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Bipartisan Plan to Trade Immigrant Rights for Ukraine Money Is Sinking Fast

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

A bipartisan effort to gain votes for a bill that would trade immigrant rights for military assistance to Ukraine appears to be falling apart, getting traction with neither Democrats nor Republicans. The plan, reported yesterday, would attach a border enforcement component to President Joe Biden’s $106 billion supplemental funding request.“I think this is a ridiculous position to put us in,” said Sen. Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut. “Holding Israel aid and Ukraine aid hostage to solving a complicated domestic issue is really unfortunate.” The current negotiation has been the latest in a series of efforts by Democrats to placate Republican criticisms of Biden’s handling of the southern border, as well as an effort by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to win Ukraine funding and placate Republicans skeptical of the war.The so-called Gang of Four negotiators includes Murphy, who chairs the appropriations subcommittee that funds immigration op...

Pope Francis is still having trouble breathing due to lung inflammation, Vatican says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis is still having trouble breathing as a result of a lung inflammation that forced him to cancel his scheduled address at the U.N. climate conference in Dubai and to delegate the reading of his weekly catechesis lesson and other remarks to aides, the Vatican said Wednesday.Francis told his general audience Wednesday morning that he still didn’t feel well and that his voice was “not pretty.” He coughed and spoke in a whisper in the few remarks he did deliver at the end of the gathering. Francis, who turns 87 next month and had part of one lung removed as a young man, no longer has a fever and is in stable condition but continues to receive antibiotics, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said in an update later Wednesday. “The lung inflammation associated with the respiratory difficulty remains,” he said.Francis came down with the flu late last week and canceled all his audiences Saturday for what he later revealed was a lung inflammation. The Va...

Jets begin Aaron Rodgers’ 21-day practice window in next step in recovery from torn Achilles tendon

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers’ improbable comeback from a torn Achilles tendon has taken the next step.The New York Jets opened the 21-day practice window for the quarterback on Wednesday — exactly 11 weeks after he had surgery — with Rodgers cleared for some football activities.Coach Robert Saleh said the four-time NFL MVP, who turns 40 on Saturday, will be limited at practice and is not cleared for contact. Saleh said there’s no added risk in taking this step, emphasizing it’s not necessarily a signal that Rodgers will play again this season as much as it is the next part of the quarterback’s rehabilitation process.“For Aaron, what he will be doing in practice is no different than what he’d be doing on the field, with regards to certain drills and individual (drills),” Saleh said. “Instead of throwing with staff members, he’s throwing with teammates.”At the end of the 21-day period, the Jets will have to make a decision whether to acti...

Cowboys face Seahawks with 13-game home winning streak on the line, and Eagles around the corner

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys have one more game before a highly anticipated NFC East rematch.This time, it’s an opponent with a winning record as the Seattle Seahawks visit Thursday night before the Cowboys (8-3) get a little break in anticipation of the Philadelphia Eagles coming to town Dec. 10.Dallas, which has a 13-game home winning streak, has beaten three consecutive double-digit underdogs by an average of 30 points. The Seahawks (6-5) are close, with Dallas favored by nine, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.But the Cowboys say they won’t be peeking around the corner at the Eagles, who won 28-23 in Philadelphia to start November in a game Dallas easily could have won.“Seattle is giving us plenty to worry about, plenty to focus on,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “There’s a lot of length between Seattle and the next one. I don’t see that as an issue at all.”Prescott is on one of the best rolls of his career, with the star quarterback throwing...

