Democrats announce new party leadership
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York was elected the Democratic Party leader in the House of Representatives.
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ABC NewsTrump trial live updates: Defense questions recording of Trump-Cohen conversation
Former President Donald Trump is on trial in New York City, where he is facing felony charges related to a 2016 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Trump last April pleaded not guilty to a 34-count indictment charging him with falsifying business records in connection with a hush money payment his then-attorney Michael Cohen made to Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election. Douglas Daus told defense attorney Emil Bove that the recording on Michael Cohen's phone of of a 2016 conversation with Donald Trump lacks any metadata to suggest it was ever modified.
- Good Morning America
ABC News’ Becky Worley joins research study that could help millions of others
It started like most "Good Morning America" assignments, an idea from our Med Unit about a new study being conducted by the National Institutes of Health. The National Institute of Health's All of Us Research Program will collect more data on more types of people than ever before. "The hope for the impact is that we will be generating evidence on people who have traditionally not been part of biomedical research, so that eventually clinical care can be more personalized for everyone," she said.
- Good Morning America
'Not going to leave': Family returns to Kharkiv after fleeing when Russia invaded
Less than a month after Russia invaded Ukraine, Yana, 33, the lonely mother of Roman, who is now 11, left the front-line city of Kharkiv with their relativs and spent seven months in Lviv, a city in the western part of Ukraine, farther from the fighting. "I am infinitely grateful to Lviv and its people for the fact that we are now alive and unharmed -- I have never received as much help as I received in Lviv," Yana told ABC News.
- Good Morning America
Americans' views divided on US policy toward Israel-Hamas war: POLL
Nearly four in 10 Americans in a new ABC News Ipsos poll say the United States is doing too much to support Israel in its war with Hamas, up from about three in 10 in January. About a third of Americans say the U.S. is doing too little to help protect Palestinian civilians caught up in the war -- yet a quarter say it's doing too much. On Israel, there has been a shift: Early this year, 31% said the U.S. was doing too much to support Israel in its war with Hamas, while today 38% say so, up 7 percentage points.
- Good Morning America
Biden set to award Presidential Medal of Freedom to Pelosi, Al Gore, Bloomberg, Michelle Yeoh and more
President Joe Biden will honor 19 people with the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Friday, the nation’s highest civilian honor. The diverse group of names from politics to activists and entertainment include Biden’s 2020 Democratic primary opponents and former NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg, former Vice President Al Gore, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Jim Clyburn, Elizabeth Dole and recent Biden Climate Envoy and former Sec.
- Good Morning America
'Little Rascals' and 'Mummy Marauder': How the FBI Houston brainstorms nicknames for suspects
The FBI's Houston office in March said it was searching for three alleged bank robbers, suspects whom the bureau dubbed the "Little Rascals" because witnesses described them as being between 14 and 18-years-old. "They left the bank on foot," the bureau said in a post on social media, including photos of the young suspects. The same FBI bureau said a few days later it was searching for a suspect in a separate bank robbery who was assumed to be several decades older.
- Good Morning America
Biden administration will expand health care coverage for immigrants under DACA
The Biden administration has finalized plans to expand government-subsidized health insurance for people brought to the country illegally as children but shielded from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Immigrants with DACA status receive protections from deportation but had been formerly barred from receiving health care coverage made available by the Affordable Care Act.
- ABC News
Captain sentenced to 4 years in prison for deadly boat fire
The captain of a scuba dive boat that caught fire off the California coast in 2019, killing 34 people, was sentenced to four years in federal prison on Thursday, the Department of Justice said. A federal jury found Jerry Boylan, 70, of Santa Barbara, guilty of seaman's manslaughter in November 2023 in connection with the deadly boat fire. Boylan was the captain of the Conception, a 75-foot boat that caught fire while it was docked at Platt's Harbor near Santa Cruz Island during a scuba diving excursion in the early morning hours on Sept. 2, 2019, while passengers and crew members were sleeping.
- ABC News
Houston area facing 'life-threatening' flood conditions as severe weather pummels Texas
The Houston area is facing "life-threatening" flood conditions, officials warned, as severe weather pummels parts of Texas. A flood watch is in effect Thursday in southeastern Texas and Louisiana. Numerous flash flood warnings are also in effect, as up to 8 inches of rain has already fallen in some parts of southeastern Texas Thursday.
- ABC News
Teachers of the Year honored by Biden at White House dinner: You're the reason 'we have hope about the future'
It was a toast to teaching at the White House Thursday night as more than 50 of the nation's top educators gathered for the first-ever Teachers of the Year State Dinner. "How can we be the most powerful country in the world without having the best education system in the world?" President Joe Biden -- who made a surprise appearance -- said, drawing applause during the dinner event honoring America's Teacher of the Year. In prior years, the teacher would be awarded a golden apple at a less formal White House ceremony.
