Austin news

• San Marcos police warn downtown businesses of biker gangs

  05-07-2017 23:57 via kxan.com
  
  SAN MARCOS, Texas (KXAN) – The San Marcos Police Department says more motorcycle gangs are making their way into downtown San Marcos.
  Brandon Winkenwerder, the San Marcos Police assistant chief, says the department has received calls on two occasions involving large groups of Bandidos visiting downtown bars.
  “Parking has always been an issue downtown and when you go and start parking 20 or 30 motorcycles on a sidewalk, it becomes an issue with anyone wanting to move around down there
  
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• VIDEO: Dog bites boy in unprovoked attack in Manor

  05-07-2017 23:20 via kxan.com
  
  Graphic Content Warning: Some viewers may find the video disturbing. 
  MANOR, Texas (KXAN) — A 7-year-old child was attacked by a dog in Manor on Monday, as shown in shocking video released by the Manor Police Department on Wednesday.
  Manor police officers were called to Callan Court for a report of a dog attack just after 8 p.m. on July 3. The child was playing in a yard when the dog, described as a pit bull mix, ran out of a house as its owner opened the door.
  Home security video obt
  
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• Dog attacks Manor 7-year-old as camera is rolling

  05-07-2017 23:20 via kxan.com
  
  Graphic Content Warning: Some viewers may find the video disturbing. 
  MANOR, Texas (KXAN) — A 7-year-old child was attacked by a dog in Manor on Monday, as shown in shocking video released by the Manor Police Department on Wednesday.
  Manor police officers were called to Callan Court for a report of a dog attack just after 8 p.m. on July 3. The child was playing in a yard when the dog, described as a pit bull mix, ran out of a house as its owner opened the door.
  Home security video obt
  
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• 7-year-old attacked by dog in Manor caught on camera

  05-07-2017 23:20 via kxan.com
  
  Graphic Content Warning: Some viewers may find the video disturbing. 
  MANOR, Texas (KXAN) — A 7-year-old child was attacked by a dog in Manor on Monday, as shown in shocking video released by the Manor Police Department on Wednesday.
  Manor police officers were called to Callan Court for a report of a dog attack just after 8 p.m. on July 3. The child was playing in a yard when the dog, described as a pit bull mix, ran out of a house as its owner opened the door.
  Home security video obt
  
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• Travis County investigates possibility 17 people voted twice in 2016 election

  05-07-2017 22:59 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Travis County has referred 17 alleged cases of people voting twice — once during early voting and again on election day — to the county attorney.
  The tax assessor and voter registrar, Bruce Elfant, confirms to KXAN he’s communicated to the county attorney about the issues from last November’s election.
  Travis County Attorney David Escamilla says he referred the cases to the District Attorney’s Office because they reached felony status. To be a
  
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• 22-year-old swimmer who died in Pedernales River identified

  05-07-2017 21:51 via kxan.com
  
  TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — The swimmer who died in the Pedernales River in Reimers Ranch Park on Sunday has been identified.
  Zayd Mustafa, 22, of Sugar Land, Texas, was trying to cross the river on July 2 when he began to struggle and went under the water, the Travis County Sheriff’s Office said.
  His brother tried to rescue him, but also began struggling and went under the water as well. The victim’s brother was rescued by bystanders and is currently in the hospital.
  Officia
  
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• Auschwitz Memorial condemns Louisiana congressman’s gas chamber video

  05-07-2017 21:05 via kxan.com
  
  NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Officials at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum have criticized a Louisiana congressman for narrating part of a five-minute video from inside a former gas chamber at the Nazi concentration camp in Poland.
  Louisiana news outlets report that U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins posted the video Saturday. In it, the Republican says the gas chamber killings took only about 20 minutes and show why the U.S. military “must be invincible.”
  A post on the Auschwitz Memorial&
  
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• Woman killed in Marble Falls hit-and-run was a corrections officer

  05-07-2017 20:31 via kxan.com
  
  MARBLE FALLS, Texas (KXAN) — A night spent watching Fourth of July fireworks on Lake Marble Falls turned deadly for an off-duty Comal County Sheriff’s Office corrections officer.
  Marble Falls police say just before 11 p.m., 60-year-old Cynthia Lee Young of Spring Branch, Texas was hit by a driver in a Dodge pickup truck at the intersection of Main and Yett Streets. Witnesses who were still at Lakeside Park boat ramp notified first responders of the crash. Young was flown to a hospita
  
