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EU lawmakers break ranks to endorse controversial funding for border protection

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

The EU’s brawl over whether to pay for border fencing has spilled into the European Parliament. On Wednesday, EU lawmakers approved a controversial amendment endorsing the use of EU funds to help support border barriers, although it stopped short of explicitly recommending Brussels pay for walls — long a verboten subject that has nonetheless gained momentum of late.The amendment almost instantly became a poison pill, as lawmakers then killed the broader bill it was attached to — which offered budget guidance for the European Commission — rather than move it through with the added text on border funds.The amendment — which came from the center-right European People’s Party (EPP), Parliament’s largest group — passed with a hodgepodge coalition of lawmakers across the political spectrum, some of whom defied their party line to support the text. It cleared with 322 votes in favor and 290 against, according to public voting records.The EPP’s home aff...

This isn’t the end of Fox’s legal headaches. Here’s what’s next

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

(CNN) — Dominion Voting Systems’ blockbuster defamation case against Fox News is over after the right-wing network cuts a check for a staggering $787 million, but there’s still an avalanche of pending lawsuits that are seeking accountability from the right-wing figures who championed false claims about the 2020 election.After more than two years of legal wrangling, Fox reached a last-second settlement with Dominion on Tuesday as the case raced toward opening statements, agreeing to the biggest publicly known defamation payout by a US media company in history.More lawsuits — and perhaps more settlements — might be coming. Here’s a breakdown of the related litigation that’s still pending.What’s next for Fox?In some ways, this isn’t the end of Fox News’ legal headaches. It’s only halftime.While the right-wing network will avoid having to apologize or issuing an on-air retraction over the false Dominio...

Strep infections in the US surged this winter, up nearly 30% from pre-pandemic peak

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

(CNN) — After two years of significantly low levels, strep infections in the US have surged again this season, according to a new analysis.In February, the share of health care visits for strep throat or a related diagnosis was nearly 30% higher than during the previous peak in 2017. And preliminary data for early March shows a continued upward trend, according to the Epic Health Research Network. The findings are based on electronic health records from thousands of clinics and hospitals, representing more than 100 million people across the country.Group A Streptococcus bacteria can cause many types of infections. Some, like strep throat and scarlet fever, can be relatively mild and are usually treated with antibiotics. But in December, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it was investigating an apparent increase in invasive group A strep infections, which can cause more rare and serious infections. The US also has an ongoing shortage of liquid amoxicil...

2 cheerleaders were shot in a Texas supermarket parking lot after one opened the door to the wrong vehicle. A suspect is under arrest

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

(CNN) — Authorities have arrested the man they say shot two teenage cheerleaders after one said she mistook the suspect’s vehicle as her own in a supermarket parking lot near Texas’ capital — at least the third incident this week in which young people who’d made an apparent mistake were met with gunfire.Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr., 25, was taken into custody early Tuesday, the Elgin Police Department said in a news release later that morning.Officers responding just after midnight Tuesday to an H-E-B supermarket parking lot found two people in a vehicle who’d been struck by bullets, police said, citing preliminary reports. One with serious injuries was rushed by helicopter to a hospital and in critical condition, while the other was treated at the scene, the release said.The latter girl had gotten out of a friend’s car and opened the door to a vehicle she thought was hers, only to find a man sitting in the passenger seat, she said during ...

Twitter removes transgender protections from hateful conduct policy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

(CNN) — Twitter appears to have quietly rolled back a portion of its hateful conduct policy that included specific protections for transgender people.The policy previously stated that Twitter prohibits “targeting others with repeated slurs, tropes or other content that intends to degrade or reinforce negative or harmful stereotypes about a protected category. This includes targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals.” But the second line was removed earlier this month, according to archived versions of the page from the WayBack Machine.Twitter also removed a line from the policy detailing certain groups of people often subject to disproportionate abuse online, including “women, people of color, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual individuals, and marginalized and historically underrepresented communities.”The platform first introduced its policy prohibiting misgendering and deadnaming...

