AP News in Brief at 11:04 p.m. EDT

Trump launches probe into auto imports, possible tariffs

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Wednesday launched an investigation into whether tariffs are needed on the imports of automobiles into the United States, moving swiftly as talks over the North American Free Trade Agreement have stalled. President Donald Trump predicted earlier that U.S. automakers and auto workers would be “very happy” with the outcome of the NAFTA talks.

The White House said in a statement that the president had asked Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to consider whether the imports of automobiles, including trucks, and automotive parts threaten U.S. national security. The president said in the statement that “core industries such as automobiles and automotive parts are critical to our strength as a Nation.”

The U.S. remains far apart on the talks over rewriting the trade pact with Canada and Mexico, with the discussions at an impasse over rules for car production. The initiation of the trade investigation could be seen as an attempt to gain leverage in the talks with the two U.S. neighbours. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has said that efforts to renegotiate the trade agreement could spill into next year.

Nearly half of the vehicles sold in the U.S. are imported, with many coming from assembly plants in Mexico and Canada. During a meeting with auto executives earlier this month, Trump said he would push for an increase in the production of vehicles built at U.S. plants. He has also criticized European Union auto imports and tariffs and earlier this year threatened a “tax” on European imports.

A person familiar with the discussions said the president has suggested seeking new tariffs of 20 to 25 per cent on automobile imports. The person spoke on condition of anonymity and was not authorized to speak about private deliberations.

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Pompeo: Fate of US-NKorea summit rests with Kim Jong Un

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Wednesday he’s “very hopeful” that a planned U.S.-North Korean summit will proceed but laid the fate of the historic meeting squarely with Kim Jong Un, who won’t be reassured by U.S. demands for “rapid denuclearization.”

The decision about whether the June 12 meeting in Singapore between Kim and President Donald Trump happens is “ultimately up to Chairman Kim,” Pompeo told the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Lawmakers’ questioning of Pompeo followed Trump’s comment Tuesday that “there’s a very substantial chance” the meeting would not proceed as scheduled.

Trump told reporters Wednesday, “Whatever it is, we will know next week about Singapore and if we go I think it will be a great thing for North Korea.”

On Thursday, though, a top North Korean official said recent comments by Vice-President Mike Pence were “stupid” and “ignorant” and warned the country is willing to pull out of the summit. Pence told Fox News on Monday that North Korea could end up like Libya if Kim failed to make a deal.

“Whether the U.S. will meet us at a meeting room or encounter us at nuclear-to-nuclear showdown is entirely dependent upon the decision and behaviour of the United States,” said Choe Son Hui, vice minister of foreign affairs.

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10 Things to Know for Thursday

Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about Thursday:

1. HOW TRUMP IS PUSHING BACK AT MUELLER

The president brands his latest attempt to discredit the special counsel’s Russia investigation as “spygate,” part of a newly invigorated strategy to raise suspicions about the probe.

2. NFL MOVES TO QUELL ANTHEM FIRESTORM

The league’s owners approve a policy requiring players to stand if they are on the field during the national anthem but permitting them to stay in the locker room.

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Critics: NFL decision chooses mainstream appeal over players

WASHINGTON (AP) — With its decision to ban kneeling during the national anthem, critics are accusing the NFL of prioritizing being in the good financial graces of mainstream America over the social justice passions of its players trying to draw attention to the deaths of African-Americans at the hands of police.

Some opponents of the new policy now vow to never watch an NFL game again.

The NFL’s new anthem policy — similar to NBA rules in place for decades — makes the athletes stand for “The Star-Spangled Banner” or be absent from the field while it’s played.

Critics say the league acted without input from its majority-black players and buckled to pressure from some major advertisers and even President Donald Trump, who rallied his mostly-white base against players for failing to display their patriotism, shifting the debate from social justice for minorities to how to act during the anthem itself. Others, including some players, applauded the league’s action or took no issue with the policy.

“I think they made this decision to placate Donald Trump and those like him who blindly equate standing for the national anthem with patriotism,” said Democratic U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond of Louisiana, chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus. “The country I want is a country where everyone wants to stand for the national anthem,” Richmond said, emphasizing the word “wants.”

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Mexican Mafia busted for running crime in LA County jails

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles County jails are run by the sheriff, but the Mexican Mafia wielded the power in the underworld behind bars.

The organization made up of leaders from various Latino gangs operated like an illegal government, collecting “taxes” on smuggled drugs, ordering hits on people who didn’t follow their rules and even calling the shots on street crimes, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

Their clout was diminished as 83 members and associates were charged in a pair of sweeping federal racketeering conspiracies that alleged drug dealing, extortion, violent assaults and even murders.

“We just delivered a blow to a cold-blooded prison gang and their associates,” U.S. Attorney Nick Hanna said during a news conference.

The so-called “gang of gangs” — an organization of imprisoned Latino street gang leaders who control operations inside and outside California prisons and jails — started in the 1950s at a juvenile jail and grew to an international criminal organization that has controlled smuggling, drug sales and extortion inside the nation’s largest jail system.

