US Top Stories from Associated Press (AP)

Edward Snowden's frantic bids for asylum to escape prosecution on espionage charges could lead him back to America , specifically, South America. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro defended the accused National Security Agency leaker to Russian reporters Tuesday during a visit to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Cornel West praised the Supreme Court's ruling last week on gay marriage, but lamented that "we black folk are just being pushed to the back of the bus in terms of our visibility." Speaking on his radio...

NEW YORK (AP) , What's new this Fourth of July? A happy face with a wink exploding over New York City as part of Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks 2013 , the nation's biggest display. That's one of the spectacles being prepared to light up the sky on Thursday.

DEATH VALLEY, Calif. (AP) , Scorching heat blistered the Southwest on Saturday, where highs between 115 and 120 degrees were recorded for parts of Arizona, Nevada and California. Forecasters said temperatures in sunbaked Las Vegas shot up to 115 degrees on Saturday afternoon, two degrees short of the city's all-time record.

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) , A chief negotiator said Saturday that two of San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit's largest unions will "likely" go on strike. Josie Mooney, a negotiator for the Service...

GETTYSBURG, Pa. (AP) , As re-enacted war raged several miles away, tourists strolled a commercial strip of Gettysburg to survey T-shirts, hats and other trinkets to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War's pivotal battle.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) , Less than 24 hours after California started issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples, lawyers for the sponsors of the state's gay marriage ban filed an emergency motion Saturday asking the U.S. Supreme Court to stop the weddings being performed in San Francisco.

As Nelson Mandela lingers in a hospital, yet another remarkable moment is helping to seal his legacy: Millions of people around the world, united by respect and gratitude, are preparing for this beloved man to die. The preparations take many forms: Prayers and vigils, pictures and candles, headlines and YouTube videos.

BOSTON (AP) , Hundreds of relatives, friends and teammates wept together and hugged Saturday at the funeral of a semi-pro football player whose killing led to murder and weapons charges against former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez.

GETTYSBURG, Pa. , Vendors looking to capitalize on the barrage of tourists coming to town to mark the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg are hawking commemorative T-shirts, hats and other trinkets as a re-enacted war rages on nearby.

SANFORD, Fla. (AP) , The first week of George Zimmerman's second-degree murder trial closed Friday. At the start of the week, prosecutors and defense attorneys outlined their cases for the jury of six women. Then prosecutors began putting on their case. Zimmerman is pleading not guilty. He has said he fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in February 2012 in self-defense.

DETROIT (AP) , One of the winningest quarterbacks in college football history has been missing for days and family members expressed concern he may have suffered "a mental episode," a Michigan law enforcement official said Tuesday.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) , Indiana will likely stop defending a law that stripped Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood after the Supreme Court declined to hear the case Tuesday, an attorney who represents the nation's largest abortion provider said.

NEW YORK (AP) , Calling it perhaps the biggest money-laundering scheme in U.S. history, federal prosecutors charged seven people Tuesday with running what amounted to an online, underworld bank that handled $6 billion for drug dealers, child pornographers, identity thieves and other criminals around the globe.

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) , A Marine killed after going on a shooting spree that left one person dead and several hospitalized in Texas also is suspected of fatally stabbing his wife, whose body was found in a North Carolina motel room hours after the rampage, police said Tuesday.