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EU conservative chief blasts Germany for ‘blocking’ migration deal as rows over asylum seekers heat up

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

The head of Europe’s conservative parties took aim at the German government Wednesday for “blocking” both a controversial EU migration deal and funding for border controls in Tunisia as tensions escalate across the bloc over migration.  The comments from Manfred Weber, head of the European People’s Party (EPP), come as France closes its border to migrants arriving from Italy, and as the German government reinstates checks at its borders with Poland and the Czech Republic amid an escalating row between Berlin and Warsaw. Italy’s right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also complained to Scholz about Berlin’s plans to finance two migrant NGOs operating in Italy.With EU capitals increasingly at odds, home affairs ministers will be updated Thursday on the state of play on the contentious EU migration pact, which aims to have common rules to deal with non-EU citizens who want to access the bloc, among other mea...

How would a government shutdown affect you?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

By Anna Helhoski | NerdWalletWith days left until a possible federal government shutdown, you might be wondering what this has to do with you.Every year Congress approves 12 appropriations bills to keep the government going before the fiscal year ends after Sept. 30. This year, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-CA, wanted to negotiate, leaving the fate of federal services operations in limbo.If Congress doesn’t act quickly to approve a new spending package or agree on a stopgap to delay the shutdown, the government will close up shop as of Sunday. But even a full shutdown doesn’t shut every door.A government shutdown would play havoc with several federal government agencies and operations. That means nonessential services would be suspended, while other programs that receive mandatory funding would be spared. You don’t have to worry about things like air traffic control or power grid maintenance, for example.Overall, the brunt of the disruption will fall on furloughed federal workers....

Sources: Patriots adding defensive line depth after recent injuries

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

The Patriots signed defensive lineman Manny Jones to their practice squad, sources told the Herald.Additional depth along the defensive line was needed after the Patriots placed defensive tackle Daniel Ekuale on injured reserve Tuesday. Defensive tackle Davon Godchaux also missed the second half of Sunday’s win over the Jets with an ankle injury.Related ArticlesNew England Patriots | Ex-Patriots captain: Mac Jones must stop getting involved in dirty incidents New England Patriots | Everything Patriots HC Bill Belichick said in extensive rundown of Cowboys New England Patriots | Patriots’ Bill Belichick backs away from Micah Parsons-Lawrence Taylor comparison New England Patriots | Patriots extra points: Bill O’Brien calls Cowboys defender a top-5 player in the NFL New England Patriots | OBF: Mac Jones creates controversy with saucy confrontation Jones, who’s 6-foot-4, 290 pounds, ...

6 young climate activists take European governments to court over climate change

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

STRASBOURG, France (AP) — Six young adults and children argued that governments across Europe aren’t doing enough to protect people from climate change at the European Court of Human Rights on Wednesday in the latest and largest instance of activists taking governments to court to force climate action.Legal teams for the 32 nations — which includes the 27 EU member countries, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Norway, Russia and Turkey — questioned the admissibility of the case as well as the claim that the plaintiffs are victims of climate change harm.But lawyers representing the group from Portugal said the nations they’re suing have failed to adequately address human-caused warming and therefore violated some of the group’s fundamental rights. They insisted on the need for further and rapid action to meet climate targets that have been set for the end of the decade. “Today’s case is about the young. It is about the price that they are paying for the failure of states to tackle the ...

A look at other Americans who have entered North Korea over the years

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has expelled a U.S. soldier who crossed into the country in July.Pvt. Travis King’s case comes at a time of high tensions on the Korean Peninsula. King was released to U.S. custody on Wednesday.Other Americans have entered North Korea over the years, including a few U.S. soldiers.Some were motivated by evangelical zeal or simply attracted by the mystery of a severely cloistered police state. Others were detained after entering North Korea as tourists. In one tragic case, it ended in death.Here’s a look at those cases:CHARLES JENKINSBorn in Rich Square, North Carolina, Charles Jenkins was one of the few Cold War-era U.S. soldiers who fled to North Korea while serving in the South.Jenkins, then an Army sergeant, deserted his post in 1965 and fled across the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas. North Korea treated Jenkins as a propaganda asset, showcasing him in leaflets and films.In 1980, Jenkins married 21-year-old Hitomi Soga, a J...

