White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a briefing at the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)2025-02-12T18:37:19Z Follow live updates on President Donald Trump and his new administration. WASHINGTON (AP) The White House said Wednesday that court rulings going against the Trump administration are coming from judicial activists on the bench whose decisions amount to a constitutional crisis.White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt made the comments as she pushed back against critics of Republican President Donald Trumps expansive actions slashing the government workforce and federal spending.We believe these judges are acting as judicial activists rather than honest arbiters of the law, Leavitt said.Trumps moves in the first weeks of his second term to overhaul the federal government and fulfill his campaign promises have been met with more than 50 lawsuits, with judges blocking some of his administrations moves at least temporarily. Top administration officials have responded by attacking the legitimacy of judicial oversight, one of the foundations of Americas democracy which is based on the separation of powers. The focus on the courts has intensified as the other long-standing check on the presidency, the Congress, is Republican-controlled and has largely gone along with Trumps unilateral actions, including his firing of government watchdogs. When asked Wednesday if the White House believes the courts have the authority to issue nationwide injunctions to Trumps orders, Leavitt said the rulings have no basis in the law and have no grounds. She said the White House would comply with the courts but believed the administration would ultimately be vindicated. This is part of a larger, concerted effort by Democrat activists, and nothing more than the continuation of the weaponization of justice against President Trump, Leavitt said, referring to Trumps personal legal challenges, including the criminal trial in New York in which he was convicted last year.Judges have blocked, at least temporarily, his effort to end birthright citizenship, permit access to Treasury Department records by billionaire Elon Musks so-called Department of Government Efficiency and roll out a mass deferred resignation plan for federal workers. Musk, the worlds richest man who has been given far-reaching powers by Trump to shrink the federal government, has posted on social media that judges who rule against the administration should be impeached.A corrupt judge protecting corruption. He needs to be impeached NOW! Musk wrote about the judge in the Treasury Department case. Vice President JD Vance said Sunday on X, If a judge tried to tell a general how to conduct a military operation, that would be illegal. If a judge tried to command the attorney general in how to use her discretion as a prosecutor, thats also illegal. Judges arent allowed to control the executives legitimate power.As court cases pile up, questions have arisen about whether Trump, pushing to expand the limits of presidential power, would comply with court rulings.Trump on Tuesday said he would, but suggested he would consider some kind of response to the judges and called their actions a violation. It seems hard to believe that a judge could say, We dont want you to do that. So maybe we have to look at the judges because thats very serious, I think its a very serious violation, Trump said. Leavitt made clear that Trumps team will also seek every legal remedy to ultimately overturn these radical injunctions and ensure President Trumps policies can be enacted, she said. ___Price reported from New York. MICHELLE L. PRICE Price is a national political reporter for The Associated Press. She is based in New York. twitter mailto ZEKE MILLER Zeke is APs chief White House correspondent twitter mailto

Sean "Diddy" Combs arrives at the BET Awards at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, on June 26, 2022. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP File)2025-02-12T19:39:08Z NEW YORK (AP) Sean Diddy Combs is suing NBC Universal over a documentary that he says falsely accuses him of being a serial murderer who had sex with underage girls as he awaits trial on federal sex trafficking charges. The lawsuit filed Wednesday in New York state court says the documentary, Diddy: Making of a Bad Boy, included statements that NBC Universal either knew were false or published with reckless disregard for the truth in order to defame the founder of Bad Boy Records.Indeed, the entire premise of the Documentary assumes that Mr. Combs has committed numerous heinous crimes, including serial murder, rape of minors, and sex trafficking of minors, and attempts to crudely psychologize him, the complaint reads. It maliciously and baselessly jumps to the conclusion that Mr. Combs is a monster and an embodiment of Lucifer with a lot of similarities to Jeffrey Epstein. Spokespersons for NBC Universal and the entertainment company that produced the documentary, which is also named in the suit, didnt immediately respond to emails seeking comment. The documentary premiered last month on Peacock TV, the networks streaming service. From his childhood to becoming a mogul, this raw look at Sean Combs journey through exclusive footage and candid interviews explores his rise, controversies and the man behind the music, a description of the documentary on Peacocks website reads. Combs, who is seeking no less than $100 million in damages, has been in Brooklyn federal prison since his September arrest on racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges.Federal prosecutors say he used his wealth and influence to coerce female victims and male sex workers into drug-fueled, dayslong sexual performances known as Freak Offs. They say Combs used blackmail and violence to intimidate and threaten his victims in a pattern of abuse that goes back to the early 2000s. Combs has pleaded not guilty to the charges. His trial is slated to start in May.Erica Wolff, an attorney for Combs, said NBC and the other entities named in the suit maliciously and recklessly broadcast outrageous lies in order to line their own pockets by driving viewership to the documentary. In making and broadcasting these falsehoods, among others, Defendants seek only to capitalize on the publics appetite for scandal without any regard for the truth and at the expense of Mr. Combss right to a fair trial, she said in a statement. Mr. Combs brings this lawsuit to hold Defendants accountable for the extraordinary damage their reckless statements have caused.Combs lawsuit says the documentary falsely, recklessly, and maliciously accuses him of murdering Kimberly Porter, Christopher Wallace and Dwight Arrington Myers, among other notable names.Porter, a model who had been Combs longtime girlfriend and the mother of some of his children, died in 2008 at the age of 47 from complications from pneumonia. Wallace, the rapper known as The Notorious B.I.G., was killed in 1997 in a still-unsolved drive-by shooting in Los Angeles at age 24. Myers, the rapper known as Heavy D, died from a pulmonary embolism in 2011 at the age of 44. It shamelessly advances conspiracy theories that lack any foundation in reality, repeatedly insinuating that Mr. Combs is a serial killer because it cannot be a coincidence that multiple people in Mr. Combss orbit have died, the complaint reads.Elsewhere, the complaint says the documentary delved into claims Combs had sex with underage girls, citing as evidence a civil complaint thats been thoroughly discredited. Combs lawyers say the women referenced in that complaint have since confirmed they were adults at the time.___Follow Philip Marcelo at twitter.com/philmarcelo. PHILIP MARCELO Marcelo is a general assignment reporter in the NYC bureau. He previously wrote for AP Fact Check and before that was based in Boston, where he focused on race and immigration. twitter mailto

People attend a protest in support of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Monday, Feb. 10, 2025, at the CFPB headquarters in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)2025-02-12T18:33:35Z NEW YORK (AP) The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which Congress established to monitor credit card companies, mortgage providers, debt collectors and other segments of the consumer finance industry, is the latest U.S. government agency to have its work halted by the Trump administration.Conservatives have long targeted the work of the CFPB. Critics complain the independent agency, funded by the Federal Reserve System, lacks sufficient supervision and regularly exceeds its regulatory authority. Defenders argue the bureaus watchdog mission has strong bipartisan support.Heres some background on the scope of the CFPBs activities and how the agencys tenuous status might affect consumers: What does the CFPB regulate?The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is charged with creating rules and taking enforcement actions to protect consumers from unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices by a wide range of financial institutions and businesses. Its actions involve banks, mortgage servicers, credit card companies, student loan processors, payday lenders, money transfer providers, credit reporting agencies and debt collectors. During the Biden administration, the CFPB passed rules capping bank overdraft fees and removing medical debt from credit reports. The bureau sued financial services companies for misleading consumers and employers for misleading workers. It also focused on curbing junk fees and predatory lending practices. How long has the CFPB been around?Congress established the agency as part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. The legislation was intended to prevent a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis and subprime mortgage-lending scandal. The CFPB says it has obtained nearly $20 billion for consumers since then in the form of monetary compensation, canceled debts, reduced loans and other financial relief. What has the Trump administration done to the CFPB?Russell Vought, the newly installed director of the Office of Management and Budget, told the CFPB last weekend to stop its investigations and work on proposed rules. He instructed the agency to suspend the enforcement dates of any rules that had been finalized but not yet put into effect, and closed the CFPBs offices for a week. Vought sent an email to employees on Monday morning saying they should not perform any work tasks. They were directed to contact the top lawyer for the Office of Management and Budget to get approval in writing before doing anything.Vought also said in a social media post that the agency would not withdraw its next round of funding from the Federal Reserve, which Congress assigned as the CFPBs funding source to avoid the political wrangling of the congressional appropriations process. Two top officials resigned Tuesday in protest. Also Tuesday, Trump named Jonathan McKernan, a former Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation board member, as the agencys new director. What put the agency in the crosshairs? Before Trump took office, banks and industry groups sometimes sued to block some of the agencys rules. For example, when the CFPB issued a rule in 2017 to limit the number of payments the providers of payday loans, vehicle title loans, and high-cost installment loans could take from customer bank accounts, trade associations for payday lenders challenged the bureaus Federal Reserve funding as unconstitutional. In May 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected their argument and upheld the CFPBs funding and oversight model. Trump on Monday defended his administrations efforts to reform the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, saying the agency was set up to destroy people. What Biden-era rules and regulations are on hold?The overdraft fee rule was finalized and set to take effect in October, but Voughts directive puts it on hold. Banks had previously sued to get the rule thrown out. The rule would require the largest banks to pick one of three options: to reduce overdraft fees to $5, to reduce them to a rate that reflects how much an overdraft costs them, or to disclose, along with the fee, the fees Annual Percent Rate (APR) as they do with other short-term loans. Overdraft fees currently run about $35 on average. The CFPB finalized a rule in January that would remove medical debt from credit reports. The agency had said the change could potentially improve the credit scores of millions of people and make it easier for them to get mortgages and other loans. The rule was set to take effect 60 days after its publication in the Federal Register but is now suspended. It also was the subject of a legal challenge.President Trump campaigned on lowering prices, and a lot of people voted for him because of high prices. and yet were seeing Republicans move to make them pay high overdraft fees and pay more for loans on their credit, said Lauren Saunders, associate director of the National Consumer Law Center. The public broadly thinks that overdraft fees are unfair and medical debt shouldnt be on credit reports. If you ask ordinary people, these are not partisan issues. How is industry responding?Lindsey Johnson, president and CEO of the Consumer Bankers Association, characterized the CFPBs work under Biden as aggressive. She said the agency took action in recent years without going through the appropriate procedures.We dont believe they had the proper oversight, she said.Miranda Margowsky, a spokesperson for the Financial Technology Association, an industry group that counts many financial technology companies as members, said her organization anticipates and hopes several CFPB rules, including those governing buy now, pay later plans and other fintech products, will be reversed with the stroke of a pen.She characterized the rules as overly broad, overreaching, and harmful.How are consumer advocates responding?Supporters of the CFPB protested outside the bureaus shuttered Washington headquarters this week. NAACP President Derrick Johnson and others have demanded the offices reopening.The CFPB has provided crucial protections against big banks and lenders, Johnson said in a statement. Without this critical oversight, consumers especially Black and Brown communities will be vulnerable to fraud, predatory lending, and discriminatory financial practices.Kitty Richards, senior strategic advisor at the advocacy group Groundwork Collaborative, said consumers today are more vulnerable to data privacy violations, junk fees, and financial scams. Without the CFPB, corporations are freer to prey on the American people without fearing they might have to give back the money, she said.___The Associated Press receives support from Charles Schwab Foundation for educational and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism. CORA LEWIS Lewis is an Associated Press business reporter based in New York. twitter mailto

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., speaks to reporters on Capitol Hill, Jan. 14, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)2025-02-12T17:12:57Z WASHINGTON (AP) Republican Sen. Katie Britt has been working to make sure the Trump administrations Department of Government Efficiency doesnt hit what she called life-saving, groundbreaking research at high-achieving institutions, including her states beloved University of Alabama.Kansas GOP Sen. Jerry Moran is worried that food from heartland farmers would spoil rather than be sent around the world as the U.S. Agency for International Development shutters.And Idaho GOP Rep. Mike Simpson warns national parks could be impaired by cutbacks at the start of summer hiring in preparation for the onslaught of visitors.We need to have a conversation with DOGE and the administration about exactly what theyve done here, said Simpson, a seasoned lawmaker who sits on the powerful Appropriations Committee. Its a concern to all of us. One by one, in public statements and private conversations, Republican lawmakers are beginning to speak up to protect home-state interests, industries and jobs that are endangered by President Donald Trumps executive actions and the slash-and-burn tactics erupting across the federal government by billionaire Elon Musk s DOGE. While Democrats have been denouncing the impact of Trumps cuts on Americans, the stirrings from Republicans are less a collective action than targeted complaints. Almost none are openly questioning the purpose or legality of the DOGE effort, which the party has largely cheered. But taken together, the quiet concerns are the first glimmers of GOP pushback against Trumps upending of the federal government. The people voted for major government reform, and thats what the people are going to get, Musk said Tuesday in the Oval Office with Trump.The situation unfolding on a scale like nothing Washington has ever seen as Trump issues executive actions at a rapid clip and Musks team roams agency to agency, tapping into computer systems, digging into budgets and searching for what he calls waste, fraud and abuse. Dozens of lawsuits are piling up claiming Trump and DOGE are violating the law. While presidents have long taken liberty with their authority to issue executive orders, actions and proclamations toward their goals, the White House typically chooses a few signature priorities to make a mark rather than employ such vast power to sweep across the government. Former President Barack Obama, for example, used executive authority to protect from deportation an entire group of immigrants the young Dreamers who came to the U.S. as children without proper paperwork. Former President Joe Biden used his executive authority to cancel student loan debt for millions. Both actions have been in court and are still making their way through the legal system.Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said DOGE is taking a meat ax to the federal government.If you want to make cuts, then you do it through a debate in Congress, said the New York senator, not lawlessly. It raises questions about what happens next as judges are quickly slapping on limits and halting many of the White House actions. Both Musk and Vice President JD Vance have questioned the legitimacy of judicial oversight, which is a mainstay of the U.S. democracy and its balance of power. House Speaker Mike Johnson said he met with Musk at the start of the week and has no concern that DOGE is going too far or treading on Congress authority to direct taxpayer dollars or provide oversight of the executive branch. To me, its very exciting what theyre able to do because what Elon and the DOGE is doing right now is what Congress has been unable to do in recent years, the Louisiana Republican said, referring to the spending reviews underway.Johnson said he agrees with Vance and suggested the courts should cool it.The courts should take a step back and allow these processes to play out, he said. What were doing is good and right for the American people.Alabamas Britt was far from alone in speaking up about Trumps caps on the National Institutes of Health grant program that hit universities, medical centers and research institutions coast to coast. While the administration works to achieve this goal at NIH, a smart, targeted approach is needed, the senator said in a statement. North Carolina GOP Sen. Ted Budd said he has heard from constituents in his state, home to the Raleigh areas influential Research Triangle. And Sen. Susan Collins, the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, listed the ways scientists in Maine are conducting much-needed research on Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses, Alzheimers, diabetes, Duchennes Muscular Dystrophy, as well as other research as she decried the funding caps.There is no investment that pays greater dividends to American families than our investment in biomedical research, Collins said in a statement. As the U.S. Agency for International Development was being dismantled, Kansas Moran said on social media that U.S. food aid feeds the hungry, bolsters our national security & provides an important market for our farmers, especially when commodity prices are low.The senator said he spoke to the Department of Agriculture and the White House about the importance of resuming the procurement, shipping & distribution of American-grown food.Moran and others have been working on legislation that would move management of food aid program from USAID to USDA.On Saturday, Moran shared an update: GOOD NEWS: State Dept. has approved shipping to resume, allowing NGOs to distribute the $560 million of American-grown food aid sitting in US & global ports to those in need. He thanked Secretary of State Marco Rubio for helping make certain this life-saving aid gets to those in need before it spoils.Its unclear, however, if the aid work will have the funding to resume. And the gutting of global supply lines for aid shipments, thanks to the shuttering of USAID, also makes it uncertain that enough workers can be found to deliver stalled food aid, aid groups say.In Florida, GOP Rep. Carlos Gimenez is trying to help Venezuelans, who fled their homeland and are now living in the Miami area under Temporary Protected Status, from being deported as Trump ends the program.Gimenez wrote last month to ask the administration to consider Venezuelans on a case-by-case basis.I support the president in the vast majority of things he does, Gimenez told the Associated Press. As a member of Congress, I also have to represent the interests of my constituents, he said. Asked if he felt he had the power to make a difference, he replied: Im not powerless. Im a member of Congress.

Cartons of eggs sit inside cooler at Norma's Sweets Bakery Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Stephen Smith)2025-02-12T18:55:37Z OMAHA, Neb. (AP) Egg prices hit a record high as the U.S. contends with an ongoing bird flu outbreak, but consumers didnt need government figures released Wednesday to tell them eggs are terribly expensive and hard to find at times because of an ongoing.The latest monthly consumer price index showed that the average price of a dozen Grade A eggs in U.S. cities reached $4.95 in January, eclipsing the previous record of $4.82 set two years earlier and more than double the low of $2.04 that was recorded in August 2023.The spike in egg prices was the biggest since the nations last bird flu outbreak in 2015 and accounted for roughly two-thirds of the total increase in food costs last month, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Of course, that is only the nationwide average. A carton of eggs can cost $10 or more in some places. And specialized varieties, such as organic and cage-free eggs, are even more expensive.We do use eggs a little less often now. You know, because of the price, said Jon Florey as he surveyed his options in the egg case at Encinal Market in Alameda, California. I was going to make a quiche that I like to make and its about six eggs, so I figured Id do something else. When are egg prices expected to go down?Relief is not expected any time soon. Egg prices typically spike around Easter due to high holiday demand. And the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted last month that egg prices were likely to go up 20% this year.Even if shoppers can afford eggs, they may have difficulty finding them at times. Some grocers are having trouble keeping their shelves stocked, and customers are encountering surcharges and limits on how many cartons they can buy at a time. Encinal Market owner Joe Trimble said he has a hard time getting all the eggs he orders from his suppliers, so most of the time his shelves are only about 25% full.Its something you dont think about until you look at the shelf and its nearly empty, Trimble said. Eggs are just expected to be there in the same way you expect there to be milk. Its a key item to have in a grocery store because people dont go out looking for something else to eat on a Saturday morning. They want it. They want to have some scrambled eggs or over-easy eggs on a Saturday morning. How bad is the bird flu outbreak?The main reason that eggs are more expensive is the bird flu outbreak. When the virus is found on a farm, the entire flock is killed to limit the spread of disease. Because massive egg farms may have millions of birds, just one outbreak may put a dent in the egg supply. Nearly 158 million birds have been slaughtered overall since the outbreak began.The Agriculture Department says more than 23 million birds were slaughtered last month and more than 18 million were killed in December to limit the spread of the bird flu virus. Those numbers include turkeys and chickens raised for meat, but the vast majority of them were egg-laying chickens.And when there is an outbreak on a farm, it often takes several months to dispose of the carcasses, sanitize the barns and raise new birds until they are old enough to start producing eggs, so the effects linger. Bird flu cases often spike in the spring and fall when wild birds are migrating because they are the main source of the virus, but cases can pop up any time of year. The virus has also spread to cattle and other species, and dozens of people mostly farmworkers taking care of ill animals have been sickened.But health officials say the threat to human health remains low and eggs and poultry are safe to eat because sick animals arent allowed into the food supply. Plus, properly cooking meat and eggs to at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit kills any virus, and pasteurization neutralizes bird flu in milk. What else is driving egg prices up?Egg farmers also face higher feed, fuel and labor costs these days because of inflation. Plus, farmers are investing more in biosecurity measures to try to protect their birds. Ten states have passed laws allowing the sale of eggs only from cage-free environments. The supply of those eggs is tighter and focused in certain regions, so the effect on prices can be magnified when outbreaks hit cage-free egg farms. Many of the egg farms with recent outbreaks were cage-free farms in California. Cage-free egg laws have already gone into effect in California, Massachusetts, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Colorado and Michigan.Total demand for eggs is also up significantly in recent years. Consumers are buying more eggs, and the growth of all-day breakfast restaurants is adding to demand.CoBank analyst Brian Earnest said the current cost of eggs could discourage some buying, which would ease the demand pressure but might not have a noticeable effect. It will likely take months for egg producers to fill the gaps in supply.As consumers continue to stock up on eggs, supplies at the store level will remain tight, and with Easter right around the corner, that could prolong the tighter supplies, Earnest said.While prices remain elevated, producers of baked goods and other food items that rely on eggs as a main ingredient will have to decide how much to increase prices or reduce production, he said. ___Associated Press reporter Terry Chea contributed to this report from Alameda, California. JOSH FUNK Funk is an Associated Press reporter who covers all the major freight railroads including Union Pacific, BNSF, Norfolk Southern, CSX, Canadian National and CPKC. Funk also covers Warren Buffetts Berkshire Hathaway and has been attending Buffetts Woodstock for Capitalists annual meeting every spring in Omaha, Nebraska, for 19 years. twitter mailto

