Salvage crews remove large portion of commercial jet from river

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Salvage crews have removed a large portion of a commercial jet from the Potomac River near Washington’s Reagan National Airport after a midair collision last week that killed 67 people. Authorities have said the operation to remove the plane will take several days and they will then work to remove the military helicopter involved in the crash. The crash between the American Airlines jet and an Army helicopter over Washington, D.C. on Wednesday was the deadliest U.S. air disaster since 2001. More than 300 responders are taking part in the recovery effort at any given time. Two Navy barges are deployed to lift heavy wreckage.

Judge: Block on Trump administration federal funding freeze will likely be extended

WASHINGTON (AP) — A judge in the nation’s capital will likely keep a temporary block on a Trump administration plan for a freeze on federal funding. U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan expressed concern Monday about reports of nonprofit groups who say they still can’t access federal funding and are at risk of shutting down. President Donald Trump’s plan to halt federal grants and loans originally targeted a wide range of funding totaling potentially trillions of dollars. While the memo outlining it has since been rescinded, the Republican administration has said a funding freeze is still planned as part of his blitz of executive orders. The plan was also blocked by a second federal judge last week.

Transportation secretary says ‘expansive’ impact zone was left by medical plane crash

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The U.S. transportation secretary has visited the site of a medical transportation plane crash in Philadelphia with city and state officials. Secretary Sean Duffy on Monday said the impact area was notably “expansive.” The crash Friday evening killed all six people on the plane, including a girl who had been receiving medical treatment at Shriners Children’s Philadelphia hospital. A seventh person inside a vehicle was killed on the ground. Mayor Cherelle Parker says a total of 24 people were hurt on the ground. Two are still in critical condition. Parker said footage of the crash has made her “think about what could have been, had a gas line been hit.”

Trump admin ends temporary deportation protection for 350,000 Venezuelans

WASHINGTON (AP) — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is ending protections that shielded roughly 350,000 Venezuelans from deportation, leaving them with two months before they lose their right to work in the U.S. The decision affects some of the Venezuelans currently living in the U.S. with Temporary Protected Status. Noem’s termination notice will be published Wednesday and go into effect 60 days later. Congress created TPS in 1990 to prevent deportations to countries suffering from natural disasters or civil strife. Protected people have legal authority to be in the country but no long-term path to citizenship. They rely on the government to constantly renew their status when it expires. Critics have said that over time, the renewal of the protection status becomes automatic.