10 things to know for Monday

[July 16, 2012]  (AP) -- Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today (all times EDT):

1. WHY REPEALING HEALTH CARE LAW WON'T BE EASY

If Romney wins the White House and his GOP allies retake the Senate, he could shred most of Obama's health care law without having to overpower a Democratic filibuster. But it won't be easy and it won't be quick.

2. ECONOMISTS LAY OUT GLOOMY FORECAST

Sales and profit gains of early 2012 are disappearing and financial pros say Europe's crisis, the possible expiration of the Bush tax cuts in December, and the prospect of major cuts in federal spending are also weighing on their minds.

3. ANNAN MEETS WITH KEY SYRIAN ALLY

The U.N. special envoy consults with top Russian officials, who are adamantly opposed to international military intervention. But in light of rising violence, Russia is under increasing pressure to get tougher on Assad.

4. MICROSOFT AND MSNBC END ONLINE ALLIANCE

The tech giant is pulling out of the joint venture that owned MSNBC.com, freeing the world's largest software maker to build its own online news service and NBC News to do the same.

5. WHAT CLINTON IS DISCUSSING IN ISRAEL

The secretary of state is meeting with Israeli and Palestinian leaders and the violence in Syria and Iran's nuclear program are on the table.

6. WHERE VIEWERS ARE INCREASINGLY GETTING THEIR NEWS

A new study finds that YouTube is emerging as a major platform for news, one to which viewers increasingly turn for eyewitness videos in times of major events and natural disasters.

7. RHETORIC HEATS UP ON CAMPAIGN TRAIL

At 12:30 p.m. in Cincinnati, Obama will hold a town hall where he is expected to be critical of GOP rival Romney's tax proposals and tout his own 2009 bailout of the auto industry.

8. NORTH KOREA'S TOP MILITARY OFFICIAL IS OUT

A key mentor to Kim Jong Un is removed from all posts because of illness, state media says. The departure feeds speculation that Kim purged him in an effort to put his own mark on the authoritarian nation he inherited seven months ago.

9. COURT MARTIAL TRIAL OPENS AT LACKLAND

At 9:30 a.m., military officials at this Air Force base in Texas are expected to tell the court that initial flirtations a sergeant directed at the women he trained eventually morphed into threats and intimidation, and ultimately led to rape.

10. NO KIDDING AROUND FOR NEW KNICKS PLAYER

Recently signed guard Jason Kidd is busted for DWI in the Hamptons, creating yet another distraction for New York's NBA team in light of Jeremy Lin's uncertain future.

[Associated Press]

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