VOL. 43 | NO. 10 | Friday, March 8, 2019
STATE GOVERNMENT
There’s a new caucus at the state Capitol: the Tennessee Future Caucus, a bipartisan group geared toward younger lawmakers and focused on finding common ground.
RICHARD COURTNEY: REALTY CHECK
Several years ago, I left the banking industry to try my hand at real estate until I found a real job.
REAL ESTATE
The upward trend of home sales activity in Nashville and Davidson County continued into the second month of 2019.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. long-term mortgage rates rose modestly this week, but they remain slightly lower than they were a year ago.
TIM GHIANNI: STREET LEVEL
Sitting on two plastic milk crates – one red and one blue – beneath a giant pink pig and next to a pile of split hickory and cherry, I chat with Fat Boy about family, love, life’s gambles and triumphs … even about God and brisket.
NEWSMAKERS
Kevin Smith, M.D., Ph.D., MMHC, FACP, has been elected president of the Tennessee Medical Association and will take office in May.
BRIEFS
The Tennessee Arts Commission is accepting nominations through May 31 for the 2019 Governor’s Arts Awards.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
Automobile infotainment systems have evolved in recent years from simple stereo head units to massive touch-screen centerpieces responsible for all sorts of in-car activities.
PERSONAL FINANCE
Certified financial planner Jill Schlesinger has seen smart people make some pretty spectacular money mistakes.
NASHVILLE AREA
GOODLETTSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Dollar General Corp. (DG) on Thursday reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings of $483.2 million.
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) — A Tennessee lawmaker wants the state's public indecency law to apply to bathrooms and changing rooms — a move that critics argue is designed to restrict the facilities that transgender people can use.
COURTS
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Supreme Court on Wednesday expanded protections for reporters by ruling they can only be held liable for defamation if their reporting is not fair and accurate, regardless of their personal feelings toward a subject.
The mastermind of a wide-ranging college admissions scandal set up a charity that wove a deep web of deception and fraud to mask bribes and payoffs, funneling millions of dollars through the tax-exempt organization under the nose of U.S. officials, according to prosecutors and tax documents reviewed by The Associated Press.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The New York Times reports that federal prosecutors are conducting a criminal investigation into Facebook's data deals with major electronics manufacturers.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sales of new U.S. homes slumped 6.9 percent in January, a possible sign that buyers paused during the government shutdown.
TRANSPORTATION
SINGAPORE (AP) — Airlines and countries around the world have grounded Boeing 737 Max jets or banned them from their airspace following the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines plane that killed 157 people on Sunday, five months after a similar Indonesian Lion Air jet plunged into the ocean, killing 189. A look at those countries and airlines:
ENVIRONMENT
PARIS (AP) — Four activist groups have launched legal action to try to take the French state to court for not doing enough to fight climate change.
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Gray wolves in the U.S. would be stripped of federal protection and subjected to hunting and trapping in more states under a proposal released Thursday that declares the predators recovered following a decades-long restoration effort.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
LONDON (AP) — British lawmakers faced another tumultuous day Thursday, as Parliament prepared to vote on whether to request a delay to the country's scheduled departure from the European Union and Prime Minister Theresa May struggled to shore up her shattered authority.
BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance is mulling whether to take action in response to security concerns about Chinese tech giant Huawei.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday dangled the prospect of walking away from a new trade deal with China if it's not to his liking, just as he cut short his summit with North Korea's Kim Jong Un when the two sides failed to reach an agreement.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former FBI agent who helped lead the investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia says "there was no conspiracy" at the agency to prevent Donald Trump from becoming president.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is suggesting he will protect President Donald Trump's privacy if he receives a request from House Democrats for Trump's tax returns.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican-led Senate is set to deal President Donald Trump a rebuke on his declaration of a national emergency at the Mexican border, with the only remaining question how many GOP senators will join Democrats in defying him.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee suggested on Wednesday that former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker may have had conversations with President Donald Trump about Michael Cohen's legal troubles, saying that Whitaker "did not deny" the conversations during a private meeting on Capitol Hill.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13
MUSIC INDUSTRY
NEW YORK (AP) — Kesha wants you to bring as much glitter as possible and sport the brightest colors of the rainbow when she visits Utah in June to headline the LOVELOUD Festival, the LGBTQ+ event founded by Imagine Dragons' frontman Dan Reynolds.
