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AP Interview: Pelosi says Ukraine, democracy 'must win'

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — “We thought we could die.”The Russian invasion had just begun when Nancy Pelosi made a surprise visit to Ukraine, the House speaker then the highest-ranking elected U.S. official to lead a congressional delegation to Kyiv.Pelosi and the lawmakers were ushered under the cloak of secrecy into the capital city, an undisclosed passage that even to this day she will not divulge.“It was very, it was dangerous,” Pelosi told The Associated Press before Sunday’s one-year anniversary of that trip.“We never feared about it, but we thought we could die because we’re visiting a serious, serious war zone,” Pelosi said. “We had great protection, but nonetheless, a war — theater of war.”Pelosi's visit was as unusual as it was historic, opening a fresh diplomatic channel between the U.S. and Ukraine that has only deepened with the prolonged war. In the year since, a long list of congressional leaders, senators and chairs of powerful committees, both Democrats and Republicans, follo...

Home invasion suspects hold 5-year-old at gunpoint in the Bronx: NYPD

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

THE BRONX, N.Y. (PIX11) – A family in the Bronx is shaken up after several men forced their way into their apartment and held a 5-year-old at gunpoint, police said on Saturday.The harrowing home invasion happened around 8 a.m. on Wednesday near Gates Place and West Gun Hill Road. The NYPD released a surveillance video of the suspects, who they said waited outside the 30-year-old mother’s door until it was eventually opened.  5 killed in ‘execution style’ mass shooting in Texas, suspect on the run The group then forced their way inside, pointed a gun at the boy and threatened to shoot him unless she gave them money, according to the NYPD. The suspects also pistol-whipped the woman’s 58-year-old mother before pushing the 30-year-old woman into a back bedroom and removing $40,000 from as safe, authorities said.Two of the suspects took off in a gray sedan and the third drove off in a dark blue SUV, according to the NYPD.  Real or fake? This tick bite could lead to food allergies The...

Austin officials are sued over South-Central Waterfront funding plan

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – On Monday, a group of Austin property taxpayers filed a lawsuit against Mayor Kirk Watson, Austin City Council members and Interim City Manager Jesús Garza, saying that the City officials should not be allowed to put tax dollars towards the development of the old Austin American Statesman building. In the lawsuit filed in the Travis County District Court, the plaintiffs said that the Austin City Council established the South-Central Waterfront Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, or SCWF-TIRZ, a tax-increment financing zone that would divert $354 million away from the city’s general fund over 19 years. The Plaintiffs, who include Taxpayers Against Giveaways, Save Our Springs Alliance, former Austin City Councilmember Ora Houston, former state senator Gonzalo Barrientos and Fay Holland, said this action was illegal and should be stopped. A TIRZ allows a jurisdiction to finance infrastructure improvements and other projects using a portion of proceeds from property and sal...

Charley Walters: Way too early to judge Vikings’ pick of Jordan Addison

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

What impact will Jordan Addison have on the Vikings? Nobody knows. Despite the hype that’s spewed out on draft day about how great the players are, the NFL draft remains a crapshoot.USC Wide receiver Jordan Addison poses with Minnesota Vikings fans after being selected as the 23rd pick at the 2023 NFL Draft on Thursday, April 27, 2023 in Kansas City, MO. (Tyler Kaufman/AP Images for NFL)In 2016, with the No. 23 overall pick, the Vikings chose wide receiver Laquon Treadwell from Mississippi. He turned out to be a bust.Four years ago, the Vikings drafted Justin Jefferson out of LSU with the No. 22 overall pick. He’s probably the NFL’s best wide receiver.On Thursday, with the No. 23 overall pick, the Vikings drafted Addison out of Southern California.Star? Bust? We’ll see.—New licensed sales of Jefferson merchandise rank No. 13 among all NFL players, the highest-ranking Viking. Jefferson’s $150 million contract extension will come this summer.—It will be Bryce Young, age 21, throwing p...

How a St. Louis Cardinals team once at risk moving stayed put 70 years ago

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

ST. LOUIS - What might St. Louis look like without the Cardinals? It's hard to imagine, but for a brief time more than half a century ago, that was a possibility. A changing of the guard 70 years ago proved essential to keeping the Cardinals in St. Louis. The history behind it all doesn't get unpacked all that often, but sports and culture contributors at Defector.com and Nine PBS recently dove into what happened. In 1953, August "Gussie" Busch Jr. officially purchased the St. Louis Cardinals franchise from Fred Saigh Jr. for $3.75 million. Leading up to that, St. Louis was home to two MLB franchises - the Cardinals and the St. Louis Browns. While the Cardinals generally performed better than the Browns, and held bragging winning a head-to-head World Series matchup in 1944, a few factors put them in a tough spot financially. RELATED - Albert Pujols confident that 2023 Cardinals will overcome slow start In the 1930s and 1940s, the Cardinals weren't quite kings of attendance, drawi...

