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HONG KONG — China hit back Wednesday against international criticism of a new national security law passed in Hong Kong, dismissing concerns that it will further erode civil liberties in the Chinese territory. The United States and other governments have expressed opposition to the legislation, known as Article 23, which …

Less than a year ago, Donald Trump took a victory lap for his role in reversing the landmark Supreme Court case that assured women access to abortion.  “I was able to kill Roe v. Wade,” he gloated in an online post in May 2023. “Without me there would be no …

PHOENIX — President Joe Biden on Tuesday personally appealed to Latino voters, saying they’re the reason he defeated Donald Trump in 2020 and urging them to help him do it again in November. “I need you back,” he told several dozen supporters packed into a local Mexican restaurant. Biden said the upcoming election isn’t …

Police are searching for an escaped inmate and another suspect in the shooting at corrections officers in Boise, Idaho, early Wednesday morning. The incident began at 2:15 a.m. local time when Idaho Department of Corrections officers were attempting to transfer inmate Skylar Meade back to the corrections facility, according to …

WASHINGTON — For President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s independent candidacy looms as a potential political spoiler. But for members of the extended Kennedy family, the possibility that one of their own could tip the race for presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump poses a different risk — …

The top lawyer for one of the largest U.S. labor unions on Tuesday won U.S. Senate approval for a seat on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, making her the first openly LGBTQ judge to serve on the Richmond, Virginia-based court. The Democratic-led Senate on a 50-47 vote confirmed …

A judge on Wednesday gave former President Donald Trump and eight of his co-defendants permission to appeal the order allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to remain on the Georgia election interference case despite their allegations of misconduct. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee granted a certificate of …

In December 2021, the flight crew of a 737 Max 8 jet descending on autopilot from the skies somewhere over the United States momentarily lost control when it “rolled violently to the right” without warning, the plane’s captain recounted. The first officer acted fast, disengaging the autopilot, and recovered control …

The imaginative, New York-centric world of “Problemista,” Julio Torres’ feature directing debut, is a celebration of eccentric characters who are drawn to problematic situations. But none exemplify the film’s raison d’etre more than its protagonists, Alejandro and Elizabeth, who are played by Torres and Tilda Swinton. Outsiders hailing from different …

Richard Simmons shared an emotional post on Tuesday about the moment he was diagnosed with skin cancer, a concerning update that followed an apology for scaring fans with a post saying he was dying. The fitness personality said he noticed a blemish under his eye in the mirror one day …

NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers prepped with “intensity” for his “Jeopardy!” guest host role in hopes of landing the gig after the passing of longtime host Alex Trebek, a former producer said. Show executives decided to test out a number of guest hosts in 2021 to find a replacement for Trebek …

Authorities in Pennsylvania said they are still trying to determine the cause of a house fire that killed four children and their father on Tuesday night. The deadly conflagration burned for more than two and a half hours on a small street in the city of Jeannette, about 30 miles …

“Unlike other radio transmitting equipment, jamming equipment cannot be authorized by the FCC because the main purpose of jamming equipment is to interfere with radio communications,” the website says.  Robert McDowell, a former FCC commissioner, said any device that jams radio frequencies is illegal per se unless an authorized federal …

The Biden administration announced new automobile emissions standards Wednesday that officials called the most ambitious plan ever to cut planet-warming emissions from passenger vehicles. The new rules relax initial tailpipe limits proposed last year but eventually get close to the same strict standards set out by the Environmental Protection Agency. …

ZEARING, Iowa — Four members of a rural Iowa family are accused of abducting and abusing an 18-year-old relative who had been handcuffed to a bed and beaten so badly that he had brain bleeding and multiple broken ribs, and who was so malnourished that he weighed just 70 pounds …

Happiness is a relative concept, but an annual index that tracks it in countries around the world has found that the United States and some Western European countries are falling in overall well-being because younger people are feeling less and less happy.  The U.S., in particular, dropped out of the top …

The House Oversight Committee is holding a hearing Wednesday in the GOP impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden that will feature Hunter Biden’s former business partners Tony Bobulinski and Jason Galanis and former Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas. Parnas, a Ukrainian businessman who worked closely with former Trump attorney Giuliani …

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) — Caribbean leaders said Tuesday that all groups and political parties except one have submitted nominees for a transitional presidential council charged with selecting an interim prime minister for Haiti, which remains engulfed in gang violence. The original nine-member council was whittled down to eight members after the Pitit …

Legislators in at least two U.S. states are citing a recent decision in England to restrict gender transitions for young people as support for their own related proposals. They weren’t the first to turn to other countries, notably in Europe, for policy and research ideas. Lawmakers across the U.S., where …

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday is weighing whether a Texas woman who served on a small-town council can pursue a retaliation claim after she was arrested following her criticisms of a senior official. Sylvia Gonzalez, then 72, was arrested in 2019 after recently taking office as a council …