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Ukraine is ‘freaking out’ as McCarthy chaos threatens US aid 

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

KYIV – After a year and a half of war, Ukraine’s leaders now have a new reason to worry: Mounting political chaos in America is threatening to derail their supply of money and weapons. Days after lawmakers shelved a vital U.S. plan to send billions of dollars in aid to Kyiv, U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted by his own Republican Party colleagues. Aid to Ukraine was named as one of the reasons. In Kyiv, officials are at a loss as to what might happen next. Their staunchest military ally suddenly looks unreliable, despite assurances from President Biden and others the U.S. will remain steadfast until Ukraine’s invaders are defeated. “We are freaking out. For us it is a disaster,” said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, a senior Ukrainian MP who chairs the committee on the country’s integration with the European Union. “We are interested in getting things sorted out so American democracy can function, and so we can restore the bipartisan consensus on suppo...

How the far right turned heat pumps into electoral rocket fuel

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

Alternative for Germany has woven climate change policy alongside migration and Euroskepticism into its grand narrative of decay, elitism and rage.By KARL MATHIESENin Wiesbaden, GermanyIllustration by Changyu Zou for POLITICOWhen they write the book on the downfall of liberal democracy, will it begin with the heat pumps?Immediately outside the main train station in the German city of Wiesbaden, an election poster has been tied high up on a lamppost, out of reach of those who would tear it down in the belief that it’s a harbinger of fascism once again spreading across the country. The subject? Not scary depictions of migrants. Nor the overreach of the European Union. But home heating systems.The heat pump, a banal piece of green home technology, was at the center of Germany’s major political controversy of the summer — one that has helped propel the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) to the brink of a series of electoral breakthroughs, prompting many in a country scarred b...

I-495 northbound reopens after serious crash closes highway in Chelmsford

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

Traffic was halted for miles on Interstate 495 in Chelmsford Wednesday morning as crews responded to a serious crash that left a victim needing a medical helicopter.Firefighters and ambulance crews could be seen surveying the scene on I-495 northbound, near the Westford Street overpass by Exit 87 where at least one person was loaded onto a helicopter around 10 a.m.According to 7NEWS sources, the crash appeared to involve a vehicle that went off I-495 south, through the median strip, and struck a vehicle head-on in the northbound side. At least three people were hospitalized, including the individual who was airlifted. No details on their condition have been released. SKY7-HD spotted at least two damaged vehicles at the scene, including a car with its roof torn off. Also visible were tire marks on the median grass leading up to an SUV with heavy damage to its front.Traffic was completely halted for miles on I-495 north following the crash, with MassDOT stating that the highway was cl...

Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto empire was ‘built on lies,’ US prosecutor says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

New York (CNN) — In their opening statements to a newly sworn-in jury in Manhattan federal court, lawyers laid out previews of their cases, offering two divergent narratives for the collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto empire.Assistant US Attorney Thane Rehn painted a picture of a villainous, greedy businessman whose boundless appetite for wealth and power led him to steal billions of dollars in customer funds.“He had wealth, he had power, he had influence,” Rehn said. “But all of that — all of it — was built on lies.”Rehn reiterated the government’s accusations that Bankman-Fried, known as SBF, used his crypto exchange, FTX, as his own personal piggy bank, using the money he took from customers to enrich himself and his family, buy luxury beachfront property in the Bahamas and funnel millions into US political campaigns.The US government has charged Bankman-Fried with multiple counts of fraud and conspiracy, following the implosion of his crypto-trading platform, FTX, l...

Police investigating shooting in Holyoke that involved ‘multiple victims’

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

Police in Holyoke are investigating a shooting near the city’s downtown area that included “multiple victims,” according to authorities.The Holyoke Police Department said the intersection of Maple and Sargeant streets was closed off to traffic as officers continued to sweep through the area.In a Facebook post, the department said it initially responded to the block after receiving “multiple calls for help” and alerts from the city’s ShotSpotter system.“We can confirm that there are multiple victims and this is an active and ongoing investigation,” Holyoke PD said. “Please avoid this area, we will provide another update this afternoon.”Details on the condition of the victims or number of people injured have not yet been released.This is a developing story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest updates.

