Who takes care of the unclaimed dead, the people who were homeless or estranged from family members, or who outlived all their kin, and left no assets behind?   The answer is usually funeral homes that get reimbursed by state or local governments for the cost of cremation or burial. But payments are not keeping up with ever-rising expenses in some places, like Massachusetts, meaning the number of funeral homes willing to shoulder the burden is dwindling. In at least one state, West Virginia, drug overdose victims have used up nearly all the money set aside for the unclaimed dead.   “These are human beings, someone’s mother, father, sister, brother,” said Peter Stefan, a funeral director in his 70s who buries dozens of unclaimed bodies a year in central Massachusetts. “What do you do with these people? If I leave this place this way, the poor won’t have too many …

A company’s value is often tied to the message it portrays to customers. But what happens when other companies try to take advantage of your brand? Take the Philadelphia Eagles, for instance. The American football team wants to exclusively own the phrase: “Philly Special.” That was the trick play that helped them win the Super Bowl, and the Philly Special is, by far, the most talked-about play of the Super Bowl. Watch the play here: It is a gutsy move. In football-speak, it is a direct-snap reverse pass to quarterback Nick Foles, who usually throws the ball. But the coach gives the OK, and Foles tells his teammates the plan in the huddle. The team lines up, Foles runs up the field. Tight end Trey Burton throws the football, and Foles catches it in the end zone for a touchdown. “Play of the century” Now, the phrase, ‘Philly Special,’ has …

U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday again attacked Attorney General Jeff Sessions, branding as “disgraceful” his decision to call for an internal investigation of how officials sought approval for the clandestine surveillance of a former Trump campaign aide. The U.S. leader berated Sessions, whom he appointed to head the Justice Department, for asking the agency’s inspector general to “investigate potentially massive … abuse” in surveillance applications to the Federal Intelligence Surveillance Court. The Republican Trump claimed an inspector general’s investigation “will take forever,” and noted that Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz “has no prosecutorial power” and was appointed by former president Barack Obama, a Democrat. Trump said Horowitz was “already late” with finishing a report on alleged misconduct by former FBI Director James Comey in his handling of a 2016 investigation into the email practices of Democrat Hillary Clinton, Trump’s 2016 opponent. “Why not use Justice Department lawyers? DISGRACEFUL!” …

Dick’s Sporting Goods, one of the largest sports retailers in the U.S., will immediately end the sale of assault-style rifles in its stores and stop selling guns of any type to anyone under age 21. The company made the announcement Wednesday, precisely two weeks after a school shooting in Parkland, Florida. “We deeply believe that this country’s most precious gift is our children. They are our future. We must keep them safe. Beginning today, DICK’S Sporting Goods is committed to the following: http://d.sg/RTC,” the company said in a post on Twitter. “We need to make a statement,” chairman and CEO Edward Stack said in an interview Wednesday on CNN. “We don’t want to be part of this story any longer.” Stack said the Florida shooting suspect, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, legally purchased an AR-15 assault rifle from Dick’s in November, but it was not the one used to kill 14 students …

U.S. President Donald Trump is praising a decision allowing construction of the wall he wants built along the U.S.-Mexican border, a ruling handed down by the same federal judge he ridiculed during the presidential campaign because of the jurist’s Mexican heritage. The U.S. leader, in a Twitter comment, said the decision by Judge Gonzalo Curiel on Tuesday was a “big victory.” He also said, “OUR COUNTRY MUST HAVE BORDER SECURITY.” Trump did not mention his previous criticism of the jurist. Trump said despite the court ruling in his favor, he would not build parts of the wall until the entire structure along the 3,200-kilometer border with Mexico is approved by Congress, minus areas where the natural terrain makes a barrier unnecessary. But Congress has yet to approve funding for the wall, which could cost more than $20 billion. Trump said California wanted construction to start; however, the western state was …

