Associated Press

Associated Press

Ohio suspends data center tax break as tech firms face pressure to pay the cost to power AI

Ohio, one of the nation’s data center destination hot spots, is suspending a tax break that has been critical to its competition with other states to attract the massive new facilities that power and train artificial intelligence chatbots. The move Wednesday by Republican Gov. Mike DeWine comes as tax breaks for energy-hungry AI data centers […]
4 months ago

Victims of the Washington paper mill disaster included husbands and grandfathers

LONGVIEW, Wash. (AP) — Authorities resumed the painstaking search Thursday for nine workers feared dead at a Washington state paper mill where a chemical tank ruptured, devastating a community where many families have worked at the mill for generations. Among the 11 people presumed dead, including the missing, are a grandfather who was always willing […]
4 months ago

As the United States turns 250, Americans still can’t get enough of French luxury

NEW YORK (AP) — At the pinnacle of the American cultural pyramid, one particular inspiration has echoed across the centuries through friendship and tension alike: France. The American love affair with French luxury goods and their cultural cachet and craftsmanship has spanned the younger country’s history, and a new exhibit explores the story of how […]
4 months ago

Treasury Secretary Bessent confirms limited steps toward a $250 bill featuring Donald Trump

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday that his department has prepared the design for a $250 bill featuring President Donald Trump, anticipating the passage of stalled legislation in Congress to put the president on a new denomination of legal tender. Bessent said at the White House that authorizing the new currency will be up to […]
4 months ago

Carney calls for new partnership with US as Trump mulls whether to renew free trade agreement

TORONTO (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called for a new partnership with the United States on Thursday, just weeks before President Donald Trump decides on whether to renew the free trade agreement between the countries. Carney said in a speech at the Economic Club of New York that there should be a “true […]
4 months ago

Hawaii police search for man wanted in connection with 3 killings in 2 days

Police in Hawaii searched Thursday for a 36-year-old man whom they described as “armed and extremely dangerous” and wanted in connection with three killings within a two-day span earlier this week. Hawaii Police Chief Reed Mahuna said authorities were deploying “significant resources and personnel” in trying to find Jacob Baker, of Pahoa, Hawaii. Three men, […]
4 months ago

EU envoy seeks more vessels to secure Hormuz navigation once the war in Iran ends

LIMASSOL, Cyprus (AP) — The European Union’s foreign policy chief said Thursday securing freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz after the Iran war ends will require more ships, including more vessels from Europe, and the expansion of a current EU naval mission. The EU mission in the Red Sea — dubbed Aspides, from […]
4 months ago

Google employee charged with using confidential search data to make $1.2 million on Polymarket

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. prosecutors slapped insider trading charges against a Google employee this week, alleging the software engineer used confidential company information to pocket more than $1.2 million from prediction market platform Polymarket with bets on search trends. In a complaint unsealed in New York, authorities identified the employee as 36-year-old Michele Spagnuolo […]
4 months ago

5 Southern Democratic chairs say South Carolina should lead off 2028 presidential primary calendar

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Democratic leaders in a handful of southern states are lobbying for South Carolina to reprise its role as the party’s first-in-the-nation state to cast primary ballots in 2028, arguing that the state best represents the initial playing field for presidential candidates to build the coalitions needed to win. The state party […]
4 months ago

What to know about Louisiana’s effort to redraw congressional districts before the midterm elections

Louisiana must redraw its congressional districts in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that its map was racially gerrymandered. The question before state lawmakers now is how exactly to do that. The House is considering one option Thursday that differs somewhat from a plan already passed by the Senate. But both plans from the […]
4 months ago

Trump review that could shutter Mexican consulates stokes worries

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mexico’s consulate in Los Angeles helps thousands of citizens each week, assisting them with registering births, obtaining passports and, increasingly since President Donald Trump’s second term began, accessing legal help for loved ones who have fallen afoul of his administration’s immigration policies. Although it serves the country’s biggest Mexican community, all […]
4 months ago

Trump’s DOJ sues 4 Democratic-run states over denying undercover license plates for federal agents

President Donald Trump’s administration is suing four states over their refusal to issue undercover license plates to federal agents, the latest front in the wider struggle between the White House and Democratic-led states over the Republican president’s immigration crackdown. The Department of Justice alleges in separate lawsuits filed Wednesday that Maine, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Washington […]
4 months ago

