Political
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Fifth Congressional District candidates discuss their qualifications
SPOKANE — Six of the 12 candidates running for the Fifth Congressional District seat detailed some of their qualif…
Representatives pass school-based health programs bill
House Bill 1225, which passed in a 60-36 vote Friday during the virtual floor debate, would require the state Department of Health to establish a school-based health program office within the department.
‘This is bad policy’: Low-carbon fuel bill in Olympia would raise cost of gas, diesel
House Bill 1091 passed in a 52-46 vote after five hours of debate.
US is 'gravely concerned' by reports of abuses in Ethiopia
JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The United States is “gravely concerned by reported atrocities and the overall deteriorating situation” in Ethiopia's Tigray region, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in the toughest s…
Republicans test history in vote against pandemic relief
NEW YORK (AP) — With the nation's financial system on the brink of collapse, all but three Republicans voted against the massive stimulus package designed to protect millions of Americans from financial ruin.
Minimum wage hike all but dead in big COVID relief bill
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats' hopes of including a minimum wage increase in their $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill seemed all but dead Monday as the Senate prepared to debate its own version of the House-passed ai…
Senate confirms Cardona as Biden's education secretary
The Senate voted Monday to confirm Miguel Cardona as education secretary, clearing his way to lead President Joe Biden’s effort to reopen the nation’s schools amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Some GOP state lawmakers help spread COVID-19 misinformation
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Many Republican lawmakers have criticized governors’ emergency restrictions since the start of the coronavirus outbreak. Now that most legislatures are back in session, a new type of pushback …
Defying deadly crackdown, crowds again protest Myanmar coup
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Police in Myanmar’s biggest city fired tear gas Monday at defiant crowds who returned to the streets to protest last month's coup, despite
Deal reached to get California children back in classrooms
ELK GROVE, Calif. (AP) — The majority of California's 6.1 million public school students could be back in the classroom by April under new legislation announced Monday by Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders. …
AP PHOTOS: Turkish vaccine teams target isolated villages
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Traveling across roads covered with ice and snow, vaccination teams have been going to Turkey's isolated mountain villages as the government seeks to inoculate 60% of the country's people agai…
Pandemic leaves tribes without US recognition at higher risk
Rachel Lynne Cushman is used to getting calls from Chinook Nation members worried about losing housing or having their power shut off. Since COVID-19 hit, they come in daily.
Fraud overwhelms pandemic-related unemployment programs
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — With the floodgates set to open on another round of unemployment aid, states are being hammered with a new wave of fraud as they scramble to update security systems and block scammers who alre…
Biden team readies wider economic package after virus relief
WASHINGTON (AP) — Looking beyond the $1.9 trillion
Democratic voting bill would make biggest changes in decades
WASHINGTON (AP) — As Congress begins debate this week on sweeping voting and ethics legislation, Democrats and Republicans can agree on one thing: If signed into law, it would usher in the biggest overhaul of U.S. …
AI panel urges US to boost tech skills amid China's rise
An artificial intelligence commission led by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is urging the U.S. to boost its AI skills to counter China, including by pursuing "AI-enabled" weapons – something that Google itself has …