AP

By Associated Press NEW ORLEANS — Festivities marking Mardi Gras, the climactic day of New Orleans’ Carnival season, hit full swing early Tuesday, with costumed revelers gathering on the narrow streets of the French Quarter and families and tourists lining major thoroughfares to watch parades. The Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club handed out its

By Daniel Tichenor University of Oregon The Conversation via AP Immigration is already a major polarizing issue in the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Arrests for illegal border crossings from Mexico reached an all-time high in December 2023, and cities like New York and Chicago are struggling to provide housing and basic services for tens of

By Metro Creative Environmental experts continue to see evidence that the planet is likely to warm by two degrees Celsius by 2050, which would mean that the world would fail to uphold the Paris Agreement. In 2015, the Paris Agreement called for keeping the increase in climate change temperatures “well below 2 C above preindustrial

By Associated Press WASHINGTON | House Speaker Mike Johnson late Monday sharply criticized a $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and other countries, casting serious doubts about the future of the package just as Senate leaders were slowly muscling it toward a final vote. Senate leaders, trying to send a message that the U.S.

By Associated Press NEW YORK — Bob Edwards, who anchored National Public Radio’s “Morning Edition” for just under 25 years and was the baritone voice who told many Americans what had happened while they slept, has died. Edwards, who died Saturday, was 76 years old. NPR had no further details. He became co-host of “All

By Associated Press LONDON— One actor won’t be nervous as the camera comes in for a close-up at the British Academy Film Awards. David Tennant is hosting Sunday’s ceremony in London and says it’s more relaxing to be the master of ceremonies than a nominee. “I reserve the right to get back to you on

By Associated Press SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister said a large oil spill near the twin-island nation in the eastern Caribbean has caused a “national emergency” as crews struggled to contain the oil already coating numerous beaches on Tobago’s southwest coast. The government has yet to identify the owner of

By Associated Press PARIS — France condemned “hostile” disinformation maneuvers after the country’s authorities on Monday accused Russia of operating a long-running online manipulation campaign against Ukraine’s Western backers, in the lead up to the second anniversary of Moscow’s military invasion of its neighbor. The French foreign ministry said in a statement “no manipulation attempt

By Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired two missiles at a ship bound for a port in Iran on Monday, causing minor damage but no injuries to its crew, authorities said. The attack on the Marshall Islands-flagged, Greek-operated bulk carrier Star Iris shows just how widely the Houthis now target

By Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands — An appeals court ordered the Dutch government on Monday to halt the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel, citing a clear risk of violations of international law. A trio of human rights organizations brought a civil suit against the Netherlands in December, arguing authorities needed to

By Associated Press WASHINGTON — Declaring that “every innocent life lost in Gaza is a tragedy,” President Joe Biden welcomed Jordan’s King Abdullah II to the White House Monday for talks on how to end the months-long war and plan for what comes afterward. The meeting with Abdullah comes as Biden and his aides are

By Associated Press WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump is asking the Supreme Court to extend the delay in his election interference trial, saying he is immune from prosecution on charges he plotted to overturn his 2020 election loss. His lawyers filed an emergency appeal with the court on Monday, just four days after the

By Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Stacey Stauch has one question on her mind as the Kansas City Chiefs prepare to celebrate their third Super Bowl title in five seasons with a parade. “We’re all wondering: Will Taylor show up?” the paralegal said during a trip to the Chiefs-bedecked Union Station, where Wednesday’s parade

By Associated Press LAS VEGAS — This was supposed to be the year when the Kansas City Chiefs were vulnerable. Their wide receivers were dropping passes, their offense was committing penalties, Travis Kelce was supposedly getting old and there was no way that Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes could possibly overcome all of that. Yet

By Associated Press LAS VEGAS — Michael Vick once played for coach Andy Reid in Philadelphia, and when he saw the potential of a young Patrick Mahomes, he knew that enormous talent was in good hands. “I remember the first thing he said: ‘Hey, you’re going to be special. Look at that big man (Reid)

By Associated Press The first two Super Bowls that Jim Nantz and Tony Romo worked together for CBS lacked drama. Now, both get to say they broadcast one of the best finishes in the game’s history. “What a thrill to be able to say that we witnessed an overtime Super Bowl game and what will

By Associated Press LOS ANGELES — Tiger Woods is starting a new year with a new look. Just not a different color. Woods makes his 2024 debut this week in the Genesis Invitational at Riviera, a signature event on the PGA Tour for which he is the tournament host. The first order of business is

By Associated Press NEW YORK — After nearly a decade climbing through the minor leagues, Jen Pawol is poised to break the umpiring gender barrier. “I’ve put the gas to full throttle and we are going for it. Full speed — full speed ahead,” she said Monday after she was among 24 minor league umpires

By Associated Press Ohio State is up to No. 2 in The Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball poll, matching the best ranking in school history. The Buckeyes, who were fifth last week, have won 11 straight games and their only losses this season have come to USC, UCLA and Michigan. The Buckeyes started as

By Associated Press Indiana State’s balanced scoring, free-flowing offense and its goggle-wearing big man have the program off to one of its best starts in years. Now the Sycamores have something that hasn’t happened since Larry Bird played in Terre Haute: a spot in the AP Top 25. Riding a nine-game winning streak, Indiana State

By Associated Press DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Ryan Preece might not recognize the spot where his harrowing crash started at Daytona International Speedway last August. NASCAR paved over the grassy area that seemingly caused Preece’s car to become airborne and roll about a dozen times during the 400-mile summer race at the famed track. Preece

By Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Monday launched a task force aimed at addressing the “systemic” problem of mishandling classified information during presidential transitions, days after a Justice Department special counsel’s sharply critical report said he had done just that. The Presidential Records Transition Task Force will study past transitions to determine

By NewsPress Now Chiefs get White House invitation to celebrate Super Bowl win. Could Taylor Swift tag along? WASHINGTON | The White House says it’s looking forward to hosting the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs again. And it isn’t ruling out the idea of having the team’s most famous fan, Taylor Swift, tag along

By Associated Press NEW YORK — Wall Street held relatively steady Monday following its latest record-setting week. The S&P 500 slipped 4.77 points, or 0.1%, to 5,021.84 after closing Friday above the 5,000 level for the first time. Most of the stocks in the index rose, but losses for Microsoft and other tech companies weighed

By Associated Press WASHINGTON — Just a quarter of business economists and analysts expect the United States to fall into recession this year. And any downturn would likely result from an external shock — such as a conflict involving China — rather than from domestic economic factors such as higher interest rates. But respondents to

By Associated Press NEW YORK — How much choice is too much? Apparently for Coca-Cola, it’s about 400 different types of drinks. That’s why the beverage company recently decided to discontinue half of them, shedding brands like Tab, Zico coconut water, Diet Coke Feisty Cherry and Odwalla juices but still leaving about 200 others to

By Associated Press LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen reversed course on Monday and announced that the state will accept roughly $18 million in federal funding to help feed hungry children over the summer break. Pillen announced in December that the state would reject the funding, defending his position by stating, “I don’t believe

By Missouri Independent via My Courier-Tribune Organizations representing homeschool families raised concerns about legislation debated Monday seeking to expand a tax credit program that helps pay for students to attend private and religious schools. A dozen bills proposing changes to the tax-credit program, dubbed MOScholars, have been filed this legislative session in both the House