Police are investigating a "possible hate crime" after two threatening letters, containing profanity and racial slurs, were left on a man's doorstep.

NATICK - Police are investigating a "possible hate crime" after two threatening letters were left on a man's doorstep.

Chief James G. Hicks said the first letter was handwritten and found at about 10 a.m. on Thursday, while the second letter, found at 7 p.m. on Friday, was typewritten.

Both letters contain profanity and racial slurs, according to police, but no further details were immediately released. It's not clear if the same person is believed to be responsible for both letters.

"This kind of behavior is not indicative of the values of the Town of Natick and will not be tolerated in our community," said Hicks. "The department is taking this case very seriously and we will investigate to our fullest capabilities to ensure the safety and security of our residents."

Anyone with information about either incident is asked to call the Natick Police Department at 508-647-9500.

People in Western Massachusetts will have a second chance to see the supermoon Monday night.

Sure many people may are protesting the results of Tuesday's presidential election and two talented musicians, Leonard Cohen and Leon Russell, died this week, but at least everyone had a chance to see the supermoon.

Sunday night the largest full moon anyone has seen in 68 years rose over the world awing millions.

A supermoon happens when a full moon coincides with the moon's perigee, or its closest approach to the earth during its orbit. For the November 2016 supermoon, the moon will come within 221,524 miles.

While daylight will strike when the moon hits its closest point to earth in the northeast, people had a chance to see a spectacular viewing of the moon on Sunday night. For those who missed it, they will have a second chance when the moon rises around 5:05 p.m. Monday, according to NASA.

People from across the country photographed the supermoon Sunday night and shared the results on social media. Here are some of the photographs and comments people were Tweeting about the lunar phenomenon.

But according to a new FBI report, the majority of religiously motivated hate crimes still targeted Jews.

The number of hate crimes reported against Muslims nationally jumped by 67 percent in 2015 -- but a majority of religiously motivated hate crimes were still committed against Jews, according to statistics released Monday by the FBI.

"Traditionally, Jews have been the religious group that's been targeted the most," said Robert Trestan, director of the New England regional office of the Anti-Defamation League, which fights anti-Semitism and bias.

The issue of hate crimes, particularly against Muslims, is getting increased attention due to the presidential campaign between Republican President-elect Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. In December 2015, Trump called for temporarily banning Muslims from entering the U.S. due to concerns about terrorism after a shooting in San Bernardino, California, of 14 people by two Muslim terrorists. During the course of the campaign, there have been reports of bullying and harassment of Muslims from around the country.

The FBI statistics are from 2015, before the campaign heated up. They indicate that hate crimes against Muslims did increase in 2015.

According to the statistics, law enforcement reported 1,354 hate crimes motivated by religious bias. Of those, 22.2 percent, or 257 incidents, were anti-Islamic. That is an increase from 154 incidents, or 16.1 percent of total incidents, in 2014.

Hate crimes against Jews still vastly outnumber hate crimes against Muslims. In 2015, there were 664 hate crimes reported against Jews, or 51.3 percent of all religiously motivated hate crimes. In 2014, there were 609 anti-Jewish incidents.

Asked why he thinks there was such a large increase in anti-Muslim crime, Trestan said, "Part of it is a whole atmosphere within the country. We've seen increasingly a mainstreaming of hate speech, and people feeling more and more empowered to publicly speak out on their hatred toward particular groups and religions. And some people are acting out on it."

Other statistics outlined in the FBI's report include:

There were 5,850 hate crime incidents involving 6,885 separate offenses reported in 2015.

A majority of offenses, around 58 percent, were motivated by race, ethnicity or ancestry bias. More than half of those crimes involved bias against blacks or African-Americans. Another 18 percent involved bias against whites.

Of all hate crimes, approximately 18 percent (1,219 crimes) resulted from sexual orientation bias, the majority of those crimes against gay men.

Offenses characterized as intimidation, property damage and simple assault each accounted for around a quarter of the crimes. Of the 65 percent of hate crimes committed against people, rather than property, 41 percent involved intimidation and 28 percent involved simple assault.

There were 424 hate crimes reported in Massachusetts in 2015. Of those, 198 involved race, ethnicity or ancestry; 81 involved religion; 81 involved sexual orientation; 45 involved gender identity; 15 involved gender; and four involved disability.

Trestan said although the number seems high, it may indicate that the criminal justice system is working in Massachusetts, and there is collaboration between community groups, law enforcement and prosecutors.

"When people who live here have confidence in law enforcement and confidence in prosecutors, they don't hesitate to call when they think they've been attacked because of who they are," Trestan said.

Town Common briefly became a demonstration ground on Monday after hundreds of Amherst High School students walked out of class and walked there to protest the rhetoric of President-elect Donald Trump. Watch video

AMHERST -- Town Common briefly became a demonstration ground on Monday after hundreds of Amherst High School students ditched class and walked there to protest the rhetoric of President-elect Donald Trump.

The students pledged "solidarity and support with all the people who are going to be facing discrimination and who have already felt the pain of Donald Trump's future presidency."

"These people -- women, queer folks, people of color, muslims, immigrants, people with disabilities -- are surely in for a really hard four years," Abigail Morris, 16, a junior at the school, called out on a bullhorn as the students congregated on the school football field before walking downtown. "This is not a protest directly against Donald Trump or the democratic system that elected him to be president. What this protest is, is a march of solidarity to show that we will not stop fighting just because Donald Trump won."

She added, "We will be heard, because we are the future."

Marching from the school, down Main Street toward Amherst Town Common, the students repeated several chants.

"Who's got the power?"

"We got the power," came the response.

And, "Black lives matter where?

"Black lives matter here."

The students formed into a circle in Amherst Town Common, watched by many sympathetic adults and one noisy Trump supporter, who scrambled together his own sign and proceeded to loudly protest the students' protest.

