Associated Press stories, Page 2536
Trump says public should see ‘ridiculous’ Mueller report
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said he believes special counsel Robert Mueller’s report should be released to the public, even as he disparaged its very existence as “ridiculous.” “Let it come out, let people see it,” Trump told reporters Wednesday. “Let’s see whether or not it’s legit.” Mueller is expected...
$625M jackpot at stake in Saturday’s Powerball
DES MOINES, Iowa — Lottery officials say the Powerball jackpot has climbed to an estimated $625 million. The jackpot on Saturday would be the seventh-largest in U.S. history, with an estimated lump sum payout of $380.6 million before taxes. The odds of winning are extremely long, at 1 in 292.2...
National Guard called in after Texas petrochemicals facility fire
HOUSTON — National Guard troops have been called in and residents were told to stay inside after elevated levels of benzene were detected early Thursday near a Houston-area petrochemicals storage facility that caught fire this week. Harris County officials said the Guard and hazardous materials teams have established perimeters around...
Man faces 20 years in prison for threats against Obama, Waters
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Federal prosecutors say a central New York man faces up to 20 years in prison for threatening to kill former President Barack Obama and California Congresswoman Maxine Waters. According to Syracuse.com , a jury convicted Stephen Taubert on Wednesday. The charges stemmed from phone calls, including racial...
Kentucky governor says he exposed his children to chickenpox
FRANKFORT, Ky. — Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin said in a radio interview that he deliberately exposed his children to chickenpox so they would catch the highly contagious disease and become immune. During a Tuesday interview on Bowling Green radio station WKCT, Bevin said his children were “miserable for a few...
Trump’s invective at John McCain dismays some Republicans
WASHINGTON — Casting aside rare censure from Republican lawmakers, President Donald Trump aimed new blasts of invective at the late John McCain , even claiming credit for the senator’s moving Washington funeral and complaining he was never properly thanked. By the time the president began his anti-McCain tirade in Ohio...
Migrants encounter snafus with new U.S. asylum policy
SAN DIEGO — Scheduling glitches led an immigration judge to deny the Trump administration’s request to order four Central American migrants deported because they failed to show for initial hearings Wednesday in the U.S. while being forced to wait in Mexico. The judge’s refusal was a setback for the administration’s...
‘Full House’ to big house in college scheme? Experts differ
BOSTON — Could Aunt Becky be headed to prison? It could go either way, experts say. Some of the wealthy parents accused of paying bribes to get their kids into top universities may get short stints behind bars, if convicted, to send a message that the privileged are not above...
Forecasters: ‘Potentially historic’ flooding threatens South
Scientists are warning that historic flooding could soon deluge parts of several Southern states along the lower Mississippi River, where floodwaters could persist for several weeks. The flood threat in the South will be discussed Thursday, when the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration releases its 2019 spring outlook. Experts plan...
On heels of scandals, USC announces new president
LOS ANGELES — The University of Southern California on Wednesday announced a new school president to usher “a new era” following a series of high-profile scandals that culminated last week with a massive college admissions bribery case. Carol Folt, former chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,...
Trout, Angels finalize record $432 million, 12-year deal
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Mike Trout and the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday night announced their 12-year contract, a record deal that ties baseball’s top player to the Orange County club for what likely will be the rest of his career. A person with knowledge of the contract told The Associated...
Minnesota’s famed winter isn’t what it used to be
MINNEAPOLIS — Bundled up against the icy cold and drifting snow, Don Olson has tended the trail of a popular cross country ski race in Minnesota for years. Fixing problem spots on the Vasaloppet’s route often meant braving the freezing temperatures and frigid winds that have always defined this state....
AP PHOTOS: Remembering the Exxon Valdez oil spill
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — It was just after midnight on March 24, 1989, when an Exxon Shipping Co. tanker ran aground outside the town of Valdez, Alaska, spewing millions of gallons of thick, toxic crude oil into the pristine Prince William Sound. The world watched the aftermath unfold: scores of herring,...
