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DeSantis and Florida GOP look to upend public record laws as they attempt to shield his travel and other records ahead of likely White House bid

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

(CNN) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his GOP allies have moved to shield the Republican leader from the state’s notoriously robust public records laws as he prepares to launch a campaign for the White House.One bill advancing through the Republican-controlled state legislature would conceal information about DeSantis’ travel and who he has met with at the governor’s mansion. Another would allow state political committees — like the one where DeSantis has stashed $85 million for his future political ambitions — to report their fundraising activity less frequently.Separately, DeSantis in court cases has lately claimed “executive privilege” to block the release of records and to keep staff from testifying — a power typically reserved for presidents and which none of his predecessors had previously asserted is entrusted to the state’s governor. If realized, it would give DeSantis tremendous new discretion to keep information a...

Lake Mead remains identified as a Las Vegas man who disappeared 25 years ago

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

(CNN) — Human remains discovered at Boulder Beach on Lake Mead in Nevada during July and August 2022 have been identified as a 52-year-old man who disappeared in 1998, according to the Clark County Coroner’s office.In a news release, the coroner’s office stated medical examiners identified the remains as Las Vegas resident Claude Russell Pensinger, noting “The identification was based on DNA analysis.”The coroner’s office stated Pensinger’s skeletal remains were discovered by park visitors on three dates last summer. During the investigation, medical examiners “confirmed the three sets of remains belonged to the same person,” according to the release, which added, “The cause and manner of Mr. Pensinger’s death is undetermined.”CNN previously reported “drought across the American West has driven Lake Mead’s water levels to record lows and caused its shoreline to recede rapidly.” The receding sho...

Boris’s bodycount: BBC chief Richard Sharp is just the latest Johnson casualty

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

LONDON — Don’t go near Boris Johnson. Your reputation might depend on it. Richard Sharp, who resigned as BBC chairman Friday after a damaging report into his links to the former prime minister, is just the latest in a long line of figures who have taken a disastrous hit after personal dealings with Johnson. Responding to Sharp’s exit, one well-placed government official sighed that they didn’t know anyone who had worked with Sharp at the BBC who felt he hadn’t been a “good chairman.” “But Boris damages everyone,” they added pointedly.Here’s POLITICO’s guide to some of the other memorable casualties of dealings with Johnson.The ex-prime ministers’ clubJohnson’s unbridled ambition and capacity for trouble-making effectively ended the premierships of two of his Conservative predecessors.Johnson’s decision to back the Brexit camp during the 2016 referendum proved critical for the final result, forcing his old ...

Azerbaijani activists end Nagorno-Karabakh sit-in as Baku tightens grip on region

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

Azerbaijani activists have announced they will on Friday end their long-running sit-in on the sole road out of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, as construction of a checkpoint on the border with neighboring Armenia nears completion.According to organizers, the demonstrations on the Lachin Corridor will be “temporarily suspended” from 6 p.m. on Friday. Since December 12, civilian traffic and cargo deliveries to the isolated, Armenian-controlled territory have been stopped and only convoys of Russian peacekeepers and Red Cross aid workers have been able to travel along the highway for a total of four months, two weeks and two days. “The majority of our demands have been addressed, and by pausing our protest, we demonstrate our good faith, hoping for reciprocation and gestures of goodwill from the other side,” Adnan Huseyn, one of the organizers, told POLITICO. “If the situation reverts to ‘business as usual’, we can always resume our protest.” ...

Webster, NH man charged in connection with Weare explosions that injured passerby

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

Authorities have made an arrest in the case of two explosions reported in Weare, NH, this week, one of which injured a passerby.The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ Boston Field Division announced the arrest of 54-year-old Dale Stewart Jr., who was arrested “in connection with the two explosive devices” in the Town of Weare.https://twitter.com/ATFBoston/status/1651962116939698177Stewart, a Webster, NH, resident, was taken into custody after officials launched an investigation into a pair of explosions that occurred in Weare – one on Wednesday evening at 6:10 p.m. in the area of Dustin Tavern Road and another that happened Thursday morning at 6:50 a.m. off Sugar Hill Road.A passerby was injured in the second explosion, suffering minor injuries from shattered glass after he stopped on his way to work to check out smoke he spotted on the side of the road, according to officials. The explosion, which 7NEWS sources said was caused by a pipe...

