By MIKE CATALINI, Associated Press

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — A federal judge overseeing the criminal case against U.S. Rep. LaMonica McIver told Trump administration attorneys Monday to turn over authorities’ text messages from her chaotic visit to an immigration detention center in New Jersey that led to charges accusing her of assaulting officers.

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U.S. District Judge Jamel Semper’s direction came nearly a month after he told authorities they needed to remove social media posts that could prejudice a jury. He also gave the government until next week to turn over additional video from McIver’s May 9 visit to the Delaney Hall facility in Newark.

Attorneys for the New Jersey Democrat told the judge that instead of receiving all the messages from officers involved in the visit, they instead got only those the government turned up after applying unknown search terms.

“I don’t necessarily understand the need for search terms,” Semper said. “Why would you be using search terms as opposed to just turning them over?”

Mark McCarren, an assistant U.S. attorney, told the judge prosecutors were looking for relevant items.

The judge said he recognized the possibility that there could be security concerns over releasing all messages. He added: “Short of that, they should have them.”

Monday’s hearing came days after Semper declined to throw out the case against McIver, who has pleaded not guilty to assaulting, resisting, impeding and interfering with federal officials. The judge is still reviewing a defense request to throw out one of the counts.

McIver’s lawyers had argued the prosecution was selective and vindictive, and that she didn’t assault anyone during her visit. They also said McIver was performing legislative duties protected by the Constitution.

The case is a high-profile clash between President Donald Trump’s second administration and a Democratic lawmaker who has been sharply critical of the president’s policies.

Two of the counts against McIver carry a maximum sentence of up to eight years in prison. The third is a misdemeanor with a maximum punishment of one year in prison.

Delaney Hall is a 1,000-bed facility, where raucous protests happened in the spring.

McIver was among several elected officials who attempted to visit the facility. As they tried to gain access, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested by federal agents, with charges eventually dropped. McIver was among several people jostling in the crowd around Baraka as it happened.

Prosecutors claim McIver “slammed” her forearm into an agent and placed her arms around the mayor to try to stop his arrest.

It is not clear from police body camera video if the contact with the agent was intentional or the result of jostling in the chaotic scene.

By JULIE WATSON, Associated Press

Hundreds of National Guard troops deployed to Chicago and Portland, Oregon, are being sent home, and those who will remain will continue to stay off the streets amid court battles over their domestic mission by the Trump administration, a defense official said Monday.

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The withdrawal of soldiers — sent from California and Texas — is part of a larger change to troop deployments after President Donald Trump began his immigration crackdown in various cities with Democratic leadership. The official was not authorized to publicly discuss the issue and requested anonymity.

U.S. Northern Command said in a statement Sunday it was “shifting and/or rightsizing” units in Portland, Los Angeles and Chicago. Although it said there would be a “constant, enduring, and long-term presence in each city.”

In the coming days, 200 California National Guard troops currently deployed to Oregon will be sent home, and about 100 will remain in the Portland area doing training, the official said. The military also plans to cut the number of Oregon National Guard troops on deployment there from 200 soldiers to 100, the official said.

About 200 Texas National Guard troops in Chicago also are being sent home and about 200 soldiers will be on standby at Fort Bliss, an Army base that stretches across parts of Texas and New Mexico, the official said.

About 300 Illinois National Guard troops will remain in the Chicago area, also doing training, but they currently are not legally allowed to conduct operations with the Department of Homeland Security, the official said.

The official said the upcoming holiday season may have played a role in the change in deployments.

Diana Crofts-Pelayo, a spokesperson for California Gov. Gavin Newsom, said Trump “never should have illegally deployed our troops in the first place.”

“We’re glad they’re finally coming home,” she wrote in an email. “It’s long overdue!”

Democratic cities targeted by Trump for military involvement — including Chicago, which filed a separate lawsuit on the issue currently before the U.S. Supreme Court — have been pushing back. They argue the president has not satisfied the legal threshold for deploying troops and that doing so would violate states’ sovereignty.

