The White House complains Loretta Lynch has now waited longer for a Senate vote on her nomination than the last seven attorney general nominees combined. Lynch herself enjoys widespread support, but the vote’s been held up by unrelated fights including a question over abortion funding and a bill designed to combat human trafficking. At a White House news conference, a frustrated President Obama cried “enough”.

“This is embarrassing. A process like this.”

Obama notes Lynch has already been confirmed twice by the Senate for other jobs, including her current post as U.S. attorney in Brooklyn. Scott Horsley, NPR News, the White House. 

 

Officials in Boston today detailed security procedures for the upcoming running of the Boston Marathon. The tightened security on the second anniversary of the deadly bombing attack that killed three people and injured more than 260 others includes limiting the number of spectators along the 26.2-mile course and banning certain items from being carried. Police Commissioner William Evans says those planning to attend the event this year should travel light.

“We are not prohibiting, but we are asking everyone not to bring backpacks, large shoulder bags, suitcases or coolers. If you are going to bring those items, as you go to the checkpoints, you are going to be asked to open those items.”

There’ll also be more police presence for Monday’s running of the marathon. The event draws as many as 500,000 spectators. One of the two men who carried out the 2013 bombing, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, was found guilty last week. 

 

Leaders of the so-called G20 countries warned today that global economic recovery has been threatened by volatility in the financial markets. NPR’s Jim Zarroli reports they issued a statement at the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. 

The G20 represents the largest and most powerful economies in the world. In a statement issued after one of their meetings, the finance ministers of those countries said the economic recovery has been uneven in the world. The United States has done relatively well and the Federal Reserve is contemplating interest rates hikes. But growth has been weak in Europe and Japan, and some advanced economies are essentially paying negative interest rates. The statements said diverging interest rate policy could lead to volatility in the markets. And that together with high debt levels and low inflation could undermine growth. Jim Zarroli, NPR News, Washington.

 

The index designed to predict the future direction of the U.S. economy three to six months down on the road moved higher for a third straight month. The Conference Board says its leading index was up 0.2% in March. 

 

Stocks turned sharply lower at week’s end. The Dow was down 279 points to 17,826. The Nasdaq fell 75 points. 

 

This is NPR. 

 

The Ohio man accused of visiting a terrorist training camp in Syria in play to attack either a U.S. military installation or prison has pleaded not guilty today. Being at Federal Court in Columbus, Ohio, the man, Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, answering to charges of supporting a terrorist group and making a false statement involving international terrorism. According to federal indictment, Mohamud talked about going to a military base in Texas after his return to the U.S. and killing soldiers. 

 

A website often used for statements from the self-proclaimed Islamic State says the group is responsible for a car bombing in northern Iraq that has killed at least three people. NPR’s Alice Fordham reports Isis also claims it’s responsible for an explosion in Irbil today that happened outside the U.S. consulate. 

When the car detonated in the city of Irbil, it was just outside the gate to the U.S. consulate on the street of a Christian neighborhood. A State Department spokeswoman says no embassy staff were wounded in the attack, but Iraqi security officials say there were deaths and injuries among people on the street, which has a number of popular cafes. Security in Irbil is usually better than the rest of Iraq and car bombings are rare, whereas in the capital Baghdad more than two dozen people were killed in car bombs Friday. Alice Fordham, NPR News.  

 

Three Western African countries hearted by the Ebola crisis have unveiled an $8bn recovery package. They are asking for international support to help rebuild healthcare systems, feed their people and create new jobs. In parentage of the Marshall Plan put in place to rebuild Europe after World War II, leaders of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone say half the money would be needed within the next two years. The Ebola outbreak claimed more than 10,000 lives. 

 

I’m Jack Speer, NPR News.