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What happens if the US can’t pay its bills? ‘Catastrophe’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

A few short weeks are left for Congress — or, perhaps, President Joe Biden — to take action and lift the debt ceiling before tick, tick, tick … boom goes the economy.The so-called “X-date” — when the federal government can no longer meet its legal obligations — could be as early as June 1, according to a May 1 letter from U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to Congress. Yellen reiterated the same sentiments in another letter to Congress on May 15.“If Congress fails to increase the debt limit, it would cause severe hardship to American families, harm our global leadership position, and raise questions about our ability to defend our national security interests,” Yellen wrote in the most recent letter. She warned of “catastrophe” in a May 11 news conference.The Congressional Budget Office released its own projections on May 12, which left more wiggle room: somewhere in the first two weeks of June. The report also said the U.S. Treasury’s cash and extraordinary measures wo...

Bill to force schools to inform inquiring parents about transgender children fails in New Hampshire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

By HOLLY RAMER (Associated Press)CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A bill that would have required school officials to disclose to inquiring parents that their child is using a different name or being referred to as being a different gender was defeated Thursday in the New Hampshire House.The bill, similar to those already enacted by Republican-led legislatures in multiple states, had passed the GOP-dominated Senate in March along party lines. But Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the 400-member House, and more Democrats were present for Thursday’s vote.Democrats passed several “poison pill” amendments to weaken the bill before it was defeated 195-190 on a vote to “indefinitely postpone” it. That means the topic can’t be taken up for the rest of the session.Many states with Republican-controlled legislatures have enacted similar measures, fueled by parental frustration with schools that boiled over during the coronavirus pandemic. In the U.S. Hou...

Freddie Mac: Average long-term US mortgage rate edged higher to 6.39% this week

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

By ALEX VEIGA (AP Business Writer)LOS ANGELES (AP) — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate edged higher this week after a two-week drop, a modest move in line with a mostly moderate shift in home loan rates in recent weeks.Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on the benchmark 30-year home loan rose to 6.39% from 6.35% last week. The average rate a year ago was 5.25%.The average benchmark rate has moved lower in seven of the last 10 weeks since reaching a high for this year of 6.73% in early March. Still, it remains elevated relative to 2020 and 2021, when the average rate fell below 3%.High rates can add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for homebuyers, limiting how much buyers can afford at a time when the housing market has slowed, but remains unaffordable to many Americans after years of soaring home prices.Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes fell 23.2% in the 12 months ended in April, marking nine straight months of annual sales declines of 20...

Man charged with killing Fitchburg boy Jeremiah Oliver, 5, who was found dead in a suitcase 9 years ago

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

The man charged with murder in the death of 5-year-old Jeremiah Oliver, whose body was found in a suitcase beside a Massachusetts highway in 2014, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on Thursday and was held without bail.Alberto Sierra Jr., 32, was the former boyfriend of Jeremiah’s mother and was arrested on Wednesday, according to the office of Worcester District Attorney Joseph Early Jr.An email seeking comment was left with Sierra’s attorney.Jeremiah’s body was found in April 2014 along Interstate 190 in Sterling, about an hour west of Boston. But the boy was last seen alive in September 2013, and was not reported missing until December of that year.The case shocked the state, with even then-Gov. Deval Patrick saying he was trying to “keep my own rage in check.” The boy’s death also led to three employees of the state’s child welfare agency getting fired, and spurred reforms at the agency.Jeremiah’s family, which lived in Fitchburg at the time, was being supervised by the stat...

The Heat keep stealing Game 1′s and the Celtics should be concerned

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

Every time the Miami Heat win Game 1, they go on to win the series.What’s been true for the Heat in each of their previous two playoff series should be equally concerning for a Boston Celtics team that forfeited home-court advantage with a 123-116 loss at TD Garden in the series-opener on Wednesday.The Heat are going to walk onto your home floor, and if your team isn’t ready for a dogfight, Miami is going to beat you.It’s what they did in their first-round stunner at Milwaukee’s FiServ Forum before eliminating the conference-favorite Bucks in five games. And it’s how the Heat advanced past the Knicks in six games in the second round, first by stealing home-court advantage with a Game 1 victory at Madison Square Garden.There’s something almost emasculating about an underdog winning Game 1 on the road. Just ask the Celtics fans who booed their home team off the court after an embarrassing performance with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line.History...