A community member holds a sign calling for a national boycott of Target stores during a news conference outside Target Corporation's headquarters Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, in Minneapolis, Minn. (AP Photo/Ellen Schmidt, File)2025-02-12T15:59:48Z A growing number of prominent companies have scaled back or set aside the diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that much of corporate America endorsed following the protests that accompanied the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd, a Black man, in 2020.The changes have come in response to a campaign by conservative activists to target workplace programs in the courts and social media, and more recently, President Donald Trumps executive orders aimed at upending DEI policies in both the federal government and private sector. DEI policies typically are intended to root out systemic barriers to the advancement of historically marginalized groups in certain fields or roles. Critics argue that some education, government and business programs are discriminatory because they single out participants based on factors such as race, gender and sexual orientation. They have targeted corporate sponsorships, employee-led affinity groups, programs aimed at steering contracts to minority or women-owned businesses, and goals that some companies established for increasing minority representation in leadership ranks. While hiring or promotion decisions based on race or gender is illegal under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act in most circumstances, companies say they are not doing that. Instead, they say they aspire to diversify their workforce over time through policies like widening candidate pools for job openings.These are some of the companies that have retreated from DEI: Goldman SachsInvestment firm Goldman Sachs confirmed that it was dropping a requirement that forced IPO clients to include women and members of minority groups on their board of directors. As a result of legal developments related to board diversity requirements, we ended our formal board diversity policy, said a Goldman Sachs spokesman in an email to The Associated Press. We continue to believe that successful boards benefit from diverse backgrounds and perspectives, and we will encourage them to take this approach. Goldman Sachs said that it will still have a placement service that connects its clients with diverse candidates to serve on their boards. GoogleGoogle rescinded a goal it had set in 2020 to increase representation of underrepresented groups among the companys leadership team by 30% within five years. In a memo to employees, the company also said it was considering other changes in response to Trumps executive order aimed at prohibiting federal contractors from conducting DEI practices that constitute illegal discrimination. Googles parent company Alphabet also signaled things were changing in its annual 10-K report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The report dropped a boilerplate sentence it has used since 2020 declaring that the company is committed to making diversity, equity, and inclusion part of everything we do and to growing a workforce that is representative of the users we serve. TargetThe retailer said that changes to its Belonging at the Bullseye strategy would include ending a program it established to help Black employees build meaningful careers, improve the experience of Black shoppers and to promote Black-owned businesses following Floyds death in Minneapolis, where Target has its headquarters.Target, which operates nearly 2,000 stores nationwide and employs more than 400,000 people, said it also would conclude the diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, goals it previously set in three-year cycles.The goals included hiring and promoting more women and members of racial minority groups, and recruiting more diverse suppliers, including businesses owned by people of color, women, LGBTQ+ people, veterans and people with disabilities.Target also will no longer participate in surveys designed to gauge the effectiveness of its actions, including an annual index compiled by the Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBTQ+ rights organization. Target also said it would further evaluate corporate partnerships to ensure theyre connected directly to business objectives, but declined to share details. Meta PlatformsThe parent company of Facebook and Instagram said it was getting rid of its diversity, equity and inclusion program, which featured policies for hiring, training and picking vendors.Like other companies that announced similar changes before Meta, the social media giant said it had been reviewing the program since the Supreme Courts July 2023 ruling upending affirmative action in higher education.Citing an internal memo sent to employees, news website Axios reported the Menlo Park, California-based tech giant said it would no longer have a team focused on diversity and inclusion and will instead focus on how to apply fair and consistent practices that mitigate bias for all, no matter your background. The change means the company will also end its diverse slate approach to hiring, which involved considering a diverse pool of candidates for every open position. AmazonAmazon said it was halting some of its DEI programs, although it did not specify which ones. In a Dec. 16 memo to employees, Candi Castleberry, a senior human resources executive, said the company has been winding down outdated programs and materials, and were aiming to complete that by the end of 2024.We also know there will always be individuals or teams who continue to do well-intentioned things that dont align with our company-wide approach, and we might not always see those right away. But well keep at it, she wrote.Rather than have individual groups build programs, Castleberry said, Amazon is focusing on programs with proven outcomes and we also aim to foster a more truly inclusive culture.McDonaldsFour years after launching a push for more diversity in its ranks, McDonalds said earlier this month that it is ending some of its diversity practices.McDonalds said on Jan. 6 that it will retire specific goals for achieving diversity at senior leadership levels. It also intends to end a program that encourages its suppliers to develop diversity training and to increase the number of minority group members represented within their own leadership ranks.McDonalds said it will also pause external surveys. The burger giant didnt elaborate, but several other companies have suspended their participation in an annual survey by the HRC.In an open letter to employees and franchisees, McDonalds senior leadership team said it remained committed to inclusion and believes that having a diverse workforce is a competitive advantage.WalmartThe worlds largest retailer confirmed in November that it would not be renewing a five-year commitment to a racial equity center set up in 2020 after the police killing of George Floyd, and that it would stop participating in the HRCs Corporate Equality Index.Walmart also said it will better monitor its third-party marketplace to make sure items sold there do not include products aimed at LGBTQ+ minors, including chest binders intended for transgender youth.Additionally, the company will no longer consider race and gender as a litmus test to improve diversity when it offers supplier contracts and it wont be gathering demographic data when determining financing eligibility for those grants.FordCEO Jim Farley sent a memo to the automakers employees in August outlining changes to the companys DEI policies, including a decision to stop taking part in HRCs Corporate Equality Index.Ford, he wrote, had been looking at its policies for a year. The company doesnt use hiring quotas or tie compensation to specific diversity goals but remains committed to fostering a safe and inclusive workplace, Farley said.We will continue to put our effort and resources into taking care of our customers, our team, and our communities versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day, the memo said.LowesIn August, Lowes executive leadership said the company began reviewing its programs following the Supreme Courts affirmative action ruling and decided to combine its employee resource groups into one umbrella organization. Previously, the company had individual groups representing diverse sections of our associate population.The retailer also will no longer participate in the HRC index, and will stop sponsoring and participating in events, such as festivals and parades, that are outside of its business areas.Harley-DavidsonIn a post on X in August, Harley-Davidson said the company would review all sponsorships and organizations it was affiliated with, and that all would have to be centrally approved. It said the company would focus exclusively on growing the sport of motorcycling and retaining its loyal riding community, in addition to supporting first responders, active military members and veterans.The motorcycle maker said it would no longer participate in the ranking of workplace equality compiled by the HRC, and that its trainings would be related to the needs of the business and absent of socially motivated content.Harley-Davidson also said it does not have hiring quotas and would no longer have supplier diversity spending goals.Brown-FormanThe parent company of Jack Daniels also pulled out from participating in the HRCs Corporate Equality Index, among other changes. Its leaders sent an email to employees in August saying the company launched its diversity and inclusion strategy in 2019, but since then the world has evolved, our business has changed, and the legal and external landscape has shifted dramatically.The company said it would remove its quantitative workforce and supplier diversity ambitions, ensure incentives and employee goals were tied to business performance, and review training programs for consistency with a revised strategy.Brown-Forman continues to foster an inclusive work environment where everyone is welcomed, respected, and able to bring their best self to work, spokeswoman Elizabeth Conway said in an email.John DeereThe farm equipment maker said in July that it would no longer sponsor social or cultural awareness events, and that it would audit all training materials to ensure the absence of socially-motivated messages in compliance with federal and local laws.Moline, Illinois-based John Deere added the existence of diversity quotas and pronoun identification have never been and are not company policy. But it noted that it would still continue to track and advance the diversity of the company.Tractor SupplyThe retailer in June said it was ending an array of corporate diversity and climate efforts, a move that came after weeks of online conservative backlash against the rural retailer.Tractor Supply said it would be eliminating all of its DEI roles while retiring current DEI goals. The company added that it would stop sponsoring non-business activities such as Pride festivals or voting campaigns and no longer submit data for the HRC index.The Brentwood, Tennessee-based company, which sells products ranging from farming equipment to pet supplies, also said that it would withdraw from its carbon emission goals to instead focus on our land and water conservation efforts.The National Black Farmers Association called on Tractor Supplys president and CEO to step down shortly after the companys announcement.

Marc Fogel listens as President Donald Trump speaks in the Diplomatic Reception Room at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)2025-02-12T20:03:36Z The U.S. and Russia agreed to a prisoner swap involving Marc Fogel, an American schoolteacher who the Biden administration had deemed wrongfully detained by Russia, in a diplomatic move that the White House said could move forward negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. Soon after, President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to begin working toward winding down the conflict in Ukraine.Here are some things to know about the prisoner swap:Who is Marc Fogel and why was he detained? Fogel, an American history teacher from just outside Pittsburgh, was traveling to Russia to work at a Moscow school in 2021 when he was detained. His family and supporters said he had been traveling with medically prescribed marijuana.Almost a year later, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison. The Interfax news agency said Fogel taught at the Anglo-American School in Moscow and had worked at the U.S. Embassy. Interfax cited court officials as saying Fogel admitted guilt. The State Department in December announced that Fogel had been designated by the U.S. government as wrongfully detained. Who was involved in the hostage swap for Fogel?While not yet publicly announced, Alexander Vinnik, a convicted Russian criminal, was being freed in exchange for the release of Fogel, according to people familiar with the deal who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic details.Vinnik was arrested in 2017 in Greece at the request of the U.S. on cryptocurrency fraud charges. He was later brought to the U.S. and pleaded guilty last year to conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was being held in California before the swap was finalized, the officials said. Where did Fogel go when he returned? Fogel flew back to the U.S. late Tuesday after more than three years of detention and was welcomed at the White House by Trump. Standing next to Trump with an American flag draped around his shoulders, Fogel said he felt like the luckiest man on Earth.The White House on Wednesday declined to disclose Fogels whereabouts, saying that he had spoken with his wife, his two children and his 95-year-old mother. What is the significance of the prisoner swap? Following the prisoner exchange, Trump said he and Russian President Vladimir Putin had a long phone call and agreed to begin negotiations on ending the war in Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Ukraine was the main focus of the call, during which Putin emphasized the need to remove the root causes of the conflict and agreed with Trump that a long-term settlement could be achieved through peace talks.___Associated Press writers Eric Tucker and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this report. JOHN SEEWER Seewer covers state and national news for The Associated Press and is based in Toledo, Ohio. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Bubba Wallace talks with reporters during media day at the NASCAR Daytona 500 auto race, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)2025-02-12T21:12:08Z DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) Bubba Wallace said he couldnt care less if Donald Trump attends the Daytona 500 on Sunday, nearly five years after the president accused the NASCAR Cup Series only Black full-time driver of perpetrating a hoax when a crew member found a noose in the team garage stall.Trump suggested in July 2020 that Wallace should apologize after the sport rallied around him following the discovery of the noose in his assigned stall at Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama. Federal authorities ruled that the noose had been hanging since October and was not a hate crime. NASCAR and the FBI have referred exclusively to the rope which was used to pull the garage door closed as a noose.Wallace, who drives for the 23XI Racing team owned by Michael Jordan and driver Denny Hamlin, declined to say much about the possibility that Trump could return to NASCARs biggest race as a sitting president for the second time. Were here to race, Wallace said at the Daytona 500 media day. Not for the show.A notice from the Federal Aviation Administration posted Monday indicated that Trump was expected to attend the race, but NASCAR said Wednesday it had gotten no confirmation. Trump, who has chimed in through the years on several intertwined NASCAR and political issues, went after Wallace in 2020 on social media after the noose was found. Has @BubbaWallace apologized to all of those great NASCAR drivers & officials who came to his aid, stood by his side, & were willing to sacrifice everything for him, only to find out that the whole thing was just another HOAX?, he wrote in July 2020. Wallace responded on social media in 2020 to Trump calling him out, writing, Always deal with the hate being thrown at you with LOVE!... Love should come naturally as people are TAUGHT to hate. Even when its HATE from the POTUS. Trump served as grand marshal for the 2020 Daytona 500 and gave the command for drivers to start their engines. He also took a parade lap around the 2 1/2-mile speedway in his armored limousine, leading the 40-car field before the green flag. The presidential motorcade remained on the apron in the corners instead of taking to the high-banked turns. Thousands cheered and a band played patriotic music when Air Force One flew over the famed track, a flyover that was simultaneously shown on big screens. Trumps presence energized fans and caused huge headaches because of logistical issues at entrance points.Trump, with first lady Melania Trump by his side, addressed the crowd before the race and called the Daytona 500 a legendary display of roaring engines, soaring spirits and the American skill, speed and power that weve been hearing about for so many years.Trump made history last Sunday as the first sitting president to attend the Super Bowl. He watched the Philadelphia Eagles defeat the Kansas City Chiefs from a suite after flying in with a group of some of his closest Republican allies in Congress, including Sens. Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott of South Carolina.___AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing DAN GELSTON Gelston is an an Associated Press sports writer covering major college and pro sports in Philadelphia, including the 76ers, Flyers, Eagles, Phillies and Villanova. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Rosemary Farm family representatives Jose Pelayo, left, and Lisa Stothart deliver a donation of hundreds of thousands of fresh eggs to feed first responders and those in need in the community through the donation of Rosemary Eggs at the Los Angeles Food Regional Bank in City of Industry, Calif., Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)2025-02-12T22:38:49Z SANTA MARIA, Calif. (AP) As consumers face skyrocketing egg prices and widespread shortages, a California farm is donating hundreds of thousands of fresh eggs to people affected by last months devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles Area. The 100-year-old family-owned Rosemary Farm in Santa Maria said its working with the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank and the nonprofit Gather For Good to get some 270,000 eggs to residents who lost homes in the Eaton and Palisades fires. In addition, nearly 55,000 eggs will go to firefighters and other first responders, according to a statement from the farm. Other eggs will be used by the LA bakery Winter Fate Bakes to make birthday cakes for displaced children. Egg prices reached a record high in the U.S. last month, mostly as a result of a nationwide bird flu outbreak. When the virus is found on a farm, the entire flock is killed to limit its spread. Egg farmers also face higher costs for feed, fuel and labor because of inflation. They are also investing more in biosecurity measures to try to protect their birds. Some grocers have imposed limits on how many eggs customers can buy at a time.

President Donald Trump speaks as Tulsi Gabbard is sworn in as the Director of National Intelligence in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)2025-02-12T23:08:58Z WASHINGTON (AP) A federal judge on Wednesday cleared the way for President Donald Trump s plan to downsize the federal workforce with a deferred resignation program. It was a significant legal victory for the Republican president after a string of courtroom setbacks. This goes to show that lawfare will not ultimately prevail over the will of 77 million Americans who supported President Trump and his priorities, said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.There was no immediate response from labor unions that had sued over Trumps plan. U.S. District Judge George OToole Jr. in Boston found that the unions didnt have legal standing to challenge the program, commonly described as a buyout.Trump wants to use financial incentives to encourage government employees to quit. According to the White House, tens of thousands of workers have taken the government up on its offer. The deferred resignation program has been spearheaded by Elon Musk, who is serving as Trumps top adviser for reducing federal spending. Under the plan, employees can stop working and get paid until Sept. 30. Labor unions argued the plan is illegal and asked for OToole to keep it on hold and prevent the Office of Personnel Management, or OPM, from soliciting more workers to sign up. A Justice Department lawyer has called the plan a humane off ramp for federal employees who may have structured their lives around working remotely and have been ordered to return to government offices. LINDSAY WHITEHURST Whitehurst covers the Supreme Court, legal affairs and criminal justice for The Associated Press in Washington, D.C. Past stops include Salt Lake City, New Mexico and Indiana. twitter mailto CHRIS MEGERIAN Megerian covers the White House for The Associated Press. He previously wrote about the Russia investigation, climate change, law enforcement and politics in California and New Jersey. twitter mailto MICHAEL CASEY Casey writes about the environment, housing and inequality for The Associated Press. He lives in Boston. twitter mailto

President Donald Trump speaks as Tulsi Gabbard is sworn in as the Director of National Intelligence in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)2025-02-12T22:30:45Z This week, the White House barred Associated Press journalists from three media appearances by President Donald Trump two of them in the Oval Office itself. Some of the reaction said, effectively, this: What right do you have to be there, anyway?The answer is a combination of tradition, independent reporting and the First Amendments guarantee of a free press.The AP, a global news outlet founded in 1846, is a source of fact-based, independent news that reaches billions of people every day. The news cooperative has been a member of the 13-person White House press pool that has reported on the president and held him accountable since its inception more than a century ago.The pool gets access to the president on the understanding that it distributes his comments and activities to other news outlets, congressional offices and more. When the Trump administration blocked the AP from three events, it didnt just bar the outlet from access to the president; it did so after an or-else demand that the news agency change its style from Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America, per Trumps presidential order. The AP has said that it will refer to the water as the Gulf of Mexico, while noting Trumps decision to rename it as well. As a global news agency that disseminates news around the world, the AP says it must ensure that place names and geography are easily recognizable to all audiences. Here is some background about the relationship between the presidency and the press now and across the years. There are First Amendment issuesThe First Amendment to the Bill of Rights states that the government shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press. To AP Executive Editor Julie Pace, Trumps move an attempt to use a news outlets access to him to control the content it published is a plain violation of the First Amendment.The actions taken by this White House were plainly intended to punish the AP for the content of its speech, Pace wrote Wednesday to Trump Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. It is among the most basic tenets of the First Amendment that the government cannot retaliate against the public or the press for what they say. The White House pointed out that the AP was allowed into its briefing Wednesday but continued to take issue with the style of the gulfs name.Nobody has the right to go into the Oval Office and ask the president of the United States questions, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday. We reserve the right to decide who gets to go into the Oval Office.The White House does not pick the members of the press pool that goes in to the Oval Office. The pool makeup is decided by the members of the press corps themselves and is designed to represent everyone in all formats.The relationship between the president and the press is intended to be adversarial. Thats essential for knowing what the president and his administration are or are not doing in the United States name with taxpayer money.Freely questioning elected lawmakers is the reason, for example, why congressional reporters can roam most of the same Capitol hallways as members of the House and Senate and pose questions on behalf of Americans. At the White House, a smaller secure compound that functions as a residence, work space and event venue, the rules of access are more strict. But it, too, belongs to Americans. The press is there to represent readers, viewers and listeners all over the world whose lives are going to be affected by what happens in the Oval Office but who are not able to be physically present themselves, said Kathy Kiely, professor of free press studies at the Missouri School of Journalism. The reporters ensure that the public gets information beyond the self-interested accounts provided by the president and his public relations team. What is the White House press pool?The first known instance of a so-called pool reporter inside the White House was in 1881 after President James A. Garfield was shot. As the chief executive lay in bed, AP reporter Franklin Trusdell sat outside his sick room, listening to him breathe and sharing updates with other correspondents.Now, its a group of news outlets that ideally are almost everywhere the president goes: in the Oval Office, to state dinners, on Air Force One, in the motorcade, and when the president goes golfing or biking, It was with Trump at the Super Bowl. The pool is also always on standby in case something happens in the world about which the president needs to speak to the nation. One reason the pool exists is because the Oval Office, the presidents official work space, is too small to accommodate every news outlet that would want to cover his executive order signings or meetings with foreign dignitaries. So the pool operates with a representative of each medium acting as eyes and ears for the others who cant get in. When a pooled event is over, the print, television and radio poolers share written notes, video and audio with everyone else who is interested. The pool maintains strict decorum, according to the White House Correspondents Association guidelines. It is standard practice to stand when the president enters the room. Even though shouting is unacceptable, presidential appearances can get rowdy. The White House press pool represents every media format and daily includes the AP and other wire-service writers, the AP and other photographers, a television crew, radio correspondent and writers for print and online publications.The pool was in John F. Kennedys motorcade in Dallas when he was assassinated on Nov. 22, 1963. That allowed for firsthand accounts of the event as conspiracy theories spread, an example of why independent reporting is critical to understanding what is happening around the president. There was a loud bang as though a giant firecracker had exploded in the cavern between the tall buildings we were just leaving behind us, AP reporter Jack Bell, who was in the motorcade with other reporters, recalled to Columbia Journalism Review. The man in front of me screamed, My God, theyre shooting at the president! George W. Bush was on camera at a school in Florida Sept. 11, 2001, when an aide whispered in his ear that America was under attack. More recently, the pool was in St. Croix on the night that former President Jimmy Carter died. The White House told the pool to stand by, and at a certain point transported the pool to a downtown hotel where then-President Joe Biden spoke about his predecessor and answered some questions.Presidents and reporters: An inherently adversarial relationshipTrump is famous for courting reporters even as he publicly criticizes them. Now, legacy media is on its heels amid an atmosphere of distrust as people get news from other sources some less credible than others. Hes not the first to try to go around traditional outlets. Franklin Delano Roosevelt had his fireside chats over the radio as some of the nations biggest newspapers took issue with government expansion under the New Deal. More recently, television and social media and especially podcasts during the 2024 election have provided similar workarounds for presidents. In 1798, John Adams signed the Sedition Act, which made it a crime for American citizens to print, utter, or publish...any false, scandalous, and malicious writing about the government and used it to jail journalists, according to the National Archives. In 1913, Woodrow Wilson threatened to end presidential briefings with reporters, resulting in what became the White House Correspondents Association. For all the tensions, the nations founders recognized the value of a free press in American democracy. Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, future President Thomas Jefferson wrote in a letter in 1787, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter. LAURIE KELLMAN Kellman has covered U.S. politics and foreign affairs for the Associated Press, including 23 years reporting from Washington and three from Jerusalem. She is based in London. twitter facebook mailto