EDUCATION
A college entrance exam policy aimed at helping students with disabilities was exploited to enable cheating in what is being described as the biggest school admissions scandal ever prosecuted by federal authorities, according to court papers made public Tuesday.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A school district in Tennessee says it no longer wants teachers to use crowdfunding websites to get extra school supplies.
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) — The University of Tennessee is expressing concerns about legislation to bring sports gambling to the state.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A Tennessee legislative panel has spiked a bill allowing candidates to use their campaign funds to pay for child care.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A $40 million proposal to improve school safety is advancing in the Tennessee Legislature.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee House lawmakers have advanced legislation to ban landlords from renting or subleasing housing to people in the U.S. illegally.
STATEWIDE
SAVANNAH (AP) — U.S. Senators Lamar Alexander and Marsha Blackburn say a law signed by President Donald Trump will expand Shiloh National Military Park in Tennessee.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee environmental officials have added nearly 400 acres to Piney Falls State Natural Area in Rhea County.
PREDATORS
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The Anaheim Ducks are looking for a strong finish to a lost season.
TENNESSEE TITANS
A person with knowledge of the decision tells The Associated Press that the Tennessee Titans have agreed to terms with Miami linebacker Cameron Wake on a three-year deal worth $23 million with $10 million guaranteed.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Spending on U.S. construction projects in January posted the biggest gain in nine months, as strength in nonresidential construction and government projects offset continued weakness in home construction.
AUTO INDUSTRY
BERLIN (AP) — German carmaker Volkswagen AG says it expects to shed between 5,000 and 7,000 jobs at its core brand by 2023 as a result of increasing automation of "routine tasks."
DETROIT (AP) — The United Auto Workers president says he is "deeply saddened and irritated" by a corruption scandal in which union officials are accused of accepting bribes from Fiat Chrysler executives.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fiat Chrysler is voluntarily recalling 862,520 vehicles in the U.S. because they don't meet the country's emission standards.
HEALTH CARE
The company that has made billions selling the prescription painkiller OxyContin says it is considering bankruptcy as one of several possible legal options.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health regulators are moving ahead with a plan designed to keep e-cigarettes out of the hands of teenagers by restricting sales of most flavored products in convenience stores, gas stations, pharmacies and other retail locations.
TRANSPORTATION
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. is issuing an emergency order Wednesday grounding all Boeing 737 Max 8 and Max 9 aircraft "effective immediately," in the wake of the crash of an Ethiopian Airliner that killed 157 people, President Donald Trump said.
HEJERE, Ethiopia (AP) — The flight recorders from the Boeing 737 Max 8 jet that crashed and killed all 157 people on board will be sent abroad for analysis, an Ethiopian Airlines spokesman said Wednesday, as much of the world grounded or barred the model and grieving families arrived at the site of the disaster.
In the days since an Ethiopian Airlines plane crashed after taking off for Nairobi and killed all 157 people aboard, there have been many questions but not a lot of answers.
ENVIRONMENT
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Three Norwegian lawmakers have nominated Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg, who has become a prominent voice in campaigns against climate change, for the Nobel Peace Prize.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Earth is sick with multiple and worsening environmental ills killing millions of people yearly, a new U.N. report says.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks closed higher on Wall Street, led by gains in health care and technology companies and giving the market its third straight gain.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says the United States is in "a very good position" as it negotiates with China on a new trade agreement.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Orders to U.S. factories for big-ticket manufactured goods edged up slightly in January, but the strength came from a big increase in the volatile aircraft category. In encouraging news for future growth, a key category that tracks business investment plans posted its biggest gain in six months.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. wholesale prices barely increased last month after falling for three straight months, a sign there is little inflation pressure in the economy.
