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Thomas Hodgson leads Trump’s campaign in Massachusetts

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

Former Sheriff Thomas Hodgson is heading up Donald Trump’s campaign in Massachusetts where he sees “energy” building for an alternative to President Biden.“People have finally realized that the price of eggs and of gas, to name a few, isn’t working for their kids,” Hodgson told the Herald. “That’s the driving force.”The one-time Bristol sheriff, often seen at the White House during Trump’s presidency for being both a loyal Republican and tough-on-crime advocate, lost his re-election bid last fall.He’s now going to try to gain ground for Trump in a blue state where independents often do decide elections.Hodgson said he wouldn’t second-guess his boss about stepping away from this week’s Fox GOP debate, but if he does win the primary “you bet he’ll debate the Democrat.”That could likely be a rerun of Biden vs. Trump with plenty of drama heading into such a showdown as Trump faces four court ...

Georgia DA slaps Trump with $200K bond

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

Donald Trump’s bond has been set at $200,000 ahead of his surrender to authorities in the Georgia case accusing the former president of illegally scheming to overturn his 2020 election loss, according to court papers.Trump, who is facing a Friday deadline to turn himself in, is also barred from intimidating co-defendants, witnesses or victims in the case — including on social media — according to the bond agreement signed by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, Trump’s defense attorneys and the judge. It explicitly includes “posts on social media or reposts of posts” made by others.The agreement prohibits the former president from making any “direct or indirect threat of any nature” against witnesses or co-defendants, and from communicating in any way about the facts of the case with them, except through attorneys.The order sets Trump’s bond for the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations — or RICO — charge at $80,000, and add...

North Korea tells Japan of launch plan, a possible second try to put up spy satellite

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — North Korea told Japan on Tuesday it plans to launch a satellite in the coming days, possibly a second try to put a military spy satellite into orbit three months after its first effort failed, Japanese officials said.In late May, a North Korean rocket carrying a spy satellite plunged into the sea soon after liftoff, posing a setback to leader Kim Jong Un’s push to establish a space-based surveillance system to better monitor the U.S. and South Korea. North Korea vowed to make a second attempt after studying what went wrong with the first launch.Japan’s coast guard said North Korean authorities notified it about a plan to launch a satellite from Aug. 24 and the end of Aug. 30. Coast guard spokesperson Hiromune Kikuchi said that the notice didn’t specify what type of satellite North Korea intends to launch but that he believes it possibly referrs to one similar to the spy satellite in the May launch. The North Korean notice mentioned three maritime zone...

Five things to know about feedback to Champagne’s TTC wireless service consultation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

Canada’s four major telecommunications companies have one week left to respond to one another’s submissions as part of a federal consultation process regarding wireless access on the Toronto subway.Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne wants to expedite negotiations between the carriers, which had come to a standstill after Rogers Communications Inc. bought the TTC’s existing wireless network and signalled plans to further build it out. Rogers, Bell Canada, Telus Corp. and Quebecor Inc. had until Aug. 8 to submit responses to Champagne’s proposed solutions.Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada plans to post a decision following a review of those responses, which would then trigger a proposed 30-day window for the carriers to complete negotiations or face arbitration.Here are five highlights from the submissions:Rogers accused of delaying accessIn response to Ottawa’s proposals, Bell and Telus reiterated long-standing objecti...

U.N. calls unauthorized construction by Turkish Cypriots a violation of the status quo on Cyprus

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council on Monday called unauthorized construction by Turkish Cypriots inside the U.N. buffer zone dividing Cyrus a violation of the status quo that is contrary to council resolutions and it condemned their assault on U.N. peacekeepers.The council statement was issued after emergency closed consultations by its 15 members. It followed criticism of the U.N. peacekeepers for blocking construction earlier Monday by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.Speaking after a Cabinet meeting in Turkey’s capital, Ankara, Erdogan called the U.N. action “unacceptable” and accused the peacekeeping force of bias against Turkish Cypriots. He said Turkey would not allow any “unlawful” behavior toward ethnic Turks on Cyprus.Cyprus was divided into a breakaway Turkish Cypriot north and an internationally recognized Greek Cypriot south in 1974 following a Turkish invasion that was triggered by a coup aimed at uniting the island with Greece. Turkey maintains more...

