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Latino empowerment council to advise Massachusetts governor

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey is planning to sign an executive order Wednesday creating a Governor’s Council on Latino Empowerment.The 40-member panel will be made up of Latino leaders from across the state and will be charged with advising Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll on strategies to expand economic opportunities for Massachusetts’ Latino communities and to improve their overall wellbeing.The panel will hold its first meeting Wednesday.Healey said the state’s Latino community helps strengthen Massachusetts.“Together, we can break down systemic barriers and expand access to opportunity by prioritizing education, job training, entrepreneurship and affordability,” the Democrat said in a written statement.Josiane Martinez — former executive director of the Office for Refugees and Immigrants, and founder and CEO of the Archipelago Strategies Group, a marketing agency — will serve as chair of the new council.“The Latinx community, one of the youngest and fastes...

Ram electric pickup truck can go 500 miles on a charge, says Stellantis

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

(CNN) — Stellantis chief executive Carlos Tavares has said in the past that the company’s electric Ram pickup truck, while being later to the market than trucks from major competitors, would surpass them in range and capability. On Wednesday, the company put some specific numbers behind the CEO’s claims.While final figures have yet to be announced, Stellantis expects the fully electric Ram 1500 REV pickup will be able to drive 500 miles on a single charge, much farther than either the Ford F-150 Lightning or General Motors’ Chevrolet Silverado 1500 EV and GMC Sierra EV. GM expects to get 400 miles of range from its electric trucks. Long-range versions of Ford’s Lightning can go up to 320 miles on a charge, according to EPA estimates. Tesla claims its Cybertruck will also have a maximum 500 miles of range, however.The Ram REV will also be able to tow as much 14,000 pounds, according to Stellantis, a figure that matches Tesla...

Stocks dip, yields drop on latest signs of slowing economy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

By STAN CHOE (AP Business Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are dipping on Wall Street Wednesday, and Treasury yields are dropping following the latest signals that the U.S. economy is slowing under the weight of much higher interest rates.The S&P 500 was 0.3% lower in morning trading, a day after it broke a four-day winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 34 points, or 0.1%, at 33,436, as of 10:30 a.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was 1% lower. The moves were sharper in the bond market, where yields sank following weaker-than-expected reports on the health of U.S. services industries and the job market. They’re the latest signs that the economy is slowing following a feverish set of hikes to interest rates by the Federal Reserve meant to get inflation under control. One report from the Institute for Supply Management said that growth in the U.S. services sector slowed last month by more than economists expected, as the pace of new orders coo...

Stormy Daniels must pay more to Trump’s lawyers, court says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

At roughly the same time that former President Donald Trump plead not guilty to criminal charges Tuesday afternoon in a Manhattan courtroom, he notched a win in a federal appeals court in California against the adult film star at the heart of the New York indictment.The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit issued a six-page order directing Stormy Daniels to pay nearly $122,000 in legal fees to Trump’s attorneys. That sum is in addition to the more than $293,000 that Daniels had been ordered to pay after losing a libel case against the former president in federal district court and $245,000 for unsuccessfully pursuing an earlier appeal.The New York and California cases aren’t directly related, but the timing was striking since they involve the same underlying events: Daniels’ claim that she had an affair with Trump — which he has denied — and efforts by Trump’s former longtime lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen to stop her story from becoming public ahead of ...

April 5 marks anniversary of most damaging tornado on record in San Diego

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- April 5, 2023 marks 97 years since San Diego County experienced the most damaging tornado on record, according to the National Weather Service. Records from 1926 describe a waterspout which was reported to come ashore, becoming a tornado that swept the area of National City, said NWS. Is the rain finally over for San Diego? What is a waterspout? They are described by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as “whirling columns of air and water mist.” On this day in history, NWS says that rotation headed inland, hurling objects through the air in a rare instance of a tornado spinning in San Diego County. Weather officials reported 18 people injured and 21 homes that were “total wrecks” in the South Bay region due to the tornado. Many homes and buildings were said to be "lashed to atoms by the furious winds.""One shingle was driven into the side of a building as if it had been shot from a gun," NWS records state.Weather officials say tornadoes are most comm...

