AP US Politics News

By GARY D. ROBERTSON Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s elections board became a Republican majority on Thursday as the GOP state auditor appointed a new panel one day after an appeals court ruled a law shifting that power away from the Democratic governor could still be enforced while its constitutionality is deliberated.

By ALEXA ST. JOHN Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department filed lawsuits against four states this week, claiming their climate actions conflict with federal authority and President Donald Trump’senergy dominance agenda. The DOJ on Wednesday filed lawsuits against Hawaii and Michigan over their plans for legal action against fossil fuel companies for

By TRÂN NGUYỄN Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Democrats rejected on Thursday a Republican-backed effort to advance a policy to increase penalties for soliciting and buying sex from 16- and 17-year-olds, an issue that’s caused friction among Democrats and prompted Gov. Gavin Newsom to weigh in. Republicans argued for the policy on the

By COLLIN BINKLEY AP Education Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — When the Justice Department lifted a school desegregation order in Louisiana this week, officials called its continued existence a “historical wrong” and suggested that others dating to the Civil Rights Movement should be reconsidered. The end of the 1966 legal agreement with Plaquemines Parish schools announced

By The Associated Press President Donald Trump said Thursday that he is naming Secretary of State Marco Rubio as acting national security adviser to replace Mike Waltz, whom he is nominating as United Nations ambassador. Trump announced the switch-up shortly after news broke that Waltz and his deputy Alex Wong were departing the administration, weeks

By GENE JOHNSON and HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated Press SEATTLE (AP) — Inside a Virginia courthouse, three immigration agents in plainclothes — one masked — detained a man who had just had misdemeanor assault charges dismissed. They declined to show identification or a warrant to the man, and one threatened to prosecute horrified witnesses who tried

By MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Elon Musk, preparing to step back from his work leading the Department of Government Efficiency, had a request of the reporters gathered at the White House to interview him: Before he would answer any questions, he wanted someone to tell him a joke. The tech billionaire’s

By JENNY KANE and CLAIRE RUSH Associated Press BEND, Ore. (AP) — Dozens of homeless people who have been living in a national forest in central Oregon for years were being evicted Thursday by the U.S. Forest Service, as it closed the area for a wildfire prevention project that will involve removing smaller trees, clearing

By SOPHIA TAREEN Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — From worker rights rallies to marches for social justice, activists around the globe will kick off May Day demonstrations on Thursday. In some countries, it’s a public holiday honoring labor, but activists planning marches in the United States say much of their message is about fighting back

By CHEYANNE MUMPHREY and CAROLYN THOMPSON Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — As a first-generation college student, Austin Kissinger was looking forward to celebrating graduation with others of similar backgrounds who helped each other find their way at the University of Kentucky. Typically, Kentucky students who are the first in their family to graduate from college

ANNE D’INNOCENZIO and DIDI TANG AP Business Writers NEW YORK (AP) — Consumers can expect higher prices and delivery delays when the Trump administration ends a duty-free exemption on low-value imports from China Friday. The expiration of the so-called de minimis rule that has allowed as many as 4 million low-value parcels to come into

By SAMYA KULLAB, HANNA ARHIROVA and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. and Ukraine on Wednesday signed an agreement granting American access to Ukraine’s vast mineral resources, finalizing a deal months in the making that could enable continued military aid to Kyiv amid concerns that President Donald Trump might scale back support

By ERIC TUCKER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI has reassigned several agents who were photographed kneeling during a racial justice protest in Washington that followed the 2020 death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, two people familiar with the matter said Wednesday. The reasons for the moves were not

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Contractors hired by the Trump administration have removed a memorial wall to fallen staffers from the now-closed headquarters of the U.S. Agency for International Development, with no immediate word on where it will wind up. Individual tiles on the wall honor 99 USAID staffers killed in the

