May 7, 2024

WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. consumers and businesses spent cautiously last month, a sign that strong growth during the spring and summer may decelerate in the final three months of the year. The figures released Wednesday were a mild disappointment after data the previous day showed the economy had expanded at the fastest pace in over […]

CLEVELAND (AP) – A 12-year-old boy carrying a pellet gun that looked like a real firearm was ordered three times to show his hands before he was fatally shot by an officer, Cleveland police said Wednesday as they released surveillance video of the shooting and identified the officers involved. The boy was shot within two […]

WASHINGTON (AP) – A Republican lawmaker says the battle against the Islamic State group needs to have “an Arab face,” even as the U.S. leads airstrikes to help defeat the militant group. Rep. Rob Wittman of Virginia said he agrees with a comment made by King Abdullah II while Wittman and other members of Congress […]

NEW YORK (AP) – A government report says the smoking rate for U.S. adults dipped below 18 percent for the first time last year. That’s still about the same rate found in 2012, and translates to about 42 million smokers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the findings Wednesday. Smoking was more common […]

FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) – Authorities have raised the arrest total from the second night of protests over the grand jury decision in the Michael Brown case to 58. St. Louis County police said early Wednesday that 45 people were arrested overnight in Ferguson, which was much calmer than during the first night of protests in […]

DETROIT (AP) – U.S. safety regulators threatened fines and legal action against Takata Corp. Wednesday unless the company admits that its driver’s air bag inflators are defective and agrees to a nationwide recall. In a letter to Takata’s Washington office, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration gave the Japanese company until Tuesday to file paperwork […]

Starting up a new business can be tough and saying no to people offering to help get you start-up money can be even tougher. Lisa Cooley still can’t believe she was duped by a couple claiming they could help her secure a grant for her business. “I was new to real estate and we needed […]

MIAMI (AP) – Authorities say two people were arrested during a protest in Miami in reaction to the Ferguson, Missouri, grand jury decision. Approximately 150 people gathered outside the Richard Gerstein Justice Building near downtown Miami Tuesday evening. No violence or property damage was reported, but Miami police say two South Florida men were arrested […]

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) – The extent that Republican consultants went to influence Florida’s redrawing of congressional and legislative districts was placed into public view on Tuesday by the Florida Supreme Court. The high court officially unsealed hundreds of pages of emails and documents, as well as court testimony that had been given behind closed doors […]

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) – Florida Gov. Rick Scott exchanged emails dealing with vetoes, the state budget and his speeches from a private email account, according to records turned over to The Associated Press on Tuesday. Scott has previously said he used a Google email account to communicate with his family and not for state business. […]