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• Woman killed in Marble Falls hit-and-run

  05-07-2017 20:31 via kxan.com
  
  MARBLE FALLS, Texas (KXAN) — A night spent watching Fourth of July fireworks on Lake Marble Falls turned deadly for one woman.
  Marble Falls police say just before 11 p.m., 60-year-old Cynthia Lee Young of Spring Branch, Texas was hit by a driver in a Dodge pickup truck at the intersection of Main and Yett Streets. Witnesses who were still at Lakeside Park boat ramp notified first responders of the crash. Young was flown to a hospital in Austin where she later died.
  While the driver, identi
  
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• Multiple brush fires reported along FM 535 in Cedar Creek

  05-07-2017 19:59 via kxan.com
  
  BASTROP COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Firefighters in Bastrop County are battling three brush fires along Farm to Market 535 and Pearce Lane in the Cedar Creek area.
  The fires started around 12:30 p.m. FM 535 is blocked at Thousand Oaks as crews work on the fire. People are being asked to avoid the area.
  Firefighters say one of the fires covers between five and 10 acres. No homes are in danger and no injuries have been reported.
  STAR Flight is assisting with the fires.
  
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• Multiple brush fires put out along FM 535 in Cedar Creek

  05-07-2017 19:59 via kxan.com
  
  BASTROP COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Firefighters in Bastrop County say four brush fires in Bastrop County burned close to 20 acres Wednesday afternoon.
  The fires started around 12:30 p.m. One fire was located Farm to Market 535 near Pearce Lane in Cedar Creek, scorching about five acres. The fire on Northside Lane and Thousand Oaks Drive were similar sizes. A fourth fire on Synergy Drive burned around 2-3 acres.
  By 1:45 p.m., the Bastrop County Office of Emergency Management reported that
  
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• RideAustin to offer low-income patients free rides to doctor’s appointments

  05-07-2017 19:15 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Community Care Collaborative and Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin are partnering with RideAustin to provide free rides for low-income patients who have trouble affording transportation to and from medical appointments and pharmacies.
  “When we talk with our patients, we hear that inadequate transportation is often a barrier to accessing health care,” said Sarah Cook, CCC’s Director of Integrated Delivery System Strategy and Planning.
  
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• Suspicious package cleared at Austin airport

  05-07-2017 19:09 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin police say operations at Austin airport are back to normal after authorities evacuated the baggage claim area due to reports of a suspicious package Wednesday morning.
  Authorities evacuated people around 10:40 a.m. as a precaution. It is not clear if the package was found inside the airport or outside in the passenger pick-up area. The situation was cleared just before 1 p.m.
  Austin Airport says baggage claim and other operations have resumed and passengers should ch
  
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• Abandoned cooler triggered evacuation at Austin airport baggage claim

  05-07-2017 19:09 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin police say operations at Austin airport are back to normal after authorities evacuated the baggage claim area due to reports of a suspicious package Wednesday morning.
  Authorities evacuated people around 10:40 a.m. as a precaution. It is not clear if the package was found inside the airport or outside in the passenger pick-up area. The situation was cleared just before 1 p.m.
  The suspicious item turned out to be an empty, abandoned cooler.
  Austin Airport says baggage
  
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• Leander teenager identified as Lake Georgetown drowning victim

  05-07-2017 18:49 via kxan.com
  
  GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) — A 16-year-old boy who drowned while swimming at Lake Georgetown on Tuesday has been identified as Nathan Ellis of Leander.
  Georgetown police say Ellis and two other swimmers were in a narrow portion of the lake near the Cedar Breaks boat ramp around 12:30 p.m. when Ellis began struggling. Ellis’ friends along with another person on the shore tried to help him but they were unable to rescue him. The Georgetown Public Safety Dive Team recovered his body appro
  
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• Biking to work may be more beneficial for your work day

  05-07-2017 18:15 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Bikers who commute to work are less stressed when they arrive than co-workers who drive or take mass transit, that is according to a new study recently published by the International Journal of Workplace Health Management.
  Researchers at Concordia University in Canada studied 123 people. They filled out a questionnaire at the beginning of their workday, rating their moods. They also told researchers their method of transportation in the morning. The professors also took int
  
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• Cowboys linebacker arrested, charged with aggravated assault

