Harvard University sued several U.S. government agencies and top officials for freezing billions of dollars in federal funding, significantly ratcheting up a high-stakes showdown with the Trump administration.

The Trump administration unlawfully suspended Harvard’s funding after it refused to comply with “unconstitutional demands” to ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said he and first lady Melania Trump would attend the funeral of Pope Francis, embarking on the first foreign trip of his second term to honor the late spiritual leader.

“Melania and I will be going to the funeral of Pope Francis, in Rome. We look forward to being there!” Trump said Monday in a post to ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The fundraising committee for GOP President Donald Trump's inauguration reported accepting $1 million from Gotion Inc., a China-connected battery manufacturer that Michigan Republicans repeatedly attacked Democrats for being tied to during the 2024 campaign.

Trump's inaugural committee released a list of $239 million in accepted ...Read more

Maria-Elena Giner, an appointee of former President Joe Biden who is credited with overhauling the underfunded and mismanaged U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission, has been replaced with a President Donald Trump appointee.

William “Chad” McIntosh, who was serving as the Environmental Protection Agency’s acting deputy ...Read more

NEW YORK — Nadine Menendez was found guilty on Monday of acting as the partner in crime of her convicted husband, ex-Democratic New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, by brokering backdoor bribery deals that saw the couple showered in gold bullion bars, wads of cash, and a Mercedes-Benz convertible.

Jurors, who got the case Friday, convicted Nadine of...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — A University of Kentucky fraternity will host its own inclusive graduation after the university confirmed last week it will cancel several programs that celebrate underrepresented graduates.

Once he realized the university would start cutting programs that celebrate minority students, Kristopher Washington told his fraternity...Read more

LOS ANGELES — With Los Angeles battered by multiple crises, Mayor Karen Bass vowed Monday in her State of the City address to rebuild at a record clip in the wake of the Palisades fire while also overcoming dire financial woes.

Bass, appearing at City Hall before an audience of about 250, struck a hopeful tone, even as she acknowledged that ...Read more

Four Democratic U.S. House members, in El Salvador to push for the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, said they met with officials in the U.S. Embassy and got no indication that it is working to return the mistakenly deported man to Maryland.

“We just had a meeting earlier today with the embassy,” Rep. Maxwell Frost, a Florida Democrat, said ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — After attending Monday afternoon’s service at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, Veronica Dilao walked out of the downtown Sacramento church still overwhelmed with emotion over the death of Pope Francis.

“I’m so sad,” Dilao said. “It’s kind of like mixed emotions, sad and happy. Happy because he is with ...Read more

It’s Earth Day on Tuesday. But for the first time in four years, California’s environmental groups and state agencies are playing defense.

After working closely with President Biden, who supported spending billions for renewable energy, established new national monuments and filled his administration with conservation leaders, California ...Read more

DETROIT — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said communities still are recovering from a devastating ice storm, with some residents still without power, that blew into northern Michigan three weeks ago, so the state needs more time to determine how much federal aid it might request for restoration.

On Monday, Whitmer sent a letter to the Federal ...Read more

OAKLAND, Calif. — Barbara Lee opened her first news conference as Oakland’s mayor-elect with a nod to her Catholic upbringing and education in El Paso, Texas, leading a packed room in a moment of silence for Pope Francis, who died earlier Monday.

Lee’s status as an East Bay progressive icon is so cemented that it’s easy to forget the 78...Read more

Harvard University said it sued the U.S. government for freezing billions of dollars in federal funding, ratcheting up a showdown with the Trump administration.

The Trump administration unlawfully suspended Harvard’s funding after it refused to comply with “illegal demands” to overhaul governance, discipline and hiring policies, as well ...Read more

A fossil from one of the largest dinosaurs to live in North America was discovered in a national park in Texas.

In March, students from Sul Ross State University went to Big Bend National Park for research and to collect a dinosaur bone belonging to Alamosaurus, according to an April 8 news release from the university.

The geology students ...Read more

MEXICO CITY — Mexico's president said Monday that her government has asked television stations to pull a commercial produced by the Trump administration warning against undocumented migration to the United States.

Calling the ad "discriminatory," President Claudia Sheinbaum also vowed to send legislation to Congress that would ban the ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — The city of Las Vegas formally endorsed state legislation to extend a property tax that funds the salaries of more than 800 Metropolitan Police officers, or about half of its patrol force.

The City Council on Monday voted unanimously on a resolution to support Nevada Senate Bill 451 during a special meeting.

The legislation would...Read more

Dubbed “the people’s pope,” Pope Francis — who died on Easter Monday at age 88 — was highly regarded by Catholics and non-Catholics alike, according to surveys.

His death was announced by the Vatican in the early hours of April 21 in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with ...Read more