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Biden, congressional leaders meeting to avert default

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

By ZEKE MILLER, SEUNG MIN KIM, JOSH BOAK and LISA MASCARO (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and congressional leaders confronted each other Tuesday in their first face-to-face meeting aimed at averting an unprecedented U.S. government default.The president welcomed House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in the Oval Office. Their initial challenge was simply to agree on what exactly they’re talking about as they held their first substantive meeting in months.With the government at risk of being unable to meet its obligations as soon as June 1, raising the specter of economic chaos, Republicans came to the White House hoping to negotiate sweeping cuts to federal spending in exchange for allowing new borrowing to avoid default.Biden, on the other hand, was set to reinforce his opposition to allowing the country’s full faith and credit to be he...

Alex Caruso is named to the NBA’s All-Defensive 1st team — the Chicago Bulls guard’s 1st career selection

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

Chicago Bulls guard Alex Caruso received a top distinction for his disruptive play this season, earning a place on the NBA’s All-Defensive first team Tuesday.Caruso spearheaded the Bulls defense as both a starter and a reserve, averaging 1.5 steals, 0.7 blocks and 3.4 deflections per game. His defensive impact was anchored in its efficiency: Caruso led the league in steals per 100 possessions (3.0) and deflections per 36 minutes (5.2), and he finished 14th in total steals (98) while averaging fewer minutes than every player ahead of him. He was one of only five players to tally at least 95 steals and 45 blocks.Caruso was joined on the first team by Defensive Player of the Year Jaren Jackson Jr., runner-up Brook Lopez, Jrue Holiday and Evan Mobley. He’s the first Bulls player to receive a first-team selection in the NBA’s end-of-season awards since 2014, when Joakim Noah earned first-team All-NBA and All-Defensive honors.Despite carving out a strong standing in the ...

Suspended cop accused of letting police dog ‘viciously’ attack man

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

State regulators suspended the policing licenses of four cops from Boston, Brockton, and Springfield, including one accused of letting a police dog “viciously” attack a man hiding in a closet.The Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission is required by law to suspend the police certifications of law enforcement personnel charged, indicted, or arrested in connection to a felony and revoke the license of officers who are convicted of felonies.The four new suspensions announced earlier this week bring the total officers temporarily barred from serving to 28 as of May 4, an increase from the 24 cops who were on the suspended list as of March 20.The additions come at the same time the POST Commission revealed that it had decertified a Woburn cop accused of helping plan a 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville. It is the first time regulators have taken the extraordinary measure.Officers newly added to the suspension list include Jonathan Correia of the Brockt...

Bruins notebook: Jim Montgomery shoulders the burden of first-round loss

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

Pick any and all synonyms for “anguished” and the Bruins braintrust was still feeling it on Tuesday, more than a week after the record-setting team was shockingly bounced from the playoffs in the first round.But in speaking to reporters at the Legends club in the Garden for the first time since that fateful Sunday night, it was clear that the harshest and most unenviable spotlight was on coach Jim Montgomery. At one point, CEO Charlie Jacobs praised the job of his management team – president Cam Neely and GM Don Sweeney – for the job they did in putting together the 65-win team, but the kudos did not extend to the coach. Maybe that was an oversight, but it felt telling.Whether or not that puts Montgomery on the hot seat as soon as training camp opens in September with a roster to be named later, the coach willingly dove into the white heat that was waiting for him.First up was his decision to stick with goalie Linus Ullmark until Game 7. Sweeney – who made a point of saying th...

Stock market today: Stocks dip ahead of report on inflation

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

By STAN CHOE (AP Business Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street dipped on Tuesday following some mixed earnings reports, as stocks remain roughly where they’ve been stuck for more than a month. The S&P 500 fell 18.95 points, or 0.5%, to 4,119.17. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 56.88, or 0.2%, to 33,561.81, while the Nasdaq composite fell 77.36, or 0.6%, to 12,179.55. Paypal fell 12.7% despite reporting better profit and revenue for the latest quarter than expected. Analysts pointed to its forecast for how much profit it expects to wring out of each $1 of revenue, which may have disappointed some investors. Electric automaker Lucid Group dropped 5.6% after reporting a worse loss than expected for the latest quarter. Skyworks Solutions sank 5.2% after reporting profit for the first three months of the year that matched forecasts. The company’s comments about weakness in demand from China for Android phones may have frightened investors. On the winning side o...

