Associated Press stories, Page 1857
Virgin Galactic makes first flight from New Mexico site
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A Virgin Galactic test flight Saturday ended prematurely when the spacecraft landed safely at Spaceport America in southern New Mexico after its rocket engine failed to ignite high above the Earth. “The ignition sequence for the rocket motor did not complete. Vehicle and crew are in great...
U.S. says covid-19 vaccine to start arriving in states Monday
WASHINGTON — The nation’s first covid-19 vaccine will begin arriving in states Monday morning, U.S. officials said Saturday, after the government gave the final go-ahead to the shots needed to end an outbreak that has killed nearly 300,000 Americans. Trucks will roll out Sunday morning as shipping companies UPS and...
U.S. allows emergency covid-19 vaccine in bid to end pandemic
WASHINGTON — The U.S. gave the final go-ahead Friday to the nation’s first covid-19 vaccine, marking what could be the beginning of the end of an outbreak that has killed nearly 300,000 Americans. Shots for health workers and nursing home residents are expected to begin in the coming days after...
Utah State football players opt out of Colorado State game in protestVideo
LOGAN, Utah — Utah State has canceled its football game against Colorado State amid concerns voiced about religious discrimination during the search for a new football coach. Aggies players issued a statement to Stadium on Friday, saying they were opting out of Saturday’s game because of alleged comments made by...
U.S. executes Louisiana truck driver who killed daughter, 2
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — The Trump administration continued its unprecedented series of post-election federal executions Friday by putting to death a Louisiana truck driver who severely abused his 2-year-old daughter for weeks in 2002, then killed her by slamming her head against a truck’s windows and dashboard. Alfred Bourgeois, 56,...
As he rails on election, Trump largely mum on toll of virus
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has been highlighting lots of really big numbers this week: New highs for the stock market. The 100-plus House members backing a lawsuit challenging his election loss. The nearly 75 million people who voted for him. All the while, he’s looked past other staggering and...
Paul Newberry: Big Ten makes right call on Ohio State in title gameVideo
For once in college athletics, chasing the pot of gold matched up seamlessly with doing the right thing. No. 3 Ohio State will take the field in the Big Ten championship game despite playing just five games, thanks to the conference bigwigs making an impromptu adjustment to a rule that...
AP source: Cuomo among contenders for attorney general pick
WASHINGTON — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is one of several contenders under consideration by President-elect Joe Biden for the role of attorney general, a person with knowledge of the search process said Friday. The other three contenders at the moment include former Alabama Sen. Doug Jones, federal appeals court...
Paper apologizes for endorsing congressman backing overturn
ORLANDO, Fla. — A Florida newspaper apologized Friday for endorsing the reelection of a Republican congressman who supported a lawsuit that tried to have the Supreme Court overthrow the will of the voters in the presidential election. The Orlando Sentinel in an editorial said “to its horror,” U.S. Rep. Michael...
Veterans groups call for Wilkie’s dismissal after scathing audit
WASHINGTON — Three major veterans’ groups on Friday called for the immediate dismissal of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie following a scathing government audit that found he had acted unprofessionally if not unethically in the handling of a congressional aide’s allegation of sexual assault at a VA hospital. Iraq and...
Supreme Court rejects Republican attack on Biden victory
HOUSTON — The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a lawsuit backed by President Donald Trump to overturn Joe Biden’s election victory, ending a desperate attempt to get legal issues rejected by state and federal judges before the nation’s highest court and subvert the will of voters. The high court’s order...
Dave Dombrowski hired as Phillies’ president of baseball operationsVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Whether rebuilding or reloading, small market or large, Dave Dombrowski has been a big success at every major league stop. His next challenging project: a Philadelphia Phillies team that has gone nine years without a winning record. Dombrowski joined the Phillies as president of baseball operations Friday. “This...