Migrant, Cesar Anibal Bonilla Estrada, 54, from Ecuador, center, checks his phone during dinner time at the migrant shelter on Randall's Island, on Tuesday, April 9, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki, File)2025-02-12T21:49:05Z Elon Musk posted Monday on X that the so-called Department of Government Efficiency he heads had uncovered millions of dollars being spent illegally by FEMA to house migrants in New York City. He said the money was meant for American disaster relief and was wrongly spent for high end hotels. The claim, which has spread widely on social media, led FEMAs acting director to suspend payments sent to house migrants in New York City and the firing Tuesday of four federal employees.But the post misrepresents the funding, FEMAs role in dispersing it and how it is being used. Heres a look at the facts.CLAIM: FEMA sent $59 million last week to luxury hotels in New York City to house illegal migrants. Sending this money violated the law and is in insubordination to the Presidents executive order. That money is meant for American disaster relief and instead is being spent on high-end hotels. THE FACTS: FEMA does not send money directly to New York hotels. It does administer money on behalf of U.S. Customs and Border Protection authorized by Congress in 2023 for the Shelter and Services Program. It was created to support local governments and non-government organizations that provide support to noncitizens released by immigration authorities, according to the FEMA website. The money is separate from disaster relief funds. The office of Mayor Eric Adams said on Monday it received two payments from the federal government related to migrant assistance last week totaling over $80.5 million. One payment was for $58.6 million and the other was for $21.9 million, under two tranches of the Shelter and Services Program, city spokesperson Liz Garcia said. The money covered reimbursements for services delivered between November 2023 and October 2024 and included reimbursement for hotels, security, food and other costs. About $19 million in reimbursement claims were for hotel costs, she said. Garcia said the city has never paid luxury rates for hotels. Thats backed up by a report last year from City Comptroller Brad Lander, who is now running for mayor in a bid to unseat Adams, which showed that the municipal government has paid on average $152 a night for rooms, the vast majority outside Manhattan. Some of the Manhattan rooms were around $200 per night, but thats not a luxury rate. Rates for five-star hotels in Manhattan for this coming weekend run from $400 a night to well over $1,000. The Shelter and Services Program, also known as SSP, is administered by FEMA in partnership with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. Congress appropriated $650,000,000 for the program in fiscal year 2024 to provide financial support to nonfederal entities. Of that, $640.9 million was to support sheltering and related activities provided by non-Federal entities, in support of relieving overcrowding in short-term holding facilities of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The remaining $9.1 million was for FEMAs administrative costs.According to the American Immigration Council, the Shelter and Services Program provided reimbursements to state and local governments and nonprofits in 35 different communities in fiscal years 2023 and 2024. Numerous social media posts and some news reports claimed that the money should be used to help the victims of Hurricane Helene, which devastated parts of western North Carolina. But the funds for disaster assistance are administered separately.Yael Schacher, director of the Americas and Europe at Refugees International, agreed that Musk is likely referring to the Shelter and Services Program and said there is no substance to his claim that money for disaster victims is being given to migrants, as each fund is appropriated separately by Congress.It is absolutely correct to say these funds would not have gone to disaster relief if they hadnt gone to the SSP program, she explained. The funds just wouldnt have been appropriated by Congress at all. The Shelter and Services Program is a separate line item in the federal budget and does not draw from FEMAs Disaster Relief Fund. She continued: Congress has specifically set aside funding for FEMA to administer the Shelter and Services Program, ensuring that it does not pull any resources from FEMAs other work.Congress has authorized 140 times more funding for the Disaster Relief Fund than the Shelter and Services Program, according to the American Immigration Council. Schacher added that grants for the latter program have strict cost requirements for how the money should be spent.Four federal employees FEMAs chief financial officer, two program analysts and a grant specialist were fired Tuesday over the payments to reimburse New York City, Department of Homeland Security officials said. The workers are accused of circumventing leadership to make the transactions. Officials did not give details on how the four had violated any policies. Cameron Hamilton, acting FEMA administrator, said the payments made by the employees were suspended.In court documents filed Tuesday, Hamilton said the administration yanked funding from the Shelter and Services Program because of concerns the money was facilitating illegal activities at a Manhattan hotel used to house migrants. Hamiltons comments came as part of a lawsuit seeking to block the Trump administrations freeze on federal grants and loans. The freeze, just days into the new administration, threw states, communities and organizations that rely on federal funding into mass confusion, and was rescinded two days later. U.S. District Judge John McConnell in Rhode Island ruled on Wednesday that the governments bid to withhold FEMA money sent to New York to house migrants was not subject to an order, still in effect, thats aimed at preventing a sweeping Trump administration pause on federal funding.___Find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck. CEDAR ATTANASIO Attanasio covers New York City for The Associated Press with a focus on immigration and the ocean. He uses remote sensing to support the APs global coverage. twitter instagram facebook mailto MELISSA GOLDIN Goldin debunks, analyzes and tracks misinformation for The Associated Press. She is based in New York. twitter mailto

Attorney General Pam Bondi speaks at a news conference regarding immigration enforcement at the Justice Department, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Washington, as Tammy Nobles, mother of Kayla Hamilton, listens. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)2025-02-13T00:45:39Z WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trumps newly installed attorney general, Pam Bondi, went after New York leaders Wednesday over the states immigration policies, announcing a lawsuit in the latest effort by the Republican administration to carry out the presidents hardline immigration campaign pledges. In her first press conference since taking office last week, Bondi accused New York leaders of prioritizing illegal aliens over American citizens. Standing in front of federal agents who have been tasked with helping in Trumps immigration crackdown, she echoed the presidents rhetoric as she vowed the Justice Department would take on communities that thwart federal immigration efforts. The lawsuit against New York Attorney General Letitia James and Gov. Kathy Hochul targets a state law that allows people who might not be in the U.S. legally to get drivers licenses. The so-called Green Light Law was enacted partly to improve public safety on the roads, as people without licenses sometimes drove without one, or without having passed a road test. The state also makes it easier for holders of such licenses to get auto insurance, thus cutting down on crashes involving uninsured drivers. The lawsuit describes the law as a frontal assault on the federal immigration laws, and the federal authorities that administer them. It highlights a provision that requires the states Department of Motor Vehicles commissioner to inform people who are in the country illegally when a federal immigration agency has requested their information. The Justice Department is asking the court to strike down the law. This is a new DOJ, and we are taking steps to protect Americans, said Bondi, with agents from the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Drug Enforcement Administration lined up behind her. Millions of illegal aliens with violent records have flooded into our communities, bringing violence and deadly drugs with them. Bondis politically charged rhetoric, unusual for an institution that has historically been wary of aligning itself so directly with the White House, and the selection of legal targets raise fresh concerns that she could seek to use the agencys law enforcement powers to go after the presidents adversaries. James, the New York attorney general, has drawn Trumps ire by suing him, leading to a civil fraud judgment that stands to cost Trump nearly $500 million. James said in a statement that shes prepared to defend the states laws, which she said protect the rights of all New Yorkers and keep our communities safe.Bondi appeared alongside Tammy Nobles, whose 20-year-old daughter Kayla was killed in Aberdeen, Maryland, in July 2022 by someone from El Salvador who entered the country illegally months earlier in Texas. The assailant, then 16, was released to a first cousin to pursue asylum, which is common practice under U.S. law and policy. He had been accused by authorities in El Salvador of affiliation with the violent MS-13 gang, according to a report by Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee. To trumpet his immigration policies, Trump has often highlighted angel moms like Nobles, who lost their loved ones to violent crimes by people in the country illegally.Tammy represents not only herself and her family but all of the great angel moms around this country who have suffered because of what the Biden administration did, Bondi said. And its over. The lawsuit comes days after the Justice Department sued the city of Chicago, alleging that its sanctuary laws were thwarting federal efforts to enforce immigration laws.In 2020, the Trump administration sought to pressure New York into changing its law by barring anyone from the state from enrolling in trusted traveler programs, meaning they would spend longer amounts of time going through security lines at airports.New Yorks governor at the time, Andrew Cuomo, offered to restore federal access to driving records on a limited basis, but said he wouldnt let immigration agents see lists of people who had applied for the special licenses available to immigrants who couldnt prove legal residency in the U.S.The Trump administration ultimately restored New Yorkers access to the trusted traveler program after a brief legal fight._____AP journalist Elliot Spagat in San Diego, Eric Tucker in Washington and Michael R. Sisak in New York contributed. ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Richer is an Associated Press reporter covering the Justice Department and legal issues from Washington. twitter mailto

This image released by Netflix shows Karla Sofa Gascn, left, and Zoe Saldaa in a scene from "Emilia Prez." (Netflix via AP)2025-02-12T21:22:32Z NEW YORK (AP) The inner-Vatican machinations of Conclave have nothing on this years Oscar race.Just as Edward Bergers film juggles various candidates for the papacy, the race for best picture at the Academy Awards has seen one favorite replaced by another, and then another.While some clarity has lately emerged, with a handful of big wins for Sean Bakers Anora, it seems likely to be a nail biter until a winner is declared at the March 2 Oscars, when white smoke unfurls from the Sistine Chapel, I mean the Dolby Theatre.As of now, Anora is the clear frontrunner thanks to wins with the Producers Guild and the Directors Guild both prizes with a long history of predicting Oscar winners. Where the Screen Actors Guild and the BAFTAs fall will offer the last major clues.But unlike years like last year, when Oppenheimer was way ahead wire to wire, no lead in this years best picture race seems ironclad. So, with that in mind, here are the best picture nominees, ranked in order of least likely to win to most likely to win. Its telling that at least half of these films, with three weeks to go, still have a chance. 10. Nickel BoysIf this was a ranking of merit, RaMell Rosss movie would be first. Ross film, thrillingly and thoughtfully shot largely in first person, introduced a new filmic grammar to American movies. But Nickel Boys was seemingly on the cusp of getting a nomination, so we should just be glad its counted here among the best of the year. 9. Dune: Part TwoDenis Villeneuves first Frank Herbert adaptation garnered 10 nominations and won six. Part Two hasnt been the same awards force. Its up for five nominations and will probably walk home with one or two Oscars, possibly for visual effects and sound. People like Dune: Part Two but sequels tend to have a harder go of it at the Academy Awards. Blame it on the sandworms. 8. Im Still HereArguably no film has risen up the Oscar ranks more than Walter Salles portrait of political resistance under Brazils military dictatorship. The film, a box-office sensation in its native country, was once one of the many international underdogs vying for a place at the Academy Awards. It wont win best picture, but its a testament to the films appeal that it could upset Emilia Prez in best international film. Demi Moore in a scene from The Substance. (Mubi via AP) Demi Moore in a scene from The Substance. (Mubi via AP) Share Share Copy Link copied Email Facebook X Reddit LinkedIn Pinterest Flipboard Print Read More 7. The SubstanceCoralie Fargeats body-horror film has turned out to be much more of an Oscar contender than initially believed certainly by Universal, which financed the film but sold it to Mubi to distribute. Its up for five awards but its best chance comes in the best actress category where Demi Moore is the favorite. Mikey Madison (Anora) and Fernanda Torres (Im Still Here) could make that a close call, too, but Moore propelled by her popcorn actress narrative and the movies biting showbiz satire is the frontrunner. 6. Emilia PrezHow far can a former frontrunner fall? Jacques Audiards narco-musical leads all films with 13 nominations but the Netflix movie has been in freefall since its star, Karla Sofa Gascn, became ensnarled by a scandal over old tweets. Im not completely counting Emilia Prez out you dont get 13 nominations for nothing. But Emilia Prez, a divisive movie to begin with, is now in the business of salvaging its chances in other categories, like best supporting actress, where Zoe Saldaa could win. This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in a scene from the film Wicked. (Universal Pictures via AP) This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cynthia Erivo, left, and Ariana Grande in a scene from the film Wicked. (Universal Pictures via AP) Share Share Copy Link copied Email Facebook X Reddit LinkedIn Pinterest Flipboard Print Read More 5. WickedNow were into the top contenders. Most likely, the winner is coming from one of these next five. Jon M. Chus Broadway adaptation might have the most moviegoers rooting for it to win, but its missing some key ingredients for pulling out best picture. Chu missed on a nomination for best director and the Wicked has mostly been out-musical-ed by Emilia Prez on the awards circuit. Still, Wicked has cornered the market on the role of Big Studio Movie contender. However it does, the film academy is going to make sure Wicked is front and center during the ceremony.4. ConclaveHere we have our Everyone Likes It contender. Bergers papal thriller, starring Ralph Fiennes as a cardinal tasked with leading a conclave, feels like the most universally respected nominee. In a year where votes are spread across a lot of films, that might be a quality that particularly considering the academys preferential ballot leaves Conclave driving the Oscar home in a popemobile. Whats the main knock against this happening, aside from the potential difficulty of renting a popemobile? Berger was passed over on a directing nomination, and Conclave hasnt yet won a major award. More than any other movie, it needs a victory at the BAFTAs. 3. A Complete UnknownJames Mangolds Bob Dylan movie is also widely liked and lacks any precursor win. But admiration for A Complete Unknown is widespread and it could, just as Conclave might, pull out an upset by rising high on a plethora of ballots. Unlike Conclave, Mangold was nominated for best director, though, and it has the benefit of being led by Hollywoods biggest young star, Timothe Chalamet. Hollywood likes to, in picking a best picture winner, say something about its future. Chalamets star power could be convincing enough. Plus Searchlight Pictures has previously steered quite a few best-picture winners (Nomadland, The Shape of Water). Mangolds movie has momentum, which, even if it doesnt lead to best picture, may propel Chalamet to best actor over Adrien Brody for The Brutalist. 2. The Brutalist This image released by A24 shows Adrien Brody, left, and Guy Pearce in a scene from The Brutalist. (Lol Crawley/A24 via AP) This image released by A24 shows Adrien Brody, left, and Guy Pearce in a scene from The Brutalist. (Lol Crawley/A24 via AP) Share Share Copy Link copied Email Facebook X Reddit LinkedIn Pinterest Flipboard Print Read More Until recently, Brady Corbets postwar epic might have been the top pick. The Brutalist has been an award-winner at Venice and the Golden Globes. Its up for 10 Oscars. Its roundly been hailed as visionary, hugely ambitious cinema all made, remarkably, with a budget under $10 million. Its also three and a half hours long. Not every Oscar voter, I assure you, is watching it all the way through. That, though, might not be a bad thing for a movie that falls off in the second half.1. Anora Mark Eydelshteyn, left, and Mikey Madison in a scene from Anora. (Neon via AP) Mark Eydelshteyn, left, and Mikey Madison in a scene from Anora. (Neon via AP) Share Share Copy Link copied Email Facebook X Reddit LinkedIn Pinterest Flipboard Print Read More Half a year ago, Anora was the odds-on pick to win best picture and now, after a topsy-turvy awards season, it is again. A trio of wins at the PGA Awards, the DGA Awards and Critics Choice has reestablished Anora as the movie to beat.If it wins at the SAG Awards, too, the race is probably over. Not everything with similar credentials has won before, though; 1917 had the same wins before being defeated by Parasite five years ago. Anora, however, also won the Palme dOr at Cannes, like Parasite did, so it should do well among international voters a crucial voting bloc in todays academy.Its also just really good. Anora comes from a widely respected filmmaker in Baker, a prominent defender of the theatrical release. And his movie, a sly and devastating twist on a Pretty Woman-like fable, is as connected to Hollywoods celebrated 70s as it is to its indie filmmaking present.___For more on this years Oscar race and show, including how to watch the nominees, visit https://apnews.com/hub/academy-awards JAKE COYLE Coyle has been a film critic and covered the movie industry for The Associated Press since 2013. He is based in New York City. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Jocelyn Samuels speaks in Seattle, Feb. 4, 2014. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)2025-02-12T23:30:06Z WASHINGTON (AP) A member of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission who was abruptly dismissed by President Donald Trump says she believes her firing and the move to reshape the panel that protects workers from discrimination is part of the administrations agenda to erase the existence of trans people. Jocelyn Samuels, in an interview with The Associated Press, said the actions aimed at implementing Trumps crackdown on certain diversity and gender rights policies are unlawful and indicative of a looming wider rollback of work protections for women and minorities.My concern is that the refusal to recognize discrimination against trans people is both a way to scapegoat trans people and inflict immense damage on them, she said, and a harbinger of the way that this administration will treat other applications of the law with which it disagrees. Along with fellow EEOC commissioner Charlotte Burrows, Samuels was dismissed on Jan. 27, one week after Trump took office. Samuels said her dismissal letter pointed out my support for what they termed radical Biden administration guidance for DEI initiatives and also mentioned my refusal to defend women against extreme gender ideology. Again, their words, not mine. Samuels was nominated by Trump in 2020 and confirmed by the Senate. She was later reappointed by former President Joe Biden, with her term meant to extend until July 2026. Trump, she said, found me to be an acceptable nominee for a Democratic seat in 2020. I am now being branded a radical extremist. I think its the administrations perspectives that have changed, not mine. The EEOC was created by Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act as a bipartisan five-member panel to protect workers from discrimination on the basis of race, gender, disability and other protected characteristics. The U.S. president appoints the commissioners and the Senate confirms them, but their terms are staggered and are meant to overlap presidential terms to help ensure the agencys independence. No more than three of the five commissioners can be from the presidents political party. The two firings leave the agency with one Republican commissioner, Andrea Lucas, who Trump appointed acting EEOC chair last week; one Democratic commissioner, Kalpana Kotagal; and three vacancies that Trump can fill. Once a Republican majority on the commission is established, Samuels predicted an immediate rollback of EEOC protections in a way that will essentially greenlight harassment based on gender identity in the workplace. The EEOC investigates and imposes penalties on employers found to have violated laws that protect workers from racial, gender, disability and other forms of discrimination. The agency also writes influential rules and guidelines for how anti-discrimination laws should be implemented, and conducts workplace outreach and training.In recent years, the agencys Democratic and Republican commissioners have been sharply divided on many issues. Both Republican commissioners voted against new guidelines last year that misgendering transgender employees, or denying access to a bathroom consistent with their gender identity, would violate anti-discrimination laws. The commission is required to investigate all claims of workplace harassment or discrimination, and Samuels believes those investigations into cases involving trans people will continue on paper. But the level of investigation, the resources that the EEOC will put into it and the likelihood that the EEOC would find cause to believe that discrimination had occurred ... will be completely eviscerated, she said.The end result, she said, will be incalculable damage for a vulnerable community. She also maintains that her dismissal is unlawful and against the foundational concept of independent agencies such as the EEOC, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Labor Relations Board. Such positions are intentionally designed to overlap presidential administrations and cant be terminated simply based on political orientation. On the same day Samuels and Burrows were dismissed, Trump also dismissed National Labor Relations Board member Gynne A. Wilcox.I am looking at my legal options, Samuels said. I believe, based on longstanding Supreme Court precedent, that this is an unlawful termination.___Associated Press writers Alexandra Olson and Claire Savage contributed to this report. ASHRAF KHALIL Khalil writes about local issues in Washington, D.C., for The Associated Press and covers the social safety net around the country. twitter instagram mailto

2025-02-12T17:28:59Z LONDON (AP) Russias stockpiles of Cold War-era weapons and larger population have allowed it to withstand heavy battlefield losses in Ukraine as the West fails to provide Ukraine the aid needed to mount a counteroffensive, according to an annual review of the global military situation.While Russia lost 1,400 tanks last year and has seen an estimated 800,000 soldiers killed or wounded since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine began some three years ago, Moscow has been able to keep its forces up to strength, the International Institute for Strategic Studies said in the report released Wednesday. The same isnt true for Ukraine, which has suffered a serious drain on its personnel, though no reliable figures exist on such losses because of its sensitive political nature.The pledged Western military supplies appear insufficient to enable a sustained Ukrainian counteroffensive, IISS said. While Ukraine has proved its ability to resist Russias invasion in the air, land and maritime domains, it has found it difficult to mobilize sufficient troops to keep pace with its casualties. Some observers, including U.S. President Donald Trump, see an opportunity for a peace deal in the grinding war of attrition, which is weakening Russias economy. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz said last weekend that Trump was prepared to tax, to tariff, to sanction to bring Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table. But Nigel Gould-Davies, senior fellow for Eurasia and Russia at IISS and a former British ambassador to Belarus, discounted the chances for a ceasefire. The most important underlying fact is Russias and specifically Putins clearly stated determination to continue the war, Gould-Davies said. And in particular the clarity with which Putin on several occasions, even in the past couple of months, has said hes not interested in a ceasefire, hes not interested in a freeze in the conflict. Hes only been interested in a full and final end to the war, which would require the resolution of a wide range of difficult international political, legal and bureaucratic issues. As the war in Ukraine drags on, conflict flares in the Middle East and China takes an increasingly assertive stance in Asia, countries around the world are rebuilding military stockpiles that were allowed to decline after the Cold War.Global defense spending jumped to $2.46 trillion last year, an increase of 7.4% after inflation, according to IISS, a London-based think tank that has produced its annual report on the balance of military power for the past 65 years.Russia increased defense spending by 41.9% to the equivalent of $145.9 billion, dwarfing the $28.4 billion spent by Ukraine but close to total European defense spending. Moscow is now spending about 6.7% of its economic output on defense, compared with 3.6% before the invasion of Ukraine.While stockpiles of armor and artillery have allowed Russia to keep pace with battlefield losses, that may become more difficult over time. Putin has restrained the mobilization of troops to maintain support for the war, which is fueling inflation in Russia and draining funds from social programs such as education and healthcare, IISS said. In addition, remaining weapons stockpiles are likely to need costly refurbishment before they can be used on the battlefield.The present course is unsustainable, Gould-Davies said. But thats not to say something is unsustainable in the shorter term.Concern about Russian aggression has led many NATO countries to increase their own defenses.European countries boosted military spending by 11.7% last year, driven by a 23.2% increase in Germany, IISS said. Even so, German defense spending equaled 1.8% of economic output, below the 2% target for members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.Trump has repeatedly criticized other members of the military alliance for failing to pay their fair share of the collective defense bill.Total NATO defense spending rose to $1.44 trillion last year, with $442 billion, or less than a third, coming from the blocs European members, IISS said.

An American flag hangs in a classroom as students work on laptops in Newlon Elementary School, in Denver, Aug. 25, 2020. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)2025-02-13T04:04:28Z Denver Public Schools became the first U.S. school district Wednesday to sue the Trump administration challenging its policy allowing ICE immigration agents in schools.Colorados largest public school district argued in the federal lawsuit that the policy has forced schools to divert vital educational resources and caused attendance to plummet.DPS is hindered in fulfilling its mission of providing education and life services to the students who are refraining from attending DPS schools for fear of immigration enforcement actions occurring on DPS school grounds, the lawsuit states.The federal lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says the Trump administration hasnt provided good reason for rescinding the rules nor adequately considered or addressed the fallout.Last month, President Donald Trump lifted longtime rules restricting immigration enforcement near sensitive locations, including schools. The announcement came as the new president seeks to make good on campaign promises to carry out mass deportations. Denver is standing up for its children and families and protecting the right of all children, regardless of their immigration status, to attend public schools, Elora Mukherjee, director of the Immigrants Rights Clinic at Columbia Law School, said in an email. Denver Public Schools serve more than 90,000 students about 4,000 of which are immigrants, according to the lawsuit, which cites 2023-2024 school year numbers. More than half of the students are Hispanic or Latinx. The city of Denver has seen an increase in migrants recently. Since 2023, about 43,000 people have arrived in the city from the U.S. southern border, according to the lawsuit.Parents across Denver enroll their children in public schools believing that while at school, their children will be educated and enriched without fear the government will enforce immigration laws on those premises, the lawsuit said. The school district says it has had to devote a lot of time and resources to adding policies that keep students safe and training faculty and staff on how to respond to people claiming they are conducting immigration enforcement at schools.Denver Public Schools also want to see DHS publish the directive publicly, saying that not being able to view the change in policy has impeded their ability to prepare for it, according to the lawsuit. The Trump administration did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment.___Lisa Baumann in Bellingham, Washington, contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump speaks as Tulsi Gabbard is sworn in as the Director of National Intelligence in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)2025-02-13T05:08:58Z WASHINGTON (AP) As a candidate last year, Donald Trump suggested he could easily conquer inflation and ease voters fears about the economy.I will very quickly deflate, he promised at a California rally. We are going to take inflation, and we are going to deflate it. We are going to deflate inflation. We are going to defeat inflation. Were going to knock the hell out of inflation.Wednesdays consumer price index report showed that inflation is punching back and President Trump could end up facing the same challenges that dragged down his predecessor, President Joe Biden. The annual inflation rate has risen in the three months since the November election to 3%, with gasoline prices climbing despite Trumps claims that his return to the White House would signal increased oil production that would lower energy costs.Trump frequently makes far-reaching assertions about his power to bring about change only to find that it is no match for market forces. Its a humbling reminder that even U.S. presidents are subject to the invisible hand of supply and demand, rather than the masters of it. Consumer sentiment measures suggest the public already sees Trumps plans to expand tariffs as increasing inflation. On Wednesday, the president called for interest rate cuts, even though rate hikes by the Federal Reserve helped lower inflation that spiked at a four-decade high in 2022. The latest consumer price figures have unnerved economists and the financial markets because they suggest that strong consumer spending, solid job gains and a falling unemployment rate could reignite inflation. Steady demand, particularly from wealthier consumers, makes it easier for companies to keep raising prices. The cost of goods including toys and auto parts rose last month even before the imposition of tariffs. Trump has placed 10% tariffs on China, in addition to announcing the removal of exemptions on his 2018 steel and aluminum tariffs. There are also potential tariff hikes on Canada and Mexico and a potential executive order that would increase tariffs to match the import taxes charged by other countries. All of this means that baseline inflationary pressures could be at their highest level in decades.Disinflation may be dead, and we may be looking at a higher rate of inflation than we observed for the 20 years prior to the pandemic, said Joseph Brusuelas, chief economist at RSM, a tax and advisory firm. Trumps call for lower rates puts him in opposition to Fed Chairman Jerome Powell.If inflation goes up in general, we will use our tools, which is the interest rate, to bring it back down to 2% over time, Powell told a congressional committee on Wednesday. Powell also said that Trumps calls to lower rates wouldnt sway the Fed.So far, the Trump White Houses main response to this challenge has been to blame Biden, an argument with a short lifespan as Trump is exerting more control over economic policy.The Biden administration indeed left us with a mess to deal with, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at Wednesdays news briefing. Its far worse than I think anybody anticipated. But Trump allies are also starting to float new ideas for tackling inflation. Standing in the Oval Office on Tuesday, billionaire Elon Musk, the head of the presidents Department of Government Efficiency, proposed $1 trillion in spending cuts this year.Musk, the worlds richest man who continues to control Tesla, X and SpaceX among other companies, wants to eliminate $1 out of every $7 spent by the federal government in order to bring the inflation rate to zero. Its not clear based on lawsuits and Congress responsibility for government funding that Musk can deliver those savings.If you cut the budget deficit by a trillion between now and next year, there is no inflation, Musk said. And if the government is not borrowing as much, it means that interest costs decline. So everyones mortgage, their car payment, their credit card bills, anything, their student debt, the monthly payments drop. Thats a fantastic scenario for the average American. Such a steep cut might bring lower prices but also the pain of a sharp economic downturn. That would be a roughly 4% of GDP cut to federal spending, all in one year, said Michael Linden, a senior policy fellow at the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. It would be an instant recession.For now, markets are anticipating more inflation as consumer demand stays strong and Trump has yet to show how exactly his policies would keep prices low, as he promised to voters.The yield on the 10-year Treasury note jumped Wednesday to 4.62% in response to the inflation report, a sign that investors expect interest rates, growth and inflation to be higher in the coming months. Consumers also say that inflation will rise. Americans expectations of inflation over the next year have soared, according to the University of Michigans consumer sentiment survey. The February survey said that inflation this year will be 4.3%, up sharply from 3.3% the previous month. Many respondents mentioned tariffs as a concern. When asked Wednesday why Trumps call for lower interest rates would temper inflation, Leavitt focused on what the president wants instead of what he would do.He wants interest rates to be lower, she said. He wants inflation to be lower. And he believes that the whole of government economic approach that this administration is taking will result in lower inflation. JOSH BOAK Boak covers the White House and economic policy for The Associated Press. He joined the AP in 2013. twitter mailto CHRISTOPHER RUGABER Rugaber has covered the Federal Reserve and the U.S. economy for the AP for 16 years. He is a two-time finalist for the Gerald Loeb award for business reporting. twitter mailto

President Donald Trump speaks as Tulsi Gabbard is sworn in as the Director of National Intelligence in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)2025-02-13T04:57:53Z TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) An explosion at a department store in Taiwan on Thursday killed one person and left 10 others hospitalized, fire authorities said. The blast occurred at the food court on the 12th floor of the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi department store in Taichung city. Among the 10 people who were hospitalized, four had no vital signs, authorities said. Dozens of firefighters were deployed to the scene, where parts of the buildings exterior were damaged and scattered fragments were strewn on the streets. Taichung Deputy Mayor Cheng Chao-hsin said he had been told the blast may have been caused by a suspected gas explosion, but that still needed to be confirmed.

Dr. Mohammad Fares, right, watches a man close the Sarmada Health Center, in Sarmada district, north of Idlib city, Syria, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)2025-02-13T05:16:35Z SARMADA, Syria (AP) In the town of Sarmada in northern Syria, Dr. Mohammad Fares unlocked a clinic that once bustled with patients. Now its empty, and shelves of medicine reduced to a few boxes of bandages and expired drugs.This is what it looks like after the Trump administration halted U.S. foreign assistance last month. The U.S. Agency for International Development, USAID, issued stop-work orders during a 90-day review for what the administration has alleged is wasteful spending.Fares had been working in three clinics run by Mdecins du Monde, or Doctors of the World, offering free health care to the displaced population in northern Syria, which until the fall of former President Bashar Assad in December had been the countrys main rebel-held enclave. It sheltered millions of people who had fled years of civil war.Their already grim camps swelled again in 2023 after a deadly magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit Turkey and northern Syria. Since the fall of Assad, some displaced Syrians have begun to return home, but many have no homes left. Fares clinic in Sarmada used to support 16 camps in the region, assisting approximately 35,000 people. Since the aid freeze, 10 such clinics receiving USAID funding had to close, and Doctors of the World had to lay off 184 people, officials with the organization said. If the support is not resumed, there will be a major disaster and serious harm to vulnerable groups, said Fares, who heads the organizations medical programs. Operating costs of clinics are much lower than those of hospitals. The cessation of work in these clinics will put increased pressure on emergency hospitals and other healthcare facilities This part of Syria lacks centralized government healthcare, leaving people reliant on nonprofit providers and making the impact of the sudden U.S. cuts especially dire, aid workers and experts said. Our analysis shows that withdrawing all of USAIDs support in Syria would be equivalent to a devastating shock of 5% to its already struggling economy. This is among the largest impacts on any recipient. said Ian Mitchell, senior policy fellow at the Washington based Center for Global Development.The U.S. had been providing 25 cents in foreign aid for every $100 of U.S. income, Mitchell said, but that relatively small contribution had outsized impact: Without U.S. support in places like Gaza and Syria, the world will become a more dangerous place.In one camp that had been served by a Doctors of the World clinic, near Kawkaba village, children played among the crowded tents.Camp director Abdelkareem Khaled said the suspension of aid has exacerbated already difficult conditions.Patients, especially those who need medicine every month, can no longer afford it at the pharmacy, he said, leaving those with chronic diseases like diabetes with wrenching decisions to make.In one tent, Bassam Hussein, father of 4 daughters. said he was forced to pull his 12-year-old daughter out of school so she could work in an almond field to help pay for the medicine he uses for his thyroid illness. Every twenty days, I need a pack of medicine that costs $12, he said, If I dont secure the cost of the medicine, I experience complications weakness, depression and so on. He said he was unable to work because of past injuries and illnesses.Other organizations are in limbo. Some have continued providing services without knowing where they will find the money.Dr. Mufaddal Hamadeh, president of the Syrian American Medical Society, which runs hospitals and mobile clinics across the north, said some services had to continue, such as the maternity ward and incubators. But its unclear how long that will remain sustainable.Were not certain if well get a waiver or reimbursement for the expenses weve already covered, he said, referring to the U.S. government. That already put a huge financial burden on us. He refused to give details.Secretary of State Marco Rubio has issued a waiver to exempt emergency food aid and life-saving programs. But Hamadeh and others said funding has not resumed to a point that would allow them to fully restore services. Were going to have to shut down some of these hospitals and shrink, Hamadeh said. We cant be providing free services anymore.Some programs, such as mental health support for refugees in Turkey and an autism center for children, may not be deemed life-saving.We have a grant that supports survivors of torture and sexual assault, Hamadeh said. Are these services life-saving or not? Likely they will be shut down.USAID and the U.S. government did not respond to questions. Elsewhere, USAID workers and aid officials have said funding hasnt resumed despite waivers, or USAID staffers who would process them are now gone.SAMS relies on USAID for about 25 to 30% of its funds. Its significant, but some other organizations working in Syria receive much more. Doctors of the Worlds Istanbul office, which oversees operations in northern Syria, was receiving 60% of its funding from USAID.Sitting in a new, downsized office, Turkish branch director Hakan Bilgin recalled the day they were told to halt services.We just received the stop-work order suddenly. Nobody was expecting it, he said. As a medical organization providing life-saving services, youre basically telling us: Close all the clinics, stop all your doctors, and youre not providing services to women, children, and the elderly.Bilgin said his group has cut its daily consultations across northern Syria from 5,000 to 500. The organization has applied for a waiver from the U.S. but has received no response.Trump and Elon Musk, who runs what is billed as a cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency, have taken aim at various government agencies. But USAID has been hit the hardest, with Trump and Musk accusing the agencys work of being out of line with Trumps agenda.Hamadeh, the SAMS president, said the aid cuts are short-sighted and could harm Washingtons standing abroad.This money is helping people, saving lives, he said. You cant just shut down USAID, which has helped millions across the world and actually did help improve Americas reputation.Northwest Syria has been devastated by years of war and neglect, he said. Pulling the plug over that will just increase the suffering.___Badendieck reported from Istanbul. Associated Press writer Suzan Fraser contributed from Ankara, Turkey.

The reunion center is located at the Diamond Mountain, North Korea, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009. (AP Photo/Korea Pool, File)2025-02-13T03:20:00Z SEOUL, South Korea (AP) North Korea is demolishing a South Korea-built property that had been used to host reunions of families separated during the 1950-53 Korean War, the Souths government said Thursday, as it continues to eliminate symbols of engagement between the war-divided rivals.Relations between the Koreas are at their worst in years, with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un continuing to flaunt his expanding nuclear weapons program and declaring to abandon long-standing goals of inter-Korean reconciliation, while describing the South as a permanent enemy.The 12-story building at the Norths scenic Diamond Mountain resort, which has 206 rooms and banquet facilities for hosting meetings, had been used for family reunions since 2009. The Koreas last held a family reunion in 2018, after Kim initiated diplomacy with Seoul and Washington in an effort to leverage his nuclear program for economic benefits. Negotiations derailed in 2019 after a failed summit between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump, who was serving his first term, when the Americans rejected North Koreas demands for a major release of U.S.-led economic sanctions in exchange for a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities. The North has since suspended virtually all diplomatic activity with the South and ignored U.S. requests to resume talks while accelerating the development of nuclear weapons and missiles. Seouls Unification Ministry, which handles inter-Korean affairs, said it had confirmed that North Korea was demolishing the building, named the Reunion Center for the Separated Families, and urged the North to suspend the destruction. The North had previously removed a South Korea-built hotel, golf course and other tourist facilities from the Diamond Mountain resort. Demolishing the reunion center is an act against humanity that crushes the yearning of separated families, as well as a grave infringement of our state-owned property, the ministry said in a statement. The ministry said the Souths government will consider necessary countermeasures, including legal action and international pressure, but it isnt clear whether Seoul has any effective options. In 2023, South Korea filed a 44.7 billion won ($30 million) damage suit against North Korea for blowing up a joint liaison office just north of their border in 2020. The lawsuit was seen as symbolic as theres no clear way for South Korea to force North Korea to pay if it is found liable for damages. KIM TONG-HYUNG Kim has been covering the Koreas for the AP since 2014. He has published widely read stories on North Koreas nuclear ambitions, the dark side of South Koreas economic rise and international adoptions of Korean children. twitter mailto

United States Vice-President JD Vance arrives to the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit at the Grand Palais in Paris, France, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)2025-02-13T05:32:24Z MUNICH, Germany (AP) U.S. Vice President JD Vance will visit the Dachau concentration camp memorial Thursday, making a stop at one of the most powerful symbols of World War II on the eve of his critical talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about the three-year Russia-Ukraine conflict.Vance, along with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, is due to sit down Friday with Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference to discuss President Donald Trumps intensifying push for Ukraine and Russia to begin negotiations to end Europes deadliest conflict since World War II.But first Vance is stopping at the solemn memorial that is a powerful reminder of the Nazis World War II-era atrocities and the U.S. and Western allies slowness to take decisive action to confront Adolf Hitler and the rise of his violent nationalist ideology. Dachau was established in 1933 the same year Hitler took power as one of the first concentration camps. More than 200,000 people from across Europe were held at the camp, and over 40,000 prisoners died there in horrendous conditions. U.S. soldiers completed the liberation on April 29, 1945. Vance is in the midst of a five-day visit to France and Germany, his first overseas travel since becoming vice president last month. His wife, Usha Vance, is expected to join him for the Dachau visit.The moment at Dachau will offer Vance a chance to reflect on the scourges of war just as his boss, Donald Trump, is ratcheting up his efforts to end the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Trump on Wednesday spoke separately with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy. Trump said that he and Putin agreed it was time to start negotiations immediately to end the war. And as Trump announced his agreement on negotiations with Putin, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that NATO membership for Ukraine was unrealistic and suggested Kyiv should abandon hopes of winning all its territory back from Russia and instead prepare for a negotiated peace settlement to be backed up by international troops. In addition to his talks with Zelenskyy, Vance is scheduled to deliver an address on Friday to the annual Munich Security Conference.The war in Europe and NATO members defense spending are expected to be front and center for the world leaders gathering in Munich. Vance, like Trump, has been a sharp critic of U.S. allies spending what the administration deems as too little on their defense budgets.The Trump administration has been clear that we care a lot about Europe, Vance said during a meeting this week with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. But we also want to make sure that were engaged in a security partnership thats both good for Europe and the United States.Over nearly three years of war, 50 countries known as the Ukraine Contact Group have collectively provided Ukraine with more than $126 billion in weapons and military assistance, including more than $66.5 billion from the U.S., which has served as chair of the group since its creation. Trump in his 2024 campaign derided the enormous amount of U.S. military aid poured into Ukraine and vowed to end the conflict within 24 hours of returning to the White House. Since his November election victory over Democrat Kamala Harris, Trump and his advisers have dialed back on their boldest timelines and set a goal of ending the war in about six months. AAMER MADHANI Madhani covers the White House for The Associated Press. He is based in Washington. twitter mailto

Supporters of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, AfD, sing the national anthem as they attend an election campaign rally of the party for the upcoming state elections in Suhl, Germany, Aug. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)2025-02-13T05:21:13Z BERLIN (AP) Alternative for Germany appears to be heading for its strongest national election result yet this month and is fielding its first candidate to lead the country. Even though its highly unlikely to take a share of power soon, it has become a factor that other politicians cant ignore and helped shape Germanys debate on migration. The far-right party first entered Germanys national parliament eight years ago on the back of discontent with the arrival of large numbers of migrants in the mid-2010s, and curbing migration remains its signature theme. But the party has proven adept at harnessing discontent with other issues: Germanys move away from fossil fuels, restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic and support for Ukraine after Russias full-scale invasion nearly three years ago. How did it start?Alternative for Germany, or AfD, was founded in 2013 and initially focused on opposition to bailouts for struggling countries in the eurozone debt crisis measures that then Chancellor Angela Merkel described as without alternative. It was sometimes known as a party of professors, a reference to leading figures in the early days, though it already had a strong streak of hard-right, anti-establishment identity. Over the years, AfD became more radical and repeatedly changed leaders. It was Merkels decision in 2015 to allow in large numbers of migrants that supercharged it as a political force, and in the 2017 national election, it won 12.6% of the vote to take seats in the German parliament for the first time. Where does it stand now?After returning to parliament in 2021 with reduced support of 10.3%, AfD picked up strength as Chancellor Olaf Scholzs center-left government bickered through a series of crises some of its own making and finally collapsed. Germany saw a wave of protests a year ago triggered by a report that right-wing extremists met to discuss the deportation of millions of immigrants, including some with German citizenship, and that AfD members were present. But that didnt do long-term poll damage to AfD. It finished second in the European Parliament election in June, and in September, the best-known figure on its hardest-right wing, Bjrn Hcke, secured the first far-right win in a state election in post-World War II Germany. AfD is going into this election with renewed confidence and radical language. Alice Weidel, its first candidate for chancellor, has embraced the term remigration as the party calls for large-scale deportations of people with no legal entitlement to be in Germany a politically loaded word that featured in last years controversy. AfD calls for the immediate lifting of sanctions against Russia and opposes weapons deliveries to Ukraine. It wants Germany to reintroduce a national currency and for the European Union to be turned into a looser association of European nations, though it isnt explicitly advocating leaving the 27-nation bloc. Germanys domestic intelligence agency has the party under observation for suspected right-wing extremism. The AfDs branches in three eastern states are designated proven right-wing extremist groups. AfD strongly objects to those assessments and rejects any association with the Nazi past. Hcke has appealed two convictions for knowingly using a Nazi slogan at a political event. Who supports it?AfD has support across Germany and is represented in all but two of the 16 state legislatures, but the party is strongest in the formerly communist and less prosperous east.It has a unique ability to seize on issues that other parties dont handle with this clarity, with this intensity, with this radicalism and this emotionality, said Wolfgang Schroeder, a political science professor at the Berlin Social Science Center. And on top of that, its an internet party and from the beginning used the emotionalizing power of the internet for its own communication much better than all other German parties together.That has helped it to perform strongly among young voters in recent regional elections. The party portrays itself as an anti-establishment force at a time of low trust in politicians, sometimes dismissing the old parties as a cartel.Schroeder described it as something like an aircraft carrier for resentment and anger. Other parties say they wont work with it. Who are its friends abroad?AfDs rise has coincided with that of far-right parties in many other European countries, including Austrias Freedom Party and the National Rally in France, with which it has plenty of common ground. Weidel was in Budapest to visit Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbn on Wednesday.However, it isnt part of those parties Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament after some tensions before last years EU elections. AfD was thrown out of one of the groups predecessors after its leading candidate at the time, Maximilian Krah, said that not all Nazi SS men were necessarily criminals. The party has found an enthusiastic supporter in billionaire Elon Musk, a close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump. Musk has declared that only the AfD can save Germany. He held a live chat on X with Weidel and appeared live by video link at an AfD campaign rally. At that rally, Weidel vowed to make Germany great again in an echo of the U.S. presidents slogan.___Kerstin Sopke contributed to this report.

