Iowa’s winter blast could make an unrepresentative way of picking presidential nominees even more so
DES MOINES, Iowa — Most Iowans won’t be out Monday night. Never mind that it’s forecast to be well below zero, with wind chills as low as minus 40 degrees, and the roads may still be icy from a set of snowstorms that hammered the state this past week. It’s...
Weekend of ferocious winter weather could see low-temperature records set in U.S. heartland
O’FALLON, Mo. — Icy winter weather blanketed the U.S. on Saturday as a wave of Arctic storms threatened to break low-temperature records in the heartland, spread cold and snow from coast to coast and cast a chill over everything from football playoffs to presidential campaigns. As the three-day Martin Luther...
As a new generation rises, tension between free speech and inclusivity on college campuses simmers
Generations of Americans have held firm to a version of free speech that makes room for even the vilest of views. It’s girded by a belief that the good ideas rise above the bad, that no one should be punished for voicing an idea — except in rare cases where...
War in Gaza, election factor into some of the many events planned for MLK holiday
As communities nationwide prepare this weekend to celebrate the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday with events ranging from parades to prayer services, some will take a cue from the slain civil rights icon’s history of protest to demonstrate against the war in Gaza and draw attention to a looming...
U.S. struggles to sway Israel on its treatment of Palestinians. Why Netanyahu is unlikely to yield
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s administration keeps pressing Israel to reengage with Palestinians as partners once fighting in Gaza is over and support their eventual independence. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu keeps saying no. Even on actions to alleviate the suffering of Palestinian civilians, the two allies are far apart. That...
More than 30 Palestinians killed in Israeli Gaza strikes while fears grow the conflict could widen
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — More than 30 Palestinians, including young children, were killed in Israeli bombardments overnight into Saturday in the Gaza Strip, officials said, while a new U.S. strike against Iran-backed rebels in Yemen heightened fears that the Israel-Hamas war could escalate into a regional conflict. Fears of a...
Supreme Court agrees to hear Starbucks appeal in Memphis union case
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal from Starbucks in a dispute with the National Labor Relations Board over efforts by workers to unionize at a store in Memphis, Tenn. The case has been among the most closely watched in the more than 2-year-old effort...
U.S. military strikes another Houthi-controlled site in Yemen
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military early Saturday struck another Houthi-controlled site in Yemen that it had determined was putting commercial vessels in the Red Sea at risk, two U.S. officials said, a day after the U.S. and Britain launched multiple airstrikes targeting Houthi rebels. Associated Press journalists in Sanaa, Yemen’s...
State trooper plunged into icy Vermont pond to save 8-year-old girl
CAMBRIDGE, Vt. — A Vermont state trooper plunged into a frigid pond and pulled out an 8-year-old girl who had fallen through the ice while playing with siblings. The child survived and fully recovered after a brief hospital stay. The girl and her younger sister fell through the thin ice...
Biden asks Supreme Court to tell Texas to stop blocking U.S. border agents from patrols
McALLEN, Texas — The Justice Department on Friday asked the Supreme Court to order Texas to stop blocking Border Patrol agents from a portion of the U.S.-Mexico border where large numbers of migrants have crossed in recent months, setting up another showdown between Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and the Biden...
Fox News stops running MyPillow commercials in payment dispute with Mike Lindell
MINNEAPOLIS — MyPillow chief executive and prominent election denier Mike Lindell said Friday that Fox News has stopped running his company’s commercials, disputing the network’s assertion it is simply because he hasn’t paid his bills. Lindell went public by tweeting that Fox, which had been one of MyPillow’s biggest advertising...
Spirit Airlines passenger accused of sexually assaulting attendants
The FBI is investigating a Spirit Airlines passenger who is accused of asking flight attendants to join the “mile high club” this week, the Department of Justice announced Friday. James Warren Finnister, 47, is facing criminal charges alleging he interfered with flight crew members, sexually harassing and assaulting flight attendants,...
Greensburg Art Center to showcase members’ work, teach window screen painting
The Greensburg Art Center will host its annual member artwork showcase and teach a Cafe Art class on a unique painting method. About 100 people are submitting about 200 pieces of art to the free showcase — including photography, pottery, sculptures and painting. The event will run from Jan. 20...
