The Spectrum & Daily News
Israel vote unlikely to alter Iran policy
DUBAI – Israel’s election on Oct. 27 may change its leader, but not its strategy: Iran will remain its chief adversary, military force will continue to be its preferred tool and Palestinian statehood a distant prospect, regional policymakers and...
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Trump approval rating hits career low in poll
President Donald Trump’s approval rating has fallen to a new record low, with less than one-third of Americans approving of the president’s job performance, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. The poll, released on Oct. 19, found Trump’s approval...
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Two midterms that shook up America
The conventional wisdom is that the Democratic Party has the advantage in the 2026 midterm elections and could become the majority party in one, or both, chambers of Congress. The margin of that anticipated victory is harder to predict. And the size...
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AG says shooting that killed toddler justified
Mississippi’s attorney general determined that a police officer was justified in using deadly force when he fired into a vehicle while responding to a shoplifting call, killing a 1-year-old boy whose death sparked protests and drew national...
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Zelenskyy criticizes intel sharing after air strikes
KYIV – Ukraine received no advance warning from its partners of a Russian ballistic missile strike overnight Oct. 19, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, after Moscow launched one of its broadest air assaults in months, cutting power to more than half...
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BUILDING UP VOTER TRUST
Recently, I moderated a national event that had college students speaking with election officials, something I often find myself doing this time of year. This year, a new question kept coming up: “If I’m voting by mail, can I trust my ballot will...
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‘A blue tsunami’
WASHINGTON – For one hour and 22 minutes, President Donald Trump plowed through his greatest hits, calling his opponents “sick individuals” who “hate America,” declaring MAGA “the greatest political movement” in the nation’s history and telling his...
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YOUNG INNOVATORS
The 2026 winner of the 3M Young Scientist Challenge has been announced, and the winning project could change the world. This year, contestants aged 11 to 14 used science to solve everyday problems, from smart utensils that detect allergens to tools...
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SS United States to be largest artificial reef
WILMINGTON, DE – About a year and eight months after the SS United States left Philadelphia and headed to Alabama for sinking preparations, Okaloosa County, Florida, has announced the ship will be deployed in the second week of November. “America’s...
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Trump clemency erases $1.7 billion in penalties
President Donald Trump loves a good pardon. His generosity is so well known, in fact, that an industry of lobbyists, lawyers and other insiders has reportedly sprung up to facilitate clemency for wealthy criminals. Clemency, meaning mercy or leniency,...
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Americans oppose bets on U.S. events, poll finds
NEW YORK – Most Americans oppose using prediction markets to bet on U.S. elections and other government actions, according to a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll that suggests the markets may lack broad public support as policymakers debate how to regulate...
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Federal judge orders halt to taxpayer-funded ads
A federal judge on Oct. 11 blocked the Trump administration from using taxpayer money to pay for political advertisements, after publicly funded television ads glorifying President Donald Trump began airing in late September and sparked a bipartisan...
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REBRANDING NICOTINE
An ironic development emerging alongside the “Make America Healthy Again” movement is the portrayal of nicotine as a wellness and performance-enhancing product. Across social media, podcasts, wellness communities and tech startups, prominent wellness...
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Trump uses federal power to boost GOP
Americans are seeing taxpayer-funded television ads promoting President Donald Trump, government checks are hitting nearly 1 million mailboxes across the country, and federal agents are scouring voting rolls as a midterm election marked by Trump’s...
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Cornell investigation draws expert criticism
Cornell University, campus police and the local prosecutor’s office are all facing intense scrutiny over their investigation into 2024 gang rape allegations, and experts say key changes early in the case could have had a big impact on the...
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Common infections drive cancer cases
Millions of cancer cases worldwide, about 1 in 8, have an underlying cause that is not only treatable but entirely preventable, according to a new study. • The answer lies in infections, according to research published in early October in The Lancet...
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Next steps in Pike case are uncertain
With the astonishing news that Christa Pike is conscious, talking and making a “medically unprecedented” recovery following her botched execution, Tennessee is now facing a critical question: Will the state try to kill her again? “Against all odds,...
