Associated Press stories, Page 1353
Biden calls for 3-month suspension of gas, diesel taxes
President Joe Biden on Wednesday called on Congress to suspend federal gasoline and diesel taxes for three months — an election-year move meant to ease financial pressures that was greeted with doubts by many lawmakers. The Democratic president also called on states to suspend their own gas taxes or provide...
Congress alleges ‘shadow’ probe by Commanders owner Dan Snyder
Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder conducted a “shadow investigation” that sought to discredit former employees making accusations of workplace sexual harassment, hired private investigators to intimidate witnesses, and used an overseas lawsuit as a pretext to obtain phone records and emails, according to a document released by a House committee...
James Rado, who co-created groundbreaking ‘Hair,’ dies at 90
NEW YORK — James Rado, co-creator of the groundbreaking hippie musical “Hair,” which celebrated protest, pot and free love and paved the way for the sound of rock on Broadway, has died. He was 90. Rado died Tuesday night in New York City of cardio respiratory arrest, according to friend...
Crowds flock to Yellowstone as park reopens after floods
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK — Throngs of tourists gleefully watched the legendary Old Faithful geyser shoot towering bursts of steaming water while others got stuck in “bison jams” on picturesque valley roads as visitors returned Wednesday for the partial reopening of Yellowstone National Park after destructive floods. Park managers raised the...
‘Heightened alert’: Abortion providers brace for ruling
In her first week on the job at a Philadelphia abortion clinic, Amanda Kifferly was taught how to search for bombs. About a year later, protesters blocked the entrances and exits of the The Women’s Centers, at one point pulling Kifferly into something resembling a mosh pit, where they surrounded...
U.K. plans to rewrite human rights law; critics cry foul
LONDON — The British government on Wednesday unveiled plans for a Bill of Rights it says will strengthen free speech and the power of Parliament — but that critics argue will rip up human rights protections for ordinary people. The government published the bill days after courts in the U.K....
Kuwait’s crown prince dissolves parliament, calls elections
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Kuwait’s crown prince on Wednesday dissolved Parliament and called for early elections, a move to ease government gridlock that has bred popular opposition and paralyzed the tiny country for months. In his televised national address, the 81-year-old Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmed Al Jaber said that...
China says Ukraine crisis has sounded alarm for humanity
BEIJING — The conflict in Ukraine has “sounded an alarm for humanity,” Chinese leader Xi Jinping said Wednesday, as China continues to assume a position of neutrality while backing its ally Russia. China has refused to criticize Russia’s war in Ukraine or even to refer to it as an invasion...
British Open allows golfers from Saudi-backed series to play
ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Players who have joined the new Saudi Arabia-funded league will still be allowed to compete at the British Open next month, organizers said Wednesday. The U.S. Open had allowed players who were banned by the PGA Tour for signing up to the LIV Golf series to...
Israel lawmakers take 1st step toward dissolving parliament
JERUSALEM — Israeli lawmakers voted in favor of dissolving parliament in a preliminary vote on Wednesday, setting the wheels in motion to send the country to its fifth national election in just over three years. The development was the first step in a series of votes before the formal dissolution...
Afghanistan quake kills 1,000 people, deadliest in decades
KABUL, Afghanistan — A powerful earthquake struck a rugged, mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan early Wednesday, killing at least 1,000 people and injuring 1,500 more in the country’s deadliest quake in two decades, the state-run news agency reported. Officials warned that the already grim toll may still rise. In the...
Colbert says his staffers guilty of ‘first-degree puppetry’
NEW YORK — Stephen Colbert pronounced his staff members who were arrested at a congressional office building last week as guilty of “first-degree puppetry,” and lashed out at those comparing the incident to the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot. That includes Fox News Channel’s Tucker Carlson, who in a...
Matthews wins Hart Trophy as NHL’s most valuable playerVideo
TAMPA, Fla. — Toronto’s Auston Matthews won the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s MVP on Tuesday night, beating out Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers to win the award for the first time. Shesterkin claimed the Vezina Trophy as the league’s top goaltender. Colorado’s Cale...
