Texas governor criticizes Houston energy as utility says power will be mostly restored by Wednesday
AUSTIN, Texs — The majority of Houston outages that followed Hurricane Beryl should be fixed within the next two days, the city’s main utility company said Monday as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott threatened to punish CenterPoint Energy even after the lights come back. The Texas Public Utility Commission, the state’s...
Bolivia’s beleaguered president announces natural gas discovery, promising a boon for the country
LA PAZ, Bolivia — Bolivia’s embattled president on Monday announced the discovery of vast natural gas reserves, describing it as the biggest find in nearly two decades that could help the cash-strapped country reverse its falling production. President Luis Arce called the trove just north of the capital a “mega...
Protesters rally at GOP convention for abortion and immigrant rights, end to war in Gaza
MILWAUKEE — Hundreds of demonstrators converged Monday on downtown Milwaukee to protest around the Republican National Convention, following through on their long-standing plans to rally outside the site despite the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. The protests were peaceful, as organizers had promised they would be. A wide...
California is 1st state to ban school rules requiring parents get notified of child’s pronoun change
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California became the first U.S. state to bar school districts from requiring staff to notify parents of their child’s gender identification change under a law signed Monday by Gov. Gavin Newsom. The law bans school rules requiring teachers and other staff to disclose a student’s gender identity...
Scientists have confirmed a cave on the moon that could be used to shelter future explorers
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Scientists have confirmed a cave on the moon, not far from where Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed 55 years ago, and suspect there are hundreds more that could house future astronauts. An Italian-led team reported Monday that there’s evidence for a sizable cave accessible from...
Some call for unity, political civility after Trump assassination attempt. Can it hold?
It takes a hot stove time to cool. Since Saturday’s attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump in Butler County, some have called on politicians to tone their rhetoric to prevent further violence. But others fear American politics have become so overheated it will take time to deescalate the situation...
Georgia county says slave descendants can’t use referendum to challenge rezoning of island community
SAVANNAH, Ga. — Zoning changes by a Georgia county that some residents say threaten one of the South’s last Gullah-Geechee communities of Black slave descendants can’t be challenged with a referendum, an attorney said Monday in a letter to the judge considering a petition by local voters. Though Georgia’s state...
T-shirts with image of Trump raising his fist after assassination attempt are for sale in China
BANGKOK — Images of the moment have already been splashed across the world’s front pages and papered many corners of the internet — former President Donald Trump, ear bleeding, with his right hand clenched in a fist above the Secret Service agents surrounding him after he was shot. And now...
Ruling keeps abortion question on ballot in South Dakota
A state court judge’s ruling Monday keeps an abortion-rights question on the November ballot in South Dakota. Judge John Pekas dismissed a lawsuit filed by an anti-abortion group, Life Defense Fund, that sought to have the question removed even though supporters turned in more than enough valid signatures to put...
Jury finishes 2nd day of deliberations without a verdict at Sen. Bob Menendez’s bribery trial
NEW YORK — A jury deliberating over 18 charges at the bribery trial of Sen. Bob Menendez in New York City asked the judge on Monday if unanimity is required to acquit “on a single count.” Hours later they recessed for the day without reaching a verdict. The jurors sent...
U.N. body that regulates the deep sea tackles proposed mining code amid growing concerns
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Tense deliberations over how and if to allow deep sea mining unfolded Monday in Jamaica as at least one company threatened to apply for permission before rules and regulations are in place. More than two dozen countries have called for a ban, pause or moratorium...
New York county’s latest trans athlete ban draws lawsuits from attorney general, civil rights group
MINEOLA, N.Y. — The New York attorney general and the New York Civil Liberties Union on Monday sued a county on Long Island over its latest move to ban transgender females from playing on women’s sports teams at county facilities. The separate lawsuits came on the same day Nassau County...
