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Metrolinx in the cross hairs of Toronto mayoral candidates

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

Metrolinx continues to be in the line of fire following reports of the delays that continue to plague the Eglinton Crosstown LRT. The news has some Toronto mayoral candidates calling on the province to take responsibility for the transit agency’s inaction especially as construction on the Ontario Line is set to start. “The Crosstown is a disaster that has brought Toronto to its knees and if we see a repeat of that on the Ontario line, it will be a death blow to the city. There’s no accountability or transparency,” said Brad Bradford, who is calling on the province to fire Metrolinx CEO Phil Verster. “I think we have all suffered long enough with the endless excuses on the Eglinton Crosstown.”On Thursday provincial and Metrolinx officials said the latest delays for the 19-kilometre LRT line are due to 260 quality control issues caused by the construction consortium building the line.The latest visible hiccup came on Thursday when a CityNews crew vi...

Montana latest to ban gender-affirming care for trans minors

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana became the latest state to ban or restrict gender-affirming medical care for transgender kids Friday when its Republican governor signed legislation that exiled transgender lawmaker Zooey Zephyr told fellow lawmakers would leave “blood” on their hands.Montana is one of at least 15 states with laws to ban such care despite protests from the families of transgender youth that the care is essential.Debate over Montana’s bill drew national attention after Republicans punished Zephyr for her remarks, saying her words were personally offensive. House Speaker Matt Regier refused to let Zephyr speak on the House floor until she apologized. She has not.Zephyr decried the bill’s signing, saying “it is unconscionable to deprive Montanans of the care that we need.”“I know that this is an unconstitutional bill. It is as cruel as it is unconstitutional. And it will go down in the courts,” Zephyr said. To trans youth she added: “There’s an understandable in...

California approves rule phasing out big diesel trucks

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — New big rigs and buses that run on diesel would not be sold in California starting in 2036, according to new rules approved by state regulators Friday to wean the state off fossil fuels and combat climate change.The rule would tackle pollution from heavy trucks used to transport goods through ports and require companies to disclose their use of these so-called drayage trucks by 2024. The rule cannot be implemented without approval by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. But it’s related to standards the Biden administration already approved last month to phase out diesel-powered box trucks, semitrailers and large passenger pick-ups. If the EPA approves California’s rule, other states could later adopt the same standards.Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom touted Friday’s move as a chance to show “the world what real climate action looks like.”“We’re one step closer to achieving healthier neighborhoods and cleaner air for all Californians,” h...

Man United sale: Sheikh Jassim, Jim Ratcliffe make 3rd bids

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — After a third round of bidding for Manchester United, Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe are still hoping to take control of the storied soccer team.Persons with knowledge of the bids said the latest offers were submitted on Friday. The persons spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not permitted to comment publicly.Sheikh Jassim and Ratcliffe confirmed their intention to buy United this year after current owners, the Glazer family, announced in November their willingness to listen to offers for the English Premier League club.While the Glazers could yet decide to remain in control, merchant bank Raine Group has fielded bids from potential buyers and investors as it explores strategic alternatives. The size of the bids are not known, but it is estimated the price could be around $6 billion if a full sale goes through.Sheikh Jassim’s proposal includes a “significant amount of additional capi...

Turkey’s Erdogan cancels 3rd day of election appearances

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan canceled his election appearances for a third day Friday after falling ill with what officials described as an intestinal infection.Erdogan, who has governed Turkey for two decades as prime minister and then president, is seeking a third presidential term in Turkey’s May 14 elections. He had been due to appear at a bridge opening and a political rally in the southern city of Adana, but his schedule changed to show he would attend the opening ceremony via video link.Erdogan spoke by phone Friday with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio on several matters, including the Ukraine-Russia grain and fertilizer deal they helped arrange, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. He said they discussed “how to guarantee the improvement, expansion and extension” of the deal, which expires May 18. Erdogan became ill during a TV interview on Tuesday evening with what Health Minister Fahrettin Koca later said was a “gastrointestinal infection.”...

N. Carolina justices hand GOP big wins with election rulings

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — In massive victories for Republicans, the newly GOP-controlled North Carolina Supreme Court on Friday threw out a previous ruling against gerrymandered voting maps and upheld a photo voter identification law that colleagues had struck down as racially biased. The partisan gerrymandering ruling should make it significantly easier for the Republican-dominated legislature to help the GOP gain seats in the narrowly divided U.S. House when state lawmakers redraw congressional boundaries for the 2024 elections. Under the current map, Democrats won seven of the state’s 14 congressional seats last November. The court, which became a Republican majority this year following the election of two GOP justices, ruled after taking the unusual step of revisiting redistricting and voter ID opinions made in December by the court’s previous iteration, when Democrats held a 4-3 seat advantage. The court held rehearings in March. Friday’s 5-2 rulings also mean that state lawma...

Old Montreal fire: Inspectors cited building owner multiple times before deadly blaze

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

MONTREAL — Inspectors from the Montreal fire department reported multiple fire code violations during visits to an Old Montreal heritage building in the years leading up to a fire last March that killed seven people.Documents released by the City of Montreal under access to information laws show that inspectors cited the building’s owner, Émile-Haim Benamor, for violations on several occasions between 2009 and 2020.In early 2019, the fire department ordered Benamor to install an alarm system that conformed with the 1995 building code. He was also ordered to guarantee that the alarm reached a particular volume level in specific units.A November 2020 follow-up inspection found that those issues weren’t resolved. It’s unclear, however, whether the violations were addressed after that date.Seven people died in the March 16 fire, including two people who were staying in a unit that had no windows. One survivor of the fire said she never heard a fire alarm go off. A lawy...

Jury selection continues in Pittsburgh synagogue killings

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ongoing jury selection in the case of the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue massacre is reviving the community’s memories of that traumatic day but also of the solidarity that followed, said the director of a program helping survivors and others affected by the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history.Maggie Feinstein, director of the 10.27 Healing Partnership, said the city “is reminded of what the intensity of this event was and also reminded of the intensity of healing together.”Many people have been wearing blue ribbons — an emblem of solidarity with victims — or displaying them on the doors of their homes and businesses. “People are looking for some way to say, ‘I stand with you, I stand against hate,'” she said. The first week of jury selection in the case drew to a close late Friday, with more days of questioning slated for next week.Of 81 prospective jurors interviewed, 27 of them remained eligible by the end of the week to serve on the jury for the...

Utah judge to rule next week on state abortion clinic ban

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The Planned Parenthood Association of Utah argued in court on Friday that a ban on abortion clinics would “functionally eliminate” abortion access if implemented next week as scheduled.After hearing arguments from attorneys representing Utah and abortion providers, state court judge Andrew Stone said he planned to rule next week on Planned Parenthood’s motion requesting the law be delayed.“It would not be fair at this point to shoot from the hip,” Stone said, explaining that he needed several days to review each side’s briefs.Planned Parenthood argues that the clinic ban is a backdoor strategy from Utah to further restrict abortion while legal challenges to a 2020 trigger law make their way through the court system. Utah rebuffed those arguments and said abortion clinics could reapply to be licensed as hospitals under the new framework. The state’s attorneys said the court had little grounds to overrule a law passed and signed by elected officials b...

Mayor-elect Johnson listens to community members concerns on safety

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:10:33 GMT

CHICAGO -- Introducing himself to constituents as he prepares for his new role, Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson crisscrossed the city.From coffee on the South Side to empanadas on the North Side, Johnson also met with some of Chicago's youngest residents.Mayor-elect Johnson took time Friday to answer questions students had for him at Hyde Park High School. Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson hires Chief of Staff Johnson addressing the criticism of the chaos groups of teens caused in the Loop earlier this month. Two teens shot, more than a dozen arrests, beatings caught on video – and scenes like this one of people dancing on vehicles.Mayor-elect Johnson also told the Hyde Park students that it’s the job of the city to protect its youth.The Mayor-elect also announced his transition team Wednesday.Former Chicago Police Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan, Professor at UIC’s School of Social Work Dr. Kathryn Bocanegra, former head of CPD’s office of constitutional policing Robert Boik, and Stat...