Survey shows enough votes to remove flag

Survey shows enough votes to remove flag

COLUMBIA, S.C.

A survey of South Carolina legislators shows there is enough support to remove the Confederate flag from Statehouse grounds if all supporters cast a vote.

The Post and Courier newspaper, the South Carolina Press Association and The Associated Press asked all lawmakers how they intend to vote. At least 33 senators and 83 House members say the flag should go.

That appears to meet the two-thirds majority needed from both chambers to move the battle flag. That rule is part of the 2000 compromise that took the flag off the Statehouse dome and put a smaller, square version beside a monument to Confederate soldiers.

US training of Syrian rebels losing ground

WASHINGTON

The U.S. military’s program to train and equip thousands of moderate Syrian rebels is faltering, with fewer than 100 volunteers, raising questions about whether the effort can produce enough capable fighters quickly enough to make a difference in the war against the Islamic State.

The stated U.S. goal is to train and equip 5,400 rebels per year, and military officials said last week that they still hope for 3,000 by year’s end. Privately, they acknowledge the trend is moving in the wrong direction.

On June 26, 2014, the White House said it was asking Congress for $500 million for a three-year train-and-equip program. The training only got started in May after months of recruiting and vetting of volunteers.

Nuclear talks set for several more days

VIENNA

World powers and Iran prepared to move past today’s deadline for a comprehensive nuclear agreement, with officials suggesting significant backtracking by Tehran’s negotiators that may need several more days of discussions to resolve.

On a day that served as an early intermission in the negotiation, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met the head of the U.N. nuclear agency in Vienna while Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif received his latest guidance from leaders in Tehran. Zarif was scheduled to return to the talks today, followed by the arrival of Russia’s top diplomat.

Man mistakenly buys winning lottery ticket

FAIRFIELD, CONN.

A man in southwestern Connecticut who mistakenly bought the wrong lottery ticket is $30,000 wealthier.

Bob Sabo, of Easton, says he didn’t want to wait in line to buy a lottery ticket at the Super Stop & Shop in Fairfield, so he decided to buy a ticket from a lottery vending machine – something he had previously never done.

Sabo says he meant to buy two $20 tickets, but says he didn’t have his glasses on and instead bought a $30 ticket. When he got home, he discovered the ticket was a winner.

Solar plane heads from Japan to Hawaii

TOKYO

A solar-powered plane took off from Japan early Monday to attempt a five-day flight over open water to Hawaii, the eighth leg of its bid to fly around the world without fuel. The Solar Impulse 2 departed at 3:03 a.m. after an unscheduled, month-long stop in Japan because of unfavorable weather.

The flight to Hawaii, by far the longest of the journey so far, is risky because there are few places to land in an emergency.

Swiss pilot Andre Borschberg is flying solo. The plane, which started in Abu Dhabi on March 9, is powered by more than 17,000 solar cells on its wings that recharge its batteries. From Hawaii, it is to continue on to Phoenix, then hopscotch across the U.S. and the Atlantic to Europe, before returning to Abu Dhabi.

Associated Press