LONDON (AP) — Swedish music site Spotify has complained to European Union regulators about Apple for allegedly abusing its dominant position in music streaming and stifling competition.
LONDON (AP) — British lawmakers have resoundingly rejected Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit divorce deal for a second time, leaving the country's planned March 29 departure from the bloc in chaos and doubt.
LONDON (AP) — Business leaders reacted with fury Wednesday after the British government unveiled a temporary tariff regime that could see higher prices on an array of imports ranging from cars to butter, if the country crashes out of the European Union later this month without a deal.
DEAL, England (AP) — The people of Deal would like a Brexit deal. Above all, they want Britain's divided politicians to make a decision.
LONDON (AP) — A review into competition in the U.K.'s digital market says the country needs tough new rules to help counter the dominance of big tech giants like Facebook, Google and Amazon.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is trying to make it harder for Republicans to avoid an embarrassing Senate rebuff of President Donald Trump's effort to steer billions of extra federal dollars to building barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border by declaring a national emergency.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was sentenced to a total of seven and a half years in prison Wednesday after a federal judge rejected his appeal for no additional time and rebuked him for his crimes and years of lies.
TUESDAY, MARCH 12
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) — A Tennessee House panel has advanced a bill that would allow faith-based orphanages and child-placement organizations to decline adoptions or foster care based on religious beliefs, including opposition to LGBT parents.
MIDSTATE
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. (AP) — Fort Campbell is surveying soldiers, family members, Army civilians and military retirees about the health and readiness of their military community.
MUSIC INDUSTRY
FRANKLIN (AP) — After rain and lightning caused a cancellation last year, the Pilgrimage Music and Cultural Festival is hoping for a rebound in its fifth year with headliners Foo Fighters, The Killers and Keith Urban.
UT SPORTS
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Southeastern Conference coaches have selected Tennessee forward Grant Williams as the league's player of the year for a second straight season.
KNOXVILLE (AP) — Tennessee forward Grant Williams is the Associated Press' Southeastern Conference player of the year and Mississippi's Kermit Davis is coach of the year.
TENNESSEE TITANS
NASHVILLE (AP) — A person with knowledge of the deal says the Tennessee Titans have agreed with Tampa Bay wide receiver Adam Humphries to a four-year contract worth approximately $36 million.
COURTS
NEW YORK (AP) — New York's attorney general has opened a civil investigation into President Donald Trump's business dealings, taking action after his former lawyer told Congress he exaggerated his wealth to obtain loans.
BOSTON (AP) — Hollywood actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin were charged along with nearly 50 other people Tuesday in a scheme in which wealthy parents bribed college coaches and insiders at testing centers to get their children into some of the most elite schools in the country, federal prosecutors said.
AUTO INDUSTRY
CANTON, Miss. (AP) — Nissan Motor Co. says fewer contract workers than previously announced were laid off from its Mississippi plant.
LONDON (AP) — Infiniti Motor Co., the luxury division of Japanese automaker Nissan, says it's withdrawing from Western Europe — offering another blow to carmakers in the U.K. bracing for Britain's departure from the European Union.
YOKOHAMA, Japan (AP) — The chief executives of Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi have announced a new board to oversee the French-Japanese auto alliance, seeking a "new start" for the partnership after the arrest and dismissal of Nissan's former chairman, Carlos Ghosn.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — German automaker Volkswagen said Tuesday it plans to ramp up its production of electric vehicles over the next ten years to 22 million and reduce its carbon footprint over vehicle life cycles by 30 percent.
DETROIT (AP) — A type of Takata air bag inflator once thought to be safe has now come under scrutiny after a crash and explosion in Maryland injured the driver of a Honda minivan.
TRANSPORTATION
HEJERE, Ethiopia (AP) — Canada joined much of the world in barring the Boeing 737 Max 8 jet from its airspace on Wednesday, saying satellite tracking data shows possible but unproven similarities between the Ethiopian Airliner crash that killed 157 people and a previous crash involving the model five months ago. The decision left the U.S. as one of the few remaining countries to allow the planes to keep flying.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Fatal crashes of Boeing 737 Max 8 planes less than five months apart have alarmed the public, triggering a wave of groundings worldwide, but experts say reported similarities between the two disasters are not conclusive evidence of a shared cause.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the National Cancer Institute will temporarily take charge of the Food and Drug Administration next month after the departure of its current chief.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats are accusing President Donald Trump of going back on his campaign promise to protect Medicare after he introduced a 2020 budget that calls for steep cuts in Medicare payments to hospitals.
