WASHINGTON — Rep. Barry Loudermilk, who has led the charge for House Republicans to reexamine the events of Jan. 6, 2021, is slated to continue his probe this Congress under the auspices of Jim Jordan and the House Judiciary Committee, according to Speaker Mike Johnson.

Johnson announced Wednesday his intent to create a new select ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A rapidly growing fire near the Castaic jail complex sparked alarm on Wednesday morning, as attorneys urged the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department to evacuate the nearly 5,000 inmates in the county's northernmost jails.

The Hughes fire broke out a little before 11 a.m., roughly 5 miles north of the Pitchess Detention Center...Read more

A rally in big tech fueled by optimism over artificial intelligence and a batch of earnings from corporate heavyweights sent stocks to the brink of their all-time highs.

Equities extended this year’s advance, with the S&P 500 briefly topping 6,100. Netflix Inc. surged almost 10% amid its biggest-ever subscriber gain. Nvidia Corp. led gains in...Read more

MIAMI — Walking out of the gate at Miami International Airport wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat with “Never Surrender” written on the side, Enrique Tarrio returned to Miami after being convicted of seditious conspiracy for orchestrating an attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The former chairman of the Proud Boys was ...Read more

LAS VEGAS — More than 39,000 Nevadans are among millions of other Americans who will see increases to their Social Security payments thanks to a law former President Joe Biden signed this month.

The Social Security Fairness Act — which became law Jan. 5. — eliminates the reduction of Social Security benefits for those who are entitled to ...Read more

A federal judge in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday dismissed a case against a January 6 defendant from the Chicago area, but refused to do so with prejudice in an angrily worded order days after President Donald Trump’s clemency decision.

“In hundreds of cases like this one over the past four years, judges in this district haveadministered ...Read more

WASHINGTON — A key Senate panel unanimously voted Wednesday to advance Sean Duffy's nomination to lead the U.S. Department of Transportation.

President Donald Trump tapped the former Republican Wisconsin congressman to lead the agency with wide-ranging responsibilities related to road safety, vehicle emissions, aviation and more.

Duffy ...Read more

DENVER — A longtime Colorado Bureau of Investigation scientist who mishandled DNA testing in hundreds of criminal cases was charged this week with 102 felonies, court records show.

Yvonne “Missy” Woods, 64, was charged Tuesday with 48 counts of attempting to influence a public servant, 52 counts of forgery of a government-issued document,...Read more

WASHINGTON — Republicans on the House Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday spoke out about the need for action against China’s threat to American infrastructure networks, even as some members of the party have soured on a primary agency that fights such cyberattacks.

“The Chinese Communist Party is ready to shut down our essential ...Read more

LANSING, Mich. — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law Wednesday bills that would reclassify certain crimes as hate crimes, replacing Michigan’s 1988 ethnic intimidation law with expanded definitions of the categories of people who fall under the law’s protections.

The Democratic governor signed the hate crime legislation into law ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Huntington Beach, California, is continuing its rebellious streak against the state’s sanctuary immigration law, which limits local resources from assisting federal immigration enforcement officials, declaring itself a “non-sanctuary city” at its Tuesday City Council meeting.

Mayor Pat Burns, who introduced the “non-...Read more

DENVER — The city of Denver will strive to put 2,000 people in permanent housing this year as it moves more people out of temporary shelters — a figure that’s double city leaders’ original goal for 2025.

The decision to boost the target came after internal conversations within the city government over the last month, said Cole Chandler,...Read more

WASHINGTON — As Republicans start negotiating perhaps “one big, beautiful bill” with the new president, which of two recent versions of Donald Trump will they encounter most often? Or could it be a brand-new version of the 47th chief executive?

GOP members walked triumphantly about the Capitol on Monday as Trump returned to the presidency...Read more

NEW YORK — Nearly 100,000 ducks will be killed at Long Island’s last major commercial duck farm after bird flu was detected at the Suffolk County facility.

Crescent Duck Farm in Aquebogue has played host to numerous state and federal officials and inspectors after the discovery last week, Newsday reported.

“You constantly monitor your ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Facing federal criminal charges, former state Rep. Carolina Amesty has retained a well-connected lawyer to plead her case: Brad Bondi, the brother of U.S. Attorney General-nominee Pam Bondi, who if confirmed will oversee the attorneys prosecuting the embattled ex-lawmaker.

Court records show Amesty turned to Brad Bondi to ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A new fire exploded Wednesday north of Castaic, quickly charring 5,000 acres and forcing thousands to flee from their homes amid a month of extreme fire conditions that have plagued Southern California.

The Hughes fire started off of Lake Hughes Road just before 11 a.m. and quickly prompted evacuations orders in and around Lake ...Read more

Several of the highest-profile figures in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection were charged with, and convicted of, the crime of seditious conspiracy, which is defined as the act of getting together with other people to overthrow the government. They were among the roughly 1,500 people involved in the insurrection who were pardoned or had their ...Read more

BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho House could soon vote on formally asking that the state once again be allowed to ban marriages between same-sex couples.

The resolution, if passed by both chambers of the Legislature, would result in Idaho sending a letter to the U.S. Supreme Court requesting that the justices reverse their 2015 precedent that ...Read more

CHICAGO — A majority of the City Council signed a letter to Mayor Brandon Johnson Wednesday condemning a puppet display at the Chicago Cultural Center as antisemitic and calling on the city to take it down.

The free, public exhibit in the city-run building features bloodied caricatures of Uncle Sam and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin ...Read more