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Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg calls House GOP committee meddling in Trump prosecution ‘improper and dangerous’

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

By The New York Daily NewsManhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg pushed back against House GOP members nosing into the criminal investigation into former president Donald Trump, calling their interference “improper and dangerous.”The House Judiciary Committee had demanded Bragg testify before Congress about the confidential investigation that led to the indictment that became public on Thursday night and share with them non-public evidence.In a letter sent Friday, Bragg acknowledged the charges publicly and doubled down on a previous letter telling the committee to back off.Bragg’s office also denounced the committee for attacking him instead of condemning Trump’s social media polemics ahead of his indictment threatening violence would break out.“Finally, as you are no doubt aware, former President Trump has directed harsh invective against District Attorney Bragg and threatened on social media that his arrest or indictment in New York may unleash ‘death & destruction,” Bragg’s...

Trump indictment: Everything we know about what happens next

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

How did the indictment unfold?Donald Trump was indicted Thursday by a Manhattan grand jury in the Stormy Daniels hush money probe, a historic legal development marking the first criminal charges in U.S. ever brought against a current or former U.S. president. The papers were filed at about 5:30 p.m. under seal at the clerk’s office in Manhattan Supreme Court.What are the actual charges?Not even Trump knows what he’s charged with. But leaks to the New York Times and CNN in the wake of the indictment indicated he faces up to 34 criminal counts related to business fraud.Barriers in front of Trump Tower in New York City on March 31, 2023. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)Why aren’t the charges public?Sometimes prosecutors file papers under seal, as DA Bragg’s office did in Trump’s case. The charges are set to be revealed once Trump is in court to enter his plea. The charges are expected to relate at least in part to hush moneys payment made to women Trump allegedly had ex...

NYPD braces for protests, possible violence following Trump indictment

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

By The New York Daily NewsNEW YORK — The NYPD officers showed up to work on Friday in uniform in preparation for any mass protests or potential violence stemming from the indictment of former President Donald Trump, cops said Friday.Officers are ready to mobilize to either Manhattan Criminal Court or to Trump Tower in Midtown, where protests are expected to take place, according to the department.Trump was indicted Thursday by a Manhattan grand jury in the Stormy Daniels hush-money probe, an unprecedented legal move marking the first criminal charges in U.S. history brought against a former president.Trump’s attorney Joe Tacopina confirmed the indictment to The News shortly after Trump learned of it.Despite the heavy anticipation over the announcement, only a handful of protesters, both in favor of the indictment and against it, showed up with signs outside Manhattan Criminal Court, but everyone was orderly.No arrests in the city Thursday night were related to the Trump indictment, ...

Melania Trump smiles by Trump’s side, Ivanka silent, Don Jr. fumes following indictment

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

If Donald Trump was still “absorbing” the news of indictment Thursday, he and his wife Melania put on a show of “happiness” to their guests at Mar-a-Lago, according to one of those guests.“Beautiful evening here at the gorgeous Mar a Lago!” tweeted conservative media personality and Mar-a-Lago member Gina Loudon, sharing a photo of an uncertain-looking Trump at his private Palm Beach, Florida resort, with a smiling Melania Trump by his side, dressed in a very bright red dress.  “Our REAL First Couple enveloped in the love of their friends and most loyal!”Beautiful evening here at the gorgeous Mar a Lago! Our REAL First Couple enveloped in the love of their friends and most loyal! (Sorry to disappoint, corporate media . Actually not. Screw you! This is a happiness you will never know, sadly). pic.twitter.com/IFsFU41lAd— Dr. Gina (@RealDrGina) March 31, 2023Meanwhile, Trump’s two older sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump,...

Veteran-heavy Mets ready to roll with the punches after Justin Verlander injury news

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

MIAMI — It’s not exactly uncharacteristic of the Mets to drop big news during big moments of the season. Yet when the club announced that Justin Verlander would start the year on the injured list with a shoulder (teres major) strain just hours before Thursday’s season opener, it was a shock to everyone — even his teammates.“It caught all of us off guard,” right-hander Max Scherzer said Thursday night at LoanDepot Park. “I didn’t realize he was dealing with something.”Verlander himself didn’t even realize he was dealing with something until he threw his bullpen Wednesday night. The thought occurred to him that something might be wrong after his last Grapefruit League start, but he attributed some minor soreness to some mechanical adjustments. Losing a key pitcher like that could have had a ripple effect on the clubhouse, especially since the team is without All-Star closer Edwin Diaz for the season and left-hander Jose Quint...

