By MATTHEW LEE AP Diplomatic Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department says it plans a massive increase in diplomatic personnel and spending for facilities at new U.S. embassies in the Pacific islands as the Biden administration forges ahead with efforts to counter China’s growing influence in the region. In a notice sent to Congress
Continue ReadingCNN Editorial Research (CNN) — Here’s a look at the life of Hakeem Jeffries, the US House minority leader. He is the first Black lawmaker to lead a party in Congress. Personal Birth date: August 4, 1970 Birth place: Brooklyn, New York Birth name: Hakeem Sekou Jeffries Father: Marland Jeffries, counselor Mother: Laneda (Gomes) Jeffries,
Continue Reading By ACACIA CORONADO and JIM VERTUNO Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A group of Texas families and doctors have sued in state court seeking to block the state’s new law that bans gender-affirming care for minors. They argue the law violates parental rights and discriminates against transgender teens. At least 20 states have adopted
Continue ReadingCNN Editorial Research (CNN) — Here is a look at the life of Alberto R. Gonzales, the first Latino US attorney general. Personal Birth date: August 4, 1955 Birth place: San Antonio, Texas Birth name: Alberto R. Gonzales Father: Pablo Gonzales, migrant worker and construction worker Mother: Maria (Rodriguez) Gonzales Marriages: Rebecca (Turner) Gonzales (August
Continue ReadingCNN Editorial Research (CNN) — Here’s a look at the Primetime Emmy Awards, which recognize television programs and performers. September 18, 2023 – The 75th annual Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony is scheduled to take place. September 12, 2022 – The 74th annual Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony takes place with Kenan Thompson as host. Facts Emmys
Continue Reading COVINGTON, La. (AP) — A former Catholic priest in Louisiana was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to two state criminal charges of juvenile molestation. New Orleans area news outlets say 55-year-old Patrick Wattigny entered the plea in Covington on Wednesday. He was sentenced after a statement was presented in court from
Continue ReadingBy Rebekah Riess, CNN (CNN) — A Florida wildlife center was badly damaged and “nearly all” of its animals were killed in an overnight fire, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office and the wildlife center said. Over 250 animals “including lizards, small mammals, amphibians, turtles and tortoises, fresh and saltwater marine life, and of course ….
Continue ReadingCNN Editorial Research (CNN) — Here’s a look at the Empire State Building. Facts Located on Fifth Avenue between 33rd and 34th streets in Manhattan. It is 103 stories tall (1,250 feet to top floor, excluding height of antennae, which is 204 feet). Took only one year and 45 days to build, or more than
Continue Reading By SARAH RANKIN Associated Press RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s main fundraising apparatus says it will soon report raising $5.75 million in this year’s second quarter. According to the political action committee’s accounting, that quarterly haul surpasses what any previous governor of the state has raised over an entire year. Spirit
Continue Reading By MARY CLARE JALONICK and MATT O’BRIEN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The chair of the Federal Trade Commission has defended her aggressive legal strategy toward the country’s biggest technology companies as she appeared before the House Judiciary Committee. House Republicans have charged that the agency has become overzealous and politicized under President Joe Biden.
Continue Reading By COLLEEN LONG and MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — No fingerprints or DNA turned up on the baggie of cocaine found in a lobby at the White House last week despite a sophisticated FBI crime lab analysis, and surveillance footage of the area didn’t identify a suspect, according to a summary of the
Continue Reading By KATHY McCORMACK Associated Press Vermont prepared for the next round of storms — and possibly a tornado — as people took advantage of calm weather Thursday to clean up from historic flooding that damaged thousands of homes, businesses and roads, and left some residents stranded. As floodwaters receded, the good news was that there
Continue ReadingBy Mitchell McCluskey and Holly Yan, CNN (CNN) — As drought-stricken Arizona bakes in searing heat, the Scottsdale City Council unanimously agreed this week to ban natural grass in front of future single-family homes in an effort to conserve water. The new ordinance will apply to new houses constructed or permitted after August 15. “By
Continue Reading By HOWARD FENDRICH AP Tennis Writer WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — There was a time when Ons Jabeur might not have recovered from the deficit she found herself in during the Wimbledon semifinals. Down a set. Down a break. So close to being just a game from defeat. She credits her sports psychologist with helping her
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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The Southeastern Conference and Commissioner Greg Sankey have agreed to a contract extension through 2028. Financial terms were not disclosed in the release on Thursday. Sankey, 58, is in his ninth year after becoming the SEC’s eighth commissioner in 2015. As NCAA Transformation Committee co-chair, Sankey helped expand the College Football
Continue ReadingBy Hannah Rabinowitz and Dakin Andone, CNN (CNN) — The Justice Department announced Thursday a civil rights investigation into dilapidated and unsanitary conditions at the Fulton County Jail in Atlanta, as well as violence against detainees. The department will look into the conditions in which inmates are held, their access to mental and physical health
Continue Reading By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — A sprawling, mighty galaxy was created in season one of “Foundation.” Now it’s time to rip it down. Season two of the ambitious Apple TV+ sci-fi series flashes forward some 140 years and it’s quickly clear that the clones who form the story’s authoritarian order
Continue Reading By SEUNG MIN KIM, CHRIS MEGERIAN and JARI TANNER Associated Press HELSINKI (AP) — President Joe Biden said he and other NATO leaders showed the world that the military alliance emerged “more united than ever” this week as he on Thursday capped a European trip meant to demonstrate the force of the international coalition against
Continue Reading By SEUNG MIN KIM and CHRIS MEGERIAN Associated Press HELSINKI (AP) — President Joe Biden says he’s serious about pursuing a prisoner exchange for a Wall Street Journal reporter who has been detained in Russia for more than 100 days. The Kremlin earlier this month suggested that it was open to a possible prisoner exchange
Continue Reading By MATT O’BRIEN Associated Press ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and The Associated Press said Thursday that they’ve made a deal for the artificial intelligence company to license AP’s archive of news stories. The arrangement involves OpenAI licensing part of AP’s text archive, while AP will leverage OpenAI’s technology and product expertise, the two organizations said in a
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