Dorothy Abernathy, The Associated Press bureau chief for West Virginia and Virginia, shares the 10 things you need to know Wednesday, June 4, 2014. Look for full stories on these late-breaking news items, upcoming events and stories in West Virginia newspapers.
1. TALIBAN RELEASE VIDEO OF US SOLDIER’S HANDOVER
Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is shown in traditional Afghan clothing sitting in a pickup truck surrounded by more than a dozen militants.
2. OBAMA PINS HOPES OF UKRAINE’S UNITY ON CANDY MAKER
The president’s meeting with Petro Poroshenko in Warsaw comes 10 days after the billionaire was chosen as Kiev’s first elected leader since the ouster of pro-Moscow Viktor Yanukovych.
3. GOP SENATE PICKS DELIGHT PARTY LEADERS
Blending the tea party and mainstream energies, Republicans continue their march toward an impressive lineup of candidates this fall.
4. WHO IS TRYING TO STEP UP TIES WITH NORTH KOREA
Russia is moving rapidly to bolster relations with Pyongyang in a diplomatic nose-thumbing that could hinder the U.S.-led effort to convince the Asian country to give up its nuclear weapons.
5. NO OBAMACARE ALTERNATIVE IN SIGHT
House Republicans are united as ever in their election-year opposition to the health care law, but they are conflicted on their promise to vote this year on a substitute plan.
6. AUSTRALIANS EXAMINE NEW DATA FOR LINKS TO MISSING JET
An unusual underwater sound was recorded around the time Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 vanished, though scientists doubt it is linked to the plane.
7. MORE REPORTS OF SECRET WAITING LISTS AT VA HOSPITALS
Officials say long waiting times that led to delayed care in Arizona also existed in Kansas, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana.
8. HOW IRAN IS TRYING TO BLOCK KABUL’S OPIUM BOOM
Tehran works on sealing its border with Afghanistan in an effort to combat drug trafficking.
9. TATTOOS MAY SERVE AS EVIDENCE OF CRIME
Police use body art as a way to identify suspects, but only rarely do they play a pivotal role as proof of wrongdoing.
10. WHAT WORLD CUP’S NEW QUANDARY IS
Soccer squads debate the age-old argument that abstaining from sex improves performance on the field as Brazil’s temptations stir players’ testosterone.