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LGBTQ+ migrants sent into hostile countries
DAKAR, Senegal – Two years ago, a mob assaulted Abdou Latifou and threatened to kill him after he was seen kissing the man he loved. He fled his home in the West African nation of Togo and sought refuge in the United States, according to his asylum...
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Lawyer: Cornell accuser threatened after lawsuit
The woman who accused members of a Cornell University fraternity of gang-raping her is being targeted with threats, her lawyer said Oct. 4 on CNN’s “State of the Union.” Thomas Giuffra, who represents Jane Doe, said that people have threatened to...
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The AI of the storm
Artificial intelligence has revolutionized weather forecasting in just a few years, with global AI weather models now able to produce forecasts that rival some of the world’s best physics-based prediction systems. h This remarkable progress has been...
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Cornell rarely expels students for sexual assault, violence
More than 1,200 incidents of sexual assault, dating and domestic violence and stalking were reported to Cornell University’s Title IX office from 2018 through 2024, USA TODAY found in an exclusive analysis of data the school reported to New York state....
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PUMPING PRICES
President Donald Trump’s move to reduce the sticker shock on new cars by rolling back federal economy rules could end up costing most drivers more money in fuel costs than they would save on new vehicles, according to analysis from Trump’s own Highway...
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Justices agree to rule on detention policy
WASHINGTON − The Supreme Court will decide whether the Trump administration can detain millions of immigrants without giving them a chance to seek bond, even if they have lived in the United States for years without criminal records. The court agreed...
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The long afterlife of QAnon
On Election Day in 2024, as voters cast their ballots, Elon Musk posted a campaign music video supporting Donald Trump’s bid for president. ● Set to Van Halen’s “Jump,” with a montage of 1980s cultural references and images of Trump in various...
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Pediatric cancer survivor becomes an advocate
A lot can change in nine years. In August 2017, Mequon, Wisconsin, native Matthew Ceelen received the devastating news he had osteosarcoma bone cancer, diagnosed after he broke his arm during a freshman high school football scrimmage. He underwent...
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Cursive is making a comeback in schools
Learning to read and write cursive was once a rite of passage for practically every American schoolchild. Until the early 20th century, children in the United States were generally taught to write in cursive or script, rather than the print writing...
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Priorities for Trump, voters seem to differ
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s three-day visit with Chinese President Xi Jinping was filled with pomp and circumstance: a red-carpet arrival, a tour of the National Archives and a state dinner of yellow squash velouté and sesame-crusted sea...
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How one man forgave his brother’s killer
Twenty-five years ago, Rana Singh Sodhi felt empty and hopeless. • His brother Balbir had been shot and killed while planting flowers outside of his Mesa gas station, making him the first victim in what would become a wave of assaults by white...
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Trump, Xi exchange toasts, gifts at dinner
Wild mushrooms are in their peak season across the United States in late September – and for a second time, Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan were treated to the fungi at the White House. On the menu for the state dinner hosted by...
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Media outlets let back in following judge’s ruling
WASHINGTON – All three media outlets that President Donald Trump had banned from the White House were allowed back in Sept. 24 after initially being blocked despite a judge ruling that the revocation of their credentials probably violated the...
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Control of House hinges on these races
With six weeks until the Nov. 3 midterm elections, Democrats are leading in polls. But in a politically polarized country with mostly gerrymandered congressional districts, a handful of contests will determine whether Democrats can actually win control...
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DIGITAL DETOX
A trove of recent articles bemoan the collapse in recreational reading among younger Americans, with COVID-19 pandemic-related reading declines, artificial intelligence and social media often described as causes. But as the authors of “How Gen Z...
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FROM ASHES TO ILLNESS
Ageneration later data now show that three times as many people have died with a confirmed 9/11-related illness than perished during the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. • Some 9,677 people have died since their exposure to the toxic mix of chemicals...
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25th anniversary of 9/11 commemorated
NEW YORK – As the United States marked 25 years since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Americans across the country gathered to honor the nearly 3,000 people who perished and reflect on the day that forever changed the nation. A quarter-century...
