Massachusetts and Rhode Island at 5:30 a.m.
The breaking news staffer is Mark Pratt. The New England news editor is Cara Rubinsky. To reach the AP bureau in Boston, call 617-357-8100 or 1-800-882-1407. To reach the photo department, call 617-357-8106. AP stories, along with the photos that accompany them, can also be obtained from http://www.apexchange.com. Reruns also are available from customer support at 877-836-9477.
TOP STORIES:
MASSACHUSETTS SENATE
BOSTON — The controversies swirling around the Obama administration — from the IRS targeting of conservative groups to lingering questions about last year's terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya — are threatening to engulf Massachusetts' special U.S. Senate election. The troubles could make it harder for Republican candidate Gabriel Gomez to turn the focus of the race back on jobs, the economy and budget as he tries to tie his rival and longtime Democratic Congressman Edward Markey to the nation's sluggish recovery. But the episodes could also prove problematic for Markey if the public begins to blame President Barack Obama — and by extension other Democratic candidates — for the perceived overreach of the administration. By Steve LeBlanc.
MASSACHUSETTS GAMBLING-FOXWOODS
HARTFORD — Connecticut's Foxwoods Resorts Casino faces daunting hurdles as it joins a crowded race for the lucrative destination resort business in Massachusetts. It's been grappling with falling revenue and significant debt at its eastern Connecticut site and now must face down organized local opposition and strong competition in Massachusetts as it tries to expand in southern New England. The operators of the biggest casino in North America are proposing a $1 billion, 300,000-square foot resort off I-495 in Milford, Mass., about 40 miles southwest of Boston. Plans call for about 4,725 slot machines, 125 table games, 350 hotel rooms, restaurants and other attractions. By Stephen Singer.
RED TIDE
PORTLAND, Maine — Red tide monitoring is going high-tech with a robotic "laboratory in a can." A garbage can-size canister was deployed in late April in the ocean waters off southern Maine to collect and transmit data about toxin-producing algae blooms, known as red tides, that show up in the Gulf of Maine each spring. Inside the canister is a pint-size robotic biology lab that extracts organisms from water samples, tests them for DNA and toxins, and transmits real-time data to shore by cellphone. Scientists say the apparatus will transform the way the harmful algal blooms are monitored and allow resource managers to better predict when and where red tide outbreaks might occur. "This is one of the first steps in a major enhancement of red-tide monitoring," said Don Anderson, a senior scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Falmouth, Mass., who has overseen development of the device. By Clarke Canfield.
AP Photo.
ALSO:
— MASSACHUSETTS SENATE-McCAIN — Republican U.S. Senate candidate Gabriel Gomez is hoping to get a needed boost of cash and enthusiasm when U.S. Senator John McCain, an Arizona Republican and fellow Navy veteran, stops by for a fundraiser and morning rally.
— ENERGY SUMMIT — Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley will host an energy summit to bring together experts in the field for discussions on ways to reduce energy costs and improve the state's competitiveness.
— BOSTON MARATHON-RI VICTIM — A Rhode Island woman who was injured in the Boston Marathon bombings is being welcomed home.
— JUDGE FORUM — The JFK Museum and Library is hosting a forum that will feature retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens.
— CURRY COLLEGE-FEINBERG — The administrator overseeing efforts to provide financial help to victims of the Boston Marathon bombings says he will keep to the June 30 date for release of donated money.
— CHILD-POOL DROWNING — Police say a 7-year-old girl has drowned in a pool at a home in Wilbraham.
— STUDENT'S DEATH — A 21-year-old Fairfield University student from Massachusetts has died after a car crash a day before he was to graduate.
— BOB DYLAN DAY — The Worcester Art Museum is offering free admission to anyone who dresses up like Bob Dylan on May 24, which will be the musician's 72nd birthday.
— TROOPER T-SHIRTS — New Hampshire state troopers are raising money for Boston Marathon victims with their own version of a "Boston Strong" T-shirt.
—HEPATITIS TESTING — Rhode Island's health department is encouraging baby boomers to get tested for Hepatitis C, saying adults born between 1945 and 165 are five times more likely to contract the disease.
— BODY FOUND — Warwick police say a body has been found in a trash barrel covered with brush on a bike path in Warwick City Park.
— GREATEST GOOD CALCULATOR — Massachusetts and Rhode Island at 5:30 a.m.
SPORTS:
HKN--RANGERS-BRUINS
BOSTON — The New York Rangers try to even their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Bruins. Boston won the opener on Thursday night in overtime, 3-2. By Howard Ulman.
BBA--RED SOX-TWINS
MINNEAPOLIS — The Boston Red Sox, winners of four in a row, go for a sweep of the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. John Lackey (1-4, 4.05 ERA) pitches for the Red Sox against Pedro Hernandez (2-0, 5.79 ERA) of the Twins.
SOC--GALAXY-RED BULLS
HARRISON, N.J. — The New York Red Bulls will put their five-game unbeaten streak on the line when they face Landon Donovan and the Los Angeles Galaxy at Red Bull Arena.
The AP-Boston.
