National News - The Morning Sun

Columbus teachers picket on Monday, August 22, 2022, outside Yorktown Middle School, in Columbus, Ohio. The Columbus City Schools teachers union voted to strike on Sunday, August 21, 2022. (Doral Chenoweth/The Columbus Dispatch via AP)

Columbus teachers strike on first day back to school

A strike by teachers in Ohio's largest school district is continuing for a third day on the first day of school for its 47,000 students. The Columbus School District and the union resumed bargaining … more

By SAMANTHA HENDRICKSON | 8/24/22

EXPLAINER: NASA tests new moon rocket, 50 years after Apollo

NASA's new moon rocket makes its debut next week in a high-stakes test flight before astronauts get on top. The 322-foot rocket will attempt to send an empty crew capsule into a far-flung lunar … more

By MARCIA DUNN | 8/24/22

Psychologist: School shooter didn't get consistent treatment

A psychologist who treated Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz when he was 8 years old testified that Cruz was a “peculiar child” who had many behavioral and developmental issues. Frederick … more

By TERRY SPENCER and FREIDA FRISARO | 8/24/22

Our first steps? Fossil may boost case for earliest ancestor

A new study adds evidence that a fossil species from Africa could be our earliest known ancestor. Researchers examined arm and leg bones linked to a 7-million-year-old skull that was found two … more

By MADDIE BURAKOFF | 8/24/22

Jerry Allison, drummer for Buddy Holly, dead at 82

Drummer Jerry Allison, who played and co-wrote songs with rock pioneer and childhood friend Buddy Holly and whose future wife inspired the classic “Peggy Sue,” has died. He was 82. Holly’s … more

By KRISTIN M. HALL | 8/24/22

Mary Beth Orr poses for a photo in her home, Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022 in Burien, Wash., south of Seattle. Orr used to have five or six drinks every evening and more on weekends before she enrolled in a study in 2018 to see if the compound in psychedelic mushrooms could help heavy drinkers cut back or quit entirely. She stopped drinking entirely for two years, and now has an occasional glass of wine, and credits psilocybin for her progress. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

'Magic mushroom' psychedelic may help heavy drinkers quit

The compound in psychedelic mushrooms helped heavy drinkers cut back or quit entirely in the most rigorous test of psilocybin for alcoholism. The study was published Wednesday in JAMA Psychiatry. … more

By CARLA K. JOHNSON | 8/24/22

FILE - Demonstrators march and gather near the Texas state Capitol in Austin following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022. A federal judge in Texas issued a ruling on Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022, temporarily blocking the federal government from enforcing guidance against the state that requires hospitals to provide abortion services if the life of the mother is at risk. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)

Judge blocks enforcement of Biden abortion guidance in Texas

A federal judge in Texas has temporarily blocked the federal government from enforcing a legal interpretation that would require hospitals in the state to provide abortion services if the life of the … more

8/24/22

Larry the Cat, Britain's Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office, sits in front of the flower decoration featuring sunflowers , outside 10 Downing street, in the national Ukrainian colours, on Ukraine Independence Day in London, Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

Western leaders salute Ukraine on its Independence Day

Western leaders are pledging unwavering support for Ukraine as the war-ravaged country marks its Independence Day. The commemorations Wednesday coincide with the six-month milestone of Russia’s … more

The Associated Press | 8/24/22

FILE - New graduates line up before the start of a community college commencement in East Rutherford, N.J., on May 17, 2018. President Joe Biden is expected to announce Wednesday Aug. 24, 2022 that many Americans can have up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt forgiven. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

Biden's student loan plan: What we know (and what we don't)

President Joe Biden is expected to announce that many Americans can have up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt forgiven. Details of the plan are still being finalized, but three people familiar … more

By CORA LEWIS and ADRIANA MORGA | 8/24/22

This May 2, 2022, photo provided by Xingu + Network shows an illegal road inside a protected area called Terra do Meio (Middle Earth) Ecological Station in Para state, in the Brazilian Amazon. The dirt road is now just a few miles shy of connecting two of the worst areas of deforestation in the region. (Xingu + Network via AP)

Crucial illegal road threatens Amazon rainforest

An illegal dirt road ripping through protected areas in Brazil is only a few miles shy of connecting two of the worst areas of deforestation in the Amazon basin. If the road is completed it will turn … more

By FABIANO MAISONNAVE | 8/24/22

FILE - Ukrainian soldiers take positions in downtown Kyiv, Ukraine, Feb. 25, 2022. Six months ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in an unprovoked act of aggression, starting the largest military conflict in Europe since World War II. Putin expected a quick victory but it has turned into a grinding war of attrition. Russian offensive are largely stuck as Ukrainian forces increasingly target key facilities far behind the front lines. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, File)

EXPLAINER: Where Ukraine war stands after 6 months

Six months ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in an unprovoked act of aggression, starting the largest military conflict in Europe since World War II. Putin expected a … more

By The Associated Press | 8/24/22

FILE - A forest along NM518 in Mora County, N.M, is scorched by the Calf Canyon Hermits Peak Fire, May 23, 2022. More than four grueling months and $300 million later, the federal government has declared the largest wildfire in New Mexico's recorded history 100% contained, a notable milestone but just another step in what local residents and officials say will be a long journey toward recovery. (Eddie Moore/The Albuquerque Journal via AP, File)