36 bodies found inside well after collapse at Indian temple

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

By ASHOK SHARMA (Associated Press)NEW DELHI (AP) — Thirty-six bodies have been found inside a well at a Hindu temple in central India after dozens of people attending a festival fell into the muddy water when its cover collapsed, officials said Friday.Video of Thursday’s collapse at the temple complex in Indore in Madhya Pradesh state showed chaos afterward, with people rushing away. An excavator pulled down a wall of the decades-old temple to help people flee. Nearly 140 rescuers, including army personnel, used ropes and ladders to pull the bodies from the well after pumping out the water. A narrow path and debris in the well made the task difficult.“We have recovered 36 bodies and everybody is accounted for now,” Pawan Kumar Sharma, commissioner of the local municipal corporation, told The Associated Press.The secretary of the temple board was among the dead and the president is recovering from injuries, Sharma said.Police brought a case of culpable homicid...

Italy temporarily blocks ChatGPT over privacy concerns

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

ROME (AP) — Italy is temporarily blocking the artificial intelligence software ChatGPT in the wake of a data breach as it investigates a possible violation of stringent European Union data protection rules, the government’s privacy watchdog said Friday.The Italian Data Protection Authority said it was taking provisional action “until ChatGPT respects privacy,” including temporarily limiting the company from processing Italian users’ data. U.S.-based OpenAI, which developed ChatGPT, didn’t immediately return a request for comment Friday.While some public schools and universities around the world have blocked the ChatGPT website from their local networks over student plagiarism concerns, it’s not clear how Italy would block it at a nationwide level. The move also is unlikely to affect applications from companies that already have licenses with OpenAI to use the same technology driving the chatbot, such as Microsoft’s Bing search engine.The AI systems that power such chatbo...

Online-streaming bill closer to passing after House OKs most Senate amendments

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

OTTAWA — A Liberal government bill that would require online streaming services to contribute to Canadian content is one step closer to passing after the House of Commons approved most of the Senate’s amendments to the proposed legislation. If passed, Bill C-11 would update broadcasting rules to include online streaming and require tech giants such as YouTube, Netflix and Spotify to make Canadian content available to users in Canada — or face steep penalties.On Thursday evening, the House agreed to adopt Senate amendments that reinforce the promotion of Indigenous languages and Black content creators, and seek to ensure that funds collected from tech giants go toward promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. The move received quick praise from those who advocate for the arts and media industry. “Canadians deserve the ability to see their own stories, culture and points of view included in their content options. That is what C-11 is ultimately about,” said Neal McD...

Stocks rise as Wall Street heads for winning March, quarter

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are rising Friday, and Wall Street is on track to close out a winning March and first quarter of the year despite a long list of worries being thrown at it. The S&P 500 was 0.9% higher in afternoon trading. It’s on pace for a 3% gain for the month and a second winning quarter in a row after tumbling through most of last year on worries about high interest rates meant to get inflation under control. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 283 points, or 0.9%, at 33,142, as of 12:36 p.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was 1.2% higher. Friday’s gains came after a report showed inflation across the United States slowed in February, though it was still high relative to history. A continued slowdown could give the Federal Reserve more leeway to take it easier on interest rates after jacking them higher at a furious pace over the last year. The threat of higher rates has been behind the stock market’s struggles since it peaked in early 2022. High rates ...

Harris visits site of grandfather’s old home in Zambia

Published Tue, 18 Feb 2025 21:11:38 GMT

LUSAKA, Zambia (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris paused Friday during a whirlwind diplomatic swing through Africa for something much more personal: A visit to the site of her maternal grandfather’s home in Lusaka, where he lived as an Indian public servant in the 1960s.P.V. Gopalan was working with the newly independent Zambia government six decades ago on refugee resettlement and lived at 16 Independence Ave., where Harris visited as a little girl.The home no longer exists; rather, an office building now stands on the plot of land. The location was identified using plot numbers in public records and land surveys, according to a White House official.Harris on Friday said it was “very special” to go back, and she described her grandfather as “one of my favorite people” with a lasting influence on her life.“He believed in the nobility of public service, he believed in fighting corruption,” she said. “These are things he would talk about a lot, and I don’t think until I was older I r...