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Recreational marijuana is now legal in Minnesota but the state is still working out retail sales

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota’s legalization of recreational marijuana went into effect Tuesday, allowing people 21 and older to legally possess and grow their own marijuana for recreational purposes, subject to limits as the state establishes a legal cannabis industry in the coming months and years. The midwestern state is the 23rd in the country to legalize recreational marijuana. Surrounding states — including Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and North Dakota – have not yet legalized it. At least two tribal nations in northwestern Minnesota are expected to open dispensaries for recreational marijuana this month. The Red Lake Nation and the White Earth Nation are using their tribal sovereignty to allow sales. But most other businesses aren’t expected to sell legal recreational marijuana until early 2025, as the state sets up a licensing and regulatory system for the new industry. Dennis Buchanan, who owns The THC Joint in Minneapolis and two other cannabis-relate...

Indiana abortion clinics stop providing abortions ahead of near-total abortion ban taking effect

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana’s six abortion clinics have stopped providing abortions ahead of the state’s near-total abortion ban officially taking effect and as a petition is pending before the state’s high court asking it to keep the ban on hold while legal action continues, clinic officials said Tuesday.Planned Parenthood’s four Indiana abortion clinics stopped performing abortions Monday in accordance with state guidance that providers received in July alerting them that on or around Tuesday abortion would become illegal in Indiana in clinic settings “with really very, very limited exceptions,” said Rebecca Gibron, CEO of the Planned Parenthood division that includes Indiana.Indiana’s two other abortion clinics have also stopped providing abortions, with one calling it “a dark day for Indiana.”Indiana’s Republican-backed ban will end most abortions in the state, even in the earliest stages of a pregnancy. Indiana became the first state to enact tighter abortion restrictions...

As Singh tours Atlantic Canada, New Democrats look to flip Liberal seats

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

OTTAWA — NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is touring Atlantic Canada in an effort to highlight affordability issues — and flip two Liberal seats in the next federal election. Singh says voters who are increasingly struggling with the cost of living are dissatisfied with the federal government.He says the NDP has pushed for affordability initiatives through its confidence-and-supply agreement with the Liberals, including dental care, a one-time rental supplement and the doubling of the GST rebate.The party is looking to flip St. John’s East in Newfoundland, a seat that used to be a stronghold for the NDP, and Halifax, a seat that often flips between the Liberals and New Democrats.Singh says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is not a viable option for Atlantic Canada because he served in former prime minister Stephen Harper’s cabinet and will bring the same style of Harper conservatism to the region. Former Progressive Conservative premier of Newfoundland and Labrador Danny Wil...

Looming thunderstorms could threaten firefighting efforts in California-Nevada blaze

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

JEAN, Nev. (AP) — A brief but heavy downpour Tuesday helped firefighters battling a massive blaze in California and Nevada, but meteorologists warned of the potential for sudden and erratic wind shifts that could endanger crews later on.The York Fire was partially contained by Tuesday morning after igniting last week in the Mojave National Preserve in California and spreading into Nevada, while flames scorched tens of thousands of acres of desert scrub, juniper and Joshua tree woodland.Now the largest wildfire of the season in California, the blaze was mapped at roughly 125 square miles (323.7 square kilometers) on Tuesday, with 23% containment.While the 15-minute downpour early Tuesday helped firefighting efforts, thunderstorms could pose problems if they pass over the area, said Clay Morgan, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Las Vegas. If the storms miss the flames entirely, crews could face unstable wind conditions — with gusts up to 40 mph (64 kph) — and risk having th...

What would West African bloc’s threat to use force to restore democracy in Niger look like?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — The stance of West Africa’s regional bloc known as ECOWAS in the military takeover in Niger is clear: “We will stand with our people in our commitment to the rule of law,” its chairman, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, said at the body’s meeting this week.The 15-nation bloc summoned its defense chiefs to discuss its threat to “take all measures necessary (that) may include the use of force” if ousted Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum is not reinstated within one week. ECOWAS is resolved to use military force after economic and travel sanctions used against the coup plotters failed, according to a Western diplomat in Niamey who did not want to be identified for security reasons.How the bloc would carry out its threat remains unclear given its lack of coordination in providing security regionally and formally with the U.S. State Department in Niger, said Aneliese Bernard, director of Strategic Stabilization Advisors. “There’s not enough actual trust among EC...

