Associated Press

Associated Press

West Point military competition tests future soldiers, in photos

WEST POINT, N.Y. (AP) — Amid the Iran war, tensions with European allies in NATO and the Russia-Ukraine war, the United States Military Academy held its 59th Sandhurst Military Skills Competition. Across 36 hours, a mix of international and U.S. military cadet teams competed in a variety of skill-based competitions, based on the needs of […]
3 months ago

FDA’s new playbook: Lots of media announcements but not much rulemaking

WASHINGTON (AP) — In one of his first major announcements as health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called a news conference to unveil a plan to “phase out” synthetic food dyes. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary opened the event by saying his agency was “removing all petroleum-based food dyes” from U.S. foods. But […]
3 months ago

Air conditioning battery program for renters could help cities manage grid stress during heat waves

NEW YORK (AP) — When a heat wave hits, millions of air conditioners switch on at once, straining the electric grid and driving up the risk of outages — and residents’ power bills. To ease that strain, power companies may ask customers to do something many probably won’t: Set the air conditioner a few degrees […]
3 months ago

The Latest: Rubio meets with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican after Trump’s criticism over Iran

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed “efforts to achieve a durable peace in the Middle East” in talks at the Vatican on Thursday aimed at easing tensions following U.S. President Donald Trump’s criticisms of Pope Leo XIV. Rubio met with Leo and then Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin in a visit that […]
3 months ago

Clarence Thomas becomes the second longest-serving justice in Supreme Court history

WASHINGTON (AP) — The first baby boomer on the Supreme Court hit a milestone on Thursday, becoming the second-longest serving justice in history at a time when his influence has never seemed greater. Once an outlier on the nation’s highest court, Justice Clarence Thomas has become a towering figure in the conservative legal movement over […]
3 months ago

Hundreds of homes damaged in Mississippi storms as multiple tornadoes reported

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Powerful storms that included at least one confirmed tornado tore through parts of Mississippi, collapsing hundreds of homes, tearing up trees and downing power lines, authorities said Thursday. There were no immediate reports of deaths or severe injuries from the storms that struck several counties Wednesday night. A mobile home park […]
3 months ago

Iran reviewing US proposal as Trump pressures Tehran for agreement on deal to end war

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran has said it is reviewing the latest American proposals on ending the war, as U.S. President Donald Trump threatened the country with a new wave of bombing unless a deal is reached that includes reopening the crucial Strait of Hormuz to international shipping. Hope that the two-month conflict […]
3 months ago

China says ties with US remain stable ahead of Trump visit despite ‘disruptions’

BEIJING (AP) — China’s top diplomat said Thursday that ties with the U.S. have been in general stable despite “many twists and disruptions,” and called on both countries to find a way to contribute to global peace, a week before President Donald Trump is expected to visit. During a meeting with members of a U.S. […]
3 months ago

Rubio faces challenge in Pope Leo meeting after Trump’s criticism over Iran

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Secretary of State Marco Rubio is heading to the Vatican and Italy on a fence-mending visit after President Donald Trump’s broadsides against Pope Leo XIV and the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran have alienated those allies. Rubio, a practicing Catholic, will have an audience with Leo on Thursday, which was complicated at […]
3 months ago

Investigators take soil samples outside home of a man convicted of killing Kristin Smart

ARROYO GRANDE, Calif. (AP) — Authorities continued searching Thursday at a home connected to the man convicted of killing 19-year-old college student Kristin Smart in 1996, taking samples from the soil in front of the house and in a neighboring yard. It was the second day of searching at the home of Susan Flores, whose […]
3 months ago

Republicans once saw Michigan as ripe for a takeover, but the mood is shifting

DETROIT (AP) — For years, Michigan Republicans had circled 2026 as their chance to regain power in the swing state where Democrats hold all statewide offices and both U.S. Senate seats. Now, doubts are creeping in. Surging gas prices, an unpopular war in Iran and tariffs that have hit the state’s auto industry hard have […]
3 months ago

Trump wants to paint the Eisenhower office building white. Today, a key federal agency considers it

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s proposal to put a coat of white paint on the exterior of a 19th century historic landmark building next to the White House is slated for a hearing Thursday by a key federal agency he expects to approve what would be a dramatic makeover for the edifice. The proposed […]
3 months ago

