Associated Press

Associated Press

FACT FOCUS: The Trump administration is falsely claiming Jimmy Carter was against mail-in voting

The Trump administration is using a 20-year-old report to misrepresent former President Jimmy Carter’s views on mail-in and absentee ballots as it pushes for federal legislation that would impose strict new proof-of-citizenship and photo ID requirements for voting ahead of the midterm elections. On two successive days this week, President Donald Trump and White House […]
6 months ago

A 12-year-old Georgia girl dies days after collapsing following a fight near a school bus stop

VILLA RICA, Ga. (AP) — A 12-year-old girl was taken to a hospital and died days after she collapsed in the street following a fistfight near a school bus stop in her Georgia neighborhood, according to police. The death of sixth grader Jada West is being investigated by police in suburban Villa Rica, about 30 […]
6 months ago

Social Security watchdog opens probe into alleged misuse of data by ex-DOGE employee

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Social Security Administration’s internal watchdog is investigating a whistleblower complaint into what it describes as a former Department of Government Efficiency worker’s potential misuse of data obtained from the Social Security Administration. According to a document the Associated Press obtained Wednesday, the SSA’s inspector general informed the leadership of four congressional […]
6 months ago

A service dog named Alfred sparked a Lyft settlement in Minnesota with nationwide reach

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The ride-sharing company Lyft will ensure the rights of blind and other disabled passengers across the country to travel with their service animals under a settlement announced in Minnesota on Wednesday. College student Tori Andres turned to the Minnesota Department of Human Rights after several Lyft drivers refused to let […]
6 months ago

Video appears to show New York City bomb suspect buying fuse at a fireworks store

NEW YORK (AP) — Newly released surveillance video appears to show a man buying a fuse at a fireworks store days before authorities say he and another man brought homemade bombs to a protest outside the New York City mayor’s residence. Emir Balat, 18, visited a Phantom Fireworks store near his suburban Philadelphia home on […]
6 months ago

Epstein’s longtime accountant testifies on his wealth and business ties

WASHINGTON (AP) — House lawmakers were digging into Jeffrey Epstein’s sprawling financial portfolio Wednesday as a committee deposed his former accountant and tried to understand his connections to some of the world’s wealthiest men. Richard Kahn, who worked closely with Epstein for years and now serves as an executor of his estate, appeared for the […]
6 months ago

States sue the Trump administration to challenge policy requiring colleges to collect race data

BOSTON (AP) — A coalition of 17 Democratic state attorneys general filed a lawsuit Wednesday challenging a Trump administration policy that requires higher education institutions to collect data showing they aren’t considering race in admissions. President Donald Trump ordered the new policy in August after he raised concerns that colleges and universities were using personal […]
6 months ago

Photos show tornado damage after powerful storms hit Illinois and Indiana

Powerful storms swept across northern Illinois and northwest Indiana, spawning multiple tornadoes and causing widespread damage. ___ This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
6 months ago

US medical equipment company Stryker says cyberattack disrupted its global networks.

PORTAGE, Mich. (AP) — Stryker, a major U.S. medical equipment company, said a cyberattack disrupted its global networks Wednesday. “We have no indication of ransomware or malware and believe the incident is contained. Our teams are working rapidly to understand the impact of the attack on our systems,” Stryker said in a statement on its […]
6 months ago

Leavenworth, Kansas, relents and will allow a private prison to reopen and house immigrants

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas town known for its prisons is allowing a shuttered private prison to reopen and house immigrants detained for living in the U.S. illegally after a nearly yearlong legal fight amid a massive national push for new detention centers. The City Commission in Leavenworth on Tuesday approved a permit to […]
6 months ago

Ecuador readies a major offensive on criminal groups, with US logistical support

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuador is preparing a “major offensive” against criminal organizations set to begin this weekend with logistical support from the United States, the interior minister said Wednesday. Speaking to a local radio station, Interior Minister John Reimberg also urged citizens to observe a curfew from March 15-30 in the provinces of Guayas, […]
6 months ago

Head priest of Episcopal Church in Pittsburgh accused of stealing baseball cards from Walmart

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The head priest and dean of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in downtown Pittsburgh is facing charges after being accused of stealing more than $1,000 in baseball cards from a Walmart. The Very Rev. Aidan Smith was arrested Feb. 27 by police just after leaving the Walmart in Economy Borough, just outside Pittsburgh, with […]
6 months ago

