Associated Press stories, Page 220
ACC cuts 20-game men’s basketball slate to make room for more nonconference games
The ACC is reducing its 20-game men’s basketball schedule to 18, giving teams two more spots for marquee nonconference games in a bid to boost a league getting a dwindling haul of NCAA Tournament bids, a person familiar with the decision said Wednesday. The person spoke to the Associated Press...
House GOP backing off some Medicaid cuts as report shows millions of people would lose health care
WASHINGTON — House Republicans appear to be backing off some, but not all, of the steep reductions to the Medicaid program as part of their big tax breaks bill, as they run into resistance from more centrist GOP lawmakers opposed to ending nearly-free health care coverage for their constituents back...
3 former Memphis officers acquitted in fatal beating of Tyre Nichols after he fled a traffic stop
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Three former Memphis officers were acquitted Wednesday of state charges, including second-degree murder, in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols after he ran away from a traffic stop in 2023. A jury, which appeared to be all white, took about 8 1/2 hours over two days to...
The more Trump talks about making trade deals, the more confusing the tariff picture getsVideo
WASHINGTON — The more President Donald Trump talks about his efforts to reach deals with America’s trading partners, the more confusing the tariff picture gets. His team seems good with that, saying Trump is using “strategic uncertainty” to his advantage. Trump says the United States does not have to sign...
House Republicans push to sell thousands of acres of public lands in the West
WASHINGTON — House Republicans have added a provision to their sweeping tax cut package that would authorize the sale of thousands of acres of public lands in Nevada and Utah, prompting outrage from Democrats and environmental groups who called the plan a betrayal that could lead to increased drilling, mining...
New German government plans to boost border controls to curb migration
BERLIN — Germany’s new government plans to station more police at the border to curb illegal migration and even turn away some of the asylum-seekers trying to enter Europe’s biggest economy, the new interior minister said Wednesday. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told reporters in Berlin that police at the border...
Turkish Tufts University student detained by ICE can be sent to Vermont, appeals court rules
A federal appeals court on Wednesday granted a judge’s order to bring a Turkish Tufts University student from a Louisiana immigration detention center back to New England for hearings to determine whether her rights were violated. A judicial panel of the New York-based U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled...
Federal Reserve leaves key rate unchanged as it sees risk of higher prices and higher unemploymentVideo
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate unchanged Wednesday, brushing off President Donald Trump’s demands to lower borrowing costs, and said that the risks of higher unemployment and higher inflation have risen. The Fed kept its rate at 4.3% for the third straight meeting, after cutting it...
Trump plans to announce that the U.S. will call the Persian Gulf the Arabian Gulf, officials say
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump plans to announce while on his trip to Saudi Arabia next week that the United States will now refer to the Persian Gulf as the Arabian Gulf or the Gulf of Arabia, according to two U.S. officials. Arab nations have pushed for a change to...
Disney to build its 7th theme park, this one in the United Arab Emirates
Disney will build its seventh theme park, this one in the United Arab Emirates, the entertainment company said Wednesday. The waterfront resort will be built on Yas Island on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi city, already home to Formula One’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the Ferrari and Warner Bros. amusement...
‘Hands tied’: Athletes left in dark as NCAA settlement leaves murky future for non-revenue sports
The $2.8 billion NCAA settlement awaiting final approval from a federal judge is touted as a solution for thousands of athletes to finally get the money they deserve and provide some clarity to recruiting. For some, it’s too late. Sophomore distance runner Jake Rimmel says he was one of five...
Utah Mammoth is the permanent name of NHL team in Salt Lake City
The NHL team in Salt Lake City is now known as the Utah Mammoth. Owners Ryan and Ashley Smith unveiled the franchise’s permanent name Thursday morning after more than a year of fan input and voting. “From Day 1, we committed that this team would be built with and for...
Less farmland is going for organic crops as costs and other issues take root
SKANEATELES, N.Y. — Farmer Jeremy Brown taps the nose of a young calf. “I love the ones with the pink noses,” he says. This pink-nosed animal is just one of about 3,200 cattle at Twin Birch Dairy in Skaneateles, New York. In Brown’s eyes, the cows on the farm aren’t...
