Month: June 2017

Tens of thousands of people waving rainbow flags lined streets for gay pride parades Sunday in coast-to-coast events that took both celebratory and political tones, the latter a reaction to what some see as new threats to gay rights in the Trump era. In San Francisco, revelers wearing rainbow tutus and boas held signs that …

Several U.S. state and local government websites were hacked Sunday to display a message supporting the Islamic State group. “You will be held accountable Trump, you and all your people for every drop of blood flowing in Muslim countries,” the message said.  It ended with, “I love the Islamic state.” The most extensive effects were …

Conservative activists held a pair of rallies in Washington on Sunday to decry the handful of celebrities who have joked about violence against President Donald Trump and to protest efforts to stop contentious speakers at colleges. Both rallies attracted only a few dozen supporters, with nearly as many counterprotesters at one of the events on …

Artifacts connected to some of the nation’s most notorious gangsters sold for more than $100,000 at auction Saturday.   A diamond pocket watch that belonged to Al Capone and was produced in Chicago in the 1920s, along with a handwritten musical composition he wrote in Alcatraz in the 1930s, were among the items that sold …

Homelessness is increasing in Los Angeles, and the signs are visible. From tents under freeways and shopping carts at street corners, to people begging for money outside fast-food restaurants, the number of homeless people in Los Angeles county has risen by 23 percent, to nearly 58,000. It is a life Destiny Prescott knows all too …

The bearers of two potentially clashing slogans, “Made in India” and “America First,” will finally meet Monday at the White House.   “It’s going to be a robust discussion,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said of what will be the first face-to-face talks between India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Donald Trump.  “We’re …

First Lady Melania Trump has hired a new chief usher to oversee the White House residence staff, bringing in a high-level employee from the Trump Organization’s Washington hotel to fill the slot. Timothy Harleth served as the director of rooms at the Trump hotel, and at the White House he will oversee about 90 staff …

So where, you may ask, is President Donald Trump most comfortable these days? Well in his previous life as a real estate mogul, you might have guessed he was most at home safely ensconced in Trump Tower in Midtown Manhattan, maybe tucking into one of those with well-done steaks with ketchup on the side. But …

The Trump administration has authorized the sale of unarmed surveillance drones to India, the manufacturer said Friday, as the two nations’ leaders prepare for their first face-to-face meeting.   India initiated its request to buy 22 Guardian MQ-9B unmanned aircraft for maritime surveillance last year. The deal is estimated to be worth about $2 billion. …

U.S. officials say a wildfire in southern Utah has doubled in size, one of several blazes burning in the Western United States. An effort to put out the Western fires has been difficult for firefighters because of the extreme heat in the region. The hot, dry conditions have also raised concerns about the upcoming July …

The U.S. military service chiefs have sought a six-month delay before allowing transgender people to enlist, but no final decision has been made on the issue, Pentagon chief spokesperson Dana White said. Transgender troops already in the military have been allowed to serve openly since July 2016. The U.S. armed forces were given until July …

Two senior U.S. senators are asking Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to investigate reports that U.S. military interrogators worked with forces from the United Arab Emirates accused of torturing detainees in Yemen. Arizona Senator John McCain, the Republican chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and the ranking Democrat, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, called the …