Associated Press stories, Page 559
Drag queen in Olympic opening ceremony has no regrets, calls it ‘a photograph of France in 2024’
PARIS — As a gay youth growing up in central France, Hugo Bardin never felt he lived in a world that represented who he was — a world in which he had a place. And that is why Bardin, who performs as the drag queen Paloma, felt it was meaningful...
CarShield to pay $10M to settle deceptive advertising charges
CarShield will pay $10 million to settle charges that its advertisements and telemarketing for its extended auto warranty plans are deceptive and misleading, the Federal Trade Commission said. Many customers found that repair claims were often not covered despite making payments of up to $120 per month, the FTC said...
Federal judge says New Jersey’s ban on AR-15 rifles is unconstitutional
TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey’s ban on the AR-15 rifle is unconstitutional, but the state’s cap on magazines over 10 rounds passes constitutional muster, a federal judge said Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Peter Sheridan’s 69-page opinion says he was compelled to rule as he did because of the Supreme Court’s...
Colorado clerk who became hero to election conspiracists set to go on trial for voting system breach
DENVER — A trial is set to begin Wednesday for former Colorado county clerk Tina Peters, a hero to election conspiracy theorists who is accused of orchestrating a breach of election security equipment. The case against Peters centers around accusations that in May 2021 she allowed a man using someone...
Federal protections of transgender students are launching where courts haven’t blocked them
New federal protections for transgender students at U.S. schools and colleges will take effect Thursday with muted impact because judges have temporarily blocked enforcement in 21 states and hundreds of individual colleges and schools across the country. The regulation also adds protections for pregnant students and students who are parents,...
Trump, not Harris, speaking to most prominent American group for Black journalists
WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s invitation to address the National Association of Black Journalists has sparked an intense debate within the organization and a flurry of arguments online. Journalism organizations for people of color traditionally invite presidential candidates to address their summer gatherings during election years. But Trump’s acceptance of NABJ’s...
Can a 6-second kiss each day lead to a more intimate relationship?
After 13 years of marriage, Bethany Meola acknowledges she and her husband can get mired in the midlife chaos that comes with navigating careers and raising three children. That’s why the six-second kiss felt so good. A daily intimacy exercise pioneered by couples therapists and clinical psychologists John and Julie...
Washington, D.C., sues StubHub, saying the resale platform inflates ticket prices with deceptive fees
WASHINGTON — The attorney general for Washington, D.C., sued StubHub on Wednesday, accusing the ticket resale platform of advertising deceptively low prices and then ramping up prices with extra fees. The practice known as “drip pricing” violates consumer protection laws in the nation’s capital, Attorney General Brian Schwalb said. “StubHub...
Paychecks grew more slowly this spring, a sign inflation may keep cooling
WASHINGTON — Pay and benefits for America’s workers grew more slowly in the April-June quarter than in the first three months of the year, a trend that could keep price pressures in check and encourage the inflation-fighters at the Federal Reserve. Compensation as measured by the government’s Employment Cost Index...
BBC’s former lead news presenter pleads guilty to 3 counts of making indecent images of children
LONDON — Huw Edwards, the BBC’s former top news presenter, pleaded guilty Wednesday to three counts of making indecent images of children as he admitted accessing photographs sent to him by a man via the WhatsApp messaging service. During a 26-minute hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in central London, the...
After an extraordinary run of political news, interest in the presidential election is perking up
After a desultory start to the campaign season, news outlets are starting to see interest in political news perk up because of an extraordinary run of stories over the past few weeks. The most obvious beneficiary is Fox News Channel, which is ending July with its highest viewership than any...
About 8 in 10 Democrats are satisfied with Harris in stark shift after Biden drops out: AP-NORC poll
WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris appears to have energized Democrats in the early days of her candidacy, with the surge in warm feelings extending across multiple groups, including some key Democratic constituencies that had been especially tepid about President Joe Biden, a new poll shows. About 8 in 10...
Harris is calibrating her policy pitch for going to battle with Trump
WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris is facing the delicate task of calibrating her policy pitch to American voters, a standard task for any White House hopeful but one that comes with additional challenges this year. First, Harris is running for president while serving under President Joe Biden, meaning she’s...