Florida hotel cancels Muslim conference, citing security concerns
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A South Florida Marriott Hotel canceled a Muslim group’s conference at the last minute after a protest group claimed the coalition was promoting Hamas, terrorism and antisemitism. The South Florida Muslim Federation, a coalition of about 30 mosques and Islamic groups, said Friday it was told...
Winter storm with wind, bitter cold pummels much of the northern U.S.
ST. LOUIS — A massive winter storm swept the northern U.S. on Friday, with blinding snow in some places, freezing rain in others, and bitter cold temperatures and whipping winds across several states. A man was believed dead after an avalanche in the Idaho backcountry. A Wisconsin man died while...
High winds, cold temperatures forecast for weekend: Here’s how to prepare
With cold temperatures and high winds forecast for the Pittsburgh area this weekend, power outages may be on the horizon. High winds Tuesday afternoon left about 41,000 FirstEnergy customers without power in Western Pennsylvania, the power company said in a post on its website. Power was restored to homes Wednesday...
Prosecutors to seek death penalty for white supremacist who killed 10 at Buffalo supermarket
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Federal prosecutors said Friday that they will seek the death penalty against a white supremacist who killed 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket. Payton Gendron, 20, is already serving a sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole after he pleaded guilty to state...
Oregon Supreme Court keeps Trump on primary ballot
SALEM, Oregon — Oregon’s Supreme Court on Friday kept former President Donald Trump on the state’s primary ballot, declining to wade into the legal chaos over whether he’s disqualified to be president until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on a similar case out of Colorado. Oregon was one of several...
Elmore Nickleberry, a Memphis sanitation worker who marched with Martin Luther King, has died at 92
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Elmore Nickleberry, a longtime Memphis sanitation worker who participated in the pivotal 1968 strike that brought the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to the city where the civil rights leader was killed, has died at age 92. Nickleberry died on Dec. 30 in Memphis, according to an...
Manchin says Super Tuesday will offer clarity on need for a 3rd-party candidate
MANCHESTER, N.H. — Iowa and New Hampshire are about to kick off the 2024 presidential nominating process, but Sen. Joe Manchin said Friday it won’t become clear until March whether there’s a path for a third-party candidate. The West Virginia Democrat visited New Hampshire just before the Jan. 23 primary,...
Scientists explain why the record-shattering 2023 heat has them on edge. Warming may be worsening
The latest calculations from several science agencies showing Earth obliterated global heat records last year may seem scary. But scientists worry that what’s behind those numbers could be even worse. The Associated Press asked more than three dozen scientists in interviews and emails what the smashed records mean. Most said...
Why does Iowa launch the presidential campaign?
Iowa assumed its position as the state that votes first for a presidential nominee more than 50 years ago. But its 1972 caucuses didn’t feel very historic. Two folding tables at state Democratic Party headquarters accommodated all staff and media present. No TV cameras rolled. Results from around the state...
U.S. intensifies oversight of Boeing, will begin production audits after latest mishap for planemaker
The Federal Aviation Administration says it will increase oversight of Boeing and audit the production of the 737 Max 9 jetliner after a panel blew off an Alaska Airlines plane in midflight last week, the latest in a string of mishaps at the troubled aircraft maker. The FAA said Friday...
Cellebrite donates AI investigative tools to nonprofits to help find missing children faster
NEW YORK — John Walsh, advocate for missing children and longtime host of “America’s Most Wanted,” said he feels outmanned by criminals all the time — especially in the courtroom. “I say to myself, ‘My god, the lawyer for this dirtbag predator is smarter and more sophisticated than the cops...
Worried about losing in 2024, Iowa’s Republican voters are less interested in talking about abortion
DES MOINES, Iowa — A man in Iowa stood up at a recent town hall and told Ron DeSantis he had an “easy” question: How would the Florida governor address abortion when it’s sure to be a big issue in the coming 2024 presidential election? DeSantis said he’d talk about...