New Ram electric pickup can go up to 500 miles on a charge

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

DETROIT (AP) — An electric Ram pickup truck with up to 500 miles of range per charge and a battery-powered people-hauling Kia SUV are among the new vehicles being introduced Wednesday at the New York International Auto Show.The two debuts in New York are among only nine automaker press conferences, far short of previous years. Many of the new models have been rolled out previously as automakers move away from auto shows and introduce new products virtually.The Ram 1500 Rev joins pickups from Ford, General Motors, Rivian and Lordstown Motors in a field that’s growing increasingly crowded. Tesla is supposed to start selling its long-awaited Cybertruck later in the year.The Ram looks more like the current gas-powered model than a more futuristic concept vehicle the company showed off in January. But it’s full of new technology.The Rev will come with a choice of two battery packs, the standard one with up to 350 miles of range and an optional larger pack with an expected range of ...

A decade in the EU, Croatia aids Balkan hopefuls

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) — Croatia’s prime minister promised on Wednesday to redouble efforts to help other countries in the region join the European Union as it prepares to mark a decade of EU membership. “We completed the integration process in 2013 … and we want to help (others) overcome their obstacles and to join us as soon as possible,” Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said during a visit to North Macedonia. Croatia was the most recent country to join the EU, on July 1, 2013. On Jan. 1 this year, it became the 20th member of the euro area. Plenkovic praised the decision made last year to add Moldova, Ukraine and Bosnia to the list of EU candidate countries, but added that not enough progress had been made in integrating countries like North Macedonia and neighboring Albania. North Macedonia was granted EU candidate status in 2005 but since then, its application has stalled. Plenkovic urged the small Balkan country to follow through on a pledge to amend ...

DOJ tentatively settles over Texas church shooting for $144M

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department said Wednesday it has tentatively settled a lawsuit over the 2017 mass shooting at a Texas church that will pay victims and their families more than $144 million. More than two dozen people were killed when Devin Patrick Kelley o pened fire during a Sunday service at First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs. Kelley, who died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after he was shot and chased by two men who heard the gunfire at the church, had served in the Air Force prior to the attack.U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez had previously ruled that the Air Force was “60% liable” for the attack because it failed to submit Kelley’s assault conviction during his time in the Air Force to a national database.The Justice Department said the settlement is still subject to court approvals. Paul J. Weber, The Associated Press

Missouri tornado kills multiple people, sows destruction

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A tornado that tore through southeastern Missouri on Wednesday caused widespread destruction and killed and injured multiple people, authorities said.The tornado moved through a rural area of Bollinger County, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of St. Louis, between 3:30 and 4 a.m., said Sgt. Clark Parrott of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. He said it caused “multiple injuries and multiple deaths,” but he didn’t say how many or precisely where they occurred.“The damage is pretty widespread. It’s just heartbreaking to see it,” Parrott said.He said said a search and rescue operation is underway that involves multiple agencies. Crews are having to use chainsaws to cutback trees and brush to reach homes.THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A tornado struck Missouri on Wednesday morning, causing an unknown number of injuries, as severe thunderstorms packing the threat of more hail and tornadoes w...

Ohio Republican lawmaker falsely claims to be MIT graduate

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:42 GMT

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A freshman state lawmaker in Ohio falsely claimed to have graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, according to the prestigious university, and he has stepped down from a House committee leadership post after that revelation.Rep. Dave Dobos, a Columbus-area Republican, attended MIT in the 1970s and 1980 and studied economics but did not receive a degree, MIT’s deputy director of media relations, Sarah McDonnell, told Cleveland.com, which first reported the discrepancy Tuesday.House Speaker Jason Stephens has since accepted Dobos’ resignation as vice chair of the Higher Education Committee.“I have known Dave to be a hardworking member for his constituents. This is disappointing news,” Stephens said in a statement.Dobos had publicly described himself as an MIT graduate, including on his campaign website, as well as in his online biography for the Ohio House. By Tuesday evening, that biography had been changed to say that he “attended” the s...