Election 2022: Britt beats Brooks in Alabama Senate runoff
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Katie Britt has won the Republican nomination for Senate in Alabama, defeating six-term Congressman Mo Brooks in a primary runoff after former President Donald Trump took the unusual step of rescinding his endorsement. The loss ends a turbulent campaign for Brooks, a conservative firebrand who had fully...
Civil jury finds Bill Cosby sexually abused teenager in 1975
SANTA MONICA, Calif. — Jurors at a civil trial found Tuesday that Bill Cosby sexually abused a 16-year-old girl at the Playboy Mansion in 1975. The Los Angeles County jury delivered the verdict in favor of Judy Huth, who is now 64, and awarded her $500,000. Jurors found that Cosby...
Title IX: Some violations tough to prove in college sportsVideo
Arkansas did something rare during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons: It watched its baseball and softball teams reach the NCAA tournament. The similarities end there. For all the talk of gender parity at NCAA championship events, a closer look at one school’s participation shows how much less was spent on...
Refreshed Lightning look to even Stanley Cup Final against AvalancheVideo
TAMPA, Fla. — So much for the notion the Tampa Bay Lightning might be running out of gas against the speedy Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Final. Turns out the team’s recipe for postseason success still works when the two-time defending champions incorporate all the ingredients. Such as goaltender...
MLB standardizing procedures for rubbing baseballs, removal from humidorsVideo
NEW YORK — Major League Baseball is standardizing procedures for rubbing baseballs and their removal from humidors in an effort to establish more consistency amid complaints about slickness that followed the crackdown on sticky substances. MLB has been working on standards over the course of the season in response to...
Senators reach bipartisan compromise on gun violence bill
WASHINGTON — Senate bargainers reached agreement Tuesday on a bipartisan gun violence bill, potentially teeing up final passage by week’s end on an incremental but landmark package that would stand as Congress’ response to mass shootings in Texas and New York that shook the nation. Lawmakers released the 80-page bill...
Wall Street ends broadly higher after sharp losses last week
NEW YORK — Stocks finished broadly higher on Wall Street Tuesday, clawing back some of the ground they lost in their worst weekly drop since the beginning of the pandemic. The rally to start the holiday-shortened week came as investors look ahead to what Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will...
Nick Faldo to retire as lead CBS analyst, replaced by Trevor Immelman
CROMWELL, Conn. — Nick Faldo is leaving after 16 years as the lead golf analyst for CBS Sports. In his place will be another former Masters champion. No, not Phil Mickelson. CBS announced Tuesday that Trevor Immelman of South Africa, who won the 2008 Masters and will be the International...
Rob Gronkowski retires, won’t join Tom Brady for 3rd season in Tampa Bay
TAMPA, Fla. — Four-time All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski announced his retirement again, meaning he will not join Tom Brady for a third season in Tampa Bay. In an Instagram post Tuesday, the four-time Super Bowl champion with the Patriots and Buccaneers thanked his teammates and coaches over the years...
Deshaun Watson settles 20 of 24 sexual misconduct lawsuits
HOUSTON — Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson has reached an agreement to settle 20 of the 24 civil lawsuits that had been filed by women who accused him of sexual assault and harassment, an attorney for the women said Tuesday. Watson, who has been accused by massage therapists of harassing,...
Home sales give way as prices enter unprecedented territory
Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes slowed for the fourth consecutive month as climbing mortgage rates and record high prices discouraged house hunters. Existing home sales fell 3.4% last month from April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.41 million, the National Association of Realtors said Tuesday. That annual...
Texas top cop: Uvalde police could’ve ended rampage early on
AUSTIN, Texas — Police had enough officers and firepower on the scene of the Uvalde school massacre to have stopped the gunman three minutes after he entered the building, and they would have found the door to the classroom where he was holed up unlocked if they had bothered to...
