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Is Chicago Mayoral Candidate Paul Vallas a Republican?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

When Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot lost her reelection bid in the first round of voting in February, onlookers prepared for the end of an era. Lightfoot was close to the police and the city’s moderate Democratic political establishment, so when she lost, progressives in Chicago saw an opening to elect a candidate who would advocate for the city’s public schools and address economic inequality, police brutality, and public safety.Former Chicago Public Schools teacher and Chicago Teachers Union organizer Brandon Johnson came in second place in the February election and will face former Chicago Public Schools Chief Executive Officer Paul Vallas in a runoff election on Tuesday.Vallas has positioned himself as a moderate Democrat, but his campaign support from several major Republican donors, a recent endorsement from the Chicago Republican Party, and exploration of a Republican campaign in 2009 have raised questions about his political leanings. Vallas and his supporters, including major...

Duke freshman Dereck Lively II says he’ll enter NBA draft

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Duke big man Dereck Lively II is entering the NBA draft after one college season.Lively announced his decision in a social-media post Tuesday. The lean 7-foot-1 freshman averaged 5.2 points and 5.4 rebounds in 34 games with 27 starts. But he came on in the second half of the year as a rim protector and key to the Blue Devils’ defense, averaging 2.4 blocks on the year to rank ninth nationally.The highlight came in a home rivalry win against North Carolina in a game that captured how his value was well beyond any scoring production. He had just four points in that one, but was a force with 14 rebounds and eight blocked shots.That was part of a four-game stretch in which he had 20 blocked shots, and he finished the year with 23 rebounds and eight blocks in two games in the NCAA Tournament.Lively arrived as the No. 2 recruit in 247sports’ overall top-ranked recruiting class for Jon Scheyer’s first season with the Blue Devils. He helped Duke surge do...

DC Health announces pilot program for lifesaving medical vending machines

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

The D.C. government has announced the rollout of harm reduction vending machines that will allow residents access to lifesaving medicine and other wellness products.DC Health, in partnership with the Department of Behavioral Health and D.C. Fire and EMS, said that these vending machines will provide lifesaving tools like naloxone, or Narcan, and fentanyl test strips, along with hygiene and wellness products.This type of machine is becoming more common in cities across the country due to the rise in opioids usage and overdoses, and their ability to provide access to critical services that will help the people who need it most.More DC NewsMore Local NewsIn October 2021, DC Health awarded grants to the Family and Medical Counseling Services and HIPS harm reduction services to start up the implementation of the vending machines in the District.“This pilot project will evaluate the utilization patterns and positive impact these products have on the well-being of vulnerable communit...

Montana judge upholds suit over Native education requirement

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

A judge in Montana refused to dismiss a lawsuit Tuesday brought by Native American tribes, parents and students against state education leaders that alleges the state’s unique constitutional requirement to teach students about Native American history and culture has not been upheld. “It’s shocking to me that we are this many decades down the road, with this many court challenges, this many legislative enactments … that this is where we sit here today in 2023,” said Judge Elizabeth Best, who explained she would provide the specific rationale for her ruling in about a month. The hearing came 50 years after the state’s constitution that embedded this educational requirement took effect. Other states, including Connecticut, Washington, Oregon, California and North Dakota, have committed in recent years to boosting these types of educational requirements, but Montana remains the only one that includes it in its constitution.An attorney representing the defendants, which includes the Mont...

Indiana trans health care ban ‘clear as mud,’ governor says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Whether a ban all gender-affirming care for minors will become law in Indiana remains unclear after the state’s Republican governor said Tuesday that the bill on his desk is “clear as mud.”The bill Republican state lawmakers advanced last week would prohibit transgender youth under 18 from accessing hormone therapies, puberty blockers and surgeries in the state.“It wasn’t part of my agenda,” Gov. Eric Holcomb told reporters Tuesday. “I’ve told some people very close to me: This is clear as mud. There’s some vagueness to it. So I want to make sure I completely understand.”Holcomb can sign or veto the legislation before a Wednesday deadline, or allow it become law by doing nothing. The ban would take effect July 1. Trans youth currently taking medication to transition would have until the end of the year to stop doing so.At least 11 states have enacted laws restricting or banning gender-affirming care for minors, but federal judges have blocked them in two st...

