It’s Tax Day. And your refund may be big this year
WASHINGTON (AP) — On this Tax Day, April 15, refunds are looking a bit bigger for taxpayers. According to the latest IRS statistics, the average refund this season has been $3,011, up $123 compared to last year. Two out of three taxpayers expect to receive a refund. The IRS is promoting customer service improvements the agency rolled out since receiving tens of billions in new funding dollars through Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act. The promotion also in part is meant to quickly normalize a more efficient and effective IRS before congressional Republicans threaten another round of cuts to the agency.
Trump’s history-making hush-money trial begins with challenge of picking a jury
NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump has arrived at a New York court for the start of jury selection in his hush money case. marking a singular moment in U.S. history. It’s the first criminal trial of any former U.S. commander-in-chief and the first of Trump’s four indictments to go to trial. There could be some legal arguments and housekeeping before jury selection begins. When it does, scores of people are due to be called into the courtroom to start the process of finding 12 jurors, plus six alternates. Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors say he was trying to conceal an alleged effort to keep salacious stories about his sex life from emerging during his 2016 campaign. He says that the stories were false and that the case is a sham.
Trump arrives at court in New York for the start of jury selection in hush money trial
NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump has arrived at a New York court for the start of jury selection in his hush money trial, making history as the first former president to stand trial on criminal charges. It’s the first of Trump’s four indictments to go to trial and will present a split-screen of a presidential candidate spending his days in court while, he has said, “campaigning during the night.” Scores of people are expected to be called into the courtroom as the process to find 12 jurors and six alternates begins. Trump is accused of falsifying internal business records and making payoffs to two women as part of a scheme to bury stories he worried would hurt his 2016 campaign.
Analysis: Iran upends decades of shadow warfare in direct attack on Israel as tensions mount at home
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s direct attack on Israel over the weekend upended decades of its shadowy warfare by proxy, something Tehran has used to manage international repercussions for its actions. But with both economic and political tensions at home boiling, the country’s Shiite theocracy chose a new path as changes loom for the Islamic Republic. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will mark his 85th birthday Friday, with no clear successor in sight as well. The tensions, coupled with hard-liners’ grip on power and Khamenei’s age, signal more changes loom for the country.
Israeli military renews warnings to Palestinians not to return to war-torn northern Gaza
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Israeli military has renewed warnings for Palestinians in Gaza not to return to the embattled territory’s north. People appeared to be heeding the new warning on Monday, a day after five Palestinians were killed as throngs of displaced people tried to reach their homes in the war-torn area. Northern Gaza and the return of its population is a key sticking point between Israel and Hamas in negotiations underway to try to bring about a cease-fire in exchange for the release of hostages taken by the militant group. Israel wants to try to delay the return to prevent militants from regrouping in the north, while Hamas says it wants a free flow of returnees.
Bureau of Prisons to close California women’s prison where inmates have been subjected to sex abuse
The federal Bureau of Prisons says it is planning to close a women’s prison in California known as the “rape club” despite attempts to reform the troubled facility after an Associated Press investigation exposed rampant staff-on-inmate sexual abuse. Bureau of Prisons Director Colette Peters said in a statement to the AP that the agency had “taken unprecedented steps and provided a tremendous amount of resources to address culture, recruitment and retention, aging infrastructure — and most critical — employee misconduct.” An AP investigation in 2021 found a culture of abuse and cover-ups that had persisted for years at the prison.
Tax Day reveals a major split in how Joe Biden and Donald Trump would govern
WASHINGTON (AP) — Tax Day reveals a major split in how Joe Biden and Donald Trump would govern: The presidential candidates have conflicting ideas about how much to reveal about their own finances and the best ways to boost the economy through tax policy. Biden, the sitting Democratic president, plans to release his tax records on Monday, which is the IRS deadline for filing. And on Tuesday, he is scheduled to deliver a speech in about why the wealthy should pay more. Trump, the former Republican president, says the public has no need to see his tax data. He maintains that keeping taxes low for the wealthy will supercharge investment and lead to more jobs.
Hug recovers from crash for 7th Boston Marathon wheelchair title. Rainbow-Cooper takes women’s race
BOSTON (AP) — Switzerland’s Marcel Hug righted himself after crashing into a barrier when he took a turn too fast and still coasted to victory in the Boston Marathon. Hug won the men’s wheelchair race for the seventh time. Eden Rainbow-Cooper won the women’s wheelchair race. Nearly 30,000 runners left Hopkinton for the 128th Boston Marathon. The sleepy New England town celebrated its 100th anniversary as the course’s starting line. Defending champions Evans Chebet and Hellen Obiri were back in the field a year after combining for a third straight Kenyan sweep.
Paris prepares for 100-day countdown to the Olympics. It wants to rekindle love for the Games
PARIS (AP) — April 17 marks the 100 days countdown to the Paris Olympics ambitious opening ceremony. The first Games in a century in France’s capital will be judged not only for the sporting spectacle. Another yardstick will be their impact on disadvantaged Paris suburbs away from iconic city-center landmarks hosting much of the action. By promising socially positive and also less polluting and less wasteful Olympics, the city synonymous with romance aims to rekindle love for the Games. The idea that the July 26-Aug. 11 Olympics should benefit disadvantaged communities was built into the city’s preparations from the outset.
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