A woman holds the hand of a sick relative lying on the floor of the overcrowded Lilongwe Central Hospital, in Lilongwe, Malawi, Sept. 30, 1998, as the hospital is overflowing because of an epidemic of AIDS rampaging in southern Africa. (AP Photo /Denis Farrell, File)2025-02-13T05:38:20Z A generation has passed since the world saw the peak in AIDS-related deaths. Those deaths agonizing, from diseases the body might otherwise fight off sent loved ones into the streets, pressuring governments to act. The United States eventually did, creating PEPFAR, arguably the most successful foreign aid program in history. HIV, which causes AIDS, is now manageable, though there is still no cure.Now the Trump administration has put the brakes on foreign aid while alleging its wasteful, causing chaos in the system that for over 20 years has kept millions of people alive. Confusion over a temporary waiver for PEPFAR and the difficulty of restarting its work, with U.S. workers, contractors and payments in upheaval means the clock is ticking for many who are suddenly unable to obtain medications to keep AIDS at bay.Few people under 30 years old understand what AIDS does to the body. The U.S.-led global response to HIV has been so effective that AIDS wards of people wasting away are a vision of the past. Now health experts, patients and others fear those days could return if the Trump administration doesnt reverse course or no other global power steps into the void, and fast. In the next five years, we could have 6.3 million AIDS-related deaths, the U.N. AIDS agency told The Associated Press. Thats a shock at a time of rising complacency around HIV, declining condom use among some young people and the rise of a medication that some believe could end AIDS for good. The agency has begun publicly tracking new HIV infections since the aid freeze.Heres a look at what happens to the body when HIV drugs are stopped: An immune system collapseHIV is spread by bodily fluids such as blood, breast milk or semen. It gradually weakens the bodys immune system and makes it vulnerable to disease, including ones rarely seen in otherwise healthy people. The surprising emergence of such cases in the 1980s is what tipped off health experts to what became known as the AIDS epidemic.Years of intense advocacy and shocking sights of children, young adults and others dying of pneumonia and other infections led to the response that created PEPFAR, the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. Twenty million people around the world died before the program was founded. Now millions of people take drugs known as antivirals that keep HIV from spreading in the body.Stopping those drugs lets the virus start multiplying in the body again, and it could become drug-resistant. HIV can rebound to detectable levels in peoples blood in just a few weeks, putting sexual partners at risk. Babies born to mothers with HIV can escape infection only if the woman was properly treated during pregnancy or the infant is treated immediately after birth.If the drugs are not taken, a body is heading toward AIDS, the final stage of infection. The daily danger of germsWithout HIV treatment, people with AIDS typically survive about three years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.For a long time, there may be no noticeable symptoms. But a person can easily spread HIV to others, and the immune system becomes vulnerable to what are called opportunistic diseases.The National Institutes of Health says opportunistic diseases include fungal infections, pneumonia, salmonella and tuberculosis. For a country like South Africa, with the worlds highest number of HIV cases and one of the largest numbers of TB cases, the toll could be immense.Unchecked by HIV treatment, the damage continues. The immune system is increasingly unable to fight off diseases. Every action, from eating to travel, must consider the potential exposure to germs. Every day countsFor years, the importance of taking the drugs every day, even at the same time of day, has been emphasized to people with HIV. Now the ability to follow that essential rule has been shaken.Already, hundreds or thousands of U.S.-funded health partners in countries such as Kenya and Ethiopia have been laid off, causing widespread gaps in HIV testing, messaging, care and support on the continent most helped by PEPFAR. At some African clinics, people with HIV have been turned away.Restoring the effects caused by the Trump administrations foreign aid freeze during a 90-day review period, and understanding whats allowed under the waiver for PEPFAR, will take time that health experts say many people dont have.Meanwhile, the head of the U.N. AIDS agency, Winnie Byanyima, told the AP that more resistant strains of the disease could emerge.And an additional 3.4 million children could be made orphans another echo of the time when the world raced to confront AIDS with few tools at hand.___Follow coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/us-agency-for-international-development

President Donald Trump listens as Elon Musk speaks in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)2025-02-13T05:25:17Z DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) Elon Musk called Thursday to delete entire agencies from the United States federal government as part of his push under President Donald Trump to radically cut spending and restructure its priorities.Musk offered a wide-ranging survey via a videocall to the World Governments Summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, of what he described as the priorities of the Trump administration interspersed with multiple references to thermonuclear warfare and the possible dangers of artificial intelligence.We really have here rule of the bureaucracy as opposed to rule of the people democracy, Musk said, wearing a black T-shirt that read: Tech Support. He also joked that he was the White Houses tech support, borrowing from his profile on the social platform X, which he owns. I think we do need to delete entire agencies as opposed to leave a lot of them behind, Musk said. If we dont remove the roots of the weed, then its easy for the weed to grow back. While Musk has spoken to the summit in the past, his appearance Thursday comes as he has consolidated control over large swaths of the government with Trumps blessing since assuming leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency. Thats included sidelining career officials, gaining access to sensitive databases and inviting a constitutional clash over the limits of presidential authority. Musks new role imbued his comments with more weight beyond being the worlds wealthiest person through his investments in SpaceX and electric carmaker Tesla. His remarks also offered a more-isolationist view of American power in the Middle East, where the U.S. has fought wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.A lot of attention has been on USAID for example, Musk said, referring to Trumps dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development. Theres like the National Endowment for Democracy. But Im like, Okay, well, how much democracy have they achieved lately? He added that the U.S. under Trump is less interested in interfering with the affairs of other countries.There are times the United States has been kind of pushy in international affairs, which may resonate with some members of the audience, Musk said, speaking to the crowd in the UAE, an autocratically ruled nation of seven sheikhdoms. Basically, America should mind its own business, rather than push for regime change all over the place, he said.He also noted the Trump administrations focus on eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion work, at one point linking it to AI.If hypothetically, AI is designed for DEI, you know, diversity at all costs, it could decide that theres too many men in power and execute them, Musk said.On AI, Musk said he believed Xs newly updated AI chatbot, Grok 3, would be ready in about two weeks, calling it at one point kind of scary. He criticized Sam Altmans management of OpenAI, which Musk just led a $97.4 billion takeover bid for, describing it as akin to a nonprofit aimed at saving the Amazon rainforest becoming a lumber company that chops down the trees. Musk also announced plans for a Dubai Loop project in line with his work in the Boring Company which is digging tunnels in Las Vegas to speed transit. However, he and the Emirati government official speaking with him offered no immediate details of the plan.Its going to be like a wormhole, Musk promised. You just wormhole from one part of the city boom and youre out in another part of the city. JON GAMBRELL Gambrell is the news director for the Gulf and Iran for The Associated Press. He has reported from each of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Iran and other locations across the world since joining the AP in 2006. twitter instagram mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Nissan Chief Executive Makoto Uchida, left, Honda Chief Executive Toshihiro Mibe, right, with Takao Kato, CEO of Mitsubishi Motors, not in photo, pose for photographers during a joint news conference in Tokyo, Japan, on Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)2025-02-13T06:57:19Z TOKYO (AP) Japanese automakers Honda, Nissan and Mitsubishi said Thursday they are dropping their talks for a business integration. The automakers agreed to end their agreement regarding the consideration of the structure for a collaboration, their joint statement said. Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Corp. announced in December that they were going to hold talks to set up a joint holding company. Mitsubishi Motors Corp. had said it was considering joining that group. From the start, the effort had analysts puzzled as to the advantages to any of the companies, as their model lineups and strengths overlap in an industry shaken by the arrival of powerful newcomers like Tesla and BYD, as well as the move to electrification. Details as to why the talks unraveled werent immediately available. Honda and Nissan initially said they were trying to finalize an agreement by June and set up the holding company by August. The three automakers will continue to work together on electric vehicles and smart cars, such as autonomous driving, they said Thursday.In recent weeks, Japanese media had various reports about the talks breaking down, citing unidentified sources. Some said Nissan balked at becoming a minor player in the partnership with Honda. Honda is in far better financial shape and was to take the lead in the joint executive team.Nissan reported a loss for the July-September quarter as its vehicle sales sank, prompting it to slash 9,000 jobs. At that time, Chief Executive Makoto Uchida took a 50% pay cut to take responsibility for the results. ___Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@yurikageyama YURI KAGEYAMA Kageyama covers Japan news for The Associated Press. Her topics include social issues, the environment, businesses, entertainment and technology. twitter instagram facebook mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Migrants from Haiti stand in line outside the Mexican Commission for Refugee Aid (COMAR) government office to apply for asylum in Mexico City, Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)2025-02-13T05:13:44Z MEXICO CITY (AP) When Angelica Delgado took a one-way flight to Mexico as she fled Cuba in December, she was set on seeking asylum in the United States.But after President Donald Trump effectively slammed the door on asylum-seekers crossing the U.S. border when he took office last month, the 23-year-old recalibrated her plans.She decided she would seek protection in Mexico.Like almost all Cubans, our objective was to go to the United States, she said. It wasnt in our plans to stay, but now we have to face reality.Amid a clampdown on asylum under Trump and tightening restrictions in recent years under the Biden administration, Delgado is among a growing number of migrants from across the world to ditch or at least pause their ambitions of reaching the U.S., and focus instead on building a life in Mexico.Migrants trying to apply for asylum in Mexico in January more than tripled compared to the monthly average from the previous year, according to an international official with knowledge of the numbers who was not authorized to discuss them publicly. Mexicos refugee agency has not yet published figures for January. All of these policies Trump is pushing are leading more people to seek international protection in Mexico, said Andrs Ramrez, former director of the Mexican Commission for Refugee Aid, which processes asylum cases. Delgado was among hundreds of migrants from Cuba, Venezuela, Haiti, Afghanistan and other countries gathering outside the refugee agency in Mexico City after Trump unleashed executive orders last month meant to slash access to asylum and militarize the border. The Associated Press spoke to around a half-dozen people who had asylum appointments in the U.S. through the Biden-era app, CBP One, that Trump canceled on Inauguration Day. They were left stranded on the Mexican side of the border, their dreams of a legal pathway into the U.S. snuffed. Many more said they now intended to seek asylum in Mexico, citing increasingly harsh restrictions in recent years in the U.S. or what they said was anti-immigrant sentiment there.Now, its the Mexican dream, said a Mexican man helping Haitian friends try to get an appointment this month to apply for asylum in Mexico following the Trump executive orders. Delgado, her partner and many others had put their hopes on pathways opened by the Biden administration to legally seek asylum in the U.S. They said they had no intention of hiring a smuggler to enter the U.S. illegally.They said the risks of returning to Cuba were too great following a government clampdown on protests in recent years.Crossing illegally isnt an option for us. Wed rather stay here in Mexico, Delgado said, adding that if they crossed illegally into the U.S. and were caught theyll deport us and theyll send us back to Cuba.Delgado, who is an architect, and her partner, a doctor, arent able to work in their fields in Mexico because their training in Cuba is not recognized there, she said. So for now shes washing dishes in a market. Mexico has long opened its doors to refugees and exiles, but asylum applications have soared in recent years, growing from 1,295 in 2013 to a record 140,982 in 2023. That number dipped to 78,975 in 2024, as the CBP One app allowed migrants in southern Mexico to apply for appointments for entry into the U.S. before heading to the northern border.The rise in petitions for asylum in Mexico may not result in an immediate uptick in refugees there as only a couple hundred applications can be processed each day, fueling criticism about Mexicos capacity to take on the burgeoning asylum demand.Amid criticisms over the backlog, President Claudia Sheinbaum has sharply boosted funding for Mexican agencies handling migration and asylum.Venezuelan asylum-seeker Harry Luzardo, 37, said life in Mexico is an improvement after scrambling for years to scrape by in Ecuador and Chile.Ecuador, Chile, Peru and Colombia were once the epicenter of the exodus of 8 million people from Venezuela, fleeing spiraling economic and political crises. But with little international aid and an array of their own economic and security crises, Chile was among countries that began closing their doors to migrants.In Chile, you dont receive any kind of support, Luzardo said, waiting patiently in line earlier this month to make an asylum petition request in Mexico City. In Chile, theres nothing for migrants.Luzardo left Venezuela four years ago, but unable to get legal status to stay and work in Chile, he decided hed try his luck at reuniting with family in the U.S. Now, with that door closed, Mexico is his plan B. For now, I feel good here, he said. Still, he conceded, hed rather be in the U.S.

United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, right, speaks with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, center, and NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Christopher Cavoli during a meeting of the North Atlantic Council in defense ministers format at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)2025-02-13T07:58:20Z BRUSSELS (AP) Several NATO allies stressed on Thursday that Ukraine and Europe must not be cut out of any peace negotiations as U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth denied that the United States is betraying the war-ravaged country.European governments are reeling after the Trump administration signaled that it is planning face-to-face talks with Russia on ending the Ukraine war without involving them, insisted that Kyiv should not join NATO, and said that its up to Europe to protect itself and Ukraine from whatever Russia might do next.There can be no negotiation about Ukraine without Ukraine. And Ukraines voice must be at the heart of any talks, U.K. Defence Secretary John Healey told reporters at NATO headquarters, as the organizations 32 defense ministers met for talks on Ukraine.German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said: For me, its clear that Europe must be involved in the negotiations and I think thats very easy to understand, particularly if Europe is supposed to play a central or the main role in the peace order. Europe, he said, will have to live directly with the consequences, so it goes without saying that we must be part of the negotiations. Hegseth denied that the U.S. has betrayed Ukraine by launching negotiations about its future without Kyivs full involvement. After talks with Putin and then Zelenskyy, Trump said on Wednesday he would probably meet in person with the Russian leader in the near term, possibly in Saudi Arabia. There is no betrayal there. There is a recognition that the whole world and the United States is invested and interested in peace. A negotiated peace, Hegesth told reporters.Hegseth warned that the war in Ukraine must be a wakeup call for NATOs European allies to spend more on their own defense budgets.Twenty-three of the 32 member countries were forecast to have met the organizations guideline of spending 2% of gross domestic product on their national defense budgets last year, but a third still do not. But Hegseths French counterpart, Sbastien Lecornu, described the wrangling over greater defense spending as a false debate, saying that governments and parliaments across Europe are already approving more weapons purchases and bigger military budgets while helping Ukraine stave off an invasion.Lecornu warned that the future of NATO itself is now in question.To say that its the biggest and most robust alliance in history is true, historically speaking. But the real question is will that still be the case in 10 or 15 years, he said, after the U.S. by far NATOs biggest and most powerful member signaled that its security priorities lie elsewhere, including in Asia.NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, who was chairing Thursdays meeting, said that whatever agreement is struck between Russia and Ukraine, it is crucial that the peace deal is enduring, that Putin knows that this is the end, that he can never again try to capture a piece of Ukraine.Touting Europes investment in Ukraine, Swedish Defense Minister Pl Jonson said European nations provided about 60% of the military support to Kyiv last year and must be involved, especially given U.S. demands that Europe take more responsibility for Ukraines security in the longer term. Its very natural that were engaged into the discussions, Jonson said.His Estonian counterpart, Hanno Pevkur, underlined that the European Union has driven sanctions against Russia, has invested heavily in Ukraines defense, and will be asked to foot the bill for rebuilding the war-ravaged country.We have to be there. So there is no question about it. Otherwise this peace will not be long lasting, Pevkur warned.___Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.

Palestinians walk past a pile of burning garbage, as there is no refuse collection in the city and people are disposing of their rubbish in the streets, in Gaza City, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)2025-02-13T10:21:34Z CAIRO (AP) Hamas said Thursday it would release the next group of Israeli hostages as planned, apparently resolving a major dispute that threatened the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. The militant group said Egyptian and Qatari mediators have affirmed that they will work to remove all hurdles, and that it would implement the ceasefire deal. The statement indicated three more Israeli hostages would be freed Saturday. There was no immediate comment from Israel after Hamas announcement.Hamas move would allow the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip to continue for now, but its future remains in doubt.Hamas had threatened to delay the next release of Israeli hostages, accusing Israel of failing to meet its obligations to allow in tents and shelters, among other alleged violations of the truce. Israel, with the support of U.S. President Donald Trump, had threatened to renew its offensive if hostages were not freed. Hamas said its delegation held talks in Cairo with Egyptian officials and was in contact with Qatars prime minister about increasing the entry of shelters, medical supplies, fuel and heavy equipment for clearing rubble into Gaza.Egypts state-run Qahera TV, which is close to the countrys security services, reported that Egypt and Qatar had succeeded in resolving the dispute. The two Arab countries have served as key mediators with Hamas and helped broker the ceasefire, which took effect in January, 15 months into the war. ___Follow APs war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

South Korea's impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, attends a hearing of his impeachment trial at the Constitutional Court in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025. (Joen Heon-Kyun/Pool Photo via AP)2025-02-13T10:33:25Z SEOUL, South Korea (AP) South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is putting up a desperate fight for his political life at Seouls Constitutional Court after being impeached and arrested for his short-lived imposition of martial law last year. After weeks of hearings, the court is nearing a decision on whether to formally remove him from office.Yoons legal saga, which also includes a separate criminal indictment on rebellion charges, has become a stress test for the countrys democracy, which has been challenged by deepening political polarization and distrust. Yoons conservative supporters rioted at a Seoul court that authorized his arrest; his lawyers and ruling party have openly questioned the credibility of courts and law enforcement institutions; and Yoon has continued to express contempt for his liberal rivals, endorsing baseless conspiracy theories about election fraud to justify his ill-fated authoritarian push. If Yoon is dismissed, that would trigger a presidential by-election that could test voters trust in the electoral process, while a decision to reinstate him could fuel further instability if the public see it as unjust.The Constitutional Courts ruling, expected by March, will be a crucial moment for South Korea. Heres a look at how its being decided. How the process worksUnder South Koreas constitution, the National Assembly has the power to impeach presidents but not to remove them from office. After an impeachment, the presidents powers are temporarily suspended and a trial begins at the Constitutional Court. The court has 180 days to either remove Yoon from office or reject the impeachment and restore his powers. If hes thrown out of office, a national election to choose his successor must be held within 60 days.The Assembly made specific charges against Yoon when impeaching him misusing military force, circumventing legal processes to declare a state of emergency, and attempting to disband the legislature but the court is only required to rule on whether or not he can remain in office. Removing Yoon would need the votes of six of the courts eight justices. Was the declaration of martial law legal?Yoon faces criminal accusations of attempted rebellion over his short-lived declaration of martial law, but the Constitutional Court is focusing on a relatively simple question: whether he had legitimate grounds to declare martial law on Dec. 3.The constitution limits the exercise of that power to times of war or comparable national emergencies. Yoon has argued that his martial law decree was necessary to overcome the anti-state liberal opposition, which he claims improperly used its legislative majority to block his agenda.After winning a landslide victory in last years legislative elections, the liberal opposition impeached several of Yoons key officials and blocked his budget bill. Yoons side says those moves created a crisis that required drastic action.But Yoons National Security Director Shin Won-shik told the Constitutional Court on Tuesday that Yoon began floating the idea of using his emergency powers before the general elections in April. Did Yoon follow legal protocols?The National Assembly has also said that Yoon sidestepped a constitutional requirement to deliberate in a formal meeting of the Cabinet before declaring martial law.Yoon called 11 Cabinet members to his office shortly before declaring martial law on late-night television, but most participants, including Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, have said the gathering did not qualify as a meeting and that Yoon unilaterally informed them of his decision rather than inviting deliberation.The meeting also failed to follow legal procedures required for formal state council meetings: no agenda was proposed, no signatures were collected from participants and no minutes were recorded. Yoon told the court Tuesday that he thought the records could be produced later through electronic approval. Several top officials, including Han, Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, and Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, said they attempted to talk Yoon out of the decision, citing potential damage to the countrys international reputation and economy. But Yoon went ahead with the martial law declaration, saying that his perception of the situation was different, according to public prosecutors criminal indictments of Yoon and his former Defense Minister, Kim Yong Hyun, who played a key role in the events.Former Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min, one of Yoons closest allies, is the only participant who has said the Dec. 3 Cabinet meeting had substance, telling the court on Tuesday that officials engaged in passionate debates. Yoon has said that it makes absolutely no sense to suggest that Cabinet members came to the presidential office just for an informal meeting or to hang out. Did Yoon try to disband the legislature?Finally, the Assembly accused Yoon of attempting to dissolve the legislature, something that is beyond his constitutional powers even under martial law.A military decree that followed Yoons declaration stated that all political activities are prohibited, including activities of the National Assembly and local councils, and hundreds of troops were deployed to the National Assembly, including special operation units who broke windows while unsuccessfully attempting to reach the main chamber.Legislators managed to assemble a quorum in the chamber despite the assault and voted unanimously to lift the state of martial law.Yoon and his lawyers have maintained that the martial law declaration was intended as a temporary and peaceful warning to the liberal opposition, and that he had always planned to respect lawmakers will if they voted to lift the measure. He said the troops were there to maintain order, not to disrupt the legislature.But the Assembly has pointed to testimonies by some military commanders, who have described a deliberate attempt to seize the legislature that was thwarted by hundreds of civilians and legislative staff who helped lawmakers enter the assembly, and by the troops reluctance or refusal to follow Yoons orders.Yoons claims have been contradicted by testimony from Kwak Jong-keun, the now-arrested commander of the Army Special Warfare Command. Kwak said the president directly instructed him to have troops pull the lawmakers out, desperate to prevent the 300-member Assembly from gathering the 150 votes necessary to overturn his martial law order. Yoon has denied accusations that he sought to arrest key politicians and election officials.In addition to surrounding the legislature, hundreds of other troops were sent to National Election Commission offices the same day. Yoon says he was aiming to investigate election fraud allegations, which remain unsubstantiated. KIM TONG-HYUNG Kim has been covering the Koreas for the AP since 2014. He has published widely read stories on North Koreas nuclear ambitions, the dark side of South Koreas economic rise and international adoptions of Korean children. twitter mailto

Emergency services attend the scene of an accident after a driver hit a group of people in Munich, Germany, Thursday Feb. 13, 2025. (Christoph Trost/dpa via AP)2025-02-13T10:12:09Z BERLIN (AP) A driver drove a vehicle into a group of people in Munich on Thursday, injuring at least 20 people, authorities said.Authorities didnt provide details about the incident near downtown Munich which took place around 10:30 a.m., including whether the people were hit deliberately.Police said on social platform X that the driver was secured at the scene and no longer poses any danger. A damaged Mini could be seen at the scene.The fire service said at least 20 people were injured, some of them seriously, German news agency dpa reported.Mayor Dieter Reiter said he was deeply shocked by the incident. He said that children were among those injured. A demonstration by the service workers union ver.di was taking place at the time of the incident. It was not immediately clear whether demonstrators were among the injured. The Bavarian capital will see heavy security in the coming days because the three-day Munich Security Conference, an annual gathering of international foreign and security policy officials, opens on Friday.

