March 23, 2021 4:08 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Democrats say they are pushing toward a vote on expanded gun control measures as the nation reels from its second mass shooting in a week. President Joe Biden says “we have to act,” but prospects for any major changes were dim, for now, in the closely divided Congress. In brief remarks responding to the shooting, Biden urged Congress to move quickly to close the loopholes in the background check system and also to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed Tuesday morning to bring House-passed legislation that would require background checks for most all gun sales and transfers to the Senate floor, whether it will pass or not. The attack in Colorado killed 10 people, including a police officer.
May 25, 2020 3:40 am
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) – New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern barely skipped a beat when an earthquake struck during a live television interview. She interrupted Newshub host Ryan Bridge to tell him what was happening at the parliament complex. “We’re just having a bit of an earthquake here Ryan, quite a decent shake here,” she said, looking up and around the room. “But, um, if you see things moving behind me.” She continued with the interview and noted she was in a structurally sound place and not under any light fixtures. The quake was felt by thousands of New Zealanders getting ready to start their work weeks, but no major damage was reported.
August 6, 2019 4:16 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – South Korea’s military says North Korea fired unidentified projectiles twice into the sea as it continues to ramp up weapons tests amid stalemated nuclear negotiations with the United States. The launches on Tuesday came a day after the U.S. and South Korean militaries started scaled-down joint military exercises despite warnings from the North that the drills could derail fragile nuclear diplomacy. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff says the projectiles were launched from an area near the North’s western coast and flew cross-country before landing in waters off the country’s eastern coast. It didn’t immediately say how far the projectiles flew. The North last week conducted two test-firings of what it described as a new rocket artillery system and conducted a short-range ballistic missile launch on July 25.
September 18, 2024 5:07 am
Red Lobster, known for its affordable seafood and cheddary biscuits, has exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. A U.S. bankruptcy judge approved the casual seafood chain’s reorganization plan earlier this month, which included a lender group led by asset manager Fortress Investment Group acquiring the business. Red Lobster is now an independent, privately-held company with 545 restaurant locations in 44 states and four Canadian provinces.
November 18, 2023 5:06 am
SEATTLE (AP) — Election officials around the country are stocking up on the overdose reversal medication naloxone after a series of suspicious mailings — some containing traces of fentanyl — were sent to vote centers or government buildings in six states. The letters were delivered or intercepted this month in Georgia, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington and Kansas, in some cases prompting evacuations and delaying vote counting. Experts say there is little risk from incidental contact with the synthetic opioid, but officials outraged about the continued threats to election workers say they need to do everything they can to make the offices safe. The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service is investigating the letters.
December 28, 2022 4:19 am
VATICAN CITY (AP) – The Vatican says Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s health has worsened over the past hours and doctors are constantly monitoring his condition. Pope Francis appealed Wednesday to the faithful to pray for his “very ill” predecessor “until the end.” A Vatican spokesperson said Francis went to visit the 95-year-old Benedict in the monastery on Vatican grounds where he has lived since retiring in February 2013. The spokesperson said Benedict’s situation “at the moment remains under control.” Benedict was the first pontiff to resign in 600 years. Earlier, Francis departed from prepared remarks to ask the faithful to pray for the retired pontiff. Benedict has become increasingly frail in recent years as he dedicated his post-papacy life to prayer and meditation. (Photo: ABC News)
February 16, 2022 4:16 am
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) – At least 18 people are dead from mudslides and floods caused by torrential rains in a mountainous region of Rio de Janeiro state, and there are fears the toll could rise as searchers check damaged areas Wednesday. The state fire department says more than 180 soldiers are working in the stricken Petropolis region, which saw hundreds of deaths from heavy rainfall in 2011. The department says the area got 25.8 centimeters (just over 10 inches) of rain within three hours Tuesday. That is almost as much as during the previous 30 days combined.. Footage posted on social media shows cars and houses being dragged away by landslides and water swirling through the city of Petropolis and neighboring districts.
March 23, 2021 4:07 am
BOULDER, Colo. (AP) – Police have identified a 21-year-old man as the suspect who opened fire inside a crowded Colorado supermarket. The attack Monday in Boulder killed 10 people, including an officer, and sent terrorized shoppers and employees scrambling for cover. Authorities say Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa was from the Denver suburb of Arvada and that he engaged in a shootout with police inside the store. The suspect was expected to be booked into the county jail later in the day on murder charges. Investigators have not established a motive. A law enforcement official briefed on the shooting told The Associated Press that the gunman used an AR-15 rifle, a lightweight semi-automatic rifle.
May 25, 2020 3:40 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump has booked back-to-back Memorial Day appearances amid the coronavirus pandemic. Trump plans to participate in a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday. Afterward, he will head to Baltimore to speak at Fort McHenry national monument. That’s where “The Star-Spangled Banner” was written. But Baltimore’s mayor is unhappy about Trump’s visit, saying it sets a bad example when many residents have been told to limit travel. Mayor Bernard C. “Jack” Young also says the city can’t afford the cost of a presidential visit when city revenue is declining because of the virus outbreak.
August 6, 2019 4:15 am
BEIJING (AP) – China says it “will not stand idly by” and will take countermeasures if U.S. deploys intermediate-range missiles in the Indo-Pacific region. Chief Chinese arms control official Fu Cong also Tuesday warned neighboring countries not to allow the U.S. to deploy such weapons on their territory. President Donald Trump’s administration has withdrawn from a Cold War-era arms control treaty with Russia. And over the weekend, U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said during security meetings in Asia that he wanted to deploy midrange conventional missiles in the Asia-Pacific within months. Australia’s defense minister has said that country will not be a base for the missiles. Fu said China had no intention of entering a trilateral arms control deal with the U S. and Russia but would remain engaged in disarmament discussions.