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Las Vegas strike would have far-reaching effect

LAS VEGAS (AP) — What happens in Las Vegas could have a ripple effect across the country if 50,000 casino-hotel workers employed at more than 30 of the city’s world-famous resorts go on strike at any time starting next week.

If members of the union that includes hotel and food workers don’t show up to work, it could cost the destination millions and lead to travel woes for anyone taking a vacation or business trip to Sin City. It could also send casinos looking for temporary workers amid low unemployment rates.

Analysts declined Wednesday to weigh in on the financial impact that a strike could have on casino operators. But the casinos and hotels aren’t the only ones who would feel the squeeze; local and state governments stand to lose millions from the impact on tourism.

The last time casino-hotel workers went on strike across Las Vegas, the job action lasted 67 days and cost workers and the city more than $1 million a day each in lost wages and revenues, not counting gambling losses. The price could be much higher this time if the two sides can’t reach agreements: The city has 90,000 more hotel rooms and gets an additional 29 million visitors a year.

David Fiorenza, who teaches urban economics at Villanova University, said local and state governments will start to notice a hit to their sales tax revenue if the strike lingers. And if hotel stays decrease, there will be less revenue from the local hotel tax.

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AP source: Jared Kushner granted security clearance

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, has been granted a security clearance after a lengthy background check, a move that ensures the key White House adviser with a broad international portfolio can have access to some of the country’s most closely held secrets.

Kushner, who serves as a senior adviser on the Middle East and other issues, was among many White House advisers who had been operating for months without full security clearances. That led to a policy overhaul in February that downgraded access to sensitive information for Kushner and other White House officials who held interim clearances.

“With respect to the news about his permanent security clearance, as we stated before, his application was properly submitted, reviewed by career officials, and went through the normal process,” Kushner’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said in a statement. “Having completed these processes, Mr. Kushner is looking forward to continuing the work the President has asked him to do.”

In addition, Kushner was interviewed for a second time last month by the office of special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating potential ties between the Trump campaign and Russia.

“In each occasion, he answered all questions asked and did whatever he could to expedite the conclusion of all the (investigations),” Lowell said.

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Seething over Russia probe, Trump tears into ‘spygate’

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has branded his latest attempt to discredit the special counsel’s Russia investigation as “spygate,” part of a newly invigorated strategy embraced by his Republican colleagues to raise suspicions about the probe that has dogged his presidency since the start.

Trump now is zeroing in on — and at times embellishing — reports that a longtime U.S. government informant approached members of his 2016 campaign during the presidential election in a possible bid to glean intelligence on Russian efforts to sway the election. He tweeted Wednesday morning that the FBI has been caught in a “major SPY scandal.”

Trump’s latest broadsides set the stage for an unusual decision by the White House to arrange a briefing about classified documents for just two Republican House members, both Trump allies, in a meeting Thursday, as Trump and his supporters in Congress press for information on the outside informant.

After Democratic complaints and negotiations that went into the late evening Wednesday, the White House said it would also give a second briefing to a group of lawmakers known as the “Gang of Eight” immediately after the briefing for the two House Republicans. The “Gang of Eight” includes the top Republicans and Democrats in each chamber and the top Republicans and Democrats on the House and Senate intelligence committees. According to the Justice Department, White House Chief of Staff John Kelly and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein were also added to the roster after not being included on the original list.

It remains unclear what, if any, spying was done. The White House has given no evidence to support Trump’s claim that the Obama administration was trying to spy on his 2016 campaign for political reasons. It’s long been known that the FBI was looking into Russian meddling during the campaign and that part of that inquiry touched on the Trump campaign’s contacts with Russian figures.

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After mass shootings, NRA pins blame on familiar list

In the aftermath of recent school shootings, a familiar pattern has played out in the debate over guns.

Gun-control advocates push for tougher laws, including universal background checks to prohibiting the sale and possession of AR-style long guns. The National Rifle Association and many Republican leaders insist the root of the problem is not guns but a range of issues such as mental health, school security, video games and excessive prescriptions of attention-deficit disorder drugs such as Ritalin.

Gun-control advocates call the strategy a clever smoke screen to avoid having to talk about gun control. The cycle repeats with the next mass shooting.

The talking points have evolved over the years and become part of the NRA playbook in response to recent school shootings — and in turn have been echoed by Republican leaders in states such as Texas that have experienced gun violence in schools.

Here is a closer look at contentions by the NRA:

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Ovechkin, Holtsby shine in Game 7, Caps beat Lightning 4-0

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Alex Ovechkin scored early and Andre Burakovsky added two second-period goals to help the Washington Capitals put a decade of playoff frustration behind them with a 4-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final Wednesday night.

Braden Holtby stopped 29 shots for his second straight shutout and the Lightning, who led the NHL in goals during the regular season, failed to score in the last 159 minutes, 27 seconds — a stretch of nearly eight periods.

Ovechkin, who had never played a team that advanced beyond the second round, scored 1:02 into the winner-take-all showdown he had described as probably the “biggest game in my life.”

Nicklas Backstrom had an empty-netter to complete the rout.

To earn a spot in the Stanley Cup Final, where they’ll play the Vegas Golden Knights, the Capitals beat the top-seeded Lightning three times on the road, improving to 8-2 away from home this post-season.