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Rhode Island could elect its first Black representative to Congress

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

Rhode Island voters could make history Tuesday by electing the state’s first Black representative to Congress or return the seat last held by Republicans in the 1990s to a GOP candidate.Democrat Gabe Amo and Republican Gerry Leonard are vying for Rhode Island’s 1st Congressional District seat. The winner will fill the office left vacant when former Democratic Rep. David Cicilline stepped down this summer to become president and CEO of the Rhode Island Foundation.Amo, 35, grew up in Pawtucket as the son of Ghanaian and Liberian immigrants. He emerged victorious from a crowded Democratic field in the September primary, claiming more than 32% of the vote.The former White House aide served in the Obama and Biden administrations, most recently as deputy director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. He also served in the administration of former Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo.Amo, who went to Wheaton College and studied public policy at Oxford Univers...

Edwards scores 38, Wolves hand Celtics 1st loss with 114-109 OT victory

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Anthony Edwards scored eight of his 38 points in overtime, and the Minnesota Timberwolves sent the Boston Celtics to their first loss of the season with a 114-109 win on Monday night.Jaden McDaniels added 20 points, and Rudy Gobert added 14 points and 12 rebounds as Minnesota improved to 4-0 at home in a third consecutive victory.Naz Reid scored 10 of his 14 points in the first quarter and helped the Timberwolves overcome foul trouble for Karl-Anthony Towns, who finished with seven points in just 28 minutes before fouling out in overtime.“They’re a championship-level team,” Gobert said. “They find ways to always stay in the game, always never giving up. We did the same. A lot of things didn’t go our way, but whoever came on the floor was ready to do what we do, was ready to bring us something.”Jayson Tatum had 32 points and Jaylen Brown added 26 for the Celtics. Boston’s 6-0 start was its best since 2009-10.Kristaps Porzingis, who was questionable before the...

Governors’ races, abortion in Ohio and Virginia’s legislature are on the ballot. Follow live updates

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

Off-year elections held Tuesday will decide governors in Kentucky and Mississippi, the fate of abortion and marijuana amendments in Ohio, legislative control in Virginia and mayoral races in two of the nation’s biggest cities. Follow along for the latest updates.What to knowThe Kentucky governor’s race nears the finish line after a hard-fought campaignMississippi voters weigh whether to replace the GOP governor with Elvis’ cousinVirginia’s governor calls the state’s legislative races the ‘most important elections in America’ Ohio voters will decide whether to enshrine abortion rights in their state’s constitution Polls begin to open on Election DayPolls have begun to open in a few states for off-year elections that could give hints of voter sentiment ahead of next year’s critical presidential contest.In Kentucky, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear is hoping that his support of abortion rights will persuade voters in his Republican-leaning state to look ...

German federal court denies 2 seriously ill men direct access to lethal drug dose

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — A German federal court on Tuesday denied two seriously ill men direct access to a lethal dose of a drug, arguing that the country’s narcotics law stands in the way and that they could turn to assisted suicide to end their lives.The two men, one of whom has advanced multiple sclerosis and the other of whom has been through cancer, sought permission to acquire lethal doses of natrium-pentobarbital. Their applications were rejected, as were appeals to lower courts. The Federal Administrative Court agreed, citing a clause in the narcotics law which states that permission will be refused if an application doesn’t comply with the legislation’s purpose “to ensure the required medical care of the population” and prevent the abuse of drugs. It said that the refusal can be reconciled with the constitutional right to a “self-determined death” because there are “other reasonable possibilities to fulfill their wish to die.”The court pointed to a “realistic possibi...

UBS reports pre-tax loss in 3Q but says benefits of Credit Suisse merger gather steam

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

GENEVA (AP) — UBS reported Tuesday a $255 million pre-tax loss as the giant Swiss bank shed some 4,000 jobs globally, cut costs faster than expected, and reaped billions in asset inflows in the third quarter while moving forward with its government-orchestrated merger with rival Credit Suisse.The Zurich-based bank said underlying profit before taxes came in at $884 million in the first full quarter since the merger was completed in June. Government authorities in Bern shepherded through the deal with bank chiefs to stave off a collapse of Credit Suisse and avert a financial crisis.UBS, which is striving to rid of overlap between the two former rival banks, said underlying operating expenses of $1.2 billion in non-core, legacy operation stemmed from efforts to reduce headcount and outsourcing costs. The bank said it was one quarter ahead of schedule in reaping savings from the restructuring operations, and the headcount was down more than 4,000 during the third quarter. UBS tallied $...

