National News

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh (all times local): 6:45 p.m. A longtime friend of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh says he has "no memory" of a decades-old sexual assault that a woman is accusing Kavanaugh of committing. In a statement given through his lawyer, Kavanaugh friend…

MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian reconnaissance aircraft was shot down by Syrian forces responding to an Israeli airstrike, killing all 15 people aboard, in what President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday was "a chain of tragic accidental circumstances." The downing of the Il-20 highlighted the dangers posed by the conflicting interests of various powers in the…

By CHUCK BURTON and MARTHA WAGGONER , Associated Press WILMINGTON, N.C. (AP) — With one of North Carolina's largest cities still mostly cut off by floodwaters from Hurricane Florence, officials prepared to begin distributing food, water and tarps to Wilmington residents as yet more people were rescued from submerged inland neighborhoods. Workers will begin handing…

By CHAD DAY , Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Monday declassified a trove of documents related to the early days of the FBI's Russia investigation, including portions of a secret surveillance warrant and former FBI Director James Comey's text messages. Trump made the extraordinary move in response to calls from his…

By ALAN FRAM and LISA MASCARO , Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans abruptly laid plans Monday for a Senate committee hearing at which Brett Kavanaugh and the woman alleging he sexually assaulted her decades ago will testify publicly, as GOP leaders grudgingly opted for a dramatic showdown they hoped would prevent the accusation from…