WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is expected to secure the 235th judicial confirmation of his presidency as soon as Friday, an accomplishment that exceeds his predecessor's total by one after Democrats put extra emphasis on the federal courts following Donald Trump's far-reaching first term when he filled three seats to...
Senate Set to Approve 235th Judge of Biden’s Term, Beating Trump’s Tally
Giant Sloths and Mastodons Lived With Humans for Millennia in the Americas, New Discoveries Suggest
SAO PAULO — Sloths weren't always slow-moving, furry tree-dwellers. Their prehistoric ancestors were huge — up to 4 tons (3.6 metric tons) — and when startled, they brandished immense claws. For a long time, scientists believed the first humans to arrive in the Americas soon killed off these giant ground...
California Declared an Emergency Over Bird Flu. How Serious Is the Situation?
SACRAMENTO - California officials have declared a state of emergency over the spread of bird flu, which is tearing through dairy cows in that state and causing sporadic illnesses in people in the U.S. That raises new questions about the virus, which has spread for years in wild birds, commercial...
Stock Market Today: Wall Street Leaps and Halves Its Losses From What Had Been a Dismal Week
NEW YORK — U.S. stocks are rallying Friday to more than halve their losses in what had been one of their worst weeks of the year. The S&P 500 jumped 1.7% and was on track for its best day in six weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 741...
Farmers, Business Owners, Fire Survivors Face Uncertainty After $100B in Disaster Relief Flounders
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — American farmers, small business owners and wildfire survivors are among those who will suffer if Congress cannot agree on a new spending bill after President-elect Donald Trump abruptly rejected a bipartisan plan that included more than $100 billion in disaster aid. A mayor in Hawaii is watching...
Closures, Social Security Checks, Furloughs: What a Government Shutdown Might Mean
WASHINGTON – Congress has until midnight Friday to come up with a way to fund the government or federal agencies will shut down, meaning hundreds of thousands of federal employees could be sent home — or stay on the job without pay — just ahead of the holidays. Republicans abandoned...
Tesla Recalling Almost 700,000 Vehicles Due to Tire Pressure Monitoring System Issue
Tesla is recalling almost 700,000 vehicles because of an issue with the warning light on the tire pressure monitoring system. According to a letter Thursday from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the recall includes certain 2024 Cybertruck, 2017-2025 Model 3, and 2020-2025 Model Y vehicles. The issue is that...
Trump Wants Debt Ceiling in the Budget Deal. If Not, He Says Let the Government Shutdown.
WASHINGTON — Hours before the start of a federal government shutdown, President-elect Donald Trump doubled-down Friday on his insistence that a debt ceiling increase be included in any deal — and if not, let the closures “start now.” Trump, who is not yet even sworn into the White House, issued...
Visalia Police Arrest 8, Seize Guns and Drugs
Eight people were arrested and four firearms were seized in a citywide operation Thursday morning, the Visalia Police Department said in a statement. The targeted enforcement involved compliance checks at 29 locations, spearheaded by the department's Violent Crimes, Special Enforcement, Property Crimes, Narcotics, and Youth Services units. Among those arrested,...