Nation in brief

Maine approves gay marriage, N.H. close

In a banner day for advocates of gay marriage in New England, Maine Gov. John Baldacci signed a freshly passed bill Wednesday allowing the practice and was followed closely by the New Hampshire Legislature. If New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch signs the bill or lets it become law without his signature, his state would become the sixth overall to allow gay marriage and the fifth in New England. Rhode Island would be the region’s only holdout. Maine’s law is to take effect in mid-September. But it could be sidetracked by opponents who promised to challenge it through a public veto process that could suspend it and force a state referendum. Outside New England, Iowa is recognizing gay marriages on court orders. The practice was briefly legal in California before voters banned it.

Obama to propose budget reductions

After a line-by-line scrub of the federal budget, President Barack Obama has signed off on a roster of 121 budget cuts to save taxpayers $17 billion, a senior White House official said. Budget Director Peter Orszag briefed Democratic lawmakers on a partial roster of the cuts before a public release today. Obama also is fleshing out the details of the $1.3 trillion portion of the budget that is appropriated by Congress each year. One proposal calls for the elimination of a $400 million program that gives money to states to help defray the cost of incarcerating illegal immigrants who commit crimes. A House Democratic official said about half the savings would come from the Pentagon budget, with the other half from domestic programs.

College student slain at bookstore

A Wesleyan University student was shot and killed at a bookstore near the central Connecticut campus, officials said, sparking a manhunt while police cautioned students and staff to remain indoors. Officials didn’t immediately identify the victim. Middletown Mayor Sebastian Giuliano said he did not believe the public was in danger. “It was focused. This wasn’t random from what I can tell,” Giuliano said.

2 Marines killed as copter crashes

A Marine Corps helicopter crashed in a remote section of a Southern California forest, killing its two experienced pilots, authorities said. The AH-1W Super Cobra helicopter from the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing crashed shortly before midnight Tuesday in the Cleveland National Forest in eastern San Diego County, killing the only two people on board, Marine Corps Air Station Miramar said. The pilots were part of an air-combat unit that was preparing to go overseas, said Maj. Jay Delarosa, a Marine Corps spokesman. The helicopter was carrying live ordnance. The victims’ names were withheld pending notification of their families.

Single-engine plane loses power, kills 2

Two people were killed when a single-engine plane crashed into an unoccupied aircraft on the ground at a South Florida airport, authorities said. Fire-Rescue spokesman Don Delucia said the crash happened at Palm Beach County Park Airport in Lantana. He said it appears the plane lost power. No one on the ground was hurt. The dead were not immediately identified.

Mayor hospitalized after losing primary

The indicted mayor of Jackson, Miss., was in critical condition Wednesday, a day after he lost his primary re-election bid and was rushed to the hospital. Mayor Frank Melton, 60, who has a history of heart trouble, was in a Jackson hospital, said city spokeswoman Goldia Revies. The City Council met in an emergency session and elected President Leslie Burl McLemore to be acting mayor. Next week Melton was expected to face trial a second time on federal civil rights charges related to a 2006 attack on a duplex he considered a crackhouse. Meanwhile, a mayoral runoff election is set May 19 between Harvey Johnson and Councilman Marshand Crisler.

Ex-hoops star takes helm in Detroit

Basketball legend Dave Bing, 65, a local businessman and political novice, was elected Detroit’s third mayor in less than a year Tuesday with 52 percent of the vote. He will serve through the end of the year —- the balance of the term that belonged to Democrat Kwame Kilpatrick, who resigned in September in a text-messaging sex scandal.

Party-switcher loses seniority

Sen. Arlen Specter’s switch to the Democratic Party has cost him his seniority on Senate committees. The Senate passed a resolution Tuesday night that made the Pennsylvania lawmaker the most junior Democrat on the committees on which he serves: Appropriations, Judiciary, Veterans Affairs, Environment and Public Works, and Special Aging.