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House Republicans interrogate FTC’s Khan over regulation of Big Tech

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The chair of the Federal Trade Commission defended her aggressive legal strategy toward the country’s biggest technology companies Thursday as House Republicans charged that the agency has become overzealous and politicized under President Joe Biden. Republicans charged that Lina Khan is “harassing” Twitter since its acquisition by Elon Musk, arbitrarily suing large tech companies and declining to recuse herself from certain cases. In April, the committee subpoenaed Khan after an investigation by the panel that concluded the agency went after Musk for political reasons. Khan pushed back on the criticism, arguing that more regulation is necessary as the companies have grown and that tech conglomeration could hurt the economy and consumers. “Our competition mission is driven by the tenet that vigorous antitrust enforcement is critical to the growth and dynamism of our economy, as well as to our shared prosperity and liberty,” Khan said. “Recent decades, however...

Virginia’s Youngkin surpasses previous governors’ annual fundraising records in a single quarter

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s main fundraising apparatus will soon report raising $5.75 million in this year’s second quarter, a sum that surpasses what any previous governor of the state has raised over an entire year, according to the group’s accounting.The haul will bring to $8.5 million the total Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia political action committee has raised in the first six months of 2023, according to details provided to The Associated Press ahead of a Monday reporting deadline. And it will leave Spirit of Virginia with $6 million in cash on hand just over two months before the start of early voting in this year’s legislative elections that will decide political control of the currently divided General Assembly. “The Governor has built and scaled an unprecedented campaign to hold the House and flip the Senate,” Dave Rexrode, the PAC’s chairman and a senior adviser to Youngkin, said in a statement to the AP. “H...

Vermont braces for more rain in wake of historic flooding

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

Vermont prepared for the next round of storms — and possibly a tornado — as people took advantage of calm weather Thursday to clean up from historic flooding that damaged thousands of homes, businesses and roads, and left some residents stranded. As floodwaters receded, the good news was that there were no new rescue missions, dams were holding up and more roads reopened. The bad news was that strong thunderstorms were expected to move into parts of the state by Thursday night, which could cause more flash flooding, Gov. Phil Scott said at a news conference. Conditions could spawn a tornado, he said. And the state could get more heavy rain over the weekend. “The period we are more concerned about is Sunday because that could be more widespread and heavier, but not nearly on the scale of what we saw earlier in the week,” National Weather Service meteorologist Seth Kutikoff said.Scott said it’s important for Vermonters to be vigilant, and that includes not going into the water. ...

Lawyer asks for court to adjourn hearing on injunction to end landfill blockade

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

WINNIPEG — A lawyer representing some of those demonstrating at a Winnipeg landfill has asked for an adjournment during a court hearing on an injunction to end the blockade.Dozens of protesters have blocked the main road to the Brady Road landfill demanding a search of a different landfill north of the city, called Prairie Green, where it’s believed the remains of two slain Indigenous women were dumped last year. The City of Winnipeg filed an application Tuesday to the Court of King’s Bench seeking the removal of protesters.Lawyer Sacha Paul told court there is no urgency for a decision because an alternate road to the landfill has been opened, but the city says it is not meant to handle a large volume of heavy trucks. The blockade began last week after Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson said the province would not support a search of the other landfill, pointing to a study that said it could cost $184 million, pose safety risks and not have guaranteed success. Federal C...

Ons Jabeur is in a second consecutive Wimbledon final. She plays Marketa Vondrousova for the title

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — There was a time when Ons Jabeur might not have recovered from the deficit she found herself in during the Wimbledon semifinals. Down a set. Down a break. So close to being just a game from defeat.She credits her sports psychologist with helping her understand how to deal with those on-court situations, with managing to keep her focus, keep her strokes on-target. Thanks in part to that, and a steadiness down the stretch at Centre Court on Thursday, Jabeur is on her way to a second consecutive final at the All England Club and her third title match in the past five Grand Slam tournaments.Now she wants to win a trophy. The sixth-seeded Jabeur earned the right to play for one again by beating big-hitting Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3.“I’m very proud of myself, because maybe old me would have lost the match today and went back home already. But I’m glad that I kept digging very deep and finding the strength,” said Jabeur, a 28-year-old from Tunisia wh...

