Trump picks Alina Habba to continue running New Jersey's US Attorney’s Office

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump selected Alina Habba to continue running the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Jersey on a temporary basis, the latest twist in a succession drama after federal judges had picked her top assistant to take her place.

Trump chose Habba, his former personal attorney, amid an eventful week in which her 120-day interim post was set to expire and the judges tapped veteran prosecutor Desiree Grace to take her place. But Attorney General Pam Bondi then fired Grace and assailed the “politically minded judges” who stood in her way.

“I am now the Acting United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey,” Habba said Thursday in a social media post. “I don’t cower to pressure. I don’t answer to politics. This is a fight for justice. And I’m all in.”

Habba’s tenure has been marked by controversy. When she assumed the job, she said she wanted to help Republicans in New Jersey. Critics said the statement was inappropriately partisan for the state’s top federal law enforcement official.

—Bloomberg News

NYC Mayor Eric Adams takes a swipe at Mamdani trip to Uganda, then says he was only kidding around

NEW YORK — Mayor Eric Adams, after taking a jab at Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani’s decision to take a trip to Uganda after “winning half an election” in a video released Thursday, said Friday he was joking and conceded politicians need a getaway every once in a while.

“People are going to travel, particularly after a race, a hard race, and we’re just making fun at him,” Adams, who’s running for re-election on an independent line, said in an interview on Fox5. “They’re going to make fun at me. This is going to be an exciting campaign.”

Adams, who has often caught flack for his own many trips abroad, added that after the November general election, he is thinking of taking a “nice vacation” to Italy.

“I love Pompeii, and Portofino is one of my favorite locations,” he said. “So, sometimes you just got to download. And that’s just the reality of this business.”

—New York Daily News

Measles cases just reached 30-year high in the US. How bad is California surge?

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Measles cases in California and the United States are climbing to levels the country hasn’t seen in years.

So far in 2025, the disease has infected 1,319 people nationwide, leading to 29 outbreaks and 165 hospitalizations, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Three people have died as a result of the disease this year. The last time the country saw a significant case spike was in 1992, when 2,126 people contracted measles, the CDC said.

However, that number pales in comparison to what happened in 1991, when 27,808 measles cases were reported in the United States.

—The Sacramento Bee

Teen linked to Taylor Swift concert plot jailed for Islamic State ties

VIENNA — Nearly a year after three Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna were canceled for fear of a terrorist attack, a suspect linked to the case has been sentenced to two years in prison for membership of a terrorist organization and a criminal group.

The 18-year-old pleaded guilty to the charges at the beginning of his trial in the Vienna regional court on Friday, the APA news agency reported.

"Today, I see it all as a mistake. I am glad I was arrested. I have a daughter, and I now take life more seriously," the young man said.

Prosecutors had not accused him of co-conspiring in the suspected attack plans, but rather focused on his admiration for and support of the terrorist group Islamic State. The verdict is not yet final.

—dpa