Politics

This image provided by the National Gallery of Art shows a painted portrait of American founding-fa...

Supporters press for a DC memorial to Thomas Paine, whose writings helped fuel the Revolutionary War

NEW YORK (AP) — Some 250 years after “Common Sense” helped inspire the 13 colonies to declare independence, Thomas Paine might receive a long-anticipated tribute from his adopted country. A Paine memorial in Washington, D.C., authorized by a 2022 law, awaits approval from the U.S. Department of Interior. It would be the first landmark in […]
8 months ago
FILE - Tourists kayak at sea in front of Nuuk Cathedral in Nuuk, Greenland, June 16, 2025. (AP Phot...

Greenland’s party leaders firmly reject Trump’s push for US control of the island

NUUK, Greenland (AP) — Greenland’s party leaders have rejected President Donald Trump’s repeated calls for the U.S. to take control of the island, saying that Greenland’s future must be decided by its people. “We don’t want to be Americans, we don’t want to be Danes, we want to be Greenlanders,” Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen […]
8 months ago
Two people sit in the street holding hands in front of Minnesota State Patrol during a protest and ...

Protests against ICE planned across US after shootings in Minneapolis and Portland, Oregon

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Protests against immigration enforcement are planned for cities and towns across the country on Saturday after one federal officer fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis and another shot and wounded two people in Portland, Oregon. The demonstrations come as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security pushes forward in the Twin Cities with […]
8 months ago
FILE - A plane carrying Donald Trump Jr. lands in Nuuk, Greenland, Jan. 7, 2025. (Emil Stach/Ritzau...

How the US could take over Greenland and the potential challenges

U.S. President Donald Trump wants to own Greenland. He has repeatedly said the United States must take control of the strategically located and mineral-rich island, which is a semiautonomous region that’s part of NATO ally Denmark. Officials from Denmark, Greenland and the United States met Thursday in Washington and will meet again next week to […]
8 months ago
A person watches the oil tanker Ocean Mariner, Monrovia, arrive to the bay in Havana, Cuba, Friday,...

A battered Cuba braces for aftershocks as US seizures of oil tankers linked to Venezuela surge

HAVANA (AP) — As U.S. seizures of Venezuela-linked oil tankers surge, concerns grow in Cuba about whether the island’s government and economy will survive. Experts warn that a sudden halt in Venezuelan oil shipments to Cuba could lead to widespread social unrest and mass migration following the stunning U.S. military raid that resulted in the […]
8 months ago

Judge blocks Trump’s elections order in lawsuit by vote-by-mail states Oregon and Washington

SEATTLE (AP) — A federal judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from enforcing most of his executive order on elections against the vote-by-mail states Washington and Oregon, in the latest blow to Trump’s efforts to require documentary proof of citizenship to vote and to require that all ballots be received by Election Day. […]
8 months ago
The table above shows the five states and their social safety net funding across various programs w...

Judge says Trump administration can’t block child care, other program money for 5 states for now

A federal judge ruled Friday that President Donald Trump’s administration cannot block federal money for child care subsidies and other programs aimed at supporting needy children and their families from flowing to five Democratic-led states for now. The states of California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York argued that a policy announced Tuesday to freeze […]
8 months ago
New signage, The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, i...

Washington National Opera bows out of Kennedy Center

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington National Opera announced Friday that it had decided to end its arrangement with the Kennedy Center in the nation’s capital, though it said it was hoping for an “amicable transition.” “To ensure fiscal prudence and fulfill its obligations for a balanced budget, the WNO will reduce its spring season and […]
8 months ago
President Donald Trump wears a gift, which he calls a "Happy Trump" pin, during a meeting with oil ...

Trump wears a new ‘Happy Trump’ lapel pin, but insists he’s never happy

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump insists he’s never happy. But now he has a lapel pin that is. The president sported a tiny version of himself on his suit’s lapel Friday, under the miniature American flag pin he and other presidents have traditionally worn. “Somebody gave me this. Do you know what that is? […]
8 months ago
President Donald Trump laughs during a meeting with oil executives in the East Room of the White Ho...

Trump brushes off early posting of confidential jobs figures

WASHINGTON (AP) — In an unusual move, President Donald Trump posted employment report Friday morning at 8:30 a.m. eastern. The monthly jobs numbers are a closely guarded secret because they can cause sharp swings in financial markets when released. Friday’s report, in fact, contributed to a rise in stock prices and a slight decline in […]
8 months ago
FILE - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro raises up his closed fists during a news conference at M...

Dispute erupts over who will represent former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in court

NEW YORK (AP) — Days after Nicolás Maduro’s arraignment on drug trafficking charges, a squabble has erupted over who gets to represent the former Venezuelan president in the high-stakes case. Defense attorney Barry Pollack, who sat with Maduro in court, accused lawyer Bruce Fein of trying to join the case without authorization. Fein, an associate […]
8 months ago
Kevin Roberts, president of The Heritage Foundation, speaks during Turning Point USA's AmericaFest ...

