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Second administration official resigns in protest of Biden’s support for Israeli war in Gaza

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER and COLLIN BINKLEY (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — A Department of Education policy adviser appointed by the Biden administration quit Wednesday to protest the administration’s crucial military support of Israel’s war in Gaza and its handling of the conflict’s repercussions at home and abroad. Tariq Habash, a Biden administration appointee who had worked in the education department to help overhaul the student loan system and address inequities in higher education, told The Associated Press he submitted his resignation Wednesday. That was after he and others had “done everything imaginable” to work within the system to try to register their objections to administration leaders, he said.Habash becomes at least the second official, and the first known official of Palestinian origin, to resign from the administration in protest of President Joe Biden’s actions regarding the war. State Department veteran Josh Paul stepped...

US new vehicle sales rise 12% as buyers shake off high prices, interest rates, and auto strikes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

By TOM KRISHER (AP Auto Writer)DETROIT (AP) — Undeterred by high prices, rising interest rates, autoworker strikes and a computer-chip shortage that slowed assembly lines, American consumers still bought 15.6 million new vehicles last year, 12% more than in 2022, the biggest increase in more than a decade.Yet sales still haven’t returned to the 17 million rate in the years before the pandemic, and there are signs of a cooling market as buyers aren’t as willing to pay astronomical prices that dealers and manufacturers were charging just months ago.“You see the consumer making a concerted effort to ensure that they’re getting the best price possible,” said Jonathan Chariff, CEO of South Automotive Group, a 10-dealership group in the Miami area. “They basically feel that this is the right time to buy from a perspective of being able to get the discounts.”Average auto sales prices peaked in December of 2022 just over $47,300, with vehicles...

MA Senate Democrats getting handle on gun reform bill promised by end of January

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

Senate Democrats on Beacon Hill moved closer to getting a handle on what a promised gun reform bill could look like during an hours-long, closed-door meeting Wednesday where lawmakers heard presentations on firearms from experts.Members of Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s office and the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security covered the intricacies of firearms, including describing different parts of weapons to senators, Senate Majority Leader Cindy Creem told reporters on her way out of the meeting.The private discussion took place only days after Senate President Karen Spilka said the chamber would offer up its own firearms-related reform bill by the end of January, a response to a proposal the House approved last year after some controversy.Creem said it was still too early in the process to identify top priorities that could be included in a Senate gun reform package, but ticked off tackling ghost guns and the process for converting a semi-automatic firearm into an aut...

Mother and uncle of a US serviceman are rescued from Gaza in a secret operation

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER and MATTHEW LEE (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. coordinated with Israel, Egypt and others in rescuing the mother of a U.S. serviceman and her American brother-in-law who were pinned down during heavy fighting in Gaza City, a U.S. official told The Associated Press on Wednesday. It is the only known operation of its kind to extract American citizens and their close family members during the months of devastating ground fighting and Israeli airstrikes in Gaza. The vast majority of people who have made it out of northern and central Gaza through the Rafah crossing into Egypt fled south in the initial weeks of the war. An escape from the heart of the Palestinian territory through intense combat has become far more perilous and difficult since.Zahra Sckak, 44, made it out of Gaza on New Year’s Eve, along with her brother-in-law, Farid Sukaik, an American citizen, a U.S. official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of ano...

Republicans want to impeach the Maine official who cut Trump from the ballot. They face long odds

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

By PATRICK WHITTLE (Associated Press)PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Republicans who want to unseat Maine’s secretary of state for barring former President Donald Trump from the primary ballot will face long odds impeaching a stalwart and influential Democrat whose party holds firm control over both Legislative chambers.Shenna Bellows is the first secretary of state in history to block someone from running for president by using the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause. Trump, the early front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has appealed the decision to a Superior Court in Maine and he has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a similar ban in Colorado.As Maine lawmakers returned to the Capitol on Wednesday to begin this year’s legislative session, retribution against Bellows was among the first orders of business for many Republicans. They filed an order of impeachment against her, called for her to resign and encouraged legislators to vote...

