The New York Times;| Today's Headlines Tuesday, May 17, 2016

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Rift Between Labor and Environmentalists Threatens Democratic Turnout Plan By JONATHAN MARTIN A group of construction unions threatened to boycott a big new Democratic get-out-the-vote operation this fall unless a wealthy opponent of climate change is barred from it.

China Quietly Targets U.S. Tech Companies in Security Reviews By PAUL MOZUR and JANE PERLEZ A committee with ties to the country's military and security agencies is requiring foreign tech giants like Apple to answer questions about encryption and data storage.

Justices, Seeking Compromise, Return Contraception Case to Lower Courts By ADAM LIPTAK The case was brought by religious groups that objected to having to provide insurance coverage for contraception for their female employees. Today's Videos  VIDEO: This Is Hart Island An uninhabited strip of land off the coast of the Bronx in Long Island Sound has been the final resting place for New York City's unclaimed dead since 1869.  VIDEO: Anatomy of a Scene: 'The Lobster' Yorgos Lanthimos narrates a sequence from "The Lobster," featuring Colin Farrell.  VIDEO: LSD's Long, Strange Trip In the 1960s, mind-altering drugs like LSD helped fuel the counterculture. Today, psychedelics are turning on a new generation – of scientists. World The Strange, Unending Limbo of Egypt's Hosni Mubarak By DECLAN WALSH and NOUR YOUSSEF The deposed leader remains confined to a hospital room in Cairo even as many former allies cut deals with the government to overturn their own convictions. Huge Protest Against Afghan Government Brings Kabul to a Halt By MUJIB MASHAL With factional tensions already high, ethnic Hazara protesters said a move to reroute an electricity transmission line was biased against them. KABUL JOURNAL Attacks in Kabul Keep Wall Builders Busy, Turning City Into Labyrinth By MUJIB MASHAL Bombings in Afghanistan's capital have led companies to build taller blast walls, which blend into the landscape as part of the city's identity. U.S. Man Receives First Penis Transplant in the United States By DENISE GRADY A Massachusetts man who had lost his penis to cancer underwent the operation as part of a program that ultimately aims to help combat veterans. Obama Defends Transgender Directive for School Bathrooms By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS The president made his first public comments on a directive released last week that has added fuel to a searing national debate over transgender rights. Scandals Embroil Alabama Governor, Speaker and Chief Justice By CAMPBELL ROBERTSON Impending trials reach to the tops of three branches of government, and the prosecution could lead to a meltdown of the state's political system. Politics Hillary Clinton Shapes Potential New Role for Bill Clinton By AMY CHOZICK Remarks that her husband would focus on economic growth in a Hillary Clinton administration are raising questions about how such an arrangement would work. From Bernie Sanders Supporters, Death Threats Over Delegates By ALAN RAPPEPORT The senator's supporters were incensed at a state convention they believe epitomized a rigged political system, with some threatening officials online. 'Who Is This Guy?' In Connected Political World, Few Know Donald Trump By CARL HULSE An unusual lack of personal familiarity with Mr. Trump is partly behind political veterans' awkward courtship with the presumptive Republican nominee. Business Barriers to Board Positions Persist for Minorities and Women, Report Shows By ELIZABETH OLSON Efforts to diversify America's corporate boards are still lagging, and a central obstacle is a lack of operating or financial experience, an annual study says. Twitter Appoints Debra Lee, Adding Diversity to Its Board By MIKE ISAAC Ms. Lee is the first African-American director at Twitter, which been criticized for a lack of representation of varied ethnic groups. South Korea Accuses Nissan of Cheating on Emissions Tests By CHOE SANG-HUN The finding, covering about 800 vehicles, was disputed by the Japanese carmaker, which said the model in question had passed European checks. Technology Activist Pushes Pandora to Put Itself Back on the Block By LESLIE PICKER Keith Meister of Corvex Management said Pandora's new chief seemed unwilling to consider a sale, and urged hiring a new firm to pursue one. Amazon Proves Infertile Soil for Unions, So Far By NICK WINGFIELD High turnover may be one reason unions have made little progress at the