Pentagon blocks photographers from Hegseth’s briefings on the Iran war

NEW YORK (AP) — The Pentagon has not permitted photographers to cover Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s last two briefings on the war in Iran, and hasn’t explained the change in longstanding policy. A Pentagon spokesman, Joel Valdez, declined to comment for this story. The Defense Department under Hegseth has had a contentious relationship with the […]
6 months ago

Iowa bars local gender identity protections after rolling back its civil rights code

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A new Iowa law bans local nondiscrimination protections on the basis of gender identity after the state became the first in the U.S. to rollback its civil rights code last year. The preemption law took effect Tuesday, as soon as Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed it. It prevents cities and […]
6 months ago

Los Angeles school superintendent denies wrongdoing and asks for his job back during federal probe

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The superintendent of Los Angeles public schools who’s on paid leave during a federal investigation, released a statement on Wednesday denying any wrongdoing and asking to be reinstated as head of the nation’s second-largest district. The FBI served search warrants on Feb. 25 at Alberto Carvalho’s home and the LA Unified […]
6 months ago

Federal distrust prompts some Democratic states to protect polling places, election records

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Democratic-led states alarmed by the prospect of federal immigration officers patrolling the polls during this year’s midterm elections are taking steps to counter what they see as a potential tactic to intimidate voters. New Mexico this week became the first state to bar armed agents from polling locations in response […]
6 months ago

South Africa summons new US ambassador over criticism

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The new U.S. ambassador to South Africa was summoned to explain his criticism of the country’s policies, the South African foreign minister said Wednesday, as a diplomatic rift continues. Ambassador Leo Brent Bozell III made the comments at a meeting of business leaders on Tuesday. He challenged the South African government over […]
6 months ago

‘Dances With Wolves’ actor to be sentenced in Las Vegas for sexually assaulting Indigenous girls

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nathan Chasing Horse was expected to be sentenced Wednesday morning for sexually assaulting Indigenous women and girls, drawing to a close a case that sent shock waves through Indian Country. The sentencing of the “Dances With Wolves” actor comes about a month after a Nevada jury convicted him on 13 of […]
6 months ago

Photos of beachgoers in UAE where oil tankers and cargo ships line up in Hormuz Strait

KHOR FAKKAN, United Arab Emirates (AP) — People on the coast of the United Arab Emirates can see oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz while playing on swings, riding horses and camping out on the beach near Khor Fakkan, as the war in Iran affects the global energy supply. […]
6 months ago

Early photos of enslaved people in 1850 head home from Harvard to South Carolina museum

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Descendants of a father and daughter featured in what are believed to be the first photographs taken of enslaved people say they are happy their family members are finally going back to South Carolina. Harvard University turned the photos over to the International African American Museum in Charleston after a seven-year […]
6 months ago

Progressive states revive push to tax the rich as wealth disparity deepens across the US

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Chuck Collins figures he won life’s lottery by inheriting vast sums of money through his great-grandfather Oscar Mayer’s processed meat company, but rather than fight to protect every dime Collins has helped push to hike taxes on the ultrarich like himself. He was successful in helping implement a higher tax in […]
6 months ago

Microsoft backs Anthropic, urging a judge to halt Pentagon’s actions against AI company

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Microsoft is throwing its weight behind Anthropic in asking a federal court to block the Trump administration’s designation of the artificial intelligence company as a supply chain risk. Microsoft, in a legal filing, is challenging Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s action last week to shut Anthropic out of military work by labeling […]
6 months ago

Man taken into custody after driving van into security gate outside White House, authorities say

WASHINGTON (AP) — A man was taken into custody on Wednesday after driving his van into a security barrier outside the White House, authorities said. The Secret Service said the man crashed into the temporary security barrier just before 6:30 a.m. He was immediately arrested by officers from the Secret Service’s uniformed division, the agency […]
6 months ago

Jill Biden opens up in memoir about Joe Biden’s decision to end his 2024 reelection bid

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jill Biden is breaking her silence about Joe Biden’s decision to abruptly end his 2024 presidential reelection bid under pressure from Democrats concerned about his age, health and viability against Republican Donald Trump in a rematch of their 2020 campaign. A political spouse for nearly 50 years, Jill Biden said she has […]
6 months ago