U.S. senator returns from El Salvador trip, says Abrego Garcia case is about far more than one man
WASHINGTON — The dispute over the wrongful deportation and imprisonment of Kilmar Abrego Garcia “is not only about one man” but about Donald Trump’s disregard of the American judicial system as well, Sen. Chris Van Hollen said Friday as he returned from a three-day trip to El Salvador to press...
U.S. has 800 measles cases and outbreaks in several states. Here’s what you should know
The U.S. has 800 cases of measles nationwide as of Friday, and two more states identified outbreaks this week. Texas is driving the high numbers, with an outbreak centered in West Texas that started nearly three months ago and is up to 597 cases. Two unvaccinated elementary school-aged children died...
Judge orders Tufts University student in detention case to be brought to Vermont
A federal judge on Friday ordered that a Turkish Tufts University student detained by immigration authorities in Louisiana to be brought to Vermont by May 1 for a hearing over what her lawyers say was apparent retaliation for an op-ed piece she co-wrote in the student newspaper. U.S. District Judge...
Trump says Ukraine-Russia talks ‘coming to a head’ and ‘no one is playing’ him in push to end war
PARIS — President Donald Trump on Friday said negotiations between Ukraine and Russia are “coming to a head” and insisted that neither side is “playing” him in his push to end the grinding war. Trump spoke shortly after Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that the U.S. may “move on”...
The people who represent you in D.C. and Harrisburg are allowed to keep their calendars secret
This story originally appeared in Talk of the Town, a weekly newsletter of local stories that dig deep, events, and more from the Spotlight PA State College bureau. Sign up at spotlightpa.org/newsletters/talkofthetown. STATE COLLEGE — Since President Donald Trump’s inauguration, multiple protests have been held outside U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson’s...
The U.S. has a single rare earths mine. Chinese export limits are energizing a push for more
OMAHA, Neb. — America’s only rare earths mine heard from anxious companies soon after China responded to President Donald Trump’s tariffs this month by limiting exports of those minerals used for military applications and in many high-tech devices. “Based on the number of phone calls we’re receiving, the effects have...
Judge won’t take further steps to enforce his order in AP case against Trump administration
WASHINGTON — A federal judge who ordered the Trump administration to stop blocking The Associated Press’ from presidential events refused Friday to take immediate steps to get White House officials to comply — an incremental development in a two-month dispute between the global news agency and administration officials over access....
U.S. seeks to turn deportations into an efficient business ‘like Amazon’
JENA, La. — Amid rural Louisiana’s crawfish farms, towering pine trees and cafes serving po’boys, nearly 7,000 people are waiting at immigration detention centers to learn whether they will be expelled from the United States. If President Donald Trump’s administration has its way, the capacity to hold tens of thousands...
A U.S. citizen was held for pickup by ICE even after proving he was born in the country
MIAMI — A U.S. citizen was arrested in Florida for allegedly being in the country illegally and held for pickup by immigration authorities even after his mother showed a judge her son’s birth certificate and the judge dismissed charges. The man was released after his case received widespread coverage. Juan...
Federal judge pausing Trump administration’s plans for mass layoffs at the CFPB
WASHINGTON — A federal judge who blocked the Trump administration from dismantling the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ruled Friday that the bureau can’t go forward immediately with plans to mass fire hundreds of employees. U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said she is “deeply concerned” that administration officials aren’t complying...
Students at Florida State gather at memorials, prepare to retrieve belongings after deadly shooting
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Students dropped off balloons, candles and teddy bears at a memorial Friday morning near Florida State University’s student union where a 20-year-old opened fire, killing two men and wounding six others. Some returned to retrieve their belongings less than a day after after they had barricaded classroom...
Mack Trucks to lay off hundreds of workers at Pa. plant, with company blaming tariffs, other factors
Mack Trucks will lay off 250 to 350 workers at its Lehigh Valley Operations plant in Lower Macungie Township because of tariffs and other economic factors. A Mack spokesperson said heavy-duty truck orders “continue to be negatively affected by market uncertainty about freight rates and demand, possible regulatory changes, and...