"Real Americans voted for change, real Americans are sick of people like you," called out the man, who identified himself as Phil but did not give a last name. "We are the majority. We're taking our country back."

Phil's makeshift signs read, "Feminazi Is over," "The witch hag is melting," "Trump has balls you don't" and "Spoiled privileged brats."

Despite the Trump supporter's attempts to approach the crowd, calling out and interrupting several student speakers, the crowd largely did not acknowledge the disturbance, apart from several people attempting to block him from proceeding into the circle.

Many students spoke during the demonstration, echoing Morris' theme to keep up the fight.

Abeliz Lebron, 17, a sophomore whose family moved to Massachusetts from Puerto Rico, said, "We are still fighting, just as much as Trump supporters are."

"This has completely split my family apart," said Abeliz Lebron, 17, a sophomore. "Some of my family want to leave the country. Keep fighting. What I'd like to remind all of you of today is that so many generations before us fought so hard to prevent a person like this."

She added, "At Amherst High School, I know we're taught so much more than many places in the rest of the country. I know we believe different. Do not conform. We know better. We know we are supposed to be different. And we know not to tolerate getting kicked around because of our color or our gender."

Some parents attended the demonstration as well, like Shavahn Best, mother of Wyoming McGinn, a 15-year-old sophomore.

"I'm so happy," Best said. "This seems like a huge portion of the high school. I asked my daughter what their theme was, and she said, 'We're marching in support and solidarity with the people who are being discriminated against by Donald Trump.'"

She added, "I think that's totally appropriate."

Other students read songs and inspirational quotes and one performed a freestyle rap against Trump and for a different vision of America.

"Just because you're here doesn't get you off the hook," Louis Triggs, 17, a junior at the school, said. "You have to keep engaging, keep learning the issues and responding to them."

Amherst Police kept watch over Monday's student protest. Teachers and school administration did not participate but did not prevent the students from organizing the demonstration. 

An anti-Trump protest in Springfield over the weekend drew 1,600 people, while similar protests have gone on in cities around the country since Trump's victory. 

Justin Ross Harris, 35, who showed little emotion as the verdict was read, had been on trial since Oct. 3 in the death of his son, Cooper.

BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) -- A Georgia man whose toddler son died in a hot car was found guilty of both malice and felony murder on Monday by a jury tasked with weighing a month of dueling testimony over whether the child's father left him to perish on purpose or made a fatal mistake.

Justin Ross Harris, 35, who showed little emotion as the verdict was read, had been on trial since Oct. 3 in the death of his son, Cooper.

The 22-month-old boy died after being left for hours in the back of Harris' SUV on June 18, 2014. Harris said he forgot to drop his son off at day care that morning and drove straight to his job as a web developer for Home Depot, not realizing Cooper was still in his car seat.

Harris was also charged with felony murder, which required no proof of intent to kill -- just that Cooper died as a result of his father committing the felony of cruelty to children. Malice murder carries a prison term of life with or without parole.

Prosecutors argued Harris must have known Cooper was in the car. He drove less than two minutes to work after strapping the child into his car seat when they finished breakfast at a Chick-fil-A restaurant just over a half-mile from Harris' office. Parking lot surveillance video showed Harris also went to his car after lunch and tossed in some light bulbs he had purchased, though he never got inside.

Some jury members after the verdict told lead prosecutor Chuck Boring that they were almost unanimous when they began deliberations, but wanted to take time to review the evidence, Boring said.

"It wasn't one thing that they said, 'This proves malice,' " Boring said. "It was everything."

Harris told police he didn't notice Cooper until he left work for the day to go to a movie. The boy was dead, having sweltered in the car for about seven hours.

Prosecutors said Harris left online clues to murderous intentions. Evidence showed that minutes before Harris locked the car door on his boy, he sent an online message: "I love my son and all, but we both need escapes." Five days earlier, Harris watched an online video in which a veterinarian sits inside a hot car to show it reaches 116 degrees in a half-hour.

Defense attorneys said Harris was responsible for his son's death, but insisted it was an accident rather than a crime. Friends and family members testified he was a devoted and loving father, and the jury watched video clips of Harris trying to teach Cooper to say "banana" and letting the boy strum his guitar. The joyous moments had some jurors laughing aloud.

Harris' ex-wife, Leanna Taylor, also came to his defense. She divorced him in March and bitterly told the jury that Harris "destroyed my life." But she testified he was a loving father who, regardless of how unhappy he may have been in their marriage, would not have harmed their son on purpose. Taylor was not in the courtroom on Monday. Harris was alone, except for his lawyers, as the verdict was read.

An attorney for Taylor, Lawrence Zimmerman, said he was disappointed in the verdict but that Harris has a strong appeal, "based on many of the legal issues raised by the defense during the course of the trial."

Also testifying in Harris' defense was Gene Brewer, an Arizona State University psychology professor who specializes in memory and attention. He said it would have been possible for Harris to forget about Cooper in a matter of seconds.

Harris was also found guilty of sending sexual text messages to a teenage girl and asked for nude photos of her pubic area. The girl testified Harris knew she was in high school the months they swapped sexual banter when she was 16 and 17, and Harris several times sent her photos of his penis. He was asking for a photo of her breasts the day Cooper died.

Harris moved to Georgia from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in 2012. He lived in the Atlanta suburb of Cobb County, which is also where Cooper died. Because of intense pretrial publicity surrounding the case, the judge agreed to relocate Harris' trial 275 miles away in the coastal port city of Brunswick.

Families must register for a free turkey before Thursday, Nov. 17.

SPRINGFIELD -- For nearly 20 years, Springfield business owner Paul Ramesh and city attorney Roy H. Anderson have donated turkeys to families in need before the Thanksgiving holiday.

"Since about 1998, we have given out 100 turkeys every year," said Ramesh, owner of Club Zone in downtown Springfield.

