AP-National

By MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Early estimates suggest flu shots are performing OK in the current U.S. winter flu season. The vaccines were around 40% effective in preventing adults from getting sick enough from the flu that they had to go to a doctor’s office, clinic or hospital. Children who

By LISA MASCARO and MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Long before Sen. Mitch McConnell surprised colleagues Wednesday announcing he would step down as the Republican leader this fall, he knew the time had come. Hard-right Republican senators aligned with Donald Trump wanted to oust him. Trump was easily becoming the party’s frontrunner

By LEAH WILLINGHAM Associated Press CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia’s Republican-controlled House of Delegates has approved a bill that doctors treating transgender youth in the state say would prevent the prescription of certain medical interventions like hormone therapy to patients at risk for self-harm or suicide. The proposal, which now heads to the Senate,

By The Associated Press Stacy Wakefield, the widow of former Boston Red Sox pitcher and two-time World Series champion Tim Wakefield, has died. Her family said in a statement released through the Red Sox that she died Wednesday at her Massachusetts home, less than five months after her husband died at the age of 57.

By AMY BETH HANSON and MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Republican Rep. Matt Rosendale says he will seek reelection to his U.S. House seat representing eastern Montana. Rosendale, a member of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus, announced his reelection bid Wednesday after abandoning a short-lived Senate campaign under pressure from party leaders.

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Richard Lewis, an acclaimed comedian known for exploring his neuroses in frantic, stream-of-consciousness diatribes while dressed in all-black, leading to his nickname “The Prince of Pain,” has died. He was 76. Lewis, who revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2023, died at

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS Associated Press JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant said at a party weeks before leaving office that he had been offered a financial stake in a company that received welfare money to try to develop a concussion drug and was connected to retired NFL quarterback Brett Favre, according

By JONEL ALECCIA AP Health Writer Fast-food wrappers and packaging that contain so-called forever chemicals are no longer being sold in the U.S. The Food and Drug Administration says the voluntary effort that began in 2020 between the agency and U.S. food manufacturers has been completed. PFAS chemicals have been linked to health problems, including

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Kansas City Chiefs superfan known as “ChiefsAholic” pleaded guilty Wednesday to a string of robberies and attempted robberies of banks and credit unions in multiple states. Xaviar Michael Babudar, 29, pleaded guilty in federal court in Kansas City, Missouri, to one count each of money laundering, transporting stolen property

By WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMY MAGDY Associated Press RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Aid convoys carrying food reached northern Gaza this week, Israeli officials said Wednesday, the first major delivery in a month to the devastated, isolated area, where the U.N. has warned of worsening starvation among hundreds of thousands of Palestinians amid Israel’s offensive.

By DAVID SHARP Associated Press AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Democrats in the Maine Legislature have unveiled sweeping gun violence measures, including a 72-hour waiting period for most gun purchases and $17.5 million in spending for community mental health programs. The proposals unveiled Wednesday add to firearm legislation and mental health spending already proposed by the

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court appeared torn Wednesday about a challenge to a Trump-era ban on bump stocks, a gun accessory that allows semi-automatic weapons to fire rapidly like machine guns and was used in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. The high court is weighing whether

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — News industry lawsuits are piling up for OpenAI, the company behind artificial intelligence-fueled chatbot ChatGPT. Digital outlets The Intercept, Raw Story and AlterNet sued OpenAI on Wednesday, saying the company used their journalism without permission, credit or payment. The outlets follow similar copyright-infringement lawsuits filed

By KATIE MARIE DAVIS and DASHA LITVINOVA Associated Press This week’s election in Russia is expected to cement President Vladimir Putin’s grip on power until at least 2030. Any members of the political opposition who could have challenged him in the election are either in prison or exiled abroad. Independent media outlets that could show

NEW YORK (AP) — Authorities say a mafia member has been sentenced to more than four years in federal prison for his role in a long-running scheme extorting funds from a New York City labor union. Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn say Vincent Ricciardo, a captain in Colombo crime family, was also ordered to pay $350,000

By ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE Associated Press ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has approved a Democrat-drawn congressional map that gives the party a modest boost in a few battleground districts. The map approved Wednesday comes as the party’s candidates face a heavily contested election year in which House races in the state could

By MARCIA DUNN AP Aerospace Writer CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — The first private U.S. spacecraft to land on the moon broke a leg at touchdown before falling over, according to company officials who said Wednesday it was on the verge of losing power. Intuitive Machines, the company that built the lander, released new photos

By SCOTT BAUER Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The last remaining child of famed conservationist and author Aldo Leopold has died. Estella Leopold was a researcher and scientist who dedicated her life to the land ethic philosophy of her famous father. She died Sunday in Seattle at the age of 97 after several months

By REGINA GARCIA CANO Associated Press CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A proposal meant to guide electoral authorities in setting the date for Venezuela’s presidential election includes more than 20 potential options ranging from as soon as mid-April through early December. The proposal announced Wednesday will be presented over the next few days to the governing

By VALERIE GONZALEZ and ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated Press McALLEN, Texas (AP) — Presidential visits to the border are usually short on substance and long on political theater and symbolism, starting with the choice of location. President Joe Biden and his rival and immediate predecessor, Donald Trump, are going to the Texas border Thursday, but Biden’s