Biden orders Secret Service to protect RFK Jr. after attempt on Trump’s life
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden has directed the U.S. Secret Service to protect independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., after the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, the Homeland Security secretary said Monday. Kennedy is a longshot to win Electoral College votes, much less the presidency. But his campaign events...
Biden sits for TV interview as he gingerly moves to resume campaigning after attack on Trump
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden was sitting for yet another high-stakes interview at another key moment for his candidacy as his reelection team gingerly determines how to resume full-blown campaigning after the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Biden was being interviewed by Lester Holt of NBC News, a...
Cheering GOP delegates nominate Trump for president as he announces Vance as running mate
MILWAUKEE — Cheering GOP delegates formally nominated Donald Trump for president at Monday’s Republican National Convention kickoff, less than two days after an assassination attempt on the former president and shortly after he announced Ohio Sen. JD Vance as his vice presidential running mate. Their vote makes it official that...
Trump picks Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate
MILWAUKEE — Former President Donald Trump chose Sen. JD Vance of Ohio as his running mate on Monday, picking a onetime critic who became a loyal ally and is now the first millennial to join a major-party ticket at a time of deep concern about the advanced age of America’s...
What to watch as the Republican National Convention kicks off days after Trump assassination attempt
MILWAUKEE — The Republican National Convention starts Monday in Milwaukee, two days after Donald Trump was injured in an assassination attempt, with the violent scene at his campaign rally horrifying the country and amplifying already intense political divisions. Trump and his advisers are pledging resilience in the face of the...
Trump expected to announce VP pick today; his choice takes on added significance in shooting’s aftermath
MILWAUKEE — Donald Trump said he plans to announce his vice presidential pick on Monday, the first day of the Republican National Convention. Fox News says the announcement is expected sometime in the 4 p.m. hour. It remains unclear whether the assassination attempt Saturday at his Pennsylvania rally has changed...
Minutes after Trump shooting, misinformation started flying. Here are the facts
WASHINGTON — Within minutes of the gunfire, the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump spawned a vast sea of claims — some outlandish, others contradictory — reflecting the frightening uncertainties of the moment as well as America’s fevered, polarized political climate. The cloudburst of speculation and conjecture as Americans...
2nd phase of NRA civil trial over nonprofit’s spending begins in NYC
NEW YORK — The second phase of the civil trial against the National Rifle Association and its top executives began Monday in Manhattan, with New York Attorney General Letitia James seeking an independent monitor to oversee the powerful gun rights group. The Democrat also is seeking to ban Wayne LaPierre,...
Federal judge dismisses Trump classified documents case over concerns with prosecutor’s appointment
WASHINGTON — The federal judge presiding over the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump in Florida dismissed the prosecution on Monday, siding with defense lawyers who said the special counsel who filed the charges was illegally appointed by the Justice Department. The decision by U.S. District Judge Aileen...
Suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels strikes a ship in the Red Sea
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A suspected attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels targeted a ship in the Red Sea on Monday, as a new U.S. aircraft carrier approached the region to provide security for the key international trade route that has been under assault since the Israel-Hamas war erupted nine...
Azerbaijan reopens its embassy in Iran as the countries try to ease tensions
TEHRAN, Iran — The embassy of Azerbaijan in Tehran resumed its work Monday after more than a year of negotiations between the two countries to ease tensions, Iran’s semi-official media outlets reported. A source in the Azeri embassy in Tehran told The Associated Press that the embassy has resumed its...
World’s rarest whale may have washed up on New Zealand beach, possibly shedding clues on species
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Spade-toothed whales are the world’s rarest, with no live sightings ever recorded. No one knows how many there are, what they eat, or even where they live in the vast expanse of the southern Pacific Ocean. However, scientists in New Zealand may have finally caught a...
Memorable moments from the Republican National Convention
MacArthur’s bad speech 1952 Before the advent of primary elections, party insiders chose the presidential candidates after hearing from all the candidates at the convention. Gen. Douglas MacArthur delivered a keynote speech during the 1952 convention in Chicago that was so bad it boosted his rival, Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, to...
