US retail sales plunged a record 16% in April as virus hit
BALTIMORE — U.S. retail sales tumbled by a record 16.4% from March to April as business shutdowns caused by the coronavirus kept shoppers away, threat...
Tensions rise as Texas governor readies to lift more rules
AUSTIN, Texas — Two weeks into the reopening of Texas, coronavirus cases are climbing. New outbreaks still crop up. And at Guero's Taco Bar in Austin,...
Online graduations still bring stars to the virtual lectern
This year's college graduates won’t get to take their triumphant walk across the stage. They won’t get to toss their caps amid a sea of classmates. In...
Outside US, top scientists steer debate away from politics
ATHENS, Greece — President Donald Trump is never far from a public spat with his government’s top expert on the pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the most ...
Iraqi doctor’s fight with virus lays bare a battered system
BAGHDAD — Dr. Marwa al-Khafaji’s homecoming after 20 days in a hospital isolation ward was met by spite. Someone had barricaded her family home’s gate...
Auto workers’ tenuous return a ray of hope in jobs crisis
DETROIT — Defying a wave of layoffs that has sent the U.S. job market into its worst catastrophe on record, at least one major industry is making a co...
Graham to probe Russia investigation; won’t call Obama
WASHINGTON — Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham said Thursday his committee is opening a wide-ranging inquiry into the Russia investig...
Senate votes to renew federal surveillance powers
WASHINGTON — The Senate has passed legislation that would extend a series of expired federal surveillance tools designed to help law enforcement offic...
Trump administration ease rules limiting truck driver hours
The Trump administration eased rules Thursday that limit working hours for truck drivers, and the changes brought immediate protests from labor and sa...
Whistleblower: US still lacks virus plan; Americans at risk
WASHINGTON — Despite White House claims, the U.S. still lacks a comprehensive battle plan against the coronavirus in critical areas including masks, t...
Stopped cold: ‘Frozen’ musical on Broadway not to reopen
NEW YORK — The big budget musical “Frozen” will not reopen when Broadway theaters restart, marking the first time an established show has been felled ...
3 million more US layoffs intensify fears of lasting damage
WASHINGTON — Nearly 3 million laid-off workers applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week as the viral outbreak forced more companies to slash j...
Cassandra Callender, forced to undergo chemo, dies at 22
HARTFORD, Conn. — Cassandra Callender, who was forced by Connecticut courts as a teenager to undergo chemotherapy for cancer, has died after a five-ye...
Burr steps aside as Senate intelligence chair amid FBI probe
WASHINGTON — Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., temporarily stepped aside as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday after the FBI served a ...
Companies begin to navigate a world that is vastly changed
The outbreak of the coronavirus has dealt a shock to the global economy with unprecedented speed. Following are developments Thursday related to natio...
Marshall struggles to unite GOP establishment in Kansas race
TOPEKA, Kan. — Roger Marshall represents western Kansas in a congressional district rich in GOP votes and donors that has given the state four U.S. se...
Unique payout Alaskans get from oil wealth could be at risk
JUNEAU, Alaska — Alaska has no income or statewide sales taxes, and it cuts residents a check every year from its oil wealth.
Obama emerges as central figure in 2020 presidential race
WASHINGTON — Nearly eight years after he was last on the ballot, Barack Obama is emerging as a central figure in the 2020 presidential election.
AP PHOTOS: Paraguay, land-locked ‘ísland’ amid the pandemic
Paraguay's most honored writer, Augusto Roa Bastos, called his homeland "an island surrounded by land,” and it so far has indeed seemed isolated from ...
Pandemic wrecks many state budgets, could trigger deep cuts
As the nation enters a third month of economic devastation, the coronavirus is proving ruinous to state budgets, forcing many governments to consider ...
Virginia, Maryland suburbs aligned with DC in COVID response
FALLS CHURCH, Va. — The allure was tempting: Haircuts were to be had, as was the chance to drink a beer at an outdoor bar after governors in Maryland ...
Virus spikes could emerge weeks after US economic reopenings
U.S. states are beginning to restart their economies after months of paralyzing coronavirus lockdowns, but it could take weeks until it becomes clear ...
AP Courtside: Supreme Court hangs up on phone arguments
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has held two weeks of arguments by telephone because of the coronavirus pandemic, hearing cases about President Donald ...
AP Interview: Pelosi: Americans ‘worth it’ on $3T virus aid
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi defended the stunning $3 trillion price of tag of Democrats' pandemic relief package Wednesday as what's neede...
Trump ramps up expulsions of migrant youth, citing virus
HOUSTON — The young migrants and asylum seekers swim across the Rio Grande and clamber into the dense brush of Texas. Many are teens who left Central ...
Merkel: evidence of Russian role in German parliament hack
BERLIN — German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Wednesday there is “hard evidence” of Russian involvement in a cyberattack on the German parliament in 2...
Paul Manafort released from prison due to virus concerns
WASHINGTON — Paul Manafort, Donald Trump's onetime presidential campaign chairman who was convicted as part of the special counsel's Russia investigat...
UK on course for ‘significant’ recession after March slump
LONDON — The U.K. government warned Wednesday of a “significant” recession after official figures showed the economy shrank 2% in the first quarter of...
Built for a global economy, Dubai now threatened by virus
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Dubai built a city of skyscrapers and artificial archipelagos on the promise of globalization, creating itself as a vita...