This year, Ramesh and Anderson have teamed up with several other businesses that are all part of the E3 business community downtown.

"We have been doing this for so many years on our own, but this year, Wilfredo Lopez (chairman of E3) reached out to other businesses, and they were happy to help," Ramesh said.

There are 200 turkeys available to the first families that register online at e3springfield@gmail.com.

"We do require some proof of need on the day of pick-up," Ramesh said. For further details visit the event Facebook page.

Other businesses that have donated funds toward the purchase of the turkeys include 350 Grill Steak House, Adolfo's Restaurant, the Fat Cat Bar and Grill and Glo Ultra Lounge, all on Worthington Street.

The turkeys can be picked up Thursday between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. in the parking lot of 1600 Main St.

The moves, among dozens under consideration from his transition team, follow an intense and extended backlash from Trump's decision on Sunday to appoint Steve Bannon, a man celebrated by the white nationalist movement, to serve as his chief strategist and senior adviser.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- His nascent administration already under attack, President-elect Donald Trump was considering Monday whether to inject new diversity into the GOP by recommending a woman to lead the Republican Party and an openly gay man to represent the United States at the United Nations.

The moves, among dozens under consideration from his transition team, follow an intense and extended backlash from Trump's decision on Sunday to appoint Steve Bannon, a man celebrated by the white nationalist movement, to serve as his chief strategist and senior adviser.

Inexperienced on the international stage, the Republican president-elect spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone. His transition office said in a readout that "he is very much looking forward to having a strong and enduring relationship with Russia and the people of Russia." Trump has spoken in recent days with the leaders of China, Mexico, South Korea and Canada.

In this Nov. 11, 2006 file photo, Richard Grenell, left, walks with John Bolton, the United States ambassador to the United Nations, right, to a Security Council meeting. The incoming president is considering Richard Grenell as United States ambassador to the United Nations. (AP Photo/Osamu Honda)

Trump was also weighing whether to select Michigan GOP chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel, a niece of chief Trump critic and 2012 presidential nominee Mitt Romney. She would be the second woman ever to lead the Republican National Committee -- and the first in four decades.

"I'll be interested in whatever Mr. Trump wants," McDaniel told The Associated Press on Monday, adding that she was planning to seek the Michigan GOP chairmanship again.

In this March 3, 2016 file photo, Ronna Romney McDaniel, the Michigan Republican Party chair. President-elect Donald Trump is weighing whether to select the first woman to serve as chairman of the Republican National Committee. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

The personnel moves under consideration were confirmed by people with direct knowledge of Trump's thinking who were not authorized to publicly disclose private discussions. They stressed that the decisions were not final.

Internal deliberations about staffing come a day after Trump made overtures to warring Republican circles by appointing Bannon and RNC Chairman Reince Priebus as his White House chief of staff.

The former media executive, who led a website that appealed to the so-called "alt-right" -- a movement often associated with efforts on the far right to preserve "white identity," oppose multiculturalism and defend "Western values."

Priebus on Monday defended the media mogul, saying the two made an effective pair as they steered Trump past Democrat Hillary Clinton and toward the presidency. He sought to distance Bannon from the incendiary headlines on his website, saying they were written by unspecified others.

"Together, we've been able to manage a lot of the decision making in regard to the campaign," Priebus told NBC's "Today." ''It's worked very, very well."

President Barack Obama avoided any direct criticism of Trump's personnel moves during an afternoon news conference, suggesting that the new president deserves "room to staff up."

"It's important for us to let him make his decisions," Obama said. "The American people will judge over the course of the next couple of years whether they like what they see."

The outgoing president encouraged Trump, however, to embrace a unifying tone.

"It's really important to try to send some signals of unity and to reach out to minority groups or women or others that were concerned about the tenor of the campaign," Obama said. "And I think that's something he will -- he will want to do."

Trump's hires were, at first glance, contradictory, though they fit a pattern of the celebrity businessman creating a veritable Rorschach test that allowed his supporters to see what they wanted. Priebus, who lashed the RNC to Trump this summer despite some intraparty objections, is a GOP operative with deep expertise of the Washington establishment that Trump has vowed to shake up. He has close ties to House Speaker Paul Ryan, a fellow Wisconsinite.

Bannon, meanwhile, helped transform the Breitbart News site into the leading mouthpiece of the party's anti-establishment wing, which helped fuel the businessman's political rise. Ryan has been one of his most frequent targets.

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League, called Bannon's selection "a sad day."

Bannon, Greenblatt said, "presided over the rise of Breitbart as a haven online" for the "alt-right." The website under Bannon's leadership "trafficked in the some of the worst tropes, not just only against Jews -- but the anti-Semitism is real -- but also against other minorities, particularly Mexicans and Muslims."

The 2½-story, wood-framed structure house was fully engulfed by flames as Ludlow firefighters, with mutual aid from six towns, battled the blaze. Watch video

This story was updated with new information at 9:43 p.m.

Deputy Fire Chief James Machado said no one was home at the time of the fire and no one was hurt. He said the house was a "total loss."

A passerby called in the fire at about 6:15 p.m. The two-story wood-framed house was already fully involved when Ludlow firefighters arrived, and several other fire departments were called in to help.

Firefighters used tankers to try to knock down the blaze because there are no fire hydrants in the area.

Fire Chief Mark Babineau said some propane cylinders on the property exploded, but it was too early to tell if that was before or after the fire started.

Babineau said firefighters would remain at the scene for several hours, and a cause likely will not be known until Tuesday, at the earliest.

The house is at the corner of Alden Street. A huge, billowing cloud of smoke rose from the blaze.

Fire districts providing mutual aid included Belchertown, Granby, Three Rivers, Palmer and Wilbraham.

The City Council was considering approval of a medical marijuana dispensary proposed at 506 Cottage St., in East Springfield, after rejecting a prior agreement in August of 2016.

