September 2026
FBI chief Kash Patel defends loosening of employment standards on bestiality, prostitution
WASHINGTON | FBI Director Kash Patel on Tuesday defended the bureau’s loosening of hiring requirements regarding prostitution and bestiality, saying the changes were meant to enable victims of those acts to apply for employment without fear of automatic disqualification. The FBI quietly issued guidance this past spring lifting a categorical hiring ban on applicants who […]
Aurora to ban most outdoor irrigation from October to May, ban some grasses in new lawns
AURORA | Aurora city lawmakers ramped up outdoor watering and lawn restrictions Monday, essentially banning most outdoor irrigation from October to May, this year and going forward. Aurora City Council members unanimously passed measures that essentially bans planting new so-called “cool weather” lawns, such as fescue or Kentucky bluegrass, bans new outdoor water features like […]
Shooting at Aurora convenience store Monday leaves two women seriously injured
AURORA | Two women stopping for snacks at an Aurora convenience store early Tuesday said someone in a car that pulled up next to them opened fire at their car, injuring both of them, police said. Officers were called to the Conoco at 290 S. Havana St. at about 1:45 a.m. after reports of a […]
The great American road trip, fueled by — and undercut by — the automobile that created it
NASHVILLE, Tenn. | There’s something about the American road trip. It has been memorialized in books like Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road” and satirized in movies like “National Lampoon’s Vacation.” It primarily consists of hours upon hours of driving that should be boring — but somehow isn’t? Maybe it’s the anticipation of getting to some […]
Pope celebrates his 71st birthday but it’s Vatican employees who get the gift
VATICAN CITY | Pope Leo XIV celebrated his 71st birthday on Monday but it was Vatican employees who got the gift. The Vatican published a papal decree repealing 2021 salary cuts that Pope Francis had imposed on many Vatican employees as part of the Holy See’s COVID-19 cost-saving measures. In the decree, Leo said the […]
‘Widow’s Bay’ breaks Emmys record with 14 wins including best comedy series, ‘Pitt’ wins best drama
LOS ANGELES | A “Widow’s Bay” wave slammed into the Emmy Awards on Monday night as the Apple TV show set a single-season record for a comedy with 14 wins, including best comedy series and best actor for star Matthew Rhys, who personally took home three trophies. “The celebrations will be long, varied, and I […]
Federal Reserve is expected to raise its benchmark rate, defying Trump’s demands
WASHINGTON | The Federal Reserve is widely expected to lift its short-term interest rate Wednesday for the first time in three years to fight stubbornly high inflation, a move that would put the central bank at odds with President Donald Trump’s support for a cut. A quarter-point increase in the Fed’s rate, currently about 3.6%, […]
Supreme Court rejects Trump’s plan to limit mail ballots
Even with voting already underway, uncertainty about what might come next had been hovering over preparations for this year’s midterm elections. The U.S. Supreme Court lifted much of that uncertainty late Monday when it rejected President Donald Trump’s push to have the U.S. Postal Service play a central role in deciding who would be able […]
Zelenskyy says Ukraine will pause strikes on Russia if Kremlin spares critical infrastructure
KYIV, Ukraine | President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday that Ukraine is ready to halt its strikes on Russian territory if allies can secure a genuine Russian commitment not to hit Ukraine’s critical infrastructure. His comments came after U.S. President Donald Trump claimed in a social media post that Russia and Ukraine had agreed “not to […]
McConnell returns to the Senate for the first time since his June hospitalization
WASHINGTON | Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky returned to the Senate to vote on Monday for the first time in three months, looking noticeably more frail after he was hospitalized for a June fall in his home. McConnell’s lengthy absence from the Senate generated a flood of criticism and online speculation, as he initially […]