U.S./World category, Page 846
Northwest ice storm power outages could last through weekend
LAKE OSWEGO, Ore. — A winter storm blanketed the Pacific Northwest with ice and snow on Saturday, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power and disrupting travel across the region. Freezing rain left roads, power lines and trees coated in ice in the Portland, Oregon, region, and by Saturday...
High court denies accused Ghosn smugglers’ bid to stay in U.S.
BOSTON — The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way Saturday for the extradition of an American father and son wanted by Japan in the escape of former Nissan Motor Co. boss Carlos Ghosn. Justice Stephen Breyer denied a bid to put the extradition on hold to give Michael and Peter...
AP: GOP leader Mitch McConnell will vote to acquit Trump
WASHINGTON — Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell will vote to acquit Donald Trump in the former president’s impeachment trial. That’s according to a source familiar with McConnell’s thinking who was not authorized to publicly discuss the decision and spoke on condition of anonymity. Word of McConnell’s decision came Saturday before...
Trump lawyers argue impeachment based on ‘hatred,’ not facts
WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s impeachment lawyers accused Democrats of waging a campaign of “hatred” against the former president as they sped through their defense of his actions and fiery words before the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, hurtling the Senate toward a final vote in his historic trial....
Cuomo administration ‘froze’ over nursing home data requests
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s top aide told Democratic lawmakers that the administration took months to release data revealing how many people living at nursing homes died of covid-19 because officials “froze” over worries the information was “going to be used against us.” Republicans who term the...
Judge: Man impersonating Chicago cop ‘danger’ to community
CHICAGO — A man arrested at least three times for impersonating a Chicago police officer, including once at age 14, appeared in court Friday on charges that he did the same crime three times this year, including once when he allegedly pulled over a vehicle and searched its occupants. During...
Biden will try to close Guantanamo Bay prison after ‘robust’ review
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will seek to close the prison on the U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay following a review process, resuming a project begun under the Obama administration, the White House said Friday. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said it was the “intention” of the Biden administration...
CDC: In-person schooling can be done safely if guidelines are followed
The nation’s top public health agency on Friday provided a roadmap for reopening schools in the middle of a pandemic, emphasizing mask wearing and social distancing and saying vaccination of teachers is important but not a prerequisite for reopening. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced the long-awaited update,...
Air travelers to Canada to isolate at hotels starting Feb. 22
Air travelers to Canada will quarantine in a hotel starting on Feb. 22 as they await the result of a coronavirus test, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday. Trudeau previously announced stricter restrictions would be imposed on nonessential air travelers in response to new, likely more contagious variants. Government officials...
White House aide suspended for threatening reporter
WASHINGTON — White House deputy press secretary T.J. Ducklo has been suspended for a week without pay after he reportedly issued a sexist and profane threat to a journalist seeking to cover his relationship with another reporter. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement Friday that Ducklo...
Tennessee man leaves $5 million to pet border collie
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — It won’t be a dog’s life for a Tennessee canine whose owner recently died. Lulu, an 8-year-old border collie, will be living the good life in Nashville after inheriting $5 million in her owner’s will, WTVF-TV reported. Martha Burton, Lulu’s caretaker, told the station Lulu’s owner, Bill...
Mississippi Senate: Ban transgender athletes on female teams
JACKSON, Miss. — Transgender athletes would be banned from competing in girls’ or women’s sports in Mississippi schools and universities, under a bill that comes at a time of renewed focus on transgender rights. Mississippi is one of a dozen states with lawmakers proposing restrictions on athletics or gender-confirming health...
Bidens view Valentine’s Day decorations on White House lawnVideo
WASHINGTON — First lady Jill Biden had installed before dawn Friday special Valentine’s Day artwork on the North Lawn of the White House: giant pink, white and red hearts that resemble the popular candy. President Joe Biden stepped out with his wife early on Friday morning to inspect the colorful...
Biden administration to allow 25,000 asylum-seekers into U.S.
