NEW YORK (AP) — Black Friday may no longer be the retail bacchanalia of years past, when the promise of one-time bargains caused people to leave Thanksgiving tables for malls where some customers got into fistfights over toys or TVs. But the event still has enough enthusiasts to make it the biggest shopping day in the U. S. For that reason, the day retains its crown as the official start of the holiday shopping season. This year's kickoff comes as companies navigate an uncertain economic and...

WASHINGTON (AP) — An Afghan national has been accused of shooting two West Virginia National Guard members just blocks from the White House in a brazen act of violence at a time when the presence of troops in the nation’s capital and other cities around the country has become a political flashpoint. FBI Director Kash Patel and Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said the guard members were hospitalized in critical condition after Wednesday afternoon's shooting. West Virginia Gov. Patrick had he...

MOSCOW (AP) — A U. S. -Russian crew of three launched Thursday to the International Space Station. A Soyuz booster rocket lifted off as scheduled from the Russia-leased Baikonur launch facility in Kazakhstan to put the Soyuz MS-28 carrying NASA astronaut Chris Williams and two Russian crewmates, Sergei Mikaev and Sergei Kud-Sverchkov in orbit. They were scheduled to dock at the station about three hours after liftoff. All three are expected to spend about eight months at the orbiting outpost...