U.S./World category, Page 554
NATO chief eyes bigger defense budgets, hard spending target
BRUSSELS — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday urged the 30 member countries to commit to spending at least 2% of their gross domestic product on defense by a set date, as Russia’s war on Ukraine and other threats eat into military spending. NATO allies agreed in 2014, after Russia...
Retail sales jump as Americans defy inflation, rate hikes
WASHINGTON — America’s consumers rebounded last month from a weak holiday shopping season by boosting their spending at stores and restaurants at the fastest pace in nearly two years, underscoring the economy’s resilience in the face of higher prices and multiple interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. The government...
Thief admits stealing nearly 200,000 chocolate Easter eggs
LONDON — A man who prosecutors said broke into a U.K. industrial park to steal almost 200,000 chocolate Easter eggs has pleaded guilty to theft and criminal damage. Prosecutors said Tuesday that Joby Pool, 32, used a metal grinder to break through a gate at an industrial park in Telford,...
In Trump probe, feds seek to pierce attorney-client privilege
WASHINGTON — Justice Department prosecutors investigating the mishandling of classified documents at Donald Trump’s Florida estate are seeking to pierce the attorney-client privilege and want to again question one of the former president’s lawyers before a grand jury, a person familiar with the matter said Tuesday night. The privilege protects...
Fraternity president, science student among Michigan State shooting victimsVideo
EAST LANSING, Mich. — One student was a fraternity chapter president. Another was a science student with fond memories of her days as a high-school athlete — and the third was a frequent volunteer who wanted to become a pediatrician. Family and friends mourned the deaths of three Michigan State...
Court nixes Fox News’ bid to end voting tech firm’s lawsuit
NEW YORK — A New York appeals court on Tuesday rejected Fox News’ bid to shut down a multibillion-dollar defamation lawsuit accusing the network of spreading lies that a voting-technology company helped “steal” the 2020 election from then-U.S. President Donald Trump. A five-judge panel ruled unanimously against the network, host...
Winner of $2B Powerball jackpot revealed in California
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The winner of November’s record-high $2.04 billion Powerball jackpot was identified in California on Tuesday, the state lottery announced. California Lottery Director Alva Johnson said the winner was a man named Edwin Castro, but released no other information about him, including his hometown. Castro declined to appear...
Woman accused in dismemberment slaying attacks her attorneyVideo
GREEN BAY, Wis. — A woman accused in a grisly killing and dismemberment case in Wisconsin attacked her attorney Tuesday during a court hearing, moments after a judge agreed to delay her trial. Taylor Schabusiness, 25, was seated in a Brown County circuit court when her attorney, Quinn Jolly, asked...
Man who used stun gun on cop in Jan. 6 riot pleads guilty
A California man pleaded guilty on Tuesday to using a stun gun to attack a Washington, D.C., police officer who was brutally injured while trying to defend the U.S. Capitol from the angry mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters on Jan. 6, 2021. Daniel Rodriguez, 40, of Fontana admitted to...
N.J. Gov. Murphy says state will expand AP Black history classes
TRENTON, N.J. — Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy said Tuesday that his administration is expanding Advanced Placement African American Studies courses next year from one school to 26 in New Jersey after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis blocked the course from being taught in public schools in Florida. Murphy’s move comes about...
Kyiv clamors for fighter jets as war nears ‘critical’ phase
BRUSSELS — Ukraine on Tuesday renewed its appeal to Western countries for fighter jets to help frustrate Moscow’s invasion, as senior defense officials from the United States and its NATO allies said the war with Russia is approaching a critical stage. With the war set to enter its second year...
Struggle to get aid to Turkey and Syria after massive earthquake
JINDERIS, Syria — Aid agencies and governments stepped up efforts Tuesday to get help to earthquake-devastated parts of Turkey and Syria, but a week after the disaster many of those left homeless were still struggling to meet basic needs, like finding shelter from the bitter cold. The situation was particularly...
