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Texas AG Ken Paxton faces charges of corruption and bribery as his impeachment trial gets underway

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas — The gravest threat to Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton ‘s troubled career got underway Tuesday as the embattled Republican sat for an impeachment trial on charges of corruption and bribery that have shadowed one of state’s most powerful figures for years.The fate of Paxton, 60, is in the hands of GOP senators with whom he served before winning a statewide race to take charge of the attorney general’s office in 2015. The chamber includes his wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, who can attend the trial but is barred from voting on whether her husband should be convicted or acquitted.Shortly before the historic proceedings began, Ken and Angela Paxton spoke for a few minutes on the Senate floor and shared a briefed kiss.Other senators were sworn-in one by one as Paxton supporters, many wearing red shirts, watched from the upper floor gallery that was about half full. Other onlookers cheered when impeachment managers who will present the case against Paxton entered the cham...

Why this presidential campaign may feel familiar to many Americans

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The end of Labor Day weekend would typically mark the start of a furious sprint to the Iowa caucuses as candidates battle for their party’s presidential nomination. But as the 2024 campaign comes into greater focus, the usual frenzy is yielding to a sense of inevitability. Among Republicans, Donald Trump is dominating the primary field, outpacing rivals with resumes as governors, diplomats and entrepreneurs that would normally prove compelling. The former president’s strength comes despite — or perhaps because of — multiple criminal indictments that threaten to overshadow any serious debate about the future of the country. And for now, the tens of millions of dollars that Republican rivals are pouring into the race are doing little to diminish Trump’s stature, fueling concerns among his GOP critics who fear the primary is essentially over before it begins. As one troubled front-runner tightens his grip on the Republican nomination, President Joe Bid...

Biden nominates former Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew to serve as ambassador to Israel

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has nominated former Treasury secretary Jacob Lew to serve as the next U.S. ambassador to Israel, the White House announced Tuesday.Lew, who served as White House chief of staff and director of the Office of Management and Budget during the Obama administration, would succeed Ambassador Tom Nides.,who left the post in July. Lew also served as OMB director during the Clinton administration.If Lew is confirmed by the Senate, he will come to one of the highest-profile U.S. ambassadorships, with the Biden administration pushing for Israel and Saudi Arabia—two of the biggest Middle East powers but longtime rivals— to normalize their relationship.The effort to strengthen that historically fraught relationship comes after the Trump administration helped facilitate the “Abraham Accords,” normalizing relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco.A normalization deal with Saudi Arabia, the most powerful and wealthy Arab state,...

Spanish soccer federation fires women’s national team coach Jorge Vilda amid Rubiales controversy

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

MADRID (AP) — The Spanish soccer federation fired women’s national team coach Jorge Vilda on Tuesday, less than three weeks after his team won the Women’s World Cup title and amid the controversy involving suspended federation president Luis Rubiales.The coach was among those who applauded Rubiales when he refused to resign despite facing widespread criticism for kissing player Jenni Hermoso on the lips without her consent during the title celebrations in Sydney last month.Rubiales, who also grabbed his crotch in a lewd victory gesture after the final, has been provisionally suspended by FIFA and is facing a Spanish government case against him for the conduct that prompted a storm of criticism and led to widespread calls for his resignation.___AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccerTales Azzoni, The Associated Press

Book Review: Stephen King finds terror in the ordinary in new pandemic-set novel ‘Holly’

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

“Holly” by Stephen King (Scribner)In half a century of writing horror novels, Stephen King has created some remarkable villains. Who can forget the sing-song voice of Pennywise the clown, the devil incarnate Randall Flagg, or the drooling jaws of Cujo? The big bads in King’s latest novel, “Holly,” aren’t quite so memorable, but that’s part of what makes them terrifying.Emily and Rodney Harris are retired professors of Bell College Arts and Sciences. Em, as her husband calls her, taught English and Em’s beloved “Roddy” taught life sciences and earned the nickname “Rowdy Roddy the Mad Nutritionist.” Bell is a generic “college on a hill” near a lake somewhere in Ohio. King doesn’t need to be more specific than that with his sense of place, because this is a story set during the COVID pandemic that uses common acts and things to create fear — abandoned bicycles, lost earrings, a twilight run through the park.The novel begins with quick flashbacks to a series of abductions starting in 20...

Judges reject Alabama’s congressional lines, will draw new districts to increase Black voting power

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Federal judges said Tuesday that they will draft new congressional lines for Alabama after lawmakers refused to create a second district where Black voters at least came close to comprising a majority, as suggested by the court.The three-judge panel blocked use of the state’s newly drawn congressional map in next year’s elections. A special master will be tapped to draw new districts for the state, the judges said. Alabama is expected to appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.“This is a significant step toward equal representation for Black Alabamians,” said former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, which backed one of the court challenges that led to the decision.The Republican-controlled Alabama Legislature hastily drew new lines this summer after the U.S. Supreme Court in June upheld the panel’s finding that the map — that had one majority-Black district out of seven in a...

CP NewsAlert: Police, city officials to testify in ‘Freedom Convoy’ organizers’ trial

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

OTTAWA — Crown attorney Tim Radcliffe opened the criminal trial of “Freedom Convoy” organizers Tamara Lich and Chris Barber by informing the court he intends to call 22 witnesses, including police and city representatives and former Ottawa mayor Jim Watson.                                           This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 5, 2023.The Canadian Press

Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw is resigning, mayor says

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw will step down this month to take a leadership position with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the mayor said Tuesday.Outlaw leaves after a bumpy three years on the job and will become deputy chief security officer of the port authority.The Associated Press

Trial of man charged in deaths of London, Ont., Muslim family members to start Tuesday

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

The trial of a man facing terror-related murder charges in the deaths of four members of a Muslim family in London, Ont., in 2021 is set to start on Tuesday.Jury selection will begin for the trial of Nathaniel Veltman who is accused of deliberately hitting the Afzaal family members with his truck as they were out for a walk on the evening of June 6, 2021.Superior Court Justice Renee Pomerance ruled last year that a change of venue is warranted in the case, moving the trial from London to Windsor, Ont.The reasons for that decision, as well as the evidence and arguments presented in court, cannot be disclosed due to a publication ban.Salman Afzaal, 46, his 44-year-old wife Madiha Salman, their 15-year-old daughter Yumnah and her 74-year-old grandmother, Talat Afzaal, were killed in the attack. The couple’s nine-year-old son was also seriously hurt but survived.RELATED: Terror murder case for deaths of Ontario Muslim family to go straight to trialVeltman, who was 20 at the time o...

Pets on a millennial budget: Love comes at a cost

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 08:01:33 GMT

When it comes to advising younger clients who are looking to welcome a new fur baby into their family, certified financial planner and cat owner Cindy Marques has one overarching philosophy — “put yourself first.”Though affording a pet is certainly possible for young Canadians with the right financial mindset, Marques said she too often sees clients with rocky finances inclined to adopt or purchase a pet, potentially digging them deeper into a financial hole.“A lot of what I do, ultimately, with clients is heavily rooted in cash flow planning,” said Marques, who is also the director of education and financial planning at Open Access Limited.“At the end of the day, you have to get practical and start to think about whether adding a dependent to your cash flow is possible to sustain.”This was something Jordyn Preston — a third-year political science and philosophy major at Carleton University — was well aware of when she set her sights on a dachshund puppy this year.Growing up with do...