Dec 19 Deal allows Cubans to sign with big league baseball teams without defecting By Michael Weissenstein, Associated Press Major League Baseball, its players' association and the Cuban Baseball Federation reached an agreement that will allow players from the island nation to sign big league contracts without defecting, an effort to eliminate the dangerous trafficking that had gone on… Continue reading
Dec 19 Judge blocks Trump administration restrictions on who can apply for asylum By Colleen Long, Associated Press The judge said the administration's policy on asylum seekers violates federal immigration law and that "it is the will of Congress -- not the whims of the executive" that sets the standards for expedited removal. Continue reading
Dec 19 What’s the status of Trump’s U.S.-Mexico border wall? By Nomaan Merchant, Colleen Long, Associated Press President Donald Trump and Democratic lawmakers are in a standoff over funding the government, and the main sticking point is Trump’s demand for $5 billion to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Here's a look at where things stand… Continue reading
Dec 19 More migrant kids held in mass shelters, AP investigation finds By Garance Burke, Martha Mendoza, Associated Press Decades after the U.S. stopped institutionalizing kids because large orphanages were causing lasting trauma, it is happening again. The federal government has placed most of the 14,300 migrant children in its care in detention centers and facilities packed with hundreds,… Continue reading
Dec 19 WATCH: In farewell, Ryan says ‘our problems are solvable if our politics will allow it’ Outgoing House Speaker Paul Ryan on Wednesday bemoaned America's "broken politics" in a farewell speech in which he called Washington's failure to overhaul costly federal benefit programs "our greatest unfinished business."… Continue reading
Dec 19 Disgusted federal judge upends Michael Flynn’s sentencing hearing By Eric Tucker, Chad Day, Associated Press Lawyers for Trump's former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn requested the delay Tuesday after a tongue-lashing from U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan raised the prospect that Flynn could spend time behind bars for lying to the FBI about his Russian… Continue reading
Dec 19 WATCH: Fed lifts rates for 4th time this year but sees fewer hikes ahead By Martin Crutsinger, Associated Press The quarter-point hike, to a range of 2.25 percent to 2.5 percent, lifted the Fed's benchmark rate to its highest point since 2008. The increase will mean higher borrowing costs for many consumers and businesses. Continue reading
Dec 19 Trump says he’s eager to sign sweeping criminal justice bill By Kevin Freking, Associated Press The Senate passed a sweeping criminal justice bill Tuesday that addresses concerns that the nation's war on drugs had led to the imprisonment of too many Americans for non-violent crimes without adequately preparing them for their return to society. Continue reading
Dec 19 Trump appears to back off his demand for $5 billion for border wall By Lisa Mascaro, Matthew Daly, Catherine Lucey, Associated Press Congress on Wednesday headed toward a short-term budget measure to keep the government open after President Donald Trump appeared to back off his demand for $5 billion for a U.S.-Mexico border wall. But facing criticism from supporters, Trump continued to… Continue reading
Dec 18 Nevada just became the 1st U.S. state to have a female-majority legislature By Michelle L. Price, Associated Press The appointments of Democrats Rochelle Thuy Nguyen and Beatrice Angela Duran to two Las Vegas-area legislative seats give women 51 percent of the 63 seats in the Legislature. Continue reading