SPRINGFIELD -- The City Council on Monday night unanimously approved the first medical marijuana dispensary in Springfield after the host community agreement was renegotiated by the mayor to keep the door open for additional companies.

The agreement was proposed with Hampden Care Facility Inc., for a marijuana facility planned at 506 Cottage St. in the East Springfield neighborhood.

The vote was 12-0, with seveeral councilors said it was time to bring relief to people in need of medical marijuana.

"There are a lot of people out there in dire need," Councilor Marcus Williams said.

Councilor Thomas Ashe agreed, saying there are many people who are suffering and will benefit from having a Springfield dispensary.

The City Council had rejected an earlier agreement with Hampden Care Facility in August, with councilors objecting to a clause that would have given Hampden Care the exclusive license in Springfield for a five-year period.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno responded by renegotiating with the company, and eliminating the exclusivity clause.

However, the city and company, in turn, agreed that Hampden Care will pay the city less money annually than was offered in August, due to the company no longer being offered an exclusive contract, officials said.

Under the new agreement, Hampden Care will pay the city 1.5 percent of its gross sales revenue in 2018, and 2 percent of its revenues in 2019, and 2.5 percent of its revenue in each successive year.

That compares to the prior offer of 2 percent in 2017, and rising to 6 percent annually by 2025.

In a new provision, the company has agreed to pay the city an additional $50,000 in 2018, rising to $100,000 in 2019, and to $150,000 in each successive year. In addition, the company has maintained a provision from August, agreeing to pay a separate amount of $50,000 annually to the Police Department.

Some councilors said the changes made are similar to agreements reached in Worcester.

Advocates said that the election vote Nov. 8, to allow the sale of recreational marijuana in Massachusetts does not negate the need for medical marijuana facilities. The Legislation still has to consider regulations and procedures for recreational marijuana separate of the medical marijuana legislation in place, advocates said.

Representatives of the Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance attended the council meeting and urged the council to approve the medical marijuana dispensary, saying there are patients in great need that have waited a long time for help.

The alliance represents the coalition that passed Question 3 in 2012 to legalize medical marijuana, said Nichole Snow, the alliance executive director, and Michael Latulippe, development director. Snow praised the vote, saying she was "relieved."

They are hopeful the new dispensary will open by late 2017.

Councilors Justin Hurst and Orlando Ramos raised concerns about a provision in the approved agreement with Hampden Care Facility that calls for any other company locating in Springfield needing to follow "the exact same practice and procedures" as Hampden Care in getting approval.

Both councilors questioned if that might negate the council's power to support other companies with or without the mayor initiating an agreement with the company. City Solicitor Edward Pikula said the council still can issue a letter of support, but any host community agreement needs the mayor's and council's approval.

Springfield City Council President Michael Fenton was the lone "no" vote to retreat into executive session on Nov. 14 regarding a number of police scandals.

SPRINGFIELD - City councilors retreated to executive session Monday night to discuss an ongoing controversy roiling the police department, weeks after a narcotics detective was suspended for interrogating two kids suspected of stealing an undercover car.

The topic was flagged in the agenda, and 11 of 13 councilors agreed to go into private session to discuss the "ongoing and potential civil and criminal litigation concerning the arrest and interrogation of juvenile suspects in Palmer." The item also noted that "no discussion of any individual employee will be addressed."

The reason provided was attorney-client communication between the council and City Solicitor Edward Pikula. Councilor Kenneth Shea was absent from the meeting.

Presumably, that "individual employee" is Detective Gregg Bigda, He was suspended for 60 days after videos emerged of Bigda and fellow Detective Luke Cournoyer questioning three teens who allegedly took off in an unmarked police vehicle left idling outside a pizza shop on Feb. 26. Cournoyer has not been disciplined, according to police.

During two hours of video gleaned from the Palmer Police Department, where a car chase through Wilbraham and that town came to rest, a collective 30-plus minutes of footage revealed that Bigda threatened to kill two boys, plant drugs on one and made sneering racial remarks. Cournoyer stood mostly idly by, the video shows.

After Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni released those videos to defense lawyers and the police department over the summer, it led to Bigda's suspension, a crumbling of his credibility in court and a windfall for defense attorneys.

The Bigda controversy triggered a skirmish among elected officials who believe the detective should have been fired and those who support the decision to retain him by Police Commissioner John Barbieri. Mayor Domenic Sarno has been a strong supporter of Barbieri but has kept a relatively low profile in the Bigda matter, condemning it, but rather gently.

The Bigda incident became widely public just before another police scandal involving an alleged beating by several off-duty officers of three civilians in 2015 outside Nathan Bills.

Those reports have eroded some public faith in the city's police department at a time when national controversies have erupted over use of force, which makes the incidents stickier. The situation has gotten sticky enough to revive a controversy over whether to bring back a civilian police commission to replace a civilian review board that has little power over the police commissioner.

The revival of the police commission won initial approval with a majority of "aye" votes at Monday's meeting. It must cross additional bridges including a roll-call vote, a signaled mayor's veto and predicted resistance from Pikula, councilors have said.

The initial vote passed with little push-back and no public debate at City Hall on Monday. It piggy-backed the Bigda matter into executive session with a lone "no" vote by City Council President Michael Fenton.

"Under ordinary circumstances, discussion of litigation and matters involving settlement with the city are properly discussed in executive session. But in this case, given the recent developments and the fact that the matters in question involve allegations of police misconduct, I feel strongly that these matters ought not to be shielded from public view," Fenton said after the meeting.

In addition to the Bigda issue, the council also considered "litigation strategies" in the cases of Mark Schand and Charles Wilhite. They sued in federal court for wrongfully having served 27 and three years in prison, respectively, for murder cases that were later dismissed because of witnesses who recanted. Both argue police misconduct in federal lawsuits. A third case in question for the council involves Justin Douglas, a convicted jewelry and gun thief who contends he was pistol-whipped during his arrest in 2013.