10,000 pages of records related to the 1968 assassination of Robert F. Kennedy are released
WASHINGTON — About 10,000 pages of records related to the 1968 assassination of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy were released Friday, continuing the disclosure of national secrets ordered by President Donald Trump. Kennedy was fatally shot on June 5, 1968, at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles moments after giving a...
NASA’s Lucy spacecraft is speeding toward another close encounter with an asteroid
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA’s Lucy spacecraft will swoop past a small asteroid this weekend as it makes its way to an even bigger prize: the unexplored swarms of asteroids out near Jupiter. It will be the second asteroid encounter for Lucy, launched in 2021 on a quest that will...
U.S. intelligence contradicts Trump claims linking gang to Venezuelan government to speed deportations
WASHINGTON — A new U.S. intelligence assessment found no coordination between Tren de Aragua and the Venezuelan government, contradicting statements that Trump administration officials have made to justify their invocation of the Alien Enemies Act and deporting Venezuelan migrants, according to U.S. officials. The classified assessment from the National Intelligence...
Trump floats U.S.-Europe meeting as Vance visits Italy for 2nd day of talks on tariffs
ROME (AP) — A back-to-back round of U.S.-Italy talks on tariffs shifted to Rome on Friday as U.S. Vice President JD Vance met with Premier Giorgia Meloni and the White House suggested a broader U.S.-Europe summit was under consideration. “I’ve been missing you,” Meloni jokingly told Vance as he entered...
Oklahoma City to mark 30 years since the bombing that killed 168 people and shook America
A bomb with a force powerful enough to instantly destroy much of a nine-story building shattered a quiet Oklahoma City morning and sent a shock wave through America. Saturday is the 30th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing, the deadliest homegrown attack in United States history that exposed a dark...
Rubio says U.S. will drop Ukraine-Russia peace efforts if no progress within days
PARIS — Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Friday that the U.S. may “move on” from trying to secure a Russia-Ukraine peace deal if there is no progress in the coming days, after months of efforts have failed to bring an end to the fighting. He spoke in Paris after...
Crews restore power to nearly all clients after island-wide blackout hit Puerto Rico
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Power was restored to 98.8% of clients early Friday after an island-wide blackout hit Puerto earlier this week, authorities said. More than 1.45 million customers had electricity less than 48 hours after the outage hit, according to Luma Energy, which oversees the transmission and distribution...
Israeli strikes kill at least 17 in Gaza; Huckabee makes 1st appearance as U.S. ambassador
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli airstrikes across Gaza killed at least 17 people early Friday including children, hospital workers said, as the new U.S. ambassador to Israel made his first public appearance in Jerusalem. Among the dead were 10 people in Jabaliya, including eight from the same house, according...
3 tourists among 4 killed after Italian cable car crashes to the ground near Naples
ROME — Three tourists were among four people who were killed when a cable car crashed south of Naples, an Italian official said Friday. A British woman and an Israeli woman were among the three foreign victims identified since the accident on Thursday, said Marco De Rosa, the spokesperson for...
Sen. Van Hollen meets with Abrego Garcia in El Salvador amid court fight over U.S. return
SAN SALVADOR — Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen met with Kilmar Abrego Garcia on Thursday evening in El Salvador, coming face to face with the wrongly deported man after two days in the country pushing for his release. The Democratic senator posted a photo of the meeting on X but...
Deadly U.S. airstrike on Yemeni oil port appears to escalate Trump’s campaign against the Houthis
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A U.S. airstrike on an important oil port held by Yemen’s Houthi rebels killed more than 70 people and wounded many others, marking a major escalation in the military campaign President Donald Trump launched last month against the Iranian-backed group. The overnight strike on the...
Supreme Court keeps hold on Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship but sets May arguments
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday kept on hold President Donald Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship but agreed to hear arguments on the issue in May. Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship for the children of people who are in the U.S. illegally has been halted nationwide by...
Russia’s top court lifts terror group designation on Afghanistan’s Taliban
MOSCOW — Russia’s Supreme Court on Thursday lifted a ban on Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban, a group that was designated as a terrorist organization more than two decades ago. The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops were in the final weeks of withdrawing from...
