National News - The Morning Sun

Piccadilly line trains sit in their depot as members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) strike over jobs, pay and pensions in London, Friday, Aug. 19, 2022. A strike by London Underground workers brought the British capital's transit network to a grinding halt on Friday, a day after a nationwide walkout by railway staff. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

AUG. 19-25, 2022 This week has seen a strike by London Underground workers and Kenya’s Raila Odinga challenging the election results in his country. Meanwhile, captured Russian military … more

By The Associated Press | 8/26/22

Photos of slain journalists are posted up on a wall during a vigil to protest the murder of journalist Fredid Roman, outside Mexico's Attorney General's office in Mexico City, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022. Roman was the 15th media worker killed so far this year in Mexico, where it is now considered the most dangerous country for reporters outside a war zone. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

AP Week in Pictures: Latin America and Caribbean

. more

8/26/22

Attorney Norm Pattis sits on the witness stand during a Show Cause Hearing in Waterbury Superior Court in Waterbury, Conn., Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022. (H John Voorhees III/Hearst Connecticut Media via AP, Pool)

Alex Jones lawyer takes the Fifth during Sandy Hook hearing

A lawyer for conspiracy theorist Alex Jones invoked his right against self-incrimination during a civil court hearing in Connecticut over the possible improper disclosure of confidential medical … more

8/25/22

Uvalde County Commissioner Ronnie Garza talks about the state of the community, Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. The community, three months out from the shootings at Robb Elementary, is preparing for classes to resume in the coming weeks.(AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Broken trust still felt in Uvalde as school year approaches

The firing of Uvalde's embattled school police chief hasn't satisfied or reassured many Uvalde residents as a new school year approaches. Pete Arredondo is the first officer to lose his job over the … more

By ACACIA CORONADO and PAUL J. WEBER | 8/25/22

FILE - President Joe Biden speaks about student loan debt forgiveness in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Aug. 24, 2022, in Washington. One in four Black borrowers would see their debt cleared entirely under the administration’s plan, which cancels $10,000 in federal student loan debt for those with incomes below $125,000 a year, or households that earn less than $250,000. The plan includes an additional $10,000 in relief for Pell Grant recipients, who are more than twice as likely to be Black. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Student loan relief highlights burden on Black borrowers

On average Black borrowers carry a heavier burden of student loan debt than white borrowers. The disparity reflects a racial wealth gap in the U.S. — one that some advocates say the debt relief … more

By ANNIE MA | 8/25/22

Sluice gates at the Cambridge Canal in south-central Nebraska, are pictured Monday, Aug. 22, 2022. It's a mystery why someone released 16 million gallons of water out of the canal one night earlier this month. (Bradley Edgerton via AP)

Nebraska authorities baffled by missing canal water mystery

Authorities in Nebraska are trying to determine who released 16 million gallons of water by opening a dam on an irrigation channel one night this month — and why. The head of the irrigation … more

8/25/22

FILE - This undated photo provided by the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office in Minnesota on June 3, 2020, shows former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. Chauvin has been relocated from the restrictive confines of a Minnesota state prison to a medium-security federal lockup in Arizona where he will likely be given a little more freedom and have a greater sense of autonomy despite his infamy for killing George Floyd. (Hennepin County Sheriff's Office via AP, File)

Chauvin moved to Arizona federal pen in George Floyd killing

Derek Chauvin has been moved from a Minnesota state prison where he was often held in solitary confinement to a medium-security federal prison in Arizona, where the former police officer convicted in … more

By GRETCHEN EHLKE | 8/25/22

FILE - Elder Leslie Mathews, an organizer with Michigan United, joins Leaders of the Reproductive Freedom for All campaign as they speak to supporters on July 11, 2022, in Lansing Mich., after turning in 753,759 signatures to qualify for Michigan's November ballot. The Michigan Bureau of Elections recommended on Thursday, Aug, 25, 2022, approval of a ballot initiative that seeks to enshrine abortion rights into the state’s constitution after a review of the campaign's petition signatures. (AP Photo/Joey Cappelletti, File)

Michigan panel recommends abortion proposal for ballot

The Michigan Bureau of Elections has recommended approval of a ballot initiative that seeks to enshrine abortion rights into the state’s constitution after a review of the campaign's petition … more

By JOEY CAPPELLETTI | 8/25/22

FILE - A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with Boeing's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft is rolled out of the Vertical Integration Facility to the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41 ahead of the Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) mission, Wednesday, May 18, 2022 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. On Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022, officials announced Boeing’s first spaceflight with astronauts has been delayed until 2022 because of repairs that need to be made to the capsule following its last test flight. (Joel Kowsky/NASA via AP, File)

Boeing astronaut flight off until next year for more fixes

Boeing's first spaceflight with astronauts has been delayed until next year because of repairs that need to be made to the capsule. Liftoff of the Starliner capsule with a pair of test pilots is now … more

By MARCIA DUNN | 8/25/22

FILE - A Jackson, Miss., resident receives a Pfizer booster shot from a nurse at a vaccination site Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022. In August 2022, Pfizer and Moderna both asked U.S. regulators to authorize modified versions of their booster vaccine — shots that are half the original recipe and half protection against BA.4 and BA.5, the newest subtypes of the coronavirus omicron variant. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)

Tweaked COVID boosters close but how much will they help?