  05-07-2017 18:06 via kxan.com
  
  DALLAS (KXAN) — Dallas Cowboys linebacker Damien Wilson was arrested Tuesday night, accused of aggravated assault, reports KXAS in Dallas.
  Frisco police say they arrested Wilson around 8 p.m. in the Toyota Stadium parking lot. Wilson, 24 was charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Authorities have not released the details on what led up to the arrest.
  According to the NFL, Wilson went to Minnesota and was drafted by the Cowboys in 2015. Sports Illustrated report
  
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• Man hit, killed while crossing SH 46 in New Braunfels

  05-07-2017 16:52 via kxan.com
  
  NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas (KXAN) — A man who was trying to cross a highway in New Braunfels after he crashed his vehicle was struck and killed by a driver in a pickup truck.
  New Braunfels police say the crash happened just after midnight in the 1100 block of State Highway 46.
  Initial information indicates 32-year-old Rudy Varela Jr. of New Braunfels was driving along SH 45 when he lost control and struck a guard rail. Police say Varela got out of his vehicle and tried to run cross the sout
  
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• Messi to extend contract with Barcelona until 2021

  05-07-2017 16:08 via kxan.com
  
  BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Lionel Messi will play out the best remaining years of his trophy-rich career at Barcelona.
  The Spanish club said Wednesday that Messi had agreed a three-year contract extension that will keep him at the club through the 2020-21 season. By then, Barcelona’s all-time leading scorer will be 34 years old and finishing his 17th season with the club.
  Barcelona announced that Messi will sign the new deal “in the coming weeks” that will be good through Ju
  
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• Norwegian Air Shuttle launches Austin-to-London nonstop

  05-07-2017 15:58 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Norwegian Air Shuttle is giving British Airways some competition in the Austin-to-London route.
  Starting in March 2018, Norwegian will offer non-stop flights from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport to London’s Gatwick Airport. One-way prices start at $250 and flights out of Austin and London are scheduled for Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
  Bookings are now open for next year’s service. The plane you’ll be flying on? A Boeing 787-900.
  The company sa
  
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• New airline brings cheaper Austin flights to Europe

  05-07-2017 15:58 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Norwegian Air Shuttle is giving British Airways some competition in the Austin-to-London route.
  Starting in March 2018, Norwegian will offer non-stop flights from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport to London’s Gatwick Airport. One-way prices start at $250 and flights out of Austin and London are scheduled for Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
  Bookings are now open for next year’s service. The plane you’ll be flying on? A Boeing 787-9.
  The company says
  
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• Man who drowned in Comal River was from Baytown

  05-07-2017 15:23 via kxan.com
  
  NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas (KXAN) — The man who drowned in the Comal River on Fourth of July has been identified as 29-year-old Jorge Chapa Gonzalez of Baytown.
  Gonzalez’ body was found just after 11 a.m. Tuesday by a group of tubers just downstream from the San Antonio Street bridge. When they found him, he wasn’t conscious or breathing.
  Although no foul play is suspected, Gonzalez’ death remains under investigation pending final results of an autopsy.
  The New Braunfels P
  
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• San Antonio officer wounded in shootout released from hospital

  05-07-2017 14:56 via kxan.com
  
  SAN ANTONIO (AP) – San Antonio police say an officer involved in a shootout with a suspect that left his partner dead has been released from the hospital.
  The San Antonio Express-News reports Officer Julio Cavazos was released Tuesday, five days after he was shot while investigating a reported vehicle break-in. His partner, Officer Miguel Moreno, was killed and the gunman died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
  Police spokesman Sgt. Jesse Salame says Cavazos and his family thank everyone f
  
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• VIDEO: Naked man slaps Houston police officer

  05-07-2017 14:12 via kxan.com
  
  HOUSTON, Texas (KXAN) — A naked man who stepped off the Houston METRORail was caught on camera hitting a police officer.
  The entire incident on June 6 was captured on cellphone video by Benjamin Marquina. KPRC reports 49-year-old Keith Dean was naked and holding a pesticide sprayer he’d stolen from a METRO groundskeeping crew.
  Marquina says the suspect was spraying people on the platform, then jumped inside the train. When two Houston police officers arrived, they ordered Dean to put
  
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• Mail stolen from Woods of Westlake Heights neighborhood

