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Nebraska expected to pass 12-week abortion ban, restrictions on gender-affirming care

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Conservative Nebraska lawmakers are expected to have just enough votes to pass a bill Friday that combines restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors with a 12-week abortion ban.The mood in the Nebraska Capitol since the hybrid measure was advanced Tuesday by a single vote has been volatile. Lawmakers have traded insults and promises of retribution, while protesters have loudly voiced their displeasure. The bill ties together restrictions that Republicans across the U.S. have been pushing.On Friday, debate was briefly stopped when protesters in a chamber balcony stood and yelled obscenities at conservative lawmakers while throwing what appeared to be bloody tampons onto the floor. Security arrested at least one person and cleared the balconies.Lawmakers hurled pointed barbs, accusing each other of being fueled by hate. At one point while defending the abortion ban, Sen. Steve Erdman of Bayard quipped that “calling abortion health care is like calling...

S&P/TSX composite posts small gain Friday, U.S. markets down

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

TORONTO — Strength in the energy sector helped Canada’s main stock index post a small gain Friday, while U.S. stock markets were down as debt ceiling talks fizzled ahead of the weekend.Canada outperformed the U.S. markets Friday after lagging for most of the week, said Brian Madden, chief investment officer with First Avenue Investment Counsel. Stocks south of the border made gains in the morning only to flip to losses after Republicans said they’re pausing debt ceiling negotiations on preventing a default.The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 53.97 points at 20,351.06.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 109.28 points at 33,426.63.The S&P 500 index was down 6.07 points at 4,191.98, while the Nasdaq composite was down 30.94 points at 12,657.90.In the U.S., ongoing talks over the debt ceiling weighed on markets, Madden said.“I think what’s really happening this week, and probably going into next week, is U.S. markets are trading political h...

Texas militia member sentenced to nearly 5 years in prison for attacking police during Capitol riot

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

A Texas militia member was sentenced Friday to nearly five years in prison for attacking police officers at the U.S. Capitol, seriously injuring one of them during a mob’s attack on Jan. 6, 2021.U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss sentenced Donald Hazard to four years and nine months in prison followed by three months of supervised release for his role in the riot at the Capitol, according to a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s office for the District of Columbia.The sentence matched what federal prosecutors had recommended for Hazard, who pleaded guilty to an assault charge in February.Hazard, 44, of Hurst, Texas, was a member of a militia called the Patriot Boys of North Texas. Lucas Denney, the group’s self-proclaimed president, appointed Hazard as its sergeant-at-arms. Denney also encouraged Hazard to stock up on weapons and protective gear and recruit others to join them in Washington, D.C., prosecutors said.Hazard was “eager for violence” on Jan. 6, wearing ...

ExxonMobil appeals ruling by Guyanese court in oil spill insurance coverage

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) — American oil giant ExxonMobil said Friday it had appealed a recent Guyanese court ruling forcing it to set aside hundreds of millions of dollars in the event of a major oil spill off the coast of Guyana.The company said in a statement that the court had failed to consider that Exxon and consortium partners Hess Corporation and China National Overseas Offshore Corporation have the “undoubted ability” to meet their financial obligations in the event of a spill at their operationThe consortium is operating the prolific Stabroek Block near the southeastern border with Suriname.In the ruling two weeks ago, Guyana’s high court ordered the local environmental agency to obtain independent liability insurance from Exxon’s subsidiary Esso Exploration and Production Limited. It also sought an unlimited guarantee from its parent company in the case of damage caused by operations in the South American country.Rights activists and environmentalists fear that a spil...

Stock market today: Wall Street’s best week since March stalls amid debt worries

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street’s best week since March ran out of steam Friday as worries rose about the U.S. government’s efforts to avoid a potentially disastrous default on its debt.The S&P 500 slipped 6.07 points, or 0.1%, to 4,191.98. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 109.28, or 0.3%, to 33,426.63, while the Nasdaq composite gave up 30.94, or 0.2%, to 12,657.90.Despite its weak Friday, the S&P 500 still managed to break out of a long, listless stretch where it failed to move by 1%, up or down, for six straight weeks. It gained 1.6%, with much of the strength earlier in the week coming on rising hopes that Washington can avoid a debt default.Democrats and Republicans are facing down a June 1 deadline, which is when the U.S. government could run out of cash to pay its bills, unless Congress allows it to borrow more. A default on its debt would likely mean a recession for the economy, which has economists and investors both widely expecting a deal to be made.But some of t...

