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In high-stakes election for control of Virginia General Assembly, what role will Northern Virginia play?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

With just a few weeks to go, the high-stakes election that will decide whether Democrats or Republicans control the Virginia General Assembly, remains basically a dead heat.Heading into Election Day on Nov. 7, Republicans hold a narrow majority in the 100-seat House of Delegates (50-46, with four vacancies) and Democrats maintain a similarly narrow majority in the 40-seat State Senate (22-18).Every seat is on the ballot — and polls show the end result is up for grabs by either party.“What you see across the commonwealth is really very much a 50-50 contest,” said Stephen Farnsworth, professor of political science at the University of Mary Washington, and a longtime Virginia state politics watcher.Virginia voter guide: What you need to know for the 2023 general electionIn Virginia, with so many districts falling into either solidly-blue Democratic or reliably-red Republican territory, there are only a handful of tossup seats in both the House and the Senate across the entire sta...

After scoring goals for France, Kylian Mbappé needs to start scoring again for PSG

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

PARIS (AP) — After scoring goals for France in European Championship qualifying, Kylian Mbappé needs to start scoring again for Paris Saint-Germain.Mbappé’s three goals in qualifying this month came against the Netherlands and Scotland, and they helped Les Bleus clinch a spot at Euro 2024. Those goals brought him to 43 for the national team at the age of only 24. That’s already two more than France great Michel Platini, with only Olivier Giroud (54), Thierry Henry (51) and Antoine Griezmann (44) left ahead of him.But after scoring eight goals in his first five games for PSG this season, Mbappé has not found the net in the past four. He was ineffective, too, when PSG lost to Newcastle 4-1 in the Champions League two weeks ago.PSG coach Luis Enrique might choose to rest Mbappé in the French league on Saturday against Strasbourg because the club has a big game against AC Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday.But with PSG in third place and two points behind leader Mona...

Union Pacific railroad’s quarterly profit falls 19% as volumes slow and costs remain high

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Union Pacific’s third-quarter profit fell 19% as the railroad hauled fewer shipments and costs remained high, but the average speed of its trains improved 5% as new CEO Jim Vena began to tweak the operations.The Omaha, Nebraska, railroad earned $1.53 billion, or $2.51 per share, during the quarter, That’s down from $1.9 billion, or $3.05 per share. But it tops the per-share earnings of $2.42 that Wall Street was expecting, according to a survey of analysts by FactSet Research.The number of shipments Union Pacific delivered slipped 3% in the quarter, and while costs improved about 4% they remained elevated at $3.76 billion.The railroad’s revenue slipped 10% to $5.9 billion because of the lower volume and the lag between when fuel prices increase and when Union Pacific’s fuel surcharge kicks in.“We faced many challenges in the quarter, including continued inflationary pressures and a drop in carloads,” said Vena, who took the job in August. But the avera...

No. 13 Ole Miss visits Auburn team seeking first SEC win

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

No. 13 Mississippi (5-1, 2-1 SEC) at Auburn (3-3, 0-3), Saturday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN).Line: Ole Miss by 6 1/2, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.Series record: Auburn leads 35-11.WHAT’S AT STAKE?The Rebels are seeking to stay in SEC West contention and going for their third straight division win since a loss to leader Alabama. Ole Miss had an open date after a 27-20 win over Arkansas. The offensively challenged Tigers are still seeking their first SEC win and trying to stay in the hunt for bowl eligibility. Auburn coach Hugh Freeze spent five seasons as the Rebels coach. Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin flirted with the Auburn job before Freeze landed it.KEY MATCHUPMost of the attention goes to the Ole Miss offense, but the defense appears to have a solid mismatch against Auburn. The Tigers are last in the league in scoring offense (27.7 points per game) and passing offense (155.8 yards per game) and 13th in total offense (347 ypg). The Rebels defense, led by safety Trey Washington and pass-ru...

FDA proposes ban on this type of hair straightener

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

Hair straighteners and hair smoothing products are often marketed for and used by Black women. But the Food and Drug Administration plans to ban hair straighteners that release formaldehyde gas — a chemical that can cause uterine cancer.Clinton Jones, owner of the Magnum Opus salon in North Arlington, Virginia, told WTOP he plans to stop using these types of straighteners. His staff is eager to style hair another way.“We’re always thinking about ways that we can alter, change and shape,” Jones said. “Hair is a woman’s No. 1 accessory.”Jones should know — he’s been a hairstylist for nearly 30 years. So when hair straighteners and smoothing products hit the market, he said it changed the game.“It changed a lot of people’s lives because it really answered the question of, ‘How can I get rid of my frizzy hair if I live in humid climates?'” Jones said.But Jones had no idea formaldehyde used in these chemical products could...

Home sales fell again in September as surging mortgage rates, rising prices discouraged homebuyers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes in September fell for the fourth month in a row, grinding to their slowest pace in more than a decade as prospective homebuyers grapple with surging mortgage rates and a near historic-low level of properties on the market.Existing home sales fell 2% last month from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.96 million, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday. That’s just above the 3.9 million unit pace that economists were expecting, according to FactSet. But it’s the slowest sales pace since October 2010, when the market was still choked by foreclosures following the housing bust several years earlier. Sales sank 15.4% compared with the same month last year and are down 21% through the first nine months of the year versus the same period in 2022.Despite the housing market slump, home prices kept climbing versus a year ago. The national median sales price rose 2.8% from September last year to $394,300....

Man United midfielder Casemiro will miss the team’s next Premier League match because of injury

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester United midfielder Casemiro will miss Saturday’s Premier League game against Sheffield United because of injury, the club said Thursday.The Brazil international has remained in his home country to recover from what has been described as a “small issue” while playing for his national team in World Cup qualifying against Venezuela and Uruguay.United said the decision to stay in Brazil was based on the club’s advice “to recover as swiftly as possible.”Casemiro has endured a difficult start to the season and was sent off after conceding a penalty in United’s 3-2 Champions League loss against Galatasaray at the start of the month. He was then substituted at halftime of the following match — a 2-1 win over Brentford — after his error led to a goal for Mathias Jensen.United said Casemiro, who is suspended for Tuesday’s Champions League game against Copenhagen, is expected to be back at the club’s training center early next ...

Crowd calls for liberation of Palestine at Kingston rally

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

A large group gathered in Kingston’s Springer Market Square on Wednesday afternoon, coming together to call for the liberation of Palestine and promising that it won’t be the end of activism as violence continues to rampage Gaza. A crowd of over 100 was on hand to listen to speakers and march around City Hall on Wednesday afternoon, with the return of students from reading week resulting in a larger attendance than that seen at last week’s rally. Tensions are as high as ever as over 500 people at al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza were killed in a missile strike on Tuesday night, however Israel has to this point denied bombing the hospital and has blamed the explosion on a misfired rocket by Islamic Jihad. Regardless of blame, the continued loss of innocent lives in Gaza has further ignited the desire for Palestinian supporters in Canada and other countries to see a ceasefire and an end to all Israeli occupation. Yara Hussein from Queen’s Solidarity for Palestinian Huma...

Reported hate crimes reach record high in Colorado

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- Based on a Federal Bureau of Investigation report, last year marked the highest number of hate crimes recorded in Colorado. However, Hate Free Colorado estimates these numbers to be even higher.On Oct. 16, the FBI released its annual hate crime report for the previous year. In 2022, Colorado reached the highest number of crimes recorded in one year since it started tracking data 32 years ago. In Colorado, there were 317 reported hate crimes in 2022. Compared to five years ago, the number more than doubled with only 78 people having reported a hate crime in 2017.While hate crimes are recorded at the highest level ever, Hate Free Colorado believes that these numbers are even higher. Is violent crime going up in Colorado? New FBI data explains Hate Free Colorado conducted a statewide survey in 2022 finding that three in ten participants said they were targeted with verbal harassment, property damage, and/or physical injury within the last five years.That's an estimat...

Biden prepares Oval Office speech on wars in Israel and Ukraine, asking billions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:12:56 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will deliver a rare Oval Office address Thursday night as he makes his case for providing billions of dollars in military assistance to Israel and Ukraine, deepening American involvement in two very different, unpredictable and bloody foreign conflicts.The speech will be an opportunity for Biden to argue that the United States has an obligation to help in both places, and a chance for him to publicly lobby lawmakers for the money to do so.The funding request, expected to be formally unveiled on Friday, is likely to be around $100 billion over the next year, according to people directly familiar with the proposal who insisted on anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. The total figure includes some money for Taiwan’s defense and for managing the flow of migrants at the southern border with Mexico.Biden hopes that combining all of these issues into one piece of legislation will create the necessary political coalition for congressional approv...