Month: August 2023

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s defense ministry is requesting a nearly 12% budget increase that includes two warships with advanced radar and long-range cruise missiles. The record $52.5 billion request for the next fiscal year comes as Japan further fortifies its military in the face of North Korean threats and Chinese

By COLLIN BINKLEY AP Education Writer FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — Diego Fonseca looked at the computer and took a breath. It was his final attempt at the math placement test for his first year of college. His first three tries put him in pre-calculus, a blow for a student who aced honors physics and computer

By HYUNG-JIN KIM Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea said Thursday its latest missile launches simulated “scorched earth” nuclear strikes on South Korea and that it’s also been rehearsing an occupation of its rival’s territory in the event of conflict. Pyongyang has previously tested nuclear-capable missiles and described how it would use

By TERRY TANG Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — Andrea Nissen is trying to prepare her 65-year-old husband, who has Alzheimer’s disease, for a solo flight from Arizona to Oklahoma to visit family. She worries about travelers and airport officials misinterpreting his forgetfulness or habit of getting in people’s personal space, and feels guilty about not

By JAKE BLEIBERG and PAUL J. WEBER Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Unexplained Caribbean and European trips that cost taxpayers more than $90,000. A $600 sports coat paid for by an event organizer. A $45 office Christmas cake taken as his own. These are among the perks that Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel has visited a city in Fukushima, where he ate a seafood lunch with the mayor, talked to fishermen and stocked up on local produce to show they are safe after the release of treated radioactive wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear

By CURT ANDERSON Associated Press Last year it was Hurricane Ian that drew a bead on Tampa Bay before abruptly shifting east to strike southwest Florida more than 130 miles (210 kilometers) away. This time it was Hurricane Idalia, which caused some serious flooding as it sideswiped the bay area but packed much more punch

By TRÂN NGUYỄN Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s planned transformation of San Quentin State Prison into a rehabilitation facility after decades as the home for death row inmates is being shaped by a hand-picked advisory council that is allowed to meet in secret. The Democratic governor wants to develop California’s

By CHEYANNE MUMPHREY AP Education Writer Before the fatal shootings of three Black residents in Jacksonville, Florida, over the weekend, the gunman, a young white man with swastikas painted on his rifle, pulled into a parking lot at Edward Waters University and began putting on tactical gear. Students reported him, a campus police officer approached

By DAVID KOENIG AP Airlines Writer DALLAS (AP) — By some measures, air travelers have enjoyed a less stressful summer than last year, but canceled flights remain elevated as airlines face their last big test of the prime vacation season: Labor Day weekend. The Federal Aviation Administration predicts that this will be the third busiest