By JENNIFER PELTZ, MICHAEL R. SISAK, COLLEEN LONG and JAKE OFFENHARTZ NEW YORK — The former publisher of the National Enquirer testified Thursday at Donald Trump’s hush money trial about going to great lengths to help shield his old friend from potentially damaging stories using a catch-and-kill scheme prosecutors allege amounted to interference in the 2016 presidential campaign. At the same time, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a different criminal matter involving Trump, who has claimed that he should be immune from prosecution over his efforts to reverse his 2020 election loss to ..read more

When the Francis Scott Key Bridge was inspected in May 2021, it earned high marks. Its railings and guardrails met modern standards. Its foundations were “stable” and didn’t show signs of erosion at the riverbed. The protection around its piers was “functioning,” the best grade in that category. It wasn’t, however, assessed for its ability to withstand a collision from a vessel. A collision came, though. In the early hours of March 26, a massive cargo ship — much larger than the average ship when the bridge was built in 1976 — crashed into one of the bridge’s vital supports. The impact ..read more

By Danica Coto | Associated Press PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Ariel Henry resigned Thursday as prime minister of Haiti, leaving the way clear for a new government to be formed in the Caribbean country, which has been wracked by gang violence that killed or injured more than 2,500 people from January to March. Henry presented his resignation in a letter signed in Los Angeles, dated April 24, and released on Thursday by his office on the same day that a council tasked with choosing a new prime minister and Cabinet for Haiti was sworn in. Henry’s remaining Cabinet meanwhile chose Economy and Finance ..read more

Wednesday marked the third day students continued to occupy Siemens Hall at Cal Poly Humboldt. Barriers were reinforced, more tents were put up Tuesday and students collected gear for facing tear gas. A couple of dozen people are estimated to be barricaded inside the building while others have joined them outside, at some points in the hundreds. Students outside speculated Wednesday night would mean another conflict with police, who initially responded in droves to drive out the protesters Monday evening. Cal Poly Humboldt on Wednesday announced the campus would be closed through the weekend ..read more

Want to know who Orange County voters picked for president in the 2024 presidential primary? You can use the map below to find out. Tap or hover over a precinct to see how people there voted. Click or tap a candidate’s name to see where they received the most votes. You can also zoom into a specific region on the map using the feature on the bottom right. Related: What does Orange County’s presidential primary data suggest about Biden and Trump’s chances? The grayed-out areas represent precincts where fewer than 10 ballots were cast. The map gives you a broad picture of which parts of the coun ..read more

More Orange County voters cast ballots for former President Donald Trump in the primary election than for President Joe Biden — but political experts say that doesn’t exactly spell trouble for the incumbent president. Trump received the most votes in Orange County, 236,456, of the nearly 40 people on the presidential primary ballot, ahead of Biden only by about 18,500 votes. But other factors contribute to success in a presidential general election — like higher turnout among youth, non-White groups and women. “A different universe of people” will show up in the general election, said Paul Mit ..read more

California schools may soon need to provide halal and kosher meal options for students. Dubbed the Halal and Kosher School Meals Act, a proposed bill in the California Legislature would require schools to provide kosher or halal meals if more than 5% of their students request such. Both kosher and halal meals follow specific Jewish and Islamic dietary practices, respectively, for how food is prepared and served. For kosher meals, dairy and meat cannot be mixed, and only certain animals can be eaten. Halal requires animals to be slaughtered in a particular way and does not permit the consumptio ..read more

By STEPHEN GROVES and MARY CLARE JALONICK WASHINGTON — For Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Mike Johnson, the necessity of providing Ukraine with weapons and other aid as it fends off Russia’s invasion is rooted in their earliest and most formative political memories. McConnell, 82, tells the story of his father’s letters from Eastern Europe in 1945, at the end of World War II, when the foot soldier observed that the Russians were “going to be a big problem” before the communist takeover to come. Johnson, 30 years younger, came of age as the Cold War was ending. As bo ..read more

By Brody Ford | Bloomberg Oracle Corp. is planning to make Nashville its “world headquarters” to be closer to a major health care hub, reflecting the software giant’s ambitions in the industry. At the company’s health care summit in Nashville on Tuesday, Chairman Larry Ellison said Oracle is developing a health campus in the city that will “ultimately be our world headquarters.” Nashville’s status as a health center makes it attractive, Ellison said in a conversation with Bill Frist, a physician and former US Senate majority leader, at the conference. Oracle, best-known for its database techno ..read more

By Sophie Austin | Associated Press/Report for America SACRAMENTO — Arizona doctors could give their patients abortions in California under a proposal announced Wednesday by Gov. Gavin Newsom to circumvent a ban on nearly all abortions in that state. It would apply only to doctors licensed in good standing in Arizona and their patients, and last only through the end of November. Arizona’s 1864 law banning nearly all abortions except if the mother’s life is in jeopardy takes effect June 8. “Arizona Republicans continue to put women in danger—embracing a draconian law passed when Arizona was a t ..read more