Associated Press stories, Page 8
Threat of equine virus looms over major rodeo event in Las Vegas
LAS VEGAS — Declaring Las Vegas a “cowboy town,” dozens of riders on horseback have traditionally kicked off the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo by galloping into the arena and then lining up their horses side by side as the riders tip their hats to cheers. But an equine virus outbreak...
Trump administration delays decision on federal protections for monarch butterflies
MADISON, Wis. — President Donald Trump’s administration has delayed a decision on whether to extend federal protections to monarch butterflies indefinitely despite years of warnings from conservationists that populations are shrinking. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced during the waning days of then-President Joe Biden’s term in December 2024...
Washington flooding forces an entire city to evacuate as rivers top historic highs
BURLINGTON, Wash. — National Guard troops went door-to-door early Friday to evacuate a farming city north of Seattle as severe flooding throughout Western Washington stranded families on rooftops, washed over bridges and ripped homes from their foundations. Days of torrential rain have swelled rivers to record or near-record levels, with...
Church Nativity scenes add zip ties, gas masks and ICE to protest immigration raids
DEDHAM, Mass. — One baby Jesus lays in a manger in the snow, wrapped in a silver emergency blanket with his wrists zip-tied. Mary stands nearby outside the Lake Street Church in Evanston, Illinois, wearing a plastic gas mask and flanked by Roman soldiers in tactical vests labeled “ICE.” In...
Chinese whistleblower now living in U.S. is being hunted by Beijing with help from U.S. tech
MIDLAND, Texas — Retired Chinese official Li Chuanliang was recuperating from cancer on a Korean resort island when he got an urgent call: Don’t return to China, a friend warned. You’re now a fugitive. Days later, a stranger snapped a photo of Li in a cafe. Terrified South Korea would...
Crypto mogul Do Kwon sentenced to 15 years in prison for $40 billion stablecoin fraud
NEW YORK — Onetime cryptocurrency mogul Do Kwon was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in prison after a $40 billion crash revealed his crypto ecosystem to be a fraud. Victims said the 34-year-old financial technology whiz weaponized their trust to convince them that the investment — secretly propped up by...
Kirk Cousins leads Falcons to comeback win over reeling Buccaneers
TAMPA, Fla. — Maybe Kirk Cousins should’ve been starting the entire season. Cousins threw three touchdown passes to Kyle Pitts Sr., and Zane Gonzalez kicked a 43-yard field goal as time expired to complete the Atlanta Falcons’ rally for a 29-28 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday night....
Japan issues tsunami advisory after 6.7 magnitude quake in country’s northeast
TOKYO — Japan on Friday issued a tsunami advisory after a 6.7 magnitude earthquake shook the country’s northeast, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. The quake occurred off the east coast of Aomori prefecture, in the north of Honshu, the main Japanese island, at a depth of 12.4 miles at...
Trump signs executive order to block state AI regulations
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday aimed at blocking states from crafting their own regulations for artificial intelligence, saying the burgeoning industry is at risk of being stifled by a patchwork of onerous rules while in a battle with Chinese competitors for supremacy. Members of Congress from both...
House votes to nullify Trump order and restore bargaining rights for federal workers
WASHINGTON — Nearly two dozen House Republicans joined Democrats Thursday to pass a bill that would restore collective bargaining rights for hundreds of thousands of federal employees, an attempt to overturn an executive order that President Donald Trump issued earlier this year. The measure passed 231-195 after reaching the floor...
Utah Mammoth center Logan Cooley is out at least 8 weeks with a lower-body injury
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Mammoth center Logan Cooley is expected to miss a minimum of eight weeks with what the team is calling a lower-body injury. General manager Bill Armstrong announced Cooley’s timeline Thursday. Cooley, 21 and a West Mifflin native, was injured Dec. 5 in Vancouver when he...
Tennessee coach Josh Heupel hires Penn State’s Jim Knowles as defensive coordinator
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee coach Josh Heupel hired Jim Knowles as the Volunteers’ defensive coordinator. Heupel moved quickly after firing coordinator Tim Banks on Monday, and the Volunteers coach said Thursday that hiring Knowles was a priority from the start. “Jim has a proven track record of developing elite defenses...
