WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania made something abundantly clear almost 18 months ago — regardless of his enthusiastic endorsement of Democratic Socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders in 2016, his long support for the LGBTQ community, and his strong backing of unions and other views aligning him with liberal Democrats.

“I’m ...Read more

NJ Transit’s 450 train engineers will be on strike as of 12:01 a.m., the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen said late Thursday night, after talks in Newark failed to resolve a dispute over wages.

With just an hour left before a 12:01 a.m. strike deadline, NJ Transit management and the union that represents 450 train engineers ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A federal judge has — for the second time — dismissed a $25 million lawsuit by former Sheriff Alex Villanueva against Los Angeles County alleging that county officials defamed him and violated his rights.

The lawsuit claimed that Villanueva lost out on potential employment opportunities because his personnel file was flagged...Read more

Gov. Joe Lombardo proposed reforming health care in Nevada in his final priority bill introduced Thursday — less than three weeks from the end of the legislative session.

Senate Bill 495, called the Nevada Healthcare Act, would tackle the state’s health care provider shortage, expand mental health services and streamline health care, ...Read more

Donald Trump’s tariffs on China will likely remain at a level expected to severely curtail Chinese exports to the U.S. after the 90-day truce, analysts and investors say, suggesting Beijing may have to endure further economic pain despite active talks.

U.S. levies on Chinese products imposed this year will likely hold at 30% through late ...Read more

The highly coveted High Sierra Camps in Yosemite National Park that have been closed since 2018 will remain closed this summer because potable water and toilets won’t be available, according to park officials.

“This decision was made in collaboration with the National Park Service (NPS), which manages the utilities necessary to run the ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday offered rare bipartisan support for an executive action this week by President Donald Trump — the lifting of longstanding U.S. sanctions on Syria in a bid to offer the Arab country’s new government a chance after 14 years of civil war.

Trump made the sanctions ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans on Thursday stopped a measure that sought to obtain more information on the human rights practices at the prison in El Salvador where the Trump administration has deported migrants who are alleged gang members.

The chamber, in a 45-50 vote along party lines, did not agree to a motion to discharge from the ...Read more

WESTERNPORT, Md. — Two and a half days after flash floods devastated the town of Westernport in remote Western Maryland, Gov. Wes Moore visited the beleaguered hamlet for the first time since the disaster. Once there, he declared a state of emergency, to the relief of residents and their representatives.

In Maryland, the small town of 1,900 ...Read more

NEW YORK — A lawyer for Sean “Diddy” Combs began grilling the rap mogul’s longtime former partner, Casandra Ventura, on Thursday after the jury heard two days of devastating testimony from the R&B singer known as “Cassie” about being subjected to years of horrific and dehumanizing abuse.

Attorney Anna Estevao was tasked with ...Read more

U.S. President Donald Trump says he’s ready to ease sanctions on Syria. He won’t be able to do it quickly.

The American leader sat down with Syrian counterpart Ahmad al-Sharaa in Riyadh on Wednesday — the first meeting between heads of the two countries in 25 years — after unexpectedly saying he would drop all sanctions against the war-...Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Nearly 100 people rallied outside the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office in San Jose on Thursday to protest what they called repressive immigration policies as the U.S. Supreme Court considers the legality of President Donald Trump’s immigration-related executive orders targeting children of noncitizens and ...Read more

Last August, California Gov. Gavin Newsom hailed a “major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms” with the announcement of a deal in which the state, search giant Google and others would provide nearly $250 million in public and private funding over five years to support California news publishers decimated by the digital age.

...Read more

In the United States, where religion is “very” or “somewhat” important according to nearly two-thirds of adults, one racial group stands out when it comes to practicing their faith, a new poll found.

The Public Religion Research Institute American Values Atlas poll based religious activity on three categories: how often people pray, how...Read more

Could Miami Mayor Francis Suarez be the next U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia?

That possibility appears to be gaining momentum after Suarez joined President Donald Trump in the capital city of Riyadh this week as the president kicked off his multi-day Gulf tour. Footage from this week’s events shows Suarez chatting with Trump and Saudi Crown ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon has developed a draft architecture and plan to implement the proposed “Golden Dome” air and missile defense system, its spokesman said, as questions mount about the Trump administration’s ambitious project.

Following President Donald Trump’s Jan. 27 executive order, the Pentagon “gathered the brightest ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — In his revised budget plan for the upcoming year, California Gov. Gavin Newsom did not commit any funding for Proposition 36, the state’s new crime and drug treatment measure, despite calls from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to do so.

Instead, during a news conference Wednesday, Newsom put the onus on county and ...Read more