NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn't happen this week

A roundup of some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. None of these is legit, even though they were shared widely on social media. The Associated Press checked them out. Here are the real facts: ___ CLAIM: Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke is a convicted felon...

Trump says he doesn't need China trade deal before election

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he doesn't feel he needs to secure a trade deal with China before next year's election. Ahead of the next round of negotiations, Trump tells reporters Friday he wants a complete deal with China and won't accept one that only addresses some of the differences...

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio drops 2020 presidential bid

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio ended his campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination on Friday after struggling to gain traction in a sprawling field of candidates. Announcing his decision in an MSNBC interview, de Blasio did not throw his support behind any candidate but...

Is America ready for gay president? Iowa casts first votes

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The question posed to Pete Buttigieg — gay, married and running for president — came from a supporter at an Iowa campaign stop: What should he tell friends who say America isn't ready to elect a gay man as president? That prompted a woman in the crowd to object with an...

Ohio GOP fined $100K for improperly funding voter database

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Ohio Republican Party is paying a $100,000 civil penalty to the Federal Election Commission for improperly funding a 2014 voter turnout database built by the company of an ally of then-Ohio Gov. John Kasich (KAY'-sik). Cleveland.com reports an agreement announced last week cites the...

Rhode Island GOP switches to "winner-take-all" primary vote

CRANSTON, R.I. (AP) — The Rhode Island Republican party is changing its primary election process in an effort to boost President Donald Trump's re-election bid. The Providence Journal reports the state GOP voted Thursday to switch to a "winner-take-all" approach in its local primary. Any candidate claiming...

CORRECTS: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio says he is ending his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination.

WASHINGTON (AP) — CORRECTS: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio says he is ending his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. (Corrects APNewsAlert to lower case 'de' and put a space before Blasio)

Kennedy mystique could factor into Massachusetts Senate race

BOSTON (AP) — When Edward M. Kennedy was running for the U.S. Senate for the first time in 1962, his Democratic primary opponent turned to him during a debate and said if his last name was Moore — Kennedy's middle name — his "candidacy would be a joke." Fortunately for Kennedy, he shared a...

Democrats shift 2020 strategies as Iowa draws closer

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Kamala Harris will "exponentially" increase the time she's spending in Iowa. Bernie Sanders is shaking up his operations there and in New Hampshire. And Beto O'Rourke is going broader, turning up at such places as a San Quentin prison and an Arkansas gun show. With just over four...

O'Rourke says he's open to broadening gun buyback proposal

AURORA, Colo. (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke says he's open to broadening his proposal to require owners of AK-47s and AR-15s to sell them to the government. During an emotional town hall Thursday near the site of the Colorado theater shooting, a man who identified himself as a...