Associated Press stories, Page 1057
Catan board game creator, Klaus Teuber, dies at 70
Klaus Teuber, creator of the hugely popular Catan board game in which players compete to build settlements on a fictional island, has died after a brief illness, according to a family statement. He was 70. The board game, originally called The Settlers of Catan when introduced in 1995 and based...
New Ram electric pickup can go up to 500 miles on a chargeVideo
DETROIT — An electric Ram pickup truck with up to 500 miles of range per charge and a battery-powered people-hauling Kia SUV are among the new vehicles being introduced Wednesday at the New York International Auto Show. The two debuts in New York on Wednesday are among only nine automaker...
DOJ tentatively settles over Texas church shooting for $144M
AUSTIN, Texas — The Justice Department announced Wednesday a tentative $144 million settlement with families and victims of a 2017 mass shooting at a Texas church that was carried out by a former U.S. airman who was able to purchase firearms despite a criminal history. More than two dozen people...
Patrol: Missouri tornado kills at least 4, sows destruction
ST. LOUIS — A large tornado tore through southeastern Missouri before dawn on Wednesday, causing widespread destruction and killing at least four people as a broad swath of the Midwest and South braced for further storm s that could spawn additional twisters and hail. A twister in Illinois also caused...
Blinken says Wall Street Journal reporter ‘wrongfully detained’ by Russia
BRUSSELS — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday he has “no doubt” that Russia has wrongfully detained an American reporter for The Wall Street Journal who was arrested last week on spying allegations. However, Blinken said a formal determination of Evan Gershkovich’s wrongful detention has not yet been...
Scottie Scheffler looks primed for rare Masters double
AUGUSTA, Ga. — There are plenty of perks that come from being the reigning Masters champion. You have a year to don that cherished green jacket wherever you want. You can nab a tee time at Augusta National without any hassles. You get to select the menu for the champions...
ITF resumes tennis in China with no word on Peng Shuai
TOKYO — The International Tennis Federation will play tournaments this year in China with no word of a resolution to the case of Chinese doubles player Peng Shuai. Peng disappeared from public view shortly after accusing a former high-ranking Communist Party official — in a web posting in November of...
Violence at Jerusalem holy site raises fears of escalation
JERUSALEM — Israeli police stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City early Wednesday, firing stun grenades at Palestinians who hurled stones and firecrackers in a burst of violence during a sensitive holiday season. Palestinian militants in Gaza responded with rocket fire on southern Israel, prompting repeated Israeli airstrikes. The...
Italian ex-leader Berlusconi hospitalized in ICU, but alert
ROME — Former Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi was hospitalized Wednesday in intensive care because of a problem related to a previous infection, but was alert and speaking, Italy’s foreign minister said. The 86-year-old three-time premier was in the ICU at Milan’s San Raffaele hospital, the clinic where he routinely receives...
Zelenskyy visit tightens bonds with Poland amid Russian war
WARSAW, Poland — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy won new pledges of deeper military and economic cooperation on a state visit to Poland on Wednesday as the neighbors sought to forge a tighter relationship in defiance of Russia’s full-scale war against Kyiv that has reshaped international alliances. Polish President Andrzej Duda...
A duo once more, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon come up for ‘Air’
NEW YORK — While Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were writing “The Last Duel,” their first screenplay together since their 1997 breakthrough, “Good Will Hunting,” they noticed that something in their winding and usually separate careers had been missing. “I remember my wife said to me one day: ‘I haven’t...
UBS confident about Credit Suisse deal despite ‘huge’ risk
GENEVA — The UBS chairman voiced confidence Wednesday that the Swiss bank will succeed in a government-engineered takeover of hobbled rival Credit Suisse, pledging the deal will reduce costs, benefit shareholders and buttress Swiss finance despite “huge” risks in knitting the global lenders together. Speaking to UBS shareholders, Colm Kelleher...
French prime minister, unions meeting fails ahead of pension protests
PARIS — French trade union leaders walked out of talks with Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne on Wednesday after failing to find a compromise on the contentious plan to raise the country’s legal retirement age from 62 to 64 years. The heads of France’s major unions, who want the withdrawal of...