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A GENERATION OF AFTERSHOCK
Aquarter-century later, 9/11 still echoes. ● The worst terrorist attack in U.S. history has been followed by other seismic events, from a once-in-a-century global pandemic to the rise of artificial intelligence that is transforming commerce, education...
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U.S. and Iran trade attacks on tankers
CAIRO – Iran said on Sept. 9 it had attacked 10 ships near the Strait of Hormuz after the United States sank five Iranian oil tankers, in the biggest declared wave of tit-for-tat attacks on shipping by both sides since the start of the six-month-old...
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‘Trumpapalooza’ intends to sway voters
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump has a solution for his party’s midterm woes as Republicans struggle to match Democrats’ election enthusiasm and face major headwinds to keep control of Congress: More Trump. It’s almost time for “Trumpapalooza,” the...
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UNPLUGGED
When the COVID-19 pandemic forced in-person classroom instruction to go virtual, students suddenly needed to have their own laptops or tablets in order to interact with teachers and complete assignments. Most states used federal pandemic funding to...
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Iran aims to tackle economic issues
DUBAI – Iran said it will step up efforts to tackle problems created by the U.S. sanctions that are crippling its economy, while a senior Iranian official warned of a “painful response” if it comes under further attack. Six months after U.S.-Israeli...
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GR IT, GRACE &GRATITUDE
Jeffrey Coniglio is dressed in white down to his shoes, his daughter Giada in a flowing pale green gown. They are twirling across the dance floor to music from “The Great Showman” when, suddenly, Giada flips head over heels and then swings out into a...
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AN IDLE THREAT
A bus company that left its buses’ engines running while parked in Boston neighborhoods has settled a lawsuit by agreeing to pay $5.6 million in damages for the resulting air pollution. The settlement came in a citizen-enforcement lawsuit under the...
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Immigration delays separate couples
Nicholas Miller hasn’t tried Taco Bell. Or Whataburger. Not because they are hard to find; they are everywhere in Austin. He is saving them for Irina Miller, his wife, for when her green card clears and she crosses the border for the first time. Until...
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U.S. pounds Iran, Tehran hits bases
WASHINGTON – Iranians and their Arab neighbors feared a return of war on Sept. 2 after the biggest exchange of fire between Tehran and Washington since July, with U.S. forces striking Iran’s southern coast and Iran firing at American bases across the...
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U.S. launches fresh strikes around Strait of Hormuz
DUBAI – The United States launched new air strikes on Iranian targets on Sept. 1, quashing hopes that a recent exchange of fire might not herald a wider renewal of hostilities. Oil prices had already risen after that first exchange of direct attacks...
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Iran is still seeking negotiated end to war
DUBAI – Iran is still seeking a negotiated solution to its conflict with the United States, President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Aug. 31, a day after the two countries resumed hostilities for the first time since late July, driving oil prices up more...
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‘ISOLATED’
Severe storms, heat waves and wildfires can shut down the social life of a community, flooding out festivals, canceling community events and keeping people indoors. They’re also evidence of how climate change isn’t just changing the environments we...
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Cup of care ambition
In 1973, Dolly Parton wrote “I Will Always Love You” to soften the blow of leaving her business partner Porter Wagoner after years of producing hit country duets together. Parton was ready to pursue a solo career. So she played the song for Wagoner to...
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Officials call USPS ballot rule impossible
Current and former election officials said it would take something close to “an act of God” for their states and localities to comply with a new U.S. Postal Service mail-in ballot rule just weeks before the midterm elections. The rule, which the...
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Asylum seekers’ visas are at stake
The Trump administration plans to revoke visas from people who entered the United States legally as tourists or business travelers and later applied for asylum – opening a new front in its campaign to restrict access to humanitarian protection. The...
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Trump is learning hard lessons in Iran
The twists and turns of the Iran war, six months in, should come as no surprise. President Donald Trump is just the latest commander-in-chief to see the vision of a decisive military campaign risk becoming a longer and more complicated conflict − one...
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LOVE, ALWAYS
Dolly Parton, the “Queen of Country” singing and songwriting icon with a personality as bold as her signature blond coif and rhinestone-encrusted outfits, has died. She was 80. Parton’s death was announced by her family on her social media pages and...