Supreme Court sides with Google, Twitter, but avoids ruling on their broad protections from lawsuits

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

By MARK SHERMAN (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Thursday sided with Google, Twitter and Facebook in lawsuits seeking to hold them liable for terrorist attacks. But the justices sidestepped the big issue hovering over the cases, the federal law that shields social media companies from being sued over content posted by others.The justices unanimously rejected a lawsuit alleging that the companies allowed their platforms to be used to aid and abet an attack at a Turkish nightclub that killed 39 people in 2017.In the case of an American college student who was killed in an Islamic State terrorist attack in Paris in 2015, a unanimous court returned the case to a lower court, but said there appeared to be little, if anything, left of it.The high court initially took up the Google case to decide whether the companies’ legal shield for the social media posts of others, contained in a 1996 law known as Section 230, is too broad.Instead, though, the court said it was ...

Job alert: San Diego County Fair hiring hundreds of seasonal employees

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- For those looking for a summer job, San Diego County Fair organizers announced they are hiring hundreds of seasonal workers for the 2023 season. There are a variety of customer-service positions available in guest services, ticket sales, exhibits, agriculture, parking and traffic. Plus, there are administrative jobs to fill in facilities, finance and production.  3 artists added to San Diego County Fair Concert Series lineup The Del Mar Fairgrounds says applicants who previously have worked for the SD fair can reapply for a job in their previous department or try something new.“The annual San Diego County Fair is our county’s biggest bash -- an exciting month of family, food, fun, music, discovery, education, shopping, adventure, and so much more,” said Carlene Moore, the CEO of the 22nd District Agricultural Association, which produces the annual fair. “But it all starts with our people, and our seasonal employees serve as a critical part of an amazing team that...

The results are in: MTS elects new chair

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- The Metropolitan Transit System held a meeting Thursday morning to elect a new chair after a failed majority vote at a previous session last month.The task of appointing a replacement leader was set into motion after a sexual misconduct investigation into alleged actions by former County Board of Supervisors Chairman Nathan Fletcher, who's accused of sexual harassment and sexual assault by a former MTS employee.That employee, Grecia Figueroa, is currently suing both Fletcher and MTS. Fletcher has admitted to having an affair, but denied the allegations of assault and harassment.The candidates up for consideration to lead MTS included San Diego City Councilman Stephen Whitburn, La Mesa City Councilwoman Patricia Dillard and El Cajon City Councilman Steve Goble. Timeline: Unfolding of the Nathan Fletcher scandal After a failed vote on April 20, Whitburn remained in the position of interim chair until the re-do nomination meeting Thursday, where a successful majority vo...

How foxtails in San Diego can sly their way into your dog's skin

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Winter rainfall has left San Diego County in full bloom, but among the plethora of wildflowers is an invasive weed armed with clusters of spiked seed pods that could burrow into your dog's skin. A seemingly leisurely outing on a hiking trail or quick sprint about in a grassy area can quickly become a very painful experience for pets if they encounter "mean seeds," a term used in reference to foxtails. 6 places to go kayaking in San Diego These clusters of grass have barbed awns or seed heads which resemble the tail of a fox. Once they break down into spikelets, foxtails -- as sly as they come -- could burrow directly into the skin of a dog that comes in contact with them, explained Advanced Veterinary Care of San Elijo, a North County practice.The American Kennel Club explained these prickly menaces further saying dogs may pick up a grass awn on an ear, eye, mouth, nose or between their toes. The barbed seeds could then travel inside the animal from the nose to the b...

8-year-old girl dies in Border Patrol custody in Texas, as agency struggles with overcrowding

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:22 GMT

MCALLEN, Texas (AP) — A little girl from Panama born with heart problems died at a Border Patrol station Wednesday, the second death of a child from Latin America in U.S. government custody in two weeks.The 8-year-old girl and her family were being held in Harlingen, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley, one of the busiest corridors for migrant crossings, the Border Patrol’s parent agency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said.The girl experienced “ a medical emergency ” and died at a hospital, the agency said.An autopsy has been ordered, said Jesus T. “Chuy” Garcia, Jr., the local judge presiding in the case. The girl’s name was Anadith Tanay Reyes Alvarez, said Honduran Consul José Leonardo Navas, who is based in McAllen, Texas. He said she is from Panama, although her parents are from Honduras. The consul said that she was traveling with her father, mother and two older siblings.She was born with heart problems and was operated on three years ago in Panama, according to...