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McCarthy preps House GOP debt deal to draw Biden into talks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Speaker Kevin McCarthy convened House Republicans behind closed doors Tuesday to unveil his proposal to raise the nation’s debt limit as part of a package to limit future federal spending increases to 1% and other policy changes in an opening bid to draw President Joe Biden into negotiations.The typically fractured House Republican majority has appeared surprisingly open to the plan, which McCarthy outlined in a high-profile speech at the start of the week to Wall Street. But it remains a work in progress. While the Republican proposal has almost no chance of passage in the Democratic-controlled Senate, McCarthy wants to pass the package from the House to kickstart White House talks.“I’m confident we’ll have it and comfortable we’ll pass it,” said Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., the chairman of the Rules Committee, who said the bill could come for a vote as soon as next week.Even as some of McCarthy’s most ardent skeptics from the House Freedom Caucus — includi...

Small changes can have a big impact on food waste in Montgomery County

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

This content is provided by the Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection.Wasted food is a major issue in the United States, as well as in Montgomery County, Maryland. The startling statistics point to Americans generating nearly 35 million tons of food waste annually and American families wasting approximately 30 percent of the food purchased, according to the USDA. Food waste not only affects budgets, but it also contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and wastes water and other natural resources. Reducing the amount of wasted food is a national goal and an important objective for Montgomery County, which aims to reduce waste and recycle more, aiming for Zero Waste. County residents, businesses and organizations can make a significant impact by changing their behavior about food waste.The highest priority of Montgomery County’s solid waste management hierarchy is to prevent waste or at least reduce the amount of waste generated in the County. Reducing the amount of ...

Ari Aster doesn’t want to talk about his new movie right now

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Ari Aster really doesn’t want to talk about “Beau Is Afraid.”“This is so not the right thing,” he laughed anxiously during a recent press day for his new film. “I shouldn’t be talking about this movie for another 10 years.”But, alas, the insatiable publicity machine demands Aster feed it something now, undeterred by the director’s protestations, as his three-hour epic of biblical proportions hits theaters on Friday.“I wish I could just recede as far as possible and have the film just live on its own without any baggage that I’m inadvertently saddling onto it,” he said, aware of the awkward position his reticence puts an interviewer in. “I just want to throw up even hearing myself right now,” he added sheepishly.Aster’s point is a sympathetic one. “Beau Is Afraid” really is one of those movies best seen with minimal prior knowledge of what you are walking into, aside from the fact that it is three hours of chaos, anxiety and terror.The movie, a version of which Ast...

Gun safety demonstrators carry caskets to Tennessee Capitol

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Protesters calling for gun safety legislation were blocked from bringing caskets inside Tennessee’s Capitol, but a recently reinstated legislator escorted an infant-sized casket inside before he was barred from carrying it onto the House floor.Protesters led by Bishop William Barber II marched in Nashville, demanding that lawmakers pass the legislation and stop using their authority to trample democracy. They carried several caskets symbolizing those lost to gun violence on Monday. “The legislators are back, but returning duly elected lawmakers to their seat does not solve the problem,” Barber said, demanding that lawmakers “stop committing policy murder.”The fatal shooting of six people at a Nashville private school last month kicked off a stream of calls for changes to Tennessee’s gun laws, including a ban on assault weapons, tougher background checks and a “red flag” law. Republican Gov. Bill Lee has urged lawmakers to pass legislation that would kee...

Following stroke, Lucinda Williams back with book and album

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Lucinda Williams is returning to the spotlight this spring with an autobiography, a new album and concert appearances around the world. Less than three years ago, there was real worry that her creative voice would be stilled.In November 2020, the singer-songwriter suffered a stroke while getting ready to take a shower in her Nashville home. Her husband, Tom Overby, discovered her on the bathroom floor. Williams was rushed to the hospital.Her recovery has been grueling and not yet complete.“I’m doing really well,” she told The Associated Press in a recent interview. “I can walk again, I don’t have to use a cane or anything. I wasn’t sure about that for a while.”She’s fragile and moves slowly. She’s unable to play the guitar, as continued weakness in her left side makes it too painful to grip the fret. It’s hard not to wonder if Williams, who turned 70 in January, is pushing things.Talk to her, and her husband-manager, and it’s...

