Nation, world briefs 3/10/15

Nebraska's same-sex marriage ban tossed

OMAHA, Neb. -- Nebraska's same-sex marriage ban was thrown into question Monday alongside those in three other upper Midwestern states that are set for a hearing together before a federal appeals court. U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Bataillon struck down Nebraska's constitutional amendment, triggering a quick appeal by the state attorney general's office. The appeal could place the case before the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which will hear similar cases out of Arkansas, Missouri and South Dakota.

Lawmaker pays back plane expenses

WASHINGTON -- Illinois Rep. Aaron Schock reimbursed the U.S. government for more than $1,200 in travel expenses for attending a Chicago Bears football game last November, his office said Monday. He had charged taxpayers for the trip. The reimbursement comes amid new congressional reports detailing $14,000 in private air travel incurred by Schock last fall, which included plane travel around Illinois and to Washington. Schock used his taxpayer-funded account to pay those bills. His office said it was reviewing whether other charges might have been inappropriate. Schock's recent travel adds to the list of more than a dozen flights worth $40,000 -- expensed under his congressional account or campaign funds -- aboard planes owned by donors. That led to a formal ethics complaint. Schock, a 33-year-old, rising Republican star, has been under scrutiny for using congressional funds to redecorate his Capitol Hill office in the style of the TV show "Downton Abbey."

Iraqi forces attempt to retake Tikrit

BAGHDAD -- Backed by allied Shiite and Sunni fighters, Iraqi security forces Monday began a large-scale military operation to recapture Saddam Hussein's hometown from the Islamic State extremist group, state TV said, a major step in a campaign to reclaim a swath of territory in northern Iraq controlled by the militants. The city of Tikrit, 80 miles north of Baghdad, fell into the hands of the Islamic State group last summer along with the country's second-largest city of Mosul and other areas in the country's Sunni heartland after the collapse of national security forces. Tikrit is one of the largest cities held by the Islamic State group.

Justices skeptical of electoral map panels

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court, unwilling to limit partisan influence in redistricting in earlier cases, seems poised to stop states that have tried to take matters into their own hands by removing map-drawing power from elected lawmakers. The justices heard arguments Monday in a challenge to Arizona's independent redistricting commission's drawing of U.S. House seats in a case that could affect a dozen other states, including California. The issue before the court is whether voters can take away the power given by the U.S. Constitution to elected state legislatures to decide how members of the U.S. House are elected. The court's conservative justices indicated they think the answer is no. Some liberal justices also seemed troubled by arguments put forth by lawyers for the Obama administration and Arizona.

-- From wire reports