U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut in Portland this month issued a permanent injunction blocking Trump from deploying troops in the city, saying he had failed to establish that he was legally entitled to do so. On Sunday, the administration filed an emergency motion seeking to put the ruling on hold while it appeals.

Separately, the Trump administration has stepped up immigration enforcement in Charlotte, North Carolina, expanding an aggressive campaign that’s been spearheaded by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

National Guard deployments have been one of the most controversial initiatives of Trump’s second term, demonstrating an expanded willingness to use the military to accomplish domestic goals.

Troops, including active-duty Marines, were deployed to Los Angeles during immigration protests earlier this year.

The National Guard was also sent to Washington, D.C., where they were part of a broader federal intervention that Trump claimed was necessary because of crime problems.

The deployments later expanded to Portland and Chicago.

Although they don’t play a law enforcement role, members of the National Guard have been tasked with protecting federal facilities, particularly those run by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

About 100 troops who have been in Los Angeles will remain on deployment, the defense official said.

AP journalist Chris Megerian in Washington and Eugene Johnson in Seattle contributed to this report.

By Carol Ann Davidson, Tribune News Service

I grew up with kilts, bagpipes, fiddles and Ceilidhs. No, not in bonnie Scotland, but in beautiful Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia.

So, when at last I visited Scotland’s Isle of Arran this past September, my guide, the engaging Alex Dickinson of Mogabout Tours, dressed from top to toe in tartan, made me feel right at home. But then, the 167-square-mile Isle, just shy of a population of 5,000, confirmed what I had felt: welcomed with a warmth and a generosity of spirit that was entirely authentic.

Recently anointed an UNESCO Geopark, and nicknamed “Scotland in Miniature,” Arran is an island on the west coast of Scotland anchored in the sheltered waters of the Firth of Clyde, an hour-long ferry ride from the city of Glasgow.

Alex Dickinson of Mogabout Tours on Isle of Arran. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

During my visit, Alex didn’t leave a Viking’s stone unturned or a 12th-century shell of Lochranza Castle on the beach unexplored. We hiked up hills carpeted with heather and thistle, viewed panoramic scenes of the sea and green-hued landscape at a vertiginous drop below. A “Fairy Rain,” as the Islanders refer to it, fell gently, laced with the scent of the briny sea.

The Isle of Arran’s 12th-century Lochranza Castle. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

Next stop Lochranza Distillery, where a dram or two of the award-winning Arran Single Malt warmed the cockles of our hearts. It’s one of only 12 independent whiskey distilleries in all of Scotland, and a behind-the-scenes tour of the complex process is highly recommended. Apparently, a key to the quality of the product is the water, and as the distillery tour guide told us, “The area is home to the purest water in all of Scotland.”

Brodick Castle ‘portraits’ on the Isle of Arran. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

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After our smooth libation, off we drove to the majestic Brodick Castle — the former ancestral home of the dukes of Hamilton and the only island country park in all of Britain. Considered a baronial masterpiece, it’s replete with historic art and artifacts and peppered with stories of scandalous intrigues, the dissolute life of one of the heirs a case in point. I must admit that the massive staircase sporting innumerable taxidermy mounts of antlered deers was a wee bit unsettling. A groaning table in the kitchen was laden with realistic replicas of the abundance and variety of food the Duke and Duchess provided for their elaborate parties. Haggis, the traditional Scottish food, may have been part of their diet. Not mine, mind you. Somehow the thought of eating a pudding containing sheep’s heart, liver and lungs encased in the animals stomach didn’t quite appeal to me. However, for a perfectly illogical reason, local fish and seafood did. So off we went to Mara Fish Bar and Deli in the village of Corrie. Basking in the sun on the deck facing the sea, we feasted on locally sourced hand dived scallops, homemade fish tacos, mounds of crisp French fries, and downed it all with the other national drink, the carbonated soft drink IRN-BRU.

As wonderful as all of this was, I must admit that Bellevue Farm stole my heart.