Fenton said councilors discussed legal settlements with Pikula in their private session but would not report the results, citing his obligation under executive session rules. But, Fenton still championed public disclosure.

"If we're talking about settlements for police misconduct for three different cases at the same time our community is dealing with the Nathan Bill's case and the Palmer case, the public has a right to know what the other allegations are and how much taxpayer money is being considered to settle those," he said.

Northampton and Amherst police will receive about $92,000. The Holyoke Police Department was awarded $100,000.

Twenty-two police departments across Massachusetts were awarded a total of $1.78 million in state grants on Monday.

Northampton and Amherst police will each receive about $92,000. The Holyoke Police Department was awarded $100,000.

The funds come from the U.S. Department of Justice's Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program, administered by the state Executive Office of Public Safety and Security.

In a news release, the public safety office said the grants provide "seed money to support a broad range of activities to prevent and control crime based on local needs and conditions."

Grant amounts ranged from $20,440 for the Braintree Police Department to $100,000 for five cities: Holyoke, Cambridge, Chelsea, Lawrence and New Bedford.

"Law enforcement officers face a complicated range of challenges every day as they work to prevent crime through innovative policing strategies," said Governor Charlie Baker. "By providing targeted funding, these grants are intended to sustain those efforts and deliver a lasting positive impact for communities around Massachusetts."

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani emerged as the favorite to serve as secretary of state in Donald Trump's incoming administration, a senior Trump official said as the president-elect narrowed down his Cabinet picks.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani emerged as the favorite to serve as secretary of state in Donald Trump's incoming administration, a senior Trump official said as the president-elect narrowed down his Cabinet picks.

The official said there was no real competition for the job and that it was Giuliani's if he wanted it. The official was not authorized to speak on the record and requested anonymity.

Giuliani, a top Trump adviser, said Monday night at a Washington event sponsored by the Wall Street Journal that he "won't be attorney general" in Trump's administration -- a job for which the former federal prosecutor had been seen as a top contender even before Trump's election.

Giuliani said he thought John Bolton, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, "would be a very good choice" for secretary of state. But asked if there was anyone better, he replied with a mischievous smile: "Maybe me, I don't know."

Trump was also considering Monday whether to inject new diversity into the GOP by recommending a woman to lead the Republican Party and an openly gay man to represent the United States at the United Nations.

The moves, among dozens under consideration from his transition team, follow an intense and extended backlash from Trump's decision on Sunday to appoint Steve Bannon, a man celebrated by the white nationalist movement, to serve as his chief strategist and senior adviser.

"After winning the presidency but losing the popular vote, President-elect Trump must try to bring Americans together -- not continue to fan the flames of division and bigotry," said House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi. She called Bannon's appointment "an alarming signal" that Trump "remains committed to the hateful and divisive vision that defined his campaign."

His inauguration just 66 days away, however, Trump focused on building his team and speaking to foreign leaders. He remained sequestered in Trump Tower in New York.

Inexperienced on the international stage, the Republican president-elect spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone. His transition office said in a readout that "he is very much looking forward to having a strong and enduring relationship with Russia and the people of Russia." Trump has spoken in recent days with the leaders of China, Mexico, South Korea and Canada.

At the same time, Trump was considering tapping Richard Grenell as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. He would be the first openly gay person to fill a Cabinet-level foreign policy post. Grenell, known in part for aggressive criticism of rivals on Twitter, previously served as U.S. spokesman at the U.N. under President George W. Bush.

Trump was also weighing whether to select Michigan GOP chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel, a niece of chief Trump critic and 2012 presidential nominee Mitt Romney. She would be the second woman ever to lead the Republican National Committee -- and the first in four decades.

"I'll be interested in whatever Mr. Trump wants," McDaniel told The Associated Press on Monday, adding that she was planning to seek the Michigan GOP chairmanship again.

Appointing McDaniel to run the GOP's political arm could be an effort to help the party heal the anger after a campaign in which Trump demeaned women. The appointment of Grenell, who has openly supported same-sex marriage, could begin to ease concerns by the gay community about Vice President-elect Mike Pence's opposition to same-sex marriage during his time as Indiana governor.

The personnel moves under consideration were confirmed by people with direct knowledge of Trump's thinking who were not authorized to publicly disclose private discussions. They stressed that the decisions were not final.

Internal deliberations about staffing come a day after Trump made overtures to warring Republican circles by appointing Bannon and RNC Chairman Reince Priebus as his White House chief of staff.

The former media executive led a website that appealed to the so-called "alt-right" -- a movement often associated with efforts on the far right to preserve "white identity," oppose multiculturalism and defend "Western values."

Priebus on Monday defended the media mogul, saying the two made an effective pair as they steered Trump past Democrat Hillary Clinton and toward the presidency. He sought to distance Bannon from the incendiary headlines on his website, saying they were written by unspecified others.

"Together, we've been able to manage a lot of the decision making in regard to the campaign," Priebus told NBC's "Today." ''It's worked very, very well."

President Barack Obama avoided any direct criticism of Trump's personnel moves during an afternoon news conference, suggesting that the new president deserves "room to staff up."

"It's important for us to let him make his decisions," Obama said. "The American people will judge over the course of the next couple of years whether they like what they see."

The outgoing president encouraged Trump, however, to embrace a unifying tone.

"It's really important to try to send some signals of unity and to reach out to minority groups or women or others that were concerned about the tenor of the campaign," Obama said. "And I think that's something he will -- he will want to do."

The Springfield City Council granted first-step approval of an ordinance to reinstate the five-member Police Commission, in the aftermath of police misconduct allegations.