  05-07-2017 13:49 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — When Chris Keel went to get his mail on Tuesday, he found that the entire cluster of mailboxes at the Woods of Westlake Heights neighborhood were broken into.
  The doors of the mailboxes were flung open and it appeared that all the mail was taken. Keel said his neighborhood got the alert Tuesday morning.
  “Its one thing for kind of kids to be smashing mailboxes or something. But this looks like it was really pre-meditate,” said Keel. “These people really wan
  
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• Construction starts on Roger Hanks Parkway extension in Dripping Springs

  05-07-2017 13:35 via kxan.com
  
  DRIPPING SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN) — When September rolls around, residents in Dripping Springs will have better access to the new Dripping Springs High School stadium.
  Starting July 5, construction starts on the extension of Roger Hanks Parkway from US 290 and across Old Highway 290. The parkway will now connect to the southwest parking area of the stadium. Eventually, the parkway willl connect with Ranch Road 12.
  During construction, the east end of Old Highway 290 will be permanently closed
  
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• New York City cop fatally shot while sitting in patrol car

  05-07-2017 12:48 via kxan.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — Police say a New York City officer who was shot while sitting in her patrol car has died in what they’re calling a “clear assassination.”
  Police Sgt. Brendan Ryan says 48-year-old Officer Miosotis Familia died at a hospital early Wednesday.
  Police say other officers shot and killed the suspect after he drew a revolver on them. They say a person believed to be a bystander was struck by a bullet and is in stable condition.
  The attack happened in the Bronx ar
  
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• Army band at Fort Sam Houston to be deactivated in 2018

  05-07-2017 12:40 via kxan.com
  
  SAN ANTONIO (AP) — A historic Texas military band is preparing to play its final note.
  The 323rd Army Band at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio is one of four bands nationwide being deactivated next year. The band called Fort Sam’s Own performs roughly 350 times a year at military funerals, command changes and parades.
  The San Antonio Express-News (http://bit.ly/2sJLejf ) reports the band will continue to play for months, but the 30-year-old unit will end its tour with San Antonio&rsqu
  
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• Well-known Bastrop County leader, Mike Fisher, dies

  05-07-2017 12:24 via kxan.com
  
  BASTROP, Texas (KXAN) — The man many Central Texans became familiar with during the 2011 Bastrop Complex Fire has passed away.
  On Tuesday, Bastrop County Office of Emergency Management director Mike Fisher passed away. On a Facebook post, Bastrop County Judge Paul Pape said Fisher died at his home.
  Fisher has been leading the county’s OEM for more than 10 years and have guided the county through numerous natural disasters. Ever since the 2011 wildfire, which burned 34,000 acres and d
  
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• Trump expresses frustration with China over NKorea support

  05-07-2017 12:09 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump expressed frustration with China on Wednesday for failing to do more to cut off support to North Korea and exert pressure to curb its nuclear pursuits.
  North Korea’s intercontinental ballistic missile test this week demonstrated a dangerous new reach for weapons it hopes to top with nuclear warheads one day. The launch is spurring U.S. demands for global action to counter the threat.
  Since he entered the White House, Trump has talked about con
  
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• Trump chastises China as US weighs North Korea response

  05-07-2017 12:09 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump chastised China on Wednesday for doing too little to starve North Korea of funds and exert pressure over its nuclear pursuits, as his administration searched for new ways to confront Pyongyang after its unprecedented test of a missile capable of hitting the U.S.
  North Korea’s launch this week of an intercontinental ballistic missile demonstrated a dangerous new reach for weapons it hopes to top with nuclear warheads one day. As the U.S. demand
  
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• NKorea long-range missile test spurs US calls for action

  05-07-2017 12:09 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — North Korea’s first test of an intercontinental ballistic missile, demonstrating a dangerous new reach for weapons it hopes to top with nuclear warheads one day, is spurring U.S. demands for “global action” to counter the threat.
  U.S. officials confirmed Tuesday their belief that North Korea’s latest missile launch was indeed an ICBM and joined South Korea and Japan in requesting an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council, scheduled Wednesda
  
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• Fire rips through northeast Austin body shop, damages vehicles

  05-07-2017 10:56 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Firefighters with the Austin Fire Department brought a fire at a northeast Austin body shop under control Wednesday morning near the intersection of Anderson Lane and Cameron Road.
  According to AFD, the fire was first reported at the Al Ameer Body Shop and Babylon Towing at 3:13 a.m. Fire crews say the fire heavily damaged a single wide mobile home, two sheds, and several automobiles.
  AFD crews are currently trying to get in touch with the owners of the body shop. They are
  
