Pentagon: Budget readies U.S. for possible China confrontation
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military must be ready for possible confrontation with China, the Pentagon’s leaders said Thursday, pushing Congress to approve the Defense Department’s proposed $842 billion budget, which would modernize the force in Asia and around the world. “This is a strategy-driven budget — and one driven by...
Ukraine president visits front-line areas as new phase nears
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s president on Thursday made his third visit in two days to areas that have felt the brunt of Russia’s war, with a trip to the southern Kherson region that was retaken from the Kremlin’s forces, and as a senior Kyiv commander hinted that a brewing Ukrainian...
Idaho hospital stops baby delivery in part due to politics
A rural hospital in northern Idaho will stop delivering babies or providing other obstetrical care, citing a shifting legal climate in which recently enacted state laws could subject physicians to prosecution for providing abortions, among other reasons. Bonner General Health in Sandpoint will discontinue obstetrical services in mid-May. It also...
Pa. woman gets 3 years in prison for entering Nancy Pelosi’s office during Jan. 6 Capitol riot
WASHINGTON — A Pennsylvania woman linked to a far-right extremist movement was sentenced on Thursday to three years in prison for storming the U.S. Capitol, where she invaded then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office with other rioters. Riley June Williams, 23, of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, was charged but not convicted of helping...
Trump slams Manhattan DA Bragg as an ‘animal’ as hush money indictment looms
Former President Donald Trump insisted Thursday that he is “100% INNOCENT” in the Stormy Daniels hush money case and attacked Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg as an “animal.” In his latest outburst, Trump accused Bragg of “carrying out the plans of the radical left lunatics” by investigating him for paying...
Sen. Fetterman expected back ‘soon,’ no certain timeline yet
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman’s office said Thursday that he is expected to return soon to the chamber, although Democratic leaders are giving no timeline five weeks after he sought inpatient treatment for clinical depression. Fetterman, 53, was weeks into his service in Washington and still recovering from the...
NYPD officer rappels down building to stop man from jumping
NEW YORK — A police officer rappelled down a Manhattan skyscraper to stop a man — who was facing financial fraud charges — from jumping out of a 31st-floor window. The daring arrest happened after federal agents went to the man’s apartment near Carnegie Hall on Wednesday morning to take...
South Carolina comptroller to resign after $3.5B error
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Embattled South Carolina Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom will resign next month after a $3.5 billion accounting error in the year-end financial report he oversaw. The state’s top accountant will leave the elected post he has held for 20 years on April 30, according to a copy of...
Police: Driver veered into Baltimore highway work zone, killing 6 workers
WOODLAWN, Md. — New details are emerging about a crash along the Baltimore beltway Wednesday that left six construction workers dead after a driver lost control of her vehicle, which went careening into a work zone, according to Maryland State Police. Lisa Adrienna Lea, 54, was identified as the driver...
Russia’s security chief blasts West, dangles nuclear threats
MOSCOW — A top Russian security official warned Thursday about the rising threat of a nuclear war and blasted a German minister for threatening Russian President Vladimir Putin with arrest, saying that such action would amount to a declaration of war and trigger a Russian strike on Germany. Dmitry Medvedev,...
What made Beethoven sick? DNA from his hair offers clues
NEW YORK — Nearly 200 years after Ludwig van Beethoven’s death, researchers pulled DNA from strands of his hair, searching for clues about the health problems and hearing loss that plagued him. They weren’t able to crack the case of the German composer’s deafness or severe stomach ailments. But they...
Pro-labor? Biden aims to prove it with unionized 2024 staff
WASHINGTON — Joe Biden likes to say he’s the most pro-union president in U.S. history. When he announces his expected reelection campaign in the coming weeks, he’ll get the chance to prove it to his own staffers. Workers on his 2024 campaign will be unionized, political allies say, making him...
Library association reports record book ban attempts in 2022
NEW YORK — Attempted book bans and restrictions at school and public libraries continue to surge, setting a record in 2022, according to a new report from the American Library Association being released Thursday. More than 1,200 challenges were compiled by the association in 2022, nearly double the then-record total...
Holy month of Ramadan begins for Muslims across the world
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The Muslim holy month of Ramadan began at sundown on Wednesday, as the faithful prepared for a month of dawn-to-dusk fasting intended to bring them closer to God and to remind them of the suffering of those less fortunate. For the next 30 days, Muslims...
Trump lawyer ordered to turn over Mar-a-Lago case documents
WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court in a sealed order Wednesday directed a lawyer for Donald Trump to turn over to prosecutors documents in the investigation into the former president’s retention of classified records at his Florida estate. The ruling is a significant win for the Justice Department, which has...
Bipartisan support emerges for Senate railroad safety bill
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan consensus that Congress should act to toughen regulations on railroads emerged Wednesday as senators heard fresh testimony on the fiery hazardous train derailment last month on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. Both Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Commerce Committee peppered Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw with questions...
Report: 119K people hurt by riot-control weapons since 2015
SALEM, Ore. — More than 119,000 people have been injured by tear gas and other chemical irritants around the world since 2015 and some 2,000 suffered injuries from “less lethal” impact projectiles, according to a report released Wednesday. Physicians for Human Rights and the International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations,...
Senators press Moderna CEO on covid-19 vaccine price hike
Moderna’s CEO on Wednesday defended a plan to more than quadruple the company’s covid-19 vaccine price, but he also said the drugmaker will work to ensure patients continue paying nothing at drugstores or clinics. Stephane Bancel told the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions that the drugmaker will...
U.S. review of Afghanistan withdrawal to be released in April
WASHINGTON — The results of the long-delayed government review of the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan will be released next month, the White House announced Wednesday, with Congress and the public set to see an assessment of what went wrong as America ended its longest war. The August 2021 pullout...
Workplace-safety sanction finalized in Alec Baldwin shooting
No one is objecting to a settlement agreement to resolve allegations of workplace safety violations in the 2021 shooting death of a cinematographer by Alec Baldwin on the set of a Western movie. After a 20-day vetting period with no objections, the agreement between New Mexico workplace safety regulators and...
What the Fed rate increase means for your credit card bill
NEW YORK— The Federal Reserve raised its key rate by another quarter point Wednesday, bringing it to the highest level in 15 years as part of an ongoing effort to ease inflation by making borrowing more expensive. If you have money to save, you’ll probably earn a bit more interest...
TikTok sends influencers to Washington as its troubles grow
WASHINGTON — TikTok is ramping up a public relations campaign to fend off the possibility of a nationwide ban by the Biden administration, and it’s bringing some unconventional advocates to help: online influencers. Dozens of TikTok creators — some with millions of followers on the video-sharing app — came to...
Massachusetts governor: Pharmacies must stock abortion pills
BOSTON — The governor of Massachusetts reminded pharmacies Wednesday that they are required to stock a key abortion pill, despite a nationwide effort by anti-abortion activists to ban the medication. The action comes as a federal judge in Texas is considering a lawsuit that would overturn decades-old federal approval of...
DeSantis to expand ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law to high schools
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is moving to forbid classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in all grades, expanding the controversial law critics call “Don’t Say Gay” as the Republican governor continues a focus on cultural issues ahead of his expected presidential run....
Fed raises key rate by quarter-point despite bank turmoil
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve extended its year-long fight against high inflation Wednesday by raising its key interest rate by a quarter-point despite concerns that higher borrowing rates could worsen the turmoil that has gripped the banking system. “The U.S. banking system is sound and resilient,” the Fed said in...
