An estimated 2,600 Los Angeles Police Department employees are citing religious objections to try to get out of the required COVID-19 vaccination. In Washington state, thousands of state workers are seeking similar exemptions. And in Arkansas, a hospital has been swamped with so many such requests from employees that it...
Nuclear Submarine Deal Will Reshape Indo-Pacific Relations
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — The U.S., Britain and Australia have announced they're forming a new security alliance that will help equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines. The alliance will see a reshaping of relations in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond. Here's what it might mean for various players: The United States...
Recall Could Boost Newsom’s Clout for 2022
The recall election that once threatened to derail California Gov. Gavin Newsom's political future has instead given it new life, offering a rare midterm vote of confidence that could fuel an ambitious legislative agenda featuring new coronavirus vaccine mandates, housing for the homeless and health insurance for people living in...
Largest US Catholic Church Rises in Visalia
VISALIA— It’s billed as the largest Catholic parish in the United States and it’s being constructed about 200 miles north of Los Angeles, in what’s often referred to “as the heart of California’s dairy industry.” With an estimated $18.5 million price tag, St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church will seat 3,200...
More Help Expected Today on Growing KNP Complex Fires
SEQUOIA NATIONAL PARK — Fire crews moved to ramp up the battle Thursday against two expanding forest fires threatening Sequoia National Park’s giant sequoia trees and infrastructure. The Colony and Paradise fires, ignited by lightning strikes last week, covered about 14 square miles in the steep Sierra Nevada. There is...
Dire Warning From Newsom Helped Turn California Recall Tide
An ominous four-word message issued by California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s campaign on the morning of Aug. 5 served as the shock Democrats needed to take seriously a recall election that could remove him from office: “This recall is close.” Newsom's warning in a fundraising email came just days after a...
Trump Aides Aim to Build GOP Opposition to Afghan Refugees
WASHINGTON — As tens of thousands of Afghan refugees fleeing the Taliban arrive in the U.S., a handful of former Trump administration officials are working to turn Republicans against them. The former officials are writing position papers, appearing on conservative television outlets and meeting privately with GOP lawmakers — all...
Blinken Pushes Back on GOP Criticism of Afghan Withdrawal
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Antony Blinken pushed back Monday against harsh Republican criticism of the handling of the military withdrawal from Afghanistan, saying the Biden administration inherited a deal with the Taliban to end the war, but no plan for carrying it out. In a sometimes contentious hearing Monday...
Norm Macdonald Remembered as Hilarious and Unique
NEW YORK — Reactions to the death of Norm Macdonald, who died of cancer Tuesday at age 61. “I am absolutely devastated about Norm Macdonald. Norm had the most unique comedic voice I have ever encountered and he was so relentlessly and uncompromisingly funny. I will never laugh that hard...
KNP Complex Fires, Three Rivers Evacuation Orders Grow
SEQUOIA NATIONAL PARK — Sequoia National Park is shut down, its namesake gigantic trees potentially threatened by two forest fires burning in steep and dangerous terrain in California’s Sierra Nevada. Both fires were projected to advance in the direction of Giant Forest, home to more than 2,000 giant sequoias including...