Vatican questions $17 million transfer to impact investing fund, moves to prevent similar
VATICAN CITY — The Vatican is seeking clarity after the former director of its U.S. missionary fundraising office oversaw the transfer of at least $17 million of its endowment and donations into a new nonprofit and private equity fund that he created and currently manages, The Associated Press has learned....
China responds to U.S. complaint over plane intercept with demand for end to surveillance flights
BEIJING — Beijing responded Wednesday to complaints from the United States about a Chinese fighter jet’s dangerous interception of an American Air Force reconnaissance aircraft in international airspace over the South China Sea by demanding an end to such flights. The incident adds to military, diplomatic and economic tensions between...
DeSantis looks to connect with voters during 1st full day of campaigning in Iowa
SALIX, Iowa — Ron DeSantis was making a four-stop blitz through Iowa during his first full day of presidential campaigning on Wednesday, aiming for a personal connection with voters while intensifying his criticism of former President Donald Trump. The Florida governor’s first stop was the floor of Port Neal Welding...
Priceless painting looted by Nazis during World War II returns to Poland from Japan
WARSAW, Poland — A priceless 16th century Italian painting that was looted by Nazi Germany during World War II and discovered in Japan has been returned to Poland, authorities in Warsaw said Wednesday. The “Madonna with Child” attributed to Alessandro Turchi, is the latest of some 600 looted artistic pieces...
Wildfire on Canada’s Atlantic coast forces evacuation of 16,000 people
HALIFAX, Nova Scotia — Nova Scotia’s leader begged people to stay out of the woods and avoid any activity that could start more fires after a wildfire on Canada’s Atlantic coast damaged about 200 houses and other structures and prompted the evacuation of 16,000 people. “It’s extensive. It’s heartbreaking,” said...
Donald Trump’s legal team and Manhattan prosecutors spar over where he will stand trial
NEW YORK — Ten months before Donald Trump is scheduled to stand trial in his historic New York City criminal case, Manhattan prosecutors are turning the former president’s words against him in a tug of war over precisely where he will be tried. Trump’s lawyers have spent weeks angling to...
Ethnic Serbs in Kosovo gather in northern town after clashes with NATO-led peacekeepers
ZVECAN, Kosovo — Hundreds of ethnic Serbs on Wednesday gathered in a town in northern Kosovo, days after clashes that injured 30 soldiers from a NATO-led peacekeeping force and over 50 Serbs, provoking fears of a renewal of the region’s bloody conflicts and prompting the Western military alliance to send...
Pa. Game Commission urges residents to leave young wildlife alone
The Pennsylvania Game Commission released a springtime alert Tuesday, urging the public to avoid young wildlife. The release informed Pennsylvanians that during the spring it’s possible to encounter young wildlife that appear to be alone. According to the Game Commission’s wildlife management director, Matthew Schnupp, many people attempt to assist...
House OKs debt ceiling bill to avoid default, sends Biden-McCarthy deal to Senate
WASHINGTON — Veering away from a default crisis, the House approved a debt ceiling and budget cuts package late Wednesday, as President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy assembled a bipartisan coalition of centrist Democrats and Republicans against fierce conservative blowback and progressive dissent. The hard-fought deal pleased few, but...
Florida art dealer gets 2 years, 3 months in Warhol forgery scheme
FORT PIERCE, Fla. — A South Florida art dealer was sentenced Tuesday to two years and three months in federal prison in connection with a scheme involving the sale of fake Andy Warhol paintings. Daniel Elie Bouaziz, 69, was sentenced in Fort Pierce federal court, according to court records. He...
New Zealand airline is asking passengers to weigh in before their flights
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand’s national airline is asking passengers to step on the scales before they board international flights. Air New Zealand says it wants to weigh 10,000 passengers during a monthlong survey so pilots can better know the weight and balance of their planes before takeoff. But...
Kevin McCarthy floats contempt for FBI director over document requestVideo
WASHINGTON — Speaker Kevin McCarthy threatened Tuesday to seek to hold the head of the FBI in contempt of Congress if the agency didn’t comply with a congressional subpoena issued after lawmakers received “whistleblower disclosures” related to President Joe Biden. The comments came hours before the head of the House...