The second GOP debate field will be a bit smaller – and still missing Trump. Follow live updates

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

Follow along for live updates on the second 2024 Republican presidential debate, which begins at 9 p.m. ET in California. The field’s early front-runner, Donald Trump, is skipping the event, just as he did the first. He’ll be 2,000 miles away trying to woo union workers in Michigan amid a labor strike.The candidates on stage will be Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.What to know— 7 candidates qualified for the second debate. Here’s who missed the cut — Here’s how to watch tonight’s debate — Republicans face growing urgency to stop Trump ahead of debate — Trump heads to Michigan to compete with Biden for union votes — Who’s running for president? See a rundown of the 2024 candidatesTrump plans prime-time speech to union workers in lieu of debateThe former...

An old car tire, burnt trees and a utility pole may be key in finding how the Maui wildfire spread

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

Melted remains of an old car tire. Heavily burned trees. A charred stump of an abandoned utility pole.Investigators are examining these and other pieces of evidence as they seek to solve the mystery of last month’s deadly Maui wildfire: How did a small, wind-whipped fire sparked by downed power lines and declared extinguished flare up again hours later into a devastating inferno? The answer may lie in an overgrown gully beneath Hawaiian Electric Co. power lines and something that harbored smoldering embers from the initial fire before rekindling in high winds into a wall of flame that quickly overtook the town of Lahaina, destroying thousands of structures and killing at least 97 people.But as investigators sift through blackened debris to explain the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than a century, one fact has become clear: Hawaiian Electric’s right-of-way was untrimmed and unkempt for years, despite being in an area classified as being at high risk for wildfires.Aerial and s...

Powerball jackpot up to $850 million after months without a big winner

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An estimated $850 million Powerball jackpot will be up for grabs Wednesday night for players willing to risk a couple dollars and brave incredibly long odds.The jackpot is the world’s ninth-largest lottery prize of all time, behind earlier prizes in the Powerball and Mega Millions games that all topped $1 billion.The jackpot has grown so large because there have been 29 consecutive drawings without a big winner, dating back to July 19. Powerball’s terrible odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate big jackpots, with prizes becoming ever larger as they repeatedly roll over when no one wins.The largest jackpot was a $2.04 billion Powerball prize hit by a player in California in November 2022.In most states, a Powerball ticket costs $2 and players can select their own numbers or leave that task to a computer.The $850 million jackpot is for a sole winner who opts for payment through an annuity, doled out over 30 years. Winners almost always ...

Witness at Peter Nygard’s sexual-assault trial describes bedroom suite at Toronto HQ

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

TORONTO — Jurors at the sexual-assault trial of former Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard are hearing more about the layout of his Toronto office building, which housed a private bedroom suite where he allegedly forced himself on women.Nygard, the founder of a now-defunct international women’s clothing company, is being accused by the Crown of using his position in the fashion industry to lure women and girls. The 82-year-old has pleaded not guilty to five counts of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement in alleged incidents ranging from the ’80s to mid-2000s.David Gauthier, who used to work for Nygard doing construction and design work, testified today that one door inside Nygard’s private bedroom suite could only be opened by pushing a button next to it, while anther could only be unlocked by a control panel near a large bed.The Crown has said in its opening arguments at trial that all five complainants in the case are expected to allege that they ...

Michigan fake elector defendants want case dropped due to attorney general’s comments

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:11:56 GMT

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A second defendant accused in a fake elector scheme in Michigan is looking for criminal charges to be thrown out after the state attorney general said that the group of 16 Republicans “genuinely” believed former President Donald Trump won the 2020 election. The 16 Michigan Republicans are facing eight criminal charges, including forgery and conspiracy to commit election forgery. Investigators say the group met following the 2020 election and signed a document falsely stating they were Michigan’s “duly elected and qualified electors.”President Joe Biden won the state by nearly 155,000 votes, a result that was confirmed by a GOP-led state Senate investigation in 2021.Two defendants in the case are now asking for charges to be thrown out after Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel told a liberal group during a Sept. 18 virtual event that the false electors had been “brainwashed” and “genuinely” believed Trump won in Michigan.“They legit believe that,” said Nessel,...