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Hunter Biden makes plea deal on tax, weapons charges, Justice Department

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s son Hunter has been charged with failing to pay federal income tax and illegally possessing a weapon and has reached an agreement with the Justice Department, according to a letter filed in U.S. District Court in Delaware.As part of the agreement, made public Tuesday, Hunter Biden will plead guilty to misdemeanor tax offenses and is expected to reach an agreement with prosecutors on the felony charge of illegally possessing a firearm as a drug user. It is somewhat unusual to resolve a federal criminal case at the same time the charges are filed in court, though it is not totally unheard of.The deal ends a long-running Justice Department investigation into Biden’s second son, who has acknowledged struggling with addiction following the 2015 death of his brother Beau Biden. It also averts a trial that would have generated days or weeks or distracting headlines for a White House that has strenuously sought to keep its distance from the Jus...

Raising Cane's to hold grand opening for new Chula Vista location

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

CHULA VISTA, Calif. — Lovers of chicken fingers will soon have a new option to feast at when Raising Cane's opens their newest location in San Diego County.On Tuesday, June 20, Raising Cane's will host a grand opening for their Chula Vista location, located at 512 H Street, the sixth location to open in the county.The new spot can be found at the entrance of the Chula Vista Center and will feature a double drive-thru and a large indoor dining space.“We are excited to continue our expansion in the San Diego market with the opening of our sixth Restaurant in the area and first in Chula Vista!” Restaurant Leader Ale Gonzalez said in a news release. “We look forward to serving our community and celebrating on Tuesday.”The grand opening event will begin at 7 a.m. with a "Lucky 20" drawing, where 20 chicken finger fanatics will have a chance to win free Cane's for a year. Customers must be at least 13 years of age and entries will be accepted from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m., with the winners announ...

Tropical Storm Bret spins toward eastern Caribbean as forecasters warn it will strengthen

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Tropical Storm Bret chugged toward the eastern Caribbean on Tuesday as forecasters warned it could strengthen into a hurricane before approaching a region rushing to prepare itself for an unusually early storm.Bret had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) and was moving across the Atlantic Ocean at 17 mph (28 kph). It is expected to strengthen into a hurricane in coming days but then weaken ahead of its approach to the Lesser Antilles, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.The storm is expected to pummel some eastern Caribbean islands on Thursday and Friday at near hurricane strength.“Both the atmospheric and oceanic environment look conducive for strengthening during the next couple of days with low shear and abnormally warm ocean waters,” the center said.Dominica’s meteorological service said Tuesday that the storm poses a “high threat” to the island and warned of landslides, flooding and waves of up to 12 feet (4 meters).Mean...

9 Egyptians appear in Greek court over deadly migrant shipwreck

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Nine Egyptian men accused of belonging to a human smuggling ring that authorities say bears responsibility for one of the worst migrant shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea appeared in court in southern Greece on Tuesday for questioning over their alleged role in the disaster.The nine face charges that include participation in a criminal organization, manslaughter and causing a shipwreck. The hearing was taking place in the southern city of Kalamata.More than 500 people are believed to be missing from last week’s sinking of the dilapidated fishing trawler, which according to some estimates was carrying up to 750 people from Libya to Italy. So far, 81 bodies have been recovered and 104 people, all men, have been rescued. A search and rescue operation continues in the area, but chances of locating more survivors were exceedingly slim.Asked about the incident as World Refugee Day was marked across the globe Tuesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leye...

Stock market today: Wall Street slips after a 5-week rally

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are slipping in Wall Street’s first trading after a five-week rally carried it to its highest level since the spring of last year. The S&P 500 was 0.3% lower in early trading Tuesday. The Dow was off 156 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite edged down 0.1%. The U.S. stock market is taking a breather after rising on hopes the economy can avoid a recession and inflation is easing enough for the Federal Reserve to stop raising interest rates soon. A frenzy around artificial intelligence has also vaulted a select group of tech stocks to huge gains. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.Wall Street is stable Tuesday, the first trading day of the week, after a meeting between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Secretary of State Antony Blinken yielded no signs of progress from either side on Taiwan, human rights, technology and other issues of contention. Futures for the Dow Jones industrial and the S&P 500 fell about 0.3% before t...

