Associated Press stories, Page 2598
U.S. average mortgage rates edge up; 30-year at 4.46 percent
WASHINGTON — U.S. long-term mortgage rates edged up after declining in recent weeks. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on the benchmark 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage rose to 4.46 percent, from 4.45 percent last week. Despite the recent declines, home borrowing rates are above last year’s levels....
Who’s the daddy? Surprise in Swiss orangutan paternity test
BERLIN — A paternity test on a baby orangutan has come back with a surprising result. Basel Zoo in northwestern Switzerland said Thursday the test showed 5-month-old Padma wasn’t fathered by the male in her enclosure. Keepers routinely take DNA samples from newborn orangutans because the endangered great apes are...
As Wall Street spasmed with fear, 401(k) savers held steady
NEW YORK— While professional traders on Wall Street scrambled to sell stocks amid a fear-fueled, nearly 20 percent drop for the S&P 500 late last year, most people at home remained relatively calm when it came to their own retirement savings. So say numbers from Fidelity Investments, which show that...
Trump ‘disappointed’ FBI can’t find motive in Vegas shooting
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is “disappointed” the FBI couldn’t figure out what specifically motivated a gunman to carry out the deadliest shooting in modern U.S. history. Trump’s comments Wednesday to The Daily Caller came a day after the FBI released its final report on the 2017 Las Vegas shooting...
Saints’ Payton says he ate ice cream, binge-watched Netflix after Rams loss
METAIRIE, La. — Saints coach Sean Payton turned to ice cream, binge-watching and seclusion after his team’s football season came to an excruciating end. Payton was finally ready on Wednesday to stand in front of reporters for his NFL-mandated, end-of-season media availability, some 10 days after New Orleans’ 26-23 overtime...
Newark Airport parking garage fire damages numerous vehiclesVideo
NEWARK, N.J. — Authorities say a parking garage fire at an airport right outside New York City has severely damaged more than a dozen vehicles. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey says the fire at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey started on the rooftop of...
Deep freeze expected to ease, but disruptions persist
CHICAGO — The painfully cold weather system that put much of the Midwest into a historic deep freeze was expected to ease Thursday, though temperatures still tumbled to record lows in some places. Disruptions caused by the cold will persist, too, including power outages and canceled flights and trains. Crews...
Trump appears to sour on congressional border security talks
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Thursday to ratchet up his demands on his long-stalled border wall, appearing to sour on congressional talks aimed at striking a deal with Democrats that he could sign. In a barrage of morning tweets, Trump sent mixed messages in which he...
Man accused of livestreamed sex assault is arrested, charged
ATLANTA — A man accused of sexually assaulting a woman who captured the apparent attack on Facebook Live has been arrested and charged with forcible sodomy. News outlets report Atlanta police say 34-year-old Dominique Williams surrendered to police Tuesday. Williams is accused of assaulting the woman this month at the...
Nearly half of U.S. adults have heart or blood vessel disease
A new report estimates that nearly half of all U.S. adults have some form of heart or blood vessel disease, a medical milestone that’s mostly due to recent guidelines that expanded how many people have high blood pressure. The American Heart Association said Thursday that more than 121 million adults...
Democrats gain in statehouses as some GOP lawmakers defect
TRENTON, N.J. — Democrats’ gains in state legislatures didn’t end with last November’s elections. Over the past two months, as lawmakers were sworn in and this year’s statehouse sessions got underway, Republicans in California, Kansas and New Jersey switched their party affiliations to become Democrats. They cited various reasons, but...
Chicago police still looking for video of attack on actor
CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago police have recovered more surveillance footage of “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett walking before and after he says he was attacked by two masked men, but they haven’t found video of the attack. Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi also said Thursday that Smollett and his manager say they...
‘The Batman’ set for 2021 release, star to be determined
LOS ANGELES — Who will be inside the suit remains unknown but “The Batman” has a release date. Warner Bros. on Wednesday announced that Matt Reeves’ stand-alone Batman film will hit theaters in June 2021. Ben Affleck was previously set to star in the film following his performances in “Justice...
