Midday Roundup: Hastert to plead guilty to wrongdoing

Plea bargain. Former Republican House Speaker Dennis Hastert plans to plead guilty in a federal hush-money case, his attorney said today. Hastert, 73, allegedly paid about $3.5 million to cover up a sexual molestation incident that happened during his time as a coach at the high school in Yorkville, Ill. He is charged with breaking banking laws and lying to the FBI. Both defense attorneys and prosecutors have successfully kept further details of the underlying allegations out of the media so far.

Boots on the ground. President Barack Obama will not make good on his promise to end the war in Afghanistan during his tenure. He plans to keep 5,500 U.S. troops in the country through the end of his term, he announced this morning. The change of plans is in response to urging from military leaders who say the Afghans still need help from the United States to beat back a resurgent Taliban. Obama plans to maintain the force of 9,800 troops in Afghanistan through most of next year, then draw down to 5,500 troops in 2017, at a pace still to be determined by commanders.

Family ties. A woman vilified on social media for suing her young nephew appeared with the boy on the Today Show this morning to defend herself. Jennifer Connell suffered a broken wrist when her 8-year-old nephew gave her an exuberant hug, knocking her to the ground. She sued the boy for medical damages and became the subject of an online shame campaign with the hashtag #worstauntever. But Connell told NBC’s Savannah Guthrie that the suit was a formality in the process of getting insurance to cover her medical costs. She didn’t want to sue but felt she had no choice. Her now-12-year-old nephew, Sean Tarala, appeared with Connell and defended her. “She would never do anything to hurt the family or myself,” he said.

Unholy rite. Relatives and church members allegedly beat two young men, one to death, to get them to confess their sins, investigators said. Police said the attack on Lucas and Christopher Leonard, ages 19 and 17, respectively, was considered spiritual “counseling” by the perpetrators at Word of Life church in New York state. The brothers were beaten for several hours. Their parents, Bruce and Deborah Leonard, were charged with manslaughter in Lucas’ death. Four other adults were charged with assault in the younger brother’s beating, including Sarah Ferguson, 33, the victims’ sister. All the suspects pleaded not guilty.

Tuning in. More than 15 million viewers tuned in to CNN on Tuesday to see Democratic presidential hopefuls face off for the first time this year. The ratings fell well short of CNN’s Republican debate last month, which drew 23 million viewers. Still, the audience of 15.3 million far exceeded the network’s expectations, becoming the most watched Democratic event in CNN’s history. A 2008 debate between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama on ABC drew just under 11 million viewers.

WORLD Radio’s Mary Reichard and The Associated Press contributed to this report.