Critics of North Carolina school athletics governing body pass bill ordering more oversight

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina legislators have ordered additional oversight of the chief nonprofit body that manages high school sports, finalizing legislation Friday that seeks to leave more rule-making in the hands of state education leaders. In separate House and Senate...

Who's Bob Menendez? New Jersey's senator charged with corruption has survived politically for years

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Sen. Bob Menendez's defense against new federal corruption charges against him, his wife and business associates Friday revealed that he's adopting the same defiant stance he took when he faced federal accusations nearly a decade ago. A three-term senator who...

Takeaways from investigation that turned up gold bars, a luxury car and cash at a US senator's home

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez and his wife are accused of taking bribes of gold bars, a luxury car and cash in exchange for using his outsized sway in foreign affairs to help the government of Egypt — and others — as well as other corrupt acts, according to an indictment...

North Carolina legislature cracks down on pornography sites with new age verification requirements

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina's legislature has passed a bill requiring age verification on websites that publish material considered harmful to minors as lawmakers worked long hours this week to approve a state budget and other proposals. The legislation, which passed the...

Menendez says he has been falsely accused of accepting bribes but 'will not be distracted' from work in the Senate

Lawmakers author proposal to try to cut food waste in half by 2030

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A bipartisan coalition of U.S. lawmakers has introduced a proposal designed to cut food waste in half by 2030. The lawmakers submitted their legislation on Thursday and said it would improve collaboration between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and...

King Charles III makes a stop at the fire-damaged Notre Dame Cathedral on his state visit to France

PARIS (AP) — King Charles III went from a meeting with young athletes in a working-class, multicultural suburb of Paris to an emotional stop in front of the fire-damaged Notre Dame Cathedral on Thursday, the second day of his state visit to France. Earlier, Charles made an address...

Republican David McCormick launches 2nd Senate bid in Pennsylvania, aims to oust Democrat Bob Casey

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Republican David McCormick announced Thursday that he will make his second bid for U.S. Senate in swing-state Pennsylvania, this time to take on Democratic Sen. Bob Casey after losing in last year’s bruising and crowded Republican primary. In a ballroom...

Biden to deliver democracy speech and pay tribute to John McCain in Arizona next week

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will travel to Arizona next week to deliver a democracy-focused address that will also pay tribute to the late John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential candidate who represented the state in the U.S. Senate for more than three decades. ...

North Carolina legislature gives initial OK to budget, which also would start Medicaid expansion

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Republican-controlled General Assembly gave initial approval Thursday to a long-delayed North Carolina budget that speeds up individual income tax cuts, broadens private-school scholarships to all K-12 children and initiates other right-leaning changes. If...