Biden calls for up to 3 oil and gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico, disappointing all sides
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s administration on Friday proposed up to three oil and gas lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico but none in Alaska as it tries to navigate between energy companies seeking greater oil and gas production and environmental activists who want Biden to shut down new...
Traveling with Milley: A reporter recalls how America’s top soldier was most at home with his troops
STE MERE EGLISE, France — The soldier had target fixation. He had three beers in hand, a full day of leave and a group of young women waiting. But a crowd of Army uniforms also gathered for this French village’s D-Day celebrations stood in the way. The soldier navigated another...
Leader of Spain’s conservatives fails in his 2nd attempt in parliament to become premier
MADRID — The leader of Spain’s conservatives on Friday failed for the second time in three days to get parliamentary support for his bid to become prime minister following his party’s victory in a national election. In a vote in the Congress of Deputies in Madrid, the Spanish parliament’s lower...
Dozens dead after blast in southwestern Pakistan at rally celebrating birthday of Islam’s prophet
QUETTA, Pakistan — A suspected suicide bomber blew himself up among a crowd of people celebrating the Prophet Muhammad’s birthday in southwestern Pakistan on Friday, killing at least 52 people and wounding nearly 70 others, authorities said, in one of the country’s deadliest attacks targeting civilians in months. An open...
A green card processing change means U.S. could lose thousands of faith leaders from abroad
COLUMBIA HEIGHTS, Minn. — For more than two hours on a Sunday afternoon, the Rev. Gustavo Castillo led the Pentecostal congregation he’s been growing in this Minneapolis suburb through prayer, Scriptures, rousing music and sometimes tearful testimonials. But it all may end soon. A sudden procedural change in how the...
U.S. quietly acknowledges Iran satellite successfully reached orbit as tensions remain high
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The United States has quietly acknowledged that Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard successfully put an imaging satellite into orbit this week in a launch that resembled others previously criticized by Washington as helping Tehran’s ballistic missile program. The U.S. military has not responded to repeated requests...
Africa’s Eswatini, one of the last absolute monarchies, holds vote
CAPE TOWN, South Africa — The small southern African nation of Eswatini was holding elections Friday to decide part of the makeup of its parliament, even as its extremely wealthy king retains absolute power, political parties are banned and elected representatives can merely advise a monarch whose family has reigned...
Ohio couple accused of false Alzheimer’s diagnoses get prison terms for fraud convictions
TOLEDO, Ohio — A former director of an Ohio memory-loss clinic accused by dozens of patients of falsely diagnosing them with Alzheimer’s disease has been sentenced on federal fraud charges, along with her physician husband. Sherry-Ann Jenkins received nearly six years in prison on Tuesday, while Oliver Jenkins got a...
Man arrested in killing of Baltimore tech entrepreneur Pava LaPere was released from prison in 2022Video
BALTIMORE — Baltimore police have arrested a man in the killing of a Baltimore tech entrepreneur last week as authorities alleged the suspect was in the midst of a violent rampage that also included a recent rape, arson and attempted murder. Jason Billingsley, who is charged with first-degree murder in...
PennWest University unveils its plan to seek a new president
PennWest University announced that it is embarking on a search for a successor to president Dale-Elizabeth Pehrsson, who stepped away from the job in February, effective immediately. “When I say embark, I mean we’re at the very, very beginning stages. We will communicate more as we go along,” PennWest Council...
Trump won’t try to move Georgia case to federal court after judge rejected similar bid by Meadows
ATLANTA — Former President Donald Trump will not seek to get his Georgia election interference case transferred to state court, his attorneys said in a filing Thursday, three weeks after a judge rejected a similar attempt by the former president’s White House chief of staff. The notice filed in federal...
Pa. Veterans’ Memorial to reopen at Indiantown Gap National Cemetery after repairs
The Pennsylvania Veterans’ Memorial at Indiantown Gap National Cemetery is ready to reopen to the public. The memorial near Annville, Lebanon County, was closed on Oct. 7, 2022, for structural repairs. It will reopen to the public on Monday. “The memorial, which was dedicated in 2001, is nationally recognized as...
