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Questions mount in Congress over Iran war’s costs, risks and exit plan

WASHINGTON (AP) — Tensions flared as questions mounted at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday over the Trump administration’s shifting rationale for war with Iran as lawmakers demand answers over the strategy, exit plan and costs to Americans in lives and dollars in what is quickly becoming a widening Middle East conflict. Trump officials arrived at the Capitol for a second day of closed-door briefings, this time with all members of the House and Senate as the administration tries to stave off a looming war powers resolution vote intended to restrict Trump’s ability to continue the joint ...

Dow drops 400, oil prices climb even higher

NEW YORK (AP) — A sell-off for stocks wrapped around the world and hit Wall Street Tuesday, while oil prices climbed even higher on worries about the widening war with Iran. But the big moves that rocked markets in the morning eased substantially as the day progressed. By the end of trading, the S&P 500 had sunk 0.9%. That would be a solid loss on a typical day, but the index had been down as much as 2.5% in the morning because of worries that the war may do more sustained damage to the economy than feared. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 403 points, or 0.8%, after ...

Target to invest another $2B to reverse sales malaise

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Target is investing another $2 billion in its business this year to spruce up its store experience, remodel stores and invest in its workers as it tries to turn around a persistent sales malaise and reclaim its authority on style. The investment, announced Tuesday at its annual investor meeting at its headquarters in Minneapolis, comes as the discounter reported another quarter of declining sales and profits amid its struggles to regain its footing with customers who are going elsewhere for fashion, home and other needs. Tuesday’s report offered some hope for ...

Gasoline and diesel prices spike overnight

NEW YORK (AP) — The average price for a gallon of gasoline jumped 11 cents overnight in the U.S., and drivers in Europe waited in line to fill their tanks with fuel, as war engulfed the Middle East and shipments of oil and gas were stranded in the Persian Gulf. Depending on the duration of the war, the pain of higher prices could increase in the coming weeks, and may be felt more heavily in areas reliant on imports. “Right now, the worst of it is centered on Europe, because Europe is a net importer,” said Susan Bell, senior vice president of commodity markets at Rystad Energy. ...

Parents creating picky and fussy eaters

It’s not my fault that my kids are picky eaters, I learned today. But it’s my fault if I don’t fix it. That’s what I gleaned from a recent article by Helen Zoe Veit, the author of a forthcoming book called “Picky: How American Children Became the Fussiest Eaters in History.” Children are not naturally picky, Veit tells us in her piece. Not at all. In fact, children are voracious eaters of vinegar and raw oysters and tiny crabs still in the shells. They are not engineered to demand Lunchables, then only eat the cheese out of the package and the second you cave and buy 10 ...

Ripple effects

Having covered the Rev. Jesse Jackson for more than a half-century, I have an insider’s understanding of why thousands of people lined up to wait patiently last week in Chicago to pay their final respects to the departed civil rights icon. Jackson knew when and how to defy power, but he also knew how to cajole the powerful to make room at the table for the excluded. Of all the memories I have gathered in the past 50 years, one stood out on this solemn occasion: Black Expo, an annual convention put on by Jackson’s Operation Breadbasket for several years in the late 1960s and early ...