Ottawa police, fire services say tornado touched down in city suburb of Barrhaven

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

Ottawa police say they are responding to a tornado that touched down in a suburb in the city’s south end.Police are advising residents to seek shelter.They say officers are responding in Barrhaven and the surrounding areas. Reports of injuries or structural damage have yet to surface.Ottawa Fire Services says firefighters and structural collapse teams have been dispatched to Umbra Place in Barrhaven. Environment Canada has issued a tornado warning for the entire National Capital Region. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 13, 2023. The Canadian Press

B.C. expected to request Ottawa’s help with worsening wildfires: minister

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

VANCOUVER — Canada’s Emergency Preparedness Minister says he is expecting a “fairly substantive” request for help from British Columbia as wildfires worsen.Bill Blair tells The Canadian Press the government operations centre has been in discussions with the province for the last several days, and Ottawa is ready to deploy needed resources as the formal request for help is expected Thursday.“The fire season now is obviously sparking up pretty seriously out there and they have sent us an indication of some additional resources that they will require, he said in an interview Thursday.“For the last 48 hours we’ve been working with Canadian Armed Forces, Parks Canada, Natural Resources Canada, and people from the Canadian Coast Guard,” said Blair. “There’s a lot of different federal departments all mobilizing their response to the requirements of British Columbia.”He said the federal help could include military assistance for ai...

Aid groups seek an EU commission review of migration law in Italy as it impounds rescue ships

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

ROME (AP) — A coalition of humanitarian groups formally asked the European Commission to review Italy’s legislation governing migration on Thursday, following the Italian government’s latest detention of a ship used to rescue migrants at sea.Emergency, Doctors Without Borders, SOS Humanity and ASGI, a legal association that studies migration, filed the request alleging that the Italian legislation raises questions about its compatibility with European Union norms and international law.The European Commission is the guardian of the EU’s treaty, rules and regulations but on several political issues it has little or no power or willingness to intervene in domestic legislation, unless that legislation thwarts fundamental rules that the member states have pledged to uphold. The appeal marked a new development in Italy’s crackdown on migrants under the right-wing government of Premier Giorgia Meloni. Earlier this week, Italian authorities impounded the Ocean Viking ship ...

Hungary slams hefty fine on bookstore chain over LGBTQ+ graphic novel, says it violated law

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — A government office in Hungary on Thursday levied a hefty fine against a national bookseller over a LGBTQ+ graphic novel, saying it violated a contentious law that prohibits the depiction of homosexuality to minors. The bookseller, Lira Konyv, is Hungary’s second-largest bookstore chain. It was fined 12 million forints ($35,930) for placing the popular “Heartstopper” by British author Alice Oseman in its youth literature section, and for failing to place it in closed packaging as required by a 2021 law. The Budapest Metropolitan Government Office, which issued the consumer protection fine, told state news agency MTI that it had conducted an investigation into the store’s selling of the title. “The investigation found that the books in question depicted homosexuality, but they were nevertheless placed in the category of children’s books and youth literature, and were not distributed in closed packaging,” the office said.The fine is based on Hungar...

3 confirmed tornadoes after Wednesday night's storms: National Weather Service

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 16:20:28 GMT

CHICAGO — The National Weather Service confirmed Thursday a total of three tornadoes after Wednesday night's storms, with three touchdowns occurring in Elgin.The first Elgin tornado had a maximum intensity EF-1 and maximum wind speed of 100 mph. The track roughly started east of Rt. 47 and ended near the railroad tracks west of Villa Olivia Golf Course. The NWS says the second tornado in Elgin had a max intensity of EF-0 with max wind speed of 85 mph. The tornado began close to McDonald Road and ended along Hopps Road.A NWS team confirmed a third tornado after grounds were surveyed from Burr Ridge to Stickney. A EF-1 with max winds near 110 mph was identified. Elgin was just one of the several communities hit by severe weather Wednesday night. NWS teams are expected to survey the damage across the Chicago area, where fierce winds from suspected tornadoes ripped roofs from buildings, downed trees and sent residents scrambling for safety as sirens sounded.The weather service warned We...