9 mins read

Pope Leo XIV sought a pastoral role in his first year, but verbal sparring with Trump intervened

VATICAN CITY | Pope Leo XIV had tried during his first year as pontiff to insist that his essential role was that of a pastor accompanying his flock. President Donald Trump’s continuing criticisms – and Leo’s increasingly bold retorts – complicated the effort and overshadowed Friday’s anniversary of Leo’s election. Leo spent the eve of […]

4 mins read

Hungary’s incoming prime minister plans a ‘regime-change celebration’ to mark Orbán’s departure

BUDAPEST, Hungary | As incoming prime minister Péter Magyar takes his oath of office within the halls of Hungary’s sprawling neo-Gothic parliament on Saturday, thousands are expected to gather on a square just outside to celebrate the final moments of Viktor Orbán ‘s 16-year rule. Magyar’s center-right Tisza party defeated Orbán’s nationalist-populist Fidesz in a […]

6 mins read

Virginia Supreme Court strikes down Democrats’ redistricting plan, dimming party’s midterm hopes

The Virginia Supreme Court on Friday struck down a voter-approved Democratic congressional redistricting plan, delivering another major setback to the party in a nationwide battle against Republicans for an edge in this year’s midterm elections. The court ruled that the state’s Democratic-led legislature violated procedural requirements when it placed the constitutional amendment on the ballot […]

5 mins read

Starmer says he won’t quit after local elections deliver losses for Labour and wins for Reform UK

LONDON | Prime Minister Keir Starmer insisted Friday that he will not resign after bruising elections that saw his governing Labour Party suffer big losses and the hard-right party Reform UK make major gains. The local and regional elections are widely seen as an unofficial referendum on Starmer, whose popularity has plummeted since he led […]

6 mins read

US employers defy economic shock from Iran war and add a surprisingly strong 115,000 jobs in April

WASHINGTON | America’s employers delivered a surprising 115,000 new jobs last month despite an economic shock from the Iran war. Hiring beat the 65,000 jobs forecasters had expected, though it decelerated from the 185,000 jobs created in March. The unemployment rate remained at a low 4.3%, the Labor Department reported Friday. The Iran war has […]

9 mins read

Pope Leo XIV sought a pastoral role in his first year, but verbal sparring with Trump intervened

VATICAN CITY | Pope Leo XIV had tried during his first year as pontiff to insist that his essential role was that of a pastor accompanying his flock. President Donald Trump’s continuing criticisms – and Leo’s increasingly bold retorts – complicated the effort and overshadowed Friday’s anniversary of Leo’s election. Leo spent the eve of […]

4 mins read

Hungary’s incoming prime minister plans a ‘regime-change celebration’ to mark Orbán’s departure

BUDAPEST, Hungary | As incoming prime minister Péter Magyar takes his oath of office within the halls of Hungary’s sprawling neo-Gothic parliament on Saturday, thousands are expected to gather on a square just outside to celebrate the final moments of Viktor Orbán ‘s 16-year rule. Magyar’s center-right Tisza party defeated Orbán’s nationalist-populist Fidesz in a […]

7 mins read

FDA’s new playbook: Lots of media announcements but not much rulemaking

WASHINGTON | In one of his first major announcements as health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called a news conference to unveil a plan to “phase out” synthetic food dyes. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary opened the event by saying his agency was “removing all petroleum-based food dyes” from U.S. foods. But the […]

6 mins read

Indigenous people honor and raise awareness for relatives who are missing or have been killed

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. | Across the country, Indigenous people are gathering this week to honor loved ones who are missing or have been killed and to call for better data collection, law enforcement response and reforms to make their communities safer. From U.S. state capitols and tribal community spaces to the streets of major cities, hundreds […]