Ted Cruz's campaign stop in the Bronx is a complete dud  —  There are more than 1.4 million people in the Bronx — but Ted Cruz couldn't even muster 100 at a campaign event in Parkchester with state Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr., a conservative Christian minister.  —  Cruz visited the Sabrosura Chinese …

Oak Brook teen catches rare shark on vacation  —  An 18-year-old Oak Brook resident caught an albino or leucistic swell shark in the Sea of Cortez near Cabo San Lucas.  —  As a senior on the Hinsdale Central bass fishing team, Scott McLaughlin is looking forward to the spring and his final season of competition.

Cruz Pivots to General: ‘Hillary, Get Ready’  —  Ted Cruz's speech in Wisconsin Tuesday night—one of the best of his presidential campaign—only briefly mentioned his top rival for the GOP nomination, Donald Trump.  Instead, the Texas Republican, reinvigorated by a series of recent primary wins capped off …

Poll: 25 percent of Sanders voters would shun Clinton  —  Only 14 percent of Clinton supporters would not back Sanders  —  Clinton remains vulnerable with younger voters, independents, liberals  —  Sanders holds a slight advantage over Clinton among Democrats nationally  —  WASHINGTON

Hillary Clinton Literally Laughed Out Loud When The Sanders Camp Said She Was Too Ambitious  —  “LOLZ.  ROFL.  LMAO” —Hillary Clinton  —  Bernie Sanders may have scored a win in Wisconsin's primary on Tuesday, but he still trails Hillary Clinton in the delegate count, even after winning seven of the last eight contests.

Trump Blows Off Pro-Life Leaders  —  The formerly pro-choice Republican, already in deep trouble after talking about “punishment” for women, just ticked off a lot of conservative activists.  —  Donald Trump just blew off pro-life leaders exactly one week after he angered the movement by calling for “punishment” for abortion.

Young woman's body found stuffed in suitcase near hotel  —  SAN DIEGO - A suitcase left outside a hotel near a row of trash bins Wednesday in downtown San Diego contained the body of a “young” woman, according to investigators.  —  San Diego police closed 7th Avenue between Ash and A streets due to an investigation in the area.

Switzerland shocked by Muslim teens who refused to shake hands with female teachers  —  It's widespread practice for schoolchildren in Switzerland to shake the hands of their teacher at the beginning and end of each day.  Now, one school's decision to exempt two children from this tradition …

America is being watched from above.  Government surveillance planes routinely circle over most major cities — but usually take the weekends off.  —  Each weekday, dozens  —  of U.S. government aircraft take to the skies and slowly circle over American cities.

Sarah Palin Says She Will Sue Azealia Banks Over Twitter Comments as Rapper Issues Letter of Apology  —  Azealia Banks issued an apology to Sarah Palin on Tuesday after the former governor of Alaska announced plans to sue the rapper over her hate-fueled, profanity-laden Twitter rant.

State Senator Emails AP English Teacher to Offer His Thoughts on Beloved (Too Many Breasts)  —  When Toni Morrison's Beloved was published, in 1987, Margaret Atwood, writing in the New York Times Book Review called it a “triumph.”  She wrote of the novel, which has come to be considered …

Trump Describing 1-Year-Old Daughter Leaves Trevor Noah Speechless (VIDEO)  —  A 1994 clip of Republican frontrunner Donald Trump describing his 1-year-old daughter left “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah speechless Tuesday night.  —  The clip is from an episode of “Lifestyle of The Rich And Famous” …

Newtown Teacher Charged With Bringing Gun To School  —  Newtown middle school teacher Jason M. Adams was arrested for having a firearm on school grounds, police said. … NEWTOWN — A middle school teacher was charged Wednesday after he was found carrying a gun at school, police said.

Everyone mistook a priest for a KKK member last night  —  He was spotted at Red Mango  —  Rumors of a klansman on campus have proven false after a priest innocently made his way through Bloomington.  —  Last night around 9:15 PM, social media became a furious storm of confusion regarding …

VIDEO: Woman confronts Gov. Rick Scott in Starbucks  —  GAINESVILLE, Fla. - A video captured a woman confronting Gov. Rick Scott as he stopped for coffee Tuesday in Gainesville.  —  “You cut Medicaid, so I couldn't get Obamacare,” said the woman, Cara Jennings, who then called him a derogatory word.

Trump tops 50 percent in New York, Cruz in third place  —  has a more than two-to-one lead over his closest rival, John Kasich, in the Republican presidential front-runner's home state of New York, a new poll finds.  —  A Monmouth University survey released Wednesday shows Trump taking 52 percent support …

Former Christian league leader wants Maine voters to reverse gay rights law  —  AUGUSTA, Maine — Voters in Maine could be asked whether they want to amend the Maine Human Rights Act of protections from discrimination based on sexual orientation if a new ballot initiative is successful.

U.S. Unveils Retirement-Savings Revamp, but With a Few Concessions to Industry  —  About $14 trillion in retirement savings could be affected by the rule  —  WASHINGTON—The Obama administration Wednesday rolled out a long-anticipated new rule aimed at transforming the way the financial …

What if the Supreme Court Were Liberal?  —  What might it mean to have five justices on the Supreme Court who were appointed by Democratic presidents?  Since 1970, the year Harry Blackmun received Senate confirmation, there always have been at least five justices appointed by a Republican president on the Court.

Pfizer Announces Termination Of Proposed Combination With Allergan  —  Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) today announced that the merger agreement between Pfizer and Allergan plc (NYSE: AGN) has been terminated by mutual agreement of the companies.  The decision was driven by the actions announced …

Country music legend Merle Haggard dies at 79  —  Country music legend Merle Haggard has died, his manager confirmed.  He turned 79 on Wednesday.  —  Haggard's manager said he died at 9:20 a.m. in California.  —  Haggard was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1994.

Secrets of the Yahoo Sale ‘Book’ Reveal Financial Meltdown and Big Bet on Mobile Voice Search  —  According to some pages from the “book” that Yahoo bankers have given out to prospective buyers, the financial situation at the Silicon Valley Internet giant is becoming increasingly dire.

Death penalty 2015: Facts and figures  —  Global figures  —  At least 1,634 people were executed in 25 countries in 2015.  This represents a stark increase on the number of executions recorded I 2014 of more than 50%; in 2014 Amnesty International recorded 1,061 executions in 22 countries worldwide.