Author: a1obm

U.S. stocks closed lower Tuesday as quarterly results show more companies are scrubbing their forecasts for upcoming profits because of uncertainty created by President Donald Trump’s tariffs.The S&P 500 fell 0.8%, its second drop after breaking a nine-day winning streak, its longest such run in more than 20 years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite finished 0.9% lower.Palantir Technologies was one of the heaviest weights on the market as it sank 12%. The company, which offers an AI platform for customers, dropped even though it reported a profit for the latest quarter that met analysts’…

SEATTLE – A judge on Monday ordered the Trump administration to admit some 12,000 refugees into the United States under a court order partially blocking the president’s efforts to suspend the nation’s refugee admissions program.The order from U.S. District Judge Jamal Whitehead followed arguments from the Justice Department and refugee resettlement agencies over how to interpret a federal appeals court ruling that significantly narrowed an earlier decision from Whitehead.During a hearing last week, the administration said it should only have to process 160 refugees into the country and that it would likely appeal any order requiring it to admit thousands.…

BERLIN – Conservative leader Friedrich Merz succeeded Tuesday in becoming Germany’s next chancellor, drawing applause and a palpable sense of relief in the parliament chamber after a historic loss in the first round of voting threatened the new government’s promises of stability.No other postwar candidate for German chancellor has failed to win on the first ballot. The stunning but short-lived defeat sent shock waves throughout Europe and dragged down the stock market. The DAX, the index of major German companies, fell by 1.8% at one point.The first round of voting, which was conducted by secret ballot, could affect Merz’s prospects…

André Leon Talley’s presence could be felt everywhere at the Met Gala on Monday. The late creative director and editor at large of Vogue magazine, who died in 2022 at age 73, heavily influenced the spirit of the costume exhibit, where one of his suits was featured, and the glitzy event itself.Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour wrote extensively about her old colleague in her editor’s letter last month, writing that she would be “thinking of him on the night of the Met Gala, an evening made for him — and one I can scarcely believe he will miss.”And she was hardly…

WASHINGTON – Congress is deep into drafting President Donald Trump’s big bill of tax breaks, spending cuts and beefed-up funding to halt migrants, but it’s “bumpy,” one Republican chairman says, with much work ahead to meet House Speaker Mike Johnson’s goal of passing the package out of his chamber by Memorial Day.In fact, the tax cuts portion is still a work in progress. As are the reductions in Medicaid, food stamps and other mainstay government programs. Mostly, the Republicans, who have the majority in Congress, have made progress on parts that would increase spending, adding some $350 billion to the…

SRINAGAR – Hundreds of Indian tourists, families and honeymooners, drawn by the breathtaking Himalayan beauty, were enjoying a picture-perfect meadow in Kashmir. They didn’t know gunmen in army fatigues were lurking in the woods.When the attackers got their chance, they shot mostly Indian Hindu men, many of them at close-range, leaving behind bodies strewn across the Baisaran meadow and survivors screaming for help. The gunmen quickly vanished into thick forests. By the time Indian authorities arrived, 26 people were dead and 17 others were wounded.India has described the April 22 massacre as a terror attack and blamed Pakistan for backing…

LANSING, Mich. – Ahead of a nationally watched bid to become Michigan’s next governor, Democrat Jocelyn Benson is releasing a memoir this month that includes her first public discussion of a miscarriage she had about eight years ago — an experience she says will shape her commitment to increasing access to reproductive healthcare in the swing state.Benson, Michigan’s secretary of state, is part of a crowded field seeking to succeed Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and she’s the only woman in the running so far.In an interview with The Associated Press ahead of Tuesday’s release of her political memoir entitled, “The Purposeful…

BOSTON — Kristaps Porzingis unexpectedly left the Celtics’ Game 1 loss to the Knicks in the first half due to illness on Monday night. The Celtics were back together on Tuesday at the Auerbach Center watching film before a pivotal Game 2 matchup. “He’s a little bit better,” Joe Mazzulla said. “We’ll see how he feels. Just kind of day to day.” Porzingis only played 13 minutes in Game 1, missing all four of his shots before leaving the game with eight minutes remaining in the second quarter. He spent the rest of the half in the locker room before…

SEATTLE — Seattle is another vote closer to doubling the number of school zone speed cameras and expanding this technology into surrounding neighborhoods. Members of the Seattle City Council Transportation Committee pushed forward on a plan to broaden the network of automated traffic safety cameras that were first introduced nearly two decades ago. The city currently operates 35 cameras at 19 schools and is looking to add another 37 cameras at other campuses over the course of this year and next. Parking enforcement officers will provide additional staffing capacity for the program.Committee members went a step further and voted to…

SEATTLE — New, destructive protests at the University of Washington that included dumpster fires and occupation of the Interdisciplinary Engineering Building (IEB), where self-proclaimed pro-Palestinian protestors smashed high-tech engineering equipment, are being slammed by both the university and groups that have been working for more than 18 months to end antisemitism on campus. The UW said it’s “committed to maintaining a secure learning and research environment and strongly condemns this illegal building occupation and the antisemitic statement that was issued by a suspended student group Monday.” “I mean, I don’t feel particularly unsafe because of it,” Conrad Parish told KOMO…