Avalanche vs. Kraken Game 7: Three keys for Avs to advance to second round vs. Stars

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

The Dallas Stars patiently await their challenger.Colorado and Seattle have battled it out for six games without a solution in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, so Ball Arena will host a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday (7:30 p.m. MT, TNT). Here are three keys for the Avs to advance.1. No more time for “almost” on power play. The Avs have gradually started pounding away at Seattle’s penalty kill throughout this series, looking more dangerous every game. It culminated with multiple near-perfect power play shifts in Game 6 … yet Colorado still finished 0 for 5. Its series total is 1 for 17, with no goals for the top unit. (Mikko Rantanen scored with the second.) “Gaining that momentum,” Devon Toews said. “We’re getting the good looks. … Getting those looks consistently definitely puts teams under pressure.” Some of it’s tough luck, such as Philipp Grubauer’s spectacular save against J.T. Compher on Frid...

Kevin Durant heaps praise on Nuggets: MPJ is an X-factor, Nikola Jokic a future Hall of Famer

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

Kevin Durant has seen everything the NBA has to offer.Championships, free agency, heel turns. Durant’s storied career has run the gamut. He’s also a student of the game. Speaking from Suns practice on Friday afternoon, Durant spoke glowingly of Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. and deemed him an X-factor for their second-round playoff series.He knew, for example, that Porter fell all the way to No. 14 in the 2018 draft where the Nuggets were, in Durant’s words, “lucky enough” to draft him. As Durant got to that part of Porter’s story, he smiled knowing how significant a piece Porter has been to Denver’s roster. And how, without that fortuitous turn of events, perhaps the Nuggets wouldn’t have been the No. 1 seed for the first time in franchise history this postseason.Porter was a bit inconsistent in Denver’s first-round playoff series victory over the Timberwolves, but he did connect on over 42% of his 3-pointers. Against a Suns squad that doesn’t have as many defensive standouts a...

Kickin’ It with Kiz: As rookie Marvin Mims enters Broncos receiving room is Courtland Sutton headed for the exit?

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

I think trading up to draft Marvin Mims Jr. of Oklahoma signals many changes to come to the Broncos’ wide receiver room.M.S., anticipates falling dominoesKiz: If Mims is all that as a receiver and a bag of chips as a kick-returner, then Montrell Washington is as good as gone, and it’s likely Courtland Sutton will be headed for the door no later than 2024. But drafting Arkansas linebacker Drew Sanders in the third round also made me wonder how satisfied the new coaching staff is with crowd-favorite Josey Jewell entering the final year of his contract.The biggest takeaway from the Broncos’ draft? The real answer is Sean Payton. It feels good to have a proven and experienced winner as head coach. Better days for the Broncos are very near.Scott, sunshine in his forecastKiz: The Broncos’ aggressive nature, trading up twice in the draft, caused Payton to turn and tell general manager George Paton: “It was exciting, wasn’t it?” Make no mistake. The...

Crafty, Creepy and Queer Weekend Shopping Picks

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

Spring is in full swing and so are events of all kinds offering an excuse to get out and connect with community and small businesses. Shopping events in particular are plentiful right now. Beyond flea market or mall destinations, craft fairs and pop-ups offer something unique and fun for the whole family. This weekend there are some really big gatherings featuring local creators selling wares of all sorts. Spend your money and feel good about it with these multi-faceted shopping picks.“Half-o-ween” – the faux holiday celebrated by dark souls halfway to Halloween – is here and the Spooky Swap Meet returns to Heritage Square Museum for a gloomy good curated shopping fest. Loads of vampy vendors and a walk-thru haunted attraction by Fear Farm await with gothic decor, apparel, props, and more for sale plus fortune telling and food available. Trick-or-treat at seven stops within the Square’s manors each done up by the likes of AdamJessFx, Art’s Sideshow, a Bones’ Gulch and Samhain’s Lot ...

Game 7 preview: Backs against the wall, Warriors have to turn up the energy against Kings

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 20:46:14 GMT

In all 28 of the Warriors playoff series that Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green have played, a Game 7 was only needed four times.But they’ll need a fifth on Sunday against the Sacramento Kings — and this one was entirely avoidable.The Warriors had a chance to close this first-round series in Game 6 at home, where they’ve dominated all year. Instead, the Warriors played arguably their worst game as a collective this entire year given the stakes. They were flat-footed, out-coached and unprepared for the adjustments and energy the Kings beat them with.All year this team has been bogged down by poor execution, particularly late in games, and lack of focus. They locked in and won three straight down 2-0 earlier in the series — can they get up again for one more game with the season and, perhaps, the dynasty on the line?The core players who’ve been here before believe they can.“It’s up to us to go to Sacramento and do everything we did tonight — but opp...