National News

Student Isabel Breslin works on her laptop during a sit-in protest at Cornell University, Wednesday...

Cornell students stage sit-in to protest university’s handling of alleged 2024 gang rape

ITHACA, New York (AP) — Some Cornell students staged a sit-in at a dining hall and vowed not to spend money on campus Wednesday to protest sexual violence and how the university has handled complaints, in the latest expression of outrage over an alleged 2024 gang rape at a fraternity house. A handwritten sign reading […]
28 days ago
This satellite image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Tropical Storm ...

Tropical Storm Simon forms in the Pacific Ocean off the southwestern coast of Mexico

MIAMI (AP) — Tropical Storm Simon formed Wednesday in the Pacific Ocean off the southwestern coast of Mexico, the National Hurricane Center said. The center of the cyclone was located about 175 miles (285 kilometers) south-southeast of Lazaro Cardenas, Mexico, and it was forecast to approach the coastline on Saturday. Simon was expected to bring […]
28 days ago

Ex-Marine to face death penalty in 2025 mass shooting at North Carolina bar

BOLIVIA, N.C. (AP) — A prosecutor announced Wednesday that he would seek the death penalty against a former Marine charged in a mass shooting last year that left three people dead and several others wounded. “We are not blind to who this defendant is,” Brunswick County District Attorney Jon David said of defendant Nigel Max […]
28 days ago
This photo provided by the National Parks Service shows Chiricahua National Park in Arizona on Apri...

A rocky ‘wonderland’ in Arizona is poised to be the next US national park

An area of towering rock spires in southeastern Arizona known among Native Americans as the Land of Standing-Up Rocks is poised to become the nation’s newest national park. Legislation to create Chiricahua National Park is expected to be transmitted to the White House in coming days for President Donald Trump’s signature. It passed Congress with […]
28 days ago
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks before President Donald Trump at an event for Anduril Industr...

Hegseth visits the long-deployed USS Lincoln to bestow a top award before the ship returns home

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has given the crew of the record-long deployment in support of the Iran war. The Presidential Unit Citation, the highest honor a unit can receive that is typically reserved for significant achievement in combat, was bestowed upon the Lincoln and accompanying ships for “40 days of combat operations […]
28 days ago
President Donald Trump departs after speaking during an event at Butler High School in Vandalia, Oh...

Disaster relief funding is creeping into Trump’s midterm rhetoric. Critics say it has no place there

President Donald Trump has turned emergency relief into a campaign talking point in the final sprint to the midterm elections, approving disaster declarations in consequential states and coupling endorsements with funding announcements. As the country braces for a major hurricane barreling toward the U.S. Gulf Coast, the moves have revived questions about whether the administration […]
28 days ago
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the Wh...

DNC sues Trump administration, alleging taxpayer-funded ads violate propaganda law

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic National Committee on Wednesday sued President Donald Trump’s administration for recent television advertisements that promoted his political message while costing taxpayers millions of dollars. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges that the ads are illegal government-sponsored propaganda and accuses Trump of personally […]
28 days ago
A plane flies over an anti-arch structure lifted up by demonstrators at Memorial Circle to protest ...

Flight attendants’ union flags safety concerns over Trump’s Washington arch

WASHINGTON (AP) — The union representing thousands of flight attendants said Wednesday it has safety concerns about President Donald Trump’s proposed triumphal arch that will be on final approach to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Flight Attendants Association-CWA President Sara Nelson said the 250-foot (76 meter) arch compounds multiple safety concerns that she said have […]
28 days ago

Trump’s executive order on dyed diesel will offer little relief, farmers and truckers say

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — Farmers, truckers and economists say a move to cut taxes on diesel will provide little relief from record-high fuel prices that have soared since the U.S. attacked Iran months ago. Industry groups said they appreciate President Donald Trump’s executive order expanding the use of a diesel now reserved for off-road […]
28 days ago

Federal appeals judges don’t reveal how they’ll rule on Saudi Arabia’s effort to end 9/11 litigation

NEW YORK (AP) — Family members of victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks packed a federal appeals courtroom in New York City on Wednesday as three judges heard arguments over whether legal claims against Saudi Arabia can proceed. The judges revealed through their questions that there are still many legal issues to be decided […]
28 days ago
Mississippi state Sen. Johnny DuPree, D-Hattiesburg, raises a question during bill discussion, Apri...

Redistricting mess: Sen. Johnny DuPree, just elected to one seat, running for another

Even though state Sen. Johnny DuPree was elected last year to represent portions of Forrest and Lamar counties in the Legislature, he’s now trying to represent a new area of the state. DuPree announced on Monday that he’s qualifying to run in a special election in November to fill the seat vacated by Sen. Juan […]
28 days ago
FILE - An aerial view of a makeshift compound is seen in the desert area of Amalia, N.M., Aug. 10, ...

Appeals court reverses convictions in kidnapping and terrorism case involving 3-year-old boy’s death

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A federal appeals court has vacated kidnapping convictions in a case involving the death of a 3-year-old boy who went missing from Georgia in 2017 and later turned up dead at a squalid compound in New Mexico. The boy’s father and other family members were sentenced to life in prison in […]
28 days ago

Opal Lee, ‘grandmother of Juneteenth,’ spends 100th birthday at the center of celebrations in Texas

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Opal Lee, the lifelong Texan and a driving force in making Juneteenth a federal holiday, spent her 100th birthday on Wednesday at the center of celebrations in her hometown that included a scheduled visit by former first lady Michelle Obama. Lee was on hand for construction crews to break ground […]
28 days ago
Federal Reserve Board Chairman Kevin Warsh speaks during a news conference at the Federal Reserve i...

Federal Reserve officials expect another rate hike will be needed this year, according to minutes

WASHINGTON (AP) — Most Federal Reserve officials expect that another interest rate increase will likely be needed this year to combat inflation, according to minutes released Wednesday from the central bank’s most recent meeting. The officials unanimously agreed that inflation was still elevated and had not made much progress toward their 2% target in recent […]
28 days ago
FILE - A Medicare Advantage PPO card rests on top of a Medicare card in Portland, Ore., June 10, 20...

Trump’s $90 Medicare rebate rolls out, but millions are left out. Critics say it’s a political stunt

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says his administration will make one-time payments of $90 per person to help more than 20 million Medicare enrollees pay for their Part B premiums. It will cost about $2 billion. Less than one-third of all Medicare recipients are eligible for the payments, which are expected to be sent […]
28 days ago

FBI says it thwarted an attack on the Mall of America by a teen it supplied with an assault rifle

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The FBI thwarted an attack on the Mall of America by a teenager after agents supplied him with an assault rifle, authorities announced Wednesday. The 18-year-old had been under investigation for nearly two years, trading messages with a confidential informant, before agents sold him the rifle and ammunition, according to a federal […]
28 days ago
In this frame grab from video, Miguel Salguero-Olivares, who is on trial for the murder and rape of...

Trial begins for a man accused of killing UNC student Faith Hedgepeth 14 years ago

The trial of a man accused of killing a North Carolina college student 14 years ago began Wednesday with the prosecution alleging she was killed in a fit of rage by a stranger who left his DNA all over the crime scene. The defense said the evidence doesn’t add up. Miguel Salguero Olivares is charged […]
28 days ago
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, A Ukrainian serviceman l...

Senators push the Trump administration to act swiftly on Russian sanctions to help Ukraine

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nearly a month after President Donald Trump signed a sweeping Russian sanctions bill named after Lindsey Graham into law, bipartisan leadership in the Senate is urging the administration to clamp down more quickly on the flow of financial resources fueling the war against Ukraine. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent […]
28 days ago
FILE - This photo provided by the U.S. Department of Justice shows a vial of pentobarbital used in ...

Christa Pike survived 2 doses of an execution drug. How is that possible?

Christa Pike regaining consciousness and speaking a week after receiving two doses of execution drugs in Tennessee has left a stunning question: How did she survive? Attorneys for Pike, 50, called her recovery “medically unprecedented” after she was placed on a ventilator following the bungled Sept. 30 attempt to make her the first woman put […]
28 days ago

University of Arizona suspends fraternity activities as reports of misconduct persist

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — The University of Arizona has suspended activities at its fraternities following persistent reports of misconduct, including assault, hazing and drug and alcohol-related behavior, a university official said. Just seven weeks into the fall semester, the university’s Dean of Students Office was investigating multiple misconduct reports involving nearly half the school’s Interfraternity […]
28 days ago
FILE - Members of the National Guard assist storm-damaged business The Marina with moving and pilin...

Before a natural disaster, a governor’s order can free up the National Guard and medical help

Before a big weather event even happens — like a hurricane, flood, or snowstorm — government officials in the United States have the power to call for a state of emergency, a fast-track way to free up resources to help with public safety during an anticipated natural disaster. In a state, a governor usually signs […]
28 days ago
FILE - A Morehouse College student lines up before the school commencement, May 19, 2024, in Atlant...

Trump administration proposes a $70,000 fee for international students to work in the US

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Department of Homeland Security on Wednesday proposed a $70,000 fee for international students seeking to work in the United States, the latest effort from the Trump administration to crack down on foreign enrollment. A proposed rule would require schools to pay the fee for every student who participates in the optional […]
28 days ago
A woman with her child walks past the building of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Sib...

Russia keeps a tight lid on suspected case of pneumonic plague as global concerns mount

Russian authorities are keeping a tight lid on information about last week’s suspicious death of a lab worker in Siberia that has been surrounded by secrecy and claims that it could have been caused by pneumonic plague. While the case has raised global concerns, Russian state TV and other national state-controlled media have steered clear […]
28 days ago
President Donald Trump speaks at an event for Anduril Industries, Inc., at Sparrows Point Shipyard,...

The Latest: Trump doesn’t commit to repaying federal funds already spent on controversial ads

A day after President Donald Trump said he would start paying for controversial taxpayer-funded ads with a campaign account, there’s no sign he plans to refund the millions of federal dollars already spent on them. A White House official insisting on anonymity said Trump’s promises don’t mean there’s any reimbursement coming for the $12 million […]
28 days ago