(Following Advance for Use Thursday, June 5th)


Today in History

Today is Thursday, June 5th, the 157th day of 2008. There are 209 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History: On June 5th, 1968, Senator Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in Los Angeles' Ambassador Hotel after claiming victory in California's Democratic presidential primary. Gunman Sirhan Bishara Sirhan was immediately arrested.

On this date: In 1884, Civil War hero General William T. Sherman refused the Republican presidential nomination, saying, "I will not accept if nominated and will not serve if elected." In 1917, about 10 million American men began registering for the draft in World War I.

In 1933, the United States went off the gold standard.

In 1940, during the World War II Battle of France, Germany attacked French forces along the Somme line.

In 1947, Secretary of State George C. Marshall gave a speech at Harvard University in which he outlined an aid program for Europe that came to be known as "The Marshall Plan." In 1967, war erupted in the Mideast as Israel raided military aircraft parked on the ground in Egypt; Syria, Jordan and Iraq entered the conflict.

In 1976, 14 people were killed when the Teton Dam in Idaho burst.

In 1981, the Centers for Disease Control reported that five homosexuals in Los Angeles had come down with a rare kind of pneumonia; they were the first recognized cases of what later became known as AIDS.

In 1993, country star Conway Twitty died in Springfield, Missouri, at age 59.

In 2004, Ronald Wilson Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, died in Los Angeles at age 93 after a long struggle with Alzheimer's disease.

Ten years ago: A strike at a General Motors parts factory near Detroit closed five assembly plants and idled workers nationwide; the walkout lasted seven weeks. Volkswagen AG won approval to buy Rolls-Royce Motor Cars for 700 million dollars (however, BMW later got to purchase the Rolls-Royce brand name and logo).

Five years ago: Speaking to American soldiers in Qatar, President Bush argued the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq was justified and pledged that "we'll reveal the truth" on Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction. The United States agreed to pull its ground troops away from the Demilitarized Zone separating North and South Korea. The New York Times' top two editors resigned in the wake of the Jayson Blair scandal.

One year ago: Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, was sentenced to 2 and a-half years in prison for lying and obstructing the CIA leak investigation. (President Bush later commuted the prison sentence.) A fourth suspect in an alleged plot to destroy New York's John F.

Kennedy International Airport surrendered to police in Trinidad.

Today's Birthdays: Actor-singer Bill Hayes is 83. Broadcast journalist Bill Moyers is 74. Rhythm-and-blues singer Floyd Butler (Friends of Distinction) is 67. Country singer Don Reid (The Statler Brothers) is 63. Rock musician Fred Stone (Sly and the Family Stone) is 62. Rock singer Laurie Anderson is 61. Country singer Gail Davies is 60. Author Ken Follett is 59. Rock musician Nicko McBrain (Iron Maiden) is 56. Jazz musician Kenny G is 52.

Rock singer Richard Butler (Psychedelic Furs) is 52. Actor Jeff Garlin is 46. Actress Karen Sillas is 45. Actor Ron Livingston is 41. Singer Brian McKnight is 39. Rock musician Claus Norreen (Aqua) is 38. Actor Mark Wahlberg is 37. Actor Chad Allen is 34. Rock musician P-Nut (311) is 34. Actress Navi Rawat (RO'-waht) is 31.

Actress Liza Weil is 31. Rock musician Pete Wentz (Fall Out Boy) is 29. Rock musician Seb Lefebvre (Simple Plan) is 27.

Thought for Today: "What is objectionable, what is dangerous, about extremists is not that they are extreme, but that they are intolerant. The evil is not what they say about their cause, but what they say about their opponents." Robert F. Kennedy, U.S.

senator (1925-1968).

(Above Advance for Use Thursday, June 5th)


Copyright 2008, The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APNP 05-25-08 0755CDT | save this article / add to your favorites list