Boeing names new CEO as it posts a loss of more than $1.4 billion in second quarter
Boeing lost more than $1.4 billion in the second quarter and said a longtime industry executive will take over as chief executive of the troubled aircraft manufacturer next week. Robert “Kelly” Ortberg, 64, a former CEO at Rockwell Collins, will succeed David Calhoun as CEO, the company said. Boeing’s loss...
UN report says Palestinians detained by Israeli authorities since Oct. 7 faced torture, mistreatment
GENEVA — The U.N. human rights office issued a report Wednesday saying Palestinians detained by Israeli authorities since the Oct. 7 attacks faced waterboarding, sleep deprivation, electric shocks, the release of dogs, and other forms of torture and mistreatment. The report said Israel’s prison service held more than 9,400 “security...
Olympic triathletes swim in Seine River after days of concerns about water quality
PARIS — After days of water-quality concerns caused by heavy rains last week put the swimming portion of the Olympic triathlons in doubt, the women dove into the Seine River early Wednesday, followed by the men a few hours later. The athletes began near the Pont Alexandre III, a bridge...
Hamas says its leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran by an Israeli airstrike
BEIRUT — Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran, Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said early Wednesday, and Hamas blamed Israel for the attack. Israel has vowed to kill Haniyeh and other leaders of Hamas over the group’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw some...
Investigation finds at least 973 Native American children died in U.S. government boarding schools
BILLINGS, Mont. — At least 973 Native American children died in the U.S. government’s abusive boarding school system, according to the results of an investigation released Tuesday by Interior Department officials who called on the government to apologize for the schools. The investigation commissioned by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland found...
Boar’s Head expands recall to include 7 million more pounds of deli meats tied to listeria outbreak
The popular deli meat company Boar’s Head is recalling an additional 7 million pounds of ready-to-eat products made at a Virginia plant as an investigation into a deadly outbreak of listeria food poisoning continues, U.S. Agriculture Department officials said Tuesday. The new recall includes 71 products made between May 10...
Police clash with a violent crowd gathered near the site of U.K. stabbing attack that killed 3 girlsVideo
LONDON — Far-right protesters fueled by anger and false online rumors hurled bottles and stones at officers and set a police van ablaze Tuesday outside a northwest England mosque near where three girls were fatally stabbed a day earlier. Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned the “thuggery” and said the crowd...
Meta agrees to $1.4B settlement with Texas in privacy lawsuit over facial recognition
AUSTIN, Texas — Meta has agreed to a $1.4 billion settlement with Texas in a privacy lawsuit over allegations that the tech giant used biometric data of users without their permission, officials said Tuesday. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said the settlement is the largest secured by a single state....
Norah O’Donnell leaving as anchor of CBS evening newscast after election
Norah O’Donnell is leaving as anchor of the “CBS Evening News” after the presidential election, she announced on Tuesday. O’Donnell has been top anchor of the newscast for five years and prior to that anchored the network’s morning show. She told CBS News colleagues in an email that it’s time...
New York City’s latest crackdown on illegal weed shops is finally shutting them down
NEW YORK — Thousands of marijuana shops boldly opened without a license in New York City after the state legalized recreational use of the drug, but after more than a year of lax enforcement, new state rules are finally allowing officials to padlock their doors. New York City’s sheriff’s office...
Pennsylvania casinos ask court to force state to tax skill games found in stores equally to slots
HARRISBURG — The owners of 12 Pennsylvania casinos have asked the state’s highest court to declare that a tax on slot machine revenue is unconstitutional because the state doesn’t impose it broadly on cash-paying electronic game terminals known as skill games that can be found in many bars and stores....
Kaylee McKeown still rules the Olympic backstroke, beating Regan Smith in women’s 100 metersVideo
NANTERRE, France — Kaylee McKeown still rules the women’s Olympic backstroke. The Australian knocked off world-record holder Regan Smith of the United States in the 100 back Tuesday night, defending the title she won at the Tokyo Games. Smith, who broke McKeown’s world mark with a time of 57.13 seconds...
