US News

High school students’ scores on the ACT college admissions test have dropped to their lowest in more than three decades, showing a lack of student preparedness for college-level coursework, according to the nonprofit organization that administers the test. Scores have been falling for six consecutive years, but the trend accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students […]

Tens of millions in the Americas will have front-row seats for Saturday’s rare “ring of fire” eclipse of the sun. What’s called an annular solar eclipse — better known as a ring of fire — will briefly dim the skies over parts of the western U.S. and Central and South America. As the moon lines […]

Utah on Tuesday became the latest U.S. state to sue TikTok, alleging the company is “baiting” children into addictive and unhealthy social media habits. TikTok lures children into hours of social media use, misrepresents the app’s safety and deceptively portrays itself as independent of its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, Utah claims in the lawsuit. “We […]

THE WHITE HOUSE — President Joe Biden said Thursday he was unable to legally divert money away from a plan to build several miles of new barriers along the southern border – directly contradicting his campaign vow to build “not another foot of wall” and drawing harsh criticism from Mexico’s president. A notice to allow construction […]

WASHINGTON — For the first time in U.S. history, U.S. lawmakers voted Tuesday to remove the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from power. Republican Kevin McCarthy was removed from his position as speaker in a 216-210 vote triggered by a rare challenge from his own party. Republican Representative Matt Gaetz filed a motion late […]

The judge presiding over Donald Trump’s New York civil real estate fraud case on Tuesday imposed a gag order on the former president after he disparaged a court staffer. New York State court Judge Arthur Engoron issued the order after Trump recirculated on his Truth Social site a critical social media post about Engoron’s principal […]

HELENA, MONTANA — The office of Montana’s Republican attorney general is appealing a landmark climate change ruling that said state agencies aren’t doing enough to protect 16 young plaintiffs from harm caused by global warming. The state filed notice Friday that it is going to appeal the August ruling by District Court Judge Kathy Seeley, who […]

The House has passed a bipartisan bill to avert a government shutdown just hours ahead of a midnight deadline, setting up a Senate vote over funding the US federal government for another 45 days. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced the proposal Saturday morning, following weeks of in-fighting between House Republicans. The bill, which includes the […]

WASHINGTON — Iranian naval forces repeatedly aimed a laser at an American military helicopter during a routine flight in international airspace over the Persian Gulf, the U.S. military said Thursday. The helicopter — an AH-1Z Viper — is attached to a unit deployed on the USS Bataan amphibious assault ship, which was sent to the region […]

WASHINGTON — U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan said Wednesday that she wouldn’t recuse herself from Donald Trump’s 2020 election interference case in Washington, rejecting the former president’s claims that her past comments raised doubts about whether she could be fair. Chutkan, who was nominated to the bench by President Barack Obama and was randomly assigned to […]