NEW YORK (AP) — You’d think Twitter would be able to milk its status as President Donald Trump’s megaphone. But the company still faces stagnant user growth, has never made a profit and even reported a quarterly revenue decline Wednesday, a first since going public. Trump’s frequent tweets ricochet well beyond his 28 million Twitter … Continue reading
Author Archives: abaynardblog
Stocks tick higher, S&P 500 flirts with record
NEW YORK (AP) — Stock indexes ticked higher on Wednesday, and the Standard & Poor’s 500 index flirted with its record high, as the White House unveiled a broad outline of its plan to cut tax rates. The market has sprinted higher since November, due in large part to expectations that lower taxes and looser … Continue reading
Conservative caucus backs GOP health bill but fate uncertain
WASHINGTON (AP) — The conservative House Freedom Caucus announced its support Wednesday for a newly revised GOP health care bill, a month after the group’s opposition forced Republican leaders to pull the legislation in an embarrassing retreat. The group’s support, while significant, does not necessarily guarantee passage of the Republican bill to partially repeal and … Continue reading
Manufacturer says it’s removing relabeled Ivanka Trump items
NEW YORK (AP) — An apparel company says it accepts responsibility for Ivanka Trump clothing that was relabeled as a different designer. G-III Apparel Group Inc., which is licensed to manufacture clothing under the Ivanka Trump brand, said it was removing the mislabeled items sold at discount retailer Stein Mart. It said the relabeling to … Continue reading
Trump has ‘no intention’ of releasing tax returns
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump “has no intention” of releasing his taxes returns to the public, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said Wednesday, asserting Americans have “plenty of information” about the president’s financial matters. For decades, presidents have released their tax returns. But Trump has so far refused, suggesting he would share the tax documents … Continue reading
VA limiting new hiring as it aims to widen private care
WASHINGTON (AP) — Despite the lifting of a federal hiring freeze, the Department of Veterans Affairs is leaving thousands of positions unfilled, citing the need for a leaner VA as it develops a longer-term plan to allow more veterans to seek medical care in the private sector. The order by VA Secretary David Shulkin is … Continue reading
Stolen truck kills 4 in Stockholm; Sweden calls it terror
STOCKHOLM (AP) — A hijacked beer truck plowed into pedestrians at a central Stockholm department store on Friday, killing four people, wounding 15 others and sending screaming shoppers fleeing in panic in what Sweden’s prime minister called a terrorist attack. A nationwide manhunt was launched and one person was arrested following the latest use of … Continue reading
California math: 1 vote = $500 million in road, rail work
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — How much is one vote worth in the California state Senate? A half-billion dollars, if it’s linked to a big tax hike to pay for overdue road repairs. The key vote to raise gas taxes and vehicle fees came late Thursday from Sen. Anthony Cannella, a little-known Republican and the only … Continue reading
Alarming rise in attacks on South Sudan civilians, UN says
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Civilians and aid workers in South Sudan have seen an alarming rise in attacks and harassment in the past week, the United Nations said Saturday, as the East African country faces both civil war and famine. The top U.N. humanitarian official in South Sudan, Eugene Owusu, said in a statement that … Continue reading
A ‘sci-fi’ cancer therapy fights brain tumors, study finds MARILYNN MARCHIONE
WASHINGTON (AP) — It sounds like science fiction, but a cap-like device that makes electric fields to fight cancer improved survival for the first time in more than a decade for people with deadly brain tumors, final results of a large study suggest. Many doctors are skeptical of the therapy, called tumor treating fields, and … Continue reading
Dems urge Trump to veto bill blocking online privacy rule
NEW YORK (AP) — Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer is urging President Donald Trump to veto a resolution that would kill an online privacy regulation, a move that could allow internet providers to sell information about their customers’ browsing habits. The New York senator and 46 other Senate Democrats signed a letter calling on Trump … Continue reading
Bathroom bill’ compromise angers Democratic gov’s allies
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Gay rights groups that fiercely supported Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s winning campaign last fall because of his pledge to repeal North Carolina’s “bathroom bill” now say he betrayed them by accepting the recent compromise, calling it a “dirty deal” with Republicans. Many fellow Democrats also were upset with the compromise, which … Continue reading
David Rockefeller, last of generation in family, dies at 101
