Stories by Associated Press

Since taking control of Congress and the White House last year, Democrats have vowed to counteract a wave of new state laws, inspired by former President Donald Trump’s false claims of a stolen election, that have made it harder to vote. But their efforts have stalled in the narrowly divided Senate.

Earth simmered to the sixth hottest year on record in 2021, according to several newly released temperature measurements.

Speaking at the White House Thursday, President Joe Biden acknowledged that, “I know we’re all frustrated as we enter this new year” as virus cases reach new heights. But he insisted that it remains “a pandemic of the unvaccinated.” 

As of Tuesday, just over 17% of children ages 5 to 11 were fully vaccinated, more than two months after shots for the age group became available.

The Labor Department reported Wednesday that excluding volatile food and gas prices, so-called core prices surged 0.6% from November to December. Measured year over year, core prices jumped 5.5% in December, the fastest such increase since 1991.

Pounding his fist for emphasis, President Joe Biden challenged senators on Tuesday to “stand against voter suppression,” urging them to change Senate rules in order to pass voting rights legislation that Republicans are blocking from debate and votes.

Sens. Cory Booker, D-N.J. and Richard Burr, R-N.C., introduced the bill to honor Emmett Till and his mother with the highest civilian honor that Congress awards. 

A Chicago-based addiction treatment center, which like others nationwide has faced fierce opposition to opening suburban branches, filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday to force one suburb to stop blocking its expansion plans.

Starting Saturday, private health insurers will be required to cover up to eight home COVID-19 tests per month for people on their plans. 

The man who bought an AR-15-style rifle for Kyle Rittenhouse pleaded no contest Monday to a reduced charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor in a deal with prosecutors that allows him to avoid prison. 

Matt Nagy's fate seemed sealed as the Bears struggled through a 6-11 season that ended with a loss at Minnesota on Sunday. But it was not clear if Ryan Pace also would be let go or retained in either his current role or a different capacity.

Talks between Chicago school leaders and the teachers' union resumed Sunday amid a standoff over remote learning and other COVID-19 safety measures that canceled three days of classes. 

Advocates for closing the Guantanamo Bay detention center were optimistic when President Joe Biden took office. Many are now increasingly impatient.

Illinois officials are seeking answers after the killing last week of a state child welfare worker during a home visit — the second such tragedy to occur in less than five years.

Fully vaccinated and mostly masked, the Supreme Court’s conservative majority appeared skeptical Friday of the Biden administration’s authority to impose a vaccine-or-testing requirement on the nation’s large employers. 

Three white men who chased and killed Ahmaud Arbery were sentenced Friday to life in prison, with a judge denying any chance of parole for the father and son who armed themselves and initiated the deadly pursuit of the 25-year-old Black man.

U.S. regulators on Friday shortened the time that people who received Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine have to wait for a booster — to five months rather than six.

Interviewed before this week’s anniversary of the attack, 10 of the House members who were in the gallery talked of being deeply shaken by their experience, recalling viscerally the sights and sounds amid the chaos.

Staff absences and the omicron variant-driven surge have led some big districts including Atlanta, Detroit and Milwaukee to switch temporarily to virtual learning. Where schools are holding the line on in-person learning, getting through the day has required an all-hands-on-deck approach.

One year after the violent insurrection, Donald Trump is hardly a leader in exile. Instead, he is the undisputed leader of the Republican Party and a leading contender for the 2024 presidential nomination.

“For the first time in our history, a president not just lost an election, he tried to prevent the peaceful transfer of power as a violent mob breached the Capitol,” President Joe Biden said. “But they failed.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's advisers voted that a booster was safe for younger teens and should be offered to them once enough time — five months — has passed since their last shot.

The decision to keep the initial definition, established more than a year ago when the vaccines first rolled out, means that federal vaccination mandates for travel or employment won’t require a booster dose.

The former Black Panther who first won election in 1992 said in a speech at a Chicago church that he isn’t retiring from public service. 

A couple of factors are at play, starting with the emergence of the highly contagious omicron variant. Omicron is more likely to infect people, even if it doesn’t make them very sick, and its surge coincided with the holiday travel season in many places.

The president emphasized that vaccines, booster shots and therapeutic drugs have mitigated the danger for the overwhelming majority of Americans who are fully vaccinated.