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Ross Douthat: Kevin McCarthy has a rare quality for a Republican House Speaker

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

Among the various reassessments of Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., after his successful debt-ceiling negotiations, the one with the widest implications belongs to Matthew Continetti, who writes in The Washington Free Beacon that “McCarthy’s superpower is his desire to be speaker. He likes and wants his job.”If you hadn’t followed American politics across the past few decades, this would seem like a peculiar statement: What kind of House speaker wouldn’t want the job?But part of what has gone wrong with American institutions lately is the failure of important figures to regard their positions as ends unto themselves. Congress, especially, has been overtaken by what Yuval Levin of the American Enterprise Institute describes as a “platform” mentality, where ambitious House members and senators treat their offices as places to stand and be seen — as talking heads, movement leaders, future presidents — rather than as roles to inhabit and opportunities to serve.On the Republican side, this tend...

Stephen L. Carter: The Supreme Court’s confusing water ruling, explained

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

The Supreme Court’s recent decision on the limits of federal authority under the Clean Water Act has been celebrated or condemned, depending on the ideological predilections of the observer. Everyone agrees, however, that the opinions themselves make for rather rough reading.They boil down to a squabble over the words “adjacent” and “adjoining.”The dispute involves Michael and Chantell Sackett, who were trying to build a house on land they’d purchased in Idaho. They trucked in dirt and rocks, only to be warned by the Environmental Protection Agency that because their lot included wetlands, they were violating the Clean Water Act. Unless they restored the area, they faced fines of $40,000 a day.The Sacketts sued. The case has been up and down the appellate ladder several times. Last month, after nearly two decades of litigation, a unanimous Supreme Court ruled in their favor.But on what ground exactly?That’s where the words get tricky.Althoug...

3M granted 3-week delay in PFAS trial amid settlement talks

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

The judge overseeing 4,000 municipal and state lawsuits involving 3M Co. “forever chemicals” agreed to delay the first trial for three weeks so the company can work out a settlement over pollution claims by water providers.U.S. District Judge Mark Gergel said Maplewood-based 3M and the lawyers it suing over the chemicals were in “serious settlement discussions to reach a global resolution” of claims and believe “a final binding agreement is achievable in the near future.” Their time is better spent finalizing that accord and obtaining approvals for it than going to trial in federal court in Charleston, S.C., where jury selection was set to begin Monday, Gergel wrote in an order.Bloomberg News reported on Friday that 3M had struck a tentative settlement of at least $10 billion to cover claims related to municipal providers of drinking water to consumers, according to people familiar with the matter. The accord, which requires approval by 3M’s board, wouldn’t cover an array of other c...

Vulnerable adult missing out of Troy

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Troy police are searching for a missing vulnerable adult. Aladdin Vazquez has dementia and may be in need of medical attention. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Vazquez was last seen around 9 p.m. on Sunday, June 4 leaving Samaritan Hospital on Burdett Avenue in Troy. He was wearing a black coat, blue hospital scrub pants, and dark shoes.Vazquez is 66 years old, 6' tall, 180 lbs., with black hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information is asked to call either Troy police at (518) 270-4421 or 911.

Video: Explosion of gunfire in Spanish Lake; 9-year-old critically injured

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

SPANISH LAKE, Mo. - A hail of gunfire was caught on camera in a quiet north St. Louis County neighborhood right before a 9-year-old boy was shot and critically wounded.The victim's neighbors had to scramble for cover during this frightful ordeal. Police are still searching for the gunman.Daryl Marsaw said he is still in shock after he pulled into his driveway Saturday afternoon in the 1300 block of Aspen Woods Drive, located in Spanish Lake. Person dragged onto front lawn, killed during home invasion on Sunday morning “As I was pulling into my driveway, I made a right turn, and unfortunately, there was gunfire," he said. "It came from a few houses down. The bullets were flying. It was a scary event.”Bullets shattered the windows of his two cars.St. Louis County police officers from the North County Precinct responded to the call of shots fired. Residents said they want the violence to end."I thought it was a firecracker, but then realized they had been shooting," said Benard Hegwo...

