National News

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping sought to push Taiwanese closer to unification with a new year speech mixing carrots and sticks. That hasn't panned out. Instead, his independence-leaning Taiwanese counterpart, Tsai Ing-wen, has enjoyed a surge in support following a brutal drubbing of her political party in local elections last year, according…

By BLAKE NICHOLSON , Associated Press BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A deadly arctic deep freeze enveloped the Midwest with record-breaking temperatures on Wednesday, triggering widespread closures of schools and businesses, and the canceling of more than 1,500 flights from Chicago's airports. The cold even prompted the U.S. Postal Service to suspend mail delivery to a…

By MARCELO SILVA DE SOUSA and PETER PRENGAMAN , Associated Press BRUMADINHO, Brazil (AP) — Firefighters on Monday carefully moved over treacherous mud, sometimes walking, sometimes crawling, in search of survivors or bodies, four days after a dam collapse that buried mine buildings and surrounding neighborhoods with iron ore waste. The confirmed death toll rose…

By DEB RIECHMANN , Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Two days after the record-long shutdown ended, the White House made clear Sunday that President Donald Trump is prepared to shutter the government again without a border wall deal from Congress. The president's standoff with Democrats on Capitol Hill is far from over and the clock…

By JILL COLVIN, LISA MASCARO and ZEKE MILLER , Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Submitting to mounting pressure amid growing disruption, President Donald Trump signed a bill Friday to reopen the government for three weeks, backing down from his demand that Congress give him money for his border wall before federal agencies get back to…