News That Matters

Tag: Associated Press

California Looks to Spend Some Medicaid Money on Housing
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California Looks to Spend Some Medicaid Money on Housing

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — At the start of 2022, Thomas Marshall weighed 311 pounds. He had been hospitalized 10 times in five years, including six surgeries. He had an open wound on his left leg that refused to heal — made worse by living in a dirty, moldy house with five other people, two ball pythons, four Chihuahuas and a cage full of rats.More than a year later, Marshall has lost nearly 100 pounds. His wound has healed. His blood pressure has returned to normal levels. His foot, which had nerve damage, has improved to the point he goes on regular walks to the park.Lots of factors are at play in Marshall's dramatic turnaround, but the one he credits the most is finally having stable housing, after the nonprofit Sacramento Covered helped him get a one-bedroom, 500 square-foot (46.4-sq...
2 Cuban Migrants Fly Into Florida on Motorized Hang Glider
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2 Cuban Migrants Fly Into Florida on Motorized Hang Glider

KEY WEST, Fla. (AP) — Two Cuban migrants used a motorized hang glider to fly the approximately 90 miles (145 kilometers) from the communist island to Key West on Saturday, Florida officials said. The Monroe County Sheriff's Office said the duo landed safely at Key West International Airport at about 10:30 a.m. and were turned over to the U.S. Border Patrol. Border Patrol officials in South Florida did not answer a phone call Saturday seeking comment. Overwhelmed by Cubans and other migrants arriving at the Mexican border and into Florida by boat, the Biden administration in early January implemented a policy change that makes them request a permit, or parole, online before arriving with the sponsorship of a relative or acquaintance in the U.S.Those who arrive without doing that risk dep...
Greene’s DC Jail Visit Pulls GOP Closer to Jan. 6 Rioters
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Greene’s DC Jail Visit Pulls GOP Closer to Jan. 6 Rioters

WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene swept into the District of Columbia jail to check on conditions for the Jan. 6 defendants, with Republican lawmakers handshaking and high-fiving the prisoners, who chanted “Let's Go Brandon!” — a coded vulgarity against President Joe Biden — as the group left.And the House Republican leader recently gave Fox News’ Tucker Carlson exclusive access to a trove of Jan. 6 surveillance tapes despite the conservative commentator’s airing of conspiracy theories about the Capitol attack.Taken together, the House Republicans can be seen as working steadily but intently to distort the facts of the deadly riot, which played out for the world to see when Donald Trump's supporters laid siege to the Capitol, and in the process downplay the risk of domestic ...
U.S. Bishops’ New Guidelines Aim to Limit Trans Health Care
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U.S. Bishops’ New Guidelines Aim to Limit Trans Health Care

United States Catholic bishops have issued guidelines that seek to stop Catholic hospitals from providing gender transition care, a move LGBTQ advocates say could harm the physical and emotional health of transgender people within the church.The 14-page doctrinal note, titled “Moral Limits to the Technological Manipulation of the Human Body,” sets forth guidelines for changing a person’s sex, specifically with youth. The document, issued Monday, says Catholic hospitals “must not perform interventions, whether surgical or chemical, that aim to transform the sexual characteristics of a human body into those of the opposite sex, or take part in the development of such procedures.” Transgender Catholics have received a mixed response across the U.S. church. Some have found acceptance in spe...
Why Does US See Chinese-Owned TikTok as a Security Threat?
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Why Does US See Chinese-Owned TikTok as a Security Threat?

