AP National News

By HUZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The U.S. wants to deepen its relationship with Taiwan, the self-ruled island claimed by China, which has become a major point of conflict in the strained U.S.-China relationship. Sandra Oudkirk, the new director of the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto embassy, reiterated the U.S.

By SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press SALAR, Afghanistan (AP) — Residents of the little Afghan village of Salar are embracing stability now that the war is over. After being caught in the crossfire during 20 years of fighting, any issues they have with Taliban rule are secondary to peace. But many draw the line at one

By SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press SALAR, Afghanistan (AP) — Residents of the Afghan village of Salar are embracing stability now that the war is over. After being caught in the crossfire during 20 years of fighting, any issues they have with Taliban rule are secondary to peace. But many draw the line at one point:

By VANESSA GERA Associated Press WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Polish lawmakers have held an emotional debate on proposed legislation dubbed “Stop LGBT,” which would ban pride parades and other public gatherings deemed to “promote” same-sex relationships. The lawmakers are due to vote Friday on whether to reject or continue work on the proposal, which is

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Wild winds in the city of Melbourne and across the Australian state of Victoria have torn off roofs, downed trees and left more than 450,000 homes without power. Energy manager AEMO says the damage was severe and warned that some customers wouldn’t have electricity over the weekend or even by early

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and PHILIP MARCELO Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — No one has been charged in the killing of murderous Boston crime boss James “Whitey” Bulger in a West Virginia prison three years ago. Authorities have never officially publicly identified any suspects and many questions remain unanswered. Chief among them is why the

By BEN FINLEY Associated Press VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (AP) — Voters in the coastal city of Virginia Beach will decide whether to approve one of the larger municipal bonds in the nation that would be used to protect against rising seas and intensifying hurricanes. A vote on the $568 million bond will be held Tuesday.

By MICHAEL R. SISAK, MICHELLE L. PRICE and KAREN MATTHEWS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — New York City is bracing for a worker shortage as its COVID-19 vaccine mandate looms and tens of thousands of municipal employees remain unvaccinated. Police officers, firefighters, garbage collectors and most other city workers faced a 5 p.m. Friday

By KATE BRUMBACK Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s most populous county will once again be closely watched in Tuesday’s municipal elections. Some Republicans have been itching for a state takeover of Fulton County, which includes most of Atlanta. The Democratic stronghold struggled to deliver smooth elections during the early months of the pandemic last

By JEFFREY COLLINS Associated Press A South Carolina judge will hear arguments from lawyers in three lawsuits who want the court to have independent representatives take control of the money and other assets of Alex Murdaugh. The court documents say they fear Murdaugh is trying to hide millions of dollars by shifting money between unknown

BEIJING (AP) — China’s government says President Xi Jinping will talk to global leaders at the U.N. climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland by video link. China is the biggest source of carbon dioxide and other climate-changing industrial gases. Its government had left the world guessing what role Xi might play at the meeting that opens

By KRISTEN GELINEAU and VICTORIA MILKO Associated Press SYDNEY (AP) — The U.S. has expressed outrage and demanded an investigation after The Associated Press reported that Myanmar’s military has been torturing detainees in a systemic way across the country. The State Department said Friday the reports of torture by the military must be investigated and

By JOSH BOAK, ZEKE MILLER and NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press ROME (AP) — President Joe Biden is set to meet with Pope Francis on Friday at the Vatican, where the world’s two most notable Roman Catholics plan to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change and poverty. The president takes pride in his Catholic faith, using

By JILL COLVIN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Democrat Terry McAuliffe has brought out the biggest names in Democratic politics as he’s tried to maintain his edge in Virginia’s hotly contested gubernatorial race. He’s campaigned with former President Barack Obama and the first lady; appeared twice with President Joe Biden; and drawn crowds with

By LISA MASCARO, AAMER MADHANI and FARNOUSH AMIRI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden says he has reached a “historic” framework with Democrats in Congress on his sweeping, though scaled-back domestic policy plan. But he still must nail down votes from a few skeptical fellow Democrats. Biden announced the framework at the White

By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Medicaid issues are turning up as winners in President Joe Biden’s social budget framework even as divisions force Democrats to hit pause on far-reaching improvements to Medicare. The blueprint Biden released Thursday fulfills a campaign promise to help poor people locked out of Medicaid expansion across the

By JACQUES BILLEAUD Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — Nearly five years after Joe Arpaio was voted out as sheriff of Arizona’s most populous county, taxpayers are covering one of the last major bills from the thousands of lawsuits the lawman’s headline-grabbing tactics inspired. Officials in Maricopa County agreed last week to pay $3.1 million to

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The fatal shooting by Alec Baldwin on a movie set has put a microscope on an often-unseen corner of the film industry where critics say the pursuit of profit can lead to unsafe working conditions. With a budget of around $7 million, the Western “Rust”

By JOHN FLESHER AP Environmental Writer WEITCHPEC, Calif. (AP) — Native tribes in the U.S. West are making progress toward restoring their ancient practice of treating lands with fire. For thousands of years, Indigenous peoples set fire to clear forest floors of undergrowth. It supported foods such as acorns and hazel wood used in baskets.

By CHRIS GRYGIEL Associated Press SEATTLE (AP) — Policing and public safety dominated the last televised debate between the two people vying to be Seattle’s next mayor. Lorena González and Bruce Harrell differed Thursday night over police staffing, with Harrell criticizing his opponent for supporting the defunding moment following the murder of George Floyd in