U.S. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s plan for a major realignment to put more of his department’s decision-makers in the field has a fundamental flaw, in the eyes of some who spent their careers making those decisions: They’re already out there. Eleven former Interior Department officials with decades of experience in both Washington and in local offices told The Associated Press the agency already has a well-established system for decentralized decision-making. “Ninety percent-plus of the decisions that get made get made at the local level,” said Scott Florence, who retired after 38 years with the Bureau of Land Management, the Interior Department’s second-largest branch. The problem, some said, is that over the past few years, an increasing number of decisions that should have been made locally were ultimately decided in Washington because of political pressure, under both Democratic and Republican administrations. And since 91.5 percent of the department’s workforce of about …

President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort has pleaded not guilty to a combined set of charges that were filed against him last week by special counsel Robert Mueller, who has been probing Russian interference in the U.S. election. A trial date has been set for September 17.   Among the new charges are accusations that Manafort, along with former Trump campaign aide Rick Gates’ help, laundered more than $30 million through hidden offshore accounts and “used his hidden overseas wealth to enjoy a lavish lifestyle in the United States without paying taxes on that income.” The two allegedly disguised the money earned from their work in Ukraine as “loans” to avoid taxes, and they doctored financial documents to overstate their income to obtain additional loans. The indictment says they used the money to buy real estate, make home improvements, and in Gates’ case, pay for his children’s school …

The United Nations has set up a 24-hour helpline to fight sexual harassment among its staff in the workplace as part of its Zero Tolerance policy regarding sexual exploitation and abuse.  The so-called “Speak Up” hotline is part of the U.N. Secretary-General’s wider initiative to fight sexual harassment and to support victims and witnesses.  U.N. spokeswoman in Geneva, Alessandra Vellucci, explains U.N. staff can call the helpline 24 hours a day to speak confidentially to a trained, impartial person about problems of sexual abuse and to provide information. She says the United Nations also is creating a specialized team to investigate cases of sexual harassment. “Particular attention of this would be on increasing the number of female investigators,” she said. “So, basically we are strengthening our tools to answer to this problem and put victims at the core of our action.” While the United Nations can deal with internal problems …

Students who survived one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history are returning to school Wednesday, as federal and state lawmakers continue to debate how to prevent young people from losing their lives in what they all agree should be the safe confines of the nation’s schools. There have been no classes at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Florida since a gunman killed 17 people there earlier this month. The massacre has reignited the the long-running debate over gun laws. House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan told reporters Tuesday a “gap” in the nation’s background check system for gun buyers must be filled and called for the implementation of “sweeping mental health reform.” “These are the kinds of things that we are going to be discussing with our members, with the Senate, and with the president,” Ryan said. What Ryan and other Republican lawmakers have not called for, …

The Russian Embassy in Washington has a new address, at least symbolically. A one-block section of Wisconsin Avenue directly in front of the embassy was officially renamed Boris Nemtsov Plaza on Tuesday, in what amounts to a D.C.-sponsored effort to troll the Russian government. A former deputy prime minister, Nemtsov became an opposition activist and vocal public critic of President Vladimir Putin. He was shot dead while walking on a bridge near the Kremlin three years ago. The move to rename the street started in the U.S. Congress at the urging of Senator Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, and others. “This serves as an enduring reminder to Vladimir Putin and those who support him that they cannot use murder and intimidation to suppress dissent,” Rubio said. Such politicized street-naming games are not new to Washington. In recent years, there have been moves to name the street on which China’s embassy …

A California man has been charged with trying to travel to Libya to join Islamic State, New York federal prosecutors announced Tuesday. In a criminal complaint unsealed in Brooklyn federal court, prosecutors said that Bernard Augustine, 21, traveled to Tunisia in February 2016 and from there attempted to reach Islamic State-controlled territory in Libya. Augustine, of Keyes, California, has been charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted, prosecutors said. A lawyer for Augustine could not immediately be identified. Prosecutors said that Augustine was arrested and imprisoned in Tunisia before Tunisian authorities turned him over to the United States. In March 2016, U.S. authorities searched Augustine’s laptop and found that he had viewed Islamic State videos in the months leading up to his trip and made online postings supporting the group. Authorities also interviewed a person …

