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In his first public address since the end of the Trump administration, former Vice President Mike Pence put down a marker for a potential return to elected office, telling an audience in early-voting South Carolina that he plans to use the coming months “pushing back on the liberal agenda” he says is wrong for the country. The choice of South Carolina for Pence’s post-administration debut on Thursday has definite political overtones, helping him develop exposure for a potential 2024 presidential bid. The state holds the first presidential primaries in the South, and candidates of both major parties typically spend more than a year in the state ahead of those votes.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mostly lower Friday amid uncertainty about the prospects for a global economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 dipped 0.5% in morning trading to 28,900.98. South Korea's Kospi slipped 0.7% to…

Kevin Durant scored a season-high 42 points, including 22 in the third quarter, and the Eastern Conference-leading Brooklyn Nets glided to a 130-113 victory over the struggling Indiana Pacers. Playing without Kyrie Irving and James Harden, the Nets built a double-digit lead by the second quarter and were never seriously threatened. Durant hit 16 of 24 shots and had 10 assists in his eighth start since being sidelined for nearly two months with a hamstring injury. It was the All-Star forward’s third game of 30 points or more since his return, which was also interrupted for three games by a thigh injury.

There was no suspense at the top of this NFL draft. The top three picks were a quarterback, a quarterback and, yep, another quarterback. Clemson’s Trevor Lawrence went to the Jacksonville Jaguars to get things started. He was followed by BYU’s Zach Wilson going to the New York Jets and North Dakota State’s Trey Lance landing with the San Francisco 49ers. That matched 1971 and 1999 as the only drafts with quarterbacks taken as the top three picks. Commissioner Roger Goodell was on hand to dispense greetings to players being selected in front of fans in Cleveland. Last year's draft was conducted virtually because of the pandemic.

Authorities say a gunman who killed himself, two deputies and his mother and stepfather in a 13-hour home standoff in North Carolina had a large cache of weapons and may have been contemplating an attack in public. Watauga County Sheriff Len Hagaman identified the dead on Thursday. He said George Wyatt Ligon and his wife Michelle were dead along with the shooting suspect, 32-year-old Isaac Alton Barnes. Barnes was Michelle Ligon’s son and the man’s stepson.  Hagaman said family members had expressed concerns about the large number of weapons in Barnes’ possession and what he might try to do.

Keegan Bradley had no stress and no bogeys on the tough Copperhead course at Innisbrook. That added to a 64 and at two-shot lead at the Valspar Championship. Bradley is no stranger to good starts at Innisbrook. This is the fifth straight time he has been no worse than sixth after the opening round. Twice he went on to miss the cut. So Friday is important. Max Homa and Ryan Moore were among those two shots behind. Dustin Johnson had to settle for a 71. Justin Thomas celebrated his 28th birthday with a 69. Monday qualifier Michael Visacki shot 74.

ELM GROVE, Wis. (AP) — Standing on the sidelines of her son's soccer practice in this upscale suburb, Laura Hahn looked skyward for answers when asked how she would rate President Joe Biden's first 100 days in office. Overall, Biden…

Kings of Leon’s rock and roll journey has taken them from an NFT to the NFL. One of rock’s biggest acts, the band visited the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame to see a new exhibit featuring their venture into cryptocurrency before they opened the NFL draft with their first live show in more than a year. In March, the band released its eighth studio album, “When You See Yourself” as a non-fungible token or NFT, a digital form of currency that can only be used in its own ecosystem. 

Some Midwestern farmers are suing the federal government alleging they're ineligible for a COVID-19 stimulus loan forgiveness program because they're white. The group of farmers hails from Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, Illinois and Ohio. They filed the lawsuit in Milwaukee on Thursday. They argue that the Biden administration's stimulus plan provides loan forgiveness to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, defined as Black, American Indian, Hispanic or Pacific Islander. The lawsuit alleges that violates white farmers' constitutional rights. U.S. Department of Agriculture officials said in a statement that the agency is reviewing the lawsuit, but the agency plans to continue to offer loan forgiveness to “socially disadvantaged” farmers.

Long-running family turmoil and allegations of human rights abuses against Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum are threatening to overshadow the Kentucky Derby. Dubai’s hereditary ruler owns the early favorite to win the race. The sheikh has invested millions trying to win the race for years. A victory by Essential Quality on Saturday would bring extra scrutiny on the sheikh, particularly the disappearance of his daughter. A group from the University of Louisville is seeking to have his horse banned from the Derby. That is unlikely to happen. One of the sheikh's daughters says she's being held against her will, and another was abducted in England 21 years ago and hasn't been seen since.

Statues in Massachusetts and New Hampshire honoring an English colonist who took a hatchet to her Native American captors after the death of her baby are being reconsidered. Historians and Native Americans argue many of Hannah Duston’s victims weren’t Indigenous warriors, but children. They say the 17th-century tale was used by European colonists to justify eradicating New England’s Indigenous population. In Massachusetts, the Haverhill City Council has voted to remove the hatchet that Duston fiercely wields in the city's statue. In New Hampshire, an advisory committee is weighing changes to a similar memorial at the alleged site of Duston’s bloody revenge.

Rarely has a routine water resources bill generated so much political buzz. But as senators hoisted the measure to passage Thursday the bipartisan infrastructure legislation served as a potential template for President Joe Biden’s ambitious American Jobs Plan. The Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act of 2021 authorizes about $35 billion over five years to improve leaky pipes and upgrade facilities. Senators overwhelmingly approved it, 89-2. Some see it as building block in Biden’s broader $2.3 trillion proposal to invest in roads, bridges and other infrastructure. But the path ahead for Biden's plan is daunting in the narrowly split Congress.

Authorities say a married couple found dead along with the suspected gunman in a North Carolina home after a 13-hour standoff were all members of the same family. Two police officers also were among the dead. The Watauga County Sheriff’s Office said George Wyatt Ligon and Michelle Annette Ligon were killed Wednesday inside their home in Boone. The sheriff’s office said the suspect, 32-year-old Isaac Alton Barnes, also was found dead and had a large number of weapons. Barnes was identified as Michelle Ligon’s son and George Ligon's stepson. Authorities said Barnes also was suspected in the fatal shootings of two deputies initially dispatched to the home. 

Horse racing could be in line for another Triple Crown bid and this time the likely candidate is an undefeated horse from a barn other than Bob Baffert’s. Essential Quality brings the most impressive resume into the 1 1/4-mile Derby on Saturday. No surprise, then, that he’s the early 2-1 favorite in a full field of 20 horses. Baffert says the Derby is Essential Quality’s to lose and he should know. The trainer guided American Pharoah in 2015 and Justify in 2018 to sweeps of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont.