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5 tripwires ahead for Scotland’s Humza Yousaf

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

LONDON — For Scotland’s embattled first minister, this might be as good as it gets.Humza Yousaf has spent much his first few months as leader of the pro-independence Scottish National Party dealing with the fallout from the dramatic arrest of his predecessor Nicola Sturgeon and other senior SNP figures.And the ongoing police probe into the SNP’s finances is not all Yousaf has on his plate when Scottish politics returns from its parliamentary recess in September.POLITICO mapped the five tripwires lying in wait for Yousaf as he tries to turn around the SNP’s fortunes. 1. A tricky by-electionYousaf is braced for his first real electoral test since he became SNP leader in March when voters cast their verdict in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election.The race has been a long time coming. As coronavirus raged across the U.K in 2020, then-SNP MP Margaret Ferrier took a train trip from the Westminster parliament in London to her home in Glasgow — despite learning she...

Rishi Sunak’s trying to drive in both lanes on net-zero

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

LONDON — Save the planet without offending motorists or your own warring MPs. What could be simpler?Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party is languishing in the national polls as an election looms next year. But the U.K. prime minister has seized on a recent by-election victory to side with drivers against government environmental action, and enraged green groups by pressing ahead with a plan to allow more oil and gas drilling in the North Sea.At the same time, Sunak is standing behind an ambitious — and legally-binding — Conservative pledge to cut carbon emissions to net-zero by 2050. Not everyone in his party — which has vocal caucuses with opposing takes on climate policy — is convinced he can keep walking that tightrope.The Uxbridge factorThe symbolic shift has its roots in Uxbridge, a west London constituency the Tories had been tipped to lose in a recent by-election.But the governing party snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, tapping into local anger about the Labour...

Michel Barnier calls for post-Brexit UK-EU defense treaty

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

LONDON — The time is right for London and Brussels to negotiate a new treaty on defense and foreign policy cooperation, Michel Barnier, the EU’s former chief Brexit negotiator, told POLITICO.Speaking to the Ex Files newsletter for its 100th edition, Barnier — a former French presidential candidate and key player in Britain’s painstaking divorce from the EU — said it was now in both sides’ interest to collaborate in the face of shared challenges like the war in Ukraine, climate change and terrorism.Pointing to the “goodwill” built up between London and Brussels this year with the signing of a long sought-after deal on trading rules for Northern Ireland, Barnier argued: “We need to build a new kind of [U.K.-EU] cooperation.”During 2020 talks for the U.K. and EU’s post-Brexit trade deal, known as the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson decided not to negotiate a security treaty with the bloc.That was despite such a plan being part ...

Hillary Clinton presents award on final night of national NAACP convention in Boston

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

Former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton took the stage at the NAACP National Convention, the same day her 2016 opponent, former President Donald Trump, was indicted. Clinton was invited to present the Spingarn Medal, which honors the highest achievement by a living African American in an honorable field in recent years. This year’s recipient is Dr. Hazel Dukes, the president of the NAACP New York State conference and member of the National Board of Directors.“Throughout my career in public service, Dr. Hazel Dukes was a trusted advisor, someone I could call on at any moment for advice, even if I didn’t always hear what I wanted to hear,” Clinton said.91-year-old Dukes received the medal to