AP-National

By JONATHAN MATTISE Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The nation’s largest public utility pledged to be more transparent after it took months to disclose that a general budget vote by its board last year also gave the CEO the final decision over several proposed natural gas power plants. The Tennessee Valley Authority’s board announced

By MARC LEVY Associated Press HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania will join the majority of states that ban motorists from handling a cell phone for almost any purpose while driving as state lawmakers hope to reduce distracted driving accidents. Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office said Thursday he’ll sign the bill. The ban takes effect a year

By STEVE LeBLANC Associated Press CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Several people have been detained by police at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after demonstrators blocked a parking garage in their ongoing protest movement connected to the Israel-Hamas war. Tensions have ratcheted up in standoffs with protesters on campuses across the United States and increasingly in

REBECCA SANTANA Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A new Biden administration rule aims to speed up asylum processing at the southern border, enabling it to quickly reject a limited group of people believed to have committed serious crimes or who have terrorist links. The change announced Thursday comes during an election year when immigration is

By LAURA UNGAR AP Science Writer A new report finds fewer U.S. medical school graduates are applying to residency programs, but the drop is more pronounced in states that ban abortion compared with other states. Figures released Thursday by the Association of American Medical Colleges showed continuing declines for the second straight year. According to

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS Associated Press JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says it found “insufficient evidence” that racial discrimination shaped decisions made by two Mississippi agencies about water system funding for the state’s majority-Black capital city of Jackson. The EPA’s Office of External Civil Rights Compliance issued findings this week. The

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Cue up his 2010 megahit “Baby.” Justin Bieber and Hailey Bieber (nee Baldwin) are expecting their first child together — and have renewed their vows. A representative for Hailey Bieber confirmed to The Associated Press on Thursday that the model is just over six months

By GABRIELA SÁ PESSOA and MAURICIO SAVARESE Associated Press CANOAS, Brazil (AP) — A Brazilian horse nicknamed Caramelo by social media users garnered national attention after a television news helicopter filmed him stranded on a rooftop in southern Brazil, where massive floods have killed more than 100 people. About 24 hours after he was first

By JIM VERTUNO Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A top former aide to U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar and a political and business consultant have agreed to plead guilty to conspiring to help the Democrat congressman from Texas launder more than $200,000 in bribes and to assist prosecutors in a federal criminal investigation, according to

NEW YORK (AP) — Former Boston Celtics player Glen “Big Baby” Davis was sentenced Thursday to 40 months in a federal prison for his participation in a scheme New York prosecutors said defrauded an insurance plan for NBA players and their families of more than $5 million. More than 20 people were convicted in the

By RICK BOWMER and AMY BETH HANSON Associated Press SANDY, Utah (AP) — Two backcountry skiers were killed and one was rescued after they were swept up and buried in an avalanche Thursday in the mountains outside of Salt Lake City that occurred after several days of spring snowstorms, authorities said. A rescue team went

By KATHY McCORMACK Associated Press CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire man convicted of killing his 5-year-old daughter and moving her corpse around for months before disposing of it has been sentenced to a minimum of 56 years in prison on murder and other charges. That sentence will be added on to the minimum

By ANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — A judge found Thursday that Beach Boys founder and music luminary Brian Wilson should be in a court conservatorship to manage his personal and medical decisions because of what his doctor calls a “major neurocognitive disorder.” At a hearing, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Gus

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Utilities looking to finish building a high-voltage power line linking Iowa and Wisconsin have completed a contentious land deal allowing them to cross a Mississippi River federal wildlife refuge. The last mile of the line would cross the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge near Cassville, Wisconsin. Conservation groups

By JULIE CARR SMYTH Associated Press COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Lawmakers in Ohio have failed to come to an agreement on adjusting a state election deadline that stands to prevent President Joe Biden from appearing on the 2024 ballot. Thursday was the deadline for doing so. The cutoff to make Ohio’s ballot is Aug. 7,

