ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — On a recent weekend afternoon, at a Chinese comedy show in northern Virginia, the host asked the audience, “What food do you like?” The loudest answer echoed through the hall: “Chick-fil-A!” “You still haven’t gotten your H-1B lottery, ha?” quipped the host, citing the most popular work visa among Chinese students. […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — With a fragile ceasefire agreement between the U.S. and Iran holding for now, China is calculating its role in helping find a durable endgame to the war in the Middle East. After prodding China, which is more reliant on Persian Gulf oil than the U.S., to get involved in reopening the choked-off […]
Afrika Bambaataa, a man widely considered one of the main pioneers of hip-hop, died in Pennsylvania of prostate cancer on Thursday, according to his lawyer. He was 68. Bambaataa’s sudden death was met with an outpouring of condolences from friends, family and fans across the world, who paid tribute to his profound and unmistakable impact […]
A federal judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit from the U.S. Department of Justice seeking Massachusetts’ state voter rolls, marking the latest setback in a wide-ranging effort by the Trump administration to collect detailed data on the nation’s voters. The ruling from U.S. District Court Judge Leo Sorokin marks at least the fifth time a […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — Tax refunds this season are up 24% compared with the four-year average of refunds before President Donald Trump took office, his administration said Thursday — a change credited to Republicans’ tax legislation signed into law last year. As the tax season kicked off in January, the White House had boasted that average […]
PORTERVILLE, Calif. (AP) — A man shot and killed a central California sheriff’s deputy Thursday morning while authorities were serving an eviction notice and hours later he remained barricaded inside the home, authorities said. Tulare County deputies were serving an eviction notice at a home in Porterville when a 60-year-old man opened fire on them, […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has notched a string of wins on the Supreme Court ’s emergency docket, in part because the conservative justices believe that blocking executive policies is a blow that can’t be easily fixed, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said Thursday. The increase in emergency appeals by the Trump administration is “unprecedented in […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — Soaring gas prices are expected to produce a spike in inflation when the government reports consumer prices for March on Friday, likely unnerving the inflation fighters at the Federal Reserve and heightening the political challenges of rising costs for the White House. Inflation probably rose to 3.4% in March compared with a […]
NEW YORK (AP) — A New York City man has been charged in the death of four people, including a toddler, after setting fire to a residential building last month in a fit of rage over losing his job, prosecutors said. The choice of building was random, according to Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, who […]
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California officials on Thursday said they uncovered a multimillion-dollar scheme to use stolen identities from people outside the state to charge for hospice services paid for with a government insurance program. State Attorney General Rob Bonta said officials have charged 21 and have so far arrested 5 people involved as the […]
YELLOW SPRINGS, Ohio (AP) — Comedian Dave Chappelle stood on the front lawn of a newly restored 19th-century schoolhouse Thursday, joining neighbors and local officials as a small-town radio station secured its future in the community he calls home. The ribbon-cutting ceremony marked two historic moments: Chappelle’s restoration of the Union Schoolhouse and WYSO’s relocation […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge on Thursday ruled that the Defense Department is violating his earlier order to restore access to the Pentagon for reporters. U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman sided with The New York Times earlier this month in deciding that the Pentagon’s new credential policy violated journalists’ constitutional rights to free speech […]
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel told NBC News’ Meet the Press that he would not step down in his first interview with a U.S. network, a portion of which was broadcast Thursday. In a nearly five-minute clip that is part of a longer interview scheduled to air on Sunday, journalist […]
PHOENIX (AP) — A federal judge has denied a request from prediction market operator Kalshi to bar Arizona prosecutors from moving forward with a criminal case, alleging the company is operating an illegal betting platform in the state. In a decision Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Michael Liburdi also denied Kalshi’s request for a ruling saying […]
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan lawmakers on Thursday approved a bill to regulate the country’s mining as it seeks to attract leery foreign investors to a once-private industry that has long been exploited by criminal groups believed to have ties to the government. It is the latest legislative initiative by acting President Delcy Rodríguez since […]
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sam Mintesnot had checked off everything she possibly could have from a long list of to-dos in preparation for the Coachella music festival. She crafted the best outfits, got her hair and nails done, booked a one-way ticket to Los Angeles and flew out on Tuesday with a spreadsheet full of […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — Plaintiffs challenging the Trump administration’s cost-cutting measures against an agency that funds and promotes libraries across the U.S. said Thursday they settled the case with the Justice Department in a deal that would reverse some of the steps taken. The American Library Association and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal […]
Prediction markets let people wager on just about anything — from basketball games to elections. And among more jarring bets recently, the fate of the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran. Shortly ahead of a fragile ceasefire agreement earlier this week, a new group of accounts on prediction market platform Polymarket made highly specific, well-timed […]
NEW YORK (AP) — A lawyer for 34 states suing Live Nation Entertainment tried to convince a jury Thursday during an antitrust trial ’s closing arguments that the company and its ticketing arm, Ticketmaster, are monopolizing the industry and driving up concert prices. But a lawyer for Live Nation insisted in Manhattan federal court that […]
PHOENIX, AZ (AP) — A federal judge in Phoenix has rejected a plea agreement that would have allowed a man who admitted to beating a Navajo elder and leaving her for dead to avoid more prison time. Preston Henry Tolth, 26, now will face trial on charges of carjacking and assault in relation to the […]
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers signed a bill into law Thursday that legalizes online sports betting, making it the 33rd state to allow the practice. But gamblers in Wisconsin will have to wait months or maybe even longer before they can start to legally place bets. The law Evers signed, which passed […]
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A man imprisoned for nearly 30 years before being exonerated won a landmark election in New Orleans promising to fix a judicial system that failed him. Now, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry and the GOP-controlled Legislature are racing to eliminate his job before he can be sworn in. Calvin Duncan won 68% […]
MIAMI (AP) — A federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s decision to end a temporary status that has protected more than 5,000 Ethiopians from deportation and allowed them to live and work in the United States. In his Wednesday decision, U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy from Massachusetts said the Trump administration terminated the Temporary Protected […]
NEW YORK (AP) — Weeks after their homes were searched as part of a federal bribery investigation, a New York City Council member and her sister, an aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul, appeared Thursday at a rally held by supporters that aimed to distance the pair from the unfolding scandal. Councilmember Farah Louis and her […]
