Associated Press stories, Page 1850
Poll: Americans largely back Biden’s virus response
WASHINGTON — Joe Biden is enjoying an early presidential honeymoon, with 60% of Americans approving of his job performance thus far and even more backing his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. At a moment of deep...
France: Man wielding knife arrested outside Jewish school
MARSEILLE, France — Police in the French city of Marseille detained a man Friday who was wielding a knife outside a Jewish school and kosher market. Surveillance of Jewish sites in the city has been increased while they investigate his motives, according to local authorities. School security guards noticed the...
Government, rebels formally sign peace agreement in Nepal
KATHMANDU, Nepal — Nepal’s government and a communist rebel group formally signed a peace agreement Friday that it is hoped will end violent attacks, extortion and bombings by the rebels. Rebel leader Netra Bikram Chand, who is better known by his guerrilla name Biplav, emerged out of hiding on Friday...
Pope arrives in Iraq to rally Christians despite pandemic
BAGHDAD — Pope Francis arrived in Iraq on Friday to urge the country’s dwindling number of Christians to stay put and help rebuild the country after years of war and persecution, brushing aside the coronavirus pandemic and security concerns to make his first-ever papal visit. The pope, who wore a...
Walter Gretzky, father of NHL great Wayne Gretzky, dies at 82
TORONTO — Walter Gretzky, the father of hockey great Wayne Gretzky, has died. He was 82. Wayne Gretzky said in a social media post Thursday night that his father battled Parkinson’s disease and other health issues the past few years. “It’s with deep sadness that Janet and I share the...
This date in sports history: March 5Video
1924 — Frank Carauna, of Buffalo, N.Y., becomes the first to bowl two straight 300 games. Carauna throws five strikes to open his third game, giving him 29 straight strikes. 1931 — WGL radio broadcasts the first game of the American Basketball League championship series. The Brooklyn Visitations beat the...
Prosecutors: Officer Derek Chauvin was on George Floyd’s neck for about 9 minutesVideo
MINNEAPOLIS — As the trial approaches for a white Minneapolis police officer charged with murder in the death of George Floyd, prosecutors are putting the time Derek Chauvin’s knee was on the Black man’s neck at about nine minutes. The time has fluctuated before. It was recorded as 8 minutes,...
Capitol Police chief appeals for National Guard to stayVideo
WASHINGTON — Worried about continuing threats, the acting chief of the U.S. Capitol Police appealed to congressional leaders Thursday to use their influence to keep National Guard troops at the Capitol, two months after the law enforcement breakdowns of the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection. Yogananda Pittman told the leaders in...
LeBron James, Kevin Durant choose All-Star teams
LeBron James has faced Giannis Antetokounmpo as an opponent in the last three All-Star Games. The Los Angeles Lakers star got him as a teammate this year. James used the No. 1 overall pick on Antetokounmpo — the NBA’s two-time reigning MVP from Milwaukee — in the draft for Sunday’s...
Long Island doctor charged with murder in 5 opioid deaths
NEW YORK — A Long Island doctor accused of writing prescriptions for massive quantities of opioids that led to the deaths of five patients was indicted Thursday on murder charges. George Blatti, 75, who saw patients in a hotel parking lot, a Dunkin’ Donuts shop and at an abandoned Radio...
Bay Hill fans get to see show from Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeauVideo
ORLANDO, Fla. — Bay Hill was bustling Thursday, just like golf before the pandemic. The fans were limited in numbers, but they all wanted the same dose of entertainment provided by Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau. First it was McIlroy, slowly feeling better about his game, and with good reason....
Audit finds major gaps in U.S. bio weapons detection system
WASHINGTON — A U.S. program created after the 2003 anthrax attacks to help detect biological weapons provided protection in less than half the states and couldn’t detect many of the known threats, according to a report released Thursday. The program known as BioWatch, which described itself in a mission statement...
