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A Conversation With Joe Manchin’s Former Right Hand, Scott Sears

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., says he’s leaving his options open when asked about a presidential run. No Labels, a centrist political organization, is looking to run a split ticket between one Republican and one Democrat. Manchin is considered the likeliest candidate and has dropped increasing hints that he is considering it. This week on Deconstructed, Daniel Boguslaw, politics reporter at The Intercept, interviews Manchin’s former political operative and right-hand man, Scott Sears, about the senator’s career and political ambitions. Sears helped Manchin secure political wins across the state before switching parties and throwing it all in for Donald Trump.Transcript coming soon. The post A Conversation With Joe Manchin’s Former Right Hand, Scott Sears appeared first on The Intercept.

DC awarded $50,000 grant to produce Latino history study

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

D.C. just got a new grant to help research and highlight the history of the Latino community in the District.“The Latino community is an increasingly large portion of our population. They’ve obviously added a tremendous amount to the district’s culture and history,” said Steve Callcott, deputy preservation officer in the D.C. Office of Planning.The D.C. Preservation League is partnering with the D.C. Office of Planning’s Historic Preservation Office to implement the $50,000 grant from the National Park Service.It will be used to develop a study called “The History of Latino Communities in Washington, D.C.”“We’re looking at Latino history from the early 1940s up until the early 1990s, and the various waves of immigrants that came to the city, starting during and after World War II up until the civil disturbances that took place in Mount Pleasant in 1991,” Callcott said.With the grant, D.C. will hire a consultant to lead the ...

Stock market today: World shares track Wall Street rally, Tokyo’s benchmark at 33-year high

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares advanced in Europe and Asia on Friday after a broad-based rally on Wall Street. U.S. futures were little changed and oil prices wobbled lower after gaining more than 3% on Thursday. Germany’s DAX added 0.2% to 16,328.40 and the CAC 40 in Paris surged 0.6% to 7,337.98. Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.2% at 7,642.77. The future for the S&P 500 gained 0.2% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged less than 0.1% higher. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index closed at a 33-year high after the Bank of Japan wrapped up a policy meeting by keeping its ultra-lax monetary stance unchanged, as expected. It is a standout among central banks, most of which have sought to rein in inflation by raising interest rates. The key Japanese rate has stayed at minus 0.1% for a decade and policymakers have indicated they are not convinced that current inflation, which finally has surpassed the BOJ’s target of about 2%, will be sustained. “With extremely high uncertai...

Community condemns recent acts of hate at Fairfax Co. Pride rally

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

A group that included Virginia Del. Marcus Simon, Fairfax County Public School teachers and students and members of the organization FCPS Pride gathered Thursday night before a school board meeting to condemn recent acts of hate in county schools.FCPS Pride organized the event, a “Pride Rally Against Hate” for all communities in county schools, on the same night the board voted to proclaim June as LGBTQIA+ Pride Month in the school system.The proclamation later passed 11-0, with Board Member Abrar Omeish abstaining.The group used Thursday’s event to speak out about two recent hate incidents on school campuses.In one incident at Falls Church High School, a student admitted stealing a Pride flag from school grounds and then burning it, according to a message shared with the school community. The incident was caught on video, and “another young person is heard using homophobic and hate-filled language toward the LGBTQ+ community,” the message said.“T...

Mercedes-Benz partners with Microsoft to introduce ChatGPT for next-level in-car voice control

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

Carmaker Mercedes-Benz has partnered with tech giant Microsoft to introduce an innovative in-car voice control experience by integrating ChatGPT The collaboration aims to enhance the driving experience by integrating a voice assistant powered by artificial intelligence (AI). Starting Friday, drivers can participate in the beta program through theit Mercedes Me app or simply by saying, “Hey Mercedes, I want to join the beta program.” Users will gain access to a range of features, from requesting directions to making dinner reservations. Mercedes-Benz said the integration of AI into vehicles marks a significant step towards leveraging technology for improved mobility and customer convenience. By harnessing the power of machine learning, Mercedes-Benz is developing new functions for its future vehicles and mobility services. These intelligent assistance systems offer drivers a unique form of individual support, made possible by AI.With this groundbreaking update, Mercedes-...

