NEW YORK (AP) — Anthony Weiner set out to reintroduce himself to voters Thursday as he embarked on a mayoral bid after leaving Congress in a sexting scandal. He found a much more supportive reception in his first day of campaigning than he did from the state's top Democrat, who bluntly criticized his candidacy a day earlier.

NEW YORK (AP) — A businessman was snatched from a New York City street in broad daylight, then held captive for more than a month in a warehouse where he was bound and burned with acid as he was held for a $3 million ransom his family back in Ecuador did not have, authorities said.

Blake Shelton has a date and location for his benefit and fellow Oklahoman Carrie Underwood is writing a large check to help benefit those affected by this week's storms in their home state.

OGIDI, Nigeria (AP) — Writer Chinua Achebe shunned Nigeria's corrupt politicians and twice turned down national honors, never fearing to criticize those he felt ruined his country. On Thursday, however, the lawmakers and the country's elite came to praise him.

CHICAGO (AP) — An 87-year-old grandmother took on billionaire Donald Trump. And on Thursday, she lost.

NEW YORK (AP) — It was another ugly quarter for Sears Holdings Corp.

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Maine's governor, who has gained attention in the past for telling the NAACP to "kiss my butt" and comparing the Internal Revenue Service to the Gestapo, has moved out of his office at the State House and says he'll work out of the governor's mansion because of a dispute over a television screen.

NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Suicide bombers in Niger detonated two car bombs simultaneously, one inside a military camp in the city of Agadez and another in the remote town of Arlit at a French-operated uranium mine, killing 26 people and injuring 30, according to officials in Niger and France.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. regulators are in the early stages of an antitrust probe into whether Google Inc, the top player in Web display advertising, breaks antitrust law in how it handles some advertising sales, a source told Reuters on Thursday. The source said that it was unlikely that the Federal Trade Commission had sent out civil investigative demands in relation to the probe, which would be the sign of a formal and more serious investigation. ...

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama plans to give the Jersey Shore a boost with a post-Memorial Day visit to showcase recovery efforts in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.

By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, pointing to resilience in the labor market despite belt-tightening by Washington. The improving employment picture is helping to prop up housing, with rising home prices keeping domestic consumption supported, limiting the drag from tighter fiscal policy that is dampening factory activity. "All the eggs are in housing and the consumers' baskets this quarter. ...

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Charges that an Army sergeant secretly photographed and videotaped women at West Point are part of a military-wide pattern of sexual misconduct, U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand said Thursday.

NEW YORK (AP) — CBS strengthened its dominance over the television industry this year at the same time that the unprecedented reign of "American Idol" came to a close.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The woman who interrupted President Barack Obama's speech on counterterrorism policy on Thursday is well-known around Washington as a perennial protester on national security issues. Medea Benjamin, a founder of anti-war women's group Code Pink, began demonstrating years ago on Capitol Hill, becoming an almost routine presence at hearings where high-ranking officials of the Bush administration appeared to talk about the Iraq war. ...

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — St. Paul authorities shut down a popular fossil-hunting area in a riverside park Thursday, one day after two children were killed and two others injured by a landslide.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A man wanted for 13 years on attempted murder charges in Los Angeles was captured in Colorado after someone called police to report he was urinating on a wall outside a KFC restaurant.

MOORE, Okla. (AP) — One loved the spotlight. Another was nicknamed "The Wall" because of the force he brought to the soccer field.

MOORE, Okla. (AP) — A massive tornado was carving its way through town. There was no time to hesitate. LaTisha Garcia had to get to her children.

YORBA LINDA, Calif. (AP) — U.S. Navy Lt. Commander Doug Burns was on a night reconnaissance mission searching for enemy trucks when he was shot down by anti-aircraft fire and taken prisoner during the Vietnam War.

VIRGINIA WATER, England (AP) — The head of the European golf tour apologized for using the term "colored" during a live television interview Thursday in which he was reacting to the spat between Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcia.