Associated Press stories, Page 2503
Schools that warned about lunch debt now accepting donation
A Pennsylvania school district that warned parents behind on their lunch bills that their children could end up in foster care, and then rejected a businessman’s offer to pay the overdue charges, is apologizing and says it wants to accept the donation after all. The Wyoming Valley West school board...
HBO’s ‘Dark Materials,’ ‘Gemstones’ both grapple with faithVideo
HBO’s forthcoming fantasy series “His Dark Materials” and its new televangelist comedy “The Righteous Gemstones” bring wildly different worlds to the screen, yet both grapple with the same central problem: How to take on religion without degrading and demeaning viewers’ beliefs. “His Dark Materials” is based on the novel series...
Trump vetoes congressional effort to block Saudi arms sales
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Wednesday vetoed a trio of congressional resolutions aimed at blocking his administration from bypassing Congress and selling billions of dollars in weapons and maintenance support to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last month cited threats from Iran...
Dustin Johnson, Thomas both with titles to defend at WGC event in Memphis
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Dustin Johnson made it clear. Even though he won the last time the PGA Tour visited TPC Southwind, he is not the defending champion. That would be Justin Thomas, who is looking to become the first repeat winner at this World Golf Championships event since Tiger Woods...
Patriots adjust to life without Rob GronkowskiVideo
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The Super Bowl champion New England Patriots are back at work, and things are already a lot quieter. Rob Gronkowski has retired, and the locker room is a more serious place without the fun-loving tight end who once declared himself the life of the party — in...
Mueller: No Russia exoneration for Trump, despite his claims
WASHINGTON — Robert Mueller, the taciturn lawman at the center of a polarizing American drama, bluntly dismissed President Donald Trump’s claims of “total exoneration” Wednesday in the federal probe of Russia’s 2016 election interference. In a long day of congressional testimony, Mueller warned that Moscow’s actions represented — and still...
Julian Alaphilippe, Geraint Thomas bracing for Tour de France showdown
GAP, France — Picture the final showdown in “High Noon.” But at more than a mile above sea level. With an Alpine trilogy of stages including six climbs in rarefied air, forecasts of stormy weather and only 39 seconds separating five riders determined to topple yellow jersey holder Julian Alaphilippe,...
Tribute planned at nationals for late runner Gabe Grunewald
DES MOINES, Iowa — Justin Grunewald carries a lock of her hair with him as a remembrance. He has countless photos of her on his phone, along with rich stories from so many. He feels closest to his late wife, Gabriele — “Gabe” to everyone — at random moments: on...
Dominant Clemson, Alabama sit atop college football throneVideo
Clemson and Alabama have turned college football largely into a two-team show with blowouts wins, conference domination and national championships. The Tigers and Crimson Tide have split the last four national titles, matching the combined number of losses they’ve had against the rest of the country. They are making league...
Browns coach Freddie Kitchens wants players to embrace expectations
BEREA, Ohio — Cleveland Browns coach Freddie Kitchens doesn’t want his players fearing the sky-high expectations being placed on them. “I want everybody to understand this: Our goal here with the Cleveland Browns is always to win the Super Bowl,” he said. “I don’t want to ever be scared to...
Mexican authorities find 21 bodies buried in yard of house
MEXICO CITY — Prosecutors in western Mexico say 21 bodies have been found in excavations carried out in the yard of a house near the city of Guadalajara. Jalisco state prosecutors say that a possible burial site at the house was detected earlier this month and that excavations over several...
Trump, allies frame Mueller testimony as win for White House
WASHINGTON — Believing a two-year shadow over the White House at last has been lifted, President Donald Trump and his allies seized on Robert Mueller’s testimony before Congress on Wednesday as a clear-cut victory, mocking the former special counsel’s findings and performance. After claiming in advance that he might not...
