Laura Makes Landfall in Southwestern Louisiana Near Texas

Delcambre, LA (AP) — Laura has made landfall in southwestern Louisiana near the Texas border as a menacing Category 4 hurricane. The storm’s power has raised fears of a 20-foot storm surge that forecasters say would be “unsurvivable” and capable of sinking entire communities on the Texas and Louisiana coast. Authorities implored coastal residents to…

Parson: Washington University saliva test approved by FDA

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s governor says a Washington University saliva test for the coronavirus has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Gov. Mike Parson on Wednesday lauded the St. Louis-area university for developing the test. Meanwhile, Missouri’s state health director says he won’t follow new guidance from U.S. health officials against testing…

‘Fighting for You’: First Lady Makes Her Case for Trump Vote

Washington D.C. (AP) — First lady Melania Trump cast her husband as the best hope for America’s future in a Rose Garden address Tuesday night. President Donald Trump turned to family, farmers and the trappings of the presidency on the second night of the scaled-down Republican National Convention. Trump himself pardoned a reformed felon, used…

Missouri’s biggest campuses report several COVID-19 cases

O’FALLON, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s biggest university campuses are reporting large numbers of students with confirmed cases of the coronavirus as in-person classes resume for the fall semester. The University of Missouri-Columbia’s COVID-19 online dashboard cites 159 known active cases of the virus, and 168 total positive tests since the university began receiving data from…

GOP Convention Showcases Rising Stars, Dark Warnings

Washington D.C. (AP) — Republicans opened Monday night’s prime-time convention with dark warnings about America’s future if President Donald Trump doesn’t win a second term. But then two of the Republican Party’s rising stars, both people of color, offered an optimistic view of Trump’s leadership. They cast him as a protector of religious freedom, the…