Fuentes: no le tomarán una foto policial a Trump

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

Donald Trump se convertirá en el primer expresidente de Estado Unidos en ser procesado penalmente y tomarse las huellas dactilares el martes en relación con su acusación sin precedentes de la Corte Penal de Manhattan, aunque en este momento no parece que su fichaje incluya una foto policial, según múltiples fuentes familiarizadas con los desarrollos.La máquina de huellas dactilares ya estaba en el juzgado, pero no había ninguna máquina en las instalaciones para una posible foto policial, y las fuentes habían dicho que era posible que el republicano no tuviera que posar para una. <strong><em>EN VIVO: Trump está bajo arresto en la corte de Manhattan, esperando histórica audiencia</em></strong> Cronología del caso que llevó al expresidente Trump a ser acusado penalmente Quién es quién en la acusación contra el expresidente Trump Trump fue acusado por un jurado de Manhattan el jueves....

Live updates: Ex-President Trump pleads not guilty to 34 felony counts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

NEW YORK (NEXSTAR) — Former President Donald Trump entered a not guilty plea on 34 felony charges of falsifying business records after surrendering to authorities at a Manhattan courthouse Tuesday.The former president appeared stone-faced in still photos from inside the courtroom as he sat next to his defense attorneys. He entered the plea around 2:30 p.m. Tuesday during the arraignment in a lower Manhattan courtroom as prosecutors unsealed a grand jury indictment. Trump, who is expected to address supporters and the media when he returns to Florida, did not answer reporters' questions as he left the courthouse.The charges against him stem from a hush money payment to a porn actor during Trump's 2016 campaign.Tuesday morning, Trump waved to crowds outside the courthouse before heading inside to be fingerprinted and processed — a remarkable reckoning after years of investigations into his personal, business and political dealings and an extraordinary moment in U.S. history.WPIX camer...

Police: woman armed with gun jumps off roof in Miami

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

Police responding to a theft in Miami’s Edgewater neighborhood quickly found themselves in a tense situation when they discovered a woman on the roof of a building with a stolen gun. Officers set up a small perimeter on Northeast Seventh Avenue between 29th Terrace and 31st Street at around 9:30 p.m., Monday, while they attempted to de-escalate the situation and get the woman down from the top of a luxury high-rise. According to Miami Police, she stole a gun from a person she knew.The woman ultimately jumped from the roof of the building, which was at least seven stories high. She was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital in critical condition but later succumbed to her injuries on Monday morning.Despite the efforts of police to bring the situation under control, witnesses said they heard screams and saw the woman jump off the building.Neighbors reported hearing two gunshots, but police confirmed that they did not open fire during the incident. “I was walking my dog w...

Olaf Scholz faces new probe over German tax fraud scandal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

BERLIN — Germany’s center-right opposition wants to raise the heat on Chancellor Olaf Scholz by launching a parliamentary investigation into his alleged connection to a massive tax evasion scandal.The case — which dates back over five years to the time when Scholz was still mayor of the Hamburg city-state — is linked to the broader so-called “Cum Ex” affair, under which the German state was defrauded by over €30 billion as some banks, companies, or individuals claimed tax reimbursements from authorities for alleged costs that never occurred. The scandal already hung over the Social Democratic politician’s election campaign in 2021 but had little impact in the end as Scholz’s potential involvement remained unclear. Now it is heating up again after new details emerged that put his previous defense in question.The Hamburg regional parliament plans to summon Scholz this spring — which will be for the third time — to an investigative committee looking into the scandal. ...

Trump faces 34 criminal charges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:58:16 GMT

NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump turned himself in Tuesday to authorities in the Manhattan district attorney’s office, where he will be booked on criminal charges connected to his alleged role in a hush money payment made to a porn star.Trump, the first current or former president ever to be indicted, waved to the crowd and then entered the district attorney’s office around 1:30 p.m., accompanied by U.S. Secret Service agents and his lawyers.He is expected to be fingerprinted, but is unlikely to have his mug shot taken. He will remain in the custody of the district attorney’s office until he is escorted to a courtroom in the same building Tuesday afternoon to be arraigned. After his arraignment, he is expected to be released without having to post bail.For Trump, the accommodations of the district attorney’s office, a drab government facility, are much less comfortable than his typical surroundings. He seemed to acknowledge the extraordinary circumstances even as t...