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Flock cameras stir concerns
License plate readers have been shot at in Tennessee, hit with a truck in California, beaten with a baseball bat in Virginia, cut down with a saw in Texas and splattered with paint in New York. And they’ve been regularly blocked by a protester in...
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Embryo personhood debate gains notice
About 100,000 babies were born through in vitro fertilization in 2024, according to the most recent U.S. data. But IVF commonly involves trying to create multiple embryos, because success is never guaranteed. If unused, those embryos can be frozen,...
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Early access to Trump posts raises concern
President Donald Trump’s social media company is charging clients up to $100,000 a month for priority access to Trump’s own official announcements as well as other “market-moving” government news such as new tariffs and military actions. Just a few...
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Iran vows ‘devastating’ response to recent threat
DUBAI – Iran said on Aug. 21 that its response to any new U.S. threats would be “devastating” after Washington pledged to impose the toughest financial penalties in history with the aim of toppling the Iranian leadership. Washington prepared for...
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U.S. debt crosses $40T threshold
WASHINGTON – Total U.S. debt has topped $40 trillion for the first time, the Treasury Department said Aug. 19, drawing fresh warnings that a fiscal crisis is brewing as ballooning costs for social safety-net programs and interest payments far outstrip...
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Tribes and Arizona sign economic deal
Amid uncertainty surrounding the future of the coal industry, tribal leaders met with Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs on Aug. 11 to sign a memorandum of understanding focused on strengthening economic resilience for tribal communities in the Four Corners...
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Rocket launches on the rise in U.S.
Back in April, people around the world paused their days to collectively watch in awe as four intrepid astronauts were launched into space toward the moon atop NASA’s most powerful rocket ever. That mission, known as Artemis II, captivated the public...
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Mass hearings held in immigration courts
Lines have stretched out the front door of courthouses. Overflow seating has been set up in hallways. And there have been classroom-style exchanges, with judges asking people to raise their hands in response to generic questions about their...
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DOJ pressed, dropped officer assault cases
Christian Garcia admits that he threw a water bottle toward officers guarding a federal building near Los Angeles during an immigration protest last summer. • The plastic bottle was empty, he said, and hit no one but Garcia himself – the wind blew it...
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TRACING HISTORY ON THE TRAIL OF TEARS
NEW ECHOTA, GA – Horror lingers in the knotted sweet gum and bent magnolia trees. To stand here is to feel shock, cruelty and despair emanating fromthe red clay of north Georgia. Blood is as much a part of this landscape as the honeysuckle...
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U.S. tells Iran it will step up pressure
LONDON – Transit through the Strait of Hormuz appeared to grind to a near standstill on Aug. 14 after two more ships were attacked there and the United States said it could maintain a naval blockade of Iran indefinitely. A senior Iranian source said...
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Iran, U.S. both claim to control Strait of Hormuz
DUBAI – The Strait of Hormuz is “under Iran’s control and management,” the recently appointed head of Iran’s Basij paramilitary unit said on Aug. 13, a day after President Donald Trump said the United States had “total control” of the strategic...
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Consumer prices ticked up in July
Although U.S. consumer prices ticked up in July, the annual inflation rate again eased a bit, the Labor Department said Aug. 12. From June to July, consumer prices rose 0.1%, in line with forecasters’ expectations. Over the year, they were up 3.4% –...
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Critics take aim at Trump vaccine order
President Donald Trump hailed his new order on childhood vaccines as a win for parental choice as doctors slammed the move, saying it could lead to greater risk of diseases that were rarely seen for generations. Trump signed an executive order Aug. 10...
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Poll shows public opinion shift on ICE
Months of immigration enforcement controversies have taken their toll, and new polling shows it could be a problem for Republicans heading into the midterms. About eight in 10 independent voters say U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement used too...
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Military bases delay toxic PFAS cleanup
It’s been almost five years since Brandi and Brad Hyatt found out the well at their home next to an Army base in Washington is contaminated with “forever chemicals.” h They started using bottled water for everything from making coffee to rinsing off...
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