82-year-old man missing after going on bike ride in Roseland

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

CHICAGO — Family is looking for an 82-year-old man who went out for a bike ride in Roseland Monday morning and did not return.Leopoldo "Leo" Ambriz is missing from the 200 block of West 108th Street.Ambriz, 5'4", 150 lbs., went out for a bike ride at around 10:30 a.m., something he does twice a week, wearing a neon vest, biking gloves and a white helmet. He also had black compression shorts on, a black and brown backpack, and was riding a red and black bicycle.Family told WGN News he needs his blood pressure medication. They have been actively searching for him in the area.He frequently rides his bike along 107th, 108th and 111th streets. Ambriz speaks Spanish with limited English, family said.Anyone with information can call 911 or detectives at 312-747-8274.

COVID hospital admissions jump in what could be a new norm of summer surges

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

(The Hill) – Total COVID-19 hospital admissions jumped by 12.1 percent in the past week, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), marking the highest jump in admissions since last winter.This week's hospital admission rate follows last week's rise of more than 10 percent. While this data suggests more infections, a metric the CDC does not track anymore, it remains unclear how concerned people should be.While hospital admissions have risen by more than 10 percent in each of the past two weeks, the number of patients currently hospitalized has risen by a comparatively smaller degree. Compared to last week, the number of patients hospitalized for COVID this week rose by seven percent to 6,121. Deaths due to COVID-19 have also not changed in recent weeks as hospital admissions have risen. You’ll need this overlooked piece of info to file a Facebook settlement claim The most recent wastewater surveillance data from July found that the...

Judge rules Trump false election claims while in office covered by presidential immunity

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

(The Hill) -- A Pennsylvania state judge on Monday ruled that an election worker cannot sue former President Trump over statements he made sowing doubt in the 2020 election results while in office, finding the statements are protected by presidential immunity. Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael Erdos said Trump was immune for a tweet he issued and comments he made remotely from the White House during a Pennsylvania state Senate committee hearing in November 2020. The statements, made without evidence, claimed fraud in Pennsylvania's election tabulations.“Other legal proceedings may examine the propriety of his statements and actions while he was the President and whether, as the plaintiffs in this and other cases contend, it was this conduct which served as the actual threat to our democracy,” Erdos ruled. “But this case is not the proper place to do so. Here, Trump is entitled to Presidential immunity.”James Savage, a Pennsylvania voting machine supervisor...

Grass fires close portion of SH 130 in Pflugerville

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas (KXAN) -- Northbound State Highway 130 was shut down Tuesday morning due to two grass fires near the road, the Pflugerville Police Department and Travis County Emergency Services District No. 2 said.The fires are along SH 130 between State Highway 45 and County Road 138, Travis County ESD No. 2 said. The highway is closed beginning at Kelly Lane. Traffic near the fire is being moved to the service road, police said. Travis County ESD No. 2, Hutto Fire Rescue and Williamson County ESD No. 10 firefighters responded to the fires, Travis County ESD No. 2 said.Drivers are being asked to find different routes, if possible.This developing story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Austin's 25-day streak of consecutive 100° days is the 2nd-longest in recorded history

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:11:40 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin is currently experiencing one of the longest stretches of triple-digit heat in recorded history.Camp Mabry, Austin's official weather reporting site, has reached 100° or hotter every day since July 8.That means, as of Saturday, temperatures have reached the century mark for 25 days in a row. With records dating back to the 1890s, that ranks as the second-longest stretch of triple-digit temperatures ever recorded in Austin. MORE HEAT RECORDS: What is Austin's hottest month ever? The KXAN First Warning Weather team is currently forecasting at least seven more days at or above 100°, which would extend the streak past 30 days. That would surpass 2011 as the longest of all time. How often does Austin hit 100°? Here’s a breakdown by date, month, year and decade The record streak currently stands at 27 days, set between July 17 and Aug. 12, 2011. That summer went on to have a record-breaking 90 days of triple-digit heat.Meanwhile, Austin-Bergstrom International A...