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Barabak: Newsom is right in pledging a caretaker for U.S. Senate seat

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

Two and a half years ago, Gavin Newsom put his foot in his mouth.On Sunday, California’s governor extricated it, saying anyone chosen to fill a vacant U.S. Senate seat would be a placeholder until voters have their say in 2024.“Interim appointment,” Newsom said on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” also reiterating his plan to appoint a Black woman, should an opening occur. “I don’t want to get involved in the primary.”There is, of course, no vacancy at the moment. But speculation swirls apace, given the fragile mental and physical state of California’s 90-year-old senator, Dianne Feinstein.That’s where race, politics and shifting circumstance converge.First, though, let us step back in time.In March 2021, Newsom was facing the gathering threat of a recall election. The effort would fail, resoundingly, but that result was many months away.The governor needed all the political help he could muster and there was a danger of losing support among Black voters, a key Democratic constituency. Some w...

Robber gets life sentence for killing California Jack in the Box employee

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

A judge on Tuesday sentenced a San Gabriel man to life in prison without parole for the 2016 fatal shooting of an El Monte Jack in the Box employee during a botched robbery.On June 30, a jury found Louie Herrera guilty of the murder of 25-year-old Juan Vidal of El Monte with the special circumstance allegation that the killing was committed during an attempted robbery. They also found true the special allegation that he personally used a handgun in the crime.Jurors also convicted the 27-year-old Herrera of four robberies and two attempted robberies in 2015. The businesses he hit were Takashima at 220 W. Valley Blvd #108 in San Gabriel, Subway at 1020 E. Valley Blvd in Alhambra and the CVS at 1485 E. Valley Blvd. in Alhambra. He robbed customers and employees, too.In addition to the life sentence, Herrera received 25 years to life for using a gun to commit the murder.He was also sentenced to 24 years for the robberies, attempted robberies and the gun use allegation related to those c...

Fans react to *NSYNC reunion at MTV VMAS

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

The MTV VMAs continue to be one of the biggest nights in music and pop culture. This year was the award show’s 40th anniversary and was hosted by Nicki Minaj and featured performances by Olivia Rodrigo, Demi Lovato and Fall Out Boy.Additionally, there was a Hip Hop 50th Anniversary Medley that included DMC, Doug E. Fresh, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Lil Wayne, LL Cool J and Minaj.One of the biggest moments of the night however was *NSYNC reuniting on stage for the first time in 10 years. The group was last on TV together at the 2013 VMAs where they performed a medley of their songs moments before Justin Timberlake was awarded the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. Before that the group had been together to receive their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and for a brief performance at Coachella alongside Ariana Grande, but without Timberlake.Timberlake took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share a short video of himself and his bandmates JC Chasez, Chris Kirkpatric...

Opinion: For the sake of students, end the ‘college marketplace’ myth

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

Virtually every policy that governs our higher education system is based on a dangerous myth — that students do, and should, meticulously shop around for colleges nationwide and pick the best fit.That’s the classic image: The prospective college student visits a slew of colleges and completes an array of applications. Then, they debate their options. Finally, parents pack up the car and drive across the country to drop their child off at college.The entire college selection apparatus — including college rankings, recruitment, marketing and entrance exams — fuels this “marketplace” perception. And following the U.S. Supreme Court’s curtailment of race-conscious admissions, most policy discussions have focused on ensuring students of color can still access and choose between highly selective colleges.Here’s the reality: Only 1 in 5 undergraduate students travel outside their home state for college, according to research I conducted with the Institute for College Access & Success, ...

GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert escorted out of “Beetlejuice” musical in Denver after “causing a disturbance”

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert was escorted out of a Sunday night performance of the “Beetlejuice” musical in downtown Denver, accused by venue officials of vaping, singing, recording and “causing a disturbance” during the performance.In an incident report shared with The Denver Post on Tuesday afternoon, officials with Denver Arts & Venues wrote that two patrons were asked to leave the city-owned Buell Theatre during the performance of the touring Broadway show. They previously were issued a warning during the intermission regarding behavior that prompted three complaints from other theatergoers, the report says.The report does not name Boebert as one of the patrons or identify the other person. But her campaign office — while disputing the behavior alleged — confirmed that she was escorted from the Buell on Sunday night during the “Beetlejuice” show.The incident report states that after receiving the intermission warning, about five minutes into the second act security officials rec...