The flags of Canada and the United States fly outside a hotel in downtown Ottawa, on Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press via AP)2025-02-13T12:03:19Z WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trump has repeatedly said Canada should be the 51st U.S. state as he proposes erasing the 5,525-mile-long border that separates the countries and alleviating the need for tariffs hes threatened against one of Americas top allies and trading partners. The traditional Lower 48 states would become the contiguous 50 as the Canadian territory between the U.S. mainland and Alaska disappears, leaving Hawaii as the only noncontinental state. If people wanted to play the game right, it would be 100% certain that theyd become a state, Trump said recently. Canada at first reacted as though Trump must be joking, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowing that his country will never be the 51st state. But Trudeau more recently suggested behind closed doors of Trumps sustained annexation calls: It is a real thing. But is it? Really? Heres a closer look: Whats the process for add ing a state?Congress has to approve accepting a new state.It takes only a House majority, but Senate filibuster rules require a minimum of 60 votes in the 100-member chamber to bring a bill to the floor an insurmountable threshold for all kinds of key legislation. The Constitutions Admissions Clause, Article IV, Section 3, states: New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress. Any measure approving a new state that clears Congress would also have to be signed into law by the president though Trump, a Republican, has made it clear hed do so to admit Canada.Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a Trump ally, joked on X when all 50 states certified Trumps Electoral College victory last month, They skipped Canada. Well fix that next time! Still, no major legislation is advancing that would extend an invitation to statehood to Americas northern neighbor. Doesnt Canada have a say?A territorys residents dont necessarily have to vote to join the United States. There have been multiple past pathways to statehood from the absorption of the 13 colonies under the Articles of Confederation, to Congress formally agreeing to Texas request to be annexed as the 28th state, but only after rejecting previous overtures from the then-republic. However, most states were added after Congress accepted a petition from some territorial legislative body, which could include legislatures that Congress itself suggested forming as part of the process. In practice, therefore, Canada would probably have to have a referendum to gauge voters interests in joining the U.S. before more detailed aspects of the process could begin and the chances of passage dont seem high. While not addressing Canada as the 51st state directly, polling last year from Gallup and the Pew Research Center shows that Americans overwhelmingly have a positive view of Canada and that while Canadians view the U.S. more positively than negatively, their view may be a little more muted. Trumps threats of tariffs have left Canadians feeling betrayed, and sports fans in Canada have begun voicing their displeasure by booing the U.S. national anthem at NBA and NHL games.Of course, public opinion wouldnt matter if the U.S. opted to invade Canada and annex it by force. Not even Trump is suggesting that, though hes refused to rule out U.S. military force to seize back control of the Panama Canal. How would adding Canada affect U.S. elections? Profoundly and thats without speculating about whether a majority of Canadians might back Democrats or Republicans for president and in Congress. If Canada were to join the U.S., its population of 41.6 million would make it the largest state, outpacing Californias 39.4 million residents. Canada would get two senators but also 55 House seats based on the average congressional district population following the 2020 U.S. census, which was 761,169 individuals. That would make Canada the presidential races richest prize, with 57 Electoral College delegates exceeding Californias 54. The Permanent Apportionment Act of 1929, meanwhile, caps the number of House seats at 435, meaning that other state delegations would shrink to make room for the new Canadian members of the House and, by extension, its delegates to the Electoral College.Suddenly, make-or-break swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin may not look so important if there are tens of millions of Canucks waiting to be wooed with a presidential election on the line. What about other potential new states? Before Trump took office for his second term, debate around adding State No. 51 traditionally centered around Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.Puerto Rico is a U.S. commonwealth, and its voters have approved statehood in nonbinding referendums. Proposals to allow it become a state have repeatedly been introduced in Congress but not approved. Washington, D.C., residents have voted in support of statehood and approved a state constitution and proposed boundaries. A bill admitting into the union the city as Washington, Douglass Commonwealth, passed the Democrat-controlled House as recently as 2021 but not the Senate. Republicans now control both chambers, meaning theyll likely oppose adding states that could be majority Democratic like Puerto Rico or D.C. The nations capital gets three Electoral College votes for president under the Constitutions 23rd Amendment, though it lacks voting representation in Congress. Thats why the Electoral College has 538 total delegates: 435 House members, 100 senators and three for D.C. Trump has talked about the U.S. invading or purchasing Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. Thats despite Danish authorities insisting it isnt for sale. The president hasnt said if Greenland could be a state, only that I think were going to have it and that the islands roughly 57,000 residents want to be with us. When was the last time the United States added a state?Hawaii became the 50th state in 1959, nearly 18 years after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. The island chain about 2,400 miles (3,900 kilometers) from the mainland United States was annexed as a U.S. territory by Congress in 1898, after the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War. Many bills offering Hawaii statehood were subsequently introduced, but they stalled for decades amid racial discrimination and partisan disagreement. By the early 1950s, Hawaii leaned Republican and Democrats opposed its admission to the union without including Alaska, which was seen as more favorable to their party. Alaska, currently separated from the mainland U.S. by about 500 miles (800 kilometers) of Canadian territory, was eventually admitted as State No. 49 in January 1959. That opened the door for Congress to approve Hawaiis statehood that March, and Hawaiians voted to join the union on Aug. 21, 1959. Ironically, Alaska has backed Republicans in every presidential election except 1964, while Hawaii has voted Democratic every presidential cycle but 1972 and 1984. WILL WEISSERT Weissert covers national politics and the White House for The Associated Press. He is based in Washington. twitter mailto

Russian President Vladimir Putin holds a video conference meeting with Bryansk Region Governor Alexander Bogomaz at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow Russia, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025. (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)2025-02-13T12:50:18Z KHMELNYTSKI, Ukraine (AP) Russian officials and state media took a triumphant tone Thursday after U.S. President Donald Trump jettisoned three years of U.S. policy and announced he would likely meet soon with Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate a peace deal in the almost three-year war in Ukraine.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday he will not accept any agreements about Ukraine that do not include his country in talks.Trumps change of tack seemed to identify Putin as the only player that matters in ending the fighting and looked set to sideline Zelenskyy, as well as European governments, in any peace negotiations. The Ukrainian leader recently described that prospect as very dangerous.Putin has been ostracized by the West since Russias Feb. 2022 invasion of its neighbor, and in 2023 the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader for war crimes.Heres a look at some reactions to Wednesdays events. Russia rejoices at Putins spotlight roleTo us, the position of the current (U.S.) administration is much more appealing, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday.Russian officials and state-backed media appeared triumphant after Wednesdays call between Trump and Putin that lasted more than an hour.The presidents of Russia and the U.S. have talked at last. This is very important in and of itself, the deputy chair of Russias National Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said in an online statement. Senior lawmaker Alexei Pushkov said that the call will go down in the history of world politics and diplomacy.I am sure that in Kyiv, Brussels, Paris and London they are now reading Trumps lengthy statement on his conversation with Putin with horror and cannot believe their eyes, Pushkov wrote on his messaging app.Russias state news agency RIA Novosti said in an opinion column: The U.S. finally hurt Zelenskyy for real, adding that Trump had found common ground with Putin. This means that the formula nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine -- a sacred cow for Zelenskyy, the European Union and the previous U.S. administration -- no longer exists. Moreover, the opinion of Kyiv and Brussels (the European Union) is of no interest to Trump at all, it added.Russian popular pro-Kremlin tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda went even further and published a column stating in the headline that Trump signed Zelenskyys death sentence.The myth of Russia as a pariah in global politics, carefully inflated by Western propaganda, has burst with a bang, the column said.Zelenskyy wont accept a deal without consultationIn his first comments to journalists since Trump held individual calls first with Putin and then Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian leader said the main thing was to not allow everything to go according to Putins plan.We cannot accept it, as an independent country, any agreements (made) without us. I articulate this very clearly to our partners - any bilateral negotiations about Ukraine, not on other topics, but any bilateral talks about Ukraine without us - we will not accept, Zelenskyy said as he visited a nuclear power station in western Ukraine. Zelenskyy said during his conversation with Trump on Wednesday, the U.S. president told him he wanted to speak to both the Russian and Ukrainian leaders at the same time.He never mentioned in a conversation that Putin and Russia was a priority. We, today, trust these words. For us it is very important to preserve the support of the United States of America., Zelenskyy said.Alarm bells ring in Europe and NATOTrump appears minded to make a deal over the heads of Ukraine and European governments.He also effectively dashed Ukraines hopes of becoming part of NATO, which the alliance said less than a year ago was an irreversible step, or getting back the parts of its territory, estimated at close to 20% of the country, captured so far by the Russian army.The U.S. administrations approach to a potential settlement is notably close to Moscows vision of how the war should end. That has caused alarm and tension within the 32-nation NATO alliance and 27-nation European Union. Some European governments who fear their countries could also be in the Kremlins crosshairs were alarmed by Washingtons new course, saying they must have a seat at the negotiating table.Ukraine, Europe and the United States should work on this together. TOGETHER, Polands Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on social media Wednesday.Others balked at Trumps overtures and poured cold water on his upbeat outlook.Just as Putin has no intention of stopping hostilities even during potential talks, we must maintain Western unity and increase support to Ukraine, and political and economic pressure on Russia, Estonias Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said. Our actions must show that we are not changing course. A Ukrainian soldier is resigned to Trump and Putin talkingA soldier from Ukraines 53rd Brigade fighting in the eastern Donetsk region said it was normal for Trump and Putin to speak to each other.If dialogue is one way to influence the situation, then let them talk but let it be meaningful enough for us to feel the results of those talks, the soldier said, insisting on anonymity due to security risks for her family in occupied Ukrainian territory.But she was skeptical about the negotiations, given the incompatible demands tabled in the past by Russia and Ukraine.The conditions are unacceptable for everyone. What we propose doesnt work for them, and what they propose is unacceptable for us, she said. Thats why I, like probably every soldier here, believe this can only be resolved by force.___Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

A hiring sign is seen in Waukegan, Ill., on Sept. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)2025-02-13T13:39:40Z U.S. applications for unemployment benefits fell last week as employers continue to retain workers despite resurgent inflation and elevated interest rates.The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits fell by 7,000 to 213,000 for the week ending February 8, the Labor Department said Thursday. Analysts projected that 215,000 new applications would be filed.Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered representative of layoffs.The four-week average, which smooths out some of the week-to-week volatility, inched down by 1,000 to 216,000.Despite showing some signs of weakening during the past year, the labor market remains healthy with plentiful jobs and relatively few layoffs.Last week, the Labor Department reported that U.S. employers added 143,000 jobs in January, significantly fewer than Decembers 256,000 job gains. However, the unemployment rate ticked down to an even 4%, signaling a still very healthy labor market. Late in January, the Federal Reserve left its benchmark lending rate alone after issuing three cuts late in 2024. Fed officials are closely monitoring inflation and the labor market for signs of a potentially weakening economy. They expect only two rate cuts this year, down from previous projections of four. However, after Wednesdays consumer prices report that showed inflation accelerated last month, many experts believe the Fed may not be moved to cut rates at all this year. The consumer price index increased 3% in January from a year ago, up from a 3 1/2 year low of 2.4% in September. The new data shows that inflation has remained stubbornly above the Feds 2% target for roughly the past six months after it fell steadily for about a year and a half.Overall, while layoffs remain low by historical standards, a host of companies have announced job cuts already this year.Workday, Dow, CNN, Starbucks and Facebook parent company Meta have all trimmed their workforces already in 2025.Late in 2024, GM, Boeing, Cargill and Stellantis announced layoffs.The total number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits for the week of February 1 fell to 1.85 million, a decrease of 36,000 from the previous week.

Subscribe Join the newsletter to get the latest updates. Success Great! Check your inbox and click the link. Error Please enter a valid email address. Elizabeth Hernandez found out about the decade-old murder from a flurry of tips sent to her newsroom in August last year.The tips were all reacting to a YouTube video with a shocking title: "Husband's Secret Gay Love Affair with Step Son Ends in Grisly Murder. It described a gruesome crime that apparently took place in Littleton, Colorado. Almost two million people had watched it.Some people in fact were saying, Why didn't The Denver Post cover this? Hernandez, a reporter at the paper, told me. Because in the video, it makes it sound like it was a big news event and yet, when you Google it, there is no coverage. 0:00 /25:46 1 The reason for the lack of coverage was pretty clear to her. In the 26-minute long video, a stilted voice narrated over hazy still images of a neighborhood that really didnt look like Littleton.Hernandez called several law enforcement officials and quickly confirmed her suspicions. The murder was fake, and the video was made using generative AI.The video was uploaded to a YouTube channel called True Crime Case Files. Before the channel was terminated while I was working on this story in January, it posted more than 150 similar videos over the past year. This one was the most popular.The thumbnail of the videoThe plots were disturbing, often hypersexual. They described parents selling teenagers into sex slavery with a sheriff, and transgender teachers committing murders to hide affairs with students. The video thumbnails were perverse, with clickbaity phrasing in big blocky text.Other titles included:Sheriff Murdered After Affair With His Secretary Got Exposed with 30,000 views.Wife Secret Affair with Neighbors Teenage Daughter Ends in Grisly Murder with 34,000 views.Coach Gives Cheerleader HIV after Secret Affair, Leading to Pregnancy with 10,000 views.Each one was made with AI and the crimes described did not happen. There was no language on the channels homepage or in video descriptions to tell a viewer otherwise.According to the man who ran the page, that was by design.It needs to be called true crime, because true crime is a genre, the channels owner told me over the phone in December. I wanted [the audience] to think about why [] they care so much that it was true, why it matters so much to them that real people are being murdered. I was able to verify and contact the man who ran the channel; 404 Media is using a pseudonym for him, Paul, because he has received threats and his channel is no longer active.I was curious about how his whole operation worked. Paul is not the first person to lie on the internet, but it felt like he was lying in a brand-new way. Paul had found his own niche within the AI-generated slop ecosystem that 404 Media has reported on for the last few months. He believed people wouldnt want to watch his videos if they knew they were fake, and that he wasnt any worse than the competition.True crime, its entertainment masquerading as news [] that's all there is to it, he said.Paul told me he tried to get people to question the reality of his videos by naming characters strangely or inserting bizarre details into his scripts, but if you looked at the comments on his videos, there were a lot of people who couldnt tell they werent real. Whatever moral lesson Paul said he wanted to impart clearly didnt land for most commenters.Im 100% confident that sexual relationship between the stepfather and the stepson started way before he was 19, read one of the top comments on the video Hernandez found. There were countless others, all hypothesizing about the fake police investigation and fake criminals.I'm trying to overdose the viewer on luridness, to try to confront them with the fact that they seem to be so invested in the luridness of it all. Peoples secret lives, their secret affairs that are really taboo, Paul told me. Of course, Paul was also making money from the videos.About half of each video was made using ChatGPT or an AI image service, Paul said. The other half, the bones of the story, small details and edits, are all his. He typically made one or two videos a week, which took about two and a half hours each, and billed himself as a filmmaker to meone seizing on a new era of content without the need for expensive crews and camera equipment.While he would not say how much his videos made him in ad revenue, he said he devoted himself to it full-time.I made a thingPaul told me he graduated college just before the COVID-19 pandemic forced Americans inside for a year. During that time, he moved back home with his parents. While some families baked sourdough bread, Pauls family did something different. Together, they started binge-watching Dateline.Paul mapped out the formula for the genre as he watched: a scandalous affair, some brutal crime, interrogating the suspects and a stunning trial of a perpetrator to bring things home.But once he figured out that formula, the show became less appealing.Once you see how the sausage is made, you don't really want to eat it too much, he said.As he tired of Dateline, Paul started experimenting withChatGPT. His first experiments with the product also relied on another generic television formula he was familiar with: Hallmark Christmas movies.Paul did this by first typing a prompt into ChatGPT. Then, he took those generated still images of characters and backgrounds to make short Hallmark romcom parodies on YouTube. They had titles like Princess meets Fisherman or Romance and Reindeer. All included a disclaimer that they were generated with AI.The videos bombed. Not one has more than 100 views. He attributes that to the limitations of the generative AI he used at the time, and to disclosing how he made each video.I labeled it [as] AI parody, and it didn't do well [] I think part of it is people are just hostile towards AI. So when they see the word AI, they're just freaked out by it, Paul said.I think the videos also sucked. Paul disagrees with me on that.His next idea was to ditch any disclaimer about how the video was made. He noticed just how high the demand for true crime was and how low the production value could be for a fake documentary. With that, True Crime Case Files was born.It was almost sort of like a gold rush. I really felt like I needed to stake my claim before anybody else thought of it, he said.Even though Pauls videos are themselves variations on a popular genre, his channels success had, at least in this singular respect, proved him right. There are several other copycat channels that either rip his videos entirely or mimic their style. A few even copied the title of Pauls most popular video and posted their own AI-generated versions. None are quite as popular though.Its an absurdist art formTo debate with Paul about the ethics of his videos means constantly retreading the same ground. It can feel futile, but here's what he says:True crime [] at the end of the day, it's a form of entertainment. Viewers are watching this not to be informed about things that will affect them personally. They're really just there to be entertained and to have a thrilling mystery with some lurid elements, he said.Okay, sure. I buy that.It's almost become this national pastime, like bullfighting, he said. People just passively observe it, and they don't even question, Why are we enjoying this violence so much?True crime is, of course, astronomically popular. More than half of all Americans say they consume some form of the genre, and true crime made up three of Apples 10 most popular podcasts of 2024.Its also not a new argument that the true crime genre might have some problems. According to some experts, it might revictimize people who have already suffered. It acts similarly to local TV news that leads with the bloodiest crimes of the night, which research shows makes viewers more afraid. Other experts also say it influences our ideas of common crimes, victims and investigators; the way we see true evil committed on screen shapes how we expect it to happen in real life.Paul says what hes doing is no worse than the actual sins of the true crime genre. In fact, he says his version is better because he isnt exploiting any real victims. Viewers get their pint of blood, he makes his videosand moneyand no one is harmed in the process.There's really no difference between us except that [I am] not using real people and their suffering as my vehicle, he told me in an email.That doesnt sit right with Annie Nichol. Nichol is a victims advocate in Washington. Her sister, Polly Klaas, was murdered in 1993 and was the subject of exhaustive true crime documentaries, podcasts and television adaptations.She also has lots of problems with true crime media. Nichol, however, says what Paul is doing isnt any better.Victims are used in this way by the media and by true crime content creators, she told me in an interview. Where our trauma is frequently co-opted and exploited for profit. So someone generating AI true crime for profit is certainly not helping victims in any way.Nichol says that even if Paul isnt using real stories from survivors of violent crimes, the bigger societal impact is the same. The trappings of reality let the audience walk away with the same impressions as they would with an actual crime.Though, when talking to Paul, any criticism falls on deaf ears.It's an absurdist art form, he said. If people don't understand it, that says a lot about human nature and their own natures and the nature of crime, and perhaps they're not willing to question themselves, but I don't have any misgivings about what I'm doing.Content not availableWhen I asked YouTube for comment on this story, I had a list of questions about how Pauls channel was monetized, and if he had broken any policies that had caused him to run afoul of the platforms guidelines. After I asked for comment, YouTube nuked the channel and four others associated with Paul, including the Hallmark parody channel.We terminated the channel in question for multiple violations of our Community Guidelines, including our policies covering child safety that prohibit the sexualization of minors, Jack Malon, a YouTube spokesperson, wrote in a statement.The channels views dropped dramatically in the past few months, and at least one video was hit with a community note calling it false, making it seem likely his videos had already been reviewed in some capacity. Paul told me hes trying to appeal the ban. (Audio only versions of all his videos are still accessible on Spotify and other podcast players. Spotify did not respond to a request for comment for this story.)But Pandoras AI-generated box is open. Paul and creators like him have shown people theres a new way to make money on the internet without much work, child safety policies be damned. The fact that YouTube deleted this channel doesnt mean that its taking a broader stand against AI-generated content or AI-generated true crime.YouTube channels with names like Hidden Family Crime Stories, True Crime Cases, True Crime Home and Crime Tapes are pumping out ever greater numbers of AI generated murder stories just like the ones Paul made.He got his gold rush after all.