The nation's largest health insurer is expanding a program that passes rebates from drugmakers directly to the people that use their medications.
TECHNOLOGY
Facebook, already the leader in enabling you to share photos, videos and links, now wants to be a force in messaging, commerce, payments and just about everything else you do online.
GENEVA (AP) — At the ripe old age of 30 and with half the globe using it, the World Wide Web is facing growing pains with issues like hate speech, privacy concerns and state-sponsored hacking, its creator says, trumpeting a call to make it better for humanity.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are closing mostly higher on Wall Street, extending gains for the S&P 500 index into a second day.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The CEO of beleaguered Wells Fargo told Congress Tuesday that the bank has cleaned up its act after a series of scandals that affected millions of customers.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The top U.S. trade negotiator suggests that the U.S. and China are nearing an agreement that would end their trade conflict, but wouldn't commit to a specific time frame.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumer prices rose 0.2 percent in February, pushed up slightly by higher gasoline and housing costs even as the prices for autos and clothing slumped.
LONDON (AP) — With just 17 days to go, Britain's departure from the European Union was thrown into chaos and doubt Tuesday as Parliament delivered a crushing defeat to Prime Minister Theresa May's European Union divorce deal and to her authority as leader.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Google paid former search executive Amit Singhal $35 million in an exit package when he was reportedly forced to resign after a sexual assault investigation, according to court documents released Monday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Monday that the strong U.S. economy is masking the struggles of many families in lower-income communities.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House's top budget official acknowledged Tuesday that the federal deficit is ballooning to $1.1 trillion alongside the Republican tax plan but vowed the fiscal picture would improve as a result of projected economic growth.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A key House investigator said Tuesday that Speaker Nancy Pelosi is "absolutely right" to hold back on impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump proposed a record $4.7 trillion budget, pushing the federal deficit past $1 trillion but counting on optimistic growth, accounting shuffles and steep domestic cuts to bring future spending into balance in 15 years.
MONDAY, MARCH 11
COURTS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Nashville and one of its police officers are being sued by the family of a black man who ran from police and had a gun when he was shot from behind last July.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — A national conservative group is attacking former Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Haslam as he considers running for another open U.S. Senate seat.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee's state veterinarian is warning horse owners to take precautions after the equine influenza virus was diagnosed in several horses returning from out-of-state events.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — Former President George W. Bush is slated to speak at Vanderbilt University as part of a lecture series.
VANDERBILT SPORTS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Vanderbilt baseball coach Tim Corbin has reached 800 career victories.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — The president of the United Auto Workers union warned automakers that the union is prepared to strike if it doesn't get its way in upcoming contract talks.
DETROIT (AP) — Tesla is walking back plans to close most of its showrooms worldwide and announced price hikes for most of its electric vehicles.
TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese court has rejected a request by former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn, released on bail last week, to attend the Japanese automaker's board meeting on Tuesday.
TECHNOLOGY
MOSCOW (AP) — Several thousand people have rallied in Moscow to protest legislation they fear could lead to widespread internet censorship for Russian users.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — A rally in the technology sector is pushing U.S. stocks to broad gains Monday, led by Apple and chipmakers.
LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Theresa May scrambled to win last-minute changes from the European Union to her Brexit deal Monday, a day before a crucial vote in Britain's Parliament that could derail the country's withdrawal from the EU — and cost May her job.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. retail sales rose slightly in January after a sharp drop in December, reflecting caution taken by consumers amid a government shutdown and volatile stock market.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says political attacks by President Donald Trump played no role in the Fed's decision in January to signal that it planned to take a pause in hiking interest rates. He also said in an interview broadcast Sunday that he can't be fired by the president and that he intends to serve out his full four-year term.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Levi Strauss plans to raise up to $587 million in an initial public offering of company shares.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Shares in Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank have risen after news reports that Deutsche Bank's top management has agreed to hold preliminary talks about a possible merger.