House GOP’s impeachment witnesses say there’s no evidence yet that Biden committed a crimeVideo
WASHINGTON — House Republicans launched a formal impeachment hearing Thursday against President Joe Biden, promising to “provide accountability” as they probe the family finances and lucrative business dealings of his son Hunter and make their case to the public, colleagues and a skeptical Senate. The chairmen of the Oversight, Judiciary,...
Court rejects Donald Trump’s bid to delay trial in wake of fraud ruling that threatens his business
NEW YORK — An appeals court Thursday rejected Donald Trump’s bid to delay a civil trial in a lawsuit brought by New York’s attorney general, allowing the case to proceed days after a judge ruled the former president committed years of fraud and stripped him of some companies as punishment....
Christie calls Trump ‘Donald Duck,’ DeSantis knocks former president and other debate takeaways
Seven Republican presidential hopefuls gathered at the Reagan Library in California on Wednesday for the second of the party’s primary debates. The contest’s dominant front-runner — former President Donald Trump — skipped the event again. With less than four months until the Iowa caucuses officially jumpstart the GOP nomination process,...
Pa. liquor stores offering up several varieties of Japanese whisky
Pennsylvania’s Fine Wine & Good Spirits store is adding some international flavor to the whisky section this month, with several Japanese varieties available at select stores and online. The crown jewel in the group, at least based on price, is an 18-year-0ld Hakushu single-malt peated whisky created to celebrate Suntory...
3 killed in shootings and an explosion as deadly violence continues in Sweden
STOCKHOLM — Three people were killed overnight in separate incidents in Sweden as deadly violence linked to a feud between criminal gangs escalated. Late Wednesday, an 18-year-old man was shot dead in a Stockholm suburb. Hours later, one man was killed and another was wounded in a shooting in Jordbro,...
Kari Lake, prominent Trump supporter and election denier, will launch U.S. Senate campaign in Arizona
PHOENIX — Republican Kari Lake, a Donald Trump ally who has refused to acknowledge her loss in last year’s race for Arizona governor, will soon launch her campaign for the U.S. Senate seat held by independent Kyrsten Sinema, a senior adviser said Thursday. Lake’s entrance in one of next year’s...
Powerball jackpot rises to $925 million after another drawing without a big winner
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Powerball jackpot climbed to an estimated $925 million after no players hit it big Wednesday night, continuing a stretch of lottery futility that has lasted for more than two months. The winning numbers were: 1, 7, 46, 47, 63 and red Powerball 7. The jackpot...
House Republicans are set to make their case for Biden impeachment inquiry at first hearing
WASHINGTON — Republicans have insisted for months that they have the grounds to launch impeachment proceedings against President Joe Biden. On Thursday, they will begin formally making their case to the public and their skeptical colleagues in the Senate. The chairmen of Oversight, Judiciary, and Ways and Means will hold...
A government shutdown is nearing this weekend. What does it mean, who’s hit and what’s next?
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government is just days away from a shutdown that will disrupt many services, squeeze workers and roil politics as Republicans in the House, fueled by hard-right demands, force a confrontation over federal spending. While some government entities will be exempt — Social Security checks, for...
American soldier who crossed into North Korea arrives back in U.S., video appears to show
SAN ANTONIO — The American soldier who sprinted into North Korea across the heavily fortified border between the Koreas more than two months ago arrived back in the U.S. early Thursday, video appeared to show. North Korea abruptly announced Wednesday that it would expel Pvt. Travis King. His return was...
Donald Trump skipped the GOP debate again. This time, his rivals took him on directlyVideo
SIMI VALLEY, Calif. — Several of Donald Trump’s rivals stepped up their attacks against him in Wednesday’s second Republican presidential debate, urgently trying to dent the former president’s commanding primary lead during an event that often seemed like an undercard without him. Trump went to Michigan, aiming to capitalize on...
For millions, the return of federal student loan payments brings angst
Marin Exler, who grew up in Crafton, held no illusions that her college education would be free, nor did she procrastinate paying down the debt of almost $120,000 that she incurred at Case Western Reserve University. She worked multiple campus jobs, made bigger-than-required loan payments after graduating, refinanced double-digit interest...
Report: Elon Musk to cut X election integrity team by half
Elon Musk’s social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, reportedly plans to gut its election integrity team and dump the group’s boss — a decision that has caused concern as the United States and countries around the world prepare for major elections. X’s worldwide cuts will reduce the team’s...
