Nation & World Briefly 6/3

Man charged with murder in shooting of abortion provider

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) " An activist abortion opponent was charged Tuesday with first-degree murder in the death of late-term abortion provider Dr. George Tiller, and the prosecutor said the evidence in the case ruled out the death penalty.

Scott Roeder, 51, was shown via a video link from the Sedgwick County Jail. He fiddled with the charging documents on a podium in front of him, and said "OK" three times as Judge Ben Burgess read the charges and explained the court process.

Burgess ordered Roeder to be held without bond. The judge told Roeder that he would be assigned a public defender.

Pawlenty won't seek third term; looking ahead to 2012?

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) " Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty erased one doubt about his political future while blowing open another, passing Tuesday on a third-term bid while declining to say if he'll set his sights on the White House.

Pawlenty dismissed talk of a 2012 Republican presidential campaign as premature, saying he would focus on the next 19 months to finish his term strong.

But he said he wouldn't hesitate to travel the country on behalf of a party he thinks needs refreshing.

"I'm going to try to lend voice to the need to raise issues and ideas for my party here and elsewhere if I'm asked," Pawlenty said, "because I think we need new ideas and faces in the party. That's a collateral activity " something I will do as a volunteer."

GM to sell Hummer

DETROIT (AP) " General Motors Corp. took a key step toward its downsizing on Tuesday, striking a tentative deal to sell its Hummer brand to a Chinese manufacturer, while also revealing that it has potential buyers for its Saturn and Saab brands.

China's Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co. said Tuesday afternoon that it reached an agreement to acquire the brand from GM for an undisclosed amount.

GM said the sale will likely save more than 3,000 U.S. jobs in manufacturing, engineering and at various Hummer dealerships. Tengzhong said it will assume GM's existing agreements with Hummer dealers.

"We will be investing in the Hummer brand and its research and development capabilities, which will allow Hummer to better meet demand for new products such as more fuel-efficient vehicles in the U.S," Chief Executive Yang Yi said in a statement.