AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks pulled closer to their records on Thursday following a couple reports on the economy that came in close to expectations. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% and climbed back within 1.3% of its record set in July following a shaky summer. It remains on track for a
Continue ReadingAssociated Press BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Florida Democrats have been boldly proclaiming that Florida is in play for this year’s November elections, but their campaign spending hasn’t matched those claims. In the state’s U.S. Senate race, incumbent Sen. Rick Scott has outspent his Democratic challenger, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, by a 4-to-1 margin. Democrats hope ballot
Continue ReadingAssociated Press POHANG, South Korea (AP) — There are two Koreas, North and South. But there’s also more than one South Korea; it’s split into camps with often polar opposite views on the danger posed by their nuclear-armed neighbor to the north. This division in South Korean sentiment has lasted through a tumultuous history of
Continue ReadingAP Congressional Correspondent WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has the potential for history-making this fall, with not one, but two, Black women possibly elected to the chamber, a situation never seen in America since Congress was created more than 200 years ago. Delaware’s Lisa Blunt Rochester marks the milestone by saying that the reason she
Continue ReadingAssociated Press NEW YORK (AP) — It’s a practice that’s about as American as apple pie — accusing immigrant and minority communities of engaging in bizarre or disgusting behaviors when it comes to what and how they eat and drink, a kind of shorthand for saying they don’t belong. The latest iteration came at Tuesday’s
Continue ReadingAssociated Press JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A passenger train in South Africa has been transformed into a mobile health facility. It circulates throughout the country for much of the year, providing medical attention to the sick, young and old who often struggle to receive the care they need at crowded local clinics. For the past 30
Continue ReadingAssociated Press BRISTOL, Pa. (AP) — The presidential debate this week was the final affront to Rosie Torres’ lifelong Republicanism. She said her allegiance to Donald Trump, already strained by his stand on abortion, snapped in the former president’s “eye opener” encounter with Kamala Harris. It’s time to put “country before party,” Torres, 60, said
Continue ReadingAssociated Press MIAMI (AP) — The percentage of U.S. residents born outside the country reached its highest level in more than a century in 2023. That’s one of the findings of a survey of American life released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau. It shows the foreign-born population rose last year and accounted for 14.3%
Continue ReadingAssociated Press CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump launched campaign blitzes Thursday with dramatically different approaches to attracting swing-state voters who will decide the presidential contest. In North Carolina, Democratic nominee Harris used rallies in Charlotte and Greensboro to tout endorsements from Republicans who have crossed the aisle
Continue ReadingAssociated Press ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — The Postal Service’s new delivery vehicles aren’t going to win a beauty contest. They’re tall and ungainly. The windshields are vast. Their hoods resemble a duck bill. Their bumpers are enormous. “You can tell that (the designers) didn’t have appearance in mind,” postal worker Avis Stonum said. Odd appearance
Continue ReadingAssociated Press HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Nearly 200 people have died in Vietnam in the aftermath of Typhoon Yagi and 128 are missing as flash floods and landslides take their toll, state media reported Thursday. Vietnam’s VNExpress newspaper reported that 199 people have died while more than 800 have been injured. In the capital, flood
Continue ReadingAssociated Press A growing number of states are allowing candidates for local and state office to use their campaign dollars to pay for child care expenses. Parents of young children say the practice gives them the time and flexibility to run for office, which often requires long and obscure hours of work. Advocates say the
Continue ReadingAssociated Press SEATTLE (AP) — Machinists at Boeing voted Thursday to go on strike, another setback for the giant aircraft maker whose reputation and finances have been battered and now faces a shutdown in production of its best-selling airline planes. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers said 94.6% of voting workers rejected the
Continue ReadingAssociated Press The number of abortions in Florida dropped after the state’s ban on them after sixth week of pregnancy took effect in May. A Guttmacher Institute study released Thursday estimates that the decline wasn’t as sharp in Florida as it was in other states with such bans, though it has still meant there have
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Jim Duggan uses ChatGPT almost daily to draft marketing emails for his carbon removal credit business in Huntsville, Alabama. But he’d never trust an artificial intelligence chatbot with any questions about the upcoming presidential election. “I just don’t think AI produces truth,” the 68-year-old political conservative said in an interview.
Continue ReadingAssociated Press PLATTEVILLE, Wis. (AP) — Scott Walker is running for the Wisconsin Legislature. But he’s not who you think he is. This is Scott Abbot Walker, not former Gov. Scott Kevin Walker. He’s a Democratic country doctor running against 14-year Republican incumbent Travis Tranel in southwestern Wisconsin’s 49th Assembly District and his toughest task
Continue ReadingAssociated Press SINGAPORE (AP) — Pope Francis on Thursday praised Singapore’s economic strength as a testament to human ingenuity but urged the city-state to look after the weakest, too, especially foreign workers, as he opened the final leg of his tour through some of Asia’s poorest countries in one of the world’s richest. Francis marveled
Continue ReadingAssociated Press TOKYO (AP) — Japan will have a new leader after outgoing Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s governing Liberal Democratic Party holds a vote on Sept. 27 to choose his replacement. They hope to shake off scandals that have dogged his government and regain public support. A record nine candidates, including two women, seek the
Continue ReadingAssociated Press/Report for America PHOENIX (AP) — Ballots for the vast majority of Arizona voters will be two pages long. Eight of the state’s 15 counties, including Maricopa County, will have a two-page ballot. Maricopa County election officials expect the lengthy ballot will lead to long lines for in-person voting and potential delays in vote
Continue ReadingLISBON, Portugal (AP) — Four scientific researchers working in the United States are sharing a $1 million prize from a Portuguese foundation for their work on how the human brain distinguishes faces, shapes and colors. The Champalimaud Foundation said in a statement Wednesday that the winners of the Vision Award 2024 have driven significant progress
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