BEIJING (AP) — China is threatening to take “firm countermeasures” if the U.S. proceeds with a diplomatic boycott of February’s Beijing Winter Olympic Games. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian on Monday accused U.S. politicians of grandstanding over the issue of not sending dignitaries to attend the events that China hopes will showcase its economic development.…
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Elizabeth Dole has posted on social media that her husband, Republican political icon Bob Dole, has died at age 98. Dole overcame disabling war wounds to become a sharp-tongued Senate leader from Kansas, a Republican presidential candidate and then a symbol and celebrant of his dwindling generation of World War II…
NEW YORK (AP) — CNN has fired anchor Chris Cuomo after details emerged about how he assisted his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, as the politician faced sexual harassment allegations earlier this year. The network suspended Chris Cuomo earlier in the week to investigate his involvement with his brother’s defense. CNN hired a…
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is vowing to make it “very, very difficult” for Russian President Vladimir Putin to take military action in Ukraine, saying his administration is putting together a comprehensive set of initiatives to curb Russian aggression. The president offered the measured warning to Putin amid growing concern about a Russian buildup…
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has passed a stopgap spending bill that avoids a short-term shutdown and funds the federal government through Feb. 18 after leaders defused a partisan standoff over federal vaccine mandates. The measure now goes to President Joe Biden to be signed into law. Earlier in the day, congressional leaders announced they…
ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) — Even Christmas trees aren’t immune to the pandemic-induced shortages and inflation plaguing the economy. Extreme weather and supply chain disruptions have reduced supplies of both real and artificial trees this season. Industry officials say American shoppers should expect to have fewer choices and pay up to 30% more for both types…
WASHINGTON (AP) — A person in California has become the first in the U.S. to have an identified case of the omicron variant of COVID-19. Dr. Anthony Fauci said the person was a traveler who returned from South Africa on Nov. 22 and tested positive on Nov. 29. The person was vaccinated but had not…
OXFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Authorities say a 15-year-old sophomore opened fire at his Michigan high school, killing three students, including a 16-year-old boy who died in a deputy’s patrol car on the way to a hospital. Eight other people were wounded, some critically. Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard says investigators are still trying to…
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Prosecutors are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to review Bill Cosby’s sexual assault case and restore his conviction. In a petition released Monday, they wrote that courts should not equate a decision announced in a press release to lifetime immunity. They believe the Pennsylvania Supreme Court erred when it overturned Cosby’s conviction…
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A federal judge has blocked President Joe Biden’s administration from enforcing a coronavirus vaccine mandate on health care workers in 10 states that had brought the first legal challenge against the requirement. The preliminary injunction issued Monday applies to Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South…