Pedestrians cross a snowy street in downtown Kansas City, Mo., as a winter storm passed through the area Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)2025-02-13T06:54:55Z Rain has begun falling in California where an atmospheric river is expected to bring heavy downpours, winds and flooding Thursday to areas ravaged by wildfires. Ahead of the storms arrival, officials distributed sandbags, prepositioned rescue swimmers and told residents to have their go-bags ready.Meanwhile, Portland, Oregon, coated its streets with liquid anti-icer while officials in that state and Idaho opened emergency shelters to prepare for snow and ice on Thursday. Southern California could see as much as 6 inches (about 15 centimeters) of rain in the mountains and 3 inches (nearly 8 centimeters) in coastal areas and valleys, according to Brent Bower, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service. Strong wind gusts could bring down trees, cause power outages and delay flights.Evacuation warnings were issued in Mandeville Canyon and other areas ravaged by the Palisades Fire, which was the most destructive in Los Angeles history, over concerns about potential debris flows during the storm. There were also warnings for Trabuco Canyon and other areas near the burn scar for an earlier wildfire. All Malibu schools were closed Thursday and the Knotts Berry Farm amusement park shuttered due to the atmospheric river, which is a long band of water vapor that forms over the ocean and transports moisture from the tropics to northern latitudes. Daniel Swain, a climate scientist for the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, said the area is desperate for rain, but that this storm might bring too much too quickly. The result could be debris flows and flash flooding around wildfire burn areas.These burned areas are more at risk to debris flows because vegetation that helps to keep soil anchored has been burned away and loose debris, including ash, soil and rocks, have been added, he said in a statement. East hit with heavy snow and freezing rainThe rain follows storms Wednesday that dumped heavy snow and freezing rain on a swath of the U.S. East from Kentucky to the nations capital, causing hundreds of traffic accidents, knocking out power in places and threatening to flood waterways. The storm system, which cut a path from Kentucky to Maryland and points farther north on Tuesday, brought more than 14 inches (37 centimeters) of snow to Iron Gate, a tiny Appalachian town in western Virginia, and 12 inches (30.5 centimeters) to White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, a small city about 65 miles (105 kilometers) to the west, the National Weather Service said.By early Thursday, more than 150,000 customers in Virginia and more than 13,000 in North Carolina were still without electricity, according to PowerOutage.us. Appalachian Power, which serves a million customers in West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee, said more than 5,700 workers were trying to restore power.The regions airports received several inches of snow, according to Scott Kleebauer, a meteorologist with the weather services Weather Prediction Center.Nearly 7,000 flights were canceled or delayed across the United States Wednesday, including almost 300 into Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, according to the flight-tracking site FlightAware.com. Suspected tornado in MississippiA suspected tornado flung large pieces of debris into the air as it moved through the small town of Columbia, Mississippi, where it shredded the steel roof of an industrial building and damaged several homes Wednesday, video shows.About 20 homes were damaged, but no deaths or major injuries were reported, Columbia Mayor Justin McKenzie told WDAM-TV.Were very fortunate, actually, McKenzie said. Were just blessed that we dont have any injuries or anything and everything thats been damaged can be rebuilt.Hundreds of accidents In Kentucky, snowy roads caused a head-on fatal crash Tuesday in Nelson County, south of Louisville. The driver of a car lost control going into a curve, crossed the center line and hit an oncoming semi truck head on, according to the countys emergency management director, Brad Metcalf. The driver died at the scene.In Virginia, where Gov. Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency, the state police reported about 850 crashes on Tuesday and Wednesday, dozens of which involved injuries. Officials said it was not known if they were caused by the weather. Maryland State Police reported 235 crashes and 185 inoperable or unattended vehicles.In southern West Virginia, multiple crashes temporarily shut down several major highways Tuesday. Pacific Northwest ice stormFreezing rain and snow were expected in northwest Oregon and southwest Washington, which could cause power outages, according to the National Weather Service.Officials in Oregons Multnomah County extended a state of emergency through at least Thursday and said six emergency shelters would be open. Officials said 356 people went to the shelters Tuesday night. Wind chill readings could dip to 10 degrees (minus 12 Celsius) in Portland, the weather service said. In Idaho, a cold weather advisory was in effect, with wind chills potentially as low as minus 13 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 25 degrees Celsius) in the north central part of the state. An ice storm forecast for the Portland area early Thursday and Friday could challenge deliveries of flowers and other gifts for Valentines Day. Temperatures plummeted earlier this week in Portland, which is more known for its rainfall. Julia Duncan, a co-owner of Flowers in Flight, shrugged off the weather, saying the area endured ice storms in past winters and customers are willing to go the extra mile for the people they love.Its Valentines Day! Duncan said. Well just have to wait and see what happens.Were in the neighborhood where a lot of people tend to do pickups, too, and (weve) got a couple of drivers who are willing to drive in the ice and snow, Duncan said. So hopefully it wont affect us too much.___Associated Press journalists from across the U.S. contributed to this report. RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Johkiya Pierre prepares a fresh omelette at The Breakfast Brothers restaurant, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)2025-02-13T15:00:00Z Its a chicken-and-egg problem: Restaurants are struggling with record-high U.S. egg prices, but their omelets, scrambles and huevos rancheros may be part of the problem.Breakfast is booming at U.S. eateries. First Watch, a restaurant chain that serves breakfast, brunch and lunch, nearly quadrupled its locations over the past decade to 570. Eggs Up Grill has 90 restaurants in nine southern states, up from 26 in 2018. Florida-based Another Broken Egg Caf celebrated its 100th restaurant last year. Fast-food chains are also adding more breakfast items. Starbucks, which launched egg bites in 2017, now has a breakfast menu with 12 separate items containing eggs. Wendys reintroduced breakfast in 2020 and offers 10 items with eggs.Reviews website Yelp said 6,421 breakfast and brunch businesses opened in the United States last year, 23% more than in 2019. In normal times, producers could meet the demand for all those eggs. But an ongoing bird flu outbreak, which so far has forced farms to slaughter more than 145 million chickens, turkeys and other birds, is making supplies scarcer and pushing up prices. In January, the average price of eggs in the U.S. hit a record $4.95 per dozen. The percentage of eggs that go to U.S. restaurants versus other places, like grocery stores or food manufacturers, is not publicly available. U.S. Foods, a restaurant supplier, and Cal-Maine Foods, the largest U.S. producer of shell eggs, did not respond to The Associated Press requests for comment. But demand from restaurants is almost certainly growing. Foot traffic at U.S. restaurants has grown the most since 2019 for morning meals, 2019, according to market research firm Circana. Pre-lunchtime hours accounted for 21% of total restaurant visits in 2024.Breakfast sandwiches are the most popular order during morning visits, Circana said, and 70% of the breakfast sandwiches on U.S. menus include eggs. Eggs Up Grill CEO Ricky Richardson said breakfast restaurants took off after the COVID pandemic because people longed for comfort and connection. As inflation made food more expensive, customers saw breakfast and lunch as more affordable options for eating out, he said.The growth in restaurant demand reverses a pattern that emerged during the pandemic, when consumers tried to stock up on eggs for home use but restaurants needed fewer of them, according to Brian Earnest, a lead economist for animal proteins at CoBank. Changing preferences since then have caused further market strain. Americans are increasingly looking for protein with few added ingredients, and eggs fit that bill.Consumers think eggs are really fresh, so if youre making something with eggs, you know its fresh, Earnest said. To address animal rights concerns, McDonalds and some other companies have switched to 100% cage-free eggs, which limits the sources they will buy from. Ten states, including California and Colorado, have passed laws restricting egg sales to products from cage-free environments. It makes the market much more complicated than it was 20 years ago, Earnest said. The higher prices are hitting restaurants hard. Wholesale egg prices hit a national average of $7.34 per dozen last week, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That was 51% higher than at the beginning of the year. Wholesale costs may be higher than retail prices since grocers use eggs as a loss leader to get customers in the door.Some chains, like Waffle House, have added a surcharge to help offset the cost of eggs. Others may turn to egg substitutes like tapioca starch for some recipes or cut egg dishes from the menu, said Phil Kafarakis, the president and CEO of the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association. First Watch President and CEO Chris Tomasso said eggs are critical for the chains brand and are found in the majority of its offerings, whether at the center of the plate or as an ingredient in batters. So far, he said, the company has been able to obtain the eggs it needs and isnt charging extra for them. First Watch is also increasing portion sizes for non-egg items like meat and potatoes, Tomasso said.Richardson, of Eggs Up Grill, said he recently met with franchisees to discuss adding a surcharge but they decided against it. Eggs have always been and will continue to be an important part of American diets, Richardson said. DEE-ANN DURBIN Durbin is an Associated Press business writer focusing on the food and beverage industry. She has also covered the auto industry and state and national politics in her nearly 30-year career with the AP. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump shakes hands with Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at a campaign rally at the Desert Diamond Arena, Friday, Aug. 23, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)2025-02-13T05:19:28Z WASHINGTON (AP) The Senate on Thursday confirmed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as President Donald Trumps health secretary, putting the prominent vaccine skeptic in control of $1.7 trillion in federal spending, vaccine recommendations and food safety as well as health insurance programs for roughly half the country.Republicans fell in line behind Trump despite hesitancy over Kennedy views on vaccines, voting 52-48 to elevate the scion of one of Americas most storied political and Democratic families to secretary of the Health and Human Services Department. Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, who had polio as a child, was the only no vote among Republicans, mirroring his stands against Trumps picks for the Pentagon chief and director of national intelligence. All Democrats opposed Kennedy.The GOP has largely embraced Kennedys vision to Make America Healthy Again by directing the public health agencies to focus on chronic diseases such as obesity. Kennedy, 71, whose name and family tragedies have put him in the national spotlight since he was a child, has earned a formidable following with his populist and sometimes extreme views on food, chemicals and vaccines. His audience only grew during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Kennedy devoted much of his time to a nonprofit that sued vaccine makers and harnessed social media campaigns to erode trust in vaccines as well as the government agencies that promote them. With Trumps backing, Kennedy insisted he was uniquely positioned to revive trust in those public health agencies, which include the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes for Health. Last week, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said he hoped Kennedy goes wild in reining in health care costs and improving Americans health. But before agreeing to support Kennedy, potential holdout Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., a doctor who leads the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, required assurances that Kennedy would not make changes to existing vaccine recommendations. During Senate hearings, Democrats tried to prod Kennedy to deny a long-discredited theory that vaccines cause autism. Some lawmakers also raised alarms about Kennedy financially benefiting from changing vaccine guidelines or weakening federal lawsuit protections against vaccine makers. Kennedy made more than $850,000 last year from an arrangement referring clients to a law firm that has sued the makers of Gardasil, a human papillomavirus vaccine that protects against cervical cancer. If confirmed as health secretary, he promised to reroute fees collected from the arrangement to his son. Kennedy will take over the agency in the midst of a massive federal government shakeup, led by billionaire Elon Musk, that has shut off even if temporarily billions of taxpayer dollars in public health funding and left thousands of federal workers unsure about their jobs. On Friday, the NIH announced it would cap billions of dollars in medical research given to universities and cancer being used to develop treatments for diseases such as cancer and Alzheimers. Kennedy, too, has called for a staffing overhaul at the NIH, FDA and CDC. Last year, he promised to fire 600 employees at the NIH, the nations largest funder of biomedical research. AMANDA SEITZ Seitz is an Associated Press reporter covering federal health care policy. She is based in Washington, D.C. twitter mailto

San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama reacts during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Washington Wizards, Monday, Feb. 10, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)2025-02-13T16:18:16Z SAN FRANCISCO (AP) Victor Wembanyama went to All-Star weekend in Indianapolis last year as one of the featured attractions. The San Antonio star was at the leagues Tech Summit, plus played in the Rising Stars event and was a participant in the Skills Challenge.He left all that with a clear goal.Next year, hopefully, the big game, Wembanyama said.Next year is here. The big game or games, perhaps await.Wembanyama, to no ones surprise, is a first-time All-Star wholl compete in the NBAs new All-Star mini-tournament on Sunday in San Francisco. Hell have these seven players for teammates: Denvers Nikola Jokic, Oklahoma Citys Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Indianas Pascal Siakam, New Yorks Karl-Anthony Towns, Clevelands Donovan Mitchell, Atlantas Trae Young and another first-timer Houstons Alperen Sengun.Wembanyamas selection almost seemed like a formality. The leagues reigning rookie of the year is already a global name; the NBA says Wembanyama content on social media is among the most viewed of all players and his jersey ranks No. 5 on the leagues worldwide sales list. Ive been talking to a few people about a moment he had when he was in New York, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. He played the Knicks on Christmas Day and then he played the Brooklyn Nets a few days later, so he spent some time in New York, and Victor, who plays chess, went down to a famous park in New York City, Washington Square Park, and brought his chess board and just began playing a few games, and within a few days, something like 100 million people had seen that on social media. So, it just speaks to the popularity of Victor and the dramatic interest were seeing in players lifestyles and their interests and everything they enjoy doing. That was remarkable. There are six All-Star rookies in this years event: Wembanyama, Sengun, Miamis Tyler Herro, Clevelands Evan Mobley, Detroits Cade Cunningham and Oklahoma Citys Jalen Williams. Of that group, Wembanyama is the youngest (just turned 21), the tallest (officially 7-foot-3) and will surely be the one with the most eyeballs on him in San Francisco this weekend. I think that was one of the most active days that weve had in our group chat since the summer when Vic made the All-Star Game, Spurs forward Harrison Barnes said. I think it was really just a testament to the person that he is. Obviously, he works extremely hard. He gets so much attention, and he always tries to put it back on the team, make it more about the team and less about him.Of the six All-Star rookies, Herro is the oldest and the one whos been in the NBA the longest. Hes averaging 23.5 points this season.Man, Im truly proud of him because there has been a lot of media thats thrown that mans name in the mud, Heat captain Bam Adebayo said. Thrown his name in trade rumors, yall said hes not good enough, he cant do this, he cant do that, all the way to down to somebodys wingspan. Its a testament to him.For Williams, the All-Star trip is a homecoming of sorts. The Thunder guard played his college basketball at Santa Clara, about an hour from Chase Center where hell play on Sunday night. What am I most excited about? Honestly, I havent seen my parents in a minute, so thatll be cool to see them out there, Williams said. Im going to be down the street from my school basically, so I think thats going to be cool. Ill be able to see some people I havent seen in a while.Cunningham is leading one of the NBA surprise stories this season: The Pistons, who were awful a year ago, are squarely in the playoff mix right now and his 25.4 points per game are obviously a big reason why thats happening.Its a great feeling. Its hard to put words on it, Cunningham said. Its been a lot of work, a lot of wins, losses, lessons, all that stuff thats led up to this point. Im just thankful for the moment.Sengun is part of another turnaround in Houston; the Rockets made a push that fell short of the playoffs last year, but now are in position to even have home-court advantage in Round 1 of what will surely be a loaded postseason in the Western Conference. Thank you to my team, my country, the city of Houston and all the fans for believing in me, Sengun said. This is just the beginning.And for Mobley, the All-Star nod shows that people still notice defense and rebounding in the NBA. Hes one of the leaders of a Cleveland team that goes into the break leading the Eastern Conference and is right there with Oklahoma City for the best record in the NBA.I worked real hard to get to this point, Mobley said. Hopefully more to come.___AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA TIM REYNOLDS Reynolds is an Associated Press sports writer, based in South Florida. twitter mailto

The OpenAI logo appears on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen with random binary data, March 9, 2023, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)2025-02-13T12:49:19Z Elon Musk says he will abandon his $97.4 billion offer to buy the nonprofit behind OpenAI if the ChatGPT maker drops its plan to convert into a for-profit company. If OpenAI, Inc.s Board is prepared to preserve the charitys mission and stipulate to take the for sale sign off its assets by halting its conversion, Musk will withdraw the bid, lawyers for the billionaire said in a filing to a California court on Wednesday. Otherwise, the charity must be compensated by what an arms-length buyer will pay for its assets. Musk and a group of investors made their offer earlier this week, in the latest twist to a dispute with the artificial intelligence company that he helped found a decade ago.OpenAI is controlled by a nonprofit board bound to its original mission of safely building better-than-human AI for public benefit. Now a fast-growing business, it unveiled plans last year to formally change its corporate structure. Musk and his own AI startup, xAI, and a consortium of investment firms want to acquire the nonprofits controlling stake in the for-profit OpenAI subsidiary.OpenAI CEO Sam Altman quickly rejected the unsolicited bid in a post on social media and told questioners at a Paris summit on AI that the company is not for sale. The chair of OpenAIs board, Bret Taylor, echoed those remarks at an event Wednesday. Musk and Altman helped start OpenAI in 2015 and later competed over who should lead it before Musk resigned from the board in 2018. Theyve been in a long-running and bitter feud over the startup. Musk again criticized Altmans management on Thursday during a videocall to the World Governments Summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, describing it as akin to a nonprofit aimed at saving the Amazon rainforest becoming a lumber company that chops down the trees. Altman has repeatedly countered that Musks legal challenges to OpenAI are motivated by his role as a competitor. Musk has asked a California federal judge to block OpenAIs for-profit conversion on allegations ranging from breach of contract to antitrust violations. The judge has expressed skepticism about some of Musks arguments but hasnt yet issued a ruling. RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

A bouquet of white flowers placed outside the headquarters of the United States Agency for International Development, or USAID, is pictured, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)2025-02-13T14:08:16Z WASHINGTON (AP) Employees at the U.S. Agency for International Development are asking a federal judge on Thursday to keep blocking an effort by President Donald Trumps administration meant to pull all but a fraction of worldwide staffers off the job.U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, who was nominated by Trump, handed the administration and billionaire ally Elon Musk a setback last week by temporarily halting plans that would have put thousands of workers on leave and given those abroad only 30 days to return to the United States at government expense. Nichols order was set to expire by the end of the day.Two associations representing federal employees want him to continue it as well as suspending Trumps freeze on almost all foreign assistance. The presidents pause has shut down clinics, emergency water deliveries and almost all other of the thousands of U.S.-funded aid and development programs around the globe, USAID workers and humanitarian groups say. While the administration and Musks cost-cutting initiative, the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, have taken aim at other agencies, they have moved most destructively against USAID, asserting without evidence that its work is wasteful and out of line with Trumps agenda. In a court filing, deputy USAID head Pete Marocco argued that insubordination made it impossible for the new administration to undertake a close review of aid programs without first pushing almost all USAID staffers off the job and halting aid and development work. He did not provide evidence for his assertion. USAID staffers, in court filings, have denied being insubordinate. They said they were doing their best to carry out what they describe as vague and confusing orders, some of which were said to come from a Musk associate and other outsiders.Agency supporters told Democratic senators on Wednesday that the shutdown along with other administration steps, including revoking USAIDs lease on its Washington headquarters was really about eradicating USAID before lawmakers or the courts could stop it. The employee groups, Democratic lawmakers and others argue that without congressional approval, Trump lacks the power to shut USAID or end its programs. His team says the power of courts or lawmakers to stand in the way is limited at best.The Presidents powers in the realm of foreign affairs are generally vast and unreviewable, government lawyers said in court documents. LINDSAY WHITEHURST Whitehurst covers the Supreme Court, legal affairs and criminal justice for The Associated Press in Washington, D.C. Past stops include Salt Lake City, New Mexico and Indiana. twitter mailto ELLEN KNICKMEYER Knickmeyer covers foreign policy and national security for The Associated Press. She is based in Washington, D.C. twitter RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

This article was produced in collaborationwith Court Watch, an independent outlet that unearths overlooked court records.Subscribe to them here.After a judge called out a law firm for citing fake cases in court documents, the attorneys admitted to AI hallucinating the cases.In a court order filed last week, Wyoming District Judge Kelly Rankin demanded the attorneys explain why they shouldnt be sanctioned or disciplined for citing made-up information, including referencing eight non-existent cases.The lawsuit, first filed in 2023, is against Walmart and Jetson Electronic Bikes, Inc., which makes hoverboards for sale at Walmart. The plaintiffs, including a woman, her husband, and four minor children, claim a Jetson hoverboards lithium ion battery malfunctioned and caught fire while they were sleeping and burned their house down, severely injuring several members of the family.In a motion in limine filed by the plaintiffs attorneys in January, they cited multiple cases (a "motion in limine" is a pretrial motion where attorneys request specific evidence or arguments be excluded from presentation during the trial) that dont exist. The cases are not identifiable by their Westlaw cite, and the Court cannot locate the District of Wyoming cases by their case name in its local Electronic Court Filing System, Rankin wrote. She demanded each of the attorneys provide a thorough explanation for how the motion and fake cases were generated, and explain their role in drafting or supervising the motion.Four days later, they responded: Our internal artificial intelligence platform hallucinated the cases in question while assisting our attorney in drafting the motion in limine, the law firm said in a filed response. This matter comes with great embarrassment and has prompted discussion and action regarding the training, implementation, and future use of artificial intelligence within our firm. This serves as a cautionary tale for our firm and all firms, as we enter this new age of artificial intelligence.Lawyers increasingly use AI tools for research and analyzing documents. But this isnt the first time using AI to draft legal cases has gotten lawyers in trouble. In 2022, a man filed an action alleging he was injured by an Avianca airlines metal serving cart during an Avianca Airlines flight. His lawyers cited non-existent cases, and instead of admitting it and apologizing immediately, they doubled down and defended the filings. Eventually, they were fined $5,000 for fabricating the case, with the judge writing that they abandoned their responsibilities when they submitted non-existent judicial opinions with fake quotes and citations created by the artificial intelligence tool ChatGPT, then continued to stand by the fake opinions after judicial orders called their existence into question.And in 2024, disbarred former celebrity attorney Michael Cohen gave his own lawyer, David Schwartz fake case citations generated by Google Bard. Cohen and Schwartz werent fined, but the judge who let them off without discipline did call the error embarrassing for them.

A Cal Fire search and rescue crew walks through mud near homes damaged by storms in Montecito, Calif., Jan. 12, 2018. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)2025-02-13T18:42:26Z Mudslides are dangerous torrents that are usually referred to by geologists and first responders as debris flows. They have been particularly lethal in parts of California where landscape, climate, weather and geology can combine to make them more likely.California has worked to add tools to protect against mudslides, including pinpointing hot spots, creating basins and placing nets to capture falling debris before it hits homes. A firefighter stands on the roof of a house submerged in mud and rocks, Jan. 10, 2018, in Montecito, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File) A firefighter stands on the roof of a house submerged in mud and rocks, Jan. 10, 2018, in Montecito, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File) Share Share Copy Link copied Email Facebook X Reddit LinkedIn Pinterest Flipboard Print Read More Why is California prone to mudslides?California has relatively young mountains from a geology standpoint, meaning much of its steep terrain is still in motion and covered in loose rocks and soil that can be sloughed off easily, especially when the ground is wet, according to geologists.Severe drought can be a problem, too. Experts say that when hard rains fall on extremely dry and hard-packed soil, it can rush downhill and pick up energy, carrying soil and debris away.And wildfires an increasing problem across the West can leave hillsides with little to no vegetation to hold the soil in place. Residents evacuate past damaged vehicles after storms caused a mudslide, Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, in the Beverly Crest area of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File) Residents evacuate past damaged vehicles after storms caused a mudslide, Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, in the Beverly Crest area of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File) Share Share Copy Link copied Email Facebook X Reddit LinkedIn Pinterest Flipboard Print Read More What are the most vulnerable areas? The areas most at risk are on or near hillsides that have burned in recent years, with little or no vegetation left to hold soil in place.Burning vegetation and soil on a slope more than doubles the rate of water runoff, according to the California Department of Conservation, and there have been severe events over the years.On Jan. 9, 2018, intense rain fell on a weeks-old wildfire burn scar in the mountains above Montecito on the Santa Barbara County coast, unleashing huge torrents that tore through the community, killing 23 people and destroying or damaging hundreds of homes. In 1934 a storm over the Southern California mountains unleashed runoff so intense that 30 people were killed, more than 480 homes were destroyed.And on Christmas Day in 2003, rain over fire-scarred mountains unleashed a debris flow that killed 16 people who had gathered at a church facility in a canyon. Rocks and vegetation cover Highway 70 following a landslide in the Dixie Fire zone on Oct. 24, 2021, in Plumas County, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File) Rocks and vegetation cover Highway 70 following a landslide in the Dixie Fire zone on Oct. 24, 2021, in Plumas County, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File) Share Share Copy Link copied Email Facebook X Reddit LinkedIn Pinterest Flipboard Print Read More What can be done to protect communities? One of the best ways to manage landslides is with debris basins pits carved out of the landscape to catch material flowing downhill that the U.S. Geological Survey says can reach speeds exceeding 35 mph (56 kph).Often located at the mouths of canyons, the basins collect debris while allowing water to continue downstream, according to Los Angeles County Public Works. This prevents blockages of the storm drain system but requires the removal of sediment from the basins, something that can take days or months depending on their size.But basins, which can require a lot of land, can also disrupt the natural ecosystem and lead to beaches needing to be replenished by collecting sediment that flows out of the canyons, according to experts. Theyre also costly Santa Barbara County spent $20 million on a new basin after 2018 and must be emptied occasionally or they can be overwhelmed by new landslides or mudslides.After the 2018 mudslides hit Montecito, the Los Angeles Times reported that debris basins above the community were undersized and hadnt been sufficiently emptied. The community raised millions to address the problem, hiring an engineering company to map the canyons and install debris nets. Permit Sonoma Director Tennis Wick crosses a mudslide to inspect a home as heavy rains fall near Healdsburg in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., Nov. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File) Permit Sonoma Director Tennis Wick crosses a mudslide to inspect a home as heavy rains fall near Healdsburg in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif., Nov. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File) Share Share Copy Link copied Email Facebook X Reddit LinkedIn Pinterest Flipboard Print Read More The California Department of Conservation runs a geological and landslide mapping team that seeks to identify hot spots, and continually updates its map so local communities can make decisions including potential evacuations.Experts say agencies use a variety of tools to gauge the likelihood of landslides in a given area, including terrain maps and lidar pulsed light from lasers to penetrate foliage to see the ground. Then they can watch for early warnings, such as changes over time in photos taken from the air, or from satellites, or in data from GPS monitoring stations, tilt meters and or other on-site instrumentation.___The Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find APs standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

