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For many Southern Baptists, the only campaign question is which Republican candidate to support

Southern Baptists form a core part of the white evangelical Christian bloc that has reliably and overwhelmingly voted Republican in recent elections, and is expected to again in 2024. But Southern Baptists are weighing their options in the GOP presidential primary field - some already lining up behind Donald Trump, others wary of the former president, whom most evangelical voters supported in previous elections despite his vulgar language, serial marriages

White woman who fatally shot Black neighbor is arrested in Florida

OCALA, Fla. (AP) - A Florida woman accused of fatally shooting her neighbor last week in the violent culmination of what the sheriff described as a 2½-year feud was arrested Tuesday, the Marion County Sheriff's Office said. Susan Louise Lorincz, 58, who is white, was arrested on charges of manslaughter with a firearm, culpable negligence, battery and two counts of assault in the death of Ajike Owens, a Black mother

Plane that crashed in Virginia lost contact with air traffic controllers during ascent, feds say

Only minutes into a doomed journey that ended on a remote Virginia mountain, the pilot of a business jet was not responding to air traffic control instructions and the situation was soon reported to a network that includes military, security and law enforcement agencies, according to federal aviation officials. Despite being out of contact on its ascent Sunday afternoon, the jet that had just taken off from a Tennessee airport

This rare, underfunded program is seen as a crucial lifeline for incarcerated moms and their kids

LINCOLN, Ill. (AP) - Dressed in her Sunday best - pink ruffled sleeves and a rainbow tulle tutu - Crystal Martinez's 4-year-old daughter proudly presents her with a multicolored bouquet of carefully crafted tissue paper flowers. With her 5-year-old son nestled on her lap, laughing in delight, Martinez holds out her arms and pulls the girl into a hug so tight that her glasses are knocked askew. "I want you!

Former Vice President Pence files paperwork launching 2024 presidential bid in challenge to Trump

NEW YORK (AP) - Former Vice President Mike Pence filed paperwork on Monday declaring his campaign for president in 2024, setting up a challenge to his former boss, Donald Trump, just two years after their time in the White House ended with an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and Pence fleeing for his life. Pence, the nation's 48th vice president, will formally launch his bid for the Republican nomination with

Latvian Parliament elects foreign minister as new president

HELSINKI (AP) - Latvian lawmakers on Wednesday picked the country's long-serving and popular foreign minister, a strong backer of Ukraine, as its new head of state in a tight vote. The 100-seat Saeima legislature elected Edgars Rinkevics, the country's top diplomat since 2011, as president to serve for a four-year term. He received 52 votes, one vote more than required to win. Incumbent Egils Levits, Latvia's head of state since

Here’s how to prepare to start paying back your student loans when the pandemic payment freeze ends

NEW YORK (AP) - A three-year pause on student loan payments will end this summer regardless of how the Supreme Court rules on the White House plan to forgive billions of dollars in student loan debt. If Congress approves a debt ceiling deal negotiated by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden, payments will resume in late August, ending any lingering hope of a further extension of the pause

Asian stocks sink before US Congress votes on deal to avoid debt default

BEIJING (AP) - Asian stock markets sank Wednesday ahead of a vote by Congress on a deal to avert a government debt default, while a downturn in Chinese factory activity deepened, adding to signs global economic activity is weakening. Shanghai, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Sydney retreated. Oil prices declined. Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 index edged up less than 0.1% on Tuesday as President Joe Biden and U.S. House Speaker

Earth is ‘really quite sick now’ and in danger zone in nearly all ecological ways, study says

Earth has pushed past seven out of eight scientifically established safety limits and into "the danger zone," not just for an overheating planet that's losing its natural areas, but for the well-being of people living on it, according to a new study. The study looks not just at guardrails for the planetary ecosystem but for the first time it includes measures of "justice," which is mostly about preventing harm for

DeSantis plays up his personal side and swipes at Trump in campaign blitz across Iowa

SALIX, Iowa (AP) - Ron DeSantis was making a four-stop blitz through Iowa during his first full day of presidential campaigning on Wednesday, aiming for a personal connection with voters while intensifying his criticism of former President Donald Trump. The Florida governor's first appearance was the floor of Port Neal Welding in Salix, a rural town near Sioux City, in the heart of the most Republican-heavy part of the state.