Cruise ship passengers left terrified after ship sails through rough seas on return to CharlestonVideo
CHARLESTON, S.C. — A cruise ship that navigated rough seas off the South Carolina coast over the Memorial Day weekend has resumed sailing on its next cruise, Carnival Cruise Lines said. Terrified passengers on the Carnival Sunshine took to social media to post video of water pouring through a flooded...
Manson follower Leslie Van Houten should be paroled, California appeals court rules
LOS ANGELES — A California appeals court said Tuesday that Leslie Van Houten, who participated in two killings at the direction of cult leader Charles Manson in 1969, should be let out of prison on parole. The appellate court’s ruling reverses an earlier decision by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who rejected...
Trump lawyer says he was ‘waved off’ searching Mar-a-Lago office for classified documentsVideo
A lawyer for former President Donald Trump reportedly said he was “waved off” of searching his Mar-a-Lago office for classified documents after the feds issued a subpoena demanding their return. Attorney Evan Corcoran told two colleagues he was barred from looking for secret documents in Trump’s personal office at the...
South Carolina gas station owner charged with murder in 14-year-old’s shooting deathVideo
COLUMBIA, S.C. — A South Carolina gas station owner was charged Monday with murder in the death of a 14-year-old boy whom he allegedly chased from the store and shot in the back, the sheriff said. Rick Chow thought the teen had shoplifted four bottles of water Sunday night from...
Pa. woman who threatened Nancy Pelosi with hanging during Capitol riot gets over 2 years in prison
A Pennsylvania restaurant owner who screamed death threats directed at then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi while storming the U.S. Capitol was sentenced on Tuesday to more than two years in prison. Pauline Bauer was near Pelosi’s office suite on Jan. 6, 2021, when she yelled at police officers to bring out...
Trump takes aim at birthright U.S. citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants
Former President Trump Tuesday vowed to deny citizenship to children of undocumented immigrants who are born in the U.S. if he wins reelection next year. Although anyone born in the U.S. is guaranteed citizenship by the 14th Amendment, Trump declared he would end birthright citizenship as a priority if he...
Republican Rep. Chris Stewart of Utah planning to resign, report says
WASHINGTON — Rep. Chris Stewart, a Republican from Utah, plans to resign from Congress, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. The newspaper report, citing multiple unnamed sources, said Stewart plans to step down as early as this week due to undisclosed health issues experienced by his wife, Evie Stewart. He...
11-year-old boy says he thought he would die after Mississippi police officer shot himVideo
JACKSON, Miss. — An 11-year-old Mississippi boy who called police to help his family and then was shot by an officer said the bullet that pierced his lung felt “like a big punch to the chest.” “I actually thought I was about to lose my life,” Aderrien Murry told “Good...
Minnesota governor signs bill legalizing recreational marijuana starting in August
ST. PAUL, Minn. —Surrounded by dozens of cheering people in green clothes, Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz signed a bill Tuesday to legalize recreational marijuana for people over the age of 21 starting in August, making Minnesota the 23rd state to legalize the substance for adults. “This has been a...
NATO to send 700 more troops to Kosovo to help quell violent protests
OSLO, Norway — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday that the military organization has sent 700 more troops to Kosovo to help quell violent protests and has put another battalion on standby in case the riots spread. “We have decided to deploy 700 more troops from the operational reserve force...
Biden to host UK Prime Minister Sunak next week for talks on Ukraine, climate
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will host British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the White House next week for talks on Ukraine, climate issues and more. Sunak is slated to visit Washington on June 7-8 and will also meet with U.S. lawmakers and business leaders in addition to his Oval...
Why Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment fight isn’t finished yet
AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Legislature already made one historic move with its impeachment of Republican state Attorney General Ken Paxton. Another one is coming. The GOP-led House of Representatives on Saturday approved 20 articles of impeachment on sweeping allegations of wrongdoing that have trailed the state’s top lawyer for...
Texas state Sen. Angela Paxton could vote in trial on husband’s impeachment
AUSTIN, Texas — On the way to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton becoming a rising figure in the GOP, his wife, Angela, used to entertain crowds with a guitar and a song. “I’m a pistol-packin’ mama, and my husband sues Obama,” she sang at campaign events and Republican clubs in...
