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Biden off to Japan for Group of Seven summit, says there’s ‘work to do’ on global stage

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said there’s “work to do” on the global stage as he headed to Japan on Wednesday to consult with allies on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and China’s assertiveness in the Pacific at the same time that a debt limit standoff looms at home.With high-stakes talks to head off a federal default are underway in Washington, Biden pledged to remain in “constant contact” with negotiators in the Capitol while he conducts international diplomacy.The president departed Washington aboard Air Force One a day after scrapping plans for a historic stop in Papua New Guinea and a key visit to Australia amid the showdown with House Republicans over raising the federal debt limit. The three-nation trip had been meant as a triumphant global leadership showcase, and instead threatened to become a truncated reminder of how partisan disagreements have undercut U.S. standing on the global stage.“I’ve cut my trip short in order to be here for the final negotiations and...

Ecuador president invites more unrest by dismissing legislature

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — The president of Ecuador dismissed the legislature Wednesday in a move that promised more turmoil around a conservative leader unable to enact his agenda aimed at widening business opportunities and attracting more investment. Heavily armed soldiers surrounded the National Assembly in the capital after the move by President Guillermo Lasso, who had been locked in a showdown with legislators who wanted to impeach him. Lawmakers had accused Lasso of not stopping a corrupt deal between the state-owned oil transport company and a private tanker company, accusations he denies.Ecuador’s top military leader warned that the armed forces would crack down on any violence. Lasso appeared to have the support of the armed forces but opposition from Indigenous Ecuadorians. Protests by the powerful Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities have nearly paralyzed the country in recent years, and the group’s leader appeared outraged.Lasso “launched a cowardly self-coup wit...

Stock market today: Wall Street rallies on hopes US may avoid default

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is rallying Wednesday on rising hopes the U.S. government can avoid a potentially catastrophic default on its debt.The S&P 500 was 1.2% higher in afternoon trading, with much of the gain coming after President Joe Biden said he’s confident “America will not default.” The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 427 points, or 1.3%, at 33,440, while the Nasdaq composite was up 1.3% as of 2:24 p.m.Biden’s comments came after House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said late Tuesday that Democrats and Republicans could reach a deal by the end of the week, though the two sides remain far apart. They’re staring down a June 1 deadline, which is when the U.S. government could default on its debt unless Congress allows it to borrow more.A default could rock the financial system because Treasurys are assumed to be the safest possible investment on Earth, and economists say it would likely cause widespread damage across the economy.Wednesday’s spurt comes after a long, listles...

Enbridge punches back on Line 5 challenge: ‘Nothing but counterfactual speculation’

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

WASHINGTON — There is no “imminent threat” of Line 5 spilling crude oil in Wisconsin, lawyers for Enbridge Inc. say in a fresh batch of court documents on the eve of a hearing that could see the controversial cross-border pipeline shut down.The stage is set for oral arguments Thursday in the state capital of Madison as a federal judge contemplates whether to order the taps turned off and the pipeline’s contents purged to forestall a watershed-fouling rupture. The Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa, through whose territory the line runs, has filed a motion arguing that spring flooding along the riverbanks has rendered the risk of a breach too great to ignore. Nonsense, Enbridge argues back in an opposition brief filed late Tuesday that takes direct aim at the band’s claims of a looming environmental emergency, as well as the “drastic remedy” its lawyers are requesting. “Despite having to prove both liability and grounds for an injun...

Man indicted for stealing ‘Wizard of Oz’ ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

Federal prosecutors say a man has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of stealing a pair of ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in “The Wizard of Oz.” The FBI recovered the slippers in 2018. A grand jury indicted Terry Martin on Tuesday with one count of theft of a major artwork, federal prosecutors in North Dakota announced Wednesday.The indictment alleges that in 2005, Martin stole an authentic shoes that Garland’s character, Dorothy, wore in the 1939 film. They were taken from the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. The shoes are one of four remaining pairs of red slippers Garland wore in the movie. Online records do not list an attorney for Martin.Margaret Stafford, The Associated Press

Toronto grandmother wins $10.6M lottery prize: ‘Proof it can happen to anyone’