Arizona State dispatches St. Johns in First Four game
DAYTON, Ohio — Luguentz Dort overcame a hard foul and a leg injury, scored 21 points and led Arizona State to a long-awaited NCAA Tournament victory Wednesday night, 74-65, over St. John’s in the First Four. The 11th-seeded Sun Devils (23-10) will play Mid-American Conference champion Buffalo on Friday in...
NCAA Tournament East Region preview: Michigan State hopes to avoid upset
DES MOINES, Iowa — It seems as though coach Tom Izzo has Michigan State poised to make a Final Four run nearly every year. The Spartans need to focus on surviving the first weekend this time around. It has been four years since Michigan State (28-6) made it to the...
New Zealand bans sales of assault weapons
CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand — Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced an immediate ban Thursday on semi-automatic and automatic weapons like the ones used in the attacks on two mosques in Christchurch that killed 50 worshippers. The man charged in the attack had purchased his weapons legally using a standard firearms license...
NCAA Tournament Midwest preview: Injury hangs over Kentucky
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — As the Kentucky Wildcats went through a casual shootaround the day before their opening game of the NCAA Tournament, complete with a blaring band and thousands of blue-clad fans watching every move, something was missing. Their best player. PJ Washington, a rare sophomore amid John Calipari’s latest...
NCAA Tournament South Region preview: Villanova in different spot
HARTFORD, Conn. — Villanova is coming into the NCAA Tournament this year from an unfamiliar angle. The defending national champions bring the cache that comes with two NCAA titles in the last three seasons, along with a couple of key senior leaders who have a wealth of postseason experience and,...
NCAA Tournament West Region preview: Gonzaga eager to bounce back
SALT LAKE CITY — Gonzaga enters the NCAA Tournament after a loss for one of the rare times under coach Mark Few. The dominant team in the West Coast Conference for two decades, the Zags lost to Saint Mary’s in the conference title game last week in Las Vegas. The...
European, Canadian regulators plan own reviews of Boeing 737 Max
Boeing’s grounded airliners are likely to be parked longer now that European and Canadian regulators plan to conduct their own reviews of changes the company is making after two of the jets crashed. The Europeans and Canadians want to do more than simply take the Federal Aviation Administration’s word that...
North Dakota State gets shot at Duke with First Four victory
DAYTON, Ohio — North Dakota State is one of the best free-throw shooting teams in the country, and that’s what it came down to at the end of the Bison’s First Four win over North Carolina Central. Vinnie Shahid sank three foul shots in the last 8 seconds to secure...
‘Dick Van Dyke Show’ scripts to be digitally preserved
JAMESTOWN, N.Y. — Hollywood producer Carl Reiner and the National Comedy Center say they’re working together to digitally preserve Reiner’s collection of scripts from the 1960s “The Dick Van Dyke Show.” The scripts are full of Reiner’s handwritten changes to the dialogue. Reiner, who turned 97 on Tuesday, says creating...
What to watch at this year’s NCAA Tournament
The NCAA Tournament somehow seems to be getting better every year, almost as if each bracket is extending from the previous one. Last year brought one of the maddest of Marches, starting with Maryland-Baltimore County becoming the first No. 16 seed to beat a 1 — poor Virginia — to...
Ja Morant, Markus Howard headline Murray State-Marquette matchup
HARTFORD, Conn. — Murray State’s Ja Morant and Marquette’s Markus Howard have much in common: Point guards, prolific scorers, conference players of the year, All-America contenders. And, apparently, promptness. Morant and Howard struck up a friendship last summer at NBA All-Star Chris Paul’s camp for elite guards. “We were the...
Trump says Islamic State territory in Syria nearly eliminated
WASHINGTON — President Trump said Wednesday the last pocket of the Islamic State’s land in Syria will be liberated by U.S.-backed forces “by tonight.” Trump has previously announced the defeat of the group, but sleeper cells of fighters have re-emerged. With no signs of fighting Wednesday, however, the long-running battle...
