Top General News

Columbia University threatens to expel student protesters occupying an administration building

Apr. 30, 2024 19:11 PM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Dozens of protesters took over a building at Columbia University on Tuesday, barricading entrances and unfurling a Palestinian flag from a window in an escalation of demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war on college campuses nationwide. The school promised they would face...

Takeaways from the start of week 2 of testimony in Trump's hush money trial

Apr. 30, 2024 17:39 PM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — The first week of testimony in Donald Trump’s hush money trial was the scene-setter for jurors. This week, prosecutors are working on filling in the details of how they say he pulled off a scheme to bury damaging stories to protect his 2016 presidential campaign. ...

Netanyahu vows to invade Rafah 'with or without a deal' as cease-fire talks with Hamas continue

Apr. 30, 2024 16:53 PM EDT

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged Tuesday to launch an incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering from the almost 7-month-long war, just as cease-fire negotiations between Israel and Hamas...

What marijuana reclassification means for the United States

Apr. 30, 2024 18:22 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is moving toward reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug. The Justice Department proposal would recognize the medical uses of cannabis, but wouldn't legalize it for recreational use. The proposal would move...

Trump says states should decide on prosecuting women for abortions, has no comment on abortion pill

Apr. 30, 2024 18:17 PM EDT

CHICAGO (AP) — Former President Donald Trump says in a new interview it should be left to the states whether to prosecute women for abortions or whether to monitor women's pregnancies. He declined to comment on access to the abortion pill mifepristone, which has been embroiled in an intense legal...

4 officers killed in North Carolina were at disadvantage as shots rained from above, police say

Apr. 30, 2024 18:23 PM EDT

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Law enforcement officers with an arrest warrant demanded that a man come out of a house in North Carolina before four were killed by gunfire, the victims unable to survive shots coming from inside the dwelling, a witness and officials said Tuesday. Still...

United Methodists begin to reverse longstanding anti-LGBTQ policies

Apr. 30, 2024 18:42 PM EDT

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — United Methodist delegates began making historic changes in their policies on sexuality on Tuesday — voting without debate to reverse a series of anti-LGBTQ policies. The delegates voted to delete mandatory penalties for conducting same-sex marriages and to...

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao sentenced to 4 months for allowing money laundering

Apr. 30, 2024 15:43 PM EDT

SEATTLE (AP) — Binance founder Changpeng Zhao was sentenced Tuesday to four months in prison for allowing rampant money laundering on the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. A judge credited Zhao for taking responsibility for his wrongdoing but said he was troubled by the...

Mammograms should start at 40 to address rising breast cancer rates at younger ages, panel says

Apr. 30, 2024 16:33 PM EDT

Regular mammograms to screen for breast cancer should start younger, at age 40, according to an influential U.S. task force. Women ages 40 to 74 should get screened every other year, the group said. Previously, the task force had said women could choose to start breast cancer...

Summer Movies: 5 breakout stars to watch in 'Sing Sing,' 'Quiet Place, 'Horizon' and more

Apr. 30, 2024 16:15 PM EDT

A breakout moment in Hollywood can happen at any age and stage. This summer at the movies, there are plenty of talents to discover, from the formerly incarcerated man whose story inspired the film he stars in to the “It” bully whose childhood dream of playing an ape in a movie came true. ...

Latest General News

How Republican-led states far from the US-Mexico border are rushing to pass tough immigration laws

Apr. 30, 2024 19:55 PM EDT

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Republican-led states are rushing to give broader powers to local police and impose criminal penalties for those living in the U.S. illegally as the issue of immigration enforcement remains central to the 2024 elections. Oklahoma's Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt...

US poised to ease restrictions on marijuana in historic shift, but it'll remain controlled substance

Apr. 30, 2024 19:51 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, The Associated Press has learned, a historic shift to generations of American drug policy that could have wide ripple effects across the country. The proposal,...

Biden's historic marijuana shift is his latest election-year move for young voters

Apr. 30, 2024 19:49 PM EDT

PHOENIX (AP) — President Joe Biden may eventually ban TikTok, but he's moving to give something back to the young people who dominate the popular social media app — a looser federal grip on marijuana. Facing softening support from a left-leaning voting group that will be crucial...

Metro train collides with bus in downtown Los Angeles, injuring more than 50, 2 seriously

Apr. 30, 2024 19:41 PM EDT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — At least 55 people were hurt, two seriously, when a Metro light rail train and a University of Southern California shuttle bus collided Tuesday along a busy thoroughfare in downtown Los Angeles, officials said. The crash happened shortly before noon along...

Zimbabwe's ZiG is the world's newest currency and its latest attempt to resolve a money crisis

Apr. 30, 2024 19:40 PM EDT

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Out with the Zimbabwe dollar, in with the ZiG. Zimbabwe on Tuesday started circulating a new currency to replace one that has been battered by depreciation and often outright rejection by the people. The ZiG was introduced electronically in early April, but...

Alabama lawmakers propose compromise on gambling bill with lottery, electronic wagering machines

Apr. 30, 2024 19:39 PM EDT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama lawmakers on Tuesday proposed a compromise on gambling legislation that would authorize a state lottery and multiple sites with electronic gambling machines. But the measure faces an uncertain outlook in the closing days of the legislative session. ...

Homeless families face limits on shelter stays as Massachusetts grapples with migrant influx

Apr. 30, 2024 19:38 PM EDT

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts will begin limiting how long homeless families can stay in shelters as the state continues to grapple with an influx of homeless migrants. Beginning June 1, the total length of stay will be limited to nine months, at the end of which families will be...

A look at the protests of the war in Gaza that have emerged at US colleges

Apr. 30, 2024 19:37 PM EDT

Student protests over the Israel-Hamas war have popped up at many college campuses after being inspired by demonstrators at Columbia University. The students are calling for universities to separate themselves from companies advancing Israel’s military efforts in Gaza and in some...

Mississippi Medicaid expansion plan could struggle for bipartisan support, Democratic leader says

Apr. 30, 2024 19:34 PM EDT

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A Medicaid expansion plan endorsed by leaders in the Republican-led Mississippi Legislature could struggle for bipartisan support because it includes a work requirement that is unlikely to receive federal approval, the state House Democratic leader said Tuesday. ...

An Alabama Senate committee votes to reverse course, fund summer food program for low-income kids

Apr. 30, 2024 19:33 PM EDT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama Senate committee on Tuesday voted to set aside money so that the state can reverse course and participate in a federal program that gives summer food assistance to low-income families with school-age children. Alabama was one of 14 states that...