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National Guard member accused of applying to work as hitman on website

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A National Guard member in Tennessee who is accused of sending his resume to a website called Rent-A-Hitman is facing federal charges.According to a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Josiah Ernesto Garcia, 21, of Hermitage, is believed to have submitted an inquiry to the website on Feb. 16 indicating he was interested in working as a hired killer. The website was originally created in 2005 to advertise a cyber security startup company, but the company never took off, and over the next decade, it reportedly received many inquiries about murder-for-hire services. 2 dead, 4 injured in Louisville shooting days after mass shooting at bank The website's administrator then converted the website to a parody site that contains false testimonials from those who have claimed to use hitman services, an intake form where people can request services and an option to apply to be a hired killer. One of the fake tes...

McDonald’s is upgrading its burgers

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

(CNN) — McDonald’s, which has been focusing on upgrading its core items to boost sales, is rolling out a series of changes designed to improve its signature burgers.Buns will be softer. Cheese, gooier. Onion will be added to patties right on the grill. And the Big Mac sauce? There will be more of it.“We found that small changes, like tweaking our process to get hotter, meltier cheese and adjusting our grill settings for a better sear, added up to a big difference in making our burgers more flavorful than ever,” said chef Chad Schafer, senior director of culinary innovation of McDonald’s USA, in a statement Monday. The upgrades apply to the Big Mac and the McDouble burger as well as the classic cheeseburger, double cheeseburger and hamburger.The improvements were first made to burgers in international markets, the company said, and have already arrived in some US cities, including Los Angeles, Seattle, Phoenix, Las Vegas. They’ll be available natio...

Macron’s China remarks are a ‘disaster’ for Europe, EU conservative leader says

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

European People’s Party chief Manfred Weber took a jab at French President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial comments on China, the U.S. and Taiwan, saying they highlighted the bloc’s lack of a common China policy.“Macron’s interview has been a disaster, and made clear the great rift within the European Union in defining a common strategic plan against Beijing,” Weber said in an interview published Monday with Italian daily Corriere della Sera.Weber called on European leaders to “find an agreement” on China during the next European Council in June. Macron triggered outrage among Western allies after a recent interview with POLITICO, in which he said that Europe should steer clear of becoming a follower of the U.S.’s China policy — including on Taiwan. China claims the self-governing island as part of its own territory. “The question Europeans need to answer … is it in our interest to accelerate [a crisis] on Taiwan? No,” said...

Rishi Sunak facing ethics probe over declaration of interests

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

LONDON — The U.K. parliament’s standards watchdog has launched an investigation into whether Rishi Sunak broke the code of conduct for MPs by failing to declare a relevant interest. The standards commissioner’s investigation does not detail the specific interest under investigation, but the prime minister has recently faced questions over his wife Akshata Murty’s stake in childcare business Koru Kids following a £4bn boost for the sector in last month’s Budget. Sunak wrote to the House of Commons liaison committee earlier this month saying his interest in the firm had been declared in the yet-to-be-published list of ministerial interests. It is not currently listed in the separate register of interests filled out by each MP. In the letter, written on 4 April, Sunak noted “media interest” in his wife’s “minority stake” in the firm, adding: “I would like to clarify for the parliamentary record that this interest has ...

‘Shocking’: Putin critic handed 25 years in prison

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

MOSCOW — A Russian court on Monday slapped opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza with 25 years in prison for treason and other claimed offenses.Moscow City Court sentenced Kara-Murza to a penal colony for spreading “fake news” about the army and “cooperation with an undesirable organization,” as Russian President Vladimir Putin steps up his crackdown on dissent and Russian civil society. But the bulk of his sentence had to do with another, third charge: treason, in the first time anyone has been convicted on that count for making public statements containing publicly available information.On the courthouse steps, British Ambassador Deborah Bronnert called the sentence for Kara-Murza, who holds both Russian and British citizenship, “shocking.” Her U.S. counterpart said the verdict was an attempt “to silence dissent in this country.” The U.K. summoned the Russian ambassador after the conviction, with Foreign Secretary James Clever...