Southern Poverty Law Center attorneys make first court appearance in fraud case

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Lawyers for the Southern Poverty Law Center will appear in court Thursday for the first time since the civil rights group was charged with defrauding donors by failing to disclose that money would be paid to informants inside extremist groups. The grand jury indictment filed April 21 by the U.S. Justice […]
3 months ago

Tech is betting on a former executive in the race for California governor

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — One tech investor called him “the only sane” Democrat in the race for California governor. Others have dumped millions to boost his campaign, even paying for a Super Bowl ad to introduce him to voters. He’s against a proposed billionaires’ tax that has the state’s wealthiest residents threatening an exodus. San […]
3 months ago

Tennessee poised to vote on new US House map sought by Trump that carves up Memphis

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Republican lawmakers in Tennessee are poised to take up a plan Thursday that could carve up a majority-Black congressional district, reshaping it to the GOP’s advantage as part of President Donald Trump’s strategy to try to hold on to a slim House majority in the November midterm elections. The redistricting effort […]
3 months ago

Chief Justice John Roberts says Supreme Court is not political

HERSHEY, Pa. (AP) — Supreme Court justices are not “purely political actors,” Chief Justice John Roberts said Wednesday, insisting unpopular court decisions are based solely on the law. “I think, at a very basic level, people think we’re making policy decisions, we’re saying we think this is how things should be, as opposed to what […]
3 months ago

Wall Street inches higher, oil prices falls in tenuous peace between Iran and US

Wall Street rose modestly and oil prices fell another 3% early Thursday while markets waited to see if the U.S. and Iran would strike a deal allowing tankers to deliver crude from the Persian Gulf again. Futures for the S&P 500 ticked up 0.1% while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% before […]
3 months ago

Alaska wildlife agents can kill bears from helicopters in an effort to protect caribou, judge says

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Alaska wildlife agents can resume shooting and killing black and brown bears — including from helicopters — as part of a plan to help recover a caribou herd that was once an important source of food for Alaska Native hunters, a judge ruled Wednesday. Two conservation groups, the Alaska Wildlife Alliance […]
3 months ago

Justice Department targets slow immigration judges as Trump pushes faster deportations

PHOENIX (AP) — The Justice Department is aiming to weed out immigration judges that it feels are ruling too slowly or aren’t following the law, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Wednesday, as the Trump administration seeks to remake the courts and cut down on the backlog of 3.7 million cases to ease its mass […]
3 months ago

A runner competing in a 250-mile Arizona ultramarathon dies after having a medical emergency

PRESCOTT, Ariz. (AP) — A participant in a grueling 250-mile (402-kilometer) ultramarathon on trails across northern Arizona died Tuesday after experiencing a medical emergency, race organizers and local law enforcement said. First responders attended to a woman in her 40s who was participating in the race and collapsed at a trailhead in the Groom Creek […]
3 months ago

Electrical fire will keep the Broadway theater that hosts ‘The Book of Mormon’ closed through May 17

NEW YORK (AP) — The long-running Broadway hit “The Book of Mormon” will close its doors through May 17 as its theater undergoes repairs after a fire shut down the musical. Performances are canceled through Sunday, May 17. Ticket holders for impacted performances will be notified via their point of purchase to receive refunds or […]
3 months ago

Demonstrators rally in Tennessee and Alabama against redistricting efforts, in photos

Republicans across several Southern states moved forward with redistricting efforts ahead of the midterm elections, despite protests and fierce opposition from Democrats and civil rights advocates. Lawmakers in Tennessee, Alabama and South Carolina debated plans that could reshape majority-Black congressional districts following a recent United States Supreme Court ruling on congressional redistricting. ___ This is […]
3 months ago

Judge releases note that cellmate says he found after Jeffrey Epstein’s suspected suicide try

NEW YORK (AP) — A note Jeffrey Epstein’s former cellmate claimed he found after the financier’s first suspected jail suicide attempt was made public Wednesday after it had been sealed and locked in a courthouse vault for nearly five years as part of an unrelated legal dispute. U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas in White Plains, […]
3 months ago

Justice Department can keep 2020 election ballots seized from Georgia’s Fulton County, judge rules

ATLANTA (AP) — The federal government doesn’t have to return the 2020 election ballots from Georgia’s Fulton County that were seized by the FBI from a warehouse near Atlanta, a judge ruled Wednesday. U.S. District Judge J.P. Boulee’s decision came after lawyers for the county had argued that the ballots and other election materials, as […]
3 months ago