Associated Press stories, Page 2150

Houseplants are quick to tell you when they need help. They display discolored leaves, drooping stems and little or no growth. That usually gives you enough time to make things right. “Plants send signals simply by the way they look,” said Dawn Pettinelli, an Extension educator at the University of...

EMMITSBURG, Md. — AJ Bramah came off the bench and scored a career-high 25 points on 11-of-18 shooting with seven rebounds, and Robert Morris beat Mount Saint Mary’s, 77-60, on Thursday night. The 6-foot-7 forward also distributed four assists and never turned over the ball. Robert Morris (15-11, 11-2 Northeast...

HARRISBURG — A lawyer who was recently sworn in as district attorney in southwestern Pennsylvania wants the state Supreme Court to rule that county child welfare officials investigating complaints about him do not have legal authority to compel him to take a drug test. David J. Russo, Greene County’s top...

BISMARCK, N.D. — North Dakota reached a proposed settlement agreement Thursday with American Indians who sued over the state’s voter ID laws requiring residents to provide a street address, arguing they are a form of voter suppression. American Indians argue that such addresses are not always evident on reservations. Many...

TIBU, Colombia — With Colombian military snipers in position, Howard Buffett descends from a helicopter and trudges through the wet grass in steel-toe boots chewed through by his dog’s teeth. Waiting under a tin-roofed shack is a small group of coca farmers. They’ve never heard of multi-billionaire investor Warren Buffett,...

MINNEAPOLIS — Students stayed home from school Thursday and several businesses were closed in parts of the upper Midwest as arctic air pushed wind chill readings to dangerously low temperatures. A wind chill warning was in effect for northeastern North Dakota and northern Minnesota, with wind chill readings plunging to...

NEW YORK — A federal judge on Thursday ordered a temporary halt of Microsoft’s work on a $10 billion military cloud contract, a win for Amazon, which sued the U.S. government last year for awarding the contract to its rival. Amazon’s lawsuit, filed in November, alleged that President Donald Trump’s...

TOMS RIVER, N.J. — A New Jersey school district is investigating a teacher’s history lesson that had students pretend to be slaves, officials said. According to social media posts by a student in the class, 8th-grade social studies teacher Lawrence Cuneo forced Toms River Intermediate School students to act as...

NEW YORK — How’s your 401(k) doing? President Trump likes to ask that question around the country, sometimes throwing out big gains like 90% or 95%. The average 401(k) did indeed hit a record last year, although its growth was considerably less than that. The average 401(k) balance rose 17%...

WASHINGTON — Attorney General William Barr took a public swipe at President Donald Trump on Thursday, saying that the president’s tweets about Justice Department prosecutors and cases “make it impossible for me to do my job.” Barr made the comment during an interview with ABC News just days after his...

BEIJING — China reported a surge in deaths and infections from a new virus Thursday after changing the way the count is tallied, further clouding an epidemic that has stirred fear as it spread to more than two dozen countries. The spike came after two days in which the number...

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is transferring $3.8 billion in recently passed military funding to finance construction of the president’s long-sought U.S.-Mexico border wall, angering not just Democrats but also GOP defense hawks. Thursday’s move by the Pentagon would transfer money from National Guard units, aircraft procurement and shipbuilding to...

NEW YORK — A federal court has ordered the Pentagon to temporarily halt work with Microsoft on a $10 billion military cloud contract that Amazon was initially favored to win. Amazon subsequently sued, alleging that President Donald Trump’s bias against the company hurt its chances to win the project. Amazon...

WASHINGTON — The Senate approved a bipartisan measure Thursday limiting President Donald Trump’s authority to launch military operations against Iran. The measure, authored by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., says Trump must win approval from Congress before engaging in further military action against Iran. Eight Republicans joined with Democrats to pass...

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has added new criminal charges against Chinese tech giant Huawei and two of its U.S. subsidiaries, accusing the company in a plot to steal trade secrets from competitors in America, federal prosecutors announced Thursday. The case comes as the Trump administration is raising national security...

Washington — One of President Donald Trump’s nominees for the Federal Reserve came under sharp questioning Thursday from senators over her unorthodox economic views, including from two Republicans whose doubts about her nomination could imperil it. The nominee, Judy Shelton, sought to make her unconventional views an asset by promising...

ATLANTA — A prosecutor in Atlanta will decide whether to open a formal investigation after meeting with a woman who says she has evidence legendary singer James Brown’s death was caused by another person, his spokesman said. Brown, known as the Godfather of Soul, was 73 when he died of...