Harry the calf, at Bellevue Farm. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

Specifically, Harry, the calf and, oh yes, Milly, the goat and all five of the alpacas. Not that the rest of the farm’s 60 cows, 200 sheep and 20 goats weren’t a joy, but bottle feeding each one would have been impossible. So a girl has to choose. Harry, the russet-color Highland cow, was irresistible. He sucked on that milk bottle for dear life, pulling me this way and that with every gulp.

But that was exactly what Ailsa and Donald Currie hoped for. Their working farm is a magnet for animal lovers, sustainable farm practices, and literally farm-to-table fare. We humans also were well fed with a hearty meal prepared by Ailsa from the Bellevue community garden.

The cooperative spirit of the islanders was evident when Katie Murchie arrived to greet us. Her family has the only dairy farm on the island, Tigheanfroach, and the Arran Ice Cream they produce is a dream — a fine finish to our lunch.

Cromlix hotel in Stirlingshire countryside. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

Bellevue sells its barley to the island’s distilleries. Cooperation and congeniality are keys to a community that knows well how to flourish in partnership.

And at the end of each day, how appealing it was to return to the welcoming and comfortable Douglas Hotel overlooking Brodick Bay. From hearty Scottish breakfasts promoting the island’s cottage producers like Wooley’s oatcakes, and the dinner menu featuring Arran and Ayreshire lamb, beef and venison. And yes, Arran Ice Cream.

Now, Scotland has almost 6 million people, 7 million sheep, 5,000 goats. Where, you may ask, is this narrative thread leading?

Yours truly trying her hand at the Radical Loom in Stirling. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

Well, as an amateur crafter of textiles, my west- to east-coast Scotland journey was, in part, in pursuit of the wool and cashmere fabrics for which Scotland is world renowned. Next stop, the village of New Lanark, in South Lanarkshire. It’s a totally charming 18th-century textile mill town on the shore of the Falls of Clyde with a population of 200. Under the guidance of Robert Owen, New Lanark became a model for industrial communities in the 19th and 20th centuries. In 2001 it was anointed one of 6 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Scotland. Tourists from around the world flock to explore its National Nature Reserve, stay in the lovely New Lanark Mill hotel and learn about its history at the Visitor Center, including a well-stocked shop selling woolen products made on-site. The last was the main draw for me. Iain Dickie, the lone textile operator, dazzled me on a private tour of the entire process, starting with harvesting the sheep’s wool, then washing, spinning and dying it as he orchestrated a dizzying number of machines. The end product — skeins — are the foundational threads used in all woolen products. It takes a full month to make a 100-gram skein of wool!

New Lanark’s skeins, ready to be transformed into textiles. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

Iain, a rather modest man, revealed with some pride, that he fashioned two wools for the Harry Potter films.

After a scenic train ride across the soft green countryside dotted with sheep, I arrived at Lunan Bay Farm in Angus on the North Sea to spent a day with 150 cashmere goats. Farmers Jillian and Neil McEwan are the guardians of the largest remaining farmed herd of cashmere in the United Kingdom and the only farm of its kind in all of Scotland. The setting is, in a word, spectacular. Their acreage spreads out along the vast sandy beach with an 11th-century castle perched on a nearby hill.

Cashmere goats at Lunan Bay Farm in Angus. (Jayne Watson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

The sun was shining and the goats were bleating. Unlike the more passive sheep, goats are more animated and hierarchical. Feeding a few seemed like a bit of a wrestling match, as the alpha goat was butting its head against any other who tried to yes, butt in. But they all loved a bit of cuddling. Cashmere fiber is the soft down under the thicker outer layer. One goat will yield only 75 grams of pure spinnable cashmere per year!

Fun with Goats in Coats at Lunan Bay Farm. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

Giving to the community at large, Jillian and Neil work withschools and colleges offering a Goatgetters project, an outreach farm education, with their goats. And every Easter the popular Goats in Coats Festival features the baby cashmere goats in hand-knitted jumpers. (2026 dates are April 11, 12, 18 and 19.) Get your tickets fast as it is always sells out quickly! But if you can’t go then Jillian and Neil open their farm to guests throughout the year and not only will Jillian’s homemade lunch be served, but their small cashmere shop offers the best-quality cashmere items on the market. I must admit, for a brief moment I considered staying there and becoming a goat whisperer … the day was that divine.