SPRINGFIELD -- After raising concerns recently about allegations of police misconduct, the City Council granted first-step approval Monday night to an ordinance to resurrect a citizen Police Commission to oversee the department and have all disciplinary powers.

The proposed ordinance to reinstate a five-member Police Commission, still needs another vote of approval from the 13-member council at its next regular meeting, scheduled Dec. 5. If approved and upheld, it would not take effect until 2019, when current Police Commissioner John Barbieri's contract expires, councilors said.

Ten of the 13 city councilors are sponsoring the ordinance, including Council President Michael A. Fenton who said it "will bring transparency and fairness" in dealing with issues of police oversight and discipline.

First-step approval passed without a roll call being needed.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno, however, has stated his strong opposition to reinstatement of the commission,

The commission has not existed since 2005, when it was abolished by the state-appointed Finance Control Board, and replaced by a single police commissioner.

Under the council proposal, the commission would be appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the council.

It could surface for final approval in December, but could then be vetoed by Sarno, leading to a likely effort by the council to override that veto with a needed two-thirds majority vote.

Councilors have raised concerns about some police misconduct cases, including allegations that Detective Gregg Bigda threatened the lives of two juveniles accused of stealing an undercover police vehicle, with the encountered videotaped at a Palmer holding cell, and publicized by The Republican and MassLive.

Many councilors have objected that Bigda received just a 60-day suspension from Barbieri, saying they question why he wasn't fired.

Reeling from last week's presidential election and looking to take back the governor's office in 2018, Massachusetts Democrats on Monday turned to Gus Bickford, who worked for John Kerry and Elizabeth Warren, as their choice for party chair for the next four years. Watch video

QUINCY - Reeling from last week's presidential election and looking to take back the governor's office in 2018, Massachusetts Democrats on Monday turned to Gus Bickford, who worked for John Kerry and Elizabeth Warren, as their choice for party chair for the next four years.

"We begin now for 2018," Bickford said after beating out two other candidates, former candidate for lieutenant governor Steve Kerrigan and Suffolk County Sheriff Steve Tompkins at the Democratic State Committee's meeting inside Quincy High School.

Bickford, 53, was also involved in the "No on 2" campaign, which successfully defeated Question 2, a ballot initiative that sought to expand access to charter schools. The question divided Democrats.

On Monday night's second ballot for state party chair, Bickford won 156 votes to Kerrigan's 148 votes. Tompkins threw his support to Bickford after picking up just 62 votes.

Gov. Charlie Baker is up for re-election in 2018, as is US Sen. Warren, D-Cambridge.

Bickford replaced state Sen. Thomas McGee, a Lynn Democrat.

The governor, elected in 2014, has been on a political "honeymoon," Bickford said, but he did not view House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Senate President Stanley Rosenberg working closely with Baker on Beacon Hill as a problem.

DeLeo and Rosenberg, both Democrats, have largely shied away from sharply criticizing the governor. Baker is also close with Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, a top Democrat.

Bickford, who worked as executive director of the Mass. Democratic Party in the 1990s when the popular Bill Weld served as governor, indicated he planned to push back on Baker's efforts to privatize parts of the MBTA, a public transit agency that sometimes struggles to provide reliable service in the Greater Boston area.

"I was at the party the last time this happened. I'm probably the only candidate who knows exactly what I'm getting into," Bickford told MassLive/The Republican in September.

CNNMoney reported that it has received samples of the stolen data.

Hackers may have exposed the information of more than 400 million users of the adult dating and hookup website Friend Finders Networks.

The hack includes data from more than 339 million accounts on AdultFriendFinder.com, which advertises itself as the "world's largest sex & swinger community," and millions of accounts on sex sites like Penthouse.com and Cams.com,  according to Leaked Source.

CNNMoney reported that it has received samples of the stolen data from cybersecurity professionals and the hacker who has claimed responsibility. CNN  sent those samples to Friend Finder Networks, but the company has not yet confirmed they are legitimate.

A hacker, who goes by the moniker 1x0123, told CNN the user data is now being sold online for $4,000. "Everything is for sale these days, and I'm hungry," the hacker said.

Last year,  hackers accessed data on 37 million users of the adultery website, AshleyMadison.com

A municipal email account used by former Chicopee Mayor Michael D. Bissonnette  was among the more than a dozen government and military email addresses in Massachusetts that hackers obtained from AshleyMadison.com

Bissonnette confirmed it was his municipal email account. He said he was looking at the website in 2010 while talking with a friend about AshleyMadison.com

Demonstrators upset over the election of Donald Trump have marched in cities around the country over the past week, and some are making plans to be in Washington for his inauguration Jan. 20. But whether marches will become a movement is an open question.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Demonstrators upset over the election of Donald Trump have marched in cities around the country over the past week, and some are making plans to be in Washington for his inauguration Jan. 20. But whether marches will become a movement is an open question.

At this early stage, the protesters who have taken to the streets to brand Trump a bigot and a sexist and chant "Not my president!" appear to be mostly venting their frustrations and do not seem to have coalesced behind overall leaders or a common set of demands.

Columbia University professor Todd Gitlin, who as an early leader of Students for a Democratic Society helped organize an anti-Vietnam War demonstration that brought thousands to Washington in 1965, said the anti-Trump protests by themselves "are not the makings of a movement."

For that to happen, a critical mass of protesters has to "transform their mindset from protest into successful politics, which is much less exciting," he said. Gitlin said that means "dirtying our hands in winning local and state battles which are instrumental to changing the national balance."

On Monday, hundreds of students decrying Trump's election walked out of schools in Denver, Los Angeles and Silver Spring, Maryland, after a weekend in which thousands of people demonstrated around the country and scores were arrested. Protesters threw rocks at police in Indianapolis and hurled bottles and other objects in Portland, Oregon. Marchers have also converged on Trump Tower in New York, the president-elect's transition headquarters.

