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DeSantis plays up his personal side, hits back at Trump in campaign blitz across Iowa

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

By THOMAS BEAUMONT and WILL WEISSERT (Associated Press)SALIX, Iowa (AP) — Ron DeSantis was making a four-stop blitz through Iowa during his first full day of presidential campaigning on Wednesday, aiming for a personal connection with voters while intensifying his criticism of former President Donald Trump.The Florida governor’s first stop was the floor of Port Neal Welding in Salix, a rural town near Sioux City, in the heart of the most Republican-heavy part of the state. Lining the highway outside the welding shop were metal structures including a towering Jesus, a version of the Statue of Liberty and the Minions.DeSantis talked up his efforts to push his state farther to the right. But he often barreled through his 30-minute speech in workmanlike fashion, left few pauses for applause from the audience of a bit more than 100 people, some wearing caps bearing seed company logos. Trying to position himself as the most formidable alternative to Trump in the crowded Republ...

Boston University president rips graduating students for ‘cancel culture’ after they shouted obscenities at Warner Bros. CEO

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

Boston University’s retiring president has sent a parting shot at his final class of graduating students, calling out the alums for “cancel culture” after one of the most awkward commencements of all time when they booed and shouted obscenities at the Warner Bros. Discovery CEO amid the writers’ strike.BU President Robert Brown on Wednesday gave his perspective about the heated commencement ceremony from May 21, when Writers Guild of America striking union members picketed outside Nickerson Field and grads at the ceremony booed CEO David Zaslav.The graduating students chanted “Pay your writers!” at Zaslav throughout his commencement speech.Brown is now slamming the students “who were appallingly coarse and deliberately abusive to Mr. Zaslav.”“Our students were not picking a fight,” Brown wrote in a post on BU’s website on Wednesday. “They were attempting to implement the cancel culture that has become all too pr...

9 of America’s most charming airports

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

Not every airport needs to be a stressful, chaotic experience. You shouldn’t have to stand in long lines only to dig deep into your budget for an overpriced, bland meal and perhaps end up sprinting to your gate.While some people rightfully detest airports, NerdWallet has rounded up a collection of nine U.S. airports that are enjoyable to spend time in. Some are like a cozy coffee shop, while others have retro vibes that harken back to the golden age of aviation. These airports were chosen for several reasons, some of which might include their unbeatable views, unique amenities, charming atmosphere — or a combination of it all.But NerdWallet also included key details that can impact the airport experience, including on-time arrivals rate, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics data between February 2022 and February 2023. For comparison, the national average on-time arrivals rate is 76.98%.To qualify for this list, airports also had to have fewer than 1.5 million arriving passe...

Summer dessert recipe: S’more pie, please!

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

S’mores have been a much-loved summer treat ever since the official recipe for the sweet but simple combination first appeared in a 1927 Girl Scout guidebook, “Tramping and Trailing with the Girl Scouts.”They’re often a hot, sticky mess, but roasted marshmallows just go so incredibly well with chocolate and graham crackers, right? The fact that you can make them over a campfire only adds to their crowd appeal.But what if you don’t have a fire pit in your backyard, or aren’t keen about letting your kids cook over hot coals with a pointy stick? Or maybe you just want to impress friends and family with a make-ahead, party-worthy dessert.This decadent pie recipe brings together all the familiar and sugary-sweet flavors of a s’more, only with a bit more flair, which makes it the perfect showstopper for a summer barbecue.Built on a sweet and sturdy graham cracker crust, it pairs a thick and gooey brownie layer crafted with two types of chocolate with a creamy milk chocolate ga...

Government developing cybersecurity certification process for defence contractors

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

OTTAWA — The federal government says certain defence contracts will be subject to a mandatory cybersecurity certification process starting in the winter of 2024. Defence Minister Anita Anand made the announcement Wednesday morning at the Canadian Association of Defence and Security Industries annual trade show in Ottawa, which is known as CANSEC.Anand’s speech focused on military modernization, one of her department’s key priorities as it works to finish up the defence policy review that was announced in the 2022 budget. In the day’s second keynote speech, her Ukrainian counterpart revealed that Canada’s updated policy will be released to the public in July. Oleksii Reznikov’s pre-recorded virtual address to the trade show at noon included a call for long-term support from Canada and the Canadian defence industry as his country continues to defend itself against the Russian invasion that began more than 400 days ago.“Ukraine has given a list of th...

