AP News Digest 2 p.m.

Here are the AP's latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EDT. For up-to-the minute information on AP's coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.

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ONLY ON AP

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DEA INVESTIGATION-WIRETAP — Federal investigators took the unusual step of wiretapping a retired supervisor in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s Miami office as part of an inquiry into whether sensitive case information was leaked to attorneys for suspected drug traffickers in Colombia, current and former law enforcement officials told The Associated Press. By Joshua Goodman and Jim Mustian. SENT: 865 words, photo.

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VIRUS OUTBREAK — Expressing alarm both about mounting infections and inadequate government responses, the World Health Organization declared that the global coronavirus crisis is now a pandemic but added that it's not too late for countries to act. By Jamey Keaten, Maria Cheng and John Leicester. SENT: 1,525 words, photos.

MED--VIRUS OUTBREAK-LIVING ON SURFACES -- The new coronavirus can live in the air for several hours and on some surfaces for as long as two to three days, tests by U.S. government and other scientists have found. By Marilynn Marchione. SENT: 380 words.

Find more all-format coverage on the coronavirus outbreak featured topic page in AP Newsroom.

FINANCIAL MARKETS — Stocks are tumbling again, and indexes lost more than 4% to wipe out their huge gains from a day earlier as Wall Street keeps reeling on worries about the coronavirus. The losses deepened after global authorities declared the crisis a pandemic. By Stan Choe and Damian J. Troise. SENT: 975 words, photos, developing.

ELECTION 2020 SANDERS — Bernie Sanders says he’s staying in the Democratic presidential race and plans to appear at Sunday night’s debate with Joe Biden. While Sanders acknowledges he’s losing the delegate count right now, he says polling of voters shows strong supporter for his progressive agenda and he thinks the one-on-one matchup with Biden in Phoenix will help make clear with candidate is better suited to beat President Donald Trump. By Steve Peoples and Wilson Ring. SENT: 790 words, photos. UPCOMING: 900 words, photos by 4 p.m. WITH: ELECTION 2020-TRUMP-BIDEN — As Biden emerges as the prohibitive Democratic favorite, Trump and his allies are turning to kind of sustained personal attacks that helped them defeat Hillary Clinton. UPCOMING. WITH: ELECTION 2020-DELEGATES — As more votes trickle in, Sanders’ path to victory keeps shrinking. He needs 57% of the remaining delegates to win, but intricacies of the delegate allocation process make that incredibly difficult. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos by 4 p.m.

Find more coverage on the 2020 U.S. Elections featured topic page in AP Newsroom.

SEXUAL MISCONDUCT-WEINSTEIN — Harvey Weinstein was sentenced Wednesday to 23 years in prison, pleading for mercy as his accusers said his punishment in the landmark #MeToo rape case was long overdue. After two of his accusers confronted him again in a Manhattan court, the 67-year-old former Hollywood mogul broke his courtroom silence to say he felt “remorse for this situation.” But he also argued that men are being accused of “things that none of us understood.” By Michael R. Sisak, Tom Hays and Jennifer Peltz. SENT: 1,000 words, photos.

RUSSIA-PUTIN — Russian lawmakers rapidly rubber-stamped sweeping constitutional changes that could keep President Vladimir Putin in power until 2036. If Putin won and completed two more terms as president, it would make him the ruler of Russia for 36 years — longer than any other leader in its modern history. By Daria Litvinova. SENT: 950 words, photos.

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MORE ON VIRUS OUTBREAK

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VIRUS OUTBREAK-WASHINGTON -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi presses for House passage of a coronavirus aid package, possibly this week, as Congress rebuffs President Trump's proposed payroll tax break and focuses instead on sick pay and other immediate resources to workers and people affected by the crisis. Congress races to take the lead as lawmakers and the Trump administration are under mounting pressure to work more vigorously to contain the outbreak and respond to the financial fallout. UPCOMING: 950 words, photos by 5 p.m.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-US — Governors and other leaders scrambling to slow the spread of the coronavirus stepped up bans on large public gatherings and a rapidly expanding list of universities moved classes online, as the U.S. government's top infectious-disease expert warned that the worst is yet to come. SENT: 960 words, photos.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-MIDEAST — Iran's senior vice president and two other Cabinet members have contracted the new coronavirus, a semiofficial news agency reported as the death toll in the Islamic Republic from the outbreak rose by 62 to 354. SENT: 1,050 words, photos.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-SERVICE MEDIA - Aside from the latest updates on a coronavirus outbreak that has hit hard locally, the Seattle Times features an item you wouldn't expect on a news website: a detailed diagram on the proper way to wash your hands. News outlets are trying to provide services instead of just reporting news. By AP Media Affairs Writer David Bauder. UPCOMING: 700 words by 5 p.m.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-ELECTION 2020 — Outbreak is upending politics in ways big and small. Biden, Sanders have scrapped rallies, and campaign strategists say the virus could make it tougher to organize, raise money and get out the vote. UPCOMING: 750 words, photos.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-MEDICAL SUPPLIES — Expected Trump order would insist on American-made medical supplies and pharmaceuticals in response to the outbreak. SENT: 570 words, photos. UPCOMING: 600 words, photos by 5 p.m.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-SCHOOLS — Schools all over the U.S. are closing in response to the coronavirus -- but questions remain about whether it helps protects kids or the surrounding communities. UPCOMING: 500 words by 4 p.m.