$200,000 bail set for Detroit clerk who locked door before customers were shot

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — A Detroit gas station clerk may have panicked when he locked a door to stop a possible theft before a man shot three bystanders, but he didn’t commit a crime, his lawyer said Friday.A magistrate set bond at $200,000 for Al-Hassan Aiyash, 22, who is charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of a customer. He is accused of being grossly negligent by locking the door when a man tried to leave the gas station with items worth less than $4.A man was killed and two more were wounded on May 6. Samuel McCray, 27, has been charged with murder and other crimes.Aiyash’s attorney said it’s “really not fair” to set a high bond while prosecutors present an uncommon legal theory.“He was doing his job,” Jamil Khuja told the judge. “Did he panic and act inappropriately in a way? Maybe, but that’s the best they can argue here.”McCray tried to leave the gas station without paying for items when an electronic purchase didn’t work, according to polic...

4th death, more vision loss cases linked to tainted eyedrops

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. health officials reported another death and several more cases of vision loss from illnesses linked to eyedrops tainted with a drug-resistant bacteria.The bacteria has infected 81 people, including four who died and 14 who lost vision, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday. That’s up from three deaths and eight cases of vision loss reported in March. The CDC also said four people have undergone surgery to remove an eyeball due to the infections.The outbreak is considered particularly worrisome because the bacteria driving it — Pseudomonas aeruginosa — is resistant to standard antibiotics.Investigators say most of the patients had used certain brands of eyedrops, and products from EzriCare and Delsam Pharma were recalled in February. At least seven patients were diagnosed after the recall.After the recall, U.S. health inspectors visited the plant in India that made the eyedrops and uncovered problems with how the drops were made and tested, i...

Cubs' Friday moves include saying goodbye to a veteran player

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

PHILADELPHIA — As the Cubs look to snap a five-game losing streak in their final series of a nine-game road trip, they've made a number of moves on their roster.That includes saying goodbye to one of the veteran players they acquired before the season. On Friday, the team announced that first baseman Eric Hosmer has been designated for assignment after 31 games with the club. This comes as he was hitting .230 with three doubles, two homers, and 14 RBI as both a first baseman and designated hitter. Hosmer, a four-time Gold Glove winner and a 2016 AL All-Star with the Royals, was signed to a one-year deal this past winter.That was just one of a few moves made by the club ahead of the three-game series with the Phillies as Nico Hoerner was reinstated off the 10-day IL. He'd gone on the list with a left hamstring strain last week but has returned to the lineup quickly. Unfortunately, another starter, outfielder Cody Bellinger, is headed to the 10-day IL with a left knee contusion. He su...

Dave Matthews rails against gun violence: 'No one is coming for your guns'

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

(The Hill) — Musician Dave Matthews says lawmakers have been able to convince the nation that the public is “powerless” against gun violence and that the “vulnerability of innocent people in this country is a sacrifice we have to make if we want to be truly American.”“It’s so mind bogglingly cruel. It’s insanity,” the Dave Matthews Band frontman said in an interview with USA Today, published Friday.“I have no idea how people can stand up and say it’s ‘not guns’ and ‘it’s not the [National Rifle Association,]’ it’s just mental health. And then do nothing to address the fact that from the ‘80s we’ve closed every mental health institution we can in this country,” added the 56-year-old songwriter, promoting his band’s latest album, “Walk Around the Moon." ‘Good guys with guns’ – do they help stop shooters? Here’s what data says Noting that he has “many” friends who are gun owners, Matthews said, “But all of them would also agree that they prefer a person can’t go into a scho...

NASA announces Blue Origin as new partner to work on moon lander for Artemis V mission

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:48:54 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) - NASA Administrator Bill Nelson revealed on Friday that Blue Origin, the aerospace company owned by Jeff Bezos, has been selected as the second company to develop a moon lander for the highly anticipated Artemis V mission to the Moon in 2029."The great adventure of humankind pressing out into the cosmos is here," Nelson said. "Our partnership will only add to this golden age of human space flight."NASA has awarded Blue Origin a $3.4 billion contract as part of a $7 billion project to construct the moon lander for the fifth Artemis mission."Blue Origin is contributing well north of $3.4 billion as part of this effort," Blue Origin Vice President John Couluris said.This collaboration follows a similar partnership between NASA and SpaceX, which was awarded a contract in 2021 to provide the vehicle for the first and second scheduled Moon landings. NASA views the involvement of multiple partners as a means to enhance competition and ensure regular lunar landings."Th...