Stories by Associated Press

Trump Wears Mask in Public for First Time During Pandemic

President Donald Trump wore a mask during a visit to a military hospital on Saturday, the first time he has been seen in public with the type of facial covering recommended by health officials during the pandemic.

Trump Commutes Longtime Friend Roger Stone’s Prison Sentence

President Donald Trump has commuted the sentence of his longtime political confidant Roger Stone, intervening in extraordinary fashion in a criminal case that was central to the Russia investigation and that concerned the president’s own conduct.

Pandemic, Racism Compound Worries About Black Suicide Rate

Health experts have warned of a looming mental health crisis linked to the coronavirus outbreak, and the federal government rolled out a broad anti-suicide campaign. But doctors and researchers say the issues reverberate deeper among Black people.

US Bets on Untested Company to Deliver COVID-19 Vaccine

The Trump administration has agreed to invest more than half a billion in tax dollars in ApiJect Systems America, but its injector is not approved by federal health authorities and the company hasn’t yet set up a factory to manufacture the devices.

Most Stocks Drift Higher on Wall Street; Tech a Rare Downer

Most of Wall Street is drifting higher Friday, though a rare pullback for some of the year's biggest winners in the stock market is tamping down the gains.

CDC Head Sticking to School-Opening Guides Trump Criticized

Federal health officials won’t revise their coronavirus guidelines for reopening schools despite criticism from President Donald Trump, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. 

WHO: Indoor Airborne Spread of Coronavirus Possible

In a change to its previous thinking, WHO noted on Thursday that studies evaluating COVID-19 outbreaks in restaurants, choir practices and fitness classes suggested the virus might have been spread in the air.

Walgreens Lost $1.7B in 3Q as Global Pandemic Tightened Grip

The Deerfield, Illinois-based drugstore chain said Thursday that the rapidly spreading coronavirus took a bite of between $700 million and $750 million from sales, with much of the damage coming from outside the United States.

Trump to America’s Schools: Reopen or You May Lose Federal Funds

Determined to reopen America’s schools despite coronavirus worries, President Donald Trump threatened on Wednesday to hold back federal money if school districts don’t bring their students back in the fall.

New Rules: Foreign Pupils Must Leave US if Classes Go Online

International students will be forced to leave the U.S. or transfer to another college if their schools offer classes entirely online this fall, under new guidelines issued Monday by federal immigration authorities.

United Sending Layoff Notices to Nearly Half of US Employees

United Airlines is warning 36,000 employees — nearly half its U.S. staff — they could be furloughed in October, the clearest signal yet of how deeply the virus pandemic is hurting the airline industry.

AP Exclusive: ‘Strike for Black Lives’ to Highlight Racism

A national coalition of labor unions, along with racial and social justice organizations, will stage a mass walkout from work this month, as part of an ongoing reckoning on systemic racism and police brutality in the U.S.

Small Business Aid Went Beyond Hard-Hit Companies, Data Show

A federal program designed to soften job losses from the coronavirus also benefited wealthy, well-connected companies and some celebrity owned firms. Which companies benefited in Illinois?

Activity in Services Sector Shows Record Rebound in June

Activity in the U.S. services sector rebounded strongly last month, but those gains are now being threatened by the resurgence of coronavirus cases in many parts of the country. Local economists weigh in.

Protective Gear For Medical Workers Begins to Run Low Again

The personal protective gear that was in dangerously short supply during the early weeks of the coronavirus crisis in the U.S. is running low again as the virus resumes its rapid spread and the number of hospitalized patients climbs.

‘Senseless Crime’: The Victims of July Fourth Shootings

From San Francisco to South Carolina, a spate of shootings claimed the lives of people celebrating or just taking a drive over the Fourth of July weekend. Chicago saw one of its bloodiest holiday weekends in memory.

Chicago’s July Fourth Weekend Ends with 17 Dead, 70 Wounded

One of Chicago’s bloodiest holiday weekends in memory ended with 17 people fatally shot, including a 7-year-old girl and a 14-year-old boy, and 70 more wounded, despite a concerted effort to quell the violence with an additional 1,200 police officers on the streets.

Latino, Black Neighborhoods Struggle With Test Disparities

As the pandemic explodes in diverse states like Arizona and Florida, people in communities of color who have been exposed to the virus are struggling to get tested. 

Judge Orders Dakota Access Pipeline Shut Down Pending Review

A judge on Monday ordered the Dakota Access pipeline shut down for additional environmental review more than three years after it began pumping oil — handing a victory to the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe.

No More Delays: What to Know About the July 15 Deadline

As the coronavirus pandemic took hold this spring, the federal government postponed the traditional April 15 filing deadline until July 15. Taxpayers must file or seek an extension by the new deadline or face a penalty. 

7-Year-Old Among 13 Killed in Weekend Shootings in Chicago

At least 13 people, including a 7-year-old girl at a family party and a teenage boy, were killed in Chicago over the Fourth of July weekend, police said. At least 59 others were shot and wounded.

Museum: ‘Dukes of Hazzard’ Car With Confederate Flag to Stay

A northern Illinois auto museum has no plan to stop displaying a Dodge Charger from the “Dukes of Hazzard” television show with the Confederate battle flag painted atop the vehicle. 

Kansas Newspaper’s Post Equates Mask Mandate With Holocaust

A weekly Kansas newspaper posted a cartoon on its Facebook page likening the Democratic governor’s order requiring people to wear masks in public to the roundup and murder of millions of Jews during the Holocaust.

Virus, Floyd Death Merge in Brutal Blow to Black Well-Being

Doctors have known it for a long time, well before the resounding cries of “Black Lives Matter”: Black people suffer disproportionately.

Muti Conducts Syria Musicians in Memorial Concert Amid Ruins

Nine musicians from the Syrian diaspora in Europe are playing Sunday in the 24th friendship concert conducted by Riccardo Muti, this year at the Paestum archaeological site in southern Italy.

Facebook Groups Pivot to Attacks on Black Lives Matter

A loose network of Facebook groups that took root across the country in April to organize protests over coronavirus stay-at-home orders has become a hub of misinformation and conspiracies theories that have pivoted to a variety of new targets.
 

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