Powerful quake hits off New Zealand, prompting evacuations
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — A powerful magnitude 8.1 earthquake struck in the ocean off the coast of New Zealand on Friday, prompting thousands of people to evacuate and triggering tsunami warnings across the South Pacific. The quake was the largest in a series of tremors that struck the region over...
Police: Ex-chief targeted foes in string of Maryland arsons
LAUREL, Md. — A former Maryland police chief is accused of setting fires to multiple structures that belonged to his adversaries, authorities said. Former Laurel Police Chief David Crawford, 69, was arrested Wednesday and is charged with over 50 felonies, including first-degree arson and first-degree attempted murder, in connection to...
Body believed to be Kentucky man found inside Grand Canyon
GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Ariz. — A body believed to be that of a Kentucky man previously reported missing at Grand Canyon National Park was found along with a motorcycle inside the canyon, park officials said Thursday. Searchers on Wednesday found the body believed to be that of John Pennington,...
Will Paramount+ be a mountain or a molehill in streaming?Video
NEW YORK — Paramount+ debuts Thursday as the latest — and last — streaming option from a major media company, this time from ViacomCBS. It’s betting that consumers are willing to add yet another paid streaming service in an increasingly crowded field. Its backers hope a smorgasbord of offerings —...
Senate begins considering Democrats’ $1.9T coronavirus relief billVideo
WASHINGTON — The Senate voted by the slimmest of margins Thursday to begin debating a $1.9 trillion covid-19 relief bill, after Democrats made eleventh-hour changes aimed at ensuring they could pull President Joe Biden’s top legislative priority through the precariously divided chamber. Democrats were hoping for Senate approval of the...
West Virginia sales tax would top U.S. states under income tax cut planVideo
West Virginia’s consumer sales tax rate would increase from 6% to 7.9% under a proposal submitted Thursday to the Legislature to eliminate the state’s personal income tax. The sales tax increase would give West Virginia the highest rate among all U.S. states. Puerto Rico has a double-digit sales tax. Republican...
Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett delivers 1st opinion
WASHINGTON — Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett delivered her first opinion Thursday, ruling against an environmental group that had sought access to government records. President Donald Trump’s third nominee wrote for a 7-2 court that certain draft documents do not have to be disclosed under the federal Freedom of...
CBO expects federal debt to double over next 30 years
The Congressional Budget Office estimated Thursday that persistent budget deficits will cause the federal debt to double in size over the next 30 years. Following the 2008 financial crisis and the pandemic, the government has depended heavily on borrowing and low interest rates to help an ailing economy. But as...
Autopsy shows man killed by officer in Cleveland was shot in the back
CLEVELAND — The family of a 19-year-old Black man killed by a white housing authority police officer in Cleveland continues to seek answers after learning from an autopsy released Thursday that he was shot in the back. Arthur Keith was shot Nov. 13 by Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority officer James...
California to give 40% of vaccine doses to vulnerable areas
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California will begin setting aside 40% of all vaccine doses for people who live in the most vulnerable neighborhoods in an effort to inoculate people most at risk from the coronavirus and get the state’s economy open more quickly. The doses will be spread among 400 ZIP...
Police: Dallas officer charged with 2 counts of capital murderVideo
DALLAS — A Dallas police officer was arrested Thursday on two counts of capital murder in two unconnected 2017 killings that weren’t related to his police work, authorities said. Bryan Riser, a 13-year veteran of the force, was taken into custody Thursday morning and taken to the Dallas County Jail...
Senate energy panel backs Deb Haaland for interior secretary
WASHINGTON — A key Senate committee on Thursday approved the nomination of New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland to be interior secretary, clearing the way for a Senate vote that is likely to make her the first Native American to lead a Cabinet agency. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee...
Ali, Frazier and the Fight of the Century 50 years later
The money was huge — a cool $2.5 million apiece — and so was the stage for Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. Their first fight at Madison Square Garden was so epic it was billed as the Fight of the Century, and 50 years later it reigns undefeated. Frazier was...
