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Georgia’s Smart says declining invitation for White House visit was not political

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Georgia coach Kirby Smart insisted Wednesday there was no political motivation behind the decision for his national championship football team to decline an invitation to visit the White House in June.Instead, Smart says scheduling issues, including a youth camp in June at the Georgia football facility, made it impossible for the Bulldogs to accept the invitation to attend a June 12 event with other college teams at the White House. The event is described by President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden as “College Athlete Day.”Smart told the Athens Banner-Herald on Wednesday the inability to accept the invitation is “a tough deal” and added, “Timeline-wise it didn’t work.”Smart, the former Alabama defensive coordinator, said he enjoyed making White House visits with the Crimson Tide, which he called educational opportunities for his players. He noted those visits usually were scheduled for January, immediately following the season, when players were still o...

Western Canada faces ‘extreme’ heat wave, with soaring temperatures raising fire risk

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

A heat wave that’s expected to push daytime temperatures 10 to 15 degrees above seasonal norms is raising the wildfire risk in Alberta and British Columbia, where crews are already battling early-season blazes.The hot, dry conditions will prime forest fuels for ignition, said University of British Columbia weather and wildfire researcher Chris Rodell, who’s concerned that lightning could spark fires after a ridge of high pressure linked to the heat wave breaks down next week.As the heat eases, Rodell said he expects instability in the atmosphere could lead to thunderstorms and strengthen winds sometime Tuesday or Wednesday.The Alberta government declared a provincial state of emergency last weekend in response to fires that have forced thousands of people from their homes, and Rodell said the wildfire situation is also heating up in northeastern B.C.He said temperatures in some areas look poised to exceed seasonal norms by about 10 degrees, a magnitude he described as ex...

Connor Bedard: Get to know the likely Blackhawks No. 1 pick

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

CHICAGO — There have been few draft picks in the history of Chicago sports that have generated this much attention before they were even selected. Perhaps that's because it's rare that a team in the city has a prospect that so many have been discussing for so long. After all, the likely top selection in the NHL Draft has been on the minds of Blackhawks' fans for over a year since the team announced a full rebuild.Thanks to a stripped-down roster that shed NHL-level assets for draft capital, a bad 2022-2023 season, and some good old-fashioned luck, Connor Bedard (probably) is going to be a member of the Blackhawks. All that's left is the selection when they come on the clock with the first overall pick at the opening night of the 2023 NHL Draft at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.So who is this player that so many in Chicago had hoped would join the city's NHL team? Here's a quick look at his path from Western Canada to the "Windy City."(Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)Bedard ...

Trump calls E. Jean Carroll a 'whack job' after sexual abuse verdict

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

Former President Trump on Wednesday attacked writer E. Jean Carroll as a “whack job” and dismissed the suggestion that he would suffer with women voters over a jury finding him liable for sexual abuse.Trump during a CNN town hall repeatedly insisted he did not know Carroll, who accused Trump in 2019 of raping her in a department store dressing room during an encounter in the 1990s. A nine-member jury this week found Trump liable of sexual abuse and defamation, but not of rape.“This is a fake story. Made-up story,” Trump said, later adding, “I have no idea who the hell she is. She’s a whack job.”He recounted his version of events, which frequently elicited laughter from the town hall attendees.“What kind of a woman meets somebody and brings them up and within minutes you’re playing hanky panky in a dressing room,” Trump said to laughter.Asked if he thinks the jury’s findings will deter women from voting for him, Trump said: “No I don’t think so.”A short time later, Trump was pressed ...

Video shows bullet strike ground during California Little League game

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

SAN MARCOS, Calif. (KSWB) – A reward is now being offered for information leading to the person responsible for a shooting near a San Marcos, California sports park.The shooting happened just before 8 p.m. Monday evening during a Little League game.At least seven gunshots can be heard on video obtained by the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department from Mission Sports Park. One bullet can even be seen striking the ground, dangerously close to children.“Somebody knows something about what happened here, right? Somebody knows and it’s our children we are trying to look out for and protect. Just kids playing baseball,” Detective Brian Bentley said. WATCH: 5-foot gator found by robot in Florida stormwater pipe The sheriff’s department is looking into any leads and Crime Stoppers is now offering up to a $1,000 reward for any information leading to an arrest in the case.Detectives say it’s too early to share where the shots came from or what potential charges could be, depending on the ci...

Trump on CNN says Jan. 6 rioters had 'love in their heart'

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

Former President Trump on Wednesday defended his actions on Jan. 6, 2021, and said protesters who descended on Washington, D.C., that day had “love in their heart.”Trump was asked at a CNN town hall whether he had any regrets about his conduct on Jan. 6, when rioters violently stormed the Capitol to try and stop the certification of the 2020 election. The riots followed a speech by Trump outside the White House in which he repeated debunked claims that the 2020 election was fraudulent.“I’ve never spoken to a crowd as large as this,” Trump said of that day. “That was because they thought the election was rigged. And they were there proud. They were there with love in their heart. That was an unbelievable and it was a beautiful day.”Trump repeated a series of talking points that have been debunked by some of his own former officials in testimony to the House panel that investigated the Jan. 6 riots, including that then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was slow to call for military help...

Insight: City of Austin's Flood Early Warning System

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Scott Prinsen, Austin's Flood Early Warning Division program manager talked to David Yeomans on the program and the expected rain this weekend.Read a transcription of the discussion below or use the video player above to watch.DAVID: All right. Joining us this afternoon is Scott Princeton. He is Austin's flood early warning Division program manager. Scott, thank you so much for your time. Sure. So we've been talking leading up to this event, the National Weather Service is starting to use words like this may be a high impact flood event, rivers could go into major flood stage, the city of Austin's flood early warning system, you guys have been around for a while. And this is kind of the stuff that you prepare for, tell us how you keep people safe in these situations.SCOTT: Yeah, so basically, our whole program was formed right after the deadly 1981 Memorial Day flood. So we've been in existence for a while. And we have a pretty big network of gauges. Also predictive ...

Forest Lake, Duluth men charged in brazen $250,000 Pokémon store break-in

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

Gotta catch ‘em all. That’s what police have done in the case of last year’s Pokémon card heist in Forest Lake.Two men have been charged with third-degree burglary in connection with the theft of more than $250,000 in Pokémon cards from a Forest Lake gaming store on Feb. 10, 2022.Matthew James Cuypers Jr., 40, of Duluth, and Dustin Anthony Wittern, 40, of Forest Lake, are accused of gaining entry to Punch-Out Gaming by breaking into the vacant shop next door and then smashing two large holes through the adjoining wall into the gaming store’s storage rooms.Cuypers, who has an extensive criminal history, admitted stealing the Pokémon cards in a post-Miranda interview on an unrelated federal matter about a month after the burglary, according to the criminal complaint filed last week in Washington County District Court. He reported that he worked with Wittern, “who knew a buyer who had been looking at the cards,” the complaint states.The men allegedly loaded the stolen cards into ...

Gophers golf: Simley’s Isabella McCauley rallies to reach NCAA Championship

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

Frankly, Isabella McCauley assumed what most probably did after struggling through her first round at the NCAA Westfield Regional.The Gophers freshman figured she did not have a shot at advancing. She was playing as an individual, and only one player from a non-qualifying team moves through to the NCAA Championships. After a first-round 74 at The Club of Chatham Hills in Westfield, Ind., McCauley was six shots back of that position.Simley grad and current Minnesota freshman Isabella McCauley made her collegiate debut for the Gophers on Sept. 12, 2022 at the ANNIKA Invitational at Royal Golf Club in Lake Elmo. McCauly was photographed in Minneapolis on Sept. 8, 2022. (Brad Rempel / University of Minnesota Athletics)“I was just hoping to play a little bit better the next couple of days,” the Simley graduate said. “That’s just always my mentality on the golf course is just play my game and I hope to play well in my standards of just playing well, not necessarily against the field.”She ...

Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan voters OK state record $493M school bond referendum

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:30:37 GMT

Voters in the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan school district on Tuesday approved a combined $493 million bond referendum, the largest successful public school funding request in Minnesota history.District 196, the state’s third largest school district with some 29,000 students, posed two questions to voters in the special election. Both were approved in all 14 district precincts, the district’s leadership said.The first question, for $374 million, included safety and security improvements at all district schools, a new elementary school, a new Rosemount Middle School and repurposing the current school. Additions will also be made to Scott Highlands Middle School and Dakota Ridge School, finishing renovation of Rosemount High School and renovation of Transition Plus, along with science lab and performance space improvements at secondary schools and furniture replacement where needed.The question was approved by a margin of 7,576 “yes” votes (69%) to 3,446 “...