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US commitment to Ukraine a central question as Biden meets with EU heads during congressional chaos

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Saddled with a dysfunctional Congress, President Joe Biden has the task of assuring European Union leaders on Friday that the United States can nonetheless deliver on promises to send tens of billions of dollars’ worth of aid to wartime Ukraine and Israel.The Oval Office sit-down comes at a moment when domestic U.S. political chaos could further destabilize an increasingly chaotic world. Many of Biden’s shared priorities with the EU depend on getting a budget through Congress — a tough task given that the House lacks an elected speaker and differences with some Republican lawmakers over aid for Ukraine could force a federal government shutdown in November.Along with addressing Ukraine’s efforts to repel Russia and the fallout from Hamas’ attack on Israel, the U.S. and EU leaders are also figuring out how to manage climate change, economic competition with China and trade and tax issues. One day ahead of his meeting with Biden, European Counc...

ANÁLISIS | La conclusión número uno del discurso de Biden

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

(CNN) — La tarea del presidente Joe Biden, mientras miraba a Estados Unidos a los ojos desde la Oficina Oval, era explicar por qué una nación cansada de sus propios atolladeros extranjeros y distanciamientos políticos debería enviar US$ 100.000 millones para ayudar a otras personas a librar sus guerras.Su respuesta fue que Israel y Ucrania estaban librando luchas existenciales y que sus guerras no eran sólo las suyas, sino que eran fundamentales para la seguridad de cada estadounidense que presenciaba su discurso en horario estelar este jueves.Pero la conclusión más profunda de lo que fue apenas su segundo discurso en la Oficina Oval fue la siguiente: si bien Biden programó su aparición para discutir dos naciones que luchan por su supervivencia contra ataques externos, su tema real fue Estados Unidos mismo, y percibió amenazas a sus valores fundamentales en un era política volátil.Imploró a su país que honrara el papel global que ha cimentado un orden mundial estable desde la ...

Bayern Munich decides not to sanction Noussair Mazraoui for pro-Palestinian social media posts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

MUNICH (AP) — Bayern Munich has decided not to sanction Noussair Mazraoui after the Morocco right back expressed support for Palestinians on social media.The German club said Friday that it had a “detailed and clarifying conversation with Noussair Mazraoui this week” after the 25-year-old player reportedly shared several posts on Instagram in support of Palestinians and against terrorism, hate and violence.“Mazraoui has credibly assured us that as a peace-loving person he resolutely rejects terror and war and he never meant to cause any irritation with his posts,” Bayern chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen said. “FC Bayern condemns Hamas’ attack on Israel.”Bayern quoted Mazraoui as saying, “I condemn all terrorism and terrorist organizations.”The club said it “stands by Germany’s Jewish community and by Israel’s side; nothing justifies the murder of children and families.”Bayern’s decision not to suspend Mazraoui stands in contrast to league rival Mainz, which suspended Dutch forw...

IOC hits back at Putin claim of “ethnic discrimination” against Russia’s potential Olympic athletes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — The International Olympic Committee dismissed on Friday claims by Russian President Vladimir Putin of “ethnic discrimination” against athletes who are excluded from international sport.The IOC has advised sports bodies this year to vet Russian athletes for returning to compete as neutral individuals without a national identity ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics while continuing to exclude teams.Neutral status can be approved for athletes who have not actively supported the war and are not contracted to military or state security agencies, though there have been inconsistencies in how dozens of different sports have applied rules.“We firmly reject the accusations being made that these measures are an ‘ethnic discrimination,’” the IOC said in a statement one day after Putin’s speech.“They are a reaction to the breach of the Olympic Charter by the Russian and Belarusian governments,” the Olympic body said, referring to the military invasion of Ukraine s...

