Vaccine skepticism runs deep among white evangelicals in U.S.
The president of the Southern Baptist Convention, America’s largest evangelical denomination, posted a photo on Facebook last week of him getting the covid-19 vaccine. It drew more than 1,100 comments — many of them voicing admiration for the Rev. J.D. Greear, and many others assailing him. Some of the critics...
Nebraska officials pushing back against ‘vaccine hesitancy’
OMAHA, Neb. — Nebraska cleared a path Monday for adults of all ages to sign up for a coronavirus vaccination, but state officials said they’re still trying to overcome “vaccination hesitancy,” especially in some minority communities. Gov. Pete Ricketts said state officials have ramped up their vaccination outreach efforts to...
Israel’s Netanyahu in court as parties weigh in on his fate
JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s corruption trial resumed Monday, with a key witness painting a picture of an image-obsessed Israeli leader forcing a prominent news site to flatter his family and smear his opponents. The testimony came as Netanyahu’s chances of securing another term in office following last month’s...
Southwest pilot accused of indecent exposure during flight
DALLAS — Federal authorities have charged a former Southwest Airlines pilot with indecent exposure for an incident they say occurred during a flight last August. Michael Haak was the pilot in command of the plane during a flight from Philadelphia to Orlando, Fla., according to a one-page filing in federal...
Biden’s big infrastructure plan hits McConnell-GOP blockade
WASHINGTON — Republicans in Congress are making the politically brazen bet that it’s more advantageous to oppose President Joe Biden’s ambitious ” Rebuild America” agenda than to lend support for the costly $2.3 trillion undertaking for roads, bridges and other infrastructure investments. Much the way Republicans provided no votes for...
Putin signs law that allows him to serve 2 more terms
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday signed a law allowing him to potentially hold onto power until 2036, a move that formalizes constitutional changes endorsed in last year’s popular vote. The July 1 constitutional vote included a provision that reset Putin’s previous terms, allowing him to run for president two...
High court nixes Alex Jones’ appeal in Newtown shooting case
HARTFORD, Conn. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear an appeal by Infowars host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who was fighting a Connecticut court sanction in a defamation lawsuit brought by relatives of some of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Jones was...
No indication officer in Capitol attack was stabbed, shot
WASHINGTON — A Capitol Police officer killed last week when a man armed with a knife rammed his car into two officers at a barricade outside the Capitol does not appear to have been stabbed, slashed or shot, a police official told the Associated Press on Monday. Officer William “Billy”...
U.K. to ease lockdown next week, will test vaccine passports
LONDON — Britain’s slow but steady march out of a 3½-month lockdown remains on track even as coronavirus cases surge elsewhere in Europe, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Monday, as he confirmed that businesses from barbers to bookstores will be allowed to reopen next week. Johnson said it’s too soon...
Jailed Kremlin foe Navalny says he has cough, fever amid hunger strike
Jailed Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has a cough and fever with his hunger strike now in its sixth day, his Instagram account said. Three cellmates of Navalny, 44, have been hospitalized with tuberculosis, a statement posted on his account Monday said. The chief opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin...
Police chief: Derek Chauvin ‘in no way’ should’ve kept George Floyd pinned by the neckVideo
MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo testified Monday in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin that the now-fired officer defied his own training and the department’s mission of compassion when he kept his knee on the neck of George Floyd for more than 9 minutes last spring. “Once Mr....
4.0 magnitude earthquake strikes in Los Angeles area
LOS ANGELES — A 4.0 magnitude earthquake gave the Los Angeles area a jolt before dawn Monday. The 4:44 a.m. quake was centered in the Inglewood area east of Los Angeles International Airport, the U.S. Geological Survey said. It also was relatively deep, at 12 miles. The USGS said light...
Books by Gino, Steinbeck among most objected to in 2020
NEW YORK — The closing of physical libraries because of the pandemic has slowed but not stopped patrons and others from calling for books to be banned or restricted. On Monday, the American Library Association reported more than 270 challenges to books in 2020, from Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye”...
AP-NORC poll: Border woes dent Biden approval on immigration
WASHINGTON — More Americans disapprove than approve of how President Joe Biden is handling the sharply increasing number of unaccompanied migrant children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border, and approval of his efforts on larger immigration policy falls short of other top issues — suggesting it could be a weak point...
Woman shoots at Burger King employees over drive-thru wait-time, police say
A woman in a Memphis Burger King drive-thru line no longer wanted to wait for her food, so she took matters into her own hands. Fox 13 Memphis reported that on Tuesday, Memphis Police said a woman exited her car at a Burger King on Winchester Road, walked up to...
Have an idea to improve masks? Biden administration holds $500K contest
President Joe Biden’s administration is looking for ways to improve face masks — and will give out $500,000 in prizes to help do it. The Mask Innovation Challenge invites Americans to submit ideas to make masks more comfortable to wear and to eliminate “barriers to use,” such as discomfort, contact...
Corporations gave over $50M to voting restriction backers
When executives from Coca-Cola and Delta Air Lines spoke out against Georgia’s new voting law as unduly restrictive last week, it seemed to signal a new activism springing from corporate America. But if leaders of the nation’s most prominent companies are going to reject lawmakers who support restrictive voting measures,...
Covid cases continue to rise, but the pace appears to be easing
As Pennsylvania loosens its covid-19 mitigation restrictions, the spike in new cases of the virus is showing slight signs of slowing. Over the past two days, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reports there were 6,651 new cases added, bringing the total cases since the pandemic began to 1,045,400. While the...
Supreme Court dismisses case over Trump and Twitter critics
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a case over former President Donald Trump’s efforts to block critics from his personal Twitter account. The court said there was nothing left to the case after Trump was permanently suspended from Twitter and ended his presidential term in January. Twitter banned Trump two...
Hikers scramble as new fissure opens up at Icelandic volcano
Steam and lava spurted Monday from a new fissure at an Icelandic volcano that began erupting last month, prompting the evacuation of hundreds of hikers who had come to see the spectacle. The new fissure, first spotted by a sightseeing helicopter, was about 550 yards long and about a half-mile...
Some businesses want masks on, even as states drop mandates
NEW YORK — Although Texas no longer requires people to wear masks to protect against covid-19, customers do need them to enter De J. Lozada’s store. “We cannot afford to take chances with the lives of my staffers. They’re young people and their parents have entrusted me with their care,”...
Supreme Court sides with Google in copyright dispute with Oracle
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court sided Monday with Google in an $8 billion copyright dispute with Oracle over the internet company’s creation of the Android operating system used on most smartphones worldwide. To create Android, which was released in 2007, Google wrote millions of lines of new computer code. But...
Utah dads to be required to pay half of pregnancy costs
SALT LAKE CITY — Biological fathers in Utah will be legally required to pay half of a woman’s out-of-pocket pregnancy costs under a new law unique to the state that critics say doesn’t do enough to adequately address maternal healthcare needs. The bill’s sponsor has presented the measure as an...
Inmates stage uprising at St. Louis jail dogged by unrest
ST. LOUIS — Inmates broke windows, set a fire and threw debris to the ground late Sunday at a St. Louis jail that has been plagued by uprisings in recent months. The riot broke out Sunday night around 9 p.m. at the City Justice Center, news outlets reported. Inmates were...
Latest attack pushes U.S. Capitol Police further toward crisis
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Capitol Police are struggling. One officer was killed and another injured when a driver slammed into them at a barricade Friday afternoon. The attack comes after officers were overrun and injured when a violent mob of Trump supporters overran the Capitol on Jan. 6, breaking through...
