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Republican funding effort to avoid a government shutdown fails in the House

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s last-ditch plan to keep the federal government temporarily open collapsed in dramatic fashion Friday as a robust faction of hard-right holdouts rejected the package, making a shutdown almost certain.McCarthy’s right-flank Republicans refused to support the bill despite its steep spending cuts of nearly 30% to many agencies and severe border security provisions, calling it insufficient.The White House and Democrats rejected the Republican approach as too extreme. The vote was 198-232, with 21 hard-right Republicans voting to sink the package. The Democrats voted against it.The bill’s complete failure a day before Saturday’s deadline to fund the government leaves few options to prevent a shutdown that will furlough federal workers, keep the military working without pay and disrupt programs and services for millions of Americans.A clearly agitated McCarthy left the House chamber. “It’s not the end yet;...

Road in Norwood closed all weekend after cement truck hit bridge

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

Part of Morse Street in Norwood will be closed to all traffic through the end of the weekend after a cement truck hit a bridge in the area Thursday, Norwood’s police chief announced.The crash happened at the Morse Street Bridge on Thursday afternoon.Norwood police soon said the bridge “sustained possible structural damage” and said Morse Street would be closed between Pleasant Street and Short Street “for the foreseeable future.” In a later post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Norwood Police Chief William Brooks said the driver of the truck was OK and would be cited. A day after the crash, Brooks shared a photo of the scene on Morse Street, with “Road Closed” signs in place and police officers stationed on either side of the Morse Street Bridge. While Morse Street will remain closed for the time being, Brooks said individuals can still access all shops and companies in the area. 

With Orioles’ stadium agreement, focus on the future can be all about the team | ANALYSIS

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

Amid the revelry of the Orioles’ celebratory clubhouse Thursday night, executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias paused to ask an all-important question.“I don’t know what happened in Triple-A,” he said. “Did they win?”There was, in fairness, a lot going on. Elias could be excused for missing that, on the same night the Orioles clinched the American League East and announced a new 30-year stadium agreement to keep the team at Camden Yards, the Triple-A Norfolk Tides beat the Durham Bulls in a winner-take-all game to secure the International League championship.A young Orioles team will finish atop the toughest division in baseball, and the organization’s top minor league affiliate won a title. Those achievements show how bright the club’s future is. The midgame lease announcement — clarified Friday as a non-binding “memorandum of understanding” between the team and state — means there s...

Fire destroys Jamie Wyeth paintings, damages historic buildings, in Maine

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

PORT CLYDE, Maine (AP) — A fire destroyed several waterfront buildings in Maine, including an art gallery with several paintings by Jamie Wyeth and an illustration by his grandfather, N.C. Wyeth., the building’s owner said Friday.The original paintings and illustration, along with several signed prints, books and photographs, were lost when the fire started late Wednesday and spread to several buildings including the Maine Wyeth Art Gallery, said Linda Bean, who owned both the art gallery and the Port Clyde General Store, which also burned down.The Jamie Wyeth paintings that were destroyed were “Snapper,” “With Green Peppers” and “Red Tail Hawk,” and N.C. Wyeth’s illustration was from Henry David Thoreau’s book, “Men of Concord.”The Wyeth family famously have ties to the area. Jamie Wyeth’s dad, Andrew Wyeth, painted his 1948 masterpiece “Christina’s World” in nearby Cushing. His grandfather, N.C. Wyeth, had a home in Port Clyde.The fire started i...

Alaska’s popular Fat Bear Week could be postponed if the government shuts down

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A looming government shutdown threatens to claw its way into a crowd-pleasing Alaska tradition: Fat Bear Week.Alaska’s most-watched popularity contest, Fat Bear Week involves residents picking their favorite fat brown bear who’s been stocking up for winter by noshing on salmon in Katmai National Park & Preserve. Viewers of the bears online vote in tournament-style brackets for those they want to advance to the next round until a champion is crowned in the weeklong contest. More than 1 million votes were cast last year.Problem is, national park employees count and release those votes — and a shutdown won’t allow them to do so because it would trigger a ban on using the park’s official social media accounts for as long as the government is closed.“Should a lapse happen, we will need to postpone Fat Bear Week,” Cynthia Hernandez, a park spokesperson, said in an email to The Associated Press. If Congress does not reach an agreement to...