City council to meet following bullying allegation

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

The Chicago city council will meet Tuesday to consider censuring Mayor Brandon Johnson's former council floor leader over a case of alleged bullying last week.Last Thursday Alderman Ray Lopez said he had to stand between Carlos Ramariz-Rosa, the former floor leader, and Alderwoman Emma Mitts so Mitts could enter the chamber to vote on an advisory referendum that would ask Chicago voters to decide if the city should remain a sanctuary city. Lights shut off during immigration chaos at Chicago City Council special meeting The former floor leader was trying to prevent the chamber from having enough elected leaders to legally conduct a meeting.“It’s completely unacceptable to grab, restrain and block one of our colleagues and physically restrain and block to do her dully elected job,” Lopez said.On Monday, Ramariz-Rosa resigned his two leadership positions and issued an apology saying, “I feel awful about everything that happened. I have reached out to my colleagues to apologize direct...

Mild for Tuesday, showers possible late

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

Tuesday will see mild conditions with increasing clouds, ENE 5-10. High of 53.Tuesday night will be cloudy with scattered showers possible. ESE 10-15. Low of 47. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storms here Wednesday will be cloudy with scattered showers. Warmer condition south, NNE 5-10. 57

4 charged in theft of satirical 18-carat gold toilet titled 'America'

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Four men were charged Monday over the theft of an 18-carat gold toilet from Blenheim Palace, the sprawling English country mansion where British wartime leader Winston Churchill was born.This Sept. 16, 2016 file image made from a video shows the 18-karat toilet, titled "America," by Maurizio Cattelan in the restroom of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York. Four men have been charged over the theft of an 18-carat gold toilet from Blenheim Palace, the sprawling English mansion where British wartime leader Winston Churchill was born. The toilet, valued at 4.8 million pounds, or $5.95 million, was the work of Italian conceptual artist Maurizio Cattelan. (AP Photo, File)The toilet, valued at 4.8 million pounds ($5.95 million), was an artwork titled “America” and intended as a pointed satire about excessive wealth by Italian conceptual artist Maurizio Cattelan. It was part of an art installation at Blenheim Palace, near the city of Oxford, a few days before...

Exonerated 'Central Park Five' member set to win New York City Council seat

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

(NEW YORK CITY) - Exonerated “Central Park Five” member Yusef Salaam is poised to win a seat Tuesday on the New York City Council, marking a stunning reversal of fortune for a political newcomer who was wrongly imprisoned as a teenager in the infamous rape case.Salaam, a Democrat, will represent a central Harlem district on the City Council, having run unopposed for the seat in one of many local elections playing out across New York state on Tuesday. He won his primary election in a landslide.The victory will come more than two decades after DNA evidence was used to overturn the convictions of Salaam and four other Black and Latino men in the 1989 rape and beating of a white jogger in Central Park. Salaam was imprisoned for almost seven years.New York City Council candidate Yusef Salaam speaks during an interview with The Associated Press, Wednesday, May 24, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)“For me, this means that we can really be become our ancestors’ wil...

Gravity holes: How UT's experimental mission uncovered secrets of our planet

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:48 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A 'gravity hole' on Earth? Earlier this summer, researchers with the Indian Institute of Science published a paper exploring one of these 'gravity holes'. Found all over the planet, these are spots on the planet's surface where there is less gravity than in other spots. An interesting curio that we wouldn't know about if it wasn't for GRACE."It's an acronym for Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment," said Professor Byron Tapley with the University of Texas' Center for Space Research in North Austin.GRACE was Tapley's brain child. A new type of satellite, designed to study changes in mass on the planet. Launched in 2002, the mission was run by Tapley and a team of civilians, engineered by NASA and launched by Germans.The pair of satellites orbited the entire planet every month and mapping its mass. A tiny laser connected the two and was used to measure the distance between them down to 1/10 of a human hair. Water cycle facing changes amid climate crisis; new NASA...