The nation in brief

Nebraska lieutenant governor resigns

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska Lt. Gov. Lavon Heidemann resigned from office Tuesday and withdrew from the Republican gubernatorial ticket after a judge granted his sister's request for a domestic-abuse protection order.

Heidemann announced his resignation at the Capitol alongside Gov. Dave Heineman. The Elk Creek farmer also stepped down as the running mate of Republican gubernatorial candidate Pete Ricketts, who is looking to replace the term-limited Heineman in January.

Heidemann has said he disagrees with many of the statements made by his sister, which include allegations of assault. But he announced Tuesday that he wouldn't fight to remain in office.

Ricketts announced later Tuesday that he had selected Republican State Auditor Mike Foley, a former primary challenger, to replace Heidemann.

Heineman has about four months left in office before term limits force him to leave. He said he would move quickly to find a new lieutenant governor, but added that it was too early to set forth a timeline.

Terror plotter Padilla gets longer term

MIAMI -- Convicted al-Qaida terrorism plotter Jose Padilla, a U.S. citizen jailed for years as an enemy combatant, was handed a new 21-year prison sentence Tuesday because the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals determined his previous 17-year term was too lenient.

A jury found the Brooklyn-born Padilla guilty in 2007 on charges of supporting al-Qaida and terrorism conspiracy, which carried a possible life sentence. Evidence showed he attended an al-Qaida terrorist camp in Afghanistan before returning to the U.S. in May 2002 on what authorities originally claimed was a mission to detonate a radioactive "dirty bomb" in a major city. Those accusations were later discarded when the "mission" was deemed only a sketchy idea.

Over Justice Department objections, U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke originally gave Padilla credit for his three-plus years in harsh Pentagon custody at a Navy brig in South Carolina. The new sentence essentially takes away the credit for those years. She had rejected prosecutors' request for a 30-year term.

Cooke, an appointee of President George W. Bush, whose administration approved Padilla's treatment, said at the resentencing Tuesday that she remained concerned that he had been held for so long without criminal charge, had almost no access to a lawyer and had been under conditions few U.S. citizens have experienced in this country.

Primaries in New England cap season

BOSTON -- Voters across New England headed to the polls Tuesday to resolve a handful of primary races that will set the table for competitive elections in November.

Former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown glided to an easy win Tuesday in the Republican Senate primary in New Hampshire.

Brown was one of 10 Republicans seeking to challenge first-term Democratic incumbent Sen. Jeanne Shaheen in November. Brown won a special election in 2010 in Massachusetts to finish the term of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, but he lost his bid for a full term two years later to Democrat Elizabeth Warren.

In Massachusetts, Martha Coakley, the state attorney general, beat state Treasurer Steven Grossman and Donald Berwick, a former federal health care administrator, to win the Democratic nomination for governor.

Coakley, who lost to Brown in the 2010 Senate race, will now face Charlie Baker, who was selected as the Republican nominee for governor.

Elsewhere, in the Democratic primary for governor of Rhode Island, state Treasurer Gina Raimondo beat Providence Mayor Angel Taveras and newcomer Clay Pell, the husband of Olympic figure skater Michelle Kwan.

House GOP to uphold Export-Import Bank

WASHINGTON -- Speaker John Boehner said Tuesday that the House will extend the authority of the Export-Import Bank this month and it may be done as part of a governmentwide funding bill needed to prevent a shutdown at month's end.

The Ohio Republican told reporters that even a powerful foe of the bank, Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, believes that a temporary extension is in order.

The bank, which helps finance foreign purchases of U.S. exports, has divided Republicans, with many conservatives favoring letting its charter expire. But it has widespread support from Democrats and traditional pro-business Republicans.

A Section on 09/10/2014

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