Washington

By Zeke Miller and Colleen Long Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is alleging that a foreign disinformation campaign is underway aimed at spreading fear in the country amid the coronavirus pandemic, three U.S. officials said Monday. On Sunday, federal officials began confronting what they said was a deliberate effort by a foreign entity to sow fears of a nationwide quarantine amid the virus outbreak. Agencies took coordinated action Sunday evening to deny that…

By Jill Colvin and Aamer Madhani Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — After days of resisting screening for the coronavirus, President Donald Trump tested negative for the virus, officials said Saturday night. Meanwhile, the White House began checking the temperature of anyone coming into close contact with the president and other officials. Prior to his testing, Trump said his personal physician told him he didn't show symptoms and didn't need to take the test. But Trump decided to do it…

By Steve People and Will Weissert Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — New York billionaire Mike Bloomberg suspended his presidential campaign and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren was reassessing her candidacy Wednesday as the winnowing process in the Democrats' 2020 nomination fight lurched forward after a consequential Super Tuesday.  Bloomberg quit the race just over 100 days after he got in despite pouring more than $500 million of his personal fortune into his campaign. The massive…

By Michael Tarm Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — President Donald Trump on Tuesday commuted the 14-year prison sentence of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted in a wide-ranging political corruption case just months after he appeared on Trump's reality TV show. The president called the sentence "ridiculous." Blagojevich, who hails from a state with a long history of pay-to-play schemes, was expected to walk out of prison later in the day, according to a person close to…

By Michael Balsamo, Colleen Long and Zeke Miller Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Unbowed by a public rebuke from his attorney general, President Donald Trump says he has the "legal right" to intervene in criminal cases and sidestep the Justice Department's historic independence. At the same time, it was revealed federal prosecutors have been ordered to review the criminal case of his former national security adviser. A day after Attorney General William Barr said the president's tweets…

By Steve Peoples, Kathleen Ronayne and Hunter Woodall Associated Press MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Bernie Sanders won New Hampshire's presidential primary election Tuesday night, narrowly edging moderate rival Pete Buttigieg and scoring the first clear victory in the Democratic Party's chaotic 2020 nomination fight. In his win, the 78-year-old Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, beat back a strong challenge from the 38-year-old former Midwestern mayor -- two men representing…

By Steve Peoples, Kathleen Ronayne and Hunter Woodall Associated Press MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Polls closed across New Hampshire Tuesday night as fiery progressive Bernie Sanders fought for Democratic front-runner status in the first-in-the-nation primary. The party hoped for results that would bring some clarity to a presidential nomination fight that has so far been marred by dysfunction and doubt. As Sanders predicted victory, former Mayor Pete Buttigieg hoped to seize the backing of…

By Andrew Taylor Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump unveiled a $4.8 trillion election year budget plan on Monday that recycles previously rejected cuts to domestic programs like food stamps and Medicaid to promise a balanced budget in 15 years — all while leaving Social Security and Medicare benefits untouched. Trump's fiscal 2021 plan promises the government's deficit will crest above $1 trillion only for the current budget year before steadily decreasing to more…

By Deb Riechmann Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The decorated soldier and national security aide who played a central role in the Democrats' impeachment case against President Donald Trump was escorted out of the White House complex on Friday, according to his lawyer, who said he was asked to leave in retaliation for "telling the truth." "The truth has cost Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman his job, his career, and his privacy," David Pressman, an attorney for Vindman, said in a statement.…

By Jill Colvin, Zeke Miller and Jonathan Lemire Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump unleashed his fury against those who tried to remove him from office at a prayer breakfast Thursday, a daay after his acquittal by the Senate in his impeachment trial. Speaking from a stage where he was joined by congressional leaders, including Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who led the impeachment charge against him, Trump shattered the usual veneer of bipartisanship at the…

By Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump won impeachment acquittal Wednesday in the U.S. Senate, bringing to a close only the third presidential  trial  in American history with votes that split the country, tested civic norms and fed the tumultuous 2020 race for the White House. A majority of senators  expressed unease with Trump's pressure campaign on Ukraine that resulted in the two articles of impeachment. But the final tallies…

By Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is on the verge of acquittal by the Senate, bringing an end to only the third presidential  impeachment trial  in American history in a vote at the start of the tumultuous campaign for the White House. A majority of senators  have now expressed unease with Trump's pressure campaign on Ukraine that resulted in the two articles of impeachment. But there's nowhere near the two-thirds support…

By The Associated Press DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Latest on the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses (all times local): 7:50 p.m. Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez wants "absolute transparent accounting" of the technological meltdown that led to delayed results from Monday's leadoff Iowa caucuses. Perez said in a statement Tuesday that "what happened last night should never happen again." Saying it was "clear" the app used to tally caucus results failed, Perez called on…

By Steve Peoples, Thomas Beaumont and Alexandra Jaffe Associated Press DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Democratic Party released partial results of its kickoff presidential caucus after a daylong delay late Tuesday showing former Midwestern Mayor Pete Buttigieg and progressive Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders leading the opening contest of the party's 2020 primary season. The results followed 24 hours of chaos as technical problems marred the complicated caucus process, forcing state…