Landmark same-sex marriage bill wins Senate passage
WASHINGTON — The Senate passed bipartisan legislation Tuesday to protect same-sex marriages, an extraordinary sign of shifting national politics on the issue and a measure of relief for the hundreds of thousands of same-sex couples who have married since the Supreme Court’s 2015 decision that legalized gay marriage nationwide.
Storms could spawn major tornadoes, floods in several states
JACKSON, Miss. — Residents in several towns in Louisiana and Mississippi took cover when tornado sirens blared Tuesday, as forecasters warned of the potential for strong twisters that could stay on the ground for long distances in parts of the South. Heavy rain and hail the size of tennis balls were also possible, forecasters said.
Hawai‘i volcano eruption has some on alert, draws onlookers
HILO, Hawaii — The first eruption in 38 years of the world’s largest active volcano is attracting onlookers to a national park for “spectacular” views of the event, and it’s also dredging up bad memories among some Hawai‘i residents who have been through harrowing volcanic experiences in the past.
Trump’s dinner disaster sparks new rules for his campaign
NEW YORK — Donald Trump is betting he can win his way back to the White House by reviving the outsider appeal that fueled his success in 2016.
Key allegations, witnesses as Trump Org. trial winds down
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump’s inaugural address clocked in at just 16 minutes. Closing arguments that are slated for Thursday in his company’s criminal tax fraud case? Prosecutors and defense lawyers say those could take seven hours or more.
Oath Keepers’ Rhodes guilty of Jan. 6 seditious conspiracy
WASHINGTON — Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes was convicted Tuesday of seditious conspiracy for a violent plot to overturn President Joe Biden’s election, handing the Justice Department a major victory in its massive prosecution of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.
Uneasy calm grips Ukraine as West prepares winter aid
KYIV, Ukraine — An uneasy calm hung over Kyiv on Tuesday as residents of the Ukrainian capital prepared for Russian missile attacks aiming to take out more energy infrastructure as winter approaches.
Finland says it must ensure Ukraine wins war against Russia
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Finland’s leader says it must give more weapons and support to Ukraine to ensure it wins its war against Russia.
Chinese spaceship with 3 aboard docks with space station
BEIJING — Three Chinese astronauts docked early Wednesday with their country’s space station, where they will overlap for several days with the three-member crew already onboard and expand the facility to its maximum size.
U.S. dismisses Chinese objections to South China Sea mission
BEIJING — The U.S. Navy on Tuesday dismissed Beijing’s protests over a “freedom of navigation operation” conducted near a Chinese-held island in the South China Sea, in the latest incident drawing new attention to one of the world’s potential military flashpoints.
U.S.-Iran match mirrored a regional rivalry for many Arab fans
BAGHDAD — The U.S. team’s victory over Iran at the World Cup on Tuesday was closely watched across the Middle East, where the two nations have been engaged in a cold war for over four decades and where many blame one or both for the region’s woes.
Hawaii Gov. Ige looks back on coronavirus, tourism shutdown
HONOLULU — As Hawaii’s governor, David Ige faced a volcanic eruption that destroyed 700 homes, protests blocking construction of a cutting-edge multibillion-dollar telescope and a false alert about an incoming ballistic missile. During the COVID-19 pandemic, tourism shut down and Hawaii’s unemployment rate soared to 22.4%.
New state voter fraud units finding few cases from midterms
WASHINGTON, D.C. — State-level law enforcement units created after the 2020 presidential election to investigate voter fraud are looking into scattered complaints more than two weeks after the midterms but have provided no indication of systemic problems.
Trump faulted for dinner with white nationalist, rapper Ye
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump is renewing attention to his long history of turning a blind eye to bigotry after dining with a Holocaust-denying white nationalist and the rapper formerly known as Kanye West just days into his third campaign for the White House.
Biden eases Venezuela sanctions as opposition talks resume
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration on Saturday eased some oil sanctions on Venezuela in an effort to support newly restarted negotiations between President Nicolás Maduro’s government and its opposition.
U.S. nuclear waste repository begins filling new disposal area
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Workers at the nation’s only underground nuclear waste repository have started using a newly mined disposal area at the underground facility in southern New Mexico.
U.S. FCC bans sales, import of Chinese tech from Huawei, ZTE
WASHINGTON — The U.S. is banning the sale of communications equipment made by Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE and restricting the use of some China-made video surveillance systems, citing an “unacceptable risk” to national security.
Civilians escape Kherson after Russian strikes on freed city
KHERSON, Ukraine — Fleeing shelling, civilians on Saturday streamed out of the southern Ukrainian city whose recapture they had celebrated just weeks earlier.
Protests over China’s COVID controls spread across country
BEIJING — Protests against China’s pervasive anti-virus controls that have confined millions of people to their homes spread to Shanghai and other cities after complaints they might have worsened the death toll in an apartment fire in the northwest.
Taiwan president resigns as party leader after election loss
TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen resigned as head of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party following local election losses on Saturday in which voters chose the opposition Nationalist party in several major races across the self-ruled island.