e-commerce company, but some see manipulation and intimidation. For more technology news, go to NYTimes.com/Technology » Sports Price for a Green Card: $500,000 Stadium Stake By KEN BELSON A Major League Soccer franchise owner is promoting a federal program that benefits those who contribute at least $500,000 to infrastructure projects. SPORTS OF THE TIMES Even Deontay Wilder, an Untainted Boxer, Loses Out in a Doping Scandal By WILLIAM C. RHODEN For a charismatic American champion on the verge of a breakthrough moment, a Russian scandal suddenly became personal. At Indianapolis 500, Innovation Began With a Look Back By VICTOR MATHER Ray Harroun, the first winner of the Indianapolis 500, in 1911, was also the first to use a rearview mirror, which allowed him to race alone.  Teenager Verstappen Wins Spanish Grand Prix After Mercedes Drivers Crash For more sports news, go to NYTimes.com/Sports » Arts CRITIC'S NOTEBOOK FORM Arcosanti, a Music Festival That Thinks Small By JON CARAMANICA Total immersion and communality were the norm at this free festival at a unique desert setting in Arizona, with Skrillex and Four Tet headlining. At Cannes, Women Turn Out in Force By RACHEL DONADIO Three female directors are seen as contenders for the film festival's top prize, while the challenges facing female moviemakers have been discussed at length. Palestinian Museum Prepares to Open, Minus Exhibitions By JAMES GLANZ and RAMI NAZZAL A $24 million building will open in the West Bank on Wednesday, but its inaugural display was suspended after a disagreement between its board and its director, who lost his position. For more arts news, go to NYTimes.com/Arts » New York Liberal Brooklyn Prosecutor Faces Unlikely Foes: Liberal Activists By ALAN FEUER Ken Thompson, the borough's first black district attorney, has been criticized by activists angered over his handling of Akai Gurley's fatal shooting by the police. Art Studios Where Whitney Museum Was Born Will Admit Visitors By DAVID W. DUNLAP Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney's compound on Eighth Street in Greenwich Village, cobbled together a century ago from abutting townhouses and carriage houses, is an artistic landmark of the first order. In a Brooklyn Basement, Jazz With a Russian Accent By COREY KILGANNON Most members of a 20-piece band that plays regularly in Sheepshead Bay learned jazz clandestinely in Soviet-era Russia, where the authorities were suspicious of people interested in American culture. For more New York news, go to NYTimes.com/NewYork » Science PROFILES IN SCIENCE Eske Willerslev Is Rewriting History With DNA By CARL ZIMMER The world-renowned geneticist scrutinizes ancient DNA for clues to the earliest chapters in the human story. In Latin America, Forests May Rise to Challenge of Carbon Dioxide By JUSTIN GILLIS If left for 40 years, recently established forests could soak up seven billions tons of carbon dioxide, a study suggests. Yellowstone Bison Calf Is Euthanized After Trip in Tourists' Trunk By KATIE ROGERS Shunned by its herd, the animal began approaching visitors and creating danger on the park's roads, officials said. For more science news, go to NYTimes.com/Science » Obituaries Bill Backer, Who Taught the World (and Don Draper) to Sing, Dies at 89 By SAM ROBERTS Mr. Backer created the classic 1971 commercial for Coca-Cola with singers on an Italian hilltop proclaiming Coke as "the real thing." Madeleine Lebeau, 'Casablanca' Actress, Dies at 92 By WILLIAM GRIMES After "Casablanca," Ms. Lebeau made two more films in the United States before returning to France, where she worked steadily through the 1950s. Romaldo Giurgola, Architect of Australia's Parliament House, Dies at 95 By FRED A. BERNSTEIN Mr. Giurgola combined a Modernist aesthetic with a keen sense of the site-specific in his projects, from office buildings to Australia's 1988 seat of government in Canberra. For more obituaries, go to NYTimes.com/Obituaries » Editorial EDITORIAL The Crippled Supreme Court By THE EDITORIAL BOARD The eight justices have again declined to rule on a major legal issue. They cannot do their job without a full bench. EDITORIAL Venezuela's Downward Spiral By THE EDITORIAL BOARD President Nicolás Maduro has ordered a state of emergency to suppress public outrage at his government's failures. EDITORIAL New Priority Means Fewer Beds in City's Shelters By THE EDITORIAL BOARD Federal officials have shifted money to favor permanent housing, but New York City also needs transitional shelters. see more >> http://www.nytimes.com