Associated Press stories, Page 1859
U.S. consumers rebound to boost spending 2.4% as income jumps
WASHINGTON — Bouncing back from months of retrenchment, America’s consumers stepped up their spending by a solid 2.4% in January in a sign that the economy may be making a tentative recovery from the pandemic recession. Friday’s report from the Commerce Department also showed that personal incomes, which provide the...
Biden to exercise empathy skills in Texas visit after storms
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will exercise his empathy skills Friday during a Texas visit with a dual mission: surveying damage caused by severe winter weather and encouraging people to get their coronavirus shots. Biden and his wife, Jill, were traveling to Houston for the president’s first trip to a...
This date in sports history: Feb. 26Video
1935 — Babe Ruth is released by the New York Yankees and signed by the Boston Braves. 1938 — Glenn Cunningham sets a world indoor record in the 1,500 meters at the AAU nationals at New York’s Madison Square Garden. Cunningham finishes in 3:48.4. 1947 — Brothers Doug and Max...
Tiger Woods transferred to Los Angeles hospital after surgery
LOS ANGELES — Tiger Woods was moved Thursday to another Los Angeles hospital after undergoing surgery to his right leg after being badly injured in a car crash. Harbor-UCLA Medical Center said Woods was transferred to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for “continuing orthopedic care and recovery.” The hospital didn’t provide any...
Hunter Dickinson impresses as No. 3 Michigan routs No. 9 IowaVideo
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Hunter Dickinson gave Luka Garza fits around the basket, and Franz Wagner scored 21 points to lead No. 3 Michigan to a 79-57 victory over No. 9 Iowa on Thursday night. The Wolverines (17-1, 12-1) passed yet another test against a highly ranked opponent, and they...
Webb Simpson, Matthew Fitzpatrick lead Workday ChampionshipVideo
BRADENTON, Fla. — Webb Simpson ran off three straight late birdies for a share of the lead Thursday in the Workday Championship, and Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau ran up some big numbers. Simpson matched Matthew Fitzpatrick with a 6-under-par 66 at The Concession in the World Golf Championships event...
Parliamentarian: Covid-19 bill must omit minimum wage hike
WASHINGTON — The Senate parliamentarian dealt a potentially lethal blow Thursday to Democrats’ drive to hike the minimum wage, deciding that the cherished progressive goal must fall from a massive covid-19 relief bill the party is trying to speed through Congress. The finding by Elizabeth MacDonough, the chamber’s nonpartisan arbiter...
Militia official: US strike in Syria kills 1, wounds several
WASHINGTON — A U.S. airstrike in Syria targeted facilities belonging to a powerful Iranian-backed Iraqi armed group, killing one fighter and wounding several others, an Iraqi militia official said Friday, signaling the first military action undertaken by U.S. President Joe Biden. The Pentagon said the strikes were retaliation for a...
Penguins, East Division develop unique style within NHLVideo
Barry Trotz tuned his television to the game between the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers to do a little scouting, flipping around to others outside the East Division just to check some scores and move on. “I really haven’t focused in on the other divisions, really,” the New York...
Plum’s Alex Kirilloff ready to be regular for Twins, but on Opening Day?Video
MINNEAPOLIS — Alex Kirilloff never has played in a regular-season major league game. The Plum product is on track to soon become Minnesota’s regular left fielder. “We know what he’s capable of. We’re going to have to wait and see how this spring plays out,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. There’s...
Capitals’ Henrik Lundqvist back on ice, ‘months’ away from deciding futureVideo
WASHINGTON — Henrik Lundqvist said Thursday he is months away from making a decision about his hockey-playing future after returning to the ice less than two months since undergoing open-heart surgery. The 38-year-old goaltender posted videos to social media earlier this week of himself in goaltending gear taking shots in...
Best Buy cuts 5,000 jobs even as sales soared during pandemic
NEW YORK — Best Buy said Thursday that it laid off 5,000 full-time store workers earlier this month, even as the company’s sales soared during the pandemic as homebound people bought laptops, TVs and other gadgets. The company said it cut the jobs because more shoppers are choosing to buy...