Guardians sign ex-Pirates reliever Colin Holderman to $1.5 million, 1-year deal
CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Guardians added to their bullpen Thursday, signing right-hander Colin Holderman to a one-year, $1.5 million contract. The 30-year old Holderman spent the past four seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, then became a free agent three weeks ago when the Pirates failed to offer a 2026 contract....
Indiana Republicans block Trump’s redistricting push in rare break with the president
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana’s Republican-led senate voted against a redrawn congressional map Thursday that would have favored their party in the 2026 elections, despite months of pressure by President Donald Trump for a rare mid-cycle redistricting. Twenty-one senators from the Republican supermajority and all 10 of the chamber’s Democrats voted down...
Bears look to bounce back against Garrett, Browns with rematch against Packers looming
CHICAGO — The Chicago Bears were rolling along and on top of the NFC before they got tripped up at Green Bay last week. They will get their shot at payback when Jordan Love and the Packers visit Soldier Field next week. But before they can turn their attention toward...
Homeland Security Secretary Noem defends Trump’s hard-line immigration policies under scrutinyVideo
WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defiantly defended the Trump administration’s hard-line immigration policies on Thursday during a House committee hearing, portraying migrants as a major threat faced by the nation that justifies a crackdown that has seen widespread arrests, deportations and a dizzying pace of restrictions on foreigners....
Army tries to turn the tables on No. 22 Navy when they renew their rivalry in Baltimore
BALTIMORE — At most schools, players try to stay hyper-focused on the task at hand. Future opponents can wait. No looking ahead. It is, needless to say, different at Army and Navy. “We say ‘Beat Navy’ for 365 days of the year,” Army linebacker Gavin Shields said. “It’s the whole...
The man accused of killing Charlie Kirk appears in court for 1st time as judge weighs media access
PROVO, Utah — The 22-year-old Utah man charged with killing Charlie Kirk made his first in-person court appearance Thursday as his attorneys push to further limit media access in the high-profile criminal case. A Utah judge is weighing the public’s right to know details in the prosecution of Tyler Robinson...
Justice Department again fails to re-indict New York Attorney General Letitia James
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A grand jury declined for a second time to re-indict New York Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday, refusing to resurrect a mortgage fraud prosecution encouraged by President Donald Trump, according to a person familiar with the matter. It’s another major blow to the Justice Department after...
NASCAR settles federal antitrust case, gives all teams the permanent charters they wanted
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Michael Jordan and NASCAR chairman Jim France stood side-by-side on the steps of a federal courthouse as if they were old friends following a stunning settlement Thursday of a bruising antitrust case in which the Basketball Hall of Famer was the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit accusing...
Sherrone Moore was a once-promising coach until sudden and stunning fall from grace at MichiganVideo
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Sherrone Moore’s rise was stirring, a rugged lineman at Oklahoma who climbed the ranks to lead Michigan, the winningest program in college football, and a rare Black head coach at the top of the sport. “If you work your tail off, dreams can come true,” Moore...
Noem links seizure of an oil tanker off Venezuela to U.S. antidrug efforts
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Thursday linked the seizure of an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela to the Trump administration’s counterdrug efforts in Latin America as tensions escalate with the government of President Nicolás Maduro. Noem’s assertion, which came during her testimony to the House Homeland Security...
Tens of thousands ordered to flee flooding after torrential rain in Pacific Northwest
MOUNT VERNON, Wash. — Surging floodwaters turned farmland into vast pools, washed out bridges and stranded people Thursday, with evacuation orders issued for tens of thousands of Washington state residents and authorities hoping levees prevent far worse damage. “The flooding levels we’re looking at are potentially historic in nature, so...
Senate rejects extension of health care subsidies as costs are set to rise for millions of Americans
WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday rejected legislation to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits, essentially guaranteeing that millions of Americans will see a steep rise in costs at the beginning of the year. As Republicans and Democrats have failed to find compromise, senators voted on two partisan bills instead...
Judge orders Kilmar Abrego Garcia to be immediately released from immigration detentionVideo
GREENBELT, Md. — Kilmar Abrego Garcia must be freed from immigration detention while he fights to stay in the U.S., a judge ruled Thursday, handing a major victory to the immigrant whose wrongful deportation to a notorious prison in El Salvador made him a flashpoint of the Trump administration’s immigration...