Germany’s conservatives back EU’s von der Leyen for second term — if she wants it

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

BERLIN — Germany’s center-right Christian Democrats will support Ursula von der Leyen if she chooses to seek a second term in 2024 as the EU’s top executive, party leader Friedrich Merz said Monday.Merz, whose party is Germany’s main opposition to Chancellor Olaf Scholz, made the remarks alongside von der Leyen, the European Commission president, who was in Berlin for meetings with leaders from her political family, the CDU.“She has our support in the event of a corresponding willingness,” Merz said, adding that he had conveyed this to Scholz as well, expressing the hope that Germany would propose von der Leyen.Von der Leyen, however, was coy about her intentions. The Commission president’s term will be up in 2024 after the European election, and von der Leyen has yet to officially say whether she will push for another five-year stint. “For me, it is very important that we show unity and strength in the European Union in these critical times, and theref...

Nearby church welcomes parishioners from Faith Lutheran Church in Cambridge following Easter Sunday fire

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

A nearby church is welcoming parishioners from Faith Lutheran Church in Cambridge after a massive fire tore through the building on Easter Sunday. Although the walls of their temporary home are different, Faith Lutheran says the fellowship is stronger than ever. “It is crucial to be together, to be able to comfort each other in person, to pray for each other, to hold each other, to cry together,” said Rev. Robin Lutjohann.Shortly after Easter services, flames destroyed the more than 100-year-old structure, leaving a community heartbroken. “You always feel when you have a beautiful building like this that you’re keeping the building going, and that connection will be gone,” said Faith Lutheran parishioner Jeanne Garrison. Following the fire, the steeple of the church had to come down for safety reasons. “I think every individual is doing differently,” Lutjohann said. “Grief and loss is experienced differently by different people, so ev...

A teenager was shot by a homeowner after going to the wrong house to pick up siblings, Kansas City police say

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

(CNN) — Protesters took to the streets after a homeowner shot and wounded teenager Ralph Yarl, who had mistakenly gone to the wrong home to pick up his siblings in Kansas City, Missouri, police said Sunday.Yarl, 16, was “shot twice and struck in the head and arm,” the family’s attorneys said in a statement.Protesters marched as they chanted, “justice for Ralph” and “Black lives matter,” and carried signs reading, “Ringing a doorbell is not a crime” and “The shooter should do the time,” footage from CNN affiliate KMBC shows.Officers responded to reports of a shooting on the evening of April 13 and arrived to find a teenager who had been shot by a homeowner outside a residence, according to Kansas City Police.The teen was taken to a hospital, where he was in stable condition Sunday, police said.Police learned the teenager’s parents had asked him to pick up his siblings at an address on 115th T...

Lawmakers return to Washington as debt limit crisis and other key issues loom

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

(CNN) — Lawmakers face a lengthy to-do list as they return to the Capitol after a two-week recess to confront a series of critical issues ranging from a looming debt limit crisis to the fallout from a leak of highly classified Pentagon documents.There is still no agreement in sight to raise the debt ceiling despite the threat of economic catastrophe if the issue is not resolved in a matter of months and Republicans are eying passing their own debt ceiling increase paired with spending cuts in an effort to pressure the Biden administration to the negotiating table.House Speaker Kevin McCarthy will deliver a speech on the economy at the New York Stock Exchange on Monday, where he will address the looming crisis. A major challenge for House Republicans is whether they will be able to coalesce behind a detailed list of cuts.House Republican leaders are moving behind the scenes to get their conference behind a plan that would raise the debt ceiling for one year ...

One death and almost 100 cases of rare fungal infection linked to Michigan paper mill, health officials say

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 19:25:02 GMT

(CNN) — Ninety-seven confirmed or probable cases of blastomycosis have been identified in Michigan’s Delta and Menominee counties, according to the local health department, and they are believed to be associated with a paper mill in the town of Escanaba.One death has been associated with the outbreak: A contractor who worked at the Escanaba Billerud Paper Mill until recently passing away due to blastomycosis.“We were saddened to hear this news. Our heartfelt sympathies and prayers go out to the family, friends and co-workers who have lost their loved one,” county health officer Michael Snyder said in a news release.“Everyone at Billerud is deeply saddened by this news,” Brian Peterson, Escanaba Billerud Paper Mill’s vice president of operations, said. “Anyone who works at our facility is part of our team, and we are keeping this individual, their family, coworkers and friends in our thoughts and close to our hearts.”Blastomy...