WASHINGTON — The White House and Congress could strike a deal to raise the debt ceiling in exchange for budget cuts. Or they could agree to a stopgap measure to keep paying the nation’s bills while negotiations continue. They also could let the negotiations unravel, sending the economy into a chaos....
Lawsuit: Yellen Should Ignore ‘Unconstitutional’ Debt Limit
WASHINGTON — A union of government employees on Monday sued Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and President Joe Biden to try to stop them from complying with the law that limits the government's total debt, which the lawsuit contends is unconstitutional. The lawsuit comes just weeks before the government could default...
Why so Many Mass Killings? Families, Experts Seek Answers
More than five years after his son was gunned down in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, Richard Berger still asks why. Why Stephen Berger was killed the day after celebrating his 44th birthday. Why the gunman rained bullets over the Las Vegas Strip in 2017, turning a country music festival into...
New Air Travel Rules Would Compensate Flyers for Cancellations, Delays
The Biden administration is working on new regulations that would require airlines to compensate passengers and cover their meals and hotel rooms if they are stranded for reasons within the airline's control. The White House said President Joe Biden and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg would announce the start of the rulemaking process...
Executions Surge Across Iran, Trailing Only China in State Killings
Iran hanged two men Monday convicted of blasphemy, authorities said, carrying out rare death sentences for the crime as executions surge across the Islamic Republic following months of unrest. Iran remains one of the world's top executioners, having put to death at least 203 prisoners since the start of this...
Biden Hopes Strong Job Market Means Soft Landing for Economy
For President Joe Biden, the past few days have raised hopes that the U.S. economy can stick a soft landing—possibly avoiding a recession as the 2024 election nears. Most U.S. adults have downbeat feelings about Biden's economic leadership, as high inflation has overshadowed a strong jobs market. It's long been economic orthodoxy...
Texas Mall Shooter Wore ‘Right Wing Death Squad’ Patch to Massacre, Officials Say
Federal officials are looking into whether the gunman who killed eight people at a Dallas-area mall expressed an interest in white supremacist ideology Sunday as they work to discern a motive for the attack, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official cautioned the investigation is in its early stages....
California Panel OKs Reparation Payments, State Apology for Black Residents
California's reparations task force voted Saturday to approve recommendations on how the state may compensate and apologize to Black residents for generations of harm caused by discriminatory policies. The nine-member committee, which first convened nearly two years ago, gave final approval at a meeting in Oakland to a hefty list of proposals that...
Trump Rejects Last Chance to Testify at Trial Over Rape Allegation
Former President Donald Trump rejected his last chance Sunday to testify at a civil trial where a longtime advice columnist has accused him of raping her in a luxury department store dressing room in 1996. Trump, a Republican candidate for president in 2024, was given until 5 p.m. Sunday by...
Afghanistan’s Public Floggings, Stonings, Repression Detailed in UN Report
A U.N. report on Monday strongly criticized the Taliban for carrying out public executions, lashings and stonings since seizing power in Afghanistan, and called on the country's rulers to halt such practices. In the past six months alone, 274 men, 58 women and two boys were publicly flogged in Afghanistan,...