Among other things, the demonstrators have condemned Trump's behavior toward women and his stand on immigration and civil liberties.

Ralph Young, a history professor at Temple University in Philadelphia who teaches a course on dissent in America and has written two books on the topic, said it is too early to predict what the marches might become.

Once Trump becomes president and starts making policy decisions, that could crystalize opposition and focus people's attention on certain issues, he said. If the anti-Trump demonstrations are going to become a movement, they also need leaders who can articulate their grievances, he said.

That's one thing the Occupy Wall Street movement against economic inequality never really achieved -- a proper organization, Young said.

Jamie Henn of the group 350, which organizes protests to fight climate change, said liberal activist groups are still scrambling to figure out how they will push back against a Trump presidency.

"There is definitely stuff coming together and being planned that looks like the messy process of everyone and their mother throwing up something on their Facebook page," Henn said.

Henn said liberals haven't seen the need for this level of mobilization since the run-up to the Iraq War. But activists remember glumly how little a dent their big marches against the invasion made then, and may use different tactics this time.

Some groups are already trying to come together, though there are differences of opinion, said Greg McKelvey, a protest organizer in Portland, Oregon. McKelvey said demonstrators are trying to organize with counterparts in New York; Washington; Austin, Texas; Oakland, California; Boston; and a few other cities.

Some activists want to prevent Trump somehow from becoming president, while others feel that's inevitable and instead want to insulate their communities from his policies, McKelvey said. He said his group, Portland's Resistance, aims to make sure city and state governments are working on issues such as limiting climate change, pushing for better health care and dealing with racial disparities in policing.

Trump's election has made activists out of people who haven't been part of any organized demonstrations before.

Olivia Antezana, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Maryland at College Park, had never been to a demonstration before creating and promoting a "Not My President" event on Facebook. By Monday afternoon, 18,000 people had indicated on Facebook that they would be going to the event in Washington on Inauguration Day.

"I will say I certainly underestimated it," Antezana said.

Still, Antezana said she is not sure what she will do after the demonstration she is planning is over. She doesn't plan to join a political campaign, she said, though she would like to keep up with activism. Right now, she said, she has another priority: school.

Mexico is starting to seriously contemplate the possibility that millions of its migrants could be deported, and the picture is not pretty.

MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Mexico is starting to seriously contemplate the possibility that millions of its migrants could be deported, and the picture is not pretty.

Under proposals put forward by President-elect Donald Trump, Mexico could see millions of people streaming back with no jobs available; the country might lose some of the billions of dollars in remittances sent home annually; and some jobless deportees could swell the ranks of drug cartels, sparking more violence.

Gov. Hector Astudillo of the southern state of Guerrero considered the possible scenario over the weekend. At least a million Guerrero residents live in the United States, many without proper documents, and the state is already reeling from drug gang violence and poverty.

"Of course Guerrero is not in any condition to receive the million or more than one million migrants" in the U.S., Astudillo said. "On the contrary, they have been an important mainstay in supporting the economy of Guerrero."

Mexico already has a shortfall of 800,000 new jobs for youths who join the labor force each year, let alone returning migrants, said Alejandra Barrales, head of the leftist Democratic Revolution Party. "We need to close ranks and create (job) opportunities, not just for people who might be deported, but for the 1.2 million young people who join the labor market each year."

The federal government announced an emergency program this week aimed at encouraging business to hire returning migrants, but Mexico City teacher Armando Osorio doubted that would be enough, given the government's poor track record on job creation. "These people have no moral authority to say they will receive their countrymen with open arms," he said. "They are the ones who are mainly responsible for the forced exodus of millions of Mexicans who don't have enough to eat."

Even if Trump seems to be walking back the idea of mass deportations, the prospect still remains frightening for people in Mexico.

People stand in front of a shelter for migrants on their way to the United States and for deported migrants, Monday, Nov. 14, 2016, in Tijuana, Mexico. In an interview with CBS' "60 Minutes" broadcast, President-elect Donald Trump said he would focus on deporting people with criminal records beyond their immigration status. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Central America's violent gangs, known as "maras," emerged in the 1980s when migrants who had fled El Salvador's civil war were deported by the U.S. after committing crimes as members of street gangs in Los Angeles. The deportees took their criminal knowhow back with them and started new gangs.

The U.S. government in 2012 estimated about 1.9 million immigrants were criminals and could face deportation. The Migration Policy Institute, a Washington think tank, estimated 820,000 of those are in the United States illegally.

Mike Vigil, former chief of international operations for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, said at least some deportees will likely embrace drug trafficking, using already established U.S. connections to increase the amount of heroin and other drugs sent across the border. Even deporting only the felons would backfire by causing more violence in Mexico and Central America, he said.

A Guatamalan woman, recently deported from the United States, who did not give her name, looks on in front of a shelter for migrants Monday, Nov. 14, 2016, in Tijuana, Mexico. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

"That would lead to more violence, kidnappings in Mexico, and these areas (of Central America), which would cause a tsunami of undocumented immigrants coming into the United States, probably much more so than what he could actually deport," Vigil said.

There are cases of deported migrants assuming leadership positions in the region's gangs, such as Martin Estrada Luna, a high school dropout from Washington state with a rap sheet of petty crimes such as burglary. Two years after he was sent back to Mexico in 2009, he had transformed himself into a drug baron known as "El Kilo," leader of a ruthless cell of the Zetas gang who masterminded the mass killings of more than 250 people.

While millions of migrants in the United States illegally could ultimately face deportation, the process to find and deport all of them likely won't happen rapidly.

Women recently deported from the United States arrive at a migrant shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Monday, Nov. 14, 2016. (AP Photo/Christian Torres)

But for immigrants with no criminal history, the wait for a judge's final deportation order could take years. There are about 521,000 cases pending in federal immigration courts currently, according to public data obtained by Transaction Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University.

