In The States

CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. George Santos ' lawyer expressed optimism about plea negotiations in Santos' criminal fraud case Tuesday, successfully fending off prosecutors' attempts to speed up the the ousted congressman’s trial. In Santos' first court appearance since he was expelled... Read More

WOBURN, Mass. — DraftKings, one of the nation’s most popular sports betting companies, engages in unfair and deceptive practices while taking advantage of the addictive nature of gambling activities, a class action lawsuit filed in Massachusetts claims. The lawsuit, Scanlon... Read More

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A bipartisan bill that would dramatically change how Wisconsin residents choose congressional candidates by asking them to rank their top choices instead of voting for one of two candidates is headed for its first public hearing.... Read More

WASHINGTON — It was a matter of preserving consumers’ choice in the face of federal mandates. That’s how Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., explained his vote last week in favor of the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales Act, even as the... Read More

HOUSTON — Oil and gas giant BP recently fulfilled a major goal of its renewable energy division, completing what it calls a “major” technology upgrade at its Fowler Ridge 1 wind farm in northwest Indiana. The upgrade included the installation... Read More

ATLANTA — The Georgia Legislature on Thursday gave its approval to a new congressional district map that adds a Black majority district west of Atlanta but appears to dilute the district currently represented by Democratic Rep. Lucy McBath. The adoption... Read More

CHELSEA, Mass. — A new state-of-the-art Veterans Home unveiled Friday in Massachusetts is fossil-fuel free and composed of green spaces, 145 geothermal wells and a rooftop solar array. Located across the Mystic River from Boston on Chelsea’s Powder Horn Hill,... Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — New York can continue to enforce laws banning firearms in certain “sensitive” locations and require that handgun owners be of “good moral character,” a federal appeals court ruled Friday in its first broad review of a... Read More

CHICAGO (AP) — An 8-week-old arrival from Alaska chirps loudly before devouring ice chips in the nursery at Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium. He is Pup EL2306 — proper name to be determined — a northern sea otter who was found alone... Read More

NEW YORK (AP) — An internal Amazon memo has provided a stark look at the company’s carefully laid out plans to grow its influence in Southern California through a plethora of efforts that include burnishing its reputation through charity work... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s down to two candidates in the race to lead the nation’s fourth-largest city. U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and state Sen. John Whitmire will face off in Saturday’s runoff election to be the next mayor of Houston.... Read More

MADISON, Wisc. — A county circuit court judge in Wisconsin has ruled that the 1849 law on which the state bases its abortion prohibition does not actually apply to abortion at all. As a result, abortions are now once again... Read More

ALBANY, N.Y. — The special election to replace disgraced former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., will be held on Feb. 13, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Tuesday evening. As previously reported by The Well News, Santos was expelled from the... Read More

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Hours before a massive explosion destroyed a duplex and shook a Virginia suburb of Washington, D.C., a suspect inside his home fired a flare gun 30 to 40 times into the neighborhood, drawing a large police response, officials... Read More

SANTA FE, N.M. — The Bureau of Land Management announced a competitive oil and gas lease sale offering nine parcels in Oklahoma and New Mexico brought in $22,530,735. The sale, conducted on Nov. 30, covered a total of 553.59 acres.... Read More

CINCINNATI — A federal grand jury has charged the former chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio with taking $4.3 million in bribes from one of the nation's largest investor-owned utility companies. Sam Randazzo surrendered at the federal court... Read More

WASHINGTON — A federal inspector general’s investigation is checking out reports that conflicts of interest might have influenced the choice last month of Greenbelt, Maryland, for the new FBI headquarters. Until the General Services Administration announced the 61-acre Greenbelt site... Read More

NEW YORK — A New York appeals court panel on Thursday reinstated a pair of gag orders issued in Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial that barred the former president from speaking publicly about the judge’s court staff. The two-page decision... Read More

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The state of Maryland has entered into a four-year partnership with a Boston, Massachusetts-based nonprofit to eliminate barriers to contraceptive care. In an announcement on Tuesday, Gov. Wes Moore said the cooperative agreements between the Maryland Department... Read More

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Mayo Clinic announced a $5 billion expansion plan for its flagship campus Tuesday that includes new buildings designed so they can evolve and expand as patient needs change over the coming decades. The project is part... Read More

RENO, Nev. — The Bureau of Land Management opened a 30-day public comment period on Monday on two parcels of land totaling 2,330 acres that may be included in an upcoming oil and gas lease sale in Nevada. The parcels... Read More

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio’s new constitutional protections for abortion access and other reproductive rights take effect Dec. 7, a month after voters resoundingly passed them. How and when their impacts are felt remains unclear. Existing abortion-related lawsuits are moving again... Read More

DALLAS (AP) — Just minutes after President John F. Kennedy was fatally shot as his motorcade rolled through downtown Dallas, Associated Press reporter Peggy Simpson rushed to the scene and immediately attached herself to the police officers who had converged on the building from which... Read More

RICHMOND, Va. — A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that Maryland’s preliminary handgun-licensure requirement is unconstitutional and cannot be enforced. In its ruling, a divided 4th Circuit held that the requirement unlawfully restricts the ability of law-abiding adults to possess... Read More

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — Ten minutes before Vivek Ramaswamy was to take the stage in a dated casino hotel in western Iowa, no one was in the conference room except for two staffers from the Iowa GOP, which organized the event,... Read More

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Conservative justices on the Wisconsin Supreme Court questioned why it was being asked Tuesday to overturn Republican-drawn legislative maps in a redistricting case that Democrats hope will result in new, more favorable legislative maps for elections in 2024.... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Jeff Pena contacted his father as soon as he heard that police were passing out auto tracking devices to try to stem a sharp increase in carjackings, auto thefts and other crimes in the nation's capital. “It's... Read More

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday blocked a Florida law that bans child access to drag shows, saying it violates First Amendment free speech rights. Gov. Ron DeSantis and his supporters enacted the law to protect children from... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairman of the House Ethics Committee announced Friday he has filed a resolution to force a vote on expelling Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., from Congress, one day after the committee issued a withering report detailing substantial evidence that... Read More

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — How science textbooks in Texas address climate change is at the center of a key vote expected Friday after some Republican education officials criticized books for being too negative toward fossil fuels in America's biggest oil and gas... Read More