Michigan Democrats get a chance to make their case for the Senate and their party’s future

MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. (AP) — Michigan Democrats are hoping to hold on to an open U.S. Senate seat as the party fights to win back a majority in Washington. But they first must settle their own arguments. The top three candidates competing for the nomination in the Aug. 4 primary are debating on Thursday at […]
4 months ago

Justice Department opens investigation into E. Jean Carroll, who accused Trump of assault: AP source

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has opened an investigation into whether E. Jean Carroll, the longtime advice columnist who has said Donald Trump sexually assaulted her in a Manhattan department store 30 years ago, lied during the course of civil litigation against the Republican president, according to a person familiar with the matter. The […]
4 months ago

US jobless claims rise to 215,000 but remain low despite Iran war uncertainty

WASHINGTON (AP) — More Americans sought unemployment benefits last week, but layoffs remain low despite economic uncertainty caused by the Iran war. The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims were up to 215,000, up from 210,000 the week before. The four-week moving average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week volatility, rose by nearly 6,300 […]
4 months ago

Key inflaton gauge worsens as Americans shell out more for gasoline

WASHINGTON (AP) — A key inflation gauge accelerated in April to the highest level in three years, the latest sign that spiking gas prices and higher food costs are squeezing Americans’ finances. Inflation jumped to 3.8% in April compared with a year ago, the Commerce Department said Thursday, up from 3.5% in March and the […]
4 months ago

A rare blue micromoon rises this weekend

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Get set for a rare blue micromoon this weekend — a blue moon that’s also the most distant and smallest-looking full moon of the year. A bonus: The brilliant star Antares will photobomb Sunday’s spectacle for a celestial three-for-one. A blue moon occurs every two to three years when a […]
4 months ago

Conan O’Brien to speak at Harvard commencement amid university’s ongoing battle with Trump

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Comedian and television host Conan O’Brien will entertain Harvard University graduates at their commencement Thursday, at a time when the Ivy League school is in the crosshairs of the Trump administration. The administration sued Harvard in March, accusing its leadership of failing to address antisemitism on campus. The move came months […]
4 months ago

Federal judge refuses to block Trump order to create federal voter list and limit mail voting

A federal judge has declined to halt President Donald Trump’s executive order creating a federal voter list and limiting mail voting, clearing the way for potential sweeping changes in how American elections are run shortly before this year’s midterm elections. U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee in Washington, late Wednesday rejected the request […]
4 months ago

Republicans’ recent stumbles in Congress highlight the difficult road ahead for their agenda

WASHINGTON (AP) — A roughly $70 billion bill to fund immigration enforcement through the remainder of President Donald Trump’s term was supposed to be an easy lift for Republicans. But progress stalled over concerns about the inclusion of White House ballroom security funding in the package and the creation of a $1.8 billion fund to […]
4 months ago

Chilean American stolen as a baby reunites with his mom and gets a second chance at family

MIAMI (AP) — Kyle Adler’s discovery that he was stolen from his Chilean mother as a baby came as a shock, sparking an identity crisis that lasted years and led to a reunion with his biological mother earlier this year. “It’s been so eye-opening to see who my people are,” Adler said. “I feel the […]
4 months ago

Gamification and memes lure young people to sports wagering apps, prediction markets

When Rory McIlroy won the Masters for the second year in a row, Kalshi shared a photo of him on Instagram with the words, “Wait he’s goated.” When a video of NBA player Damian Lillard recovering from an injury circulated online, Kalshi’s main competitor Polymarket posted, “The league is cooked.” If you don’t know what […]
4 months ago

Photos show protestors and ICE agents clashing outside a New Jersey detention center

Protesters and ICE agents clashed this week outside a New Jersey detention center as demonstrators gathered near the entrance gates to protest the transfer of detainees. ____ This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
4 months ago

Inside an African hotel where asylum seekers deported by the US are imprisoned

MALABO, Equatorial Guinea (AP) — At first glance, the hotel looks like any other on this tropical island off the Central African coast, with its palm tree-lined driveway, marble-floored foyer and portrait of the oil-rich country’s president hanging behind a mahogany reception desk. Yet the eerily empty Bamy Hotel is not a refuge for adventure-seeking […]
4 months ago