Dentist convicted of killing wife on African safari given life sentence and over $15M in penalties

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

DENVER (AP) — As a wealthy dentist convicted of killing his wife at the end of an African safari listened in court, her brother vowed on Monday to move her remains to a place that Larry Rudolph would never discover. Shortly before a judge sentenced Rudolph to life in prison in the 2016 death of Bianca Rudolph, Vincent Finizio also predicted Larry Rudolph would “die alone and unmourned” and that his future grandchildren will never know he existed.“Even Judas would be afraid to be in your company,” Finizio said, referencing the home of Jesus’ traitor — the worst circle of hell imagined by Dante.U.S. District Judge William Martinez also imposed over an estimated $15 million in financial penalties against Rudolph, who was also convicted of mail fraud for cashing in nearly $5 million in insurance policies for his wife as he began a new life with his longtime girlfriend. Rudolph has claimed throughout the case that his wife’s death in the southern African nation of Zambia was an accident....

The initial online search that spurred a raid on a Kansas paper was legal, a state agency says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

MARION, Kan. (AP) — The initial online search of a state website that led a central Kansas police chief to raid a local weekly newspaper was legal, a spokesperson for the agency that maintains the site said Monday, as the newspaper remains under investigation.Earlier this month, after a local restaurant owner accused the Marion County Record of illegally accessing information about her, the Marion police chief obtained warrants to search the newspaper’s offices and the home of its publisher, as well as the home of a City Council member who had some of the same information as the newspaper.The police chief led the Aug. 11 raids and said in the affidavits used to obtain the warrants that he had probable cause to believe that the newspaper and the City Council member had violated state laws against identity theft or computer crimes.Both City Council member Ruth Herbel and the newspaper have said they received a copy of a document about the status of the restaurant owner’s l...

US citizens urged to leave Belarus immediately

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

VILNIUS, Lithuania (The Hill) — The Biden administration is urging U.S. citizens in Belarus to depart the country immediately and warned against travel there in a statement published Monday.The updated travel warning comes after bordering countries Lithuania, Latvia and Poland have stepped up security along the border over concerns about Russian Wagner mercenary forces exiled in the country.  The State Department, in its warning, encouraged Americans still in Belarus to depart the country immediately and categorized the country as a Level 4 risk, the highest security warning. Belarus’s longtime leader Alexander Lukashenko, known as Europe’s last dictator, has been a key facilitator of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine, and is under a catalog of U.S. sanctions for human rights abuses and political repression against Belarusian people who challenged his claim to election victory in 2020.The U.S. mission in Belarus is scaled down and only handles emergenc...

Watch: Train crashes into 18-wheeler in Louisiana

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

IBERIA PARISH, La. (KLFY) — A train collided with an 18-wheeler Monday night in southern Louisiana, causing multiple cars to derail.The derailment happened around 5 p.m. CT in Iberia Parish, the sheriff's office confirmed. Video shared with Nexstar's KLFY, seen below, shows the trail barreling toward the semi, its trailer blocking the railroad at a crossing. The signal's arm appears to have come down on the 18-wheeler, and the train horn can be heard. Highway 182 was closed from the St. Martin Parish line to Darby Lane due to the derailment. Additional video from the scene shows at least half a dozen rail cars off the tracks.Authorities said the driver of the truck, which was stuck on the tracks, and the train's conductor were OK, but the conductor was taken to an area hospital. Three tankers carrying acrylic acid derailed and no leaks have been found the Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office said. Seven cars with polymer plastic did tip over and spill but a...

ERCOT issues Weather Watch for Texas

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:50 GMT

Editor's Note: The above video provides tips on what to do if you're experiencing heat-related illness.AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) issued a weather watch from Wednesday, Aug. 23 through Sunday, Aug. 27 "due to forecasted high temperatures, higher electrical demand and potential for lower reserves," according to a press release.ERCOT said there is currently enough capacity to meet forecasted demand and no action is currently necessary, the release said. Understanding ERCOT’s emergency alert levels On Sunday, ERCOT set a new all-time weekend peak demand record of 85,116 MW. The current all-time peak demand record of 85,435 MW was set on Aug. 10, the release said.In 2022, the August peak demand was 78,465 MW, ERCOT said.The 6-day Supply and Demand dashboard, which will update in real-time, shows there's a possibility of new all-time peak demand records this week, the release said.ERCOT’s new notification systemFor anyone who wants to si...