GOP ponders how to capitalize on Obama's woes
WASHINGTON (AP) - The scandals dogging President Barack Obama are a political gift to Republicans, who could use some good luck after recent election losses. It's not clear, however, how Republicans can best capitalize on Democrats' woes, legislatively or politically. Last November's election dynamics complicate the picture on both fronts. Republican leaders are urging a bit of restraint in exploiting the White House's new weaknesses.

Tornadoes level homes in Okla., 1 dead
SHAWNEE, Okla. (AP) - Tornadoes ravaged portions of central Oklahoma on Sunday, reducing portions of a mobile home park to rubble and killing a 79-year-old man whose body was found out in the open. "You can see where there's absolutely nothing, then there are places where you have mobile home frames on top of each other, debris piled up," Pottawatomie County Sheriff Mike Booth said after surviving damage in the Steelman Estates Mobile Home Park. "It looks like there's been heavy equipment in there on a demolition tour.

Split-second choice ended with NY student dead
NEW YORK (AP) - Experts say the officer who killed a Long Island college student and a home invasion suspect on Friday was confronted with a split-second choice. John Jay College of Criminal Justice professor Michele Galietta says the death of Hofstra University junior Andrea Rebello illustrates the difficulty officers face when responding to calls involving armed gunmen.

Small Fla. city wonders who won Powerball jackpot
ZEPHYRHILLS, Fla. (AP) - Some lucky person walked into a Publix supermarket in suburban Florida over the past few days and bought a ticket now worth an estimated $590.5 million - the highest Powerball jackpot in history. But it wasn't Matthew Bogel. On Sunday, he loaded groceries into his car after shopping at the Publix. He shook his head when asked about the jackpot.

Conn. derailment to cause 'greatly slowed' commute
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has a suggestion for commuters who manage to make it to work in New York City from southwest Connecticut: You might want to stay put in the Big Apple - all week. The governor warned that Monday's commute is expected to be "extremely challenging" following the collision and derailment of two trains outside Bridgeport last week that injured 72 people.

Syrian troops push into strategic rebel-held town
BEIRUT (AP) - Syrian troops pushed into a rebel-held town near the Lebanese border on Sunday, fighting house-to-house and bombing from the air as President Bashar Assad tried to strengthen his grip on a strategic strip of land running from the capital to the Mediterranean coast. With the regime scoring gains on the battlefield, the U.S. and Russia could face an even tougher task persuading Assad and his opponents to attend talks on ending Syria's 26-month-old conflict. Washington and Moscow hope to start talks with an international conference as early as next month, though no date has been set.

SKorea analyzing NKorea's 4 projectile launches
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korea is analyzing whether projectiles North Korea fired into its eastern waters over the weekend are short-range missiles or a new type of artillery the country may be developing, officials said Monday. North Korea fired what Seoul officials called a short-range projectile Sunday, a day after conducting three similar launches. South Korean officials earlier said the weapons fired on Saturday were guided missiles but later clarified that they may not be missiles, referring to the objects as "projectiles."

Obama exhorts good deeds by Morehouse graduates
ATLANTA (AP) - President Barack Obama, in a soaring commencement address on work, sacrifice and opportunity, on Sunday told graduates of historically black Morehouse College to seize the power of their example as black men graduating from college and use it to improve people's lives. The president said his success was due to "the special obligation I felt, as a black man like you, to help those who need it most, people who didn't have the opportunities that I had - because there but for the grace of God, go I. I might have been in their shoes. I might have been in prison. I might have been unemployed. I might not have been able to support a family. And that motivates me."

Taylor Swift wins 8 trophies at Billboard Awards
Another day, another domination for Taylor Swift: She was the red hot winner at the Billboard Music Awards. Swift won eight of 11 awards, including top artist and top Billboard 200 album for "Red." She told the crowd: "You are the longest and best relationship I ever had."

Russian oligarchs foot most of 2014 Sochi Olympics
SOCHI, Russia (AP) - The mountains of Sochi are now home to Potanin's slope, Gazprom's gondola lift and Sberbank's ski jump. The nicknames used by locals and an army of construction workers leave no doubt about who is paying for the 2014 Winter Games: Russia's business powerhouses. Other countries that have hosted the Olympics have overwhelmingly used public funds to pay for the construction of needed venues and new infrastructure. The Russian government, however, has gotten state-controlled companies and tycoons to foot more than half of the bill, which now stands at $51 billion and makes the 2014 Winter Games by far the most expensive Olympics in history. In contrast, the much-larger 2012 Summer Olympics in London cost about $14.3 billion and the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing cost about $40 billion.