Ingested Articles

Across auto racing in the U.S., approaches vary among the drivers when it comes to vaccination against the coronavirus. IndyCar teams are pushing for across-the-board vaccinations as its season opener approaches this weekend. In NASCAR, drivers are far more reserved. Only Bubba Wallace has been vocal in pushing for people to get their shots. Cup Series champion Chase Elliott and Austin Dillon says it’s a personal choice and no one else’s business. Retired great Richard Petty filmed a promotional spot showing him getting a shot at his doctor's suggestion.

The White House says President Joe Biden is expected to increase the refugee cap for the remainder of this fiscal year by May 15. Biden earlier Friday moved to accelerate refugee admissions but kept his predecessor’s historically low cap of 15,000 refugees for this year, triggering a backlash from Democratic lawmakers and resettlement agencies. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said later that Biden has been consulting with his advisers to determine what number of refugees could realistically be admitted to the United States between now and October 1, the of the fiscal year.

In 1964, less than two decades removed from World War II, Japan used the Summer Olympics to showcase its astonishing recovery from a horrific defeat. It was a triumph for the host nation. This time, the Tokyo Games will be nothing more than a survival test in the midst of the pandemic. Make no mistake: the Olympics will be held. Ignore the mixed messages coming from top officials and the steadfast opposition of the Japanese public. There’s too much money at stake for there to be any other outcome. But it’s clear this will be the Olympics in name only.

Newly released transcripts show that a grand jury investigating the police suffocation death of Daniel Prude last year in Rochester, New York, voted 15-5 not to charge the three officers involved in his restraint of a criminally negligent homicide charge sought by prosecutors. That was the only charge prosecutors from the state attorney general’s office asked the grand jury to consider after nine days of testimony from witnesses including Prude’s brother, other police officers and experts. The transcripts indicate five jurors indicated they would have voted to indict at least one of the officers.

Vartan Gregorian, the noted scholar and philanthropic leader who led the Carnegie Corporation of New York since 1997, has died. He was 87. The Carnegie Corporation said he died Thursday after being hospitalized for stomach pain. Born to Armenian parents in Tabriz, Iran, Gregorian arrived in the United States in 1956 to study history and the humanities at Stanford University. His quest to understand the relationship between the individual and society at large began there, a pursuit that continued as he led The New York Public Library, Brown University and the Carnegie Corporation. In 2004, President George W. Bush awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A major House Republican fundraising committee overseen by GOP Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy received over $770,000 from Steve Wynn, a Las Vegas casino mogul who stepped down from his company in 2018 after multiple women accused him…

Former Georgia lawmaker Vernon Jones says he will run against incumbent Georgia governor Brian Kemp in the Republican primary. Jones shot to prominence by endorsing Trump as a Democrat last year. Then he said he "left the plantation" by switching parties. He promoted Trump's “Stop the Steal” campaign to reverse his reelection loss. The former Georgia state lawmaker and county executive announced his challenge as Kemp faces another key test. Georgia Republicans are holding county conventions where Trump loyalists are pushing motions to censure the governor for failing to reverse votes that enabled President Joe Biden to win Georgia.

Raul Castro says he is resigning as head of Cuba’s Communist Party, ending an era of formal leadership by he and his brother Fidel Castro that began with the 1959 revolution. Castro made the announcement Friday in a speech at the opening of the Eighth congress of the ruling party, the only one allowed on the island. Castro didn’t say who he would endorse as his successor as first secretary of the Communist Party, but he previously has indicated that he favors yielding control to Miguel Diaz-Canel, who succeeded him as president in 2018.

Dwyane Wade is an NBA owner. The Utah Jazz announced that the 13-time NBA All-Star will join the youngest ownership group in the league. The group is headed by technology entrepreneur Ryan Smith, who along with his wife, Ashley, acquired majority interest in the Jazz in late 2020. Wade and Smith have known each other for several years and had discussed working with each other in various capacities. Wade played 16 NBA seasons with Miami, Chicago and Cleveland before retiring after the 2018-19 season. He won three NBA titles and had his No. 3 jersey retired by the Heat last month.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on Friday revoked a series of Trump administration orders that promoted fossil fuel development on public lands and waters, and issued a separate directive that prioritizes climate change in agency decisions. The moves…

Liberty University is suing Jerry Falwell Jr. The school is seeking millions in damages after an acrimonious breakup with its former leader last year. The Associated Press obtained the complaint, filed Thursday in Lynchburg Circuit Court. It alleges breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and statutory conspiracy. Falwell’s departure from the Virginia university last August followed a series of personal scandals. Falwell responded to a phone call seeking comment Friday with a text saying he was not available to talk. It wasn’t immediately clear if he had an attorney representing him in the matter. 

British actor Helen McCrory, who starred in the television show “Peaky Blinders” and the “Harry Potter” movies, has died, her husband said Friday. She was 52 and had been suffering from cancer. Her husband, fellow actor Damian Lewis, said McCrory…

New York (AP) — Issa Rae remembers what life was like when she was starting out in Hollywood: no money, and just hoping for a chance to be discovered. “It was about ‘I just want the exposure. I need the…

PARIS (AP) — The leaders of France and Germany are demanding the withdrawal of Russian troop reinforcements recently deployed at the border with Ukraine, the German chancellor's office said Friday after the two heads of state held security talks with…