Charges filed in St. Charles County road rage shooting

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. - An O'Fallon, Missouri, man has been charged with a road rage shooting that happened 10 days ago on Missouri 364 in St. Charles County.According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the shooting occurred just before 6 p.m. on May 26, in the westbound lanes of the highway.Investigators said the victim was merging onto Missouri 364 when a driver in a dark-colored car would not allow the victim to get on the highway.The driver of that car allegedly pulled out a gun and fired at least two shots at the driver's side of the victim's car. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Breaking News SIGN UP NOW The victim was struck in the hand, but the injury was not life-threatening. The suspect vehicle sped away.State troopers eventually identified the sho...

Belleville fountain shutting off for water main installation

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

BELLEVILLE, Ill. – The popular Veterans Memorial Fountain in Belleville Public Square will be turned off on Tuesday as Illinois American Water begins work to install a new water main."It will start Tuesday, June 6, and we are going to be replacing about 1,200 feet of aging waterline," said Terry Mickin, Illinois American Water. "…The project starts tomorrow and, hopefully, it will be done by September."Illinois Route 159, from Washington Street to A Street, will be closed as the new water main is installed under the public square."It’s time to get it started. We worked closely with the city; with the chamber (of commerce)," Micklin said. “This is the pocket of time to do it. It won’t interfere with any festivals, city events. We realize it is a temporary inconvenience, but very, very important that we get it done." Person dragged onto front lawn, killed during home invasion on Sunday morning The water lines under the fountain are 75 years old and in need of replacement. A mar...

Missouri governor denies clemency for man facing execution on Tuesday

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson on Monday declined clemency for a man who faces execution Tuesday evening for killing two jailers in an ill-fated effort to free someone else from a county jail.Michael Tisius, 42, would be the third person in Missouri, and the 12th person nationally, to be executed in 2023. He's accused of killing officers Leon Egley and Jason Acton in June 2000.“It’s despicable that two dedicated public servants were murdered in a failed attempt to help another criminal evade the law,” Parson, a Republican, said in a statement. "The state of Missouri will carry out Mr. Tisius’s sentences according to the Court’s order and deliver justice.”Tisius has at least one pending court appeal. His appeals and his clemency request have focused on several issues. Among them: Tisius was just 19 at the time of the killings; he had been neglected as a child; and a juror at his 2010 resentencing may have been illiterate — in violation of Missouri law.The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday decl...

For $250K you can live under a bridge in Alhambra; inside the home that has the internet talking

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

Getting into the housing market in Southern California can be both daunting and confusing. If sticker shock doesn't scare you off, finding a property that fits your lifestyle can be even hard to come by.With Los Angeles and the surrounding communities experiencing some of the highest housing prices in the nation, many first-time buyers are looking for something affordable that won't be a money-sink. And if it offers a little bit of charm? Even better. A recently listed property in the San Gabriel Valley appears to check all those boxes — if you're willing to squint a little.The 1-bedroom, 1-bathroom home in Alhambra has captured the attention of prospective buyers across the Los Angeles region and beyond. The realtor tasked with selling the property is hoping to strike the balance between affordable starter home and fixer-upper, but the property is truly unlike anything you've ever seen before.The home is located at 1340 E. Main St., but good luck finding it on Google Street View. T...

Southern California swimmers beware: Great white sharks are everywhere

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:54:33 GMT

California State University Long Beach’s Shark Lab has documented just how close and how often juvenile white sharks are approaching swimmers and surfers off the Southern California coast.Researchers used drones to document the activity across 26 Southern California beaches for two years. They often found young Great white sharks coming very close to people without them even noticing.The good news: In all the interactions they documented, researchers didn’t find any shark bites.A shark swims near unsuspecting boarders in this undated photo. (Patrick Rex)The sharks are currently flocking to Carpinteria in Santa Barbara County and Del Mar in San Diego County, where 20 interactions a day were documented, researchers said.In some cases, a shark came within 60 feet of a swimmer or surfer.In the past, Santa Monica Bay and Dana Point have been hot spots, proving that they change year to year.“We expect these current hot spots will go cold and someplace else will go hot,” Chris Lowe, direct...