Heritage Foundation calls on US to prioritize marriage and family in new report

The Heritage Foundation think tank is urging the federal government “to save and restore the American family,” kicking off the midterm election year with a call for conservatives to focus on domestic issues. Among its recommendations? A “marriage bootcamp,” designed to prepare cohabitating couples for marriage; a “universal day of rest” that would build upon […]
8 months ago

Wounded veterans cycle through Florida Keys for annual Soldier Ride

KEY LARGO, Fla. (AP) — Nearly 15 years after his first Soldier Ride, Bill Hansen joined dozens of other wounded veterans on Friday as they cycled along the Overseas Highway, including the Seven Mile Bridge, for the annual Florida Keys event. A total of 45 men and women, as well as their supporters, are participating […]
8 months ago
FILE - Students walk by graffiti near university president Richard Saller's office at Stanford Univ...

Trial begins for Stanford students for occupying president’s office in pro-Palestinian protest

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A trial began Friday for five current and former Stanford University students who occupied the university president’s offices during a pro-Palestinian protest in 2024 — in a rare instance of demonstrators facing trial for actions from the wave of campus protests that year. Authorities initially arrested and charged 12 people after […]
8 months ago
People gather around a makeshift memorial honoring the victim of a fatal shooting involving federal...

Wife of Minnesota woman killed in ICE shooting: ‘We had whistles. They had guns’

WASHINGTON (AP) — The wife of Renee Good, the woman shot and killed in her car by a federal immigration agent in Minneapolis, says the couple had stopped to support their neighbors on the day of the shooting and described the mother of three as leaving a legacy of kindness. “We had whistles. They had […]
8 months ago
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference, Thursday, Jan. 8, 20...

Judge to temporarily block effort to end protections for relatives of citizens, green card holders

BOSTON (AP) — A federal judge said Friday that she expects to temporarily block efforts by the Trump administration to end a program that offered temporary legal protections for more than 10,000 family members of citizens and green card holders. U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani said at a hearing that she planned to issue a […]
8 months ago
FILE - U.S. Department of the Treasury Scott Bessent speaks before President Donald Trump arrives a...

As tensions flare in Minnesota, Treasury Secretary Bessent pushes a crackdown on fraud

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department is taking a closer look at financial transactions between Minnesotan residents and businesses and Somalia as the federal government ramps up its immigration crackdown in the state, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters on Friday during a visit to the state. Bessent said his agency has launched a series […]
8 months ago
Gov. Gavin Newsom gives his State of the State address at the State Capitol on Thursday, Jan. 8, 20...

Newsom faces another multibillion-dollar budget shortfall in his last year as California governor

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said the state faces a $2.9 billion budget deficit this year, an amount significantly lower than what legislative budget analysts projected. The deficit, though small, could still require cuts and means the Democratic governor doesn’t have money to advance new programs during his last year in […]
8 months ago
Supporters of the Venezuelan government rally calling for the release of former Venezuelan Presiden...

US sends delegation to Venezuela in first step toward restoring relations after Maduro’s capture

GUATIRE, Venezuela (AP) — The United States and Venezuelan governments said Friday they were exploring the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations between the two countries, and that an delegation from the Trump administration arrived to the South American nation on Friday. The small team of U.S. diplomats and diplomatic security officials traveled to Venezuela to […]
8 months ago
Vivek Ramaswamy, a Republican candidate for governor of Ohio, speaks at a rally Wednesday, Jan. 7, ...

Vivek Ramaswamy’s family bodyguard arrested on drug trafficking charges

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has expressed alarm that a man who worked as his family’s bodyguard is facing federal drug trafficking charges. Justin Salsburey, 43, of Bellefontaine, and his wife, Ruthann Rankin, were each charged late last month with conspiracy and possession with the intent to distribute large amounts […]
8 months ago
Demonstrators protest outside the White House in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, against the Im...

Minneapolis schools will offer remote learning amid federal immigration enforcement

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minneapolis school system will offer families the option of remote learning for a month amid federal immigration enforcement in the city, the district said. The district provided the update in emails to teachers that were obtained by The Associated Press. The move comes as the Trump administration sends 2,000 immigration agents […]
8 months ago
FILE - Customs and Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino walks with border patrol agents through a...

Federal officers are leaving Louisiana immigration crackdown for Minneapolis, documents show

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Federal immigration officers are pulling out of a Louisiana crackdown and heading to Minneapolis in an abrupt pivot from an operation that drew protests around New Orleans and aimed to make thousands of arrests, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press. The shift appeared to signal a wind down of […]
8 months ago
President Donald Trump waves as he walks off stage after speaking to House Republican lawmakers dur...

Trump meets with oil executives at the White House on Friday, seeking investments in Venezuela

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is meeting with oil executives at the White House on Friday in hopes of securing $100 billion in investments to revive Venezuela’s ability to fully tap into its expansive reserves of petroleum — a plan that rides on their comfort in making commitments in a country plagued by instability, […]
8 months ago
Water flows near homes in flood-prone Cahokia Heights, Ill., May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Philli...

Takeaways from AP reporting on Trump administration cuts affecting US water systems

Scores of communities around the United States have aging and decrepit wastewater systems that can put residents’ health and homes at risk. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and former President Joe Biden’s administration promised hundreds of millions of dollars to address the problem, but much of that has been undone in President Donald Trump’s return to […]
8 months ago