Trump’s praise of Putin, ‘America First’ view tested by war
WASHINGTON — From the earliest days of his first presidential campaign, Donald Trump aggressively challenged the pillars of Republican foreign policy that defined the party since World War II. He mocked John McCain’s capture during the Vietnam War, validated autocrats with his platitudes, questioned longtime military and security alliances and...
Whitmer plot underlines growing abuse of women officials
Angry over covid-19 restrictions such as the closing of gyms, people from several states met in Ohio in June 2020 to plot ways to overthrow government “tyrants,” prosecutors say. Within a week, they chose Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer as a target. The plan, as outlined in a federal court indictment,...
Fleeing sanctions, oligarchs seek safe ports for superyachts
WASHINGTON — The massive superyacht Dilbar stretches one-and-a-half football fields in length, about as long as a World War I dreadnaught. It boasts two helipads, berths for more than 130 people and a 25-meter swimming pool long enough to accommodate another whole superyacht. Dilbar was launched in 2016 at a...
Death toll surpasses 6 million for pandemic now in 3rd year
BANGKOK — The official global death toll from covid-19 eclipsed 6 million on Monday — underscoring that the pandemic, now entering its third year, is far from over. The milestone, recorded by Johns Hopkins University, is the latest tragic reminder of the unrelenting nature of the pandemic even as people...
Ukraine says Russia steps up shelling of residential areas
LVIV, Ukraine — Russian forces intensified shelling of cities in Ukraine’s center, north and south, a Ukrainian official said, upending attempts to evacuate besieged civilians. With the Ukrainian leader urging his people to fight in the streets, Russian President Vladimir Putin shifted blame for the invasion, saying Moscow’s attacks could...
Officials: 7 dead after tornadoes tore through central Iowa
DES MOINES, Iowa — Seven people were killed, including two children, when several tornadoes swept through central Iowa, damaging buildings and knocking down trees and power lines, authorities said. Emergency management officials in Madison County said four were injured and six people were killed Saturday when one tornado touched down...
Iran paves way for sanctions relief, seals atomic-probe pact
Iran paved the way for sanctions relief by agreeing to help end a contentious nuclear investigation, removing one of the final hurdles to an atomic deal that could see Iranian oil return to markets by the third quarter. The agreement was announced on Saturday in Tehran between International Atomic Energy...
Charities struggle to deliver humanitarian aid into Ukraine
In the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the fog of war is extending to those who are trying to help the beleaguered Ukrainians. With ports blocked and roads made treacherous by bombings, charities currently can’t send humanitarian aid into Ukraine through normal channels, though both countries agreed Thursday to...
Afghans resettling in U.S. struggle to find affordable housing
After fleeing her home in now-Taliban controlled Afghanistan, Mozhgan Entazari did everything she could to find a new one for her family in the sunny, palm tree-lined communities of Southern California. The 34-year-old mother of two scoured options on Zillow with her husband, while the family lived at a hotel...
Fire forces evacuation of 600 homes in Florida Panhandle
PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Residents in 600 homes in the Florida Panhandle were evacuated as a wildfire destroyed two houses and damaged 12 others, in an area that has spent the past three years recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Michael, officials said Saturday. Hundreds of thousands of acres of...
Blinken hears harrowing tales from refugees fleeing Ukraine
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday visited a welcome center set up by Polish authorities in what once was a shopping mall in Korczowa, close to the border with Ukraine, where roughly 3,000 refugees are taking shelter after the Russian invasion of their homeland. While at the border...
WNBA’s Brittney Griner arrested in Russia on drug charges
WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner was arrested last month at a Moscow airport after Russian authorities said a search of her luggage revealed vape cartridges. The Russian Customs Service said Saturday that the cartridges were identified as containing oil derived from cannabis, which could carry a maximum penalty of 10 years...
Russian invasion reorders West’s calculations on cost of war
Not long after winding down 20 years of war, President Joe Biden now finds the United States entrenched in a conflict in Ukraine, even without sending in U.S. troops, that could have a more far-reaching effect on a larger cross section of Americans than Afghanistan or Iraq ever did. Fighting...