Quick Fix: Curried Chicken with Peppers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

Linda Gassenheimer | Tribune News ServiceVery sadly my longtime friend and renowned curry expert Raghavan Iyer passed away shortly after I interviewed him about his new book, “On the Curry Trail.” I feel privileged to have known him for so many years and have great admiration for his work.After our chat, I was hungry for a quick curry dinner. One of his points was that he made his own curry powder mixture. I asked him about using prepared curry powder from the market, and he gave his OK. But he said it’s important to make sure the bottle is new for maximum flavor. I’ve adapted one of his recipes for this easy dinner. By the way, you can make the dinner in advance or make extra for another meal. It tastes great the next day.Using microwaveable brown rice helps speed the preparation.Helpful Hints:— You can use madras curry powder instead of curry powder. It will bring more heat to the dish.— You can use broccoli, peas or green beans instead of snow peas.— You can use 4 gar...

Lakers and Heat on track to run it back and meet again in NBA Finals

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

Death, taxes, and both LeBron James and Jimmy Butler on a playoff tear.Those tend to be the three NBA inevitabilities this time of the year, as both James and Butler have reminded the basketball world, each now one victory in their respective second-round playoff series shy of advancing to the conference finals.It was only three seasons ago that these two teams met in the self-isolated Orlando bubble with the 2020 NBA championship on the line. Now, there’s a very real chance at an encore. Only 4.7% of teams in NBA history to go down 3-1 in a playoff series ever come back to win, meanwhile both the Sixers-Celtics and Nuggets-Suns series are tied at two games apiece.James, of course, won the title in six games the first go-round, simply over-powering an exhausted Heat team with Anthony Davis’ star power on full display in the series. The Lakers then spent two seasons outside of the championship hunt finding the right pieces for a second run out West. Butler was swept out o...

Video game review: The top 5 ‘Redfall’ tips to help you jumpstart your game

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

“Redfall” is deceptively simple but the gameplay is surprisingly deep as you fight an army of vampires, cultists and mercenaries. The developers at Arkane Studios Austin throw players into that meat grinder without too much explanation.The campaign can be difficult at first as players’ powers are severely limited, but over time, they level up and amass better weapons. Here are five tips to make that process run a little smoother:1. Choose your hero wisely: “Redfall” offers four playable characters at launch, and each hero offers their own distinct brand of gameplay. Whomever you chose, you’ll be attached to them through the campaign, so it’s best to choose wisely. Players can’t switch their hero on the fly and continue the story. Each hero is tied to their own campaign, and if you decide to play multiplayer, the host is the only one that retains the narrative progress.That means if you beat a boss with your buddy and she’s the host, you’ll have to do the same on your account for tha...

Explore an uninhabited California island for one day or 10

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

You don’t have to travel to the South Pacific to entertain dreams of desert islands. There’s a chain of  uninhabited islands — Santa Cruz, Anacapa, Santa Rosa, Santa Barbara and San Miguel — just off the coast of California, all easily reachable for a day’s jaunt, an overnight or more. No shipwrecks or Robinson Crusoe shenanigans required.The five islands of Channel Island National Park are accessible only by boat, with ferries from Ventura Harbor Village available to transport the 100,000 or so guests who visit each year. No hotels — this isn’t Catalina, after all — but each island has campsites where you can pitch your pop-up tent or sleep under the stars. If you’re willing to truly unplug and spend an overnight away from it all, you’ll experience a quiet solitude unlike any other.Start your adventure at the Channel Islands National Park Visitors Center in Ventura Harbor Village, where Island Packers offers island access cruises of one to three hours, depending on which island you...

Passenger charged with hiding camera in cruise ship restroom

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:50:36 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A passenger on a Caribbean cruise has been arrested after a hidden camera with video of dozens of people, including children, was discovered in a public restroom, officials said.Jeremy Froias was arrested last Wednesday in Puerto Rico and charged with video voyeurism and attempted possession of child exploitation material, according to court documents.According to a criminal complaint filed in San Juan federal court, Froias boarded Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Seas in Miami on April 29 for a seven-day cruise. The ship was set to make land calls at Sint Maarten, Puerto Rico and the Bahamas before returning to Miami this past Saturday.A day after the voyage began while the ship was in international waters, Froias put a hidden Wi-Fi camera in a public restroom on the ship’s top deck between a surfing simulator and a bar, officials said. A day after that, another passenger spotted the camera and alerted the ship’s crew.“The matter was immedia...