New Jersey wins Supreme Court dispute against New York

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court says New Jersey can withdraw from a commission the state created decades ago with New York to combat the mob’s influence at their joint port.The high court ruled unanimously Tuesday that the Garden State doesn’t need New York’s consent to withdraw from the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor. The commission was created in 1953 when organized crime had infiltrated the port and was demanding payments from workers and shippers through extortion and violence.New Jersey lawmakers have said that changes in the industry, including the development of container shipping, have lessened the influence of organized crime at the port and reduced the need for the commission. The state says the commission has become “an impediment to economic growth.”“We hold that New Jersey may unilaterally withdraw from the Waterfront Commission Compact notwithstanding New York’s opposition,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the court.The two-member commission...

Residents continue to clean up community, homes following historic floods in Fort Lauderdale

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

Residents in Broward County have had difficult days trying to clean up their community after historic floods damaged several homes. So many of those homes have been hit hard at a Fort Lauderdale neighborhood off of Southwest Fourth Avenue. 7News cameras captured residents as they continue to clean their homes. One thing these residents are happy about is the weather because it stopped raining and the sun is out. One woman had to escape her apartment from the window after her home flooded. “God is good, God is extremely good. Just keep praying for everyone who is going through this and keep in mind that no matter how hard we got it, somebody does have it worse,” Calleen Shirley said. “We’re going to get it through it and I’ll be back.”As people continue to assess the damages at their homes, help is on the way.

Suspects taken into custody after pursuit ends in Lauderhill

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

Several suspects were taken into custody after deputies pursued their vehicle. Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies were investigating reports of a shooting in the area of Roosevelt Gardens near Fort Lauderdale, Tuesday afternoon. According to officials, units spotted the vehicle that they were after and a brief pursuit ensued.A felony traffic stop was made in the area of 3800 NW 11th Place in Lauderhill.7Skyforce hovered over the scene where several people were in handcuffs and taken away by deputies.

Private school administrator arrested, fired after engaging in sexual conduct with minor

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

A former private school administrator was arrested and charged with engaging in sexual conduct with a minor in a position of authority. Following her arrest by Coral Springs Police on Monday, Tracy Michelle Smith was fired from her position as Head of School at Xceed Preparatory Academy, located at 3301 N University Drive in Coral Springs.Smith’s online bio, which has since been deleted, once said she “enjoys connections with students, faculty and families.”The school’s attorney, Brian Bieber, released a statement on Tuesday: “The allegations resulting in Ms. Smith’s arrest yesterday came as a complete shock to everyone at the school. The school and its staff will cooperate with law enforcement in every way possible. A safe learning environment is paramount at XCEED – with no exceptions.”She is being held at the North Broward Jail and her bond is set at $25,000.

Medford man pleads not guilty on murder charge in connection with 2 bodies found in Brighton storage unit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:33:37 GMT

A Medford man pled not guilty Tuesday morning on a murder charge in connection with the bodies of two men that were found in a storage unit on North Beacon Street on Saturday, according to court records, Leonid Volkov, 37, was arrested Saturday in North Attleboro in connection with the deaths of Kiryl Schukin, 37, and Pavel Veshkin, 28, a married couple from Medford who both sustained stab wounds. Friends reported Schukin and Veshkin missing last week, but the pair hadn’t been seen since March 29.Investigators executing a search warrant on the unit, which had been rented by Volkov using one of the victim’s names, found the men’s bodies in rubber storage bins. One of the bodies, tentatively identified as Kiryl Schukin, had been dismembered, officials said.Investigators say they also found bleach, rubber gloves, and items belonging to Schukin and Veshkin. The victims, officials said, were known to Volkov, and Schukin was a guarantor on Volkov’s apartment lease. However, S...