Putin says Ukraine’s future in doubt as cease-fires collapse
Russian President Vladimir Putin warned Saturday that Ukrainian statehood is in jeopardy and likened the West’s sanctions on Russia to “declaring war,” while a promised cease-fire in the port city of Mariupol collapsed amid scenes of terror in the besieged town. With the Kremlin’s rhetoric growing fiercer and a reprieve...
China seeks to unify public in support for Russia
As the West condemns Russia, President Vladimir Putin has vocal supporters in China, where the ruling Communist Party tells its people they are fellow targets of U.S.-led harassment. “If Russia is destroyed, we will be next. This is for sure,” said Wang Yongchun, a retiree in Beijing. “The United States...
North Korea fires suspected ballistic missile into sea
North Korea on Saturday fired a suspected ballistic missile into the sea, according to its neighbors’ militaries, apparently extending its streak of weapons tests this year amid a prolonged freeze in nuclear negotiations with the United States. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected a single launch of...
As planet warms, less ice covering North American lakes
With a backdrop of mountain vistas and a rink of natural ice, the annual ice hockey tournament at Grand Lake offers a picturesque snapshot of Colorado’s beauty. What’s not apparent is the problem brewing under players’ skates. This year’s tournament was held a month later than normal, with thin ice...
Pence hits Trump: No room in GOP ‘for apologists for Putin’
Former Vice President Mike Pence urged Republicans to move on from the 2020 election and declared that “there is no room in this party for apologists for Putin” as he further cemented his break from former President Donald Trump. Pence, in a speech Friday evening to the party’s top donors...
Ukrainian drone enthusiasts sign up to repel Russian forces
In better times, Ukrainian drone enthusiasts flew their gadgets into the sky to photograph weddings, fertilize soybean fields or race other drones for fun. Now some are risking their lives by forming a volunteer drone force to help their country repel the Russian invasion. “Kyiv needs you and your drone...
Amtrak engineer cleared in trial over deadly 2015 crash
An Amtrak engineer was cleared of charges related to a deadly, high-speed derailment that left eight people dead and hundreds injured in Philadelphia in 2015. The jury acquitted 38-year-old engineer Brandon Bostian of causing a catastrophe, involuntary manslaughter and reckless endangerment after a little more than an hour of deliberations....
Stocks tumble as war overshadows ‘fantastic’ U.S. jobs data
Stocks around the world racked up more losses Friday, as even a gangbusters report on the U.S. jobs market can’t pull Wall Street’s focus off its worries about the war in Ukraine. The S&P 500 fell 0.8% and posted its third weekly loss in the last four. The Dow Jones...
Pennsylvania student scores fell, delayed test results show
Student scores on Pennsylvania standardized tests fell sharply last year in most categories, although state education officials cautioned the numbers were so distorted by pandemic conditions that they are of limited use for comparison to previous years — particularly regarding statewide trends. The Education Department on Friday released results of...
For whom the bell rolls: Paul Revere chime returns home
BOSTON — A bronze bell cast in 1834 in Paul Revere’s Massachusetts foundry has come home — capping a nearly two-century, cross-country odyssey that saw it hauled by oxcart to churches in Ohio before languishing for decades in a California garage. After a weeklong journey across the U.S., the historic...
‘A Brutus in Russia?’ U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham says taking out Putin the way to stop Ukraine invasion
COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina’s senior U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham took his calls for regime change in Russia one step further Thursday night, when he tweeted that someone needs to take Russian President Vladimir Putin out over the invasion of Ukraine. Anyone willing to kill Putin over his recent invasion...
Russia’s isolation over Ukraine war grows at UN rights body
GENEVA — The U.N.’s top human rights body overwhelmingly approved a resolution Friday that aims to set up a three-member panel of experts to monitor human rights in Ukraine. The decision demonstrates growing international unity against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Moscow’s increasing international isolation. Some 32 of the 47...
