National News - The Morning Sun

FILE - Rep. Zooey Zephyr poses for a photo at the Montana State Capitol in Helena, Mont., on April 26, 2023. The banishment of transgender lawmaker Zephyr from Montana's House floor has showcased the rising power of hardline conservatives who are leveraging divisive social issues to gain political influence. (AP Photo/Tommy Martino, File)

Zooey Zephyr row spotlights rise of GOP far-right caucuses

The banishment of transgender lawmaker Zooey Zephyr from Montana’s House floor has showcased the rising power of hard-line conservatives who are leveraging divisive social issues to gain political … more

By MATTHEW BROWN and SAM METZ | 5/1/23

A city worker inspects the HESCO sand barriers along River Drive between Iowa and Perry Streets, Friday, April 28, 2023, in Davenport, Iowa. The Upper Mississippi River will rise to near record-high levels as it flows through Wisconsin and Iowa, but officials said Thursday they expected to hold back floodwaters with a combination of flood walls, temporary barriers and wetlands, especially if dry weather continues. (Nikos Frazier/Quad City Times via AP)

Mississippi River waters keep rising in Iowa and Illinois

People along the Mississippi River in southeast Iowa and northwest Illinois are warily watching rising water levels from the spring snow melt. Further north, floodwaters are beginning to slowly … more

4/30/23

2 killed, 4 wounded in Mississippi shooting; man arrested

Police have charged a 19-year-old man with killing two teenagers and wounding four others in an early Sunday shooting at a house party on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Cameron Everest Brand of Pass … more

4/30/23

Pope Francis meets the journalists during a press conference aboard the airplane directed to Rome, at the end of his pastoral visit to Hungary, Sunday, April 30, 2023. (Vincenzo Pinto/Pool Photo Via AP)

Pope voices willingness to return Indigenous loot, artifacts

Pope Francis says talks are underway to return artifacts in the Vatican Museum that were acquired from Indigenous peoples in Canada and has voiced a willingness to return other colonial-era objects … more

By NICOLE WINFIELD | 4/30/23

Pope Francis is greeted by Hungary President Katalin Novak during the farewell ceremony at the Budapest International Airport in Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, April 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos)

Pope open to helping return Ukrainian children in Russia

Pope Francis says the Vatican is willing to help facilitate the return of Ukrainian children taken to Russia during the war. He says the Holy See has already helped mediate some prisoner exchanges … more

By NICOLE WINFIELD | 4/30/23

The crescent moon sets behind a farmhouse Monday, April 24, 2023, near Eudora, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

AP Week in Pictures: North America

APRIL 20 - 27, 2023 This photo gallery highlights some of the most compelling images from North America made or published by The Associated Press in the past week. The selection was curated by AP … more

4/30/23

Downed trees appear near a property with a damaged roof after a reported tornado hit the area Sunday, April 30, 2023 in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP)

Tornado flips cars, damages homes in coastal Florida city

A tornado touched down in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, with 100 mph winds that overturned cars, snapped trees and damaged homes. The National Weather Service in Miami says the tornado hit late … more

4/30/23

FILE - Adderall XR capsules are displayed on Feb. 24, 2023. Drug shortages are growing in the United States, and experts see no clear path to resolving them. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced last fall a shortage of the attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder treatment Adderall due to a manufacturing problem. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)

What's behind shortages of Adderall, Ozempic and other meds?

Drug shortages are growing in the United States, and experts see no clear path to resolving them. For patients, that could mean more treatment delays, medication switches and other hassles filling a … more

By TOM MURPHY | 4/30/23

Nurse practitioner Anthony Carano speaks with a patient at the Mountain Park Health Center, Thursday, March 30, 2023, in Phoenix. As heat waves fueled by climate change arrive earlier, grow more intense and last longer, people over 60 who are more vulnerable to high temperatures are increasingly at risk of dying from heat-related causes. Heat related deaths are challenging community health systems, utility companies, apartment managers and local governments to better protect older people when temperatures soar.(AP Photo/Matt York)

Deadly heat waves threaten older people as summer nears

As heat waves fueled by climate change arrive earlier, grow more intense and last longer, people over 60 who are more vulnerable to high temperatures are increasingly at risk of dying from … more

By ANITA SNOW | 4/30/23

Patients waits to be seen at the Mountain Park Health Center, Thursday, March 30, 2023, in Phoenix. As heat waves fueled by climate change arrive earlier, grow more intense and last longer, people over 60 who are more vulnerable to high temperatures are increasingly at risk of dying from heat-related causes. Heat related deaths are challenging community health systems, utility companies, apartment managers and local governments to better protect older people when temperatures soar.(AP Photo/Matt York)

Takeaways about heat deaths and vulnerable older people

Heat waves fueled by climate change are starting earlier, growing more intense and lasting longer. It creates a higher risk of illness and death for older people who are especially vulnerable to hot … more