Ukrainian drones keep targeting Moscow as foreign leaders arrive for Red Square parade
Attacks by Ukrainian long-range drones caused flight disruption at Moscow’s main airports for a third straight day on Wednesday, authorities said, as Russia prepared to receive the Chinese president and other foreign leaders for the annual Victory Day military parade in Red Square. Russian flag carrier Aeroflot canceled more than...
India fires missiles on Pakistan. Islamabad calls it an ‘act of war’ and says it downed Indian jets
ISLAMABAD — India fired missiles at Pakistan early Wednesday, in what it said was retaliation for last month’s massacre of Indian tourists. Pakistan called the strikes an act of war and claimed it downed several Indian fighter jets. The strikes targeted at least nine sites “where terrorist attacks against India...
Controllers briefly lost contact with Newark planes before wider flight disruptions
The long flight delays and cancellations plaguing Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey and spilling over to airports across the U.S. can be traced to a week ago when air traffic controllers temporarily lost communications with planes in the sky, according to the controllers union. Crews in the Philadelphia...
Lawmakers seek to rein in citizen ballot initiatives with new requirements for petitions
Citizen activists supporting a public vote on important issues could have to brush up on their reading, writing and arithmetic if they want to get their initiatives on next year’s ballot in some states. A new Arkansas law will bar initiative ballot titles written above an eighth-grade reading level. And...
What to know about the conclave to elect the next pope
VATICAN CITY — One hundred and thirty-three cardinals are sequestering themselves behind the Vatican’s medieval walls for the start of a conclave starting Wednesday to elect a successor to Pope Francis. Here are some things to know about the election of the 267th pontiff of the Catholic Church, which has...
Black smoke pours from Sistine Chapel chimney, indicating no pope was elected as conclave opens
VATICAN CITY — Black smoke poured out of the Sistine Chapel chimney on Wednesday, signalling that no pope had been elected as 133 cardinals opened the secretive, centuries-old ritual to choose a new leader of the Catholic Church. The cardinals participating in the most geographically diverse conclave in the faith’s...
Pennsylvania Senate votes to ban transgender athletes in girls’ sports, but bill faces uphill battle
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s state Senate on Tuesday approved a bill to ban transgender athletes from competing in women’s and girls’ sports at the collegiate and K-12 levels, although the Republican-penned bill is unlikely to get a vote in the state’s Democratic-controlled House of Representatives. The bill passed, 32-18, with five...
NASCAR championship weekend goes to Homestead in 2026, starting a rotating formula
MIAMI — NASCAR asked its fans where they would prefer seeing championship weekend held, and the majority of those who responded picked Homestead-Miami Speedway. And NASCAR listened. The 2026 NASCAR season will end in South Florida, with stock car racing’s championship weekend returning to Homestead-Miami next year. It’ll be the...
Smokey Robinson accused by former housekeepers of sexual assault and rape
LOS ANGELES — Four former housekeepers of Smokey Robinson allege in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that the Motown music luminary repeatedly sexually assaulted and raped them while they worked for him. The suit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court seeks at least $50 million in damages over the alleged assaults,...
Wild’s Bill Guerin to be aggressive with cap constraints gone
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Minnesota Wild have entered a critical offseason, able to fully participate in free agency again after two years of significant salary cap constraints. Without an NHL playoff series win in the last 10 years, the urgency for the club to build a deeper roster around...
Jets, Stars meet in 2nd round of playoffs after both had epic Game 7 rallies to advanceVideo
There was that natural inclination for Dallas Stars coach Pete DeBoer to start paying more attention to St. Louis while watching the game that would determine who his team would play next in the NHL playoffs. But he never really started preparing for the Blues, even as they had a...
Column: Stars still aligned in golf as PGA Championship nearsVideo
A different month, a different major and the stars are still aligned. Bryson DeChambeau finally cashed in on a Sunday, losing a five-shot lead before pulling ahead on the final three holes to win in South Korea. This was three weeks after Rory McIlroy picked up a Masters green jacket...
