Trump delivers longest State of the Union address in modern history

LOS ANGELES — President Donald Trump, speaking for well over an hour, shattered the record on Tuesday for the length of a State of the Union address.

Speaking for about 100 minutes, the nation's leader touched upon a broad range of domestic and international topics, bragged about his accomplishments and awarded the nation's highest honors to a pilot who participated in the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, a 100-year-old Korean War veteran, and a 32-year-old goalie for the gold-medal-winning Olympic men's hockey team.

The previous record-holder was President Billy Clinton, famously known for his Southern-twang verbosity. He spoke for nearly 90 minutes during his final State of the Union address in 2000.

The address is prescribed by the Constitution and calls for the president to apprise Congress about the state of the union. Over time the address has become a vehicle for presidents to address the nation's residents, claim legislative victories and foreshadow upcoming policy goals.

—Los Angeles Times

Bill Gates apologizes for Epstein ties, admits to affairs with Russian women

NEW YORK — Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates issued an apology for his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during a townhall for the Gates Foundation, during which he also confessed to having two affairs while married to his ex-wife, Melinda French Gates, according to reports.

Speaking to foundation staffers on Tuesday, Gates admitted to traveling on Epstein’s private jet as well spending time with the disgraced financier at home and abroad, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a recording of the town hall meeting. He also denied any wrongdoing, going as far as to say that he did not witness anything “illicit” while spending time with late billionaire.

“It was a huge mistake to spend time with Epstein,” Gates said. “I apologize to other people who are drawn into this because of the mistake that I made.” He added: “To be clear, I never spent any time with victims, the women around him.”

Gates said he first met Epstein in 2011, a couple years after the late financier was convicted in Florida of procuring a child for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute in 2008. Gates said Tuesday that he’d been aware of some “18-month thing” that had limited Epstein’s travel, but did not look into the matter further. He also credited his former wife, Melinda, “who was always kind of skeptical” of Epstein.

—New York Daily News

Florida uses emergency rule to cut patients off AIDS medication

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida’s Department of Health is using emergency rules to cut about 12,000 people off from affordable access to their HIV/AIDS medication starting Sunday.

The Department’s emergency rules were filed Tuesday, one day ahead of a hearing in a legal challenge to the state over changes to the AIDS Drug Assistance Program.

Louise Wilhite-St. Laurent, an attorney representing the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which filed the lawsuit, called the state’s move “legal subterfuge.”

The foundation sued last month after the state said it planned to limit eligibility to the program — which helps low-income HIV and AIDS patients afford medication — from the current 400% of the federal poverty level to 130% of the federal poverty level, or about $21,000 a year for an individual.

—Tampa Bay Times

Orban’s support crumbles weeks ahead of Hungarian elections

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s support crumbled less than seven weeks before a parliamentary election, a poll showed, raising the prospect of a landslide victory for an opposition that’s pledged to reverse the country’s slide toward authoritarianism.

The opposition Tisza party of former ruling elite insider Peter Magyar widened its lead to 20 percentage points among decided voters, up from 12 points in mid-January, according to a Median poll published by HVG news website on Wednesday. Tisza leads Orban’s Fidesz 55% to 35% among those who say they’re certain to vote on April 12.

The gap, the largest measured thus far among independent pollsters, would put Tisza on track for a supermajority in parliament, Magyar said in a Facebook post. That would allow the opposition party greater latitude to unpick Orban’s self-styled illiberal system, which has triggered the freezing of more than $20 billion in European Union funds for Hungary over rule-of-law and graft concerns.

“Tisza has the momentum,” said Orsolya Raczova, an analyst at Eurasia risk consultancy, while cautioning that Fidesz couldn’t be counted out just yet after 16 years in power.

—Bloomberg News