House votes to expand legal safeguards for LGBTQ people
WASHINGTON — The Democratic-led House passed a bill Thursday that would enshrine LGBTQ protections in the nation’s labor and civil rights laws, a top priority of President Joe Biden, though the legislation faces an uphill battle in the Senate. The bill passed by a vote of 224-206 with three Republicans...
NCAA reveals covid-19 contingency plans for hoops tourneysVideo
Turns out the top four teams left out of March Madness won’t have their bubbles burst quite yet. Under a contingency plan released Thursday by the Division I basketball committees, those four at-large teams that don’t make the original field in the men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments will be placed...
Biden marks 50 million vaccine doses in first 5 weeks in officeVideo
WASHINGTON — Days after marking a solemn milestone in the pandemic, President Joe Biden is celebrating the pace of his efforts to end it. On Thursday, Biden marked the administration of the 50 millionth dose of covid-19 vaccine since his swearing-in. The moment came days after the nation reached the...
Jet pilot reports missile-like object ‘go right over the top of us’ in New Mexico skies
SANTA FE, N.M. — American Airlines has said one of its pilots flying a passenger jet sent a radio transmission reporting an unidentified object flying at high speeds in skies above northern New Mexico during a flight last Sunday from Cincinnati to Phoenix. A recording of the pilot’s transmission was...
Twitter to let users charge followers to see premium posts
Twitter is branching out from advertising to find more ways to make money — both for itself and for its most prolific users, whether those are businesses, celebrities or regular people. In an investor presentation Thursday, the social media company announced a new feature called “Super Follows,” which will let...
Twitter to let users charge followers to see premium postsVideo
Twitter is branching out from advertising to find more ways to make money — both for itself and for its most prolific users, whether those are businesses, celebrities or regular people. In an investor presentation Thursday, the social media company announced a new feature called “Super Follows,” which will let...
Ohio is first state to sue Census Bureau over delay in data
Ohio on Thursday became the first state to challenge the U.S. Census Bureau’s decision to push back the release of 2020 census figures so more time can be spent on fixing any inaccuracies in the data. The lawsuit filed by Ohio Solicitor General Benjamin Flowers asks a federal judge in...
Former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm confirmed as energy secretary
WASHINGTON — Former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm won Senate confirmation Thursday to be energy secretary and will be a key Cabinet member trying to fulfill President Joe Biden’s commitment for a green economy as the United States fights to slow climate change. The vote was 64-35, with all Democrats and...
Italy’s Lombardy again in virus crisis as Brescia sees surge
ROME — Italy’s northern Lombardy region, where Europe’s coronavirus outbreak erupted last year, asked the national government Thursday for more vaccines to help stem a surge of new covid-19 cases that are taxing the health system in the province of Brescia. The province’s fast-growing caseload is contributing to another upswing...
AG: Olympics gymnastics coach John Geddert dies by suicide after charges
LANSING, Mich. — A former U.S. Olympics gymnastics coach with ties to disgraced sports doctor Larry Nassar died by suicide Thursday after being charged with two dozen crimes, including forms of human trafficking, the state attorney general said. The announcement from Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel came about three hours...
Manhattan prosecutor gets Trump tax records after long fight
NEW YORK — A New York prosecutor has obtained copies of Donald Trump’s tax records after the Supreme Court this week rejected the former president’s last-ditch effort to prevent them from being handed over. The Manhattan district attorney’s office enforced a subpoena on Trump’s accounting firm within hours of the...
Chief: Capitol assault much bigger than intel suggested
WASHINGTON — The acting U.S. Capitol Police chief was pressed to explain Thursday why the agency hadn’t been prepared to fend off a violent mob of insurrectionists, including white supremacists, who were trying to halt the certification of the presidential election last month, even though officials had compelling advance intelligence....
Lady Gaga’s dog walker shot, French bulldogs stolen in LA
LOS ANGELES — Lady Gaga’s dog walker was shot and two of the singer’s French bulldogs were stolen in Hollywood during an armed robbery, police said. The singer is offering a $500,000 reward. The dog walker was shot once Wednesday night and is expected to survive his injuries, according to...
