Category Archives: US News

Wood banks emerge as vital source of heat while US gas bills still on the rise

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Wood banks distribute firewood to people in need as the average US gas bill goes up by 28% this winter

Inflation may be going down in the US, dropping to 6.5% from last month’s 7.1%, but the cost of keeping a home warm this winter is still on the rise. The average gas bill will increase by 28% this winter compared to last, according to estimates from the Energy Information Administration.

In some places across the country, people are returning to a surprising source of heat to keep costs down: wood. In areas where wood is more widely available and used for heating – such as forested parts of New England – wood banks are emerging as a vital way to stay warm this winter.

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Nikki Haley accuses Pompeo of ‘lies’ after VP plot claim | First Thing

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Former UN ambassador hits back at ex-secretary of state as jockeying for Republican presidential primary hots up. Plus, the radical power of hanging out

Good morning.

Nikki Haley, the former UN ambassador, said the former secretary of state Mike Pompeo’s claim that she plotted to replace Mike Pence as Donald Trump’s vice-president was “lies and gossip to sell a book”.

What did Haley say? Speaking to Fox News, Haley said: “I don’t know why he said it, but that’s exactly why I stayed out of DC as much as possible, to get away from the drama.” She also pointed out that Pompeo says in his book he does not know if the story is true.

Is Haley planning the Republican presidential nomination in 2024? Both Haley and Pompeo are among possible contenders in the contest in which Trump remains the only confirmed candidate. Haley seems set to run. She told Fox News: “We are still working through things and we’ll figure it out. I’ve never lost a race. I said that then, I still say that now. I’m not going to lose now.”

What has the US government said? The US defence secretary has called for the allies to “dig deeper” in their support for Ukraine as “history is watching us”, as he gave details of the $2.5bn military aid package the US announced yesterday.

What else is happening? Here’s what we know on day 331 of the invasion.

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US heads for debt-ceiling standoff as House Republicans refuse to budge

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Hard-right Republicans say no to ‘clean’ debt ceiling increase, raising dire possibility of US defaulting on financial obligations

The US economy could be headed for a crisis manufactured by a handful of House Republicans.

The treasury secretary, Janet Yellen, informed congressional leaders on Thursday that the US has hit its debt ceiling, which limits the amount of money that the government can borrow to pay all of its bills. Yellen urged Congress to work as quickly as possible to raise the debt ceiling and prevent the US from defaulting on any of its financial obligations, which would have catastrophic consequences.

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People exposed to weedkiller chemical have cancer biomarkers in urine – study

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Study measured glyphosate in urine and found high levels associated with signs of oxidative stress

New research by top US government scientists has found that people exposed to the widely used weedkilling chemical glyphosate have biomarkers in their urine linked to the development of cancer and other diseases.

The study, published last week in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, measured glyphosate levels in the urine of farmers and other study participants and determined that high levels of the pesticide were associated with signs of a reaction in the body called oxidative stress, a condition that causes damage to DNA.

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US hits borrowing limit, kicking off fight between Republicans and Democrats – live

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Urban Institute economist Len Burman has a reality check for those in Congress flirting with not raising the debt ceiling.

A default could undermine the America’s pre-eminence in global markets, where the dollar is used as many countries’ dominant reserve currency. But more immediately, it would actually force Washington to spend even more, because a default would drive up interest rates, forcing the government to shell out more money to owners of its trillions of dollars in debt:

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US government hits debt ceiling as Biden and House Republicans face off

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Treasury secretary says department will take ‘extraordinary measures’ to skirt default while also urging Congress to act

The US government has hit the ceiling on its debt, brushing up against its legal limit of $38.381tn and piling pressure on Congress to approve an increase to avoid a debt default in the coming months that would send a shock wave through the global economy.

In a letter to congressional leaders, the treasury secretary, Janet Yellen, said it would begin taking “extraordinary measures” to make the government’s cash on hand last until Congress acts. These include a “debt issuance suspension period” lasting from today until 5 June, as well as suspending investments into two government employee retirement funds.

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Alec Baldwin to be charged with involuntary manslaughter in fatal shooting on Rust film set

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Film’s armorer overseeing weapons, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, will also be charged with involuntary manslaughter in 2021 shooting

The actor Alec Baldwin is facing criminal charges of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal film-set shooting of a cinematographer during a rehearsal of the western film Rust, according to prosecutors.

The film’s armorer overseeing weapons, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, is also set to be charged with involuntary manslaughter in the shooting death of Halyna Hutchins in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in 2021.

The Associated Press contributed

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JP Morgan chief says US should not be ‘playing games’ with debt ceiling

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Jamie Dimon warns that US creditworthiness should be ‘sacrosanct’ as country’s debt races toward $31.4tn limit

The US should not be “playing games” with the debt ceiling, the JP Morgan chief executive, Jamie Dimon, warned warring US political factions on Thursday as a heated row over the federal borrowing limit reached a crisis point.

“We should never question the creditworthiness of the US government. That is sacrosanct and it should never happen,” Dimon said on Thursday in an interview on CNBC. “This is not something we should be playing games with at all.”

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Man leads police on low-speed chase with stolen tractor in North Carolina

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When officers attempted to stop Ronnie Hicks, he drove the John Deere tractor down US Highway 421 south, hitting 20mph

Call it a low-speed chase.

“What a day,” wrote Andy LeBeau, the police chief of Boone, North Carolina, in a Facebook post. “So, many of you have heard, or have seen the videos, that we got in a pursuit with a tractor.”