Pennsylvania high court declines to review Jerry Sandusky decision
HARRISBURG — Jerry Sandusky isn’t getting a fresh chance to argue in state court he should get a new trial, seven years after the former Penn State assistant football coach was convicted of molesting 10 boys. Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court on Wednesday turned down the 75-year-old’s request it review a Superior...
Rapper Meek Mill’s conviction thrown out, granted new trial
A Pennsylvania appeals court on Wednesday overturned rapper Meek Mill’s conviction in a drug and gun case that has kept the rapper on probation for a decade and made him a celebrity crusader for criminal justice reform. The unanimous three-judge opinion granted the rapper a new trial because of new...
Driver cited after metal spill flattens hundreds of tires
CLEVELAND — Police say they’ve cited the driver of a dump truck who lost a load of scrap metal on a Cleveland freeway, flattening the tires of about 100 vehicles. Authorities had to shut down Interstate 77 in Cleveland for about four hours Tuesday to clean up the mess and...
Actor Rutger Hauer, of ‘Blade Runner’ fame, has died at 75Video
Dutch film actor Rutger Hauer, who specialized in menacing roles, including a memorable turn as a murderous android in “Blade Runner” opposite Harrison Ford, has died. He was 75. Hauer’s agent, Steve Kenis, says the actor died July 19 at his home in the Netherlands. Hauer’s roles included a terrorist...
Actress Bella Thorne shares personal struggles in 1st poetry book
Bella Thorne says people are confused by her and she doesn’t understand why, but maybe her new book will clear things up. “People constantly come to me, directors, producers, people that are like in the industry, and they’re always like, ‘I just really misjudged you. You’re just so different, Bella....
Allergan recalls textured breast implant tied to rare cancer
WASHINGTON — Breast implant maker Allergan Inc. issued a worldwide recall Wednesday for textured models because of a link to a rare form of cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it called for the removal after new information showed Allergan’s Biocell breast implants with a textured surface account...
‘In God We Trust’ going up at South Dakota public schools
RAPID CITY, S.D. — When students return to public schools across South Dakota this fall, they should expect to see a new message on display: “In God We Trust.” A new state law that took effect this month requires all public schools in the state’s 149 districts to paint, stencil...
U.S. new home sales rise 7% in June after 2 months of decline
WASHINGTON — U.S. new home sales rose at a modest pace in June but remained below sales levels earlier this year, suggesting low mortgage rates and a healthy job market aren’t encouraging many more purchases. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that new home sales increased 7% to a seasonally adjusted...
Country star Thomas Rhett has 3rd daughter on the way
Country singer Thomas Rhett will have a trio of daughters as he announced on social media that his wife is pregnant with another girl. Rhett on Tuesday posted a photo of his other two daughters, Willa Gray and Ada James, posing with their hands on his wife Lauren Akins’ belly....
Black voters say they won’t forget Trump’s racist tweets
DETROIT — Robin D. Stephens lived through Jim Crow and thought the worst days of racism were behind her. Then President Donald Trump told four American congresswomen of color to “go back” to where they came from. “It was very hurtful to see the person who is the leader of...
FTC fines Facebook $5B, adds oversight for privacy mishaps
WASHINGTON — Federal regulators have fined Facebook $5 billion for privacy violations and are instituting new oversight and restrictions on its business. But they are only holding CEO Mark Zuckerberg personally responsible in a limited fashion. The fine is the largest the Federal Trade Commission has levied on a tech...
Meek Mill launches new record label with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation
Meek Mill is in a Jay-Z state of mind: The Philadelphia rapper-turned-entrepreneur is launching a new record label in a joint venture with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation. The two hip-hop players celebrated the launch of Dream Chasers Records on Tuesday at the Roc Nation headquarters in New York City, signing contracts...
Documents: $6 million to family of Neil Armstrong in wrongful death
CINCINNATI — An Ohio hospital paid the estate of astronaut Neil Armstrong $6 million in a confidential agreement to settle allegations that post-surgical complications led to Armstrong’s 2012 death, according to court documents and a report in the New York Times. The 2014 settlement went to 10 family members, including...