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a new initiative Tuesday that will target painkiller manufacturers and distributors who overprescribe and allow the misuse of prescription drugs by addicts.  The initiative, Sessions said, will tackle the opioid crisis “at its root.”  The Prescription Interdiction and Litigation (PIL) Task Force will “use criminal and civil actions” to ensure that prescription painkiller manufacturers and distributors adhere to Drug Enforcement Administration rules against diversion and over-prescription of pain drugs. The task force will use the False Claims Act to target pain management clinics, drug testing facilities and doctors who improperly prescribe opioids, the Justice Department said.  “Over the past year, the Department has vigorously fought the prescription opioid crisis, and we are determined to continue making progress,” Sessions said at a press conference in Washington. “Today, we are opening a new front in the war on the opioid crisis by bringing all of our anti-opioid …

A resolution approved Tuesday by a committee in the U.S. House of Representatives has made it legal for House members to use taxpayer funds to buy bulletproof vests and other security equipment. The Committee on House Administration, which does not need approval from the full House to enact decisions about internal procedures, approved the security measures resolution Tuesday. The decision comes at a time when concerns about gun use are heightened by the recent school shooting in Parkland, Florida, but also after the shooting of five people — including House Majority White Steve Scalise of Louisiana — at a baseball field last June. A gunman opened fire at a practice session of Republican House members and staff in Alexandria, Virginia. Scalise, shot in the pelvis, was critically injured, but recovered and returned to service in the House in September 2017. …

U.S. senators who just returned from a trip to Israel called Tuesday for an increase in the $38 billion in military aid the United States is currently providing Israel, signaling support for more funds for Israeli missile systems. Senators Lindsey Graham, a leading Republican foreign policy voice, and Chris Coons, a Democratic member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said they considered the provision of $38 billion over 10 years “a floor.” Graham said during a meeting with reporters that he thought provisions in the agreement phasing out an arrangement in which Israel could spend U.S. funds on its own defense industry and the provision of just $500 million in missile defense funding were “short-sighted.” Coons said tensions in the broader region supported the idea of more funding for Israel, citing the ongoing war in Syria and Iran’s recent use of a stealth drone. The United States and Israel signed …

The same federal judge who President Donald Trump derided during the presidential campaign because of his Mexican heritage ruled in favor of Trump’s desire for a wall along the Mexican border. Judge Gonzalo Curiel on Tuesday dismissed legal challenges to the wall by the state of California and a number of environmental groups. The judge wrote that the plaintiffs failed to prove the administration overstepped its legal authority by ordering the wall. They had argued the project violates environmental rules and the rights of states to decide whether it wants the wall on their side of the border. Curiel said his decision was not based on whether building the wall was “politically wise or prudent.” Curiel oversaw lawsuits of alleged fraud by Trump University during the 2016 presidential campaign. Trump, then a Republican candidate, ridiculed the U.S.-born judge over his Mexican heritage and accused him of bias. Trump paid a …

Three of President Donald Trump’s senior economic aides are expected to meet this week with a top Chinese economic official to discuss trade disputes between the United States and China. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders told Reuters that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Trump’s economic adviser, Gary Cohn, are expected to meet Chinese economic adviser Liu He in Washington. The talks are likely to cover a range of differences including intellectual property and steel. Trump has long called for a more balanced trade relationship with China and threatened to impose a big “fine” against China to protect American intellectual property. U.S. officials said Trump has been discussing imposing a global tariff on imports of steel from China, the world’s largest steel producer, and other countries. The talks with Liu may help determine the trajectory of the U.S.-Chinese trade relationship, which Trump believes is heavily …

The number of anti-Semitic incidents in the United States surged by 57 percent last year, according to a tally by the Anti-Defamation League, an increase the advocacy group’s chief executive blamed in part on President Donald Trump. The group’s Audit of Anti-Semitic Incidents counted 1,986 such incidents last year, including physical assaults, vandalism and attacks on Jewish institutions, up from 1,267 incidents in 2016, making it the largest single-year increase on record. ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said that Trump bore some responsibility for the increase for not condemning events like last summer’s white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, as well as scattered incidences of bomb threats, cemetery desecration and school bullying. “Some of his tweets and rhetoric have emboldened and given encouragement to the worst segments of society, anti-Semites and bigots,” Greenblatt said in a phone interview. “The president’s comments on the rally, saying there were good people on both …