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• AFD: Fire under control at NE Austin body shop

  05-07-2017 10:56 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Firefighters with the Austin Fire Department brought a fire at a Northeast Austin body shop under control Wednesday morning near the intersection of Anderson Lane and Cameron Road.
  According to AFD, the fire was first reported at the Al Ameer Body Shop and Babylon Towing at 3:13 a.m. Fire crews say the fire heavily damaged a single wide mobile home, two sheads and several automobiles.An AFD tweet said the first crews on the scene found fire involving two buildings and sever
  
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• Deadline approaches on city manager survey

  05-07-2017 10:13 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Wednesday is the deadline to give your input on what Austin leaders should look for in a city manager.
  The city has an online survey asking you about the skills, abilities, and personal characteristics the next city manager should have. The survey also wants to know about the critical challenges the city will face in the future.
  The City Manager Search Advisory Task Force is going to look over your feedback and then develop a list of recommendations to give to the City Coun
  
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• Thousands pack Auditorium Shores for 4th of July concert & fireworks

  05-07-2017 05:40 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Thousands packed the lawn of Auditorium Shores in their red, white and blue Tuesday for the 41st annual July 4th concert and fireworks show put on by the Austin Symphony Orchestra.
  KXAN’s Erin Cargile was there and put some proud Americans to the test with some Independence Day trivia!
  From which country did the United States win its independence?
  What year did the United States declare its independence?
  How many people lived in the original 13 Colonies when the Decla
  
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• East Austin residents want more police coverage after intense firework displays

  05-07-2017 01:55 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — People who live in an east Austin neighborhood say they’re not getting the same police service as the rest of the city, and worry it could lead to disaster this Independence Day.
  Neighbors in the Berdoll Farms area, just southeast of the airport, say intense illegal firework activity that crops up during various celebrations spark fears of house fires.
  The city annexed that piece of land at the end of 2006, and Henry Floyd said for the last several years, he’s n
  
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• Teen helps perform CPR on boy who nearly drowned at Blue Hole

  05-07-2017 01:43 via kxan.com
  
  GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) — Amid several reports of tragedies on area waterways, KXAN heard one inspiring story of a successful rescue. It came from a 19-year-old off-duty lifeguard who helped save a young boy’s life at Blue Hole in Georgetown on Sunday.
  “There’s hundreds of people around and yet nobody really knew what to do,” Heather Norman said, wondering out loud what would have happened if she were the one who needed help. Instead, she was the one with CPR
  
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• Willie Nelson celebrates 4th of July with annual ‘Willie’s Picnic’

  05-07-2017 01:06 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — It’s a Central Texas tradition like no other – Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Picnic!
  The 44th edition of the event was held Tuesday at the Circuit of the Americas, marking the third year for the celebration out at the track.
  Several fans KXAN spoke with said the event is an annual must-do for them. “Well, Willie is America, you know?” said fan Laura Benedict. “God bless Willie. Willie is the representation – I remember him back in the
  
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• Trump criticizes Kim Jong Un after latest missile launch

  05-07-2017 00:32 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump criticized North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Monday after that country’s latest missile launch, asking, “Does this guy have anything better to do with his life?”
  Trump wrote on Twitter that it’s “Hard to believe that South Korea … and Japan will put up with this much longer.”
  And he urged North Korea’s biggest ally, China, to “put a heavy move on North Korea and end this nonsense once and for a
  
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• Tensions rise as Washington says NKorea tested its 1st ICBM

  05-07-2017 00:32 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States asserted Tuesday that North Korea’s latest missile launch was indeed an intercontinental ballistic missile, as the North had boasted and the U.S. and South Korea had feared. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called the development — the North’s first test launch of a missile capable of reaching the U.S. — a “new escalation of the threat” to the U.S. and the world.
  In a show of force directly responding to North Korea&rs
  
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• Missile launch tests Trump’s North Korea strategy

  05-07-2017 00:32 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The latest North Korean missile launch comes as President Donald Trump appears to be reassessing his strategy for the region, which has emphasized both tough talk and collaboration with China.
  Trump responded quickly after North Korea on Tuesday tested a missile that flew higher and longer than previous ones, criticizing leader Kim Jong Un and urging China to “put a heavy move on North Korea and end this nonsense once and for all!” But he offered no specifics
  
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