A Singaporean native, Chew told the lawmakers that TikTok prioritizes user safety and as he sought to avert a ban by downplaying the app's ties to China. Both Republican and Democratic representatives aggressively questioned Chew on topics including TikTok’s content moderation practices, its data security plans, and past spying on journalists.Here's a look at some of the concerns about TikTok and its ownership.WHY DOES WASHINGTON SAY TIKTOK IS A THREAT?Political Cartoons on World Leaders Political CartoonsTikTok, which has over 150 million American users, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd., which appoints its executives.ByteDance is based in Beijing but registered in the Cayman Islands, as is common for privately owned Chinese companies. Its headquart...
Appeals Court Blocks Vaccine Mandate for US Gov’t Workers
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Appeals Court Blocks Vaccine Mandate for US Gov’t Workers

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — President Joe Biden’s order that federal employees get vaccinated against COVID-19 was blocked Thursday by a federal appeals court.The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans rejected arguments that Biden, as the nation’s chief executive, has the same authority as the CEO of a private corporation to require that employees be vaccinated.The ruling from the full appeals court, 16 full-time judges at the time the case was argued, reversed an earlier ruling by a three-judge 5th Circuit panel that had upheld the vaccination requirement. Judge Andrew Oldham, nominated to the court by then-President Donald Trump, wrote the opinion for a 10-member majority.Opponents of the policy said it was an encroachment on federal workers’ lives that neither the Constitution nor ...
Georgia Senate Unveils New Mental Health Bill at Late Hour
Health

Georgia Senate Unveils New Mental Health Bill at Late Hour

ATLANTA (AP) — An effort to make more changes to Georgia's mental health system could stall in the closing days of the 2023 legislative session even though a Senate committee on Wednesday unveiled a rewritten bill that House sponsors and advocates found broadly acceptable.That's because the Senate Health and Human Services Committee didn't take a vote on House Bill 520 and didn't schedule another meeting before a Thursday deadline for bills to advance out of Senate committees.Committee Chairman Ben Watson, a Savannah Republican, said that means a two-thirds vote of the Senate would be required to set aside normal rules and vote on the bill after the deadline. When asked whether he would seek that move, Watson said “That’s probably not my question to answer."That's an apparent reference ...
Mavs Owner Cuban Plans Protest Over Free Bucket for Warriors
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Mavs Owner Cuban Plans Protest Over Free Bucket for Warriors

DALLAS (AP) — Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said he plans to protest a two-point loss to Golden State after a confusing sequence led to an uncontested basket for the Warriors on Wednesday night.Kevon Looney had an easy dunk on an inbounds play with the Mavericks lined up on their offensive end after a timeout late in the third quarter of Golden State's 127-125 victory.Looney protested when Nagy pointed toward the Dallas bench, but Nagy appeared to explain that he was signaling the timeout. The public address announcer also indicated Dallas was awarded possession.After the break, the Mavericks lined up on their offensive end, giving Looney the easy dunk with no defenders around as the Warriors took a 90-87 lead with 1:56 left in the third.Political CartoonsCuban said he planned to pr...
California Faces More Flooding After Strong Pacific Storm
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California Faces More Flooding After Strong Pacific Storm

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — A strong late-season Pacific storm that brought damaging winds and more rain and snow to saturated California was blamed for two deaths and forecasters said additional flooding was possible Wednesday in parts of the state.Tuesday's storm focused most of its energy on central and southern parts of the state, bringing threats of heavy runoff and mountain snowfall. In the north, intense hail was reported in Sacramento, the state capital.Locally heavy rain and snowmelt may cause flooding Wednesday in southern California and central Arizona, the National Weather Service warned.Trees and power lines were reported downed in the San Francisco Bay Area. An Amtrak commuter train carrying 55 passengers struck a downed tree and derailed near the East Bay village of Porta C...
US Tells China Not to Overread Likely Taiwan President Visit
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US Tells China Not to Overread Likely Taiwan President Visit

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is putting out the word in advance that an expected unofficial stopover in the United States by Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen would fall in line with recent precedent and should not be used as a pretext by Beijing to step up aggressive activity in the Taiwan Strait.In recent weeks, senior U.S. officials in Washington and Beijing have underscored to their Chinese counterparts that transit visits through the United States during broader international travel by the Taiwanese president have been routine in recent years, according to a senior administration official. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter.In such visits in recent years, Tsai has met with members of Congress and the Taiwanese diaspora and has...