Macron hosts Saudi crown prince for Ukraine, Mideast talks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron is hosting Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for talks focused on the Middle East and the war in Ukraine on Friday.Macron will press bin Salman, also known as MBS, to use his influence on Russia during a one-to-one lunch at the Elysée Palace, according to an official at the presidential palace who was not authorized to speak publicly.MBS is spending a week in Paris, during which he is expected to participate in the Summit for a New Global Financial Pact and attend a reception in the French capital next Monday supporting Saudi Arabia’s candidacy to host the Expo 2030 world’s fair.Bin Salman’s visit and the length of the stay have drawn sharp rebuke from NGOs campaigning against human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia, and in the wake of the brutal killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 — reportedly ordered by MBS himself. Human rights organizations also criticized Macron’s role in helping normalize the Sa...

Russia strikes Kyiv amid visit by African leaders on peace mission

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

Kyiv was hit by Russian airstrikes on Friday shortly before a delegation of African leaders arrived in the Ukrainian capital on a peace mission.The African delegation is being led by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, one of Moscow’s top allies.“An explosion in the capital,” Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram Friday morning, adding that the blast was reported in one of Kyiv’s northern districts. “Missiles are still flying at Kyiv.” “Air defense is operating in the region, on the outskirts of Kyiv,” the military administration said, urging locals to remain in shelters.According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Russia launched six Kalibr cruise missiles, six Kinzhal ballistic missiles, and two drones to carry out the strikes. No buildings or facilities were damaged in the attack, Klitschko said.The delegation of several African leaders is set to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday in Kyiv, before meeting wit...

Boris Johnson lands ‘six-figure’ Daily Mail column. Good luck getting him to file on time

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

LONDON — Boris Johnson has a new journalism job — but spare a thought for his new editors.The former British prime minister — and now ex-MP — will return to his journalism roots and write a weekly column for the right-leaning Daily Mail newspaper. Three separate figures told POLITICO London Playbook that a trail for a mystery “erudite new columnist” on the Mail’s Friday front page referred to Johnson. According to the trailer, the new columnist will start Saturday — and will be “required reading in Westminster.”Johnson will earn a “very-high six-figure sum” to write the column, according to one figure.The gig will give Johnson — the subject of a damning report by a parliamentary committee this week which accused him of misleading parliament — a platform to critique current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, his bitter rival.The Mail column will be Johnson’s first regular journalism gig since he gave up his Daily Telegraph slot in 2019. Editor...

No injuries reported after fire breaks out at multifamily home in Malden 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

Authorities say everyone at a multifamily house in Malden was able to evacuate after a fire broke out overnight.The Malden Fire Department said residents of the home on Newhall Street evacuated themselves as crews were called in around 2 a.m.According to the assistant fire chief, firefighters arrived to find heavy flames in the rear of the building. The official noted that, on top of burning through the walls and attic, the fire also caused the home’s back roof to collapse.

Relatives searching for loved ones after Greek migrant boat disaster, as hundreds more feared dead

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:52 GMT

Kalamata, Greece (CNN) — Kassem Abozeed had arrived in Kalamata to try to find his wife and brother-in-law, as relatives poured into the Greek port city on Thursday, searching for their loved ones missing after a migrant boat sank off the coast, killing dozens of people.The 34-year-old refugee fled from the Syrian civil war to Hamburg, Germany, in 2016. He told reporters that his 21-year-old partner, Ezma, and her 19-year-old sibling, Abdullah, were two of the passengers caught up in one of the largest-scale migrant vessel disasters in southern Europe this year.“I tried to get my wife to come to Germany but it was very difficult to do so in a legal way. So we tried through Libya,” Abozeed said.“The last time we spoke was eight days ago and she told me she was ready to get on the boat. She paid $5,000.”He reflected on his relationship with his wife. “It was a love story.”Family members gathering at the port in southern Greece, as hopes for survivors fade and the scale of th...