The national debt now exceeds $40 trillion. That equals roughly $117,000 for every man, woman and child in the United States.

The number is shocking, but the direction should worry us even more. Washington no longer borrows only during wars, recessions or national emergencies. The federal government now runs huge structural deficits every year....Read more

CHICAGO — The search for the next leader of the Chicago Police Department entered a new phase last week as the city agency responsible for vetting candidates retained an executive search firm to winnow down future applicants.

Despite a plea from a police oversight commissioner to amend a city ordinance, Mayor Brandon Johnson is expected to ...Read more

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — If you haven’t seen one, you’ve probably at least heard of the controversial camera system that snaps photos of license plates and shares a name with groups of birds: Flock.

An Atlanta-based company, Flock cameras have been touted by law enforcement officers for helping solve crimes like thefts and missing people.

They ...Read more

The new mission for casino operators: Look less like casinos.

New developments, including one planned by New York Mets owner Steve Cohen, tout their outdoor spaces and amenities. Older gaming halls are remodeling to add natural light, upscale restaurants and gathering places like bowling alleys.

The new options are designed to shed local ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The United States is set to impose a 7.5% tariff on Chinese goods over allegations of excess manufacturing capacity before a planned summit between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump next month, according to people familiar with the matter.

The move would restore Trump’s second-term duties on China to around 20%, a level Beijing has ...Read more

Aimee Bock, the convicted ringleader of the massive Feeding Our Future scheme, said the U.S. government failed to prove she knew the scope of the fraud passing through her nonprofit in asking an appeals court to overturn her conviction.

Bock, 45, was sentenced in May to 41 years in prison for using Feeding Our Future to steal millions from a ...Read more

The Department of Homeland Security said Monday several people with serious criminal records, including gang members and men convicted of sex crimes involving minors, were among more than 160 people deported to Haiti last week.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement charter flight was the first deportation flight to Haiti since the U.S. ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — California Supreme Court justices hammered Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco over his seizure of hundreds of thousands of Proposition 50 ballots in a pair of back-to-back hearings on Monday, appearing poised to order the ballots returned and sharply limit the sheriff’s power to snatch similar election materials in the future...Read more

BOSTON — Prosecutors trying Lindsay Clancy for murder called a psychologist to the stand Monday who argued that the Duxbury mom was “suffering” from a severe mental illness when she killed her children but likely wasn’t psychotic.

In a dramatic turn near the end of the day, the defense moved unsuccessfully for a mistrial based on some ...Read more

South Korea and the U.S. agreed to maintain close coordination on efforts to revive dialogue with North Korea, days after Pyongyang rebuffed President Donald Trump’s overtures and launched a barrage of short-range ballistic missiles.

South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a phone call late Monday ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday that California intends to sue the Trump administration again over President Donald Trump’s efforts to impose new restrictions on mail-in voting ahead of the November midterms.

The announcement came after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the administration to move forward with key parts ...Read more

NEW YORK — Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Monday defended New York City-Democratic Socialists of America co-Chair Gustavo Gordillo amid controversy over a $1.5 million home his father bought for him.

Gordillo has faced criticism, largely from the right, over claims the leader’s privileged background makes him a hypocrite as he advocates for the ...Read more

Two Democratic state lawmakers will introduce legislation to fast-track a maritime shipyard in Solano County, potentially handing a victory to the billionaire-backed California Forever group that has been pushing for nearly a decade to develop in the outer San Francisco Bay.

Assemblymember Lori Wilson, D-Suisun City, and Sen. Christopher ...Read more

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida is, after a year of anticipation, moving forward with a plan to remove four required school-entry vaccines.

The Department of Health filed its proposed rule change Monday as part of Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo’s plan to remove all Florida vaccine mandates.

Under the proposal, Florida children would no longer ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court cleared the way Monday for President Donald Trump to continue seeking new limits on the use of mail ballots, though their implementation remains in dispute as the November election rapidly approaches.

California leaders immediately noted the limits of the high court ruling and said they would file a lawsuit to ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s threat to unleash an “economic D-Day” against Iran risks setting the U.S. on a collision course with China, its main trading partner.

That’s only if Bessent actually follows through on a threat the Trump administration has made before. And many are skeptical he will, especially when it ...Read more

Jaylen Edgar, the teen tried for the Halloween mass shooting in 2024 in downtown Orlando that killed two and injured several others, was found guilty of all charges, including first-degree murder, by a jury Monday.

Following three days of arguments and testimony, the 12-person panel was sent out Monday afternoon to deliberate the charges ...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Attorneys for former Letcher County Sheriff Shawn “Mickey” Stines filed an emergency appeal Friday to try to get Stines a bond after a judge rejected his request earlier this month.

Warren Circuit Judge Christopher Cohron, who was appointed as a special judge in the case, ruled Aug. 13 that Stines has to be held without ...Read more

CHICAGO — Protesters gathered in the McKinley Park neighborhood Monday afternoon after immigration agents earlier in the day crashed into a pickup truck near the Damen Avenue exit on I-55 and detained a driver, witnesses and local officials said.

Livestream footage shows the blue pickup truck surrounded by ICE vehicles after colliding with ...Read more