HEJERE, Ethiopia (AP) — Airlines in Ethiopia, China, Indonesia and elsewhere grounded the Boeing 737 Max 8 jetliner Monday after the second devastating crash of one of the planes in five months. But Boeing said it had no reason to pull the popular aircraft from the skies.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — "Medicare for All" has become catnip for Democratic presidential candidates and many lawmakers, yet Republicans prepping for next year's congressional races are also flocking to it — for entirely different reasons.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump proposed a record $4.7 trillion federal budget for 2020 on Monday, relying on optimistic 3.1 percent economic growth projections alongside accounting shuffles and steep domestic cuts to bring future spending into promised balance in 15 years.
FRIDAY, MARCH 8
REGION
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Valley Authority this week defended its relationship with a contractor accused of subverting safety precautions and sickening workers during the cleanup of a massive coal ash spill.
Forecasters are upgrading the likelihood that severe storms and strong tornadoes could strike parts of the South less than a week after a twister killed 23 people in Alabama.
STATE GOVERNMENT
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia and Tennessee joined a string of states moving to enact tough abortion restrictions when Republican House lawmakers passed bans on most abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — A Tennessee panel has approved a $10 million economic development grant to establish the FedEx Logistics headquarters in downtown Memphis.
MEMPHIS (AP) — The Tennessee Valley Authority prepared Friday for more rainfall that could add water to already-overflowing rivers, and Gov. Bill Lee has signed an executive order making it easier for Tennessee to recover from the effects of serious flooding.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee officials will poll cotton growers over whether they want to keep paying for a boll weevil eradication program.
MIDSTATE
BRENTWOOD (AP) — Officials say two Tennessee teachers have resigned following backlash over a social studies assignment that asked students to pretend to be slave owners and brainstorm expectations for their slaves.
TENNESSEE TITANS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee Titans punter Brett Kern has agreed to terms on a multi-year contract extension.
COURTS
KNOXVILLE (AP) — The defense lawyer for a woman convicted of conspiracy in a truck stop rebate scam says she deserves a new trial.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. housing starts jumped 18.6 percent in January, as builders ramped up construction of single-family houses to the fastest pace in eight months.
AUTO INDUSTRY
TOKYO (AP) — Former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn was seen walking in a Tokyo park on Friday, two days after his release from a Japanese detention center.
DAYTON (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee says two German companies are bringing more than 300 jobs and $11 million in investments to two rural towns.
TOKYO (AP) — Former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn's release from detention nearly four months after his arrest has gripped Japan, giving the public a rare glimpse into how the criminal justice system works.
GENEVA (AP) — If you want to ride like Vlad — Russian President Vladimir Putin, that is — this may be the limo for you.
TECHNOLOGY
LONDON (AP) — Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is taking the social media company in a new direction by focusing on messaging. Chinese tech giant Tencent got there years ago with its app WeChat.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — Another down day on Wall Street left the S&P 500 with its worst weekly showing since January and its eighth loss in the last nine days.
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Many of Amazon's Seattle-area employees would be exempt from new labor protections in a bill passed by the state Senate after lobbyists for the tech giant pushed to change a key threshold in the rules.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The pace of hiring in the United States fell last month to its lowest point in nearly a year and a half, a surprise drop likely reflecting harsh weather and other temporary factors that led most economists to see the slowdown as a temporary blip.
STAVANGER, Norway (AP) — Norway's $1 trillion wealth fund, the biggest of its kind in the world, will begin dumping shares in oil and gas companies, but stopped short of barring major producers like ExxonMobil and Chevron.
LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister Theresa May tried to pressure U.K. lawmakers Friday to support her Brexit deal, warning that Britain may never leave the European Union if they vote down the agreement next week.
