump’s swing through the Middle East, the first stop on his first overseas trip as president. There was an awkward Saudi sword dance, an airport selfie with a pushy Israeli lawmaker and a possible snub by Melania Trump.
With Trump off to Rome to meet the pope, here is a look at some of the highlights:
