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Ex-Trump aide appears at Miami court to testify before federal grand jury, AP source says

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A former top aide to Donald Trump appeared Wednesday in federal court in Miami for testimony to a grand jury investigating potential classified-document mishandling and obstruction at the ex-president’s Palm Beach property, according to a person familiar with the matter.Taylor Budowich, who had served as a spokesman for Trump after his presidency and now runs a pro-Trump super PAC, was to testify before a grand jury that is separate from a panel that has been meeting in Washington for months to consider charges against Trump over the retention of hundreds of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and potential obstruction of the government’s efforts to reclaim the records.The person who confirmed Budowich’s appearance spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss secretive grand jury proceedings.It is not clear why prosecutors are using an additional grand jury beyond the one in Washington or what testimony Budowich was expected to offer, though the exis...

As Ukraine evacuates its dam-flooded towns, cries for help go unanswered in Russian-occupied territory

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

KYIV — More than a day after the Nova Kakhovka dam was destroyed, unleashing a torrent of water into the Kherson region, increasingly desperate residents of flooded Russian-occupied towns are begging for help.Kremlin-backed local authorities claim they are rescuing residents from the left bank of the Dnipro River, with some 1,300 out of 40,000 evacuated. Painting a rosy picture, Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-installed acting governor of Kherson, said in a statement that children have been removed from the flood zone and sent “to the sea to good holiday camps in the Kherson region, or Crimea.” He continued: “As for the adult residents, few show a desire to evacuate. People want to wait until the water comes down and continue to work on their land.”But those on the ground report a different reality.Ten natives of the town of Oleshky and the village of Kardashynka, located some 20 kilometers and 36 kilometers southeast of the city of Kherson respect...

Flemish nationalists aren’t happy with plan for more English in Brussels

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

BRUSSELS — Language wars are back in Brussels.The topic has long been a divisive political issue in Belgium, where linguistic differences between the Dutch- and French-speaking communities — the country’s two main languages — have at times turned into bitter political conflict.Now, a proposal from the Flemish liberals aiming to turn English into the third administrative language in the country’s capital is sparking criticism from the northern region of Flanders’ nationalist party, New Flemish Alliance (N-VA).“English in Brussels can be an initial language to welcome expats,” Cieltje Van Achter, the head of the N-VA’s group at the Brussels regional parliament, told POLITICO.But, she added, “it’s important that people who decide to spend their lives here also learn French and Dutch,” to facilitate their integration.The debate — a recurring one in Brussels politics — over the importance given to English in the European capital was resusci...

Hands off our money! Parliament and top EU court resist budget cuts

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

BRUSSELS — As inflation bites, EU institutions are privately fighting with the European Commission over how much public money they should be allowed to spend next year. Letters between the EU’s Budget Commissioner Johannes Hahn and other EU bodies — seen by POLITICO — reveal that the Commission wants the European Parliament to rein in its 2024 spending plans by some €28 million, and the Court of Justice of the EU to slash almost €6 million.Senior players in the Parliament have pushed back on those demands, arguing that Hahn is deploying a sneaky, never-before-used budgeting trick that could force them to make painful cuts in areas outside of salaries. As Hahn prepares to defend his draft budget proposal in front of MEPs on Wednesday evening, those disagreements are teeing up a bad-tempered negotiation among EU institutions. Metsola’s miffedParliament President Roberta Metsola railed against the Commission’s request in a letter she sent to Commission ...

How a decade of sacrifice and resilience earned North Harford graduate JT Maguire a shot in Major League Baseball

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

JT Maguire slumped into his worn-out mattress on the floor of a Wofford College dorm. He was four jobs removed from graduation, bunking like a college kid working as a volunteer assistant baseball coach, asking himself if he chose the right path.Is this lifestyle sustainable? Am I ever going to be able to retire one day? Am I ever going to own a house or get married?He was in his 20s living off ramen noodles and driving a run-down 2004 Volkswagen Jetta while his peers took fancy cars to cushy jobs. Maguire even passed on dates because baseball, despite giving him exposure, wasn’t paying enough — if anything. He missed weddings, funerals, holidays and every family gathering in between.Baseball took precedence. He had a dream and refused to lose sight of it.Maguire sat outside Camden Yards’ visiting team clubhouse before the middle outing of a recent three-game homecoming series for him, ruminating on a more than decade-long sacrifice to get to this year: his first a...

