WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell last week for a fifth straight week to a new pandemic low, the latest evidence that the U.S. job market is regaining its health as the economy further reopens. Jobless claims dropped to 385,000, down 20,000 from the week before. The number of applications…
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Trainer Bob Baffert’s lawyer says a split-sample test of Kentucky Derby winner Medina Spirit came back positive for the presence of the steroid betamethasone. That could lead to the horse’s disqualification and discipline for Baffert. Attorney Craig Robertson says additional testing is being conducted to try to trace the source of…
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has used the 100th anniversary of Tulsa’s race massacre to plea for sweeping legislation in Congress to protect the right to vote. Biden’s message comes as Republican-led state governments pass new restrictions making it tougher to cast ballots. Biden called out lawmakers in Congress — including two senators in…
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece, Germany and five other European Union nations have introduced a vaccination certificate system for travelers weeks ahead of the July 1 rollout of the program across the 27-nation bloc. The other countries starting early were Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Croatia and Poland. Greece, which depends heavily on tourism, has…
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is set to mark the 100th anniversary of a massacre that wiped out a thriving Black community in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Biden will grieve Tuesday for the hundreds of Black people killed at the hands of a white mob a century ago. The visit comes amid an ongoing national reckoning…
One of the country’s most popular and versatile singers, B.J. Thomas, has died. He was 78. Thomas was a Grammy-winning singer who enjoyed success on the pop, country and gospel charts with such hits as “I Just Can’t Help Believing,” “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head” and “Hooked on a Feeling.” A statement released by…
BOSTON (AP) — Microsoft says the state-backed Russian cyber spies behind the SolarWinds hacking campaign launched a targeted spear-phishing assault on U.S. and foreign government agencies and think tanks this week. It says they did so by gaining access to an email marketing account of the U.S. Agency for International Development and masquerading as the…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans have blocked the creation of a bipartisan panel to study the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. The Senate fell sort of the 60 votes needed to consider a House-passed bill that would have formed a 10-member commission evenly split between the two parties. It was another sign of GOP…
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans are poised to block the creation of a special commission to study the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. That action would dash hopes for a bipartisan investigation amid a GOP push to put the violent insurrection by Donald Trump’s supporters behind them. A vote on the procedural motion…
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. pipeline operators will be required for the first time to conduct a cybersecurity assessment under a Biden administration directive. It’s in response to the ransomware hack that disrupted gas supplies in several states. The Transportation Security Administration directive being issued Thursday will mandate that the owners and operators of the nation’s…