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Watchdogs, progressives at odds over tax cut plans

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

The state’s fiscal watch dogs mostly responded to proposals from the House and governor to lower taxes with cautious optimism, setting them at odds with the chagrin displayed by progressive members of state leadership’s own party.“Lawmakers should support Gov. Healey’s proposals to reduce the short-term capital gains tax rate and raise the level at which the estate tax kicks in,” Eileen McAnneny, a senior fellow in economic opportunity at Pioneer Institute in Boston wrote in a Monday op-ed published in the Boston Business journal.Gov. Maura Healey, at the end of February, offered a plan to cut about $750 million in revenue from the state’s coffers in 2024 and nearly $1 billion after that by giving renters, seniors, and parents significant tax breaks. She also proposed a cut to the short term capital gains tax and the estate tax, both of which were also offered by her predecessor last year.Lawmakers in the House and Senate were not inclined to include former Gov. Charlie Baker’s capi...

Red Sox feel pain in the rain, can’t quite rally in 5-4 loss to Angels

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

The modern-day Babe Ruth took the mound at Fenway Park on Marathon Monday, only to be rained out of the game after two innings.Why should Boston continued to be punished for the sins of Harry Frazee?A total of 34,942 people paid to come to Major League Baseball’s oldest ballpark to see Shohei Ohtani’s only start in Boston this year, and were rewarded with over two hours of rain delays, a game over three hours, and a 5-4 loss for the Red Sox.The game began 56 minutes late and went into a second break in the top of the third. In between, Ohtani collected two hits for his side and pitched two hitless innings against the home team, with an earned run, one walk, two wild pitches, and three strikeouts. His hardest pitch of the game was a 98.4 mph four-seam fastball to Team Japan teammate Masataka Yoshida, who swung for a strike.After an hour and 25-minute rain delay, the game resumed, but the starters’ days were over. All in all, Ohtani needed just 31 pitches (20 strikes...

Trump schedules New Hampshire campaign stop for next week

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

In the midst of several ongoing investigations into his conduct both during and after his time as commander in chief, former President Donald Trump is proceeding full steam ahead with his campaign for 2024 and has announced a trip to New Hampshire.“President Donald J. Trump, 45th President of the United States of America, will deliver remarks in Manchester, New Hampshire on Thursday, April 27, 2023, at 4:00 p.m.,” his campaign said in a Monday afternoon release.Trump, who was indicted last month and arrested in early April on charges connected to an apparent hush money payment allegedly made to a porn star and former mistress, is currently the leading candidate in the Republican field with 10 months remaining before New Hampshire’s first in the nation Feburary primaryThe former president has not let the investigation by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, for which he was charged with 34 felonies, the lawsuit by New York Attorney General Latitia James, for which Trump has twice been deposed, ...

Cloudy, cool before weekend warmup

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- "Gray-pril" continues as we start and end this Monday under cloudy skies and cool weather.Stronger onshore flow in San Diego is due to a low-pressure system well to the north of us and will bring us cloudy, cool and breezy weather at the beginning of the week.A deep marine layer has produced some patchy drizzle and morning mist and could do so again overnight into Tuesday morning. Barely any clearing for beaches and inland valleys which brought us unseasonably cooler temperatures.Tuesday is shaping up to be the coolest day of the week with low-60's at the coast, mid-60's inland, low-60's for mountains and low-80's in the deserts. It's possible the marine layer won't have as much moisture Tuesday with only partial clearing expected. Beaches may actually get more clearing than inland valleys in what's known as "reverse clearing."Winds will peak Tuesday as a Wind Advisory in effect for mountains and deserts where west winds 25 to 35 miles per hour with gusts up to 60 are e...

Horse rescued after falling down 100-foot cliff

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

JAMUL, Calif. — A horse was rescued Monday after falling down a cliff in East County, the San Diego Humane Society said.Crews with SDHS's Emergency Response Team, Cal Fire San Diego and San Diego County Animals responded late Sunday night to assist an eight-year-old horse who had fallen over 100 feet off a trail and down a cliff, the humane society said on Twitter.The horse fell in the area near Honey Spring Ranch Truck Trail.Crews hiked four-to-five miles to reach the horse, named Dobby, who was standing on an incline down the cliff. They helped guide the injured horse across a stream to get him to flat ground and provided Dobby with food and a blanket to keep him as comfortable as possible during the rescue.Responding teams initially planned to hoist the horse out with a San Diego Fire-Rescue Department helicopter at daylight, but they were unable to fly safely due to weather conditions.SDHS emergency response crews hiked back to the horse Monday morning, along with a veterinarian...