Montgomery Co. police makes case for drone first responders to Wheaton residents

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

The police department in Montgomery County, Maryland, hopes it will be able to use drones to respond to some 911 calls starting this fall.It is called the “Drone as First Responder” program and, ahead of asking the county’s council to green light the program, the police department is seeking the support of the communities in which the drones will be tested.“We need to start thinking [about] how can we use technology to try to help achieve our mission of high-quality service to you all here in the room,” said Capt. Jason Cokinos, director of special operations at the Montgomery County Police Department.Speaking to a room of residents at the Wheaton Community Center on Tuesday night, Cokinos said a “staffing crisis” for the department has them looking to better response times and help the department decide whether or not patrol officers need to respond to a scene.The department would need $350,000 to start the pilot program which would likely place drones in Wheaton and Si...

International crews in Moroccan to recover bodies days after deadly 6.8 quake earthquake struck

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

IMI N’TALA, Morocco (AP) — The stench of death wafted through the village of Imi N’Tala high up in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains four days after a deadly earthquake struck, slicing off a chunk of mountain, killing residents and razing the hamlet to the ground.Bulldozers, rescue crews and Moroccan first responders work around the clock trying to dig through the wreckage to unearth the eight to ten corpses still underneath.“The mountain was split in half and started falling. Houses were fully destroyed,” Ait Ougadir Al Houcine said as rescuers worked on recovering bodies, including his sister’s. “Some people lost all their cattle. We have nothing but the clothes we’re wearing. Everything is gone.”The scene in Imi N’Tala, which mainly houses herders and famers and where 96 residents perished in Friday’s earthquake, mirrors that of dozens of places situated along the treacherous mountain roads south of Marrakech: Men in donated djellabas neatly arrange ru...

China upgrades relationship with Venezuela to ‘all weather’ partnership

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — China announced Wednesday it was upgrading its diplomatic ties with Venezuela to an “all weather” partnership, a label reserved for a select few of its diplomatic partners.Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is on a state visit in Beijing, his fifth as president, according to state broadcaster CCTV. He met with Chinese President Xi Jinping. One of the best known of China’s select all-weather strategic partnerships is with Pakistan, where it has invested $25.4 billion over the past decade. About 7 million people have left Venezuela during a complex political and humanitarian crisis that has been ongoing for the past decade. The country is reliant on oil as its main export but has faced U.S. sanctions. Last year, the Biden administration eased part of its sanctions on the country.Maduro has cultivated China throughout his years in power. His country has received support from China in loans, cash and investment worth tens of billions of dollars.Source

South Korean and Polish leaders visit airbase in eastern Poland and discuss defense and energy ties

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

MINSK MAZOWIECKI, Poland (AP) — South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo was in Poland on Wednesday for talks on regional security amid war in neighboring Ukraine, and also to discuss military and nuclear energy cooperation, as the two countries continue to strengthen their ties.Han and his Polish counterpart, Mateusz Morawiecki, visited an airbase in Minsk Mazowiecki in eastern Poland where they watched Korean FA-50 fighter jets that Poland recently bought along with other military equipment. They discussed further cooperation over military weapons and equipment, as Poland also wants to help produce South Korean weapons. South Korea is also to take part in Poland’s development of nuclear power.Poland has given much military equipment to neighboring Ukraine to support its fight against Russia and is making intensive weapons purchases to upgrade its own deterrence and defense capabilities.Warsaw is buying billions of dollars worth of armaments, mainly from the U.S. and South Ko...

Income too high for Medicaid? ‘Spend down’ to qualify

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:01:10 GMT

More than 1.4 million people have lost Medicaid coverage in 2023 because they no longer meet the eligibility requirements, according to August tracking data from KFF, a health policy nonprofit.After a pause on disenrollments during the COVID-19 public health emergency, beneficiaries now must prove that they still meet the income limits for Medicaid. People whose income has gone up risk losing their coverage.What some beneficiaries might not realize is that even if their income seems too high for Medicaid, they might be able to spend down some income to qualify. For certain beneficiaries, spending on medical bills, including Medicare premiums, can be subtracted from their income when applying for Medicaid.WHAT IS A MEDICAID SPEND-DOWN?A spend-down is like a health insurance deductible, according to Catrice Simpson, a supervisory social service representative for the Washington, D.C., Department of Health Care Finance. “It is the amount you must show proof of meeting or exceeding befo...