Barto declares victory in race against sitting state senator

PHOENIX (AP) — Republican Rep. Nancy Barto declared victory Thursday evening in her primary campaign against GOP state Sen. Heather Carter for a north Phoenix state Senate seat as new tallies show her lead increasing to more than 1,400 votes. Carter conceded in a statement and said the race had...

Religious freedom in America: popular and polarizing

WASHINGTON (AP) — The principle of religious freedom is important to most Americans. But as President Donald Trump touts his support for it during his reelection bid, there are notable fault lines among people of different faiths and political ideologies over what it truly means. About 8 in 10 Americans...

Lawmakers fight for GOP's soul in Arizona Senate primary

PHOENIX (AP) — The biggest knock-down, drag-out primary election fight among the 90 Arizona Senate and House seats up for grabs in November features two sitting Republican lawmakers in a suburban north Phoenix district battling for the soul of the GOP. Sen. Heather Carter, known as one of the more moderate...

Trump's faith outreach aims to cast Democrats as the enemy

President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign is courting religious voters in part by seeking to portray Democrats as a threat to religious freedom — a pitch amplified by disputes over the issue during the coronavirus pandemic. During an event last week outside Atlanta hosted by the campaign’s...

Many questions linger about opening New Mexico schools

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico’s top public education officials said Friday that many schools have submitted requests to start the school year with remote classes rather than returning to the classroom immediately, even if under a hybrid plan as initially proposed by the state Public Education...

Pompeo says US should limit which human rights it defends

WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo argued Thursday for a more limited U.S. view of global human rights advocacy based on the principals laid out by America's Founding Fathers, a suggestion critics assumed meant stepping away from more modern concepts such as support for women and the LGBQT...

Muslim woman says gun range ordered her to remove hijab

BELLE PLAINE, Kan. (AP) — A Missouri gun range violated the civil rights of a Muslim woman by not allowing her to shoot unless she removed a religious head covering, an advocacy group said Thursday. The Council on American-Islamic Relations asked the U.S. Department of Justice in a letter for a civil...

Governor shuts bars, dining as virus hits California hard

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — As the coronavirus swept California with renewed ferocity, the governor once again closed bars, inside dining and, for much of the state, gyms, indoor church services and hair and nail salons in an effort to prevent COVID-19 cases from swamping hospitals. Gov. Gavin Newsom issued...

China sanctions Cruz, Rubio, Smith, Brownback for criticism

BEIJING (AP) — China said Monday it will impose sanctions on three U.S. lawmakers and one ambassador in response to similar actions taken by the U.S. last week against Chinese officials over alleged human rights abuses against Muslims in the Xinjiang region. U.S. Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, Rep....

China to bar entry to US Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, Rep. Chris Smith, religious freedom ambassador Sam Brownback

BEIJING (AP) — China to bar entry to US Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, Rep. Chris Smith, religious freedom ambassador Sam Brownback.