Even in Mexico, many believe Trump will have to moderate his plans.

"Political reality will make it clear that many of the proposals against Mexicans are simply not feasible, neither the deportation of all undocumented migrants, nor the construction of the wall," the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico City wrote in an editorial.

Authorities were called to investigate a bomb threat reported at the Hampden County Hall of Justice Tuesday afternoon.

Update: Around 4:15 p.m., the fire deparment called off the search and determined the threat was false.

SPRINGFIELD - Authorities were called to investigate a bomb threat reported at the Hampden County Juvenile court house Tuesday afternoon.

According to Dennis Leger, spokesman for the Springfield Fire Department, a phone call reported a bomb in the building.

He said the building was evacuated, and that an investigation is ongoing as the Arson and Bomb Squad searches the building.

This is a developing story which will be updated as additional information becomes available.

Springfield Park Commission chairman Brian Santaniello is calling for a financial review of the Bright Nights holiday lighting display after a report by The Republican revealed revenue hikes and pay raises in fiscal 2015.

SPRINGFIELD -- The city Park Commission, which permits Spirit of Springfield to use Forest Park for its annual Bright Nights holiday lighting display, is calling for a city review of the event's finances following a report by The Republican that revealed a revenue increase and significant pay raises for its administrators.

Park Commission Chairman Brian Santaniello said he is asking for the financial review from the city's chief administrative and financial officer, Timothy J. Plante.

His call for the review follows a commission vote last March to grant Spirit of Springfield a three-year discount on its city labor costs. The discount is $79,000 per year, beginning this year and continuing the next two years.

In granting the discount to the nonprofit organization, Santaniello had stated: "If they need the relief, I had no problem with that," and it was also reported then that Spirit of Springfield would invest the savings in improvements. Bright Nights is a three-mile, 650,000-light display entering its 22nd season.

The Republican report, published today on MassLive, showed Bright Nights with a $131,517 surplus after expenses, according to federal filings for the year ending June 30, 2015. It also showed its administrators being paid $155,008 and $98,940. 

Spirit of Springfield uses Park Department labor for installation, maintenance and removal of the lighting display. The city was being reimbursed approximately $154,700 annually for the seven-member park workforce between the months of September and February.

There is now a cap of $75,699, under the discount.

The discount was recommended by Mayor Domenic J. Sarno.

On Tuesday, Sarno said the city will review the finances, but he praised the work done by Spirit of Springfield and its president, Judith Matt.

"Frankly, are we going to be a first class city or a second class city?" Sarno said. "For many cities our size or larger, celebration events and community-wide events are extremely important, building the image of the city and boosting morale."

Santaniello said he is requesting the review on behalf of the Park Commission after seeing the article.

"My focus is Bright Nights," Santaniello said. "In light of what appeared on MassLive, where does Bright Nights stand financially?"

Spirit of Springfield pays the city $55,000 annually for the use of Forest Park.

In addition to the three-year city discount, Sarno and the City Council approved $1.7 million in city funds in July 2015 for a new building at Forest Park that is used for storage of the Bright Nights lighting display and to house a technical skills training center. The project also received a $1.29 million federal grant and some funds from Spirit of Springfield.

The building construction was recently completed.

The finance report studied by The Republican states that for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2015, Bright Nights generated $815,474 in revenue for Spirit of Springfield, a 12.4 percent increase over the previous year, and had $683,957 in expenses, for a net of $131,517.

The Republican's review of the nonprofit's finances for that same period showed significant pay raises for its two administrators.

Matt received a $155,008 salary that fiscal year, reflecting a 4.9 percent raise over the prior year. Amy Barron-Burke, Spirit of Springfield's vice president, received a salary of $98,940, reflecting a 14.7 percent raise over the prior year.

The figures were obtained from the federal 990 IRS Form submitted by the nonprofit corporation for that year, ending June 30, 2015.

Regarding the executive salaries, Sarno said that is at the discretion of the private board that oversees Spirit of Springfield. The organization is assisted with its costs by a "generous" business community, he said.

Santaniello said he will not comment further on the reasons for the review, nor comment on the financial numbers reported by The Republican until he receives a report from Plante.

Although the public comment period on the proposal has ended, Springfield attorney Bart Heemskerk wrote the planning board on Monday, saying the proposed solar farm at 53 Wilbraham Road does not comport with zoning requirements.

MONSON -- The town's Planning Board is scheduled to vote Tuesday night on whether to approve a controversial 2-megawatt solar farm proposed at 53 Wilbraham Road, a day after a lawyer representing opponents of the project told the board via letter that the project would violate municipal zoning regulations.

"This is illegal," Springfield attorney Bart Heemskerk wrote in a letter to the planning board on Monday, saying the proposed solar farm does not comport with zoning requirements. Public comment on the proposal ended weeks ago.

Heemskerk represents a family that lives across the street from where the solar farm is planned, Leo and Sandra Baily of 56 Wilbraham Road, who own a farm.

Tonight's meeting begins at 7 at the town office building, 110 Main St.

According to the agenda, the 7:30 p.m. item states, "Decision re: Site Plan Approval for 53 Wilbraham Road, ZPT Energy Solutions, LLC 2.0 Megawatt ground mounted photovoltaic System on land owned by Raymond E & Catherine A. Beaudoin."

Heemskerk told the planning board that the minimum lot size to build the solar panels is 25 acres, but that ZPT's proposal only has 21 acres.

Heemskerk wrote that a second lot that ZPT says counts toward the acreage total meet the 25-acre minimum "flies in the face of the plain language of the Monson zoning bylaw defining 'lot'."

The lawyer asserted that the town's zoning bylaws show the two lots are "separate" as "recorded at the Hampden County Registry of Deeds."

Heemskerk wrote, "the Planning Board should not give site plan approval to this solar project and the building commissioner should not issue a building permit."