COVID-19 vaccines tweaked to better match today’s omicron threat are expected to roll out in a few weeks but how much will they help? Also up in the air is who should get one -- and how soon. … more

By LAURAN NEERGAARD | 8/25/22

FILE - Dylan Brandt speaks at a news conference outside the federal courthouse in Little Rock, Ark., on Wednesday, July 21, 2021. Brandt, 15, has been receiving hormone treatments and is among several transgender youth who challenged a state law banning gender confirming care for trans minors. A federal appeals court on Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022, said Arkansas can't enforce its ban on transgender children receiving gender affirming medical care. (AP Photo/Andrew DeMillo, File)

Court: Arkansas can't ban treatment of transgender kids

A federal appeals court has agreed with a judge's ruling preventing the state from enforcing a ban on transgender children receiving gender affirming medical care. A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. … more

By ANDREW DeMILLO | 8/25/22

FILE - Nicole Brown wipes sweat from her face while setting up her beverage stand near the National Mall on July 22, 2022, in Washington. What's considered officially “dangerous heat” in coming decades will likely hit much of the world at least three times more often as climate change worsens, according to a new study. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard, File)

Dangerous heat predicted to hit 3 times more often in future

Get ready for a sizzling future. A new study says that what meteorologists consider dangerous heat will happen at least three times more often in coming decades as climate change worsens. That means … more

BY SETH BORENSTEIN | 8/25/22

FILE - The aftermath of a retention pond wall collapse at the TVA Kingston Fossil Plant in Harriman, Tenn., is seen on Dec. 22, 2008. A coalition of environmental groups sued the Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022, over its refusal to regulate some older coal ash dumps, claiming they are polluting air and groundwater. (AP Photo/Wade Payne, File)

Groups sue Environmental Protection Agency over coal ash

A coalition of environmental groups is suing the Environmental Protection Agency over its refusal to regulate some older coal ash dumps. A lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington D.C. on … more

By TRAVIS LOLLER | 8/25/22

FILE - This Feb. 5, 2021, photo provided by the Oklahoma Department of Corrections shows James Coddington. Oklahoma executed Coddington on Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022, for a 1997 killing, despite a recommendation from the state's Pardon and Parole Board that his life be spared. He received a lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester and was pronounced dead at 10:16 a.m. (Oklahoma Department of Corrections via AP, File)

Oklahoma executes James Coddington for 1997 hammer killing

Oklahoma has executed a man for a 1997 killing despite a recommendation from the state’s Pardon and Parole Board that his life be spared. Fifty-year-old James Coddington received a lethal injection … more

By SEAN MURPHY | 8/25/22

A mailbox stands in floodwaters from heavy rains that have plagued the region in recent days on Foxboro Drive in northeast Jackson, Miss., Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022. Torrential rains and flash flooding prompted rescue operations, closures and evacuations in the central part of the state. (Hannah Mattix/The Clarion-Ledger via AP)

Flash flooding: Toddlers rescued, fish flop in parking lot

Law enforcement officers in central Mississippi carried toddlers out of a flooded day care center after storms dumped rain that caused creeks to overflow. The Rankin County Sheriff’s Department … more

By MICHAEL GOLDBERG and EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS | 8/25/22

FILE - Work is done on the roof of a building under construction in Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, March 3, 2022. The California Employment Development Department said Friday, Aug. 19, 2022, that the state's unemployment rate was 3.9% in July. That's the lowest since 1976 when the state began using its current method of measuring job growth. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli,File)

Fewer Americans claim jobless benefits last week

Fewer Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week as the labor market continues to stand out as one of the strongest segments of the U.S. economy. Applications for jobless aid for the week … more

By MAE ANDERSON | 8/25/22

This undated photo provided by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California shows some smuggled animals from Mexico and Hong Kong into the U.S. On Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022, Manuel Perez, of Oxnard, Calif., who smuggled more than 1,700 wild animals into the U.S., including 60 reptiles, hidden in his clothing, pleaded guilty to federal charges. (US Attorney's Office for the Central District of California via AP)

California man pleads guilty to smuggling 1,700 animals

A California man who smuggled more than 1,700 wild animals into the United States, including 60 reptiles hidden in his clothing, has pleaded guilty to federal charges. Jose Manuel Perez of Oxnard … more

8/24/22

FILE - Justin Blake poses for a photo at Grace Lutheran Church, where he volunteers, in Kenosha, Wis., Oct. 14, 2021. Blake is the uncle of Jacob Blake, who was shot in the back by a Kenosha police officer in August 2020. Justin Blake filed a federal lawsuit on Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022, alleging sheriff's deputies in Wisconsin unjustly arrested and tortured him during a protest over the 2020 Kenosha police shooting of his nephew. (AP Photo/Carrie Antlfinger, File)

Jacob Blake's uncle alleges Wisconsin deputies tortured him

An uncle of Jacob Blake filed a federal lawsuit alleging sheriff’s deputies in Wisconsin unjustly arrested and tortured him during a protest over the 2020 Kenosha police shooting of his nephew. … more

8/24/22

In this image made from video, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer speaks with educators, parents and students during a back-to-school event at Novi High School on Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022, in Novi, Mich. A day earlier, two men were convicted of conspiring to kidnap Whitmer. (AP Photo/Mike Householder)

Whitmer kidnap plot convictions unlikely to curb extremism

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is calling for a political cooling-off after two men were convicted of plotting to kidnap her. But experts say that appears unlikely. A federal jury found Adam Fox and … more

By JOHN FLESHER | 8/24/22

FILE - South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem speaks in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 25, 2022. A South Dakota government ethics board Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022, pressed forward in its investigation of two complaints against Gov. Noem. She is under scrutiny from the state's Government Accountability Board for allegations she misused the powers of her office by interfering in her daughter’s application for a real estate appraiser license and flying on state-owned airplanes to political events. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)

SD ethics board puts it to Noem whether to fight allegations

A South Dakota ethics board’s finding that Gov. Kristi Noem may have engaged in misconduct by intervening in her daughter’s application for a real estate appraiser license isn’t likely the last … more

By STEPHEN GROVES | 8/24/22