A vaccine standoff from RFK Jr.'s first congressional hearing in months

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday faced federal lawmakers for the first time since September as he sought to defend a more than 12% proposed cut to his department’s budget and dodge arrows from angry Democrats along the way.

Australia's most decorated veteran walks free on bail on war crimes charges

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) – Australia’s most decorated living veteran, Ben Roberts-Smith, walked free on bail from a Sydney prison on Friday, 10 days after he was charged with war crimes in the killings of five people while serving in Afghanistan.

Lawmakers quietly talked about AI. Angst and fears of 'destruction' followed

WASHINGTON (AP) – A congressional subcommittee on Thursday held a roundtable discussion on the potential of artificial intelligence, which took a turn toward the existential as each lawmaker aired their anxieties about the rapidly evolving technology.

Editorials from The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian and others

Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad:

Lula and Sánchez to 'work for peace' at gathering of progressive leaders in Barcelona

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) – Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva started a two-day visit to Spain on Friday when he and his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sánchez met a day before they will gather with other leaders, mostly of small to mid-sized countries, who are concerned with the fate of the democratic order and the rise of the populist far right.

Russia-linked crypto firm backed Nawrocki's presidential bid

WARSAW, Poland (AP) – Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said a cryptocurrency firm built with “Russian money” had sponsored Polish politicians from the former national-conservative government as well as a CPAC ( Conservative Political Action Conference ) event in Poland last year.

Iran war energy shock drives nuclear power plans in hard-hit Asia and Africa

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) – The Iran war’s global energy shock is causing some nations in Asia and Africa to boost nuclear power generation and spurring atomic energy plans in non-nuclear countries on both continents.

Bulgaria's pro-Russian former president is front-runner in Sunday's election

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) – Bulgarians are heading to a new early election that could bring to power a left-leaning ex-president just days after Hungarian voters rejected the authoritarian policies and global far-right movement of Viktor Orbán.

New York loses $74 million for not revoking 33,000 illegal trucker licenses

New York will lose more than $73.5 million in federal money because the Transportation Department said Thursday that state has refused to revoke nearly 33,000 questionable commercial driver’s licenses for immigrants since an audit uncovered problems last year.