With playoffs unlikely, fading Patriots have questions at QBVideo
For the first time in more than a decade, the New England Patriots will head into their final three games of the season with an unsettled playoff fate. The Patriots entered the week in 10th place in the AFC and trudging through one of their worst years of Bill Belichick’s...
Playing amid pandemic tests college basketball teams’ adaptabilityVideo
Sacramento State has a game at Cal Poly scheduled for Dec. 21, two days after the Hornets host UC Davis. Cal Poly has the same covid-19 testing standards, so it should be easy for the Hornets to pull off. It’s not, like nearly everything that comes with trying to play...
No longer a surprise, Shibuno leads by 3 at US Women’s OpenVideo
HOUSTON — Hinako Shibuno can do without the “Cinderella” nickname, just not the smile. That was bright as ever Friday as the Japanese star posted a 4-under-par 67 and opened a three-shot lead going into the weekend of the U.S. Women’s Open. Shibuno’s lone mistake on a damp, soft day...
Falcons WR Julio Jones out against Chargers with hamstring injuryVideo
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Atlanta Falcons receiver Julio Jones will miss his fourth game of the season because of a lingering hamstring injury. The team ruled out Jones for Sunday’s game in Los Angeles against the Chargers after he was held out of practice all week. Two other starters —...
White House threatens FDA chief’s job over vaccine approval
WASHINGTON — White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on Friday pressed Food and Drug Administration chief Stephen Hahn to grant an emergency use authorization for Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine by the end of the day or face possible firing, two administration officials said. The vaccine produced by Pfizer Inc. and...
Demoralized health workers struggle as virus numbers surge
Doctors and nurses around the U.S. are becoming exhausted and demoralized as they struggle to cope with a record-breaking surge of covid-19 patients that is overwhelming hospitals and prompting governors to clamp back down to contain the virus. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Friday banned indoor dining in New...
Senate sends Trump defense bill he has vowed to veto
WASHINGTON — The Senate on Friday approved a wide-ranging defense policy bill, sending it to President Donald Trump, despite his threat to veto the bill because it does not clamp down on big tech companies he claims were biased during the election. The final vote was 84-13, mirroring a similarly...
Visa, Mastercard won’t allow charges for services on Pornhub
Mastercard and Visa said Thursday they would block their customers from using the credit cards to make purchases on Pornhub following accusations the pornographic website showed videos of rape and underage sex. They reacted following an investigation by opinion columnist Nicholas Kristof of The New York Times that also alleged...
5 years on, signs that Paris climate accord is working
The forecast for global warming is looking a little less bleak in the long term, but not so rosy in the short term. With numerous countries pledging to clean up their act and projected temperature rises now smaller than they once were, scientists and diplomats say the outlook for mid-to-late...
Viral spread: Americans paying the price for Thanksgiving
With some Americans now paying the price for what they did over Thanksgiving and falling sick with COVID-19, health officials are warning people — begging them, even — not to make the same mistake during the Christmas and New Year’s season. “It’s a surge above the existing surge,” said Ali...
Utah senator blocks national museums for Latinos, women
A lone senator from Utah has singlehandedly blocked the bipartisan approval of two new national museums to honor American Latinos and women, arguing that “last thing we need is to further divide an already divided nation.” Republican Sen. Mike Lee objected Thursday to the creation of the two proposed Smithsonian...
GSK, Sanofi say their covid-19 vaccine won’t be ready until late 2021
Drugmakers GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi said Friday that their potential covid-19 vaccine won’t be ready until late next year because they need to improve the shot’s effectiveness in older people. The companies said early trials showed the vaccine produced an “insufficient” immune response in people over 60 because it didn’t contain...
Inflation still a no-show, US wholesale prices up just 0.1%
U.S. wholesale prices edged up just 0.1% in November with the economic disruption from the pandemic continuing to suppress demand and keeping inflation at extremely low levels. The increase in the producer price index, which measures inflation pressures before they reach the consumer, followed bigger gains of 0.3% in October...