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George Santos denies reports that he competed as drag queen in Brazil

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New York Republican under pressure over fabrications about his career, past and alleged criminal behaviour

George Santos on Thursday tweeted an angry denial that he competed as a drag queen in Brazilian beauty pageants 15 years ago, claims made by acquaintances that have highlighted the contrast between the Republican congressman’s past actions and now staunchly conservative views.

The New Yorker, who says he is gay, dismissed the story as an “obsession” by the media, which he insisted, without irony, “continues to make outrageous claims about my life”.

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San Francisco man arrested after spraying homeless woman with hose

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Art gallery owner Collier Gwin, 71, faces potential jail term after video showed woman being hosed with water

A California man seen in a viral video spraying a homeless woman with a garden hose has been arrested on a charge of battery, authorities in San Francisco said.

Collier Gwin, 71, an art gallery owner, was captured in the video, taken on 9 January, leaning on a railing with his legs crossed as he directed a jet of water at the woman in an effort to get her to move on.

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Missing hiker reported in California revealed as British actor Julian Sands

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The 65-year-old, known for movies such as A Room with a View and The Killing Fields, went missing Friday near Mt Baldy

British actor Julian Sands has been reported missing after hiking in the San Gabriel mountains on Friday, according to the San Bernardino county sheriff’s department.

The 65-year-old actor, known for his roles in A Room with a View, The Killing Fields, and Naked Lunch, lives in North Hollywood.

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Hiker missing in California named as British actor Julian Sands

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Actor, known for roles in Leaving Las Vegas and Warlock, was reported missing on Friday evening

A hiker reported as missing in southern California has been named as the British actor Julian Sands.

The 65-year-old was reported missing in the Baldy Bowl area of the San Gabriel mountains on Friday evening, with searches by local authorities continuing over the weekend.

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Microsoft to cut 10,000 jobs in March as tech firms, including Amazon, thin ranks

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Sector reacts to post-pandemic shift in digital spending and gloomy economic outlook for 2023

Microsoft is cutting 10,000 jobs as it cited a post-pandemic shift in digital spending habits and weakness in the global economy.

The tech group joined a list of US peers making extensive job cuts, including Facebook owner Meta, Amazon, and business software-maker Salesforce, who have scaled back on workforce expansions stoked by a pandemic-related boom in demand for their services and products that have lost momentum.

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Trump pleads with Meta to restore Facebook account

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Former president’s lawyers petition company to allow access following ban from platform in wake of 2021 Capitol attack

Donald Trump has petitioned Meta to restore his access to Facebook, as he reportedly looks to shift his 2024 presidential campaign into a higher gear.

The former president was banned from Facebook more than two years ago, after his followers attacked the US Capitol in an unsuccessful attempt to stop certification of Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election.

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Republicans defend George Santos as report details alleged sick dog fraud

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Small business panel chair defends seat for freshman despite claim fabulist congressman bilked veteran out of $3,000 to save dog’s life

The chairman of one of two House committees on which George Santos will sit has defended the decision, despite the New York Republican’s résumé having been shown to be largely made up, and amid allegations of deceitful and criminal behaviour now including bilking a disabled veteran out of $3,000 raised to save the life of his dog, and fabricating a story about his mother surviving the 9/11 attacks.

The disabled veteran, Richard Osthoff, told the news site Patch he was “crying his eyes out remembering Sapphire’s last day”.

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White House condemns appointments of far-right Republicans to House oversight panel – as it happened

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Donald Trump remains the most popular man in the GOP, or at least among those running for president, pollster Morning Consult finds in a survey released today:

Deeper in the survey, you’ll find Florida governor Ron DeSantis the leader among second choices for the nominations, distantly followed by former vice-president Mike Pence.

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Russian owner of cryptocurrency exchange Bitzlato arrested in Miami

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Prosecutors allege Anatoly Legkodymov’s company became a ‘safe haven’ for proceeds of criminal activity

A Russian national who founded a cryptocurrency exchange that the justice department says became a haven for the proceeds of criminal activity has been arrested, federal officials said on Wednesday.

Anatoly Legkodymov, who lives in China, was arrested on Tuesday night in Miami and was due in court on a charge of conducting an unlicensed money-transmitting business.

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Health Canada recommends limiting alcohol to just 2 drinks per week

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The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) identifies cancer, heart disease and stroke as health risks of drinking alcohol

New alcohol guidelines recommending that Canadians limit themselves to just two drinks a week – and ideally cut alcohol altogether – have prompted intense debate over risk versus enjoyment in a country where the vast majority of adults regularly consume alcohol.

The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) this week called for a substantial reduction in consumption, warning that seemingly moderate drinking poses a number of serious health risks, including cancer, heart disease and stroke.

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Ukraine’s interior minister killed in helicopter crash | First Thing

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Denys Monastyrskiy and officials, as well as children, among dead after crash outside Kyiv. Plus, meteorologists describe what it’s like to have a front row seat to the climate crisis

Good morning.

Fifteen people including Ukraine’s interior minister and other senior officials were killed when a helicopter crashed outside Kyiv in the town of Brovary, the national police chief said.

What has Volodymr Zelenskiy said about the tragedy? Writing on Telegram, Ukraine’s president said: “Today, a terrible tragedy occurred in Brovary, Kyiv region. A state emergency services helicopter crashed, and a fire broke out at the crash site … 25 people were injured, including 10 children. As of this minute, three children died. The pain is unspeakable. The helicopter fell on the territory of one of the kindergartens.”

What else is happening in US politics? Republican lawmakers across the country have already filed dozens of bills that would restrict voting, including proposals in Texas that would increase criminal penalties on people who violate voting laws and enact a new law enforcement unit to prosecute election crimes.

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