Odd spiral appears amid northern lights in Alaska night sky

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Northern light enthusiasts got a surprise mixed in with the green bands of light dancing in the Alaska skies: A light baby blue spiral resembling a galaxy appeared amid the aurora for a few minutes. The cause early Saturday morning was a little more mundane than an alien invasion or the appearance of a portal to the far reaches of the universe. It was simply excess fuel that had been released from a SpaceX rocket that launched from California about three hours before the spiral appeared.Sometimes rockets have fuel that needs to be jettisoned, said space physicist Don Hampton, a research associate professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute.“When they do that at high altitudes, that fuel turns into ice,” he said. “And if it happens to be in the sunlight, when you’re in the darkness on the ground, you can see it as a sort of big cloud, and sometimes it’s swirly.”While not a common sight, Hampton said he’s seen such occurrences about t...

Brazil’s welcome of Russian minister prompts U.S. blowback

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday expressed gratitude to Brazil for its approach in pushing for an end to hostilities in Ukraine — an effort that has irked both Kyiv and the West, and by afternoon prompted an unusually sharp rebuke from the White House.Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has refused to provide weapons to Ukraine while proposing a club of nations including Brazil and China to mediate peace.On Sunday, Lula told reporters in Abu Dhabi that two nations – both Russia and Ukraine – had decided to go to war, and a day earlier in Beijing said the U.S. must stop “stimulating” the continued fighting and start discussing peace. Earlier this month, he suggested Ukraine could cede Crimea to end the war, which the spokesperson for Ukraine’s foreign ministry, Oleg Nikolenko, and others rejected.After meeting Brazil’s foreign minister on Monday, Lavrov told reporters in a short press conference that the West has engaged in “a rather ...

Media question restrictions apply only to Alberta premier, cabinet ministers say

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

EDMONTON — Three Alberta cabinet ministers say the government’s new question restriction policy for media applies only to Premier Danielle Smith.Kaycee Madu, Adriana LaGrange and Demetrios Nicolaides took multiple questions at news conferences Monday and said the limits apply only to queries made of the premier.The trio defended Smith’s decision to begin limiting questions from reporters and news outlets from now through the May election campaign. They said they agree with Smith that it’s a busy period and they want to make sure more news outlets get a chance to ask the premier questions.They said it’s not about Smith trying to evade accountability.“I don’t believe that to be true at all,” said LaGrange, the education minister, speaking to reporters in Calgary. “I’ve seen the premier answer many questions and very difficult questions.“The premier simply is wanting to reach as many outlets and as many reporters and interviewers.“As the election ramps up, that’s going to b...

Vancouver officers involved in beating death should be fired, victim’s sister says

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

BURNABY, B.C. — The family of a man beaten to death during a confrontation with Vancouver police says the officers involved should lose their jobs, while others should be better trained to respond to people experiencing mental health challenges.Melissa Gray said the death of her only sibling, Myles, has devastated their family and they’ve been waiting for accountability from police for more than seven years.Myles Gray, 33, died on Aug. 13, 2015, following a beating involving seven officers that sent him into cardiac arrest and left him with a broken eye socket, a crushed voice box, a ruptured testicle and other injuries. His sister told media on Monday before the start of the coroner’s inquest into his death that the officers stole her brother’s life and don’t deserve to continue their jobs in policing.The British Columbia Prosecution Service declined to approve criminal charges against the officers in 2020, saying there were no civilian witnesses, or any vid...

Federal judge halts Colorado ban on ‘abortion pill reversal’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:14:47 GMT

DENVER (AP) — A judge has temporarily halted enforcement of a Colorado ban on what experts consider unproven treatments to reverse medical abortions at a religious clinic that alleged in a lawsuit that the newly signed law violated its Constitutional rights.Judge Daniel Domenico, who noted that Colorado is the only state to ban the treatment, issued the temporary restraining order over the weekend after Bella Health and Wellness argued that barring them from prescribing the so-called “abortion pill reversal” treatment violates their First Amendment right to free speech and religious exercise.The idea of reversing a medical abortion has become a flashpoint in the clash over reproductive rights nationwide after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, leaving abortion up to the states. Roughly a dozen states have passed laws in the preceding years compelling abortion providers to inform their patients about the “reversal” treatment.A Republican proposal to do that in Colorado t...