Majority of California residents become homeowners by this age: study

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Homebuying -- it's a pillar of the American dream. But is the vision out of reach?For many young adults in California, it's become a forbidden holy grail.In fact, the age of most first-time homebuyers in the Golden State is now almost a decade older compared to the 1980s. That's according to a recent University of California, Berkeley study which examines California's "sliding homeownership ladder."The simple truth is: homebuying has become a later life experience for California residents. As of 2021, the majority of people in the Golden State don't own a home until the age of 49. Researchers say it is the biggest delay represented in the age of buyers across America. These California cities are among richest in US: report Why is that?Researchers explained that the ability to afford a home, as opposed to the desire to own one, accounts for most of California's homeownership gap when compared to the rest of the country. "While the typical timing of life cycle milestone...

How to see 2024's first meteor shower this week in San Diego

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

SAN DIEGO — The first meteor shower of 2024 will light up the sky over San Diego this week and it has the potential to be one of the strongest of the year.The annual Quadrantid meteor shower is expected to peak this week in North America between Wednesday, Jan. 3 and Thursday, Jan. 4. According to the American Meteor Society, up to 120 shooting stars could be visible if the conditions are right during this time.While its likely to be one of the best meteor showers of the year, it may also be a little bit more challenging to see than others, as experts say window where it will be at its strongest is among the shortest for this type of celestial event. These comets, meteor showers and eclipses will be visible in 2024 According to NASA, most meteor showers have a two-day peak, making catching sight of these much more possible. Meanwhile, the Quadrantids only peak for about roughly six-hours, usually in the early morning hours.This timing of the meteor shower's climax also m...

Residents mourn as damage to Ocean Beach Pier makes reopening uncertain

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

SAN DIEGO — The Ocean Beach Pier has been closed since last year in anticipation of storm season with hopes of reopening in 2024. Now, after the structure sustained more damage from massive waves over the weekend, that timeline is looking unlikely.City officials said in a statement Monday that crews will assess the condition of the pier, which has seen multiple prolonged closures due to storm damage over the few years, at the end of the season to determine next steps."We ask that anyone who is in the area be aware that debris from the pier may be found in the ocean and may wash ashore," officials continued. Rescuers search for possible missing swimmer near Ocean Beach Pier Over the last five years, the 57-year-old pier has been battered by various weather events, prompting repeated repair efforts that have cost the city over $1.7 million. During that period, city engineers say it has been closed off for nearly 30% of the time.By 2018, a city-conducted survey of the pier determined...

Argentine court suspends labor changes in a blow to President Milei’s economic plan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — President Javier Milei suffered a judicial blow Wednesday as a court suspended labor rule changes he recently announced as part of sweeping deregulation and austerity measures aimed at reviving Argentina’s struggling economy.The ruling by a three-judge court came on a legal challenge brought by the main union group, the General Labor Confederation, which argued that the changes affected workers rights.Milei’s decree announced in December established several changes in labor rules, including increasing job probation from three to eight months, reducing severance compensation and allowing the possibility of dismissal for workers taking part of blockades during some protests.Alejandro Sudera, one of the three judges, said the administration went beyond its authority to decree labor changes, which first needed to discussed and approved by Congress.Mile’s government said it would appeal the court’s ruling.The union confederation appl...

Police say man slid under washroom stall at restaurant to sexually assault victim

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:30:07 GMT

Toronto police have arrested a man accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a downtown restaurant after sliding on the floor to crawl into the bathroom stall she was occupying.Investigators say it happened on Saturday, December 30, 2023 at around 4:47 p.m at a restaurant in the Spadina Avenue and Queen Street West area.The victim was in the washroom when police say the suspect “slid along the floor from the adjacent stall and prevented the woman from leaving the stall.”While confined, police say the woman was sexually assaulted. The suspect also allegedly took her phone when she tried to call for help and demanded cash before stealing property from her.Staff at the restaurant heard a commotion in the locked washroom and kicked down the door in an effort to intervene.The man tried to run off but was arrested by officers after a brief foot chase.Police believe the same man was the culprit in another disturbing incident a few weeks earlier at a business in the Bloor Street...