AP National News

By DON BABWIN and SARA BURNETT Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Former “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett has testified that claims he staged an anti-gay, racist attack on himself are “100% false.” Smollett took the stand Monday at his trial on charges that he lied to Chicago police about the January 2019 attack in downtown Chicago.

By BRYAN ANDERSON and GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina appeals court has halted for now candidate filing for U.S. House and  legislative seats, as judges consider whether to block districts that lawsuit filers claim are illegal partisan gerrymanders. A Court of Appeals order directed officials not to accept

By CATHY BUSSEWITZ and SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Exxon Mobil says it has a plan for cutting greenhouse gas emissions in one of the most prolific oilfields in the U.S. The company made the announcement Monday, saying it will be focusing on emissions from its own operations as well as

By STAN CHOE and BERNARD CONDON Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Regulators are asking questions about the deal to bring Donald Trump’s new social media company to the stock market, one that has attracted both legions of fans of the former president and people looking to make a quick profit. The company partnering with

By DON BABWIN and SARA BURNETT Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Jussie Smollett is testifying that he paid a friend and his brother $3,500 for nutrition and training advice, not to help him stage a racist, anti-gay attack on himself. The former “Empire” actor is testifying Monday at his trial on charges of lying to

BERLIN (AP) — Scientific organizations in Germany have accused the country’s biggest-selling newspaper of contributing to public hostility against scientists during the coronavirus pandemic. In a statement Monday, the Alliance of Scientific Organization criticized a recent report by the Bild tabloid for singling out three researchers who had called for tougher restrictions to reduce COVID-19

By MARCIA DUNN AP Aerospace Writer CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA has picked 10 new astronauts, half of them military pilots, as it looks ahead to the moon and Mars. The space agency introduced the six men and four women during a ceremony Monday in Houston, home to Mission Control and the astronaut corps.

By RUSS BYNUM Associated Press SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Scientists off the coast of Georgia have spotted an endangered right whale that gave birth while entangled in fishing rope. Wildlife officials from Georgia and Florida photographed the seemingly healthy newborn calf swimming alongside its mother as the adult whale dragged a length of rope snared

By DREW LINDSAY of The Chronicle of Philanthropy Chronicle of Philanthropy For a decade ending last December, ArtPlace America sprinkled $150 million across the nation, backing a kaleidoscope of projects. The goal: prove that the arts and culture are critical to the social fabric, identity, and well-being of communities. Not all the work paid dividends,

By GARY D. ROBERTSON and TOM KRISHER Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Toyota says it plans to build a $1.3 billion electric vehicle battery plant near Greensboro, North Carolina, that will employ at least 1,750 people. The Japanese auto giant joined Gov. Roy Cooper and other officials in making the announcement Monday at a

By JAMEY KEATEN Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — The leaders of the Roman Catholic Church in Switzerland have called on two academics to lead a study of the Swiss church’s history of sexual exploitation since the mid-20th century. That move means the Swiss Catholic church is joining other churches in other countries in Europe and

WASHINGTON (AP) — The body of the late Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas will lie in state in the U.S. Capitol on Thursday as congressional leaders honor the former Republican presidential candidate and World War II veteran. He served in Congress for 36 years. Dole died Sunday at the age of 98. He was a

JERUSALEM (AP) — Jerusalem municipal officials have frozen plans to build a large Jewish settlement at an abandoned airport in east Jerusalem. Monday’s decision comes in the wake of heavy U.S. opposition to the project. The plan calls for building 9,000 housing units for ultra-Orthodox Jews. It is considered especially controversial because it is in

THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — Youths have thrown petrol bombs and stones at police, who fired tear gas to disperse them, during a march in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki commemorating the fatal shooting of a teenager by a police officer 13 years ago. No arrests or injuries were reported after the clashes, which did

By CASEY SMITH Associated Press/Report for America INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Prosecutors are no longer seeking the death penalty for the man charged in the fatal shooting of a police officer who had come to his aid after the man’s car overturned in a crash in Indianapolis four years ago. Marion Superior Judge Mark Stoner last

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A cruise ship that carried at least 17 passengers and crew members with breakthrough COVID-19 infections  when it docked in New Orleans has set sail again with new passengers. The Louisiana Department of Health said Monday that nine crew members and eight passengers were infected when the Norwegian Breakaway docked in

By AMY FORLITI and STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Attorneys and a judge have hammered out jury instructions for the trial of a white Minnesota police officer who said she drew her handgun by mistake when she fatally shot Black motorist Daunte Wright. Kim Potter is charged with manslaughter in Wright’s death in

By ACACIA CORONADO and NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department has sued Texas over its new redistricting maps, saying the plans discriminate against minority voters, particularly Latinos, who have fueled the state’s population boom. The lawsuit filed Monday claims the Republican-controlled state violated part of the Voting Rights Act in

By KAREN MATTHEWS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The Manhattan district attorney says billionaire hedge fund manager Michael Steinhardt has agreed to turn over $70 million worth of stolen antiquities. He will also be subject to an unprecedented lifetime ban on acquiring antiquities. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said Monday that in return,