Threads of sheep wool and cashmere invariably find their way into the iconic tartans of Scotland. At last count, the official number of registered tartans rang in at 10,000.

Processing sheep’s wool in New Lanark. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

At Radical Weavers in the city of Stirling, I discovered that the Davidson tartan was one of them. In a three-hour workshop, Peter, the 25-year-old master weaver, had me, the novice, pressing levers and throwing the shuttle back and forth to thread the blue, black, green and red fibers into an actual square of tartan. What a thrill!

Evidence of Scottish textiles was liberally scattered throughout Cromlix, the luxury Victorian Mansion and estate in the secluded Stirlingshire countryside near Dunblane. The owners, Kim and Sir Andy Murray (Scotland’s champion tennis player), have created an oasis of comfort, quiet and beauty, as well as achieving a rare two-key Michelin rating. My dinner served in the airy glasshouse was, without exaggeration one of the best of my well-traveled life. The halibut was perfection itself. The service, superb.

Cozy in canopy at luxurious Cromlix in Stirlingshire countryside. (Carol Ann Davidson/Carol Ann Davidson/TNS)

I slept well in a canopied fourposter bed in a suite that rivaled those of “Downtown Abbey” fame. Cromlix capped an extraordinary time in a country I have for a long time longed to visit.

How does Scotland compare to my beloved Cape Breton? Admirably!

For more information

VisitScotland.com

©2025 Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

By KELVIN CHAN, Associated Press

Just in time for the busy holiday travel season, iPhone users can now add their passport details to their Apple digital wallets.

The company on Wednesday unveiled its new “Digital ID” system for users to add their U.S. passport information to Apple Wallet, which can be scanned at airport readers if travelers don’t have a Real ID.

Digital ID acceptance “will roll out first in beta” at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints at more than 250 U.S. airports for “in-person identity verification during domestic travel.”

The company warned that Digital ID doesn’t replace a physical passport and can’t be used for international travel and crossing borders.

Apple already allowed people in 12 states and Puerto Rico to add their driver’s license or state ID to Apple Wallet, while TSA already accepts some form of a digital ID in at least 16 states and Puerto Rico.

“You can breeze through more than 250 TSA checkpoints faster and more securely than ever before,” the agency’s website says.

Here’s a guide on how to add your passport:

Setup

Open your iPhone’s Wallet app, tap the plus sign at the top and then tap the Digital ID option on the menu. If that doesn’t work for you, type in “Digital ID” into the app’s search bar.

Grab your passport and follow the instructions. You’ll have to use the camera to scan your passport’s photo page. Next, place your iPhone on the chip embedded on the passport’s back page to authenticate the data.

Finally, you will need to verify your identity, first by taking a selfie and then by carrying out a series of facial and head movements, such as turning your head or closing your eyes.

Once the verification procedures are done, the Digital ID will be added to the Wallet.

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How to use

Using your iPhone to present your Digital ID is similar to using it to make a purchase.

Double-click the phone’s side button, which calls up the Wallet app. On the stack of cards, tap on the Digital ID. When it’s your turn at the TSA kiosk, hold your phone or Apple watch up to the reader.

The machine will take your picture, and then your phone will let you review the information that’s being requested, such as name and date of birth. In order to authenticate those details, you’ll have to use the phone’s face or fingerprint scanner.

What about security?

Apple says your passport data is encrypted and stored on the device, and it can’t see when or where users present their Digital ID or the data that was shown.

The use of a face or fingerprint scan makes sure that only the person who the ID belongs to can release the info.

The company says that iPhone users don’t need to unlock, show, or hand over their device to present their Digital ID.

Where can I use mobile IDs?

More than a dozen states already accept some form of a mobile ID at airport checkpoints, according to TSA.

The list includes: Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Montana, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia, as well as Puerto Rico.

Travelers can go to the TSA website for more details.

Is there a tech topic that you think needs explaining? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your suggestions for future editions of One Tech Tip.

AP Airlines and Travel Writer Rio Yamat contributed.