In the Nation

A protester with a sign stands behind a burning Confederate flag outside the NAACP's event honoring Kid Rock. (CARLOS OSORIO / Associated Press)

Posted: May 02, 2011

Rubio says no to a VP role

WASHINGTON - First-term Republican Sen. Marco Rubio said Sunday that he would not be on the Republican presidential ticket in 2012 under any circumstances.

The tea-party favorite dismissed talk that he could be persuaded to be a running mate for the Republican nominee or even the GOP's nominee at the top of the ticket.

Rubio told NBC's Meet the Press that he believes that, as a senator, he can have an impact on government spending and other issues important to Floridians.

Rubio's name surfaces as a potential running mate in part because he might attract Latino voters to the GOP ticket. But Rubio said Sunday that he did not want to be vice president.

Rubio, the son of Cuban exiles, was elected to the Senate last fall. He turns 40 this month. - AP

Kid Rock faces protest over flag

DETROIT - People critical of the NAACP's decision to honor Kid Rock at its annual Fight for Freedom Fund Dinner burned a Confederate flag Sunday afternoon in front of the event's downtown Detroit venue.

The Grammy-nominated artist has displayed the flag during some stage performances. The Macomb County, Mich., native whose real name is Robert Ritchie was to receive the civil rights organization's Great Expectations Award.

Detroit NAACP President Wendell Anthony has said Ritchie was being honored for his advocacy of the city. "We're not lifting up the flag," Anthony said earlier Sunday. "We're lifting up a gentleman who has worked very hard to be a booster for Detroit."

About 60 people took part in the demonstration outside the Cobo Center, where about 10,000 people were expected to gather for the dinner. Some carried signs that said, "No to Kid Rock." - AP

Buffett opines on EU problems

OMAHA, Neb. - Billionaire Warren Buffett said Sunday that he did not think another U.S. banking crisis was likely, but sovereign-debt issues in Europe remained a concern.

Berkshire Hathaway's chief executive officer and vice chairman Charlie Munger held a news conference at the annual stockholder meeting in Omaha, Neb.

Buffett said European banks could have problems if those nations are unable to resolve their debt problems. And he said it was hard to say whether the countries in the European Union will be willing to stay tied to a single currency if they have to keep bailing out other nations.

Buffett added that he thinks Europe may need to find a way to have a more unified fiscal policy among the different countries.

- AP

Elsewhere:

A police officer from the Phoenix suburb of Buckeye was killed and a second officer critically wounded in an early-morning shoot-out that also left a suspect dead. The off-duty officers were working a private security job at a nightclub when they got into an altercation that ended with a gun battle, Phoenix police spokesman Sgt. Tommy Thompson said.