Author: rpnadmin

The Vatican conclave surprised the world this week by selecting the first American pope, a native of Chicago. Soon after, a respected genealogist surprised the world by revealing that the new pope’s heritage connected him to far more strands of the American experience than previously known.Robert Francis Prevost, 69, who took the name Pope Leo XIV, descended from Creole people of color from New Orleans.The detective work of Jari Honora, the New Orleans genealogist and historian, was based on analysis of historical documents, including census records, many of which are presented here. Other documents were unearthed by the archdiocese of…

The following is the transcript of the full interview with Cardinal Blase Cupich, Archbishop of Chicago, a portion of which aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on May 11, 2025.ED O’KEEFE: Cardinal Cupich, thank you so much for joining us. We understand that the College of Cardinals, you and Pope Leo had your first meetings this weekend, since he was chosen as the new Holy Father, and in his public remarks, he spoke of Pope Francis’ complete dedication to service and to sober simplicity of life, and called for all of you to take up his precious legacy…

Some 600 college leaders recently signed a letter opposing the Trump administration’s interference in higher education. The only Ivy League president who did not sign the letter was Sian Beilock, the president of Dartmouth College.Instead, she wrote her own letter to her campus, saying that higher education institutions should strive to do better, “to further our standing as a trusted beacon for knowledge and truth.”“Reflection does not mean capitulation,” she added.It is the kind of message, her critics and supporters say, that has so far helped to keep Dartmouth out of the Trump administration’s cross hairs.Six of the eight Ivies…

Her friends called her Millie. The future pope called her Ma.Mildred Prevost, whose youngest son, Robert, would one day take the name Pope Leo XIV, cut her own extraordinary path of ambition, talent and religious devotion through her hometown of Chicago.Born Mildred Agnes Martinez, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in education in 1947 and attended graduate school at DePaul University, an academic path that was unusual for women at that time. She waited until she was in her mid-30s, Cook County records show, to marry Louis Prevost, who was eight years her junior. Mrs. Prevost was in her…

When Sarah Harris went in for surgery to remove her wisdom teeth in the summer of 2020, she must have thought she was in good hands. The oral surgeon she chose, Dr. James Ryan, had years of training, a good reputation and a thriving practice near her Washington, D.C.-area home. As a new patient at 23, she may never have dreamed he’d allegedly watched her when she was just 14. And Ryan would do more than take out Sarah’s teeth. Her family says he would take her self-control and eventually take her life. On the morning of Jan. 26, 2022,…

Anthony Lee is president of NTEU Chapter 282, the union representing close to 9,000 employees at the Food and Drug Administration. Andrea Hsu/NPR hide caption toggle caption Andrea Hsu/NPR By late March, Anthony Lee should have gotten a heads up that mass layoffs at the Food and Drug Administration were about to begin. Instead the union president found out when he started getting panicked calls early one morning. Employees were learning they were being fired while swiping their badges to get into work. A green light meant go. A red light meant stop. “For dozens, hundreds of employees, it just…

The prices of strollers and car seats are skyrocketing as companies race to adjust to President Trump’s tariff policies. Federal support for a major campaign to promote safe infant sleep habits appears to have been cut. Measles outbreaks are terrifying parents of young children, even as the nation’s health secretary undermines vaccines.The Trump administration’s policies are reaching ever deeper into the lives of American families, transforming routine and apolitical parts of some parents’ days — trips to the pediatrician, conversations at swim classes, chatter on online baby gear forums — into scenes of anxiety and anger.For a Democratic Party still…

The Trump administration has fired the head of the U.S. Copyright Office, two sources familiar with the situation confirmed to CBS News Saturday. The firing of Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter came after Perlmutter and her office earlier this week issued part three of a lengthy report about artificial intelligence and expressed some concerns and questions about the usage of copyrighted materials by AI technology.”It is an open question, however, how much data an AI developer needs, and the marginal effect of more data on a model’s capabilities,” the report read. “Not everyone agrees that further increases in data and…

A Trump-appointed federal judge rejected a bizarre GOP attempt to disenfranchise voters after they cast their ballots. Ad Policy Democratic Associate Justice Allison Riggs speaks to protesters at a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Monday, April 14, 2025.(Makiya Seminera / AP) Republicans lost a high-stakes contest for a seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court in November. But the race was close, and so, in the great election-denying tradition of Donald Trump, Jefferson Griffin, the defeated Republican court candidate, refused to concede defeat. Instead, Griffin launched what legal scholar Nicholas Stephanopoulos referred to as “an unprecedented effort to change…

An Ohio man who over the past 10 months sent dozens of threatening messages to 34 people, including politicians and members of law enforcement, is facing criminal charges of cyberstalking and making threats, federal prosecutors said on Friday.The man, Ronald Lidderdale, sent 65 letters and emails, including some in which he said that he would send the recipients bullets with their names on them or said that he was prepared to kill them.Mr. Lidderdale, 39, who was described by officials as being from central Ohio, was arrested on Friday and appeared in federal court to face charges of making interstate…