Record-setting wildfire in New Mexico declared contained

More than four months and $300 million later, the federal government has declared the largest wildfire in New Mexico’s recorded history 100% contained. The blaze was sparked in the spring by two … more

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN | 8/23/22

Randal Worcester walks out of the Crawford County Justice Center in Van Buren, Ark., Monday, Aug. 22, 2022. Three Arkansas law enforcement officers were suspended after a video of Worcester's arrest showed two of them beating the suspect while a third officer held him on the ground outside a convenience store. (AP Photo/Andrew DeMillo)

Experts: Police appear excessive in Arkansas beating video

A bystander’s video of Randal Worcester’s arrest on Sunday in the small town of Mulberry, Arkansas, sparked outrage after it was posted online. It shows a sheriff's deputy repeatedly punching and … more

By JAKE BLEIBERG | 8/23/22

FILE - Clem Burke, from left, Deborah Harry and Chris Stein, members of the rock group Blondie, pose for a photo in New York, on April 8, 2004. The band is releasing a box set “Blondie: Against the Odds, 1974-1982,” with 124 tracks and 36 previously unissued recordings, demos, outtakes and Blondie’s initial six studio albums. (AP Photo/Justin Walters, File)

Blondie opens vaults for a hefty box set celebrating cool

For decades, a New Wave treasure trove sat in a converted barn. For Blondie fans, it was the equivalent of the Ark of the Covenant housed in a rickety storage space. In the building just outside … more

By MARK KENNEDY | 8/23/22

Patricia "Trish" Devaney Westerlind becomes emotional as she testifies during the penalty phase of the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2022. Devaney Westerlind lived in Parkland from 1998 to 2008 and was a neighbor of the Cruz family. Cruz previously plead guilty to all 17 counts of premeditated murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the 2018 shootings. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun Sentinel via AP, Pool)

Testimony: Florida school shooter was intellectually slow

A preschool administrator and a neighbor both say that as a toddler, Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz was intellectually and physically behind other children. The women testified at his penalty … more

By TERRY SPENCER and FREIDA FRISARO | 8/23/22

In this undated photo, volunteers unload supplies at a shelter in Zakarpattia, Ukraine. . The shelter was built in an abandoned schoolhouse, in part with funds from Razom for Ukraine. (Courtesy of Kateryna Terekhova via AP)

How tiny, volunteer nonprofit raised $57 million for Ukraine

For most of its eight-year history, Razom for Ukraine, a U.S.-based charity run by Ukrainian and Ukrainian American volunteers, has raised about $150,000 a year to help promote a free and prosperous … more

By JIM RENDON of The Chronicle of Philanthropy | 8/23/22

FILE - Members of the Balch Springs Fire Department bring a family of four by boat to higher ground after rescuing them from their home along Forest Glen Lane in Batch Springs, Texas, Aug. 22, 2022. This summer the weather has not only been extreme, but it has whiplashed from one extreme to another. Dallas, St. Louis, Kentucky, Yellowstone, Death Valley all lurched from drought to flood. (Elías Valverde II/The Dallas Morning News via AP, File)/The Dallas Morning News via AP)

Weather whiplash: Summer lurches from drought to flood

This summer the weather has not only been extreme, but it has whiplashed from one extreme to another. Dallas, St. Louis, Kentucky, Yellowstone, Death Valley all lurched from drought to flood. And … more

BY SETH BORENSTEIN | 8/23/22

FILE - LaShell Eikerenkoetter chants, on a megaphone protesting the recent acquittal of a white former police officer, Jason Stockley, in the killing of a black man, Anthony Lamar Smith, on Friday, Sept. 22, 2017 in St. Charles, Mo. On Aug. 3, Mayor Tishaura Jones signed into law an ordinance establishing a Division of Civilian Oversight. But three police officer associations are suing to stop the measure that they claim hinders due process for officers and conflicts with state law. (David Carson/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)

New oversight plan means closer scrutiny of St. Louis police

Eight years after Michael Brown’s death pushed the St. Louis region front and center into the national debate over police accountability, the city’s elected officials and its police associations … more

By JIM SALTER | 8/23/22

FILE - A man shops at a supermarket on Wednesday, July 27, 2022, in New York. U.S. demand for grocery delivery is cooling as food prices rise. Some shoppers are shifting to less expensive grocery pickup, while others are returning to the store. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)

5 tips for creating a budget to support your financial goals

Whether you want to pay off debt, start a rainy day fund or save for a family trip, budgeting is the first step toward reaching your financial goals. Colleen McCreary of Credit Karma says creating a … more

By ADRIANA MORGA | 8/23/22

FILE - Ukrainian emergency employees and volunteers carry an injured pregnant woman from the maternity hospital that was damaged by shelling in Mariupol, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 9, 2022. A Russian attack has severely damaged the maternity hospital in the besieged port city of Mariupol, Ukrainian officials say. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka, File)

AP PHOTOS: 6 months of war told in shutter clicks

During six months of war in Ukraine, Associated Press photographers have captured images that are both succinct and eloquent. The click of a shutter is brief, but the stories they tell are deep. … more

The Associated Press | 8/23/22