PARIS (AP) — How do you smooth over trade tensions with the all-powerful leader of economic powerhouse China? Charm him with a bottle of Cognac or two. That seemed to be French President Emmanuel Macron’s strategy with his carefully selected gift list for visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping. China recently opened an anti-dumping investigation into
Continue ReadingNEW YORK (AP) — Jurors in Donald Trump’s hush money trial are hearing for the first time how and why Michael Cohen’s reimbursement for the Stormy Daniels’ payment was entered as a legal expense. Former Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney took the stand Monday morning and detailed conversations around said reimbursement. Before witness testimony began,
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CNN By Abeer Salman, Christian Edwards, Becky Anderson and Jeremy Diamond, CNN (CNN) — Israel said the terms of a ceasefire proposal Hamas accepted on Monday remained “far from” meeting its demands and warned its military operations in Rafah would continue, even as it sent negotiators to talk to mediators. In a statement Monday, Hamas
Continue ReadingBy BRUCE SCHREINER Associated Press Kentucky’s Republican secretary of state, Michael Adams, has been chosen to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award this year. Adams worked across party lines to expand early voting in the Bluegrass State and has spoken out against election denialism. Adams was at the forefront of a bipartisan
Continue ReadingBy MARK STEVENSON Associated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — Two Australians and an American were doing what they loved on the stunning, largely isolated stretch of Baja California’s Pacific coast. Their last images on social media showed them gazing at the waves, contemplating the breaks. What happened to end their lives may have been as
Continue ReadingBy JAMES POLLARD Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The Met Gala has inspired pajama-clad New Yorkers to fundraise for medical debt relief at an alternative benefit called the Debt Gala. Some 200 attendees dressed for its “Sleeping Baddies” theme to raise money for medical bill relief on Sunday. Hosted in Brooklyn one night before
Continue ReadingBy BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LONDON (AP) — A former head of the Scottish National Party is expected to be Scotland’s next leader. John Swinney was confirmed Monday as leader of the SNP after no other candidate came forward. He’s expected to become Scotland’s first minister this week. The 60-year-old Swinney would be Scotland’s third
Continue ReadingBy SAM MEDNICK, JOSEF FEDERMAN and BASSEM MROUE Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Hamas announced Monday it has accepted an Egyptian-Qatari cease-fire proposal, but there was no immediate word from Israel, leaving it uncertain whether a deal had been sealed to bring a halt to the seven-month-long war in Gaza. It was the first glimmer
Continue ReadingBy The Associated Press The Hamas militant group said Monday it had accepted a cease-fire proposal from mediators Egypt and Qatar, which could end seven months of war in Gaza. However, it’s uncertain whether a deal had been sealed. An Israeli official warned that the plan approved by Hamas “is not the framework Israel proposed.”
Continue ReadingBy JESSE BEDAYN Associated Press/Report for America DENVER (AP) — Colorado lawmakers have passed a sweeping bill to overhaul the state’s lax oversight over funeral homes after a series of horrific incidents, including sold body parts, fake ashes and the discovery of 190 decaying bodies. The cases have devastated hundreds of already grieving families, and
Continue ReadingBy STEPHEN WHYNO and JOHN WAWROW AP Hockey Writers The inaugural season of the Professional Women’s Hockey League has set one attendance record after another while putting the sport on the map across North America outside the Olympics. Finally having the best players in the world in one league has provided the kind of jump
Continue ReadingBy LISA RATHKE Associated Press Independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders is running for re-election, squelching speculation that he might retire. The 82-year-old from Vermont announced Monday that he’s seeking his fourth term in the U.S. Senate. He says in a video announcement that American democracy is in question, and the 2024 election in many ways
Continue ReadingBy PATRICK WHITTLE Associated Press PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The number of fish on the government’s overfishing list sunk to a new low last year in a sign of healthy U.S. fisheries, federal officials said. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released an updated analysis of American fisheries late last week via its annual “Status
Continue ReadingBy JUAN A. LOZANO Associated Press HOUSTON (AP) — Floodwaters in the Houston area and parts of Southeast Texas began to recede on Monday, allowing residents to begin returning to their homes and assess damages after days of heavy rainfall that pummeled the area and led to hundreds of rescues — including people who were
Continue ReadingWARSAW, Poland (AP) — Polish prosecutors say they have opened an investigation after a Polish judge fled to the autocratic state of Belarus and asked for protection there. According to Belarus state media, the judge told journalists in the Belarusian capital that he was forced to leave Poland due to disagreements with the current authorities.
Continue ReadingBy Jackie Wattles, CNN (CNN) — Two NASA astronauts had reached the final hours before a long-awaited launch attempt aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule, the first crewed mission of the new spacecraft. But the mission was scrubbed about two hours before the countdown clock hit zero because of an issue with a valve on the Atlas
Continue ReadingBy JESSE BEDAYN Associated Press/Report for America DENVER (AP) — Colorado lawmakers have passed a sweeping bill to overhaul the state’s lax oversight over funeral homes after a series of horrific incidents, including sold body parts, fake ashes and the discovery of 190 decaying bodies. The cases have devastated hundreds of already grieving families, and
Continue ReadingBy SAM MEDNICK, JOSEF FEDERMAN and BASSEM MROUE Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Hamas announced Monday it has accepted an Egyptian-Qatari proposal for a cease-fire to halt the seven-month-long war with Israel in Gaza, hours after Israel ordered about 100,000 Palestinians to begin evacuating from the southern city of Rafah, signaling that a long-promised ground
Continue ReadingBy Sean Lyngaas, CNN (CNN) — The US State Department on Monday released an ambitious new cybersecurity strategy that seeks to curb Russia and China’s digital influence in the developing world and blunt those countries’ alleged efforts to interfere in elections. With roughly half of the world’s population holding elections in 2024, their vulnerability to
Continue ReadingNICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Jordan has stationed two helicopters in Cyprus to help the Mediterranean island nation combat potential forest fires until it can lease firefighting aircraft of its own for the summer fire season. The Cyprus environment minister says the government considers firefighting and prevention a national security matter and is moving to purchase
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