National News

FILE - A monarch butterfly feeds on milkweed Tuesday, July 15, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hoo...

Trump administration delays decision on federal protections for monarch butterflies

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration has delayed a decision on whether to extend federal protections to monarch butterflies indefinitely despite years of warnings from conservationists that populations are shrinking. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced during the waning days of then-President Joe Biden’s term in December 2024 that the agency planned […]
11 months ago
A man records a humanoid robot inside the exhibition room at the Humanoids Summit, Thursday, Dec. 1...

Humanoid robots take center stage at Silicon Valley summit, but skepticism remains

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) — Robots have long been seen as a bad bet for Silicon Valley investors — too complicated, capital-intensive and “boring, honestly,” says venture capitalist Modar Alaoui. But the commercial boom in artificial intelligence has lit a spark under long-simmering visions to build humanoid robots that can move their mechanical bodies like […]
11 months ago
President Donald Trump speaks to guests in the Grand Foyer of the White House during the Congressio...

Thai and Cambodian leaders have agreed to renew a ceasefire after days of deadly clashes, Trump says

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said on Friday that Thai and Cambodian leaders have agreed to renew a ceasefire after days of deadly clashes.
11 months ago
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks during an event on "Trump Accounts" for kids in the Rooseve...

Treasury rachets up investigations targeting Minnesota’s Somali community for fraud

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department is targeting businesses that people use to wire money to family members abroad as the Trump administration rachets up investigations into fraud within Minnesota’s Somali community, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Friday. President Donald Trump has targeted the Somalian diaspora in Minnesota with immigration enforcement actions and has […]
11 months ago

Woman charged in unprovoked attack on tourist changing baby’s diaper in NYC department store

NEW YORK (AP) — A California woman changing her infant daughter’s diaper in a New York City department store bathroom was stabbed and injured by another woman in an unprovoked attack, police said. The attack occurred shortly before 3 p.m. Thursday at the Macy’s Herald Square store in Manhattan. The 38-year-old victim was stabbed in […]
11 months ago
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing at the White House, Thu...

Trump administration says sign language services ‘intrude’ on Trump’s ability to control his image

The Trump administration is arguing that requiring real-time American Sign Language interpretation of events like White House press briefings “would severely intrude on the President’s prerogative to control the image he presents to the public,” part of a lawsuit seeking to require the White House to provide the services. Department of Justice attorneys haven’t elaborated […]
11 months ago
FILE The USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier leaves Naval Station Norfolk, June 23, 2025, in Norfol...

Admiral hands over leadership of command overseeing the Trump administration’s boat strikes

DORAL, Fla. (AP) — A U.S. Navy admiral who oversees military operations in Latin America handed off command responsibilities Friday as scrutiny increases over the Trump administration’s deadly strikes on alleged drug boats in the region. Adm. Alvin Holsey has retired one year into a posting that typically lasts three to four years and transferred […]
11 months ago
FILE -Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., speaks as Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy ...

Sen. Ron Johnson asks DOJ to investigate Wisconsin judge in former Trump attorney’s case

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson asked the U.S. Department of Justice this week to investigate allegations made by a former attorney for President Donald Trump in Wisconsin that a judge overseeing his felony case is guilty of misconduct and must step aside. The judge on Tuesday refused to step aside in […]
11 months ago
Work continues on the construction of the ballroom at the White House, Tuesday, Dec., 9, 2025, in W...

Trump sued by preservationists seeking architecture review over White House ballroom project

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump was sued on Friday by preservationists seeking an architecture review and congressional approval over his White House ballroom project.
11 months ago
FILE - Guests ride on the Stardust Racers roller coaster at Epic Universe Theme Park at Universal R...

Man’s death on roller coaster at Universal Studios in Orlando ruled accidental

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The death of a 32-year-old man after riding a high-speed roller coaster at a Universal Studios theme park was accidental and an investigation has been closed, a sheriff’s office in Florida said Friday. Security video showed Kevin Rodriguez Zavala “engaged and well” at the start of the ride but unresponsive and […]
11 months ago
FILE - Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy speaks to the media about the impact of the government s...

New York may lose $73M in federal highway funds over flawed immigrant commercial driver’s licenses

New York routinely issues licenses to immigrants that may be valid long after they are legally authorized to be in the country, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Friday and he threatened to withhold $73 million in highway funds unless the system is fixed. New York is the latest state Duffy has targeted in his […]
11 months ago
This undated photo released by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee shows former President Bi...

House Democrats release photos of Trump, Clinton and Andrew from Epstein’s estate

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Democrats released a selection of photos from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein on Friday, including some of Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and the former Prince Andrew. The 19 photos released by Democratic lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee were a small part of more than 95,000 they received from the estate […]
11 months ago

Threat of equine virus looms over nation’s largest rodeo event in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Declaring Las Vegas a “cowboy town,” dozens of riders on horseback have traditionally kicked off the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo by galloping into the arena and then lining up their horses side by side as the riders tip their hats to cheers. But an equine virus outbreak this year has loomed […]
11 months ago
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania greet guests in the Grand Foyer of the White House du...

