While Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens’ resignation dealt a blow to his political prospects, his departure could breathe new life into U.S. Senate candidate Josh Hawley’s campaign. Greitens’ troubles posed challenges on multiple fronts for Hawley, as Democrats tried to tie ...
Read More »Justices side with Colorado baker on same-sex wedding cake
The Supreme Court ruled Monday for a Colorado baker who wouldn’t make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple in a limited decision that leaves for another day the larger issue of whether a business can invoke religious objections to ...
Read More »High court sides with Trump admin. in pregnant-teen case
The Supreme Court is rejecting a suggestion by the Trump administration that lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union might deserve to be sanctioned in the case of a pregnant immigrant teen it helped obtain an abortion. The court, however, ...
Read More »Department stores making themselves over in beauty battle
It’s the beauty aisles themselves that are getting makeovers now. Department stores are being forced to rethink how they sell higher-end makeup and perfume as competition intensifies from discounters such as Target, specialty chains including Sephora and Ulta and online ...
Read More »Strong hiring in May pushes unemployment rate to 18-year low
U.S. employers extended a streak of solid hiring in May, adding 223,000 jobs and helping lower the unemployment rate to an 18-year low of 3.8 percent from 3.9 percent in April. Average hourly pay rose 2.7 percent from a year ...
Read More »Survey report suggests Midwest economy still steaming ahead
The surging business conditions in nine Midwest and Plains states will be tested by trade conflicts and other factors that could slow growth, an economist said in a survey report issued Friday. The Mid-America Business Conditions Index recorded its highest ...
Read More »US construction spending up 1.8 percent in April to record
U.S. construction spending surged 1.8 percent to a record high in April as home-building rose by the largest amount in 24 years. The April gain reversed a 1.7 percent drop in March, the Commerce Department reported Friday. The strength stemmed ...
Read More »Greitens enacts law against his alleged actions
Missouri’s outgoing Gov. Eric Greitens signed a bill Friday to make it a crime to threaten to share sexual photos of people without their consent — something Greitens has been accused of doing. The Republican was scheduled to resign Friday ...
Read More »Chicago teen activists seek peace for gun violence
At his desk at North Lawndale College Prep High School, Gerald Smith keeps a small calendar that holds unimaginable grief. In its pages, the dean and student advocate writes the name of each student who’s lost a family member, many ...
Read More »US average mortgage rates fall; 30-year at 4.56 percent
Long-term U.S. mortgage rates fell this week, breaking a steady climb that pushed them to their highest levels in seven years. It was the first decline in four weeks in long-term loan rates amid the peak home-buying season. Mortgage buyer ...
Read More »Trump mulls commuting Blagojevich’s term, pardoning Stewart
President Donald Trump said Thursday that he’s considering commuting the sentence of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted of corruption, and pardoning lifestyle maven Martha Stewart, who did a stint in federal prison after she was convicted of ...
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