Candid Marco Rubio blasts Trump and media, calls Cruz ‘only conservative left in the race’  —  Former presidential candidate Marco Rubio told a group of Minnesota supporters Wednesday he is hoping one of the remaining candidates for president will stop Donald Trump from winning the Republican nomination.

How Obama Threw A Curveball With The Safest SCOTUS Pick Imaginable  —  President Obama's choice of Merrick Garland to succeed justice Scalia on the Supreme Court was not the nominee progressives were dreaming of a month ago, when Scalia's unexpected death opened up a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform the Supreme Court.

How the GOP Elite Plan To Rob Donald Trump  —  Cleveland, ladies and gentlemen, won't be for the faint of heart  —  Shhhh.  I've just come from a meeting of the Republican Establishment.  You know, those guys who want to replace what the voters want with what they want.  That Republican Establishment.

Op-Ed SeaWorld CEO: We're ending our orca breeding program.  Here's why.  —  A killer whale raises its head out of the water during the first show since an orca killed a trainer at the SeaWorld theme park in Orlando, Fla. on Feb. 27, 2010.  —  Americans' attitudes about orcas have changed dramatically.

Updated, 10:54 a.m., to add new observations based on reader response.  —  Bernie Sanders supporters have been unhappy with The Times in recent months, but it looked as if they were beginning to have their moment in the sun on Monday morning.  —  An article by Jennifer Steinhauer …

Cruz Assembles an Unlikely Team of Foreign-Policy Rivals  —  In a year when the Republican Party is breaking apart because of Donald Trump, the only man left with a chance to beat him is trying to build a big tent — by GOP standards — when it comes to foreign affairs.

John Kerry: ISIS responsible for genocide  —  (CNN)Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday that the United States has determined that ISIS' action against the Yazidis and other minority groups in Iraq and Syria constitutes genocide.  —  “My purpose here today is to assert in my judgment …

GOP operatives, conservative leaders meet to thwart Trump … A secretive group of Republican operatives and conservative leaders convened Thursday morning for more than three hours to discuss ways to unite the right against Donald Trump, with a presentation about the feasibility of mounting …

Facebook Post Leads To Police Ticket  —  An important lesson to be careful about what you post on Facebook and other public sites.  One local man ended up getting a ticket after a video he posted on Facebook was viewed by police.  —  Michael Dalton told 11 News he loves making Facebook videos in his free time.

Rabbis call for boycott of Trump's speech to pro-Israel group … A group of rabbis is planning to boycott Donald Trump's speech next week before a leading pro-Israel advocacy group, a sign of growing unease among many Jewish leaders about the populist campaign being waged by the Republican presidential front-runner.

Cruz - “I will bring debate to Trump at AIPAC”  —  “If You Won't Debate In Utah, We'll Bring The Debate To You”  —  The Ted Cruz campaign released a statement today, saying that Cruz will bring the debate to Trump at the AIPAC conference if Trump is too scared to debate Cruz in Utah.

Nun Charged with Shoplifting Coffee, Soap … BRIAR CREEK — State police in Columbia County say they nabbed a very unlikely thief: a nun.  —  Troopers tracked the nun at her convent in Danville after she allegedly shoplifted from a store.  —  Workers at the Surplus Outlet near Berwick …

An election video from Republican front runner Donald Trump has hit a sour note in Russia, with the Kremlin saying it “demonises” the country.  —  The video, which is posted on Mr Trump's Instagram feed, tries to cast doubt over the ability of his Democratic Party rival Hillary Clinton to deal with US opponents, including Russia.

Ginsberg Warns of ‘Political Guerilla Warfare’ at Contested GOP Convention  —  The expert in delegate fights sees a long slog ahead for the Republican front-runner.  —  haddadmedia  —  With prospects for the first contested Republican convention in 40 years on the rise …

Democrats sound alarm against Trump  —  PHOENIX — Leading liberals and progressive groups are turning their gaze away from the Democratic primary and toward efforts to unite the left against Donald Trump, framing him as a dangerous and unprecedented candidate who poses an existential threat to the progressive movement and the nation.

Explosion on the American Trail at the National Zoo, no injuries reported  —  WASHINGTON (ABC7) — An explosion occurred on the American Trail at the Smithsonian's National Zoo Thursday morning, zoo officials confirmed.  —  The D.C. Fire Department responded to the scene at approximately 11:15 …

NIKE HYPERADAPT 1.0 MANIFESTS THE UNIMAGINABLE  —  “Innovation at Nike is not about dreaming of tomorrow.  It's about accelerating toward it,” says Tinker Hatfield.  “We're able to anticipate the needs of athletes because we know them better than anybody.  Sometimes, we deliver a reality before others have even begun to imagine it.”

When Colorado's first  —  medical marijuana dispensaries opened in 2009, Unique Henderson was psyched.  He'd been smoking weed since he was 15, and he'd even learned how to grow, from his ex-girlfriend's father.  He spent $750 on classes about how to run a cannabis business …