Tom Howell Jr.

Flight attendants sue over mask mandate on airplanes, transportation

Nine flight attendants from six states said Monday they are suing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention over the federal mask mandate on public transportation, arguing the COVID-19 rule obstructs their normal breathing over many hours and threatens aviation security because passengers refuse to comply.

March 28, 2022

Democrats call for Justice Thomas to recuse from Jan. 6 cases, resign

Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon has called for Justice Clarence Thomas to recuse himself from any case related to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol or any dispute involving former President Donald Trump in a reelection bid.

March 25, 2022

Leaders rush to lift COVID-19 rules while unvaccinated workers still out of jobs, sparking debate

Nationwide efforts to lift COVID-19 mandates and restrictions have brought little relief to workers fired for refusing the vaccine when the virus was surging, prompting an outcry among those who say the unvaccinated shouldn't face a lengthy lockout.

March 25, 2022

Iowa GOP warns DNC: Shaking up 2024 election calendar would insult heartland

The Republican Party chair in Iowa says Democrats should think twice before considering a proposal that would hold primaries in other places ahead of the Hawkeye State caucuses, which traditionally kick off presidential election cycles.

March 25, 2022

Ukraine retakes towns outside of Kyiv in counterattacks, intelligence officials say

Ukrainian counterattacks are forcing Russian forces to fall back on overextended supply lines and have allowed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's army to reoccupy towns and positions up to 20 miles east of Kyiv, intelligence officials said Friday.

March 25, 2022

Mariupol council: About 300 feared dead from theater attack on March 16

City officials in Ukraine estimate that 300 people died in the Russian airstrike on a theater in Mariupol nine days ago that sparked shock and global condemnation.

March 25, 2022

White House Easter Egg Roll will return April 18 after two years of pandemic closures

The White House said Thursday it will hold its traditional Easter Egg Roll on April 18, resuming the longtime tradition for families for the first time since the pandemic struck.

March 24, 2022

Voter group tries to disqualify Marjorie Taylor Greene from House candidacy, citing Capitol riot

A group of Georgia voters filed a challenge Thursday that claims Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene played a role in the run-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol and is ineligible to serve in the House or be a candidate for office.

March 24, 2022

NYPD union sees double standard in Mayor Adams’ ‘Kyrie carve out’ for vaxx mandate

New York City's police union on Wednesday said Mayor Eric Adams' decision to let athletes and performing artists work in the city without showing proof of COVID-19 vaccination should be extended to cops and other public employees who served on the frontlines of the pandemic.

March 24, 2022

Biden tells Herschel Walker, Dr. Oz to resign from presidential fitness board

President Biden formally asked two Trump-appointed members of the President's Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition -- Herschel Walker and Dr. Mehmet Oz -- to resign or else be fired, citing administration policy that bars candidates for federal office to serve on presidential boards.

March 24, 2022

Ex-N.Y. prosecutor’s resignation letter says Trump guilty of felonies

A Manhattan prosecutor who quit in February believed former President Donald Trump was "guilty of numerous felony violations" and it would be a "grave failure of justice" not to bring charges, according to his resignation letter.

March 24, 2022

Major airlines press Biden to let transit mask mandate expire in April

Top executives from major U.S. airlines want President Biden to allow a federal mandate that requires mask-wearing on planes to expire in mid-April.

March 24, 2022

Russia will likely have to find new manpower amid losses, U.K. intelligence says

Russian forces have "almost certainly" suffered thousands of casualties during the Ukraine invasion and will probably tap other streams to compensate for their losses, British intelligence officials said Thursday.

March 24, 2022

CDC says BA.2 variant is slowly taking over but not making people sicker

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said they are tracking the omicron sub-variant that caused spikes overseas but the strain, while fast-moving, does not appear to make infected persons any sicker and is not straining hospital capacity.

March 23, 2022

U.S.-backed animal experiments in Chinese, Russian labs get new scrutiny by Congress, GAO

Global crises involving authoritarian states and concerns about animal cruelty are prompting Congress to scrutinize U.S.-funded research at labs overseas and mull whether taxpayer dollars should be redirected toward projects at home.

March 23, 2022

HHS’s Becerra, G-7 health ministers condemn Russian attacks on health services in Ukraine

Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and other Group of Seven health ministers on Wednesday condemned Russia's "unprovoked and unjustified" assault on Ukraine and its alarming number of attacks on health facilities.

March 23, 2022

Biden marks 12th anniversary of Obamacare by promoting benefits, warning of GOP repeal

President Biden marked the 12th anniversary of the health care law he championed under former President Barack Obama by extolling its reach to more than 30 million Americans and warning Americans that Republicans will try to scrap the program if they win control of Congress.

March 23, 2022

Seattle students walk out, demand return of mask mandate

More than 100 high school students in Seattle walked out over a state decision to drop a mask mandate in schools, underscoring the competing pressures governors face as they attempt to manage COVID-19.

March 23, 2022

Moderna to seek FDA authorization of COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 6 months to 6 years

Drugmaker Moderna said Wednesday it will seek emergency authorization of a COVID-19 vaccine for children under 6 years old, touting preliminary data showing it produced an immune response similar to that of larger doses for young adults.

March 23, 2022

Ukrainian leader Zelenskyy evokes Japanese history in appeal to lawmakers in Tokyo

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged Japan on Wednesday to ratchet up economic sanctions on Russia and pointed to the possibility of a nuclear disaster to find common ground with the Asian nation.

March 23, 2022