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Showing posts from April, 2023

House votes to restore solar panel tariffs paused by Biden

The House voted Friday to reinstate tariffs on solar panel imports from several Southeast Asian countries WASHINGTON -- The House voted Friday to reinstate tariffs on solar panel imports from several Southeast Asian countries after President Joe Biden paused them in a bid to boost solar installations in the U.S., a key part of his climate agenda. The 221-202 vote sends the measure to the Senate, where lawmakers from both parties have expressed similar concerns about what many call unfair com Pet ition from China. Biden has vowed to veto the measure if it reaches his desk. The House vote would overturn Biden's action last year pausing threatened tariff s that had led to delays or cancellations of hundreds of solar projects across the United States. Twelve Democrats joined 209 Republicans to support the override measure. Eight Republicans and 194 Democrats opposed it. Some U.S. manufacturers contend that China has essentially moved operations to four Southeast Asian countries — Thai

Texas border city struggles with large arrival of migrants

Shelters in a Texas city are struggling to find space for migrants who authorities say have abruptly begun crossing by the thousands from Mexico BROWNSVILLE, Texas -- Shelters in a Texas city struggled to find space Saturday for migrants who authorities say have abruptly begun crossing by the thousands from Mexico, testing a stretch of the U.S. border that is typically equipped to handle large groups of people fleeing poverty and violence. The pace of arrivals in Brownsville appeared to catch the city on the southernmost tip of Texas off guard, stretching social services and putting an overnight shelter in an uncommon position of turning people away. Officials say more than 15,000 migrants, mostly from Venezuela, have illegally crossed the river near Brownsville since last week. That is a sharp rise from the 1,700 migrant s that Border Patrol agents encountered in the first two weeks of April, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials. “It’s a quite concerning because t

Bill allows DeSantis to run for president while governor

Republican Ron DeSantis would not have to resign as Florida governor in order to run for president if he chooses under a bill given final approval in by the GOP-dominated state Legislature Republican Ron DeSantis would not have to resign as Florida governor in order to run for president if he chooses under a bill given final approval Friday in by the GOP-dominated state Legislature. The measure, attached to a much broader elections bill, would carve out an exemption to Florida law requiring anyone seeking office to resign from one they already hold after qualifying as a candidate. Only an officeholder running for U.S. president or vice president would not have to resign. Supporters portrayed the bill as purely a clarification and not intended specifically for DeSantis, who has not yet announced a presidential bid but is widely expected to declare his candidacy for the Republican nomination in the coming weeks. The bill passed the state House 76-34 along party lines and now goes to De

NATO: Ukraine allies sent 1,550 combat vehicles, 230 tanks

NATO's head says the military alliance's members and its partner countries have delivered more than 98% of the combat vehicles promised to Ukraine during Russia's invasion and war KYIV, Ukraine -- NATO allies and partner countries have delivered more than 98% of the combat vehicles promised to Ukraine during Russia's invasion and war, the military alliance’s chief said Thursday, giving Kyiv a bigger punch as it contemplates launching a counteroffensive. Along with more than 1,550 armored vehicles, 230 tanks and other equipment, Ukraine's allies have sent “vast amounts of ammunition” and also trained and equipped more than nine new Ukrainian brigades, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said. More than 30,000 troops are estimated to make up the new brigades. Some NATO partner countries, such as Sweden and Australia, have also provided armored vehicles . "This will put Ukraine in a strong position to continue to retake occupied territory,” Stoltenberg told re

We Build The Wall founder sentenced to 4 years in prison

The co-founder of a fundraising group linked to Steve Bannon that promised to help Donald Trump construct a wall along the southern U.S. border has been sentenced to four years and three months in prison NEW YORK -- The co-founder of a fundraising group linked to Steve Bannon that promised to help Donald Trump construct a wall along the southern U.S. border was sentenced to four years and three months in prison on Wednesday for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from donors. Brian Kolfage, a decorated Air Force veteran who lost both of his legs and an arm in the Iraq War, previously pleaded guilty for his role in siphoning donations from the We Build the Wall campaign. A co-defendant, financier Andrew Badolato, was also sentence d to three years for aiding the effort. He had also pleaded guilty. A third man involved in siphoning funds from the wall project, Colorado Business man Tim Shea, won't be sentence d until June. Kolfage and Badolato were also ordered to pay $25 mill

Amid a rise in swatting calls, the fabrication and fear of mass shootings collide

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As communities struggle with the reality of mass shootings, they now also face an additional problem stemming from swatting, the fabrication of the same incidents. As many communities across the United States struggle with mass shootings, malicious actors are increasingly targeting schools with false reports of shootings, using the fear of gun violence and 911 calls to afflict terror about another potentially deadly incident, experts told ABC News. Callers have caused confusion and delays, prompted law enforcement to expend vital resources and exposed the vulnerabilities of schools to potential future shootings. Commonly called "swatting" incidents, these instances employ technology to disguise phone calls that signal a threat, often prompting a local Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team to a specific address, according to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. A Growing Threat "Somebody just shot seven students in the bathroom," a caller told the

Romelu Lukaku sends message to Chelsea over Inter future

Romelu Lukaku has hinted that he is intent on staying at Inter beyond the expiration of his current loan move to the club. The Belgian striker is currently on loan at I Nerazzurri for the 2022/23 season from Chelsea, having struggled for form during his return to Stamford Bridge for a reported £97.5m. Lukaku scored just eight Premier League goals for the Blues before being shipped out on loan back to Inter - the club Chelsea signed him from in 2021. The hope was that Lukaku could re-find the form he showed at Inter during his previous two-year spell at San Siro, when he scored 64 goals to lead the club to a Serie A title. That hasn't proven to be the case however, as the forward has continued to struggle in front of goal - scoring just five Serie A goals this season thus far. Two of said five came in a much-improved performance at the weekend during Inter's clash with Empoli, a Game in which the Belgian looked much more like the Lukaku of old. Read the latest Champions League

Ukrainian troop positions spark counteroffensive speculation

A Washington-based think tank says that Ukrainian forces have successfully crossed the wide Dnieper river in the country's south to establish and maintain positions on its east bank KYIV, Ukraine -- Ukrainian Military forces have successfully established positions on the eastern side of the Dnieper River, according to a new analysis, giving rise to speculation Sunday that the advances could be an early sign of Kyiv's long-awaited spring counteroffensive . The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, reported late Saturday that geolocated footage from pro-Kremlin military bloggers indicated that Ukrainian troops had established a foothold near the town of Oleshky, along with “stable supply lines” to their positions. Analysts widely believe that if Ukraine goes ahead with a spring counteroffensive, a major goal would be to break through the land corridor between Russia and the annexed Crimean Peninsula, which would necessitate crossing the Dnieper River i

Erik ten Hag defends 'example' Harry Maguire after calamitous Sevilla defeat

Erik ten Hag says Manchester United captain Harry Maguire is an example for the rest of the squad to follow. Injuries to starting defensive pair Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane have helped the England international get some more Game time at club level. However, he was poor alongside the rest of the team in United's Europa League exit to Sevilla on Thursday and won't be involved in the FA Cup semi-final against Brighton on Sunday due to suspension. "He has an important role in the fact he is captain. He leads, he communicates with the manager. He motivates the team. He is the example on the training pitch and always [has] good sessions," Ten Hag said. When asked if some of his squad members were playing for their futures, Ten Hag responded: "Yeah but I think we are always playing for our futures, as professional players. "Every Game is a test, every season is a test and you have to earn the right to wear the shirt. But also for me as a manager. In tha