Libya’s coast guard rams into a dingy with some 50 migrants. Many onboard get thrown into the sea

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — A Libyan coast guard boat rammed into a dingy carrying some 50 migrants just off Libya’s coast on Friday, partially sinking the vessel. Many of those onboard were thrown into the Mediterranean Sea and had to swim to another Libyan ship nearby for safety, a rescue group said.It appeared to be the latest reckless sea interception of migrants by the Libyan coast guard, which is trained and financed by the European Union to stem the influx of migrants to Europe. Libya has in recent years emerged as the dominant transit point for migrants seeking a better life in Europe.The German sea rescue group Sea-Watch released a video appearing to show the Libyan coast guard boat nearing the dinghy, after which most of those on the vessel fall into the water. Sea-Watch said the Libyan coast guard then took the migrants aboard another ship, a coast guard frigate.There were no immediate reports of any fatalities or of anyone missing.Sea-Watch, which carries out rescue operations in...

California’s Newsom in political quandary filling Feinstein seat after pledging to pick Black woman

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The Democrats’ fragile majority in the U.S. Senate puts extra pressure on California Gov. Gavin Newsom to quickly pick a replacement for Sen. Dianne Feinstein following her death, a fraught decision for a two-term governor with national ambitions of his own.The Democratic governor had promised to appoint a Black woman in the months before Feinstein’s death as concerns grew about her declining health. He also has said he would avoid the field of candidates already campaigning for the post, which will be on the ballot next year and includes Rep. Barbara Lee, one of the state’s most prominent Black women currently serving in elected office. In a letter on Friday, the NAACP told Newsom, “Now the time has come for you to keep your promise.”“When you openly promised to appoint an African American woman to Sen. Feinstein’s seat if given the opportunity, the entire African American community in California and around the nation celebrated,” said the l...

Georgia judge declines to freeze law to discipline prosecutors, suggesting she will reject challenge

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — A judge is declining to freeze a new Georgia law creating a commission to discipline and remove state prosecutors, suggesting that she will ultimately rule against a lawsuit attacking the measure.Fulton County Superior Court Judge Paige Reese Whitaker on Friday denied a request for an injunction by four district attorneys who have sued to overturn the commission, arguing that it unconstitutionally infringes on their power.Some Republicans in Georgia want the new commission to discipline or remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for winning indictments of former President Donald Trump and 18 others. Willis is not one of the plaintiffs in the suit, although she opposed the law.Georgia’s law is one in a series of attempts nationwide by Republicans to impose controls on prosecutors they don’t like. Republicans have inveighed against progressive prosecutors after some have brought fewer drug possession cases and sought shorter prison sentences, arguing Democrat...

Saskatchewan premier defends plan to use notwithstanding clause for pronoun policy

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

SASKATOON — Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe is defending his decision to recall the legislative assembly early and use the notwithstanding clause to ensure the province’s pronoun policy in schools stays in place.Speaking to reporters in Saskatoon, he said he wants to make it clear the policy will go ahead.“The policy is paused here today,” Moe said Friday. “What we feel is of paramount importance is to provide clarity to parents, to families and ultimately to school divisions and educators that are in our classrooms across the province. This will provide that clarity.“We’ve said for a number of weeks now that there are tools available for the government to ensure this policy is in place moving forward for the next number of months and years.”Moe made the announcement Thursday that he plans to use the notwithstanding clause, shortly after a judge granted an injunction to pause the policy that requires parental consent when children under 16 wa...

Blinken on Canada-India rift: ‘Those responsible must be held accountable’

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:40 GMT

WASHINGTON — America’s top diplomat is again urging India and Canada to work together on bringing Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s killers to justice — and hopefully forestall a deepening of a serious geopolitical rift between two important allies. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he delivered that message Thursday during his meeting in Washington, D.C., with Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, India’s external affairs minister. Relations between Canada and India have plumbed new depths since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cited “credible allegations” of links between the Indian government and the shooting death of Nijjar, a prominent Sikh separatist and Canadian citizen. “We’re very concerned about the allegations that have been raised by Canada, by Prime Minister Trudeau,” Blinken told a news conference Friday. “Those responsible need to be held accountable, and we hope that our friends in both Canada and India will work together to resol...