Limo company manager sentenced to at least 5 years for New York crash that killed 20

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

SCHOHARIE, N.Y. (AP) — A former limousine company manager was sentenced Wednesday to at least five years in prison for his role in a crash that killed 20 people in rural New York.Nauman Hussain, 33, was convicted of manslaughter earlier this month after prosecutors argued that he intentionally failed to properly maintain an SUV-style stretch limo, which then failed to brake on a downhill stretch of road in Schoharie, a village west of Albany.The 2001 Ford Excursion was packed with friends out for a birthday celebration on Oct. 6, 2018 when it hit a parked car and trees before coming to rest in a streambed.Judge Peter Lynch sentenced Hussain, who was shackled and wearing an orange jail uniform, to an indeterminate term of 5 to 15 years in prison. The state’s parole board will determine when Hussain will be released after he serves the minimum.Some people who lost loved ones in the crash spoke directly to Hussain in court before the judge announced the sentence. “October 6, 2018...

CP NewsAlert: One adult, 16 children injured in school trip fall in Winnipeg

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

WINNIPEG — The Winnipeg Fire Paramedics Service says one adult and 16 schoolchildren were taken to hospital after falling four to six metres at the Fort Gibraltar historic site in Winnipeg. Three of the children were listed as unstable. More coming. The Canadian Press

Former Connecticut lawmaker gets 27 months in prison for stealing coronavirus aid

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A former Connecticut state representative was sentenced to 27 months in prison on Wednesday for stealing more than $1.2 million from the city of West Haven — most of it in federal coronavirus-related aid — and using a good chunk of it to fuel his gambling addiction.“I stole that money. That is on me,” Michael DiMassa said as he apologized during his sentencing before Judge Omar Williams.“It’s hard to find the word to express how I feel. I feel ashamed, embarrassed, mortified,” the West Haven Democrat said.DiMassa, 32, had asked for leniency. He could have gotten more than four years in prison under federal sentencing guidelines. He was ordered to report to prison on July 31 and remains free on bond.“Mr. DiMassa suffered from a debilitating gambling addiction at the time of the offense,” his lawyer, John Gulash, wrote in a court filing, “and his essentially unfettered access to a deep pool of federal funds and total lack of impulse control facilitated his preci...

Trudeau dismisses criticism of David Johnston, as MPs to vote on him to step down

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he has confidence in David Johnston, even as the House of Commons is about to vote in favour of a motion to push him out of his job. Trudeau named the former governor general a special rapporteur for foreign interference in March to look into allegations the Chinese government tried to meddle in the last two federal elections.Opposition parties decried the appointment because of Johnston’s family connections to the prime minister’s family and the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation.Trudeau brushed off those concerns, telling reporters that he views the matter as political parties wanting to score “partisan points.” “The fact of the matter is David Johnston has served this country in extraordinary capacities for decades,” Trudeau said Wednesday on his way into a meeting with his Liberal caucus. “He’s taken this incredibly seriously.”The Conservatives and Bloc Québécois is expected to vote ...

Amazon workers stage walkout over company’s climate impact, return-to-office mandate

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 23:28:18 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — A group of corporate Amazon workers upset about the company’s environmental impact, recent layoffs and a return-to-office mandate is planning a walkout at the company’s Seattle headquarters Wednesday.The lunchtime protest comes a week after Amazon’s annual shareholder meeting and a month after a policy took effect requiring workers to return to the office three days per week.“We respect our employees’ rights to express their opinions,” the company said in a statement.As of Wednesday morning, more than 1,900 employees had pledged to walk out around the world, with about 900 in Seattle, according to Amazon Employees for Climate Justice, a climate change advocacy group founded by Amazon workers. While some plan to gather at the Amazon Spheres — a four-story structure in downtown Seattle that from the outside looks like three connected glass orbs — others will participate remotely.Some employees have complained that Amazon has been slow to address its im...