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Iowa governor settles open records lawsuit filed by media groups

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by journalists and open government advocates who sought to require her office to respond to public record requests, and a state panel agreed Wednesday to pay more than $100,000 in attorney fees.Reynolds settled the lawsuit about two months after the Iowa Supreme Court refused to dismiss the case filed by two media organizations and a nonprofit advocacy group. The court unanimously rejected the governor’s argument that her office wasn’t required to respond in a timely manner to record requests and that she could bypass the state’s open records law by simply ignoring the requests.The organizations filed the lawsuit in 2021, claiming the governor had violated Iowa’s open records law by ignoring government record requests. The reporters had emailed the governor’s office with eight different open-record requests between April 2020 and April 2021 and renewed each request at least once. In...

Algoma Steel Group down $20.4 million in Q4 amid lower steel prices, higher costs

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

SAULT STE. MARIE, Ont. — Algoma Steel Group Inc. says its net loss for the fourth quarter was $20.4 million, compared with earnings of $242.9 million a year earlier. Net loss per diluted share was 19 cents, down from earnings of $1.45 the same quarter last year. The Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.-based steel producer says revenue for the quarter ended March 31 was $677.4 million, down from $941.8 million. Earnings for the full fiscal year were $298.5 million, down from $857.7 million the previous year. The company says the net loss for the fourth quarter was primarily due to lower selling steel prices as well as higher costs. CEO Michael Garcia says the results were in line with the company’s previous outlook, and that the quarter saw plate and strip operations return to normal production levels.“We expect to continue this momentum into fiscal 2024, with expected strong first quarter shipments and operating cash flow.” This report by The Canadian Press was first published ...

Ousted incumbents, key matchups set: Takeaways from Virginia’s primary election

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A historic number of state lawmakers were ousted in this week’s Virginia primary, which featured about four dozen legislative races that set the parties’ slate of candidates for what will be a hard-fought general election. Every seat in both the House of Delegates and state Senate will be on the ballot in November in an election cycle that will help determine how much of his legislative agenda Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin can achieve in his final two years in office. Virginia is currently politically divided, and its unusual off-year legislative elections typically draw outsized national attention as a possible barometer of voter sentiment heading into the next year’s midterm or presidential cycle. Here is a look at some of the key takeaways from Tuesday’s results and what’s ahead:HISTORIC TURNOVERIt was clear well before Tuesday night that the General Assembly was headed for massive turnover, driven by a bipartisan redistricting ...

UN warns Taliban that restrictions on Afghan women and girls make recognition `nearly impossible’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. envoy for Afghanistan warned the country’s Taliban rulers Wednesday that international recognition as the country’s legitimate government will remain “nearly impossible” unless they lift severe restrictions on women and girls’ education and employment.Roza Otunbayeva told the U.N. Security Council that the Taliban have asked to be recognized by the United Nations and its 192 other member nations, “but at the same time they act against the key values expressed in the United Nations Charter.”In her regular discussions with the Taliban, she said, “I am blunt about the obstacles they have created for themselves by the decrees and restrictions they have enacted, in particular against women and girls.”The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops were in the final weeks of withdrawing from the country after two decades of war. The group’s decrees limiting the participation of girls and women have impacted fo...

Trump adviser Eastman faces California disciplinary charges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Conservative attorney John Eastman, a lead architect of some of former President Donald Trump’s efforts to remain in power after the 2020 election, was slapped Thursday with a series of disciplinary charges in California that could lead to his disbarment.The State Bar of California’s chief trial counsel, George Cardona, said in a statement that the 11 charges stem from allegations that Eastman assisted Trump with a strategy — not supported by facts — to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 election by obstructing the count of electoral votes of certain states. The office intends to seek Eastman’s disbarment.Eastman, the former dean of Chapman University law school in Southern California, was one of Trump’s lawyers during the election. He wrote a memo that argued former Vice President Mike Pence could keep Trump in power by overturning the results of the election during a joint session of Congress convened to count electoral votes. Critics have likened that ...