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Xavier University of Louisiana has reversed course and canceled Saturday’s planned commencement address by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield. News of her appearance had sparked outrage among some students. University President Reynold Verret announced the decision in an email Wednesday to faculty, staff and students. Verret said graduates

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and LINDSAY WHITEHURST WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court has ruled that Hunter Biden’s case on firearms charges should move forward. Thursday’s ruling sets the stage for the trial to begin next month in Delaware. Hunter Biden’s lawyers went to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals after the judge

By KEVIN McGILL Associated Press NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A teenager who video-recorded his mother’s forceful arrest by Louisiana sheriff’s deputies in 2020 has been awarded $185,000 by a federal jury in a lawsuit filed over one deputy’s attempt to interfere with the recording. De’Shaun Johnson was 14 when deputies arrived at his family’s home

By HOLLY RAMER Associated Press CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A former senior White House aide with deep political connections is running for Congress in her home state of New Hampshire. Democrat Maggie Goodlander is married to President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan. Goodlander is the third Democrat to enter the race to succeed

By EVELYNE MUSAMBI Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — High-level mediation talks for South Sudan have been launched in Kenya with African presidents calling for an end to a conflict that has crippled South Sudan’s economy for years. South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir who attended the launch thanked his Kenyan counterpart, William Ruto, for hosting

By TODD RICHMOND Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A Milwaukee woman who argued she was legally allowed to kill a man because he was sexually trafficking her has pleaded guilty to homicide. Prosecutors allege Chrystul Kizer shot Randall Volar at his Kenosha home in 2018 when she was 17. She faced multiple charges, including

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The administration of Mexico’s president has accused the press and volunteer searchers who look for the bodies of missing people of “necrophilia.” President Andrés Manuel López Obrador is known for not holding back on insults for people he views as opponents. But a pre-taped segment prepared by state-run television that was

By ISHTIAQ MAHSUD Associated Press DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) — Police say suspected militants blew up a school for girls in a former stronghold of Pakistani Taliban in the country’s volatile northwest, badly damaging the structure but no one was harmed in the overnight attack. The local police chief said the attack happened Wednesday

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Arizona State University officials say a postdoctoral research scholar remains on leave as the school investigates his videotaped confrontation with a hijab-wearing woman at a pro-Israel rally last weekend. Sunday’s event was held near the university’s Tempe campus and attended by Jonathan Yudelman, a scholar at ASU’s School of Civic and

By ZEKE MILLER and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States warned on Thursday that Israel will be dealing a strategic victory to Hamas if it carries out plans for an all-out assault on Rafah, the militants’ last major stronghold in Gaza. The warning was backed by a new threat from President

By AVET DEMOURIAN Associated Press Yerevan, ARMENIA (AP) — Thousands of protesters gathered in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan over his government’s decision to hand over control of border villages to Armenia’s long-time rival Azerbaijan. Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought two wars since the Soviet Union collapsed

By RALPH D. RUSSO AP College Sports Writer The NCAA has approved a waiver that will allow men’s and women’s basketball programs to pay for unlimited official recruiting visits to help teams deals with roster depletion caused by transfers, according to a memo obtained by The Associated Press. The Athletic first reported the approval of

By BRIAN WITTE Associated Press ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has signed a measure to rebuild Baltimore’s historic but antiquated Pimlico Race Course and transfer the track to state control. Under the new law, Maryland can use $400 million in state bonds to rebuild the home of the second jewel of horse

NEW YORK (AP) — Some stars known for their work onscreen — Ted Danson, Woody Harrelson and Jon Stewart — are entering into the world of podcasts. Danson and Harrelson have signed up for “Where Everybody Knows Your Name with Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson (Sometimes),” which will be launched June 12 by SiriusXM. The

By FARNOUSH AMIRI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Mike Johnson’s job isn’t safe yet. In a stunning show of unity in the often divided House, Democrats joined a majority of Republicans on Wednesday to save the GOP speaker from an attempt by fellow Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to remove him from his post. But