Airman accused in records leak makes brief court appearance

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and ERIC TUCKER (Associated Press)BOSTON (AP) — The Massachusetts Air National Guardsman charged with leaking highly classified military documents made a brief court appearance Wednesday, as a hearing to determine whether he should remain jailed while awaiting trial was delayed to give the defense more time to prepare.Jack Teixeira, 21, had been scheduled for a detention hearing in Boston’s federal court, but the judge canceled it after Teixeira’s lawyer filed a motion requesting that it be delayed for about two weeks. The defense said it “requires more time to address the issues presented by the government’s request for detention.” A new date has not yet been set. On Wednesday morning, Teixeira was brought to the courtroom in handcuffs and orange jail garb as he waived his right to a preliminary hearing. He said nothing beyond answering yes and no to questions about whether he understood his rights and the proceeding.Teixe...

Verdugo providing spark as Red Sox leadoff hitter

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

Though the Red Sox have been one of baseball’s higher scoring teams to start the season, quite a few regulars have gotten off to slow starts. Through Tuesday five of the club’s everyday players were hitting below .200 and over the past two weeks the lineup as a whole has collectively struggled.One thing you won’t hear any complaints about, however, is the job Alex Verdugo has done as the club’s leadoff hitter.Verdugo has gotten off to a terrific start, batting a team-high .348 with a career-best .416 on-base percentage through Boston’s first 18 games. He came up big again in Tuesday’s 5-4 win over the Minnesota Twins, going 3 for 5 with a walk, a double, a run scored and the walk-off single down the right field line to clinch the wild Red Sox victory.All told, he’s been everything the Red Sox could have hoped for.“He’s a different guy,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “He’s moving well, putting good at bats, hit...

Iconic donut shop to open first location in San Diego

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Not only will this new donut shop be offering free glazed delights to its San Diego customers, but 25 lucky people will win free donuts for a year during its grand opening. Los Angeles-based Randy’s Donuts, which was founded in 1952, has made its way south with a brand new storefront set to open its doors on Wednesday, May 3. The iconic donut shop can be found at 3737 Murphy Canyon Rd. at Aero Drive, right off Interstate 15. Eat, drink & socialize at this open-air Asian bazaar in San Diego The shop is best known for its giant 32-foot rooftop donut at the original location in Inglewood and it appears that trademark will be honored at this new location in America's Finest City. A spokesperson for the the shop says the space will feature a special interior 3D Randy’s Donuts atop a mural of the San Diego skyline, including the Coronado Bridge. Get a sneak peak in the image below.(Photo: Randy’s Donuts)The shop says customers can enjoy a variety of donuts and coff...

Union leaves bargaining table as federal workers hit picket lines Wednesday morning

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada’s largest federal public-service union has left the bargaining table but says it is standing by to resume negotiations when the federal government comes back with a new offer. Federal workers were hitting the picket lines across the country on Wednesday after Canada’s largest federal public-service union and the government failed to reach a deal by a Tuesday evening deadline.On Wednesday morning, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said negotiations had paused. “Obviously, Canadians have a right and deserve to get the services that they need from the federal government. That’s why we need the management and labour to get back to the bargaining table as soon as possible, and continue to make progress,” Trudeau said. In a statement, Public Service Alliance of Canada national president Chris Aylward said “bargaining teams are standing by and ready to bargain when the employer comes back to the table with a new mandate.” A late Tuesday...

Supreme Court rejects Turkish bank’s arguments in Iran case

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:08:49 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a Turkish bank’s main arguments for dismissing a lawsuit accusing it of helping Iran evade U.S. sanctions, but the court sent the case back for additional review.Halkbank, a bank owned by Turkey, had argued that a federal law, the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976, gave foreign states absolute immunity from criminal prosecution in U.S. courts. It also said federal courts don’t have jurisdiction to oversee the case.“We disagree with Halkbank on both points,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for himself and six of his eight colleagues.Still, Kavanaugh said the case should go back to a lower court for further review. He said the lower court “did not fully consider the various arguments regarding common-law immunity that the parties press in this Court.”The federal government says the bank “participated in the largest-known conspiracy to evade the United States’ economic sanctions on Iran,” laundering billions of ...