SAN DIEGO — The Biden administration on Friday announced plans for tens of thousands of asylum-seekers waiting in Mexico for their next immigration court hearings to be allowed into the United States while their cases proceed. The first of an estimated 25,000 asylum-seekers in Mexico with active cases will be...
FBI probe of Texas attorney general expands to look at home renovations
DALLAS — The FBI is investigating renovations made to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s million-dollar home as part of an ongoing probe into allegations that the state’s highest-ranking attorney illegally helped a wealthy donor, according to records obtained by The Associated Press. Last year, much of Paxton’s senior staff accused...
Charges dropped for officers seen shoving Buffalo protesterVideo
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Criminal charges have been dropped against two police officers seen on video last spring shoving a 75-year-old protester to the ground in Buffalo, New York, prosecutors said Thursday. A grand jury declined to indict Buffalo Officers Robert McCabe and Aaron Torgalski on felony assault charges, ending the...
Feds: Man charged in riot suggested bringing weapons by boat to Capitol
A man authorities say is a leader of the far-right Oath Keepers militia group and led other extremists in the attack on the U.S. Capitol discussed the possibility of getting a boat to ferry “heavy weapons” across the Potomac River, prosecutors said Thursday. Court papers filed in the case against...
Officials: AG Barr blocked ex-officer Derek Chauvin from pleading guilty in George Floyd’s death
MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was prepared to plead guilty to third-degree murder in George Floyd’s death before then-Attorney General William Barr personally blocked the plea deal last year, officials said. The deal would have averted any potential federal charges, including a civil rights offense, as part of...
Wisconsin judge declines new arrest warrant for Kyle Rittenhouse
MADISON, Wis. — A judge on Thursday refused prosecutors’ request to issue a new arrest warrant for an 18-year-old from Illinois who is accused of killing two people during a police brutality protest in Wisconsin last summer. Kenosha County Circuit Judge Bruce Schroeder also rejected prosecutors’ request for a $200,000...
GOP attacks Dems’ $1.9T covid relief bill from all angles
WASHINGTON — Republicans are attacking the Democrats’ $1.9 trillion covid-19 relief package as too costly, economically damaging and overtly partisan, an all-angles attempt to derail new President Joe Biden’s top priority as it starts moving through a Congress his party controls only narrowly. Four House committees worked Thursday on their...
Driver who plunged off Wisconsin ramp thankful to be aliveVideo
MILWAUKEE — A driver who survived when his pickup truck plunged about 70 feet off a slippery interchange exit ramp in Wisconsin said he feels thankful to be alive. Richard Lee Oliver, in an interview that aired Thursday on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” said he was on his way to...
U.S. distances itself from Trump attempts to ban WeChat
A day after it put a hold on a proposed ban of TikTok, the Biden administration is distancing itself from attempts by former President Donald Trump to ban the Chinese messaging app WeChat. The Commerce Department is reviewing recent actions, such as the rules undermining TikTok and WeChat, to ensure...
6 killed in 130-vehicle pileup on icy Texas interstate near Fort WorthVideo
FORT WORTH, Texas — A massive crash involving more than 130 vehicles on an icy Texas interstate left six people dead and dozens injured Thursday amid a winter storm that dropped freezing rain, sleet and snow on parts of the U.S. At the scene of the crash on Interstate 35...
U.K. judge rules that newspaper invaded Meghan’s privacy
A British judge ruled Thursday that a newspaper invaded Duchess of Sussex’s privacy by publishing personal letter to her estranged father. Judge Mark Warby said Associated Newspapers misused the duchess’s private information in five February 2019 articles in the Mail on Sunday and on the MailOnline website, which published portions...
Congo officials confirm 2nd death from Ebola in the east
BENI, Congo — A second case and death of Ebola has been recorded in Congo’s North Kivu province, according to officials. The victim was a 60-year-old woman who died Wednesday in the health zone of Biena, according to provincial health minister Nzanzu Syalita. He said she had been to the...