- ABC News
Pregnant woman found stabbed to death in home: Authorities
A homicide investigation is underway after a pregnant woman was found stabbed to death in her Los Angeles County home, authorities said. Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies responded to a residence in Palmdale Tuesday night to conduct a welfare check, authorities said. "When deputies arrived on scene, they forced entry into the victim’s home after they discovered what they believed to be blood in the living room floor," the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.
- Good Morning America
9-year-old credited with helping to save parents amid tornado
Oklahoma Gov. J. Kevin Stitt said that at least four people were killed in the storms that slammed his state. In the town of Dickson, the Baker family was caught up in the severe weather on Saturday, including parents Marvin Wayne Baker and Lindy Baker and their 9-year-old son Branson. Johnny Baker, Wayne Baker's brother, told "Good Morning America" he had been on the phone with his brother as they tried to race to the safety of their friend Jason's storm shelter when the line cut out.
- ABC News
First heatwave of the year expected to hit Southern states next week
Spring may be short-lived in the South, with the first major heat wave of 2024 expected to scorch Southern states from Texas to Florida next week. After a weather year filled with deep freezes, atmospheric rivers and destructive tornadoes across parts of the U.S., weather forecasts for the upcoming season call for blistering heat waves that could impact Americans across the country. Numerous daily high-temperature records could be broken by the middle and end of next week across the South and Southeast, with highs in the 90s.
- ABC News
Russian troops operating out of same base in Niger that hosts some US troops, 2 officials say
Russian military personnel are operating out of an air base in Niger that is still hosting a small number of American troops, two U.S. officials tell ABC News. One of the officials said the Russian trainers arrived several weeks ago at Niger's "Airport 101" near the capital of Niamey, and do not present an immediate security concern to U.S. troops. The Russian forces are operating out of a hangar at a location far away from U.S. forces and not on any property owned or being used by the United States, the officials said Thursday.
- ABC News
Ariz. governor signs repeal of 1864 abortion ban, but law may still temporarily take effect
Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs on Thursday signed repeal legislation of a long dormant, near-total abortion ban that was recently revived by the state Supreme Court, stirring widespread controversy and debate. "While I'm proud to sign this bill and provide a moment of relief for Arizonans, we still have work to do," she said at a ceremony, flanked by state legislators and abortion access advocates. Hobbs' signature will reverse the pending reactivation of the restrictive abortion law that dates to 1864 -- but it won't do so immediately.
- ABC News
Authorities arrest suspect in killing of Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca
The Chicago Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force took Xavier L. Tate Jr. into custody on suspicion of the murder of Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca. Tate Jr. was found Wednesday night in the Chicago suburb of Glendale Heights, Illinois, police said. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said Huesca's death was the result of "an act of unconscionable gun violence in our city."
- ABC News
4 big takeaways from Day 10 of Trump's hush money trial
Attorneys for Donald Trump in his criminal hush money trial on Thursday attempted to frame Keith Davidson, a Los Angeles-based attorney who represented Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, as an unsavory figure who made a career of extorting wealthy celebrities for shady clients. Jurors also heard the voice of a man whose name has come up repeatedly in these proceedings: Trump's former attorney, Michael Cohen. Both parties played audio recordings of phone conversations he surreptitiously recorded, including one in which Cohen said Donald Trump told him: "I hate the fact that we did it," referring to the nondisclosure deal with Stormy Daniels.
- ABC News
Hawaii counties get more say over short-term rentals amid housing crisis in aftermath of Maui wildfires
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green signed a bill into law to give counties more authority to regulate short-term vacation rentals amid the ongoing state housing crisis and aftermath of the Maui wildfires. Now, a day after the bill signing, local advocates from Lāhainā Strong are joining County Maui Mayor Richard Bissen to announce a new policy aimed at regulating and phasing out "thousands of transient vacation rentals that have not gone through the traditional permitting process." The Maui wildfires in August 2023 exacerbated the island's housing crisis, burning thousands of structures and displacing thousands of residents.
- ABC News
Poultry enterprise in California to pay $4.8M after employing children to work with sharp knives
The owners and operators of a network of California poultry processors and distributors were ordered to pay $4.8 million in back wages and damages and to give up $1 million in profits after a Department of Labor investigation found the owners illegally employed children as young as 14 to work dangerous jobs. The wage settlement is one of the largest ever reached for U.S. poultry workers, the DOL said in a statement. The investigation by the department's Wage and House Division involving A1 Meat Solutions, JRC Culinary Group, Moon Poultry and five other businesses alleged that the enterprise employed children in dangerous conditions, including using sharp knives to debone poultry.
- Good Morning America
Woman wins $1 million lottery prize for 2nd time in 10 weeks
Christine Wilson of Attleborough won a $1 million jackpot, the Massachusetts State Lottery announced this week, marking her second time winning the prize in 10 weeks. Wilson claimed her first $1 million prize on Feb. 23 on the "Lifetime Millions" $50 instant ticket game that she bought at Dubs's Discount Liquors, in Mansfield.