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

A 66-year-old woman from Toronto is $10.6-million richer after she won the grand prize through Ontario’s LOTTO 6/49.The OLG said Xiaomin Han of North York had occasionally played the lottery for the last few years. Her win was from the September 10, 2022, draw.The retired mother and grandmother said she was initially skeptical before reality set in.RELATED: 12 ‘very happy’ GTA workers win over $70K through Ontario Lotto 6/49“I couldn’t believe the number in front of me, so I called my sister to have her verify it was real,” Han said.The 66-year-old said she plans to buy a new house and a new car and hopes to travel Europe.“I feel calm but excited to be a winner. I’m proof that it can happen to anyone.”Han’s winning ticket was purchased at JJ Smoke Centre on Yonge Street in North York.

Energy storage farm could replace Hawaii coal-fired power plant

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

HONOLULU (AP) — An energy storage farm could replace Hawaii’s last coal-fired power plant that closed in 2022 after 30 years.The AES Corporation coal plant produced up to one-fifth of the electricity on Oahu — the most populous island in the state. Taking it offline meant an end to the 1.5 million metric tons of greenhouse gases that were emitted annually, then-Gov. David Ige said as it was about to shutdown in September.The company said potential new uses for the 8.5-acre property in Kapolei include battery storage, solar and even wind power, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Wednesday.Energy storage farms are increasingly taking the place of old coal plants.Nearby, the largest stand-alone energy system in the state has been under construction since last year. The project has an energy storage capacity of 565 megawatt-hours and is being developed by San Francisco-based Plus Power. Storage projects allow utility operator Hawaiian Electric to accept and use more intermittent powe...

Danny Masterson rape retrial jury begins deliberations

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jurors in Danny Masterson’s rape retrial began deliberations Wednesday morning in the case against the former “That ’70s Show” star. The jury of seven men and five women got the case when prosecutors finally finished their rebuttal after all-day closing arguments a day earlier. Late last year, a jury was unable to reach a verdict in the case against Masterson involving rape allegations by three women, and Los Angeles Judge Charlaine Olmedo declared a mistrial. Prosecutors said in closing arguments Tuesday that Masterson drugged the women in order to assault them, then relied on his status as a prominent member in the Church of Scientology to avoid consequences for years. “You don’t want to have sex? You don’t have a choice,” Deputy District Attorney Ariel Anson told the jury of seven men and five women. “The defendant makes that choice for these victims. And he does it over and over and over again.”After closing arguments, Masterson’s attorney Ph...

Daytime Emmy Awards postponed because of writers strike

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Daytime Emmy Awards have become the latest casualty of the Hollywood writers strike.The show set for June 16 in Los Angeles is being postponed because of the strike by the Writers Guild of America, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences said in a statement.“We look forward to our community gathering together as one to celebrate our Golden Anniversary and all of the talented nominees and honorees at a later date,” said Adam Sharp, academy president and CEO.The 50th annual Daytime Emmys honoring soap operas and talk shows were to be televised on CBS.Last year, the ceremony returned to a live, in-person event for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began. In 2020 and 2021, the Daytime Emmys were pre-taped events.The postponement comes as the Tony Awards, scheduled for June 11 on CBS, remain in flux after the WGA denied a request for a strike waiver from the show’s producers. The union said it would not picket the show.The recent MTV M...

Trust in Supreme Court fell to lowest point in 50 years after abortion decision, poll shows

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 19:53:36 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Confidence in the Supreme Court sank to its lowest point in at least 50 years in 2022 in the wake of the Dobbs decision that led to state bans and other restrictions on abortion, a major trends survey shows.The divide between Democrats and Republicans over support for abortion rights also was the largest ever in 2022, according to the General Social Survey. The long-running and widely respected survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago has been measuring confidence in the court since 1973, the same year that Roe v. Wade legalized abortion nationwide.In the 2022 survey, just 18% of Americans said they have a great deal of confidence in the court, down from 26% in 2021, and 36% said they had hardly any, up from 21%. Another 46% said they have “only some” confidence in the most recent survey.The drastic change was concentrated among women, Democrats and those who say a woman should be able to get an abortion if she wants one “for any reason,” the survey sh...