Republican Rep. David Schweikert used to win his wealthy, suburban Phoenix congressional district by nearly 30 points. Then Donald Trump was elected president, and his victories started shrinking. Schweikert, who won his last election by just 3,200 votes, is now among the top 2024 targets for Democrats, who sense better-than-expected...
Black Lives Matter Movement Marks 10 Years of Activism and Renews Its Call to Defund the Police
The Black Lives Matter movement hits a milestone on Thursday, marking 10 years since its 2013 founding in response to the acquittal of the man who fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Gunned down in a Florida gated community where his father lived in 2012, Martin was one of the earliest symbols...
Top General’s Dismissal Reveals New Crack in Russian Military Leadership
A Russian general in charge of forces fighting in southern Ukraine has been relieved of his duties after speaking out about the problems faced by his troops in a move that reflected new fissures in the Russian military command following a brief rebellion by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. Maj. Gen. Ivan Popov, the...
First Over-the-Counter Birth Control Pill Gets Federal Approval
U.S. officials have approved the first over-the-counter birth control pill, which will let American women and girls buy contraceptive medication from the same aisle as aspirin and eyedrops. The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it cleared Perrigo’s once-a-day Opill to be sold without a prescription, making it the first such medication...
Missing Hiker’s Body Found in Yosemite National Park Creek
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK — The body of a hiker who went missing in Yosemite National Park after being swept away by a cold and fast-flowing creek as California’s epic winter snowpack melts was found over the weekend, authorities confirmed Wednesday. Hayden T. Klemenok vanished July 2 while backpacking with a group at Upper Chilnualna Falls,...
Handwritten Document Found in Aretha Franklin’s Couch Is a Valid Will, Jury Decides
A document handwritten by singer Aretha Franklin and found in her couch after her 2018 death is a valid Michigan will, a jury said Tuesday, a critical turn in a dispute that has turned her sons against each other. It’s a victory for Kecalf Franklin and Edward Franklin whose lawyers had...
US Inflation Falls to 3%, Lowest Level in More Than 2 Years, as Price Pressures Ease
After two years of painfully high prices, inflation in the United States has reached its lowest point in more than two years — 3% in June compared with 12 months earlier — a sign that the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes have steadily slowed price increases across the economy. The...
Newsom Says Budget Troubles Won’t Change His Goals for 2nd Term
Throughout the various crises in California Gov. Gavin Newsom's first term — devastating wildfires, the bankruptcy of the nation's largest utility, the deadly COVID-19 pandemic — the state's record-smashing budget surpluses were always there to smooth things over. Now, as Newsom moves to build his national profile for political aspirations beyond the governor's office, looming multibillion dollar deficits could...
Republicans Pass Iowa Bill Banning Most Abortions After About 6 Weeks
Iowa’s Republican-led Legislature passed a bill banning most abortions after roughly six weeks of pregnancy during a marathon special session Tuesday that continued late into the night. Gov. Kim Reynolds immediately said in a statement she would sign the bill on Friday. The bill passed with exclusively Republican support in...
NATO Chief Says No Timetable for Ukraine’s Membership; Zelenskyy Calls That ‘Absurd’
VILNIUS, Lithuania — NATO leaders said Tuesday that they would allow Ukraine to join the alliance “when allies agree and conditions are met” — a pronouncement that came just hours after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy blasted the organization’s failure to set a timetable for his country as “absurd.” Instead, alliance leaders...