Cape and Islands Sailing All-Stars

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

Cape and Islands Sailing League AwardsUrsula Budd SturgisAbigail Considine MonomoyAbbie Catalano CCAAlex Daigle CCANick Kowaleski CCA Honorable MentionWill Correia ORRElla Caesar ORREthan Martin SandwichCaroline O’Neil Sandwich Honorable MentionTyler Lippincott Sandwich Honorable MentionSophie Menyhart SJP League MVPJack Homa SJPAngelina Manchuk SJPRory Murray ACKAlice O’Banion ACKEli Fuller ACK Honorable MentionMaisy Sperry DartPheobe Murray DartSam Sperry Dartmouth Honorable MentionFinn Sperry Dartmouth Honorable MentionNate Gedraitis Dennis-YarmouthSam Riley Martha’s Vineyard League MVPJocelyn Baliunas Martha’s VineyardSimon Hammarlund Martha’s VineyardJuliet Morse Martha’s VineyarCharlie Crowell NausetRuth Drake NausetTolly Kaiser Nauset Honorable MentionMax Wesp Nauset Honorable MentionBridget Gallagher Bishop StangCaden Croquette Bishop StangGrace Robello Bishop Stang Honorable MentionClare Gallagher Bishop Stang Honorable MentionJoey Simpkins FalmouthMarcus Greco ...

CNN ousts CEO Chris Licht after a brief, tumultuous tenure

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

By DAVID BAUDER (AP Media Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — CNN ousted chief executive Chris Licht after a tumultuous year leading the struggling news network that culminated in a damning magazine profile and the growing realization that he’d lost the confidence of the network’s journalists.The change was announced at CNN’s editorial meeting Wednesday morning and came just two days after Licht said he would “fight like hell” to earn the trust of those around him.David Zaslav, CEO of CNN parent company Warner Bros. Discovery, appointed a four-person interim leadership team, and said at the editorial meeting that he would conduct a thorough search for Licht’s replacement.Licht had a mandate to try and make CNN more palatable to both sides of the country’s political divide; Republicans had become increasingly suspicious of the network following repeated attacks by former President Donald Trump.But some at the network saw Licht’s mandate for ch...

Bay State Conference Rugby All-Stars

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

Austin Colantonio, Will MacDonald, Jack Presuti, Brian Rizzo (Braintree); Matt Marmai, Nate Lockwood, Jamie Leslie (Brookline); Danny Treistman, Matt Stockbridge, Jack Dennehy, Griffin White (Milton); Andrew Miskell (Needham); Adam Elin, Michael Mastrocola, Naheem Ridore, Will Savage, Josh Cullivan,  AidenHenderson, Tyler Ahern, Christian Laeman, Toni Dumont-Gonzalez (Weymouth)

Man stabbed during fight outside Ocean Beach bar

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

SAN DIEGO — A man was stabbed Tuesday in Ocean Beach after he and two other men got into a fight with a group of bikers outside a bar, San Diego police said.According to SDPD, the incident happened around 8:30 p.m. in the 5000 block of Newport Avenue when three men, ages 19, 20 and 21, got into an argument with a group of bikers.The argument eventually escalated to a physical altercation involving several more bikers, police said. The 21-year-old was stabbed in the chest and the 19-year-old was knocked unconscious during the fight.Their injuries were not considered to be life-threatening, police said. The 20-year-old man reportedly fled the scene during the fight. Motorcyclist dies at X Games freestyle motocross track in East County The group of bikers left the scene after the incident.Some time later, SDPD officers spotted a group of three or four Harley Davidson motorcycle riders traveling eastbound on Interstate 8 at 70th Street.Officers attempted to stop the motorcycles, leadi...

These restaurants coming to new Terminal 1 at San Diego International Airport

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:10:26 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Construction is well underway on the new Terminal 1 at San Diego International Airport (SAN) and while it'll be some time before it opens to travelers, details about what the new building will feature are slowly starting to be announced.On Tuesday, SAN revealed the first handful of new concessionaries that will be coming to the airport's new building alongside the anticipated phased opening of the travel hub in late 2025 and early 2028.During the first phase of Terminal 1's opening in 2025, four San Diego-based flavors will become available for travelers. What to know about the summer travel season at San Diego International Airport Popular coffee chain, Better Buzz Coffee Roasters, will be the one of these concessions opening with the first phase. The location will be located just opposite the airside security checkpoint, perfect for early morning passengers to grab a coffee or a pastry before their flight.Parakeet Café will also be coming to Terminal 1, offering tra...