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WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT

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CHRIS PAUL-GRANDFATHER'S DEATH — A key witness has recanted testimony that helped convict five teens of murder in the killing of NBA star Chris Paul's grandfather. SENT: 325 words.

ODD--WANTED COW — A cow is on the loose in Florida. Not considered dangerous, but police have been trying to corral it for weeks. SENT: 140 words.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-TAX DELAY -- The Trump administration is working on plans to delay the April 15 federal tax deadline for some taxpayers in a bid to soften the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the U.S. economy. SENT: 235 words.

BRITAIN-LOCKERBIE -- The family of a Libyan man jailed for the 1988 bombing of an airliner over the Scottish town of Lockerbie has been given permission to launch a posthumous appeal against his conviction. SENT: 300 words, photo.

MEXICO-SUBWAY ACCIDENT — Two subway trains have collided in the Mexico City Metro system, killing one person and injuring 41. SENT: 465 words, photos.

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WASHINGTON/POLITICS

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TRUMP-WAR POWERS-CONGRESS -- Congressional approval of bipartisan measure would limit President Donald Trump's authority to launch military operations against Iran. The president has promised to veto the war powers resolution, warning that if his “hands were tied, Iran would have a field day.” By Matthew Daly. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 5 p.m. Developing from expected afternoon vote.

CONGRESS-SURVEILLANCE --Lawmakers take a first step toward addressing errors made by the FBI during its investigation of the Trump campaign and Russia, with House passage expected of legislation that would impose several new restrictions on federal surveillance authorities. The move reflecting angst in both parties about the way the powers have been used. By Mary Clare Jalonick and Eric Tucker. UPCOMING: 800 words, photos by 5 p.m. Vote expected afternoon.

CONGRESS-STUDENT LOAN FORGIVENESS — In a rare rebuke of a Trump Cabinet member by the GOP-run Senate, lawmakers act to overturn the education secretary’s rule that makes it harder for students to get loans erased after being cheated by for-profit colleges. UPCOMING: 550 words, photos by 3 p.m.

ELECTION 2020-CALIFORNIA-TAX REVOLT? — Everyone knows that living in California comes with a price: Its residents pay some of the nation’s highest taxes on the money they earn, the gas they pump and the clothes they wear. But for the moment, at least, it appears voters have had enough. SENT: 880 words, photo.

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AFGHANISTAN — After a series of delays, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani issued a decree promising to release 1,500 Taliban prisoners as a goodwill gesture to get intra-Afghan negotiations started. A recent peace deal signed between the United States and the Taliban called for the release of up to 5,000 prisoners ahead of the much sought-after negotiations. SENT: 785 words, photos.

FRANCE-EX-PRIME-MINISTER-TRIAL -- For over three decades, Penelope Fillon was the very discreet wife of a prominent politician who became France’s prime minister. She is now at center stage of a fraud trial in Paris for well-paid, public-funded jobs as an aide to her husband she allegedly did not perform. SENT: 825 words, photos.

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DOWN SYNDROME-ABORTION — A federal court in Cincinnati will hear complex legal arguments for and against Ohio's Down syndrome abortion ban, in a case viewed as pivotal in the national debate over the procedure. SENT: 740 words, photos.

COLLEGE ADMISSIONS-BRIBERY-ATTORNEY —After winning guilty verdicts against top Enron executives, the lead prosecutor declared: “No matter how rich and powerful you are, you have to play by the rules.” More than a decade later, that lawyer, Sean Berkowitz, is fighting to clear “Full House" star Lori Loughlin and her fashion designer husband, Mossimo Giannulli, of charges that they used their wealth and privilege to skirt the rules in the college admissions process. SENT: 980 words, photos.

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HEALTH/SCIENCE

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SCI--IRON RAIN PLANET —At one hot, faraway world, it's always cloudy with a chance of iron rain. That's the otherworldly forecast from Swiss and other European astronomers who have detected clouds full of iron droplets at a hot Jupiterlike planet 390 light-years away. SENT: 550 words, photos.

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ENTERTAINMENT

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DISNEYLAND-AVENGERS — Some assembling is still required, but the Avengers are gathering in a big way at Disneyland. A new Spider-Man attraction that allows riders to sling webs with their bare hands and live-action fights between Avengers members and Marvel supervillains are among the highlights of the new Avengers Campus that arrives July 18 at Disney’s California Adventure in Anaheim. SENT: 880 words, photos.

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