Rumors swirl about balloons, UFOs as officials stay mum
WASHINGTON — Maybe they came from China. Maybe from somewhere farther away. A lot farther away. The downing of four aerial devices by U.S. warplanes has touched off rampant misinformation about the objects, their origin and their purpose, showing how complicated world events and a lack of information can quickly...
18% drop since 2020 in people with reported medical debt
WASHINGTON — The number of people with medical debt on their credit reports fell by 8.2 million — or 17.9% — between 2020 and 2022, according to a report Tuesday from the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. White House officials said in a separate draft report that the two-year drop...
1st missile strike at aerial object over Lake Huron missed
BRUSSELS — The first U.S. missile fired at an unidentified aerial object over Lake Huron missed the target and “landed harmlessly” in the water before a second one successfully hit, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday. The acknowledgment by Gen. Mark Milley of the errant strike...
Ohio proposal: Get parents’ OK for kids to use social media
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s governor wants the state to require parental consent for kids under 16 to get new accounts on TikTok, Snapchat and other social media platforms. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine’s two-year budget proposal would create a law that social media companies must obtain a parent’s permission for children...
Ford to cut 3,800 jobs in Europe amid shift to EV future
Ford Motor Co. plans to cut 3,800 jobs in Europe, a move the Dearborn automaker announced Tuesday as part of a broader effort to revitalize its Europe business amid “rapidly changing market conditions” and an increasingly competitive electric-vehicle market. The company plans to downsize its European engineering footprint by cutting...
$50M shrine to honor slain priest, 1st U.S. Catholic martyr
OKLAHOMA CITY — The birth of Stanley Francis Rother was by all accounts ordinary, aside from the weather. The Catholic farm boy came into the world during an Oklahoma dust storm. But in life — and in death — he was extraordinary. The 46-year-old priest, shot to death in Guatemala...
Nikki Haley announces presidential campaign, challenging Trump
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and United Nations ambassador, announced her candidacy for president on Tuesday, becoming the first major challenger to former President Donald Trump for the 2024 Republican nomination. The announcement, delivered in a video, marks an about-face for the ex-Trump Cabinet official,...
Amid ChatGPT outcry, some teachers are inviting AI to class
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Under the fluorescent lights of a fifth grade classroom in Lexington, Kentucky, Donnie Piercey instructed his 23 students to try and outwit the “robot” that was churning out writing assignments. The robot was the new artificial intelligence tool ChatGPT, which can generate everything from essays and haikus...
New Zealand declares emergency as Cyclone Gabrielle easesVideo
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — The New Zealand government declared a national state of emergency Tuesday after Cyclone Gabrielle battered the country’s north, leaving widespread flooding and destruction. A firefighter was missing and another was rescued with critical injuries after they were caught in a landslide overnight near the country’s largest...
GOP launches probe into covid origins with letter to Fauci
WASHINGTON — House Republicans kicked off an investigation Monday into the origins of covid-19 by issuing a series of letters to current and former Biden administration officials for documents and testimony. The Republican chairmen of the House Oversight Committee and the subcommittee on the coronavirus pandemic requested information from several...
Police seek motive of gunman who killed 3 at Michigan StateVideo
EAST LANSING, Mich. — The gunman who killed three students and wounded five at Michigan State University was a 43-year-old with a previous gun violation who fatally shot himself after an hourslong manhunt that ended in a confrontation with police miles from campus, officials said Tuesday. Investigators still were sorting...
Feds probe United plane’s December dip near ocean off Hawaii
Federal investigators are seeking more information about an incident in which a United Airlines plane dropped to within about 800 feet of the ocean surface after taking off from Hawaii. United says the pilots are getting additional training. The Boeing 777 dropped more than 1,400 feet before climbing again, according...
Mystery aerial objects raise questions about national security threatVideo
WASHINGTON — As U.S. Navy divers and salvage crews plucked pieces of downed aerial objects from the Arctic Sea to the kinder waters off South Carolina, the Biden administration on Monday was racing to learn what the latest mystery vessels were and who launched them. U.S. fighter jets shot down...
