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Trump lawyer calls indictment an ‘attack on free speech and political advocacy.’ Follow live updates

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Follow along for live updates on the Justice Department’s indictment of former President Donald Trump over his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The charges focus on schemes by Trump and his allies to subvert the transfer of power and keep him in office despite his loss to Joe Biden. ___WHAT TO KNOW— Trump has now been indicted for the third time. Here’s where all the investigations stand— Trump also was indicted in June on charges that he illegally hoarded classified documents— Mar-a-Lago’s property manager is the latest Trump staffer ensnared in his legal turmoil— Special counsel Jack Smith has a long career of confronting corruption___Trump lawyer calls indictment an “attack on free speech and political advocacy”Donald Trump’s attorney John Lauro called the latest indictment of the former president “an attack on free speech and political advocacy.”Lauro said in an interview on CNN Tuesday night that it is “an effort t...

As Jagmeet Singh tours Atlantic Canada, New Democrats look to flip Liberal seats

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

OTTAWA — NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is touring Atlantic Canada in an effort to highlight affordability issues — and flip two Liberal seats in the next federal election. Singh said voters who are increasingly struggling with the cost of living are dissatisfied with the federal government, while selling his party as the true caretaker of working-class Canadians.The NDP has pushed for affordability initiatives through its confidence-and-supply agreement with the Liberals, including dental care, a one-time rental supplement and the doubling of the GST rebate.Singh views them all as wins.“We’re making a real difference, but it’s not enough for me to just push government,” Singh told reporters in St. John’s, N.L., on Tuesday. “I want to be the one calling the shots and make sure that decisions are made in the interests of working people.”The party is looking to flip St. John’s East in Newfoundland, a seat that used to be a stronghold for the N...

1 dies, 8 others seriously hurt in tour bus rollover at Grand Canyon West

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

GRAND CANYON WEST, Ariz. (AP) — One person was killed in a tour bus rollover involving over 50 people Tuesday in northern Arizona near the Grand Canyon West Skywalk, authorities said.The bus rolled over just before 10 a.m. Tuesday at Grand Canyon West on the Hualapai Indian Reservation, according to the tribal police department. Grand Canyon West is run by the tribe but has no operational ties to Grand Canyon National Park, which is managed by the National Park Service.The rollover involved 57 people; one person died and eight others were flown to hospitals. An undisclosed number of others with less critical injuries were driven for treatment, tribal emergency officials said in a statement. The name of the person who died and details on the injured were not immediately released.A private tour operator and a visitor’s personal vehicle collided near the Grand Canyon West parking lot, tribal officials confirmed. They declined further comment, citing their ongoing investigation.The Ariz...

Politicians urge Taylor Swift to postpone LA concerts in solidarity with striking hotel workers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — California’s lieutenant governor and other elected officials on Tuesday urged Taylor Swift to postpone her Los Angeles concerts as a way to stand in solidarity with striking hotel workers. Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis and dozens of state and local politicians signed an open letter telling Swift that her tour makes the region’s hotels money, with some properties “doubling and tripling what they charge because you are coming.”Meanwhile, the letter said, many housekeepers and other hotel workers can’t afford to live close to their jobs and some sleep in their cars and risk losing their homes.“Hotel workers are fighting for their lives. They are fighting for a living wage. They have gone on strike. Now, they are asking for your support,” they wrote. “Stand with hotel workers and postpone your concerts.”Starting Thursday, Swift is scheduled to perform six sold-out shows at SoFi Stadium near Los Angeles. Her representatives didn’t immediately respond to a...

Sao Paulo police kill 14 people in raid as they investigate the slaying of an elite officer

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

SAO PAULO (AP) — The death toll from an ongoing raid in Sao Paulo state has climbed to 14, as law enforcement agents sought to strike at the people they blame for killing an elite squad officer last week. The sprawling operation has raised questions about the use of lethal force by police.Sao Paulo Gov. Tarcisio de Freitas, who on Monday had said 10 people were killed, on Tuesday announced the increased tally. News website G1 said the revised figures make the raid the most deadly in Brazil’s most populous and wealthiest state since 2006.De Freitas, a former minister of far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro and deemed by many politicians as his potential heir, said he is proud of his policemen involved in the statewide raid, which is expected to finish on Aug. 28. The operation is also seeking the arrests of the killers of elite policeman Patrick Bastos Reis, who was shot dead on Thursday.“Those who decided to turn themselves in were arrested,” the governor said when asked about ...

CPD: 3 hospitalized following Lawndale shooting

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

CHICAGO -- Three men have been transported to a local hospital after being shot on the South Side Tuesday night.According to the Chicago Police Department, officers responded to the 1300 block of South Springfield Avenue in the Lawndale neighborhood just after 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday.CPD reports that all three men hospitalized were shot in the leg. Two men, 31 and 32-years-old, were transported to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition, but a 33-year-old man remains in critical condition.No arrests have been made at this time. The investigation is ongoing. No further information has been made available.Stay with WGN-TV as this story develops.

20 tons of chocolate go up in flames when semi-truck catches fire in California

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

(KTXL) -- A semi-truck carrying 40,000 pounds of chocolate went up in flames on Monday morning in Northern California's Placer County, according to CAL FIRE Nevada-Yuba-Placer. At around 4:30 a.m., crews responded to the area of Interstate 80 and Highway 174 near Colfax for reports of a commercial vehicle fire.When crews arrived on scene they found a fully involved fire in the trailer of the semi-truck and were able to keep the flames from spreading into the surrounding forestland. ‘Scared to stop’: Google Maps car leads Indiana police on 100-mph chase, crashes into creek Footage from KCRA showed large heaps of chocolate melting in the heat, dripping off the wreckage of the vehicle and rocks along the side of the road.Such fires can be especially tough to extinguish, according to Danish transport company DSV. "Chocolate, or more so cocoa, is highly flammable. If it catches fire, the blaze is difficult to extinguish since cocoa powder contains 10 to 20 percent fat and has a huge s...

Powder Keg Pine Fire in Bastrop estimated at 100 acres, 40% contained

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

BASTROP, Texas (KXAN) — First responders said they're working Tuesday afternoon to evacuate homes as a "precautionary measure" because of a wildfire burning near Bastrop State Park. The fire, which is now called the Powder Keg Pine Fire, is estimated at 100 acres and is 40% contained as of 8 p.m., according to the Texas A&M Forest Service.Additionally, the Austin Fire Department said it and other Travis County ESDs sent multiple units as mutual aid to to the fire.Smoke seen from Bastrop County fire Aug. 1, 2023. (KXAN ReportIt photo)Smoke from Bastrop wildfire Aug. 1, 2023 (KXAN ReportIt Photo)Smoke from a Bastrop fire Aug. 1, 2023 (Courtesy Morgan Hay)Smoke from a Bastrop fire Aug. 1, 2023 (Courtesy Morgan Hay)First responders said the houses affected by the evacuations are located between Harmon Road and Pine Hill Loop in Bastrop. It's unclear how many homes are impacted at this time. Neighbors are advised to contact the county hotline at (512) 303-4300 for more information. I...

Report: Airbnb helps drive tourism in areas without hotels

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) --- Tourism is coming to places in Austin where there aren't any hotels, according to a report by Airbnb.The report said Austin neighborhoods without hotels had more than 470,000 guests and made more than $130 million in host earnings in 2022."Airbnb guests visiting these areas without hotels, they bring their tourism dollars. So they're visiting the local bakery, they're visiting the local shop, they're going to bars and restaurants and spending their money in these business," said Airbnb Communications Lead Sam Randall.Trending Austin neighborhoods:Robinson RanchDel Valle EastGeorgian AcresPromoting local businessesJoe Arenella said his East Austin neighborhood is full of Airbnb listings. A host himself, Arenella said he makes it a point to promote local businesses by providing guests with a long list of places to visit in the area. "All the local restaurants, food trailers, and bars, obviously, and breweries," Arenella said. "People spend their four day weekend just...

In a twist, first-place Twins stand pat on trade deadline day

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:25:19 GMT

ST. LOUIS — This is the group. Now, go prove yourselves.That was the message the Twins’ front office delivered on Tuesday by making no moves ahead of the 5 p.m. trade deadline, a surprising development for the first-place team. The trade deadline was plenty busy, president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said, but the Twins did not find a match, standing pat on deadline day.They did make one move before the deadline, sending reliever Jorge López to Miami last Wednesday for fellow reliever Dylan Floro, but they didn’t make any other moves to supplement the bullpen, nor to add a right-handed bat to the lineup.“There were a lot of players we talked about that were not moved during this deadline that were part of the conversation that we felt might be fits for us,” Falvey said. “But ultimately we landed where we did because there wasn’t something that crossed the bar in terms of what we were looking for.”Falvey noted a number of teams that they had been speaking with opted not to tr...