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Month: February 2025

Trump and Zelenskyy trade barbs as US-Ukraine relations sour over the war with Russia

By HANNA ARHIROVA and JUSTIN SPIKE Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Relations between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. President Donald Trump deteriorated rapidly Wednesday as Zelenskyy said Trump was living in a Russian-made “disinformation space” and Trump called Zelenskyy “a dictator without elections” in comments that were sure to complicate efforts to end

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The Latest: Tensions rise between Trump and Zelenskyy over the Russia-Ukraine war

By The Associated Press President Donald Trump on Wednesday called Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “dictator without elections,” lashing out after the Ukrainian president said Trump was being influenced by Russian disinformation as he moves to end the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine on terms that Kyiv says are too favorable to Moscow. Here’s the latest: Trump administration

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Tens of millions of dead people aren’t getting Social Security checks, despite Trump and Musk claims

By FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is falsely claiming that tens of millions of dead people over 100 years old are receiving Social Security payments. Over the past few days, President Donald Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk have said on social media and in press briefings that people who

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Tens of millions of dead people aren’t getting Social Security checks, despite Trump and Musk claims

By FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is falsely claiming that tens of millions of dead people over 100 years old are receiving Social Security payments. Over the past few days, President Donald Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk have said on social media and in press briefings that people who

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Italian Premier Meloni visits Pope Francis in hospital and says he’s in good spirits, responsive

By NICOLE WINFIELD, ANDREA ROSA and PAOLO SANTALUCIA Associated Press ROME (AP) — Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni visited Pope Francis in the hospital Wednesday and reported he was “alert and responsive” and full of good humor, despite his diagnosis of pneumonia and a complicated bronchial infection that has sidelined the 88-year-old pontiff for six days.

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Met Opera to double cast Verdi and Puccini, as well as shift contemporary works from Saturdays

By RONALD BLUM Associated Press The Metropolitan Opera will double cast a portion of Verdi and Puccini revivals and shift some contemporary compositions away from Saturdays at the recommendation of a consultant trying to boost the company’s finances. The 2025-26 season announced Wednesday will be the third straight with 18 productions, down from 28 in

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Incumbent Wisconsin schools leader and GOP-backed challenger advance in primary

By SCOTT BAUER Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin’s Democratic-backed incumbent state schools leader will face a Republican-supported challenger after both advanced in Tuesday’s three-person primary. The winner in the April 1 general election will guide education policy in the battleground state during President Donald Trump’s second term. Jill Underly, currently serving her first

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Finalists announced for Lukas book prizes, which champion ‘serious research and social concern.’

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Books on slavery, the justice system, poverty and gender identity are among this year’s finalists for J. Anthony Lukas prizes, named for the late investigative journalist. Presented by the Columbia Journalism School and the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University, the prizes honor “excellence

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Really, who were those masked men? New series of books probes backstories of Marvel superheroes

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — If you love movies or comics, you’ve likely followed the adventures of Spider-Man,Iron Man and other superheroes. A new line of books will let you explore the back stories of their creation. On Wednesday, Bloomsbury and Marvel announced a multi-year, multi-volume licensing agreement for “Marvel

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True crime cruise will star John Walsh and hosts of ‘RedHanded,’ ‘Scamfluencers’ and ‘Kill List’

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Hosts of many popular true crime podcasts will headline a true crime-themed cruise next year that’s being billed as a first-of-its kind immersive mystery experience at sea. The cruise will feature “America’s Most Wanted” host John Walsh, Hannah Maguire and Suruthi Bala from “RedHanded,” Scaachi

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Trump’s Labor Department pick has union support. Worker advocates wonder how much power she’d have

By CATHY BUSSEWITZ Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Union leaders have described President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Labor as a friend of organized labor. But as her confirmation hearing began Wednesday, advocates for workers’ rights question whether Lori Chavez-DeRemer will be able to uphold that reputation in an administration that

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A worried NATO holds large-scale combat drills as the US stance on Europe shifts under Trump

By STEPHEN McGRATH and NICOLAE DUMITRACHE Associated Press SMARDAN, Romania (AP) — NATO members continued their largest combat exercises of 2025 on Wednesday, testing their ability to rapidly deploy large-scale forces on the 32-nation alliance’s eastern border as worries grow over its most powerful member, the United States. The drills in Romania, which borders Ukraine,

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Renée Fleming to make directing debut at Aspen Festival this July in Mozart’s ‘Cosi fan tutte’

ASPEN, Colo. (AP) — Soprano Renée Fleming will make her directing debut in Mozart’s “Così fan tutte” at the Aspen Festival with three performances from July 21-26. While Mozart and librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte set their opera about fiancee-swapping in 18th century Naples, Italy, Fleming is shifting the work to a contemporary setting, the company

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Nebraska Daybook

Associated Press Nebraska Daybook for Wednesday, Feb. 19. The daybook is for planning purposes only and is not intended for publication or broadcast. You should verify any event you plan to cover. Please keep the AP in mind when news develops. The Omaha bureau is reachable at 402-391-0031. Send daybook items to Nebraska@applanner.com. To see

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Americans’ confidence in air travel safety dips slightly after Washington plane crash: AP-NORC poll

By LINLEY SANDERS Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans’ confidence in air travel and the federal agencies tasked with maintaining air safety has slipped a little from last year, following a recent crash in Washington, according to a new poll, but most still believe air transportation is generally safe. The survey from The Associated Press-NORC

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Pakistan steps up arrests of Afghans without papers. Kabul says it’s a move to expel all refugees

By MUNIR AHMED Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Authorities have stepped up arrests of Afghan citizens in Pakistan’s capital and a nearby city in an effort that the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad described on Wednesday as a push to force the expulsion of all Afghan refugees from the country. Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry promptly dismissed the

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