President: Payment not ransom ... Young Americans political survey ...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama is rejecting the idea that a $400 million cash payment to Iran was ransom to secure the release of four Americans jailed in Tehran. Obama told reporters at the Pentagon, "This wasn't some nefarious deal." Last January's payment was part of a decades-old dispute over a failed military equipment deal dating to the 1970s, before the Islamic revolution in 1979.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A new survey says most young Americans feel the Republican and Democratic parties don't represent them. The GenForward poll also finds that this disconnect holds true across racial and ethnic groups. Just 28 percent of young adults overall said the two parties do a good job of representing the American people.

BONITA, Calif. (AP) -- A San Diego police officer who was fatally shot in the driver's seat of his patrol car after his partner approached a man on the street will be buried Friday. Jonathan De Guzman was a 16-year veteran of the force. His partner was shot in the throat but is expected to recover. A suspect has pleaded not guilty to murder and attempted murder.

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) -- The opening ceremony for the 2016 Summer Olympics takes place tonight in Rio de Janeiro. Millions of television viewers from around the world are expected to tune in. NBC will carry the three-hour ceremony on a one-hour delay because it wants the entertainment spectacle to be shown completely in U.S. prime time.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Character actor David Huddleston has died in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He's remembered for such roles as the mayor in "Blazing Saddles" and the blustery millionaire in "The Big Lebowski." His wife says Huddleston died Tuesday of advanced heart and kidney disease. He was 85.

Source:wtb