AP US Politics News

By CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY Associated Press The former North Carolina elections director who was ousted this week after a politically motivated move by Republicans said Friday she hopes the new leadership will approach elections in a nonpartisan way and called for an end to verbal attacks against those who oversee the voting process. Karen Brinson

By JIM VERTUNO Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The U.S. Department of Justice has opened a federal civil rights investigation into a Muslim-centered planned community around one of the state’s largest mosques near Dallas, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn said Friday. Cornyn requested the federal probe of the development last month, citing concerns it could

By ALI SWENSON Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump’s newest surgeon general nominee is a burgeoning health influencer who has shared her approach to health care through appearances on some of the nation’s most popular wellness and right-wing podcasts. A sampling of Dr. Casey Means’ comments from those interviews over the past

By REBECCA BOONE Associated Press A coalition of 15 states is suing over President Donald Trump’s efforts to fast-track energy-related projects, saying the administration is bypassing environmental protection laws and threatening endangered species, critical habitat and cultural resources. Trump issued an executive order declaring a “national energy emergency ” on the first day of his

By BRIAN WITTE Associated Press ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Supporters of a measure to create a commission to study potential reparations for slavery in Maryland rallied by the governor’s residence on Friday, calling on Gov. Wes Moore to sign the legislation. Speakers at the rally said they were optimistic Maryland’s first Black governor would sign

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Outgoing U.S. poet laureate Ada Limón and her two immediate predecessors, Joy Harjo and Tracy K. Smith, are condemning President Donald Trump’s firing of Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, who had appointed each of them to their positions. “Dr. Carla Hayden is the kindest, brightest,

By DIDI TANG Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Who called first? It’s the question that has put Beijing and Washington in a verbal sparring match even as the two countries are heading into a weekend meeting in Switzerland to discuss lowering sky-high tariffs that they slapped on each other in heated moments that have shaken

By LISA MASCARO and SEUNG MIN KIM The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — After musing publicly and privately with the idea of raising the top tax rate for wealthy millionaires as Republicans draft his big bill in Congress, President Donald Trump early Friday backed off that call — sort of. Trump posted on social media

By ASHRAF KHALIL, JACQUELYN MARTIN AND NATHAN ELLGREN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Word spread, and fast — as it does in so many moments of rumor and fear. Early Tuesday morning, dozens of concerned parents and staff members gathered outside of Mundo Verde, one of Washington’s most prominent bilingual schools, bracing for a crackdown.

By The Associated Press President Donald Trump on Friday floated cutting tariffs on China to 80% ahead of a weekend meeting as he looks to de-escalate the trade war. Top U.S. officials are set to meet with a high-level Chinese delegation this weekend in Switzerland in the first major talks between the two nations since

By PATRICK WHITTLE and ROBERT F. BUKATY Associated Press STONINGTON, Maine (AP) — Virginia Olsen has pulled lobsters from Maine’s chilly Atlantic waters for decades while watching threats to the state’s lifeblood industry mount. Trade imbalances with Canada, tight regulations on fisheries and offshore wind farms towering like skyscrapers on open water pose three of

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Justice Sonia Sotomayor said Thursday that lawyers should stand up and fight in battles faced by the nation’s legal system, comments that come amid attacks on federal judges and President Donald Trump’s targeting of elite law firms in executive orders. “Our job is to stand up for

By SEUNG MIN KIM, LISA MASCARO and ZEKE MILLER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump abruptly fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden as the White House continues to purge the federal government of those perceived to oppose the president and his agenda. Hayden was notified in an email late Thursday from the White

WASHINGTON (AP) — President fires Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden as White House continues purge of perceived Trump opponents.

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that he is naming Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, a former county prosecutor and elected judge, to be the top federal prosecutor for the nation’s capital after abandoning his first pick for the job. Pirro, who joined Fox News in 2006, cohosts

By JEFFREY COLLINS Associated Press COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The South Carolina General Assembly wrapped up its regular 2025 session Thursday with a few accomplishments, but a number of things like the fate of the state treasurer and radical changes in the state’s tax code are still up in the air. In a flurry of

By LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon will immediately begin moving as many as 1,000 openly identifying transgender service members out of the military and give others 30 days to self-identify under a new directive issued Thursday. Buoyed by Tuesday’s Supreme Court decision allowing the Trump administration to enforce a ban

WASHINGTON (AP) — Up to 1,000 openly identifying transgender troops will be moved out of the military immediately under new Pentagon order.

By FATIMA HUSSEIN and DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — In the White House’s East Room on a rainy Thursday, first lady Melania Trump and members of the Bush family gathered to unveil a U.S postage stamp bearing the portrait of former first lady Barbara Bush. Amid the anticipation of the unveiling, Trump, Bush’s

By KIM CHANDLER Associated Press MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Federal judges ruled Thursday that Alabama intentionally diluted the voting strength of Black residents when it drew congressional lines and said the state must continue using a court-ordered map that led to the election of the state’s second Black congressman. A three-judge panel permanently blocked Alabama

By JEFF AMY Associated Press FORSYTH, Ga. (AP) — Georgia’s governor signed a law Thursday to exempt federal crop insurance and disaster payments following Hurricane Helene damage from Georgia state income taxes, but it could be months more before some federal money starts flowing to farmers in the hardest-hit states. The U.S. Department of Agriculture

By ERIC TUCKER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — FBI Director Kash Patel said Thursday that he would make the bureau’s mission “work on whatever budget we’re given,” striking a different tone from comments a day earlier in which he called for the agency to be funded at far higher levels than what the Trump administration

By MATT BROWN WASHINGTON (AP) — OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and executives from Microsoft and chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices testified on Capitol Hill about the biggest opportunities, risks and needs facing an industry which lawmakers and technologists agree could fundamentally transform global business, culture and geopolitics. The hearing comes as the race to control the

By JOSH BOAK, CHRIS MEGERIAN and JILL LAWLESS Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump agreed Thursday to cut tariffs on U.K. autos, steel and aluminum in a planned trade deal but played down the possibility of other nations getting similarly favorable terms on his import taxes, which are roiling the global economy. Under

By JOSH FUNK and JOHN SEEWER Associated Press The Trump administration on Thursday proposed a multibillion-dollar overhaul of a U.S. air traffic control system that it said still relies on floppy disks and replacement parts found on eBay and has come under renewed scrutiny in the wake of recent deadly plane crashes and technical failures.

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration announced a trade deal with the United Kingdom Thursday in grandiose terms, but with only limited details about what it will achieve. The agreement will open up the British market to American beef, ethanol, and other agricultural products, the White House said. It

By STEVE PEOPLES AP National Politics Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Joe Biden says he’s responsible for Donald Trump’s victory last fall, but he attributes Kamala Harris’ loss, at least in part, to sexism and racism. Biden, who left office in January, addressed the Democrats’ disastrous 2024 election, concerns about his age and

By MARC LEVY Associated Press HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, the lawmaker known for his unconventional and irreverent brand of politics, is in the news again after a blowup at a closed-door meeting with union allies and former staff aides who aired concerns about his mental health. Fetterman’s life and political career

By WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Long-threatened tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump have plunged the country into trade wars abroad — all while on-again, off-again new levies continue to escalate uncertainty. Trump launched a trade war during his first term as well, taking particular aim at China by putting taxes

By SEUNG MIN KIM and MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that he would pull his nomination of Ed Martin Jr. to be the top federal prosecutor for the nation’s capital, bowing to bipartisan concerns about the conservative activist’s modest legal experience, divisive politics and support for Jan. 6