By ANITA SNOW | 4/30/23

A group of people leave a welcome center for migrants in Brownsville, Texas, Friday, April 28, 2023. The city of Brownsville signed a disaster declaration after nearly 15,000 migrants crossed through the area, with many of them screened and released from federal custody and into the city. (AP Photo/Valerie Gonzalez)

Texas border city struggles with large arrival of migrants

Shelters in a Texas city are struggling to find space for migrants who authorities say have abruptly begun crossing by the thousands from Mexico. The uptick in the border city of Brownsville is … more

By VALERIE GONZALEZ | 4/29/23

A look down River Drive as the Mississippi River flows through downtown Davenport, Iowa, Saturday, April 29, 2023. The Upper Mississippi River will rise to near record-high levels as it flows through Wisconsin and Iowa. (Nikos Frazier/Quad City Times via AP)

Flood concerns rise as Mississippi River crests in Iowa city

The National Weather Service says the Mississippi River is cresting in Iowa as areas along the river continue to brace for flooding. The weather service said Saturday the crest in Dubuque is expected … more

4/29/23

Law enforcement gather at the scene of a fatal shooting in Philadelphia, Friday, April 28, 2023. Two teenagers have been charged with firearms and related offenses following the slaying of three people and the wounding of a fourth person at a northeast Philadelphia home, authorities said.(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

3 killed, 1 wounded in Philadelphia shooting; 2 in custody

Authorities say two teenagers have been charged with firearms and related offenses following the slaying of three people and the wounding of a fourth person at a northeast Philadelphia home. Lt. John … more

4/29/23

This image provided by KTRK shows the scene of a shooting early Saturday, April 29, 2023 in Cleveland, Texas. A man went next door with a rifle and began shooting his neighbors, killing several including an 8-year-old inside the house, after the family asked him to stop firing rounds in his yard because they were trying to sleep, authorities said Saturday. (KTRK via AP)

Police: 5 people killed in shooting at home north of Houston

Authorities say an 8-year-old child was among five people killed in a shooting at a home in southeast Texas late Friday night. The San Jacinto County Sheriff's Office said early Saturday that four … more

By PAUL J. WEBER | 4/29/23

FILE - In a Tuesday, June 2, 2009 photo, Dr. LeRoy Carhart wears a black arm band during a news conference in his office in Bellevue, Neb. The outspoken abortion provider Carhart has died. Clinics for Abortions & Reproductive Excellence in Nebraska says Carhart, who was the medical director, died Friday, April 28, 2023. He was 81. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik, File)

Outspoken abortion provider LeRoy 'Lee' Carhart dies at 81

Outspoken abortion provider LeRoy “Lee” Carhart has died. Clinics for Abortions & Reproductive Excellence in Nebraska says Carhart, who was the medical director, died Friday. He was 81. A cause … more

By LISA BAUMANN | 4/28/23

FILE - An officer with the California Highway Patrol's (CHP) Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT) investigates the scene of a deadly crash in the Temescal Valley, south of Corona, Calif., Monday, Jan. 20, 2020. A jury found a Southern California man guilty Friday, April 28, 2023, in the killings of three teenage boys after they played a doorbell-ringing prank on him in 2020. (Watchara Phomicinda/The Orange County Register via AP, File)

California man guilty of killing 3 after 'ding dong' prank

A Southern California man accused of killing three 16-year-old boys by intentionally ramming their car after they played a doorbell-ringing prank on him has been found guilty of murder. Anurag … more

4/28/23

Massive flock of sheep crossing highway draws crowd

Greener pastures? 2,500 hopeful sheep cross Idaho highway

It's not unusual in Idaho to see a herd of sheep bleating as ranchers move them to higher elevation. But 2,500 of the wooly animals crossing a highway drew a crowd about 300 people earlier this week. … more

4/28/23

Seventh-grader Dillon Reeves grabbed the steering wheel on his school bus and hit the brakes after the driver passed out. (April 28)

'Little hero:' Boy stops Michigan school bus with ill driver

A seventh-grader in suburban Detroit is being hailed as a hero. Dillon Reeves grabbed the steering wheel on his school bus and hit the brakes after the driver passed out Wednesday. Warren … more

4/28/23

Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis arrives at the Foreign Office to visit Britain's Foreign Secretary in London, Friday, April 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

Bill allows DeSantis to run for president while governor

Republican Ron DeSantis would not have to resign as Florida governor in order to run for president if he chooses under a bill given final approval in by the GOP-dominated state Legislature. The … more

By CURT ANDERSON | 4/28/23

FILE - This Aug. 26, 2003, image made available by NASA shows Mars as it lines up with the Sun and the Earth. A new study suggests water on Mars may be more widespread and recent than previously thought. Scientists reported the finding from China's Mars rover in Science Advances on Friday, April 28, 2023. (NASA/J. Bell - Cornell U./M. Wolff - SSI via AP, File)

China's Mars rover finds signs of recent water in sand dunes

A new study suggests water on Mars may be more widespread and recent than previously thought. Scientists reported the finding from China's Mars rover in Science Advances on Friday. The rover spotted … more

By MARCIA DUNN | 4/28/23