Man arrested for operating prostitution ring in Seekonk sentenced to 3 years in prison

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

A 39-year-old man arrested after police responded to a Seekonk hotel and discovered an apparent prostitution ring in 2020 was sentenced to jail, according to officials.The Bristol County District Attorney’s Office announced that Leonard Jenkins of Lynn was sentenced to three years in state prison after he pleaded guilty to several charges stemming from his arrest.In a news release, the DA’s office detailed how Jenkins was arrested on Oct. 26, 2020, after police in Seekonk were called to the Quality Inn on Highland Avenue for a report of a woman who called saying she had been held against her will.Arriving officers found and spoke with the woman, who claimed Jenkins had thrown a remote control at her and “wouldn’t let her leave because of a ‘debt,'” according to officials.“The woman explained she has sex with men for money in order to pay off her debt to him,” the DA’s office stated. “She also said her daughter does the same thing...

Clashes renew in West Darfur as food and water shortages worsen in Sudan violence

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

(CNN) — Fighting between Sudan’s military and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) continued Friday, hours into the latest ceasefire, eyewitnesses in the country said, as officials warned that scores have been killed in “deadly ethnic clashes” in West Darfur’s capital city El Geneina since the beginning of the week.The situation across Sudan has deteriorated, with shortages of vital water and food supplies, and reports of widespread looting, with hospitals being targeted.Sudan’s Armed Forces, led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF paramilitary group, led by Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, agreed Thursday to extend an ongoing ceasefire for 72 hours, but violence continued to rattle restive Darfur, where a war between rebels and government forces backed by militias claimed nearly 300,000 lives in the early 2000s.Recent fighting concentrated in El Geneina has been between Arab militias and civilians, according to Ahmed Gou...

City sues California Theatre owners for creating public nuisance

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego City Attorney on Thursday filed a lawsuit against the owners of the California Theatre for creating a public nuisance.The building has sat vacant for decades and drew in the wrong kind of attention.The city attorney said the lawsuit is the last resort to make the building and the area around it a safe place."Patience has worn thin because it's now health and safety. We can't stand by and wait for them to get their act together. They need to do something now," said City of San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott.The City of San Diego is suing the owners of the California Theatre, Caydon Property Group which is based in Australia.The attorney argues because the owners are letting the building sit vacant with no plans for safety changes, it created a public nuisance."Its roof is close to falling through. We don't even feel it's safe enough for city personnel to walk through so we used a drone to look inside of it, and it's in terrible condition," Elliott said.Th...

Drake fans unhappy with ticket prices at upcoming Toronto shows

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

The concert many Torontonians have been waiting for is finally happening, but at what cost?After announcing his “It’s All A Blur” Tour in mid-March, rapper Drake left no confirmation dates for Toronto. On Monday, it was announced Drizzy has added two concert dates for his hometown on Oct. 5 and 7 at Scotiabank Arena.Tickets for both concert dates went on sale on April 28 , while pre-sale tickets went on sale the day before at 10 a.m. on Ticketmaster.Many angry fans made their way to social media expressing the absurd pricing for tickets. Prices for pre-sale tickets ranged from $300 to more than $1000 for nosebleeds and lower bowl tickets reaching the above the $500 mark. @krupamiistry drake did us dirty ???? #toronto #drake #scotiabankarena #itsallablurtour ♬ best i ever had – senia Videos and screenshots flooded social media platforms with fans also speaking out their frustration about the Ticketmaster website crashing, or seeing the message: “SORRY ANOTHER FAN BEAT Y...

Olivia Chow, Ana Bailão gaining support in Toronto mayoral race: poll

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:12:23 GMT

Toronto mayoral hopefuls Olivia Chow and Ana Bailão are slowly separating themselves from the pack with “solidifying support” from voters, a new poll shows.The latest survey from Mainstreet Research was conducted from April 25 to April 26 and polled 794 residents in Toronto. Those results showed that Chow, who previously served as an NDP MP, has the support of 26 per cent of decided voters.Chow announced her bid for the mayor’s chair on April 17, adding a highly recognizable name to the long list of candidates running in the by-election set for June 26.Chow is seeking to reverse her fortunes after coming a distant third in the 2014 mayoral race behind runner-up Doug Ford, now Ontario’s premier, and John Tory, who was elected to three terms. She is one of the most recognizable names in a crowded field that includes Coun. Josh Matlow and Coun. Brad Bradford, ex-police chief Mark Saunders, former deputy mayor Bailão and former provincial education minister Mitzi...