Prosecutors say paramedics ignored Elijah McClain’s distress after stop and killed him with overdose

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado prosecutor said Wednesday that two paramedics ”did nothing” to help an ailing Elijah McClain as he lay on the ground and instead injected him with an overdose of a powerful sedative that killed the 23-year-old Black man after he had been weakened by police neck holds when officers forcibly restrained him walking home from a convenience store.A defense attorney, however, sought to shift blame to the officers during opening statements in the final jury trial over McClain’s 2019 death in a Denver suburb.The trial is expected explore largely uncharted legal territory because it is rare for medical first responders to face criminal charges. Initially, no one was charged because the coroner’s office could not determine exactly how McClain died. But social justice protests following the 2020 murder of George Floyd drew renewed attention to McClain’s case, and a grand jury indicted the paramedics and three officers in 2021. The officers already have g...

Israel says 2 hostages released by Hamas in Gaza are now in Egypt, 10 others expected to be freed

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

CAPTION CORRECTION CORRECTS LOCATION: People holding an Israeli flag watch the arrival of a helicopter transporting Israeli hostages released by Hamas at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel, Tuesday Nov. 28, 2023. Hamas and Israel released more hostages and prisoners under terms of a fragile cease-fire that held for a fifth day Tuesday. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)(AP/Leo Correa) CAPTION CORRECTION CORRECTS LOCATION: People holding an Israeli flag watch the arrival of a helicopter transporting Israeli hostages released by Hamas at the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, Israel, Tuesday Nov. 28, 2023. Hamas and Israel released more hostages and prisoners under terms of a fragile cease-fire that held for a fifth day Tuesday. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)(AP/Leo Correa) ...

The role of family caregivers in the healthcare system

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

A growing number of Americans are facing an issue with major health and financial implications: providing care for aging family members.The issue of caregiving touches the lives of tens of millions of people, creating challenges across generations, as people live longer and require more medical assistance.WTOP.com, in cooperation with AARP, convened a special panel to explore “The Role of Family Caregiving in the Healthcare System.”The panel includes:Nancy LeaMond, chief advocacy and engagement officer for AARPJohn Poole, a former family caregiver and caregiver advocateDr. Benjamin Powers, surgical oncologist at UM Capital Region HealthDr. Meena Seshamani, director of the Center for Medicare at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)Baby Boomers are only part of the changing demographic, but they play a large role. By 2030, one-fifth of the U.S. population will be at least 65 years old. While many seniors have healthy lifestyles, more people than ever requ...

Israeli military says two hostages released by Hamas in Gaza are now in Egypt, 10 others expected to be freed

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli military says two hostages released by Hamas in Gaza are now in Egypt, 10 others expected to be freed.Source

College Football Picks: Awkward trophy ceremonies, CFP implications highlight championship weekend

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

There could be some awkward trophy ceremonies around college football’s championship weekend.On Friday night in Las Vegas, the Pac-12 will crown a champion that is heading to the Big Ten with a commissioner in George Kliavkoff, who oversaw the collapse of the conference.In the Big 12 on Saturday, Commissioner Brett Yormark might be handing the trophy to a Texas team he was outwardly rooting against in the Longhorns last season in the league before joining the Southeastern Conference.Then there is the Atlantic Coast Conference title game in Charlotte, North Carolina, where Commissioner Jim Phillips might be congratulating Florida State, a school with leaders who have publicly talked about leaving the league.None of those tops what’s likely coming in the Big Ten, where No. 2 Michigan is a huge favorite to make it three straight titles. Coach Jim Harbaugh is returning from a conference-imposed suspension just in time to collect a trophy from the guy who suspended him, Big T...

Texans offensive lineman Tytus Howard placed on injured reserve with left knee injury

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:35:10 GMT

HOUSTON (AP) — Houston Texans offensive lineman Tytus Howard was placed on injured reserve Wednesday with a left knee injury.Howard, who is in his fifth season, injured his knee in the first half of Houston’s loss to Jacksonville on Sunday. It’s his second stint on injured reserve this season after he missed the first four games of the season after breaking his right hand in training camp. Howard signed a three-year, $56 million contract extension during training camp that will keep him in Houston through the 2026 season. A first-round pick in 2019, Howard started seven games this season protecting star rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud and has 61 starts in his career. He started every game last season. ___AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFLSource