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Maryland congressman explains likely impacts of possible government shutdown on Montgomery Co.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

Once again, federal workers, the contractors who depend on government work and local jurisdictions across the D.C. region are bracing for the possibility of another government shutdown.On Wednesday, Democratic Congressman Jamie Raskin joined Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich to talk about the potential impacts in Montgomery County, home to thousands of federal workers and agencies like the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the National Institutes of Health.Raskin said “I’ve got 58,000 active federal employees in the 8th district,” and many more “whose livelihoods are intertwined with the federal government as federal contractors and people who work in associated industries.”Raskin said questions remain about how exactly a shutdown would affect different sectors of the federal workforce. He said his office is prepared to help answer constituent questions about the possible effects of a shutdown.First, he responded to whether s...

Inter’s perfect start ended by 2-1 loss to Sassuolo. AC Milan catches city rival atop Serie A

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

MILAN (AP) — Inter Milan saw its perfect start to the Serie A season come to an end as it fell to a surprise 2-1 loss at home to Sassuolo on Wednesday.Denzel Dumfries fired Inter in front on the stroke of halftime but two goals in nine second-half minutes — including a stunner from Domenico Berardi — gave Sassuolo another impressive win, following its 4-2 victory over Juventus at the weekend.The result left Inter level on points at the top of the table with city rival AC Milan after United States international Christian Pulisic helped the Rossoneri to a 3-1 victory over Cagliari.Inter was looking to make it six wins out of six in an impressive start to the season and was also the only unbeaten side remaining in Serie A.Matters appeared to be going to plan when it took the lead in first-half stoppages. Dumfries cut inside from the right and befuddled one defender before firing a shot between the legs of another and into the bottom left corner.However, the warning signs had been there...

What autoworkers’ strike could mean for car repairs in the DC area

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

Not long after the union United Auto Workers went on strike against three big carmakers earlier this month, Precise Auto Service in Kensington, Maryland, sent an email blast to about 1,000 customers. Many customers have been reluctant to go through with all of the shop’s recommended repairs or services, according to Shop Manager Blake Ridgeway, because of how expensive it has become to maintain cars. But in the message, the shop urged customers to not put off addressing its recommendations, “to go ahead and get it in now while they still can, while parts are available to a certain extent.”Though the strike is fairly recent, Ridgeway said some delays in getting parts preceded it. The shop used to be able to get parts within 24 hours, but in the last three to six months, he said “it’s been really difficult. We’ve had cars sitting for a week-plus sometimes.” The average turnaround time is now two to three days, Ridgeway said, and within 24 hours for brakes. For axle or suspension parts...

Judge Tanya Chutkan denies Donald Trump’s request to recuse herself in 2020 election subversion case in Washington

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Judge Tanya Chutkan denies Donald Trump’s request to recuse herself in 2020 election subversion case in Washington.Source

FAQ: What you need to know about an impending government shutdown

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

With the expiration of last year’s federal funding coming up this Sunday, Oct. 1, and the two chambers of Congress starkly divided, a government shutdown seems imminent. The 2018-2019 shutdown, that lasted a record 35 days, is still fresh in the minds of D.C. area residents. Many federal and contract workers around the District are wondering if they should be preparing to be furloughed or work without pay for an indefinite amount of time.Americans that don’t work for the government will also be affected, as government and federally funded services will be restricted or delayed.Let’s jump into what exactly is fueling this possible shutdown and how it could affect you.Source

Jaguars WR Calvin Ridley eager to show everyone, including the Falcons, his true skills

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — It admittedly took Calvin Ridley “a couple days” to get over the worst performance of his NFL career.Two dropped touchdown passes. Two false start penalties. Two days of mulling what went wrong and why in a 37-17 loss to Houston.“You have to throw it away,” Ridley said Wednesday. “Everyone hates dropping a pass. You think I went out there to drop a pass? I come out here and practice hard, catch pretty much everything. You feel me?“I made a mistake. I can’t wait to get back out there to show the fans, whoever, my mom, my family and my teammates that I’m working hard to be a great player.”He left out one more: the Atlanta Falcons.Ridley will travel 4,300 miles (6,900 kilometers) to face his former team for the first time when the stumbling Jacksonville Jaguars (1-2) “host” the Falcons (2-1) at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday. It’s the first of back-to-back games for Jacksonville across the pond and Ridley’s first venture to London.Ridley initially tried t...

Police clear suspicious item at Boulder death investigation scene

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- The Boulder Police Department evacuated several apartment units near the 4500 block of 13th Street in Boulder because of a death investigation and a "suspicious device."FOX31's Vicente Arenas was on the scene. He reported just before 5 p.m. that investigators were clearing the scene. Evacuations were lifted and residents were soon to return to their homes.Police deployed robots to investigate the item and learned the suspicious device was nonhazardous but made to look like a bomb — an unusual box with wires coming out of it. Buyer, beware: Police warn of card-tapping scam Nothing had been released as of Wednesday evening about the person who was found dead at the scene. Boulder Police tweeted about the evacuation on Wednesday at 11:38 a.m. Explosive detection investigators were on the scene. Download the FOX31 App: Breaking news alerts & Pinpoint Weather At first, only one building was being evacuated while the surrounding units were sheltering in place. The...

Another day, another dousing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

The wet weather trend continues for much of south Florida (and the pattern is getting old and tiresome for many). For the past 15 days, we’ve had rain and storms break out. The excessive rainfall has caused numerous street flooding hazards, on a regular basis. Since more downpours are in the forecast, brace for more instances of “splashing and dashing”. The reason we’re stuck in this wet and unsettled pattern is because of a moisture connection to the tropics. A large shield of tropical moisture continues to stream northward towards Florida (from the Caribbean Sea). As it gets pulled in our direction, it acts as fuel for heavy rain and thunderstorms. There’s no immediate relief coming. Instead, we’ll have to put up with more damp days to close out the week. Looking beyond that time frame, if some of our long range forecast models are correct, there’s a glimmer of hope ahead. Once we get into the start of October, we may have a turn...

Victims’ families protest in Surfside ahead of commissioners’ vote on future development of condo collapse site

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

A battle continues to brew in Surfside over what’s being built at the site of the deadly condominium collapse, and despite the developers’ announcement that they will be changing some of the plans, families of the victims are still upset.Families of the victims of the June 24, 2021 collapse peacefully protested outside Surfside Town Hall on Wednesday before commissioners meet for a final vote on future development at the site of the tragedy and Surfside memorial.“Is this normal? is it normal for 98 people to get killed in a place they called home and have to rally for respect?” said Martin Langesfeld, who lost his sister and brother-in-law in the collapse.The victims’ families have been fighting for a memorial on 88th Street and have been meeting with commissioners and the developers. They have voiced their concerns about the placement of a garbage collection area and a loading dock for the new luxury condo that will be built in the same location.“...

Chinese hackers nab 60,000 emails in US State Department breach

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:54:43 GMT

WASHINGTON — Hackers linked to the Chinese government stole around 60,000 emails from the unclassified inboxes of 10 U.S. State Department employees as part of a high-profile hack earlier this summer, according to a readout from a Senate staff briefing on Wednesday.The new details of the previously known hacking incident, which also impacted U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, are likely to only exacerbate concerns on Capitol Hill about Chinese hacking efforts, which have ramped up this year.According to a Senate staffer for Senator Eric Schmitt (Republican, Missouri), granted anonymity in order to discuss a private briefing, top officials from the State Department revealed the new details of the hack during a Capitol Hill briefing for staffers.The officials, who included State Department Chief Information Officer Kelly Fletcher, told attendees the focus of the hack was on Indo-Pacific diplomatic efforts, with nine of the 10 email accounts breached at the State Departme...