Skilling: Clear Wednesday night as summer sunshine continues through the week

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

What a way to celebrate the first day of summer (astronomically) which began with the Solstice at 9:57 a.m. Wednesday morning and proceeded to produce 100% sunny skies and an above normal 88 degrees high. It was Chicago's 5th consecutive O'Hare high temp at or above 80 degrees.The solstice is the day the sun reaches its highest point in the sky---72 degrees above the horizon. It's also Chicago's longest day with 15 hours 13 minutes and 41 sec of potential daylight.Days begin shortening from this point forward in the summer season. But the process is a slow one. Tomorrow will see only 2/100's of a second less daylight with the day after coming in with 6/100's less sunlight. It won't be until July 8th that we lose a full minute of potential sunlight—and it won't be until July 28 we lose 2 or more minutes of daylight in a 24 hour period.And there's what's known as a "seasonal lag" between our longest day and our warmest day of the year. Historically, Chicago highest temps have occurred...

MedWatch Daily Digest: An easy way to reverse diabetes, dangers of dentures — and more

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

For Wednesday, June 21, WGN’s Dina Bair has the latest on new information, including the following: More Coverage: WGN's Medical Watch Study: Diet can transform diabetesChanging diet can not only improve blood sugar levels — it can render diabetes in remission.  A new study from the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine finds adopting a whole food, plant-based eating pattern can transform diabetes without severe calorie restriction or liquid meal replacements. Patients from a cardiac wellness program who had type 2 diabetes ate a low-fat, plant-predominant diet. Of those patients, 37% achieved full remission of their diabetes while the others saw significant improvement in blood sugar levels. All participants also lost weight, obtaining success without surgery, devices, or medication. False teeth may cause breathing problems False teeth could cause major breathing problems. Researchers find a link between wearing dentures and developing pneumonia. Pneumonia is an inflammatio...

Family, attorney of man killed in Willowbrook shooting hold news conference

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

An attorney for a man who was shot and killed in a shooting in Willowbrook Township held a press conference early Wednesday afternoon, where family members of the man killed spoke out for the first time since his death.Authorities said 31-year-old Reginald Meadows was killed early Sunday in a shooting that also left over 20 injured. "I know the only reason Reginald didn't duck is because he wanted to make sure I was okay," said Ashley Miller, Meadows' fiance. "That was his main thing."A group of people were peacefully gathering at a strip mall around 12:30 a.m. Sunday near Route 83 and Honeysuckle Rose Lane in Willowbrook Township when shots were fired.An unknown number of individuals fired shots from multiple weapons in the crowd, the sheriff’s office said. What we know so far on the Willowbrook Juneteenth mass shooting Miller recalled the moment when shots rang out during the Juneteenth celebration that was taking place, saying that she and her future husband were only there fo...

Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb endorses Mike Pence for President

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS — Current Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb has announced his endorsement of Mike Pence for US President.In a tweet sent Wednesday afternoon, Republican candidate for President and former Vice President Mike Pence said that Holcomb will be endorsing him. "Karen and I are truly humbled by Governor Holcomb's endorsement as we set out to make America stronger and more prosperous," Pence said. "Thank you." RELATED: Mike Pence files to run for president Pence, who served as governor of Indiana from 2013 to 2017, announced his presidential bid earlier this month. The former Vice President's announcement officially set up a showdown between the Republican Party’s most recent president and vice president as he and former President Trump are both seeking the GOP nomination."I've known Mike Pence for decades," Holcomb said in his endorsement. "Throughout those years, he's remained honest as the day is long."To read Pence's full announcement of Holcomb's endorsement, click here.

Florida couple sued OceanGate CEO months before submersible went missing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:46:08 GMT

WINTER PARK, Fla. (WFLA) – Months before an OceanGate Expeditions submersible went missing in the North Atlantic after embarking on a visit to see the wreckage of the Titanic, a Central Florida couple filed a lawsuit against the company, alleging fraud, according to documents.Since 2021, OceanGate has been taking tourists to the area of the Titanic wreck. The company's 21-foot submersible, Titan, was carrying five people when it went underwater and vanished Sunday. Winter Park couple Marc and Sharon Hagle had planned to visit the wreckage onboard the OceanGate sub in 2018. They allegedly paid over $200,000 to participate in the expedition. However, their trip was delayed, and the couple never went on the voyage. The couple said OceanGate kept delaying their trip and refused to give them a refund. Man who visited Titanic site: ‘No one ever said it was safe’ The Hagles' sued OceanGate's CEO Richard Stockton Rush for alleged fraud, saying his company "knowingly strung the...