Regions Financial: Q3 Earnings Snapshot

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Regions Financial Corp. (RF) on Friday reported third-quarter net income of $490 million.The bank, based in Birmingham, Alabama, said it had earnings of 49 cents per share.The results missed Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 59 cents per share.The holding company for Regions Bank posted revenue of $2.33 billion in the period. Its revenue net of interest expense was $1.86 billion, which also missed Street forecasts. Eight analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $1.89 billion._____This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on RF at https://www.zacks.com/ap/RFSource

Talented young Oklahoma City Thunder look to turn the corner this season

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER Last season: 40-42, reached play-in tournament.Coach: Mark Daigneault (4th season, 86-150).What to expect: With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the way, the young Thunder should reach the playoffs. Oklahoma City should be among the highest-scoring and most exciting teams in the league. Gilgeous-Alexander was a first-team All-NBA selection last season after finishing fourth in the league with 31.4 points per game. He dominated at the World Cup, leading Canada to a win over the United States in the bronze medal game.Oklahoma City also will have Chet Holmgren, the No. 2 pick in the 2022 draft who missed last season with a foot injury. In his first two preseason games, the 7-foot-1 forward/center averaged 18.5 points in 18.8 minutes of action. He has been matchup nightmare on offense who fills a key void by adding an elite rim protector on defense.Josh Giddey was named to the All-Rookie second team two years ago, then averaged 16.6 poin...

Denver weather: Record heat possible Friday

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — With plenty of sunshine along the Front Range Friday, temperatures could reach a record high. Friday will be in the lower to middle 80s in the Denver weather forecast.Weather today: Lots of sunshineAbundant sunshine is expected across the entire state Friday as temperatures could be almost 20 degrees above average. FBI warns about ‘phantom hacker’ bank scam Highs in Denver will be near the record high of 83 degrees with light afternoon winds.Pinpoint Weather: Daily forecast on Oct. 20 Weather tonight: Staying mildThe heat lingers overnight Friday. Temperatures will remain above average in the metro area with lows in the middle 40s. Skies stay clear Friday night with a light southwest wind.Pinpoint Weather: Overnight forecast on Oct. 20 Looking ahead: Comfy weekend, then a cooldownThe weekend will still be warm and above average with highs in the upper 70s. Both Saturday and Sunday will have mainly sunny skies with a few extra clouds later on Saturday. These 2 Co...

Marlon Wayans says he is being unfairly prosecuted after being racially targeted by DIA gate agent

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

DENVER (AP) — Actor and comedian Marlon Wayans says he is being unfairly prosecuted for disturbing the peace over a dispute with an airline employee who he alleges targeted him because of his race. Attorneys for Wayans, who is Black, made the allegations in a court filing Thursday that asked for dismissal of the case stemming from a luggage dispute at Denver's airport. Marlon Wayans blasts United Airlines after issue with bag gets him barred from flight: ‘This was harassment’ Wayans was cited for disturbing the peace, a municipal violation, in June, police said. According to the court filing, a United Airlines gate agent told him he could not get on a flight to Kansas City with three bags. The gate agent apparently tried to physically block Wayans from getting on the flight after he consolidated his luggage into two bags to conform with airline policy, the filing said. He boarded anyway and was later asked to get off the plane before it departed.While Wayans worked to rearrange hi...

Florida ranks 3rd in profanity usage according to BonusFinder.com survey

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

Florida has once again made headlines, and this time, it’s for its colorful language. According to a recent survey conducted by BonusFinder.com, the Sunshine State has secured the unenviable position of being the third state with the highest use of profanity in the United States.Leading the pack in profanity is none other than the Lone Star State itself, Texas, boasting the biggest potty mouths of them all. Following closely behind are Ohio and Florida. The rankings were determined by the frequency of curse words found in posts on the popular social media platform Reddit.The survey unveiled a staggering statistic — in Florida, the average number of curse words per Reddit post was 6.7. This finding has left many questioning the linguistic habits of the Sunshine State’s residents.As the debate over online profanity continues, this study by BonusFinder.com provides a unique insight into the usage of explicit language across the United States.

8 billion-year-old radio signal reaches Earth

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 18:59:32 GMT

(CNN) — Astronomers have detected a mysterious blast of radio waves that have taken 8 billion years to reach Earth. The fast radio burst is one of the most distant and energetic ever observed.Fast radio bursts, or FRBs, are intense, millisecond-long bursts of radio waves with unknown origins. The first FRB was discovered in 2007, and since then, hundreds of these quick, cosmic flashes have been detected coming from distant points across the universe.The burst, named FRB 20220610A, lasted less than a millisecond, but in that fraction of a moment, it released the equivalent of our sun’s energetic emissions over the course of 30 years, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Science.Many FRBs release super bright radio waves lasting only a few milliseconds at most before disappearing, which makes fast radio bursts difficult to observe.Radio telescopes have helped astronomers trace these quick cosmic flashes, including the ASKAP array of radio telescopes, locate...