Italy’s Meloni and France’s Macron are meeting in Paris following a spat over migration policies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni is set to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron Tuesday in Paris to mark the improvement of relations between the two countries after their latest dispute over migration issues.Talks are meant to prepare for the European summit later this month in Brussels and the NATO summit to be held in Vilnius, Lithuania, next month, according to the French presidency. Macron and Meloni are expected to reaffirm their joint support of Ukraine in military, humanitarian, economic, diplomatic and judicial terms, the statement said. On Monday, Macron said that the Mamba anti-missile system developed together by France and Italy “is now deployed and operational in Ukraine, protecting key installations and lives.” The delivery of the system to Kyiv was announced by Paris and Rome in February.The trip comes weeks after Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani abruptly canceled a visit to Paris in protest of the French interior minister’s criticism of his c...

Gannett sues Google, Alphabet claiming they have a monopoly on digital advertising

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

Gannett has filed a civil lawsuit against Google and its parent company Alphabet, claiming that they unlawfully hold monopolies in the advertising technology tools that publishers and advertisers use to buy and sell online ad space.The largest U.S. newspaper publisher by total daily circulation alleges in the suit that Google controls how publishers sell their ad slots and forces them to sell an increasing amount of ad space to Google at lower prices. This in turn results in less revenue for publishers and Google’s ad-tech rivals and more money for Google.In January the Justice Department and eight states filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google, seeking to shatter its alleged monopoly on the entire ecosystem of online advertising as a hurtful burden to advertisers, consumers and even the U.S. government. The suit accused the company of unlawfully monopolizing the way ads are served online by excluding competitors.The European Union launched an antitrust investigation into Google’s...

Paris Olympic organizers’ headquarters searched in French corruption investigations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

PARIS (AP) — French investigators searched the Paris Olympic organizers’ headquarters on Tuesday as part of corruption investigations into contracts linked to the Games, according to officials, the third straight time graft allegations have dogged a Summer Olympics.The Paris organizing committee said in a statement that a search was underway at their headquarters in the suburb of Saint-Denis, and said it was cooperating. It would not comment further.Tuesday’s search and other related raids were linked to two preliminary investigations related to the Olympics that had not previously been made public, according to an official with the financial prosecutor’s office, who was not authorized to be publicly named according to office policy. One probe was opened in 2017 — the year Paris was picked by the International Olympic Committee as the 2024 host — and the other began last year.Corruption allegations have hung over the world’s biggest sporting event many times — from accus...

Celebrity birthdays for the week of June 25-July 1

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

Celebrity birthdays for the week of June 25-July 1:June 25: Actor June Lockhart is 98. Singer Eddie Floyd is 86. Actor Barbara Montgomery (“Amen,” ″The Women of Brewster Place”) is 84. Actor Mary Beth Peil (“The Good Wife,” ″Dawson’s Creek”) is 83. Singer Carly Simon is 80. Actor-comedian Jimmie Walker is 76. Singer Tim Finn of Split Enz and Crowded House is 71. Keyboardist David Paich of Toto is 69. Actor Michael Sabatino (“NYPD Blue”) is 68. Actor Ricky Gervais is 62. Actor Erica Gimpel (TV’s “Fame,” ″Profiler”) is 59. Rapper Richie Rich is 56. Guitarist Sean Kelly (Sixpence None The Richer) is 52. Actor Angela Kinsey (“The Office”) is 52. Bassist Mike Kroeger of Nickelback is 51. Actor Linda Cardellini (“ER,” ″Scooby Doo”) is 48. Actor Busy Philipps (“ER,” ″Dawson’s Creek”) is 44.June 26: Jazz pianist Dave Grusin is 89. Singer Billy Davis Jr. of the Fifth Dimension is 85. Singer Georgie Fame is 80. Actor Clive Francis (“The Crown”) is 77. Singer Brenda Holloway is 77. Actor Micha...

OSFI ups domestic stability buffer for big banks by half a percentage point to 3.5%

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:37 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada’s financial regulator is raising the amount of capital the country’s major banks need to have on hand to cover potential losses.The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions says the domestic stability buffer will increase by half a percentage point to 3.5 per cent, effective Nov. 1.It follows a move in December by the regulator to increase the buffer by half a percentage point to three per cent.The federal regulator says current vulnerabilities facing the banking industry include high household and corporate debt levels, the rising cost of debt and increased global uncertainty around fiscal and monetary policy,The domestic stability buffer applies to Canada’s six largest banks, known as domestic systemically important banks. It is reviewed and set every June and December, but can be changed at other times if needed. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 20, 2023.The Canadian Press