NEW YORK (AP) — David Rockefeller was the last of his generation in a famous American family that taught its children that wealth brings great responsibility. Even as children, he and his siblings had to set aside portions of their allowances for charitable giving. That lesson lasted throughout his life; to mark his 100th birthday … Continue reading
Justices won’t hear Menendez appeal in corruption case
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez’s appeal of his corruption indictment, setting the stage for a federal trial in the fall. The justices let stand a lower court ruling that refused to dismiss charges including conspiracy, bribery and fraud against the Democratic lawmaker. … Continue reading
Stock indexes listed in New York
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes were listless Friday, making only small moves for the second straight day. Drops for banks and health care stocks offset gains for dividend-paying stocks. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index is still on track to deliver its seventh week of gains in the last eight, following a big … Continue reading
Apartment building inspected 50 times before blaze
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — An apartment building under construction in North Carolina’s capital city had been inspected 50 times, most recently on Monday, before it went up in flames near an entertainment district, the fire chief said Friday. Several other buildings were damaged by the fire that broke out in Raleigh Thursday night, some of … Continue reading
Trump set to challenge Obama-era fuel standards in Detroit
WASHINGTON (AP) — Moving forcefully against Obama-era environmental rules, President Donald Trump is set to announce in Michigan plans to re-examine federal requirements that regulate the fuel efficiency of new cars and trucks. Trump is expected to reveal his plans during an appearance Wednesday at the American Center for Mobility in Ypsilanti, Michigan, where he’ll … Continue reading
A look at some Israeli high-tech successes
JERUSALEM (AP) — Intel announced Monday it will spend more than $15 billion to acquire Mobileye, an Israeli company that develops technology that essentially gives computers a sense of their physical surroundings — the largest high-tech acquisition in the history of the Jewish State. Faced with limited natural resources, Israel has fostered a vibrant high-tech … Continue reading
Officials in legal pot state vow to fight federal crackdown
WASHINGTON (AP) — Officials in Washington state, where recreational marijuana is legal, vow to fight any federal crackdown on the nascent industry after White House spokesman Sean Spicer said they should expect to see stepped-up enforcement of anti-pot laws. Bob Ferguson, attorney general in Washington state, which joined Colorado in 2012 as the first states … Continue reading
Ellen, Wal-Mart give scholarships to school’s senior class
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ellen DeGeneres has handed out college scholarships to the entire senior class of a New York City charter school. DeGeneres surprised the 41 students from Brooklyn’s Summit Academy this week at her California studio during the taping of Thursday’s episode of her chat show. The four-year scholarships paid for by Wal-Mart … Continue reading
European grocery store chain to begin hiring in Virginia
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (AP) — Lidl, the German no-frills supermarket chain, is set to begin hiring in Virginia for some of its first stores in the U.S. The chain announced Thursday that it would begin hiring 800 store associates for locations in 12 Virginia cities. Spokesman Will Harwood tells the Free Lance-Star (http://bit.ly/2mcPiKd ) the hires … Continue reading
Dakota Access oil pipeline could be operating within weeks
CANNON BALL, N.D. (AP) — Oil could be flowing through the $3.8 billion Dakota Access pipeline in less than two weeks, according to court documents filed by the developer just before police and soldiers started clearing a protest camp in North Dakota where pipeline opponents had gathered for the better part of a year. Energy … Continue reading
Correction: Trump-Manufacturing story
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump brought two dozen manufacturing CEOs to the White House on Thursday and declared their collective commitment to restoring factory jobs lost to foreign competition. Yet some of the CEOs suggested that there were still plenty of openings for U.S. factory jobs but too few qualified people to fill … Continue reading
‘No anonymous sources,’ Trump scolds after WH uses them
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump escalated his criticism of the news media Friday, taking direct aim this time at the use of anonymous sources. Reporters “shouldn’t be allowed to use sources unless they use somebody’s name,” he declared, just hours after members of his own staff held a press briefing and refused to allow … Continue reading
Mariah Carey confirms new beau, vents frustration over NYE
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mariah Carey may have had her heart broken after her engagement to billionaire James Packer ended, but she shook that off and now has a vision of love for her backup dancer Bryan Tanaka. Carey, who posted an Instagram picture with her and Tanaka drinking champagne in a tub on … Continue reading