HANOI — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris delivered a sharp rebuke to China for its incursions in the South China Sea, warning its actions there amount to “coercion” and “intimidation” and affirming that the U.S. will support its allies in the region against Beijing’s advances. “We know that Beijing continues...
Bakersfield Agrees to Police Reform Measures With State AG
SACRAMENTO — Bakersfield has agreed to broad police reforms as part of a settlement with the California Attorney General's Office over a long pattern of alleged abuses, officials said Monday. The state began its investigation in 2016 after “an outcry of complaints” that included “concerns around excessive force and other...
House Moderates Offered Deal to Ease Biden Budget Standoff
WASHINGTON — Compromising with moderates, House Democratic leaders will try again Tuesday to muscle President Joe Biden’s multitrillion-dollar budget blueprint over a key hurdle, hoping to end a standoff that halted proceedings and risked upending their domestic infrastructure agenda. Tensions flared overnight as a band of moderate lawmakers threatened to...
Biden Decides to Stick With Aug. 31 Final Pullout From Kabul
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden has decided to stick with his Aug. 31 deadline for completing the U.S.-led evacuation from Afghanistan, an administration official said Tuesday. The decision reflects in part the U.S. military's concern about heightened security threats to the massive airlift that began ten days ago. A Taliban...
Judge: California Ride-Hailing Law Is Unconstitutional
LOS ANGELES — A judge Friday struck down a California ballot measure that exempted Uber and other app-based ride-hailing and delivery services from a state law requiring drivers to be classified as employees eligible for benefits and job protections. Alameda County Superior Court Judge Frank Roesch ruled that Proposition 22...
School Mask, Vaccine Mandates Supported in US: AP-NORC Poll
BOSTON — As COVID-19 cases surge around the country, a majority of Americans say they support mask mandates for students and teachers in K-12 schools, according to a new poll, but their views are sharply divided along political lines. About 6 in 10 Americans say students and teachers should be...
Claims Against Elder: Will They Harm Him in Calif. Recall?
LOS ANGELES — A day after facing allegations that he emotionally mistreated a former fiancee, Republican Larry Elder scheduled two weekend rallies and showed no outward signs of altering the course of his campaign in the California recall election that could remove Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom from office. The longtime...
Israel Strikes Gaza After Violent Protests Along Border
JERUSALEM — Israel's military bombed Palestinian militant weapons sites in the Gaza Strip early Sunday in response to a violent demonstration on the perimeter fence that left an Israeli police officer critically injured, the army said. Saturday's violence erupted after hundreds of Palestinians took part in a demonstration organized by...
Gunfire at Kabul Airport Kills 1 Amid Chaotic Evacuations
KABUL, Afghanistan — A firefight just outside Kabul's international airport killed at least one Afghan soldier early Monday, German officials said, the latest chaos to engulf Western efforts to evacuate those fleeing the Taliban takeover of the country. The airport shooting came as the Taliban sent fighters north of the...
US Regulators Give Full Approval to Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine
WASHINGTON — The U.S. gave full approval to Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine Monday, a milestone that could lift public confidence in the shots and spur more companies, universities and local governments to make vaccinations mandatory. The Pentagon immediately announced it will press ahead with plans to require members of the military...