ERIC GAY and TIM SULLIVAN Associated Press PANHANDLE, Texas (AP) — The truck driver is cutting his lawn on a windy afternoon, in a town so quiet you can take afternoon walks down the middle of Main Street. Kevenson Jean is leaving the next day for another long haul and wants things neat at the

By BERNARD CONDON AP Business Writer The Trump family company struck a deal Wednesday to build a luxury golf resort in Qatar in a sign it has no plans to hold back from foreign dealmaking during a second Trump administration, despite the danger of a president shaping U.S. public policy for personal financial gain. The

By JOSH BOAK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday acknowledged that his tariffs could result in fewer and costlier products in the United States, saying American kids might “have two dolls instead of 30 dolls,” but he insisted China will suffer more from his trade war. The Republican president has tried

By LISA MASCARO AP Congressional Correspondent WASHINGTON (AP) — Bringing the kind of punch many voters are demanding, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Wednesday that President Donald Trump’s 100 days in office have been an assault of Americans’ very way of life and promised Democrats in Congress are fighting as hard as they can

By SEUNG MIN KIM The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Near the end of President Donald Trump’s marathon Cabinet meeting Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that the U.S. has brought home 47 wrongfully detained Americans so far in Trump’s second term. “Forty-seven for the 47th president in the first 100 days,” Rubio said.

By MAKIYA SEMINERA Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Following the lead of several conservative states and the president himself, North Carolina Republican lawmakers have advanced their own bills that target diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The North Carolina House passed a bill restricting DEI practices within state government on Wednesday after votes on it

By BILL BARROW Associated Press President Donald Trump says he “could” bring Kilmar Abrego Garcia back from El Salvador if he wanted to. But he insists the 29-year-old Salvadoran, who had been living in Maryland and is married to an American citizen, is a member of the violent MS-13 gang and the kind of person

By EVAN VUCCI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump met with his Cabinet at the White House on Wednesday, and they spent the better part of their meeting touting the administration’s record on everything from immigration to the economy. But the president also got worrisome news: The U.S. economy shrank at a

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A Republican state lawmaker from Maine appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday after she was censured by the state House for a social media post about a transgender athlete, a move that comes amid sparring over the issue between the Democratically controlled state and the

This is a photo collection curated by AP photo editors.

U.S. stocks are sinking following a discouraging report suggesting the U.S. economy may have shrunk at the start of the year, before most of U.S. President Donald Trump’s announced tariffs could take effect. This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors. ____ Follow AP visual journalism: AP Images blog: http://apimagesblog.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apnews AP

By The Associated Press The U.S. and Ukraine have announced an economic deal after a weekslong press by President Donald Trump calling on Kyiv to compensate Washington for billions more in military and economic assistance to help repel the Russian invasion. President Trump is delivering remarks on “ Investing in America ” following the release

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD and JONATHAN J. COOPER Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Former Vice President Kamala Harris used a high-profile speech to sharply criticize President Donald Trump amid speculation about whether she will mount another presidential campaign or opt to run for California governor. In her most extensive public remarks since leaving office

By JAE C. HONG and TRÂN NGUYỄN Associated Press WESTMINSTER, Calif. (AP) — When the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese forces 50 years ago this week, it prompted a mass exodus of some 2 million people — hundreds of thousands fleeing perilously on small boats across open water to escape

By MATTHEW BROWN and HANNAH SCHOENBAUM Associated Press HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Following Montana Republicans’ dominance in the fall election, a group of GOP lawmakers kicked off the 2025 Legislature with an unexpected move: ceding power to Democrats. The minority took full advantage, remaking legislative committees and banding with a handful of moderate Republicans to

By PHILIP MARCELO Associated Press MASSAPEQUA, N.Y. (AP) — As a high school hockey player, Adam Drexler wore his Massapequa Chiefs jersey with pride. But as the Chickasaw Nation member grew up and learned about his Indigenous roots, he came to see the school’s mascot — a stereotypical Native American man wearing a headdress —