Woman accused of pouring water on sleeping baby as ‘payback’
SUMTER, S.C. — Authorities say a South Carolina woman has been arrested after a video she posted on social media showed her pouring water on her sleeping 9-month-old daughter as “payback.” News outlets report the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office says 33-year-old Caitlyn Alyse Hardy was charged with cruelty to children....
Conservatives head to Texas to try to build their own wall
HOUSTON — What started as an online fundraiser to provide President Donald Trump with donations for his southern border wall has morphed into a foundation whose members vow to build a wall themselves. The “We The People Will Build the Wall” campaign has surpassed $20 million since it was created...
Super Bowl 53 on TV: A viewer’s guide to Sunday’s game
Sunday’s Super Bowl between the New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams marks the biggest day of sports broadcasting for networks. Here are some things to know about CBS’ coverage as well as other Super Bowl-related programming on other networks: ••• SUPER 20 FOR CBS This marks the 20th Super...
Penn State’s slide continues with overtime loss to Purdue
STATE COLLEGE — Matt Painter was surprised to see his best player getting open shots early. He wasn’t surprised when Carsen Edwards made one after the other and then drained the well-defended ones later. The Big Ten’s leading scorer finished with 38 points, including 20 in the first half and...
Malaysia crowns Sultan Abdullah as 16th king
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah of central Pahang state was crowned Thursday as Malaysia’s 16th king under a unique rotating monarchy system, nearly a month after the sudden abdication of Sultan Muhammad V. Garbed in aqua blue regalia, Sultan Abdullah, 59, took his oath of office...
Iowa State routs WVU; Huggins ejected
AMES, Iowa — Iowa State’s Lindell Wigginton leapt into the lane to steal a pass, sprinted down the court and got fouled. He then casually flipped the ball underhanded toward the basket from 30 feet — and found the bottom of the net. It was that kind of night for...
Alaska governor proposes constitutional changes to give voters say on taxes
JUNEAU, Alaska — Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Wednesday proposed constitutional changes that would limit legislative authority and give voters a say on taxes and any changes to the annual check residents receive from the state’s oil-wealth fund. One of the proposed amendments is aimed at ensuring the Alaska Permanent Fund...
Federal government secretly shipped plutonium from South Carolina to Nevada
RENO, Nev. — The U.S. Department of Energy revealed on Wednesday that it secretly shipped weapons-grade plutonium from South Carolina to a nuclear security site in Nevada months ago despite the state’s protests. The Justice Department notified a federal judge in Reno that the government trucked in the radioactive material...
Elephant seals take over California beach during shutdown
SAN FRANCISCO — A colony of elephant seals took over a beach in Northern California during the government shutdown when there was no staff to discourage the animals from congregating in the popular tourist area, an official said. Now they’re not going anywhere. About 60 adult seals that gave birth...
Texas executes man in Houston officer’s slaying
HUNTSVILLE, Texas — A 61-year-old Texas inmate was executed Wednesday evening for killing a Houston police officer more than three decades ago. Robert Jennings received lethal injection for the July 1988 fatal shooting of Officer Elston Howard during a robbery at an adult bookstore that authorities said was part of...
Rand Paul awarded more than $580K after neighbor’s attack
U.S. Sen. Rand Paul was awarded more than $580,000 in damages and medical expenses Wednesday in his lawsuit against the neighbor who tackled him and broke several of his ribs in a dispute over lawn maintenance. A jury in Bowling Green, Ky., deliberated less than two hours before delivering the...
Parole recommended for Manson followerVan Houten
LOS ANGELES — A California panel Wednesday recommended that Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten be paroled after serving more than four decades in prison. After a hearing at the women’s prison in Corona, Calif., commissioners of the Board of Parole Hearings found for the third time that the 69-year-old...
