AP News Summary at 1:10 am EST

Pelosi, dominant figure for the ages, leaves lasting imprint

WASHINGTON (AP) — When Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that she won’t re-up as a House leader next year, even her adversaries acknowledged that hers was a remarkable era. Former Republican speaker Newt Gingrich says she was a “totally dominant” figure in Congress and “one of the strongest speakers in history.” Her Democratic allies agree. Pelosi was strikingly successful at holding together their fractious party. Polarizing and combative, she nevertheless forged compromises with Republicans on historic legislation. Pelosi prevailed for nearly 20 years as House Democratic leader, eight of them as speaker. She became the most powerful woman ever in US politics.

North Korea test-fires ICBM with range to strike entire US

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has fired an intercontinental ballistic missile that landed near Japanese waters in the second major weapons test this month that showed a potential ability to launch nuclear strikes on all of the US mainland. Japan’s defense minister says that, depending on the weight of a warhead to be placed on the missile, the weapon’s range could cover the entire mainland United States. The United States quickly slammed the launch and vowed to take “all necessary measures” to guarantee the safety of its mainland and allies South Korea and Japan. The North’s ongoing run of weapons tests aims to advance its nuclear arsenal as China and Russia have opposed US moves to toughen sanctions.

US moves to shield Saudi crown prince in journalist killing

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration says Saudi Arabia’s crown prince should be shielded from lawsuits over his role in the killing of a US-based journalist. The move Thursday marks a stunning turnaround for President Joe Biden, who as a candidate passionately denounced Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the killing. It comes in a motion filed by the US in a federal lawsuit brought by the fiancee of the late journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and by the rights group he founded. In its filing, the Biden administration supports an argument from Prince Mohammed that his high office renders him immune from lawsuits in US courts. Saudi officials killed Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018.

More Twitter workers flee after Musk’s ‘hardcore’ ultimatum

Twitter is continuing to bleed engineers and other workers after its new owner Elon Musk gave them a choice: either pledge to “hardcore” work or resign with severance pay. Many workers signed off via internal messaging forums Thursday and on Twitter itself. It’s not clear how many of Twitter’s already-decimated staff took Musk up on his offer. But the newest round of departures means the platform is continuing to loose workers just at it’s gearing up for the World Cup. The tournament is one of the busiest events on Twitter, and can overwhelm its systems if things go haywire.

Deadly missile strike adds to Ukraine war fears in Poland

PRZEWODOW, Poland (AP) — Since Russia invaded Ukraine more than eight months ago, Poland has aided its neighbor and millions of its refugees. The Poles acted both to ease the suffering of Ukrainians and to help guard against the war spilling into the rest of Europe. But a missile strike that killed two men Tuesday in a Polish village close to the Ukrainian border brought the conflict home and added to the long-suppressed sense of vulnerability in a country where the ravages of World War II are well remembered. Anna Grabinska is a Warsaw woman who has extended help to a Ukrainian mother of two small children. She says war is the thing she fears most in life.

To heal after parade tragedy, the Grannies must march again

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Almost a year ago, a driver plowed an SUV through a Christmas parade in Wisconsin, killing six people and scarring many more. Four of the victims were from the Milwaukee Dancing Grannies, a group of women who find their calling marching in parades throughout the state. The driver was convicted of murder. His actions took the lives of longtime leaders, threatening to extinguish the tight-knit band of women. Somehow, they held on. In a few weeks the calendar will come full circle and march again in the same parade where tragedy struck. To keep moving forward, they need to go back.

Oath Keepers Jan 6 sedition case moves to closing arguments

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors are expected to make their final pitch to jurors in the high-stakes seditious conspiracy case against Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and four associates charged in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol. Closing arguments by prosecutors will begin in Washington federal court on Friday after the final pieces of evidence were presented in the trial alleging Rhodes and his band of antigovernment extremists plotted for weeks to interrupt the peaceful transfer of power from Republican Donald Trump to Democrat Joe Biden. Closing arguments are expected to be Monday for the defense, which has focused on prosecutors’ relative lack of evidence that the Oath Keepers had an explicit plan to attack the Capitol before Jan. 6.

Alabama calls off execution after problem with venous access

ATMORE, Ala. (AP) — Alabama has called off the scheduled execution of a man convicted in the 1988 murder-for-hire slaying of a preacher’s wife after the state had trouble establishing venous access and the state faced a midnight deadline to get the execution underway. Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner John Hamm says prison staff tried for about an hour to get the two required intravenous lines connected to Kenneth Eugene Smith. Hamm said they got one established but were not able to get the second after trying several locations on Smith’s body. It is the second execution since September that the state has canceled because of venous access difficulties.

Judge wins AL MVP in runaway; Goldschmidt takes NL prize

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees has won the American League MVP award, and St. Louis Cardinals slugger Paul Goldschmidt took the NL prize. After hitting 62 home runs this season to break the AL record, Judge easily beat out Los Angeles Angels two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani in an MVP race some thought might be close. The 6-foot-7 outfielder received 28 of 30 first-place votes and two seconds for 410 points from a Baseball Writers’ Association of America panel. Ohtani, last year’s winner, was picked first on two ballots and second on the other 28 for 280 points. Goldschmidt won the NL award for the first time after a couple of close calls earlier in his career. Padre’s third baseman Manny Machado came in second.

Panel OKs name change of Colorado mountain tied to massacre

DENVER (AP) — A Colorado state panel has recommended Mount Evans, a prominent peak near Denver, to be renamed Mount Blue Sky. The Colorado Geographic Naming Advisory Board voted unanimously Thursday for the change at the request of the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes. Thursday’s vote comes as part of national efforts to address a history of colonialism and opposition against Native Americans and other people of color. The Arapaho were known as the Blue Sky People and the Cheyenne hold an annual ceremony called Blue Sky. The name still must receive approval from the governor before consideration by a federal panel. The peak is named after John Evans, Colorado’s second territorial governor, who resigned after an 1864 US cavalry massacre of more than 200 Arapaho and Cheyenne people.