GWEN IFILL: Barack Obama wasted no time today assuming the mantle of the Democratic Party's presumptive presidential nominee. Last night, he became the first African-American to claim a major party's nomination.
Today, he formally began hunting for a running mate, naming a three-person advisory team to lead the search: Caroline Kennedy, daughter of the late president; former Deputy Attorney General Eric Holder; and Washington insider Jim Johnson.
But questions swirled about Hillary Clinton, who has not yet conceded. Party leaders, including Iowa Senator Tom Harkin, appealed for unity.
SEN. TOM HARKIN (D), Iowa: I lost a race for president once myself, and I know how it feels when you've put all your heart and soul into it, and you've got all the supporters out there, and you feel like you let them down, and you didn't quite make it over the finish line.
I know how that feels. And so I'm very sensitive to that. But I also know that we have a short time frame now between now and November. And we do have to do everything we can to bring our party together and to unify behind our candidate.
GWEN IFILL: Obama spoke to Clinton briefly today when the two crossed paths in Washington. Later, he said, "It wasn't a detailed conversation."
In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the Republican nominee-in-waiting, John McCain, challenged Obama to a series of 10 town hall meetings. They would take place before the party conventions in August.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), Arizona: I don't think we need any big, media-run productions, no process, questions from reporters, no spin rooms, just two Americans running for the highest office in the greatest nation on Earth responding to the concerns of the people whose trust that we must earn.
GWEN IFILL: Obama was congratulated by President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. She called his victory an "extraordinary achievement." We'll have much more on this story right after the news summary.
A federal jury in Chicago found political fundraiser Tony Rezko guilty today in a corruption case. He was convicted on 16 of 24 counts in a scheme to get kickbacks for state contracts. Rezko has raised money for Barack Obama and others. Obama has said he was unaware of any wrongdoing by Rezko.
A powerful explosion in Baghdad today killed at least 18 Iraqis and wounded 75. The U.S. military said a large truck loaded with Shiite militia rockets accidentally blew up. Iraqi police insisted it was a suicide bombing aimed at the home of a police general.
Later, a car bomb killed seven more Iraqis in eastern Baghdad. To the north, three U.S. soldiers were killed by gunmen in a Sunni village. Six Americans have died in Iraq so far this month. There were 19 killed in May.
Police in Zimbabwe today detained opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, then released him hours later. He was campaigning for a presidential run-off election later this month. The police gave no reason for their action.
President Robert Mugabe has tightened his grip ahead of the run-off. Yesterday, he ordered the aid organization CARE International to halt operations in Zimbabwe. We'll have more on all of this at the end of the program tonight.
U.S. Navy ships loaded with cyclone aid prepared to sail away from waters off Myanmar today. The U.S. commander in the Pacific ordered the amphibious assault ship USS Essex and other vehicles to leave.
At the Pentagon, Brigadier General John Campbell said the government in Myanmar, also known as Burma, had refused all help.
BRIG. GEN. JOHN CAMPBELL, Joint Chiefs of Staff: At least 15 times I know of that we've made engagements with the regime there in Burma to try to make them understand that we have this great capability just sitting off-shore and it has a great capability to help the people of Burma.
And so I think they've been on notice that at some point in time they will leave. That's public knowledge now that they will leave.
GWEN IFILL: Aid agencies called the U.S. move "unfortunate." Staffers with Doctors Without Borders said parts of Myanmar's Irrawaddy Delta have received no aid at all. They warned survivors are losing the will to live.
KAZ DE JONG, Doctors Without Borders: I spoke to one woman and she said, "You know, you are all worried about rice and enough rice. And that's important. But do you also worry about that people must also have motivation to eat it? At this moment, my life is not worth to live. I've lost all my family members." I think that's the sense of the problem.
GWEN IFILL: Some relief supplies have managed to get into Myanmar. It's estimated more than 2 million people need food, shelter or medical care.
Tornadoes and severe thunderstorms tore through part of the Midwest overnight. In Moscow, Indiana, people sifted through debris today after a tornado smashed several homes and destroyed a 19th-century bridge.
And last night in Kansas City, Kansas, lightning sparked a huge fire at a gasoline storage tank. The flames could be seen for miles and continued burning today.
The California Supreme Court today gave the final go-ahead to legalizing gay marriages in the state. Rejecting a petition to delay the court's original ruling last month, justices cleared the way for same-sex couples to marry beginning June 17th. Opponents had hoped to postpone any gay weddings until November, when voters decide on a ballot initiative to limit marriage in California to a man and a woman.
United Airlines announced today it's cutting up to 1,100 more jobs to help offset sky-high fuel costs. The airline also said 70 of its oldest jetliners will be retired and the low-fare airline known as Ted will be discontinued. The company will cut its mainline domestic capacity by 17 percent to 18 percent next year.
United had already planned smaller cuts, but that was before the latest spike in the price of jet fuel.
Crude oil prices fell again today to the lowest level in a month. In New York trading, the price dropped another $2 and finished just over $122 a barrel.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 12 points to close at 12,390. The Nasdaq rose 22 points to close at 2,503.
