Political

Judges Reject Suits Over Trump Losses in Arizona, Wisconsin

PHOENIX (AP) — A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit that sought to decertify Democrat President-elect Joe Biden’s win over Republican President Donald Trump in Arizona. Judge Diane Humetewa said the lawsuit’s allegations “are sorely wanting of relevant or reliable evidence” and that granting the relief it sought would disenfranchise millions of voters. The challenge alleged the state’s election systems have…

Biden Picks Former Obama Chief of Staff Mcdonough for VA

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden is nominating Denis McDonough, who was President Barack Obama’s White House chief of staff, as secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs. The sprawling agency has presented organizational challenges for both parties over the years. Biden is continuing to stockpile his incoming administration with prominent members of Obama’s team. Biden plans to make the…

Trump Lawyer Rudy Giuliani Tests Positive for COVID

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Sunday his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani has tested positive for the coronavirus, making him the latest in Trump’s inner circle to contract the disease that is now surging across the U.S. The 76-year-old former New York mayor has traveled extensively to battleground states in recent days and weeks in an effort to help…

The Latest: Fauci Says ‘Yes Right on the Spot’ to Biden

WASHINGTON (AP) – Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation’s chief infectious disease expert, says there was never a question that he would accept President-elect Joe Biden’s offer to serve as his chief medical officer and adviser on the coronavirus pandemic. Fauci told NBC’s “Today” show on Friday, “I said yes right on the spot” after Biden asked him to serve during…

Barr: No Evidence of Fraud That’d Change Election Outcome

WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr said Tuesday that the Justice Department has not uncovered evidence of widespread voter fraud and has seen nothing that would change the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. In an interview with The Associated Press, Barr said U.S. attorneys and FBI agents have been working diligently to follow up on specific complaints and…

Arizona Certifies Biden’s Victory Over Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — Arizona officials have certified Joe Biden’s narrow victory over President Donald Trump in the state. Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs and Republican Gov. Doug Ducey stood up for the integrity of the election even as lawyers for Trump were across town Monday arguing without evidence to nine Republican lawmakers that the election was marred by fraud….

Congress Returns With Virus Aid, Federal Funding Unresolved

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress is returning to Washington for one last attempt at deal-making this year. The only absolute must-do is preventing a government shutdown on Dec. 11. But lawmakers are also debating whether to deliver another round of coronavirus relief before President Donald Trump leaves office. A virus bill would provide funding for vaccines and testing, for reopening schools,…

Casperson, ‘Titan’ of the Upper Peninsula, Dies at Age 61

(courtesy: Michigan Republicans) ESCANABA, Mich. (AP) — Tom Casperson, a former state lawmaker from the Upper Peninsula who cast a key vote to expand Medicaid and built alliances with labor unions, has died at age 61. Casperson, a Republican from Escanaba, died Sunday. He had been stricken with cancer. Fellow Republicans in the Senate called Casperson a “titan of the…

Appeals Court Rejects Trump Challenge of Pennsylvania Race

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A federal appeals court in Philadelphia has rejected President Donald Trump’s latest effort to challenge the election results in a case expected to reach the U.S. Supreme Court if Trump appeals. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals echoed a string of other courts in finding his campaign offered no evidence of any election fraud. Instead, the…

Trump Says He’ll Leave if Electoral College Seats Biden

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will leave the White House if the Electoral College formalizes President-Elect Joe Biden’s victory even as he insisted such a decision would be a “mistake.” Trump spent his Thanksgiving renewing claims that “massive fraud” and crooked officials in battleground states caused his election defeat even though there is no evidence…

Trump Pardons Flynn, Taking Direct Aim at Russia Probe

National security adviser General Michael Flynn delivers a statement daily briefing at the White House in Washington U.S., February 1, 2017. REUTERS/Carlos Barria WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn, taking direct aim in the final days of his administration at a Russia investigation that he has long insisted was motivated by political…

Biden Certified as Winner of Pennsylvania Presidential Vote

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Democrat Joe Biden was certified Tuesday as the winner of the presidential election in Pennsylvania, culminating three weeks of vote counting and a string of failed legal challenges by President Donald Trump. Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf first disclosed in a tweet that the Department of State had certified the vote count for president and vice president….

Biden Set to Formally Introduce His National Security Team

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President-elect Joe Biden is preparing to formally announce his national security team to the nation. Those being introduced during a Tuesday afternoon event are among Obama administration alumni whose roles in the upcoming administration signal Biden’s shift away from the Trump administration’s “America First” policies. The picks include former Secretary of State John Kerry to take…

Georgia Secretary of State to Certify Election for Biden

ATLANTA (AP) — A hand tally of the ballots cast in the presidential race has been completed. The results released Thursday by the secretary of state’s office affirm Democrat Joe Biden’s narrow lead over Republican President Donald Trump. The hand recount of about 5 million votes stemmed from an audit required by new state law and wasn’t in response to…

Biden Vows to Strengthen Economy Despite Exploding Pandemic

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Projected President-elect Joe Biden is acknowledging that the nation is in a “dark” place but says his administration will strengthen the vulnerable economy despite the exploding pandemic. Biden offered an optimistic assessment Monday of the next four years during a meeting with several business and labor leaders ahead of an afternoon economic address from his makeshift…

Kamala Harris Makes History as First Black, South Asian Woman Elected Vice President

Kamala Harris is making history as the first Black woman elected vice president of the United States.

(AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File) WASHINGTON (AP)- Kamala Harris is making history as the first Black woman elected vice president of the United States, shattering barriers that have kept men – almost all of them white – entrenched at the highest levels of American politics for more than two centuries. The 56-year-old California senator is also the first person of South…

Biden Plans Friday Night Prime-Time Televised Address

WASHINGTON (AP) – Joe Biden’s campaign says he will give a speech during prime time Friday. The Democratic presidential candidate’s campaign announced that he would be making an address but did not say where or what he plans to say. Biden is on the cusp of winning the presidency as he opens up narrow leads over President Donald Trump in several critical backgrounds. The…

Al Roker to Take Time off Work to Battle Prostate Cancer

NEW YORK (AP) — Weatherman and morning TV co-host Al Roker has revealed that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and will be undergoing surgery to have his prostate removed. “It’s a good news-bad news kind of thing,” Roker said Friday on NBC’s “Today.” “Good news is we caught it early. Not great news is that it’s a little…

Biden Ahead in Georgia, Pennsylvania; Trump Attacks Process

(AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrat Joe Biden has overtaken President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania and Georgia. The election hinges on the outcome of tight contests in those key battleground states. The new results Friday come as Trump is trying to undermine confidence in this week’s election. With his pathway to reelection appearing to shrink, Trump advanced unsupported accusations…