Biden cancels another $9 billion in student loan debt days after payments restart

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

Washington (CNN) — The Biden administration has approved debt relief for an additional 125,000 student loan borrowers, totaling $9 billion in forgiveness, the White House said Wednesday.The announcement comes just days after federal student loan payments restarted after a three-plus year pause.Though the Supreme Court struck down President Joe Biden’s hallmark student loan forgiveness program, which promised up to $20,000 in debt relief for low- and middle-income borrowers, the administration has continued to find other ways to provide debt relief.The cancellations announced Wednesday come through three different existing debt relief programs that have been plagued with problems in the past. The White House is conducting what it calls “fixes” to a “broken student loan system.”An additional 53,000 borrowers will receive debt cancellation under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which wipes away remaining student loan debt after qualifying public sector w...

Dianne Feinstein lying in state at San Francisco City Hall

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

Washington (CNN) — Californians are paying their respects to the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Wednesday, as the political titan lies in state at San Francisco City Hall.Feinstein, who died last week at 90, was born in San Francisco and was the first female mayor of the city, a position she held for 10 years. She later served in the US Senate for more than 30 years.The public can pay their respects from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT. A funeral service will be held at city hall on Thursday, with the public invited to attend. Previously, the service was planned to be closed to the public due to limited space.Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is expected to speak at Feinstein’s memorial service, and the Senate floor will close on Thursday so members can attend the service.A live stream link for those unable to attend will be provided. Following the service, the longtime senator will be buried at a private, family-only ceremony.A plane from the president’s military fleet carryin...

Ron DeSantis blasts Massachusetts bumping Army-Navy game fans for migrants

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis blasted an apparent streak of hotel cancellations in Massachusetts to host migrant and homeless families instead of fans for Dec. 9 Army-Navy game at Gillette Stadium.DeSantis, in a social post Wednesday, blasted the situation as a “a farce,” adding he will end putting illegal aliens “over Americans.”The ire from the Republican came as Gov. Maura Healey said she was directing her secretary of veterans services to reach out to “anyone affected” by the cancellations for the game.At an unrelated press conference, Healey said she was “distressed” to learn that any veteran heading to the Army-Navy game had been moved from a hotel.“I understand that those were decisions made by area hotels,” she told reporters. “Secretary of Veterans Services John Santiago (is going) to reach out to anyone affected. I do understand that those hotels are working with people who&...

The highest-grossing Halloween-season horror hits … don’t scare their way up the all-time list

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

Michael Ordona | (TNS) Los Angeles TimesWith several (supposedly) scary movies atop the box-office charts right now or about to be released, it seems like that time of year, when all the big horror hits come out, right? Looking at the top-grossers of the genre … not so much.As September turned to October, “Saw X” slashed its way to an $18 million opening (about average for the franchise), and “The Nun II” has already risen into the Top 25 all-time highest horror grossers, with more than $230 million worldwide. This month sees the usual gushing of blood-spilling titles, with at least six releases, including “Exorcist: Believer” and “Five Nights at Freddy’s” — the latter tracking, according to some estimates, for a very nice $33-million to $44-million bow. But while the month is closely associated with horror movies (it contains Halloween, after all), it actually hasn’t seen that many all-time hits come out.On the Numbers’ list of top-grossing horror films, one must go all the w...

Black travel summit to launch National Black Travel Day

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 21:03:29 GMT

By Brian Major | TravelPulse (TNS)The Miami-based Black Travel Summit is launching a National Black Travel Day celebration on Nov. 11 as “a day for Black travelers and travel professionals to celebrate” diversity and culture in travel, said Anita Francois, the organization’s CEO and founder.“We’re thrilled about this new call-to-action to recognize the importance of the global Black diaspora and culture in travel,” Francois said.Francois selected Nov. 11 for National Black Travel Day to honor the birth date of Jamaican-American pilot Barrington Irving Jr., who in 2007 became the first Black person to fly around the world solo.She described National Black Travel Day as “an homage to the Black travel movement [and] a reminder for allies, supporters, [and] the community that diversity in travel isn’t a trend that ends, it’s necessary for a brighter future for all who travel.”National Black Travel Day will kick off with a private launch event at the Red Rooster Overtown restaurant in Mi...