by Jacqueline Ganun and Steve Peoples Former President Barack Obama on Saturday seized on what he described as cruelty and indecency coming from President Donald Trump and his Republican allies, stepping into one of the nation’s ugliest midterm fights as he worked to rally Democratic voters in battleground Ohio. Obama took specific aim at Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who has doubled down on an advertising campaign featuring the estranged mother of Democratic rival Dr. Amy Acton. Trump and Vice President JD Vance have also defended the ad, even as Republican leaders across Ohio, including Gov. Mike DeWine, have called…

by Nicholas Riccardi RALEIGH, N.C.  — In 2022, Democrat Wiley Nickel ran as a moderate and narrowly won North Carolina’s 13th Congressional District by about 9,000 votes. Two years later, the current congressman, Republican Brad Knott, ran as a conservative and coasted into the U.S. House by more than 70,000 votes. Voters didn’t change their minds. Politicians changed their voters. The Republican-controlled legislature redrew the state’s congressional map to transform what was one of the last remaining swing districts in the South to a safe GOP seat. Lawmakers split the rectangular 13th District into an hourglass shape that carved out…

by Sarah Pankin and Alanna Durkin Richer NORFOLK, Va.  — Virginia state Sen. L. Louise Lucas, one of the state’s most powerful Democrats, was charged Thursday with leading what authorities alleged was a wide-ranging criminal enterprise that acquired and distributed large quantities of marijuana and laundered the proceeds. Lucas, who has been in elected office for decades, used her political power to insulate the operation from scrutiny, according to an indictment charging her and six other defendants, including several of her relatives. She “put her own financial interests before the people she was elected to serve,” said U.S. Attorney General…

by Jay Cohen CHICAGO (AP) — Round 2 went to Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears. Williams passed for 308 yards and two touchdowns, and the Bears cooled off Drake Maye and the New England Patriots with a 30-24 victory Thursday night. It was the second meeting between the young quarterbacks since they were part of the 2024 NFL draft. Maye, who was selected by New England at No. 3, directed the Patriots to a 19-3 victory over Williams and the Bears when the longtime friends were rookies. But Williams, the No. 1 overall pick, leaned on Luther Burden and…

by Hannah Schoenbaum U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar will move out of her Washington, D.C., home that federal agents searched last week, she said Wednesday, noting that attention brought on by the raid has made her feel unsafe there. Federal authorities are investigating potential fraud in her family’s immigration paperwork and have issued grand jury subpoenas to some of her relatives, a person briefed on the investigation told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation. Omar, who was born in Somalia and is a naturalized U.S. citizen, said Wednesday in her…

by Jay Cohen LAKE FOREST, Ill.  — Caleb Williams and Drake Maye have known each other for years. They were part of the same draft class, and they grew up going to the same football camps. Maye’s mobility, Williams said, always has been a weapon for him. “We’ve got to be able to bottle him up,” he said. Maye leads the New England Patriots into Soldier Field on Thursday night to take on Williams and the Chicago Bears in a matchup of two of the NFL’s top young quarterbacks. Both Maye and Williams have a big right arm, but they…

by Ian Harrison TORONTO (AP) — Kawhi Leonard scored 23 points in his return to Toronto, Scottie Barnes and Immanuel Quickley also had 23 apiece and the Raptors routed the Chicago Bulls 135-92 on Wednesday night in the season opener for both teams. RJ Barrett added 20 points and Ja’Kobe Walter had 10 for the Raptors, who never trailed. Leonard shot 5 for 17, including 2 of 6 from 3-point range, but went 11 for 11 at the free-throw line. The two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year had four of Toronto’s 15 steals before checking out with 8:12 remaining…

by Heather Hollingsworth The Trump administration moved Wednesday to end its legal fight to overhaul a popular student loan forgiveness program. The Department of Justice appealed after federal judges ruled in June in favor of advocates who said the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program risked becoming a tool for political retribution. But it dropped two appeals Wednesday in single-sentence joint agreements, which stipulated that each side would pay its own fees. Federal officials provided no explanation, but advocates praised the ruling. “The Trump administration’s attempt to weaponize public service loan forgiveness against organizations it disagrees with was anti-democratic and unlawful…

by The Associated Press VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV got good news from his doctors: The pontiff will need no further treatment for lung cancer after follow-up tests confirmed the disease was localized, the Vatican said in a statement Wednesday. Leo, 71, had the lower lobe of his right lung removed last week in the first major health event of his 17-month pontificate. The surgery confirmed he had adenocarcinoma, the most common type of lung cancer. Leo was discharged from Rome’s Gemelli Polyclinic on Saturday, four days after surgery, and said he would gradually resume his activities. The pope’s…

by Kyle Hightower FOXBOROUGH, Mass.  — New England Patriots safety Kevin Byard doesn’t have any hard feelings about the two seasons he spent with the Chicago Bears. But this week he is trying to think of any tips to help his new team walk out of Thursday’s night matchup in Chicago with a victory against his former team. “I’m giving the coaches and the players as much as I can, you know what I mean?” Byard said with a smile on Tuesday. “Obviously, I am not there anymore, and I don’t have all my notes and stuff like that. But…