Party switch gives GOP veto-proof control in North Carolina
RALEIGH — A Democratic state lawmaker in North Carolina announced Wednesday that she is jumping to the Republican Party, giving the GOP veto-proof majorities in both the state’s legislative chambers that should make it easier to enact conservative policies over the opposition of Gov. Roy Cooper. Whether the switch by...
To counter China, U.S. trade rep seeks closer ties to allies
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is pressing its case for a new approach to global trade, arguing that America’s traditional reliance on promoting free trade pacts failed to anticipate China’s brass-knuckled brand of capitalism and the possibility a major power like Russia would go to war against one of its...
Robotaxis aim to take San Francisco on ride into the future
SAN FRANCISCO — Two trailblazing ride-hailing services are heading toward uncharted territory as they seek regulatory approval to transport passengers around the clock throughout one of the most densely populated U.S. cities in vehicles that will have no one sitting in the driver’s seat. If Cruise, a subsidiary of General...
Stormy Daniels must pay $122,000 in Trump legal bills
LOS ANGELES — Stormy Daniels must pay nearly $122,000 of Donald Trump’s legal fees that were racked up in connection with the porn actor’s failed defamation lawsuit, an appeals court ruled Tuesday. The decision in California came at about the same time that that Trump became the only ex-president to...
Paying for paradise? Hawaii mulls fees for ecotourism crush
HONOLULU — Repairing coral reefs after boats run aground. Shielding native forest trees from a killer fungus outbreak. Patrolling waters for swimmers harassing dolphins and turtles. Taking care of Hawaii’s unique natural environment takes time, people and money. Now Hawaii wants tourists to help pay for it, especially because growing...
Cities will get nearly $200M in grants for pipeline upgrades
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — Federal officials announced the first $196 million of grants Wednesday in a $1 billion program to repair and replace aging and sometimes leaking natural gas pipelines across the country. The Transportation Department and its Pipelines and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration announced that the city of Las...
Brandon Johnson elected Chicago mayor in victory for progressives
CHICAGO — Brandon Johnson, a union organizer and former teacher, was elected Chicago mayor on Tuesday, a major victory for the party’s progressive wing as the nation’s third-largest city grapples with high crime and financial challenges. Johnson, a Cook County commissioner endorsed by the Chicago Teachers Union, won a close...
Dangerous severe storms again hitting Midwest, SouthVideo
DES MOINES, Iowa — People still sorting through the wreckage of their homes after deadly weather hit over the weekend braced for another wave of strong storms, including tornadoes, that began rolling into parts of the Midwest and South beginning Tuesday evening. Officials warned residents to have shelter ready before...
Janet Protasiewicz wins Wisconsin court seat ahead of abortion ruling
MADISON — A Democratic-backed Milwaukee judge won the high stakes Wisconsin Supreme Court race Tuesday, ensuring liberals will take over majority control of the court for the first time in 15 years with the fate of the state’s abortion ban on the line. Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz, 60,...
Reports: Former Arizona Cardinals executive accuses owner of cheatingVideo
TEMPE, Ariz. — Former Arizona Cardinals front office executive Terry McDonough filed an arbitration claim against the team that accuses owner Michael Bidwill of cheating, according to multiple reports. The NFL confirmed receipt of the filing Tuesday but did not disclose its contents. McDonough claims he was eventually demoted after...
At a glance: The 3 hush money cases in Trump indictmentVideo
The criminal charges that Donald Trump is now facing in New York stem from three separate instances in which the former president and his associates are accused of making hush money payments during his 2016 campaign: to two women to suppress information about extramarital sexual encounters they said they had...
AP exclusive: MLB average salary up 11% year after lockoutVideo
NEW YORK — A year removed from a labor lockout that postponed Opening Day, major league players are enjoying their biggest salary spike in more than two decades. The average MLB salary was up 11.1% to a record $4.9 million to start this season, the largest jump for the sport...