A worker grabs a chicken to slaughter inside a poultry store in New York, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki, File)2025-02-13T18:33:16Z NEW YORK (AP) A new study shows that bird flu has silently spread from animals to some veterinarians.The study published Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention echoes two smaller ones that detected evidence of infection in previously undiagnosed farmworkers. In those studies, several of the infected workers remembered having symptoms of H5N1 bird flu, while none of the veterinarians in the new paper recalled any such symptoms. The new study is more evidence that the official U.S. tally of confirmed human bird flu infections 68 in the last year is likely a significant undercount, said Dr. Gregory Gray, an infectious disease researcher at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.This means that people are being infected, likely due to their occupational exposures, and not developing signs of illness and therefore not seeking medical care, Gray said. He said it shows that officials cannot fully understand bird flu transmission by only tracking people who go to medical clinics with symptoms. Study suggests bird flu cases are undercountedCDC researchers went to an American Association of Bovine Practitioners veterinary conference in September 2024 in Columbus, Ohio. They recruited 150 vets from 46 states to fill out a questionnaire and agree to have their blood drawn. None said they had suffered red eyes or other symptoms associated with bird flu. Testing found three of the vets, or 2%, had evidence of antibodies to H5N1 infection. All three worked with dairy cattle, as well as other animals. None said theyd worked with a herd that was known to be infected, although one had worked with a flock of infected poultry.Gray and some colleagues did a study last year of 14 dairy farmworkers and found two, or 14%, had evidence of past infections. Both had experienced symptoms but were never diagnosed.Another study published last year by the CDC checked 115 dairy workers. The researchers found that eight of them, or 7%, had evidence in their blood of recent infection. Half recalled feeling ill. The studies were far too small to use as a basis to provide a solid estimate of how many undiagnosed human infections are out there, Gray said. But even just a very small percentage could translate to hundreds or thousands of Americans who were infected while working with animals, he noted.Thats not necessarily a reason to be alarmed, said Jacqueline Nolting, an Ohio State University researcher who helped CDC with the latest study.Available studies suggest people who are infected mount antibody responses and may develop natural immunity, which is good news, she said.However, if the virus changes or mutates to start making people very sick, or to start spreading easily from person to person, that would be a completely different story, Nolting said. Experts urge caution around animalsThe H5N1 bird flu has been spreading widely among wild birds, poultry, cows and other animals. Its escalating presence in the environment increases the chances people will be exposed, and potentially catch it, officials have said.Right now the risk to the general public is low, the CDC says. But officials continue to urge people who have contact with sick or dead birds to take precautions, including wearing respiratory and eye protection and gloves when handling poultry.No ones really questioning that the virus has been moving around the country more than has been reported, said Keith Poulsen, director of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.He said he expected to see stepped-up information reminding veterinarians across the country to protect themselves with gloves, masks and other equipment to halt infection.___Associated Press writer JoNel Aleccia contributed to this report.___The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick listens as President Donald Trump speaks after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)2025-02-13T12:52:00Z Follow live updates on President Donald Trump and his new administration. WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trump on Thursday rolled out his plan to increase U.S. tariffs to match the tax rates that other countries charge on imports, possibly triggering a broader economic confrontation with allies and rivals alike as he hopes to eliminate any trade imbalances.Ive decided for purposes of fairness that I will charge a reciprocal tariff, Trump said in the Oval Office at the proclamation signing. Its fair to all. No other country can complain.Trumps Republican administration has insisted that its new tariffs would level the playing field between U.S. manufacturers and foreign competitors, though under current law these new taxes would likely be paid by American consumers and businesses either directly or in the form of higher prices. The politics of tariffs could easily backfire on Trump if his agenda pushes up inflation and grinds down growth, making this a high stakes wager for a president eager to declare his authority over the U.S. economy. The tariff increases would be customized for each country with the partial goal of starting trade new negotiations. But other nations might also feel the need to respond with their own tariff increases on American goods. As a result, Trump may need to find ways to reassure consumers and businesses to counteract any uncertainty caused by his tariffs. Trumps proclamation identifies value added taxes which are similar to sales taxes and common in the European Union as a trade barrier to be included in any reciprocal tariff calculations. Other nations tariff rates, subsidies to industries, regulations and possible undervaluing of currencies would be among the factors the Trump administration would use to assess tariffs. A senior White House official, who insisted on anonymity to preview the details on a call with reporters, said that the expected tariff revenues would separately help to balance the expected $1.9 trillion budget deficit. The official also said the reviews needed for the tariffs could be completed within a matter of weeks or a few months. The possible tax increases on imports and exports could be large compared to the comparatively modest tariffs that Trump imposed during his first term. Trade in goods between Europe and the United States nearly totaled $1.3 trillion last year, with the United States exporting $267 billion less than it imports, according to the Census Bureau.The president has openly antagonized multiple U.S. trading partners over the past several weeks, levying tariff threats and inviting them to retaliate with import taxes of their own that could send the economy hurtling into a trade war.Trump has put an additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports due that countrys role in the production of the opioid fentanyl. He also has readied tariffs on Canada and Mexico, Americas two largest trading partners, that could take effect in March after being suspended for 30 days. On top of that, on Monday, he removed the exemptions from his 2018 steel and aluminum tariffs. And hes mused about new tariffs on computer chips and pharmaceutical drugs. In the case of the 25% steel and aluminum tariffs being imposed by Trump, those would be part of the reciprocal tariff calculations, a White House official told The Associated Press, insisting on anonymity to explain the administrations approach. The official did not know on whether Trumps planned tariffs on computer chips and pharmaceutical drugs would be separate from how the reciprocal tariffs are calculated, since they could have separate justifications such as national security.The EU, Canada and Mexico have countermeasures ready to inflict economic pain on the United States in response to Trumps actions, while China has already taken retaliatory steps with its own tariffs on U.S. energy, agricultural machinery and large-engine autos as well as an antitrust investigation of Google.The White House has argued that charging the same import taxes as other countries do would improve the fairness of trade, potentially raising revenues for the U.S. government while also enabling negotiations that could eventually improve trade. But Trump is also making a political wager that voters can tolerate higher inflation levels. Price spikes in 2021 and 2022 severely weakened the popularity of then-President Joe Biden, with voters so frustrated by inflation eroding their buying power that they chose last year to put Trump back in the White House to address the problem. Inflation has risen since Novembers election, with the government reporting on Wednesday that the consumer price index is running at an annual rate of 3%.The Trump team has decried criticism of its tariffs even as it has acknowledged the likelihood of some financial pain. It says that the tariffs have to be weighed against the possible extension and expansion of Trumps 2017 tax cuts as well as efforts to curb regulations and force savings through the spending freezes and staff reductions in billionaire adviser Elon Musks Department of Government Efficiency initiative. But an obstacle for this approach might be the sequencing of the various policies and the possibilities of a wider trade conflict stifling investment and hiring amid the greater inflationary pressures. Analysts at the bank Wells Fargo said in a Thursday report that the tariffs would likely hurt growth this year, just as the extended tax cuts could help growth recover in 2026.Tariffs impart a modest stagflationary shock to an economy, the report said. The U.S. economy entered 2025 with a fair amount of momentum, but we look for real GDP growth to downshift a bit over the next few quarters as the price-boosting effects of tariffs erode growth in real income, thereby weighing on growth in real consumer spending. JOSH BOAK Boak covers the White House and economic policy for The Associated Press. He joined the AP in 2013. twitter mailto

Brooke Rollins attends a Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee hearing on her nomination for Secretary of Agriculture, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)2025-02-13T17:09:16Z WASHINGTON (AP) Conservative lawyer Brooke Rollins was confirmed Thursday as secretary of agriculture, placing a close ally of President Donald Trump into a key Cabinet position at a time when mass deportation plans could lead to farm labor shortages and tariffs could hit agricultural exports.Rollins, who served as chief for domestic policy during Trumps first administration, was confirmed overwhelmingly by the Senate in a 72-28 vote.Rollins will now lead a department tasked with overseeing nearly all aspects of the nations food system, including standards on farming practices and livestock rearing, federal subsidies to farmers or agribusinesses and setting nutrition standards for schools and public health officials nationwide. The Department of Agriculture was at the center of Trumps trade war in his last administration, when it increased subsidies to farmers growing the nations two biggest crops, corn and soybeans, after retaliatory tariffs were levied by China on the grains and international markets were disrupted. The United States is the worlds largest food exporter. In her Senate confirmation hearing, Rollins acknowledged that Trumps plans for the mass deportation of people in the country illegally could led to farm labor shortages. Growers of some vegetables and crops such as apples as well as dairy operations are especially dependent on migrant labor. But Rollins said Americans support Trumps plans and she would work to help the president while also trying to protect farmers. The presidents vision of a secure border and a mass deportation at a scale that matters is something I support, Rollins said.Rollins is a conservative legal activist and public policy analyst who most recently served as president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a Trump-aligned think tank that developed policy and cultivated a network of personnel for the second Trump administration. Other AFPI alumni in the administration include the groups chair, Linda McMahon, who was tapped to lead the Education Department, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner and Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins, among others. Rollins served as acting director of the White House Domestic Policy Council during Trumps first term, where she oversaw a portfolio that included agriculture policy. She also served as president of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank. Rollins nomination was unanimously approved by the Senates agriculture committee. Sen. Jim Justice, R-W.Va., called Rollins a superstar while Rollins home state senators, Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, testified on her behalf ahead of her confirmation hearing. Rollins promised to modernize USDA in line with Trumps vision for the department that included faster procession of disaster aid for farmers and tackling animal diseases. She also vowed to immediately begin to modernize, realign, rethink the United States Department of Agriculture on policies like remote work, in line with the Trump administrations broader stance. Democrats expressed concern that federal funding freezes had disrupted aid to farmers and land grant universities and pressed Rollins on how her support for farming communities may clash with Trumps immigration and trade agenda. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., the ranking member of the agriculture committee, pressed Rollins on how she would respond to retaliatory tariffs on U.S. crops, given Trumps previous trade wars. Beyond just getting extra payments to make up for it, will you be a voice to make sure people understand the importance of exports for rural America? And its not just farming but manufacturing and the like, Klobuchar asked. Rollins promised that her team would be at the table fighting for what we believe is necessary for these communities. Of all of the portfolio that, if confirmed, I am taking on, the one that excites me the most is the opportunity to put forward a vision and build a program around revivifying, restoring and bringing back rural America, Rollins said. She cautioned that clearly, the federal government itself cant do that but said that an all approach would be needed to help rural communities. ___McFetridge reported from Des Moines, Iowa. MATT BROWN Brown is a reporter covering national politics, race and democracy issues. twitter instagram mailto

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)2025-02-13T20:09:02Z WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trump said Thursday that he wants to restart nuclear arms control talks with Russia and China and that eventually he hopes all three countries could agree to cut their massive defense budgets in half.Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump lamented the hundreds of billions of dollars being invested in rebuilding the nations nuclear deterrent and said he hopes to gain commitments from the U.S. adversaries to cut their own spending.Theres no reason for us to be building brand new nuclear weapons, we already have so many, Trump said. You could destroy the world 50 times over, 100 times over. And here we are building new nuclear weapons, and theyre building nuclear weapons.Were all spending a lot of money that we could be spending on other things that are actually, hopefully much more productive, Trump said. While the U.S. and Russia hold massive stockpiles of weapons since the Cold War, Trump predicted that China would catch up in their capability to exact nuclear devastation within five or six years.He said if the weapons were ever called to use, thats going to be probably oblivion. Trump said he would look to engage in nuclear talks with the two countries once we straighten it all out in the Middle East and Ukraine.One of the first meetings I want to have is with President Xi of China, President Putin of Russia. And I want to say, lets cut our military budget in half. And we can do that. And I think well be able to. Trump in his first term tried and failed to bring China into nuclear arms reduction talks when the U.S. and Russia were negotiating an extension of a pact known as New START. Russia suspended its participation in the treaty during the Biden administration, as the U.S. and Russia continued on massive programs to extend the life-spans or replace their Cold War-era nuclear arsenals. ZEKE MILLER Zeke is APs chief White House correspondent twitter mailto MICHELLE L. PRICE Price is a national political reporter for The Associated Press. She is based in New York. twitter mailto

New York City Mayor Eric Adams exits from federal court in New York, Nov. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Kena Betancur, File)2025-02-13T19:26:48Z NEW YORK (AP) The top federal prosecutor in Manhattan resigned Thursday rather than obey a Justice Department order to drop corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.The resignation of Danielle Sassoon, a Republican who was the interim U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, was confirmed by a spokesperson for the office.Her resignation came days after a senior Justice Department official directed New York prosecutors to drop the case against Adams, who was accused of accepting illegal campaign contributions and bribes of free or discounted travel from people who wanted to buy his influence.Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove said in a memo Monday that the case should be dismissed so that Adams, a Democrat, could help with President Donald Trumps immigration crackdown and campaign for reelection. Justice Department officials didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. Neither did Adams attorney, Alex Spiro. A spokesperson for the mayor did not immediately respond.The Justice Departments decision to end the case because of political considerations, rather than the strength or weakness of the evidence, alarmed some career prosecutors who said it was a departure from longstanding norms. While Bove had directed that the case be dismissed as soon as practicable, days went by with no public statements or actions by the prosecution team in New York. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Wednesday that she would look into why the charges had yet to be dismissed.Sassoon, a former clerk for the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia who is a member of the conservative Federalist Society, was not the one who brought the case against Adams last year. The prosecutor who did, former U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, stepped down after Trumps election victory. Sassoon had only been tapped to serve as acting U.S. Attorney on Jan. 21, the day after Trump took office. Her role was intended to be temporary. Trump in November nominated Jay Clayton, the former chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, to the post, an appointment that must be confirmed by the Senate.The office she led, the Southern District of New York, is among the largest and most prominent prosecutors offices in the U.S., with a long track record of tackling Wall Street malfeasance, political corruption and international terrorism.It has a tradition of independence from Washington, something that has earned it the nickname the sovereign district.During Trumps first term, the office prosecuted both the presidents personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, and his strategic adviser, Steve Bannon, in separate cases. Cohen pleaded guilty to tax evasion and campaign finance charges. Trump ended the federal fraud case against Bannon by pardoning him, though nearly identical charges were then brought by state prosecutors.Sassoon joined the U.S. attorneys office in 2016. In 2023 she helped lead the fraud prosecution of Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. More recently, she had served as the offices co-chief of criminal appeals. Adams was indicted in September on charges that while he worked as Brooklyn Borough President, he accepted over $100,000 in illegal campaign contributions and lavish travel perks such as expensive flight upgrades, luxury hotel stays and even a trip to a bathhouse.The indictment said a Turkish official who helped facilitate the trips then leaned on Adams for favors, including asking him to lobby the Fire Department to let a newly constructed, 36-story diplomatic building open in time for a planned visit by Turkeys president.Prosecutors said they had proof that Adams personally directed political aides to solicit foreign donations and disguise them to help the campaign qualify for a city program that provides a generous, publicly-funded match for small dollar donations. Under federal law, foreign nationals are banned from contributing to U.S. election campaigns.As recently as Jan. 6th, prosecutors had indicated their investigation remained active, writing in court papers that they continued to uncover additional criminal conduct by Adams. Bove said in his memo that Justice Department officials in Washington hadnt evaluated the evidence in the case before deciding it should be dropped at least until after the mayoral election in November.But he criticized recent public actions by Williams that he said had threatened the integrity of the proceedings, including by increasing prejudicial pretrial publicity. Williams hasnt spoken publicly about the Adams case since his resignation, but wrote an editorial decrying corruption in politics.Federal agents had also been investigating other senior Adams aides. It was unclear what will happen to that side of the probe.

People wave signs to passing cars during a pro-transgender rights protest outside of Seattle Children's Hospital after the institution postponed some gender-affirming surgeries for minors following an executive order by President Donald Trump, Sunday, Feb. 9, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)2025-02-13T20:34:49Z Follow live updates on President Donald Trump and his new administration. BALTIMORE (AP) A federal judge on Thursday temporarily blocked President Donald Trumps recent executive order aimed at restricting gender-affirming health care for transgender people under age 19. The judges ruling came after a lawsuit was filed earlier this month on behalf of families with transgender or nonbinary children who allege their health care has already been compromised by the presidents order. A national group for family of LGBTQ+ people and a doctors organization are also plaintiffs in the court challenge, one of many lawsuits opposing a slew of executive orders Trump has issued as he seeks to reverse the policies of former President Joe Biden. Judge Brendan Hurson, who was nominated by Biden, granted the plaintiffs request for a temporary restraining order following a hearing in federal court in Baltimore. The ruling, in effect for 14 days, essentially puts Trumps directive on hold while the case proceeds. The restraining order could also be extended. Trumps executive order seems to deny that this population even exists, or deserves to exist, Hurson said. Shortly after taking office, Trump signed an executive order directing federally run insurance programs to exclude coverage for gender-affirming care. That includes Medicaid, which covers such services in some states, and TRICARE for military families. Trumps order also called on the Department of Justice to vigorously pursue litigation and legislation to oppose the practice. The lawsuit includes several accounts from families of appointments being canceled as medical institutions react to the new directive. Attorneys for the plaintiffs argue Trumps executive order is unlawful and unconstitutional because it seeks to withhold federal funds previously authorized by Congress and because it violates anti-discrimination laws while infringing on the rights of parents. Like legal challenges to state bans on gender-affirming care, the lawsuit also alleges the policy is discriminatory because it allows federal funds to cover the same treatments when theyre not used for gender transition.Some hospitals immediately paused gender-affirming care, including prescriptions for puberty blockers and hormone therapy, while they assess how the order affects them.Trumps approach on the issue represents an abrupt change from the Biden administration, which sought to explicitly extend civil rights protections to transgender people. Trump has used strong language in opposing gender-affirming care, asserting falsely that medical professionals are maiming and sterilizing a growing number of impressionable children under the radical and false claim that adults can change a childs sex.Major medical groups such as the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics support access to gender-affirming care.Young people who persistently identify as a gender that differs from their sex assigned at birth are first evaluated by a team of professionals. Some may try a social transition, involving changing a hairstyle or pronouns. Some may later also receive puberty blockers or hormones. Surgery is extremely rare for minors.

New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) stands with teammates before an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins, Jan. 5, 2025, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)2025-02-13T16:26:59Z The New York Jets announced Thursday they told quarterback Aaron Rodgers they are moving on without him next season.While Rodgers hasnt said whether he intends to continue playing for a 21st NFL season, the Jets with new general manager Darren Mougey and coach Aaron Glenn in charge have officially ruled out a return to New York.In a joint statement issued by the team, Mougey and Glenn said they met with the 41-year-old quarterback last week and informed him of their plans.It was important to have this discussion now to provide clarity and enable each of us the proper time to plan for our respective futures, Mougey and Glenn said in the statement. We want to thank him for the leadership, passion, and dedication he brought to the organization and wish him success moving forward.The four-time MVP, whos the fifth player in NFL history to throw 500 touchdown passes in the regular season, has one year of non-guaranteed money left on his contract with the Jets. New York would absorb a $49 million dead money charge next season unless it designates Rodgers a post-June 1 cut and can spread out that charge over two years. In April 2023, Rodgers was traded to the Jets after 18 seasons with the Green Bay Packers looking to help the franchise end a Super Bowl drought which dates to the glory days of Joe Namath and the 1968 season.Rodgers first season in New York ended just four snaps into his debut because of a torn left Achilles tendon that sank the Jets Super Bowl hopes that were stirred by the QBs arrival. He worked his way back to the field to start every game this past season, but he and the offense struggled with consistency and results and the Jets finished 5-12.I personally want to thank Aaron for his time at the New York Jets, owner Woody Johnson in a statement. His arrival in 2023 was met with unbridled excitement and I will forever be grateful that he chose to join us to continue his Hall of Fame career. From Day 1, he embodied all that it meant to be a New York Jet, embraced our fans and immersed himself in our city. That is what I will remember most when I look back at his time here. He will always be welcome, and I wish him only the best in whatever he chooses to do next.Rodgers 28 touchdown passes and 3,897 yards passing both rank third for a single season in franchise history. But he lacked some mobility early in his return and then dealt with a few additional leg injuries, including a significant hamstring ailment.The Jets offense with Rodgers struggled to produce, the defense was a shell of its formerly dominant self and it cost both general manager Joe Douglas and coach Robert Saleh their jobs in the middle of the season.In what turned out to be his final appearance with New York, Rodgers threw a season-high four touchdown passes in a win over Miami on Jan. 5.It was a vintage performance and a somewhat frustrating flash to fans of how things could have gone for Rodgers and the Jets.___AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL DENNIS WASZAK JR. Waszak is an NFL writer for The Associated Press who has covered the New York Jets as the beat writer since 2006. He also is an editor on the APs national sports desk and has worked in AP Sports since 1996. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site