BEIJING (AP) — China's foreign minister on Friday promised "all necessary measures" to defend Chinese companies and citizens abroad amid legal clashes between tech giant Huawei and Washington.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Consumer borrowing rose at a slightly faster pace in January as borrowing on credit cards rebounded after a slowdown in December.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Iowa hog farmer Howard Hill is feeling the pinch from President Donald Trump's get-tough trade policies — his pigs are selling for less than it costs to raise them. It's a hit that Hill is willing to take for now, but his understanding also comes with a caution flag for the president.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Airbnb is acquiring last-minute booking service HotelTonight in order to boost its offerings.
Technology and financial companies helped pull U.S. stocks broadly lower Thursday, marking the fourth straight loss for the S&P 500. The benchmark index is now on track for its first weekly drop since January.
NEW YORK (AP) — The bull market for U.S. stocks turns 10 years old this weekend, which puts it way past senior citizen status for a market run. It's got the scars to prove it.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A surprisingly strong burst of job growth over the past year has led many economists to wonder: Where are all the workers coming from?
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. productivity grew at a rate of 1.9 percent in the fourth quarter, a slight improvement over the third quarter. Labor costs rose 2 percent, the strongest gain since the beginning of 2018.
CINCINNATI (AP) — Shares of Kroger are falling sharply after the grocer's costly modernization plan dragged down profits during the fourth quarter.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The European Central Bank took unexpectedly quick action on Thursday to support a slowing economy, joining the U.S Federal Reserve and Chinese leadership in their attempts to counter worries about global growth.
LONDON (AP) — Brexit negotiations between Britain with the European Union will continue through the weekend, the country's chief law officer said Thursday as the U.K. scrambled to secure changes to the divorce deal before a vote in Parliament next week.
SHENZHEN, China (AP) — Chinese tech giant Huawei is challenging a U.S. law that would limit its American sales of telecom equipment on security grounds as the company steps up efforts to preserve its access to global markets for next-generation communications.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic-controlled House on Friday approved legislation aimed at reducing the role of big money in politics, ensuring fair elections and strengthening ethics standards. But it stands little chance in the Republican-run Senate, where the GOP leader has pledged it will not come up for a vote, and the White House issued a veto threat.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Fox News executive Bill Shine has resigned as White House communications director and has joined President Donald Trump's re-election campaign as a senior adviser.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren on Friday rolled out a proposal to break up the biggest U.S. technology companies, saying they have too much control over the economy and Americans' lives.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is saying his former lawyer Michael Cohen told a "stone cold lie" in claiming that he did not seek a pardon.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning has been jailed for refusing to testify to a grand jury investigating Wikileaks.
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort has been sentenced to nearly four years in prison for tax and bank fraud related to his work advising Ukrainian politicians, much less than what was called for under sentencing guidelines.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Divided in debate but mostly united in a final vote, the House passed a resolution condemning anti-Semitism and other bigotry. Democrats are trying to push past a dispute that has overwhelmed their agenda and exposed fault lines that could shadow them through next year's elections.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — U.S. analysts say North Korea appears to have restored normal operations at a long-range rocket launch site it had partially dismantled last year as part of disarmament steps.
NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen filed a lawsuit Thursday claiming the Trump Organization broke a promise to pay his legal bills and owes at least $1.9 million to cover the cost of his defense.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown said Thursday he will not run for president in 2020, becoming the latest Democrat to bow out of the White House race.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday the House will vote on a resolution condemning anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and other forms of hate after an upheaval that split Democrats and clouded their agenda. But Pelosi said the measure won't name Ilhan Omar, the freshman Democrat whose comments about Israel sparked the uproar.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The government's consumer watchdog agency came under new scrutiny from the House Financial Services Committee, now controlled by Democrats who say the appointees chosen by President Donald Trump to lead the organization have undermined its mission to protect Americans.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House is expected to vote Thursday on a resolution "opposing hate" as Democrats try to move past a controversy over remarks by freshman Rep. Ilhan Omar that deeply split the party and clouded their agenda.
NEW YORK (AP) — Allen Weisselberg is seemingly everything his longtime boss, Donald Trump, isn't.