WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., is demanding answers from the Department of Homeland Security after whistleblowers disclosed a new policy that would let immigration agents forcibly enter homes without a judge’s warrant to carry out arrests.

In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Blumenthal said an “...Read more

As Haiti approaches the end of another political transition without elections or a clear governing framework, the United Nations and other international partners are warning that political self-interest and infighting could further unravel an already fragile country,

The warning comes as the nine-member Transitional Presidential Council appears...Read more

OLYMPIA, Wash. — As lawmakers pursue bills to zero in on affordability issues gripping households across the state, a Democratic measure in the Legislature seeks to curb the financial strain of medical expenses by proposing to eliminate interest charges on new and unpaid medical debt incurred in Washington.

Senate Bill 5993, sponsored by ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Ramon Menera, a Columbia Heights resident and U.S. citizen, said he was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents Jan. 14 after an agent told him his accent led officers to question where he was born, adding to a growing list of encounters that have been dubbed “Kavanaugh stops.”

Menera said in an interview with the...Read more

LAS VEGAS — A judge removed Las Vegas Review-Journal staff from her courtroom Wednesday because they refused to promise not to name an alleged victim testifying in the Nathan Chasing Horse sexual assault trial.

An attorney for the Review-Journal plans to appeal District Judge Jessica Peterson’s ruling.

Glenn Cook, executive editor of the ...Read more

The Federal Communications Commission is taking aim at broadcast networks' late-night and daytime talk shows, including ABC's "The View," which often feature politicians as guests.

On Wednesday, the FCC's Media Bureau issued a public notice saying broadcast TV stations would be obligated to provide equal time to an opposing political candidate...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Kentuckians could carry concealed firearms at age 18 instead of 21 under a bill headed to the House floor.

House Bill 312, approved Wednesday by the House Judiciary Committee, would lower the age at which someone could apply to the Kentucky State Police for a newly created “provisional” concealed carry license.

Kentucky ...Read more

Idaho state Sen. Ben Adams took an “unconventional” approach with his proposal to preserve public lands, he told fellow lawmakers.

In August, months before the 2026 legislative session, Adams publicly proposed to amend the state’s constitution to prevent Idaho from selling off lands it acquired from the federal government. The Nampa ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — For eight months, the Los Angeles City Council and Mayor Karen Bass have butted heads over police hiring amid a budget crisis.

The conflict began last spring when the council voted to reduce LAPD hiring to 240 new police officers this budget year — just half the officers Bass had requested — in order to close the city’s $1...Read more

BALTIMORE — Gov. Wes Moore released a $70.8 billion budget proposal on Wednesday for fiscal year 2027 that makes nearly $1.8 billion in program cuts and fund transfers to eliminate a projected $1.4 billion shortfall, in part by reducing cost-sharing with local governments.

The Maryland governor told reporters that the plan, which represents a...Read more

President Donald Trump said he would refrain from imposing tariffs on goods from European nations opposing his effort to take possession of Greenland, citing a “framework of a future deal” he said was reached regarding the island.

The decision, which Trump announced Wednesday on social media, marks a stark reversal for a president who has ...Read more

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein issued a state of emergency Wednesday in advance of a winter storm forecast to wallop the state and much of the country over the weekend.

The state of emergency allows the governor’s office to initiate emergency plans, deploy emergency response teams and trigger protections against price ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A federal immigration agent shot at a suspect during a targeted operation in South L.A. on Wednesday morning, drawing a crowd of protesters to the shut-down street and intensifying safety concerns in the immigrant-heavy community.

A federal agent opened fire at a man after he rammed federal law enforcement with his vehicle while...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — A 92-year-old “dancing” grandma, whose verve often kept her out late on Saturday nights, had her life cut short in an early morning weekend crash caused by an Orlando police officer who drove through a red light.

A preliminary accident report, prepared by Orlando Police and provided by the family, said the “at fault” ...Read more

SEATTLE — Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson has asked President Donald Trump for a major disaster declaration along with $21.3 million in individual assistance for people whose homes were damaged in December’s catastrophic flooding.

Ferguson’s request, made in a letter to Trump on Wednesday, covers only part of the cost to the state from the ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — He’s the ever-present face, sans mask, of the Trump administration’s seven-week-old-and-counting federal immigration crackdown in the Twin Cities.

Just as he’s done during enforcement actions in Chicago, Los Angeles and elsewhere, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commander at Large Greg Bovino shows up frequently in ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — Federal officials say they’ve arrested 3,000 immigrants in Minnesota since Operation Metro Surge began in December and frequently describe them as the “worst of the worst” — “violent assailants, domestic abusers, and drug traffickers” — who’ve been allowed to run rampant because of the state’s sanctuary policies...Read more

Dozens of the world’s major rivers are so heavily tapped, they often run dry before reaching the sea. More than half of all large lakes are shrinking, and most of the world’s major underground sources are declining irreversibly as agricultural pumping drains water that took centuries or even thousands of years to accumulate.

In a report ...Read more