The Latest: Indiana GOP rejects redrawn congressional map despite pressure from Trump

Indiana’s Republican-led Senate has decisively rejected a redrawn congressional map that would have favored their party, defying months of pressure from President Donald Trump and delivering a stark setback to the White House ahead of next year’s midterm elections. The vote on Thursday was overwhelmingly against the proposed redistricting, with more Republicans opposing than supporting […]
11 months ago
A Somali flag flies alongside the United States and Vermont flags outside the Winooski School Distr...

Somali flag flown outside Vermont school building over Trump ‘garbage’ slur brings threats

WINOOSKI, Vt. (AP) — A small school district in Vermont was hit with racist and threatening calls and messages after a Somali flag was put up a week ago in response to President Donald Trump referring to Minnesota’s Somali community as “ garbage.” The Winooski School District began to display the flag Dec. 5 to […]
11 months ago
FILE - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko attends a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic...

Belarus leader hosts US envoy as he seeks to improve his country’s ties with the West

Authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko on Friday hosted a U.S. envoy for talks in the Belarus capital of Minsk, the latest step in the isolated leader’s effort to improve ties with the West. Lukashenko met with U.S. special envoy for Belarus John Coale, according to state news agency Belta and the presidential press service. The press […]
11 months ago
Kindergarten teacher Christin Labriola reads the book "Dumpling Soup" to her class, incorporating A...

Efforts to require Asian American history in schools after anti-Asian hate starting to pay off

When high school students in the West Hartford Public Schools district study World War II in the coming year, they will learn about more than just the typical hallmarks like Japanese American detention camps. They will also hear about Sadao Munemori, a soldier who died protecting comrades from a grenade. The 22-year-old posthumously became the […]
11 months ago
Detroit Police Commercial Theft Section Officer Ibrahim Kakish participates in a demonstration of h...

Ford turns to stepped-up tech and cooperation with police to thwart F-150 pickup thieves

DETROIT (AP) — Ford Motor Co. has stepped up technology in its popular F-150 pickup to combat the ever-evolving techniques car thieves have at their disposal. It is the latest cat-and-mouse move that the automaker hopes will help customers avoid the costly and frustrating process that occurs when vehicles are swiped and includes a feature […]
11 months ago
A doll representing the baby Jesus is zip-tied in the Nativity scene outside of Lake Street Church ...

Church nativity scenes add zip ties, gas masks and ICE to protest immigration raids

DEDHAM, Mass. (AP) — One baby Jesus lays in a manger in the snow, wrapped in a silver emergency blanket with his wrists zip-tied. Mary stands nearby outside the Lake Street Church in Evanston, Illinois, wearing a plastic gas mask and flanked by Roman soldiers in tactical vests labeled “ICE.” In another Chicago suburb, not […]
11 months ago

Sherrone Moore charged with stalking, home invasion after being fired as Michigan football coach

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Fired University of Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore threatened to kill himself in front of a woman with whom he had been having an affair after she broke off the relationship and reported it to school officials, prosecutors said Friday, charging him with stalking and home invasion. The university fired […]
11 months ago
Kilmar Abrego García arrives to his home in Beltsville, Md., Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025, after being ...

Abrego Garcia won release from detention. He must check in with immigration officials 14 hours later

BALTIMORE (AP) — Kilmar Abrego Garcia was due to check-in with immigration authorities on Friday, some 14 hours after he was released from detention on a judge’s orders. Abrego Garcia became a flashpoint of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown earlier this year when he was wrongly deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador. He […]
11 months ago

Immigration crackdown leaves teens to care for siblings after parents get detained

KENNER, La. (AP) — Vilma Cruz, a mother of two, had just arrived at her newly leased Louisiana home this week when federal agents surrounded her vehicle in the driveway. She had just enough time to call her oldest son before they smashed the passenger window and detained her. The 38-year-old Honduran house painter was […]
11 months ago
Former Chinese official Li Chuanliang films a YouTube broadcast from the Mayflower Church community...

PHOTO ESSAY: In Texas, a former Chinese official targeted by Beijing’s surveillance finds refuge

MIDLAND, Texas (AP) — The Chinese government is using an increasingly powerful tool to control and monitor its own officials: Surveillance technology, much of it originating in the United States, an Associated Press investigation has found. Among its targets is Li Chuanliang, a Chinese former vice mayor hunted by Beijing with the help of surveillance […]
11 months ago
FILE - People protest outside the White House in Washington, May 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)Cr...

Lawmakers urge Education Department to add nursing to ‘professional’ programs list amid uproar

WASHINGTON (AP) — A bipartisan group in Congress is urging the Education Department to add nursing to a list of college programs that are considered “professional,” adding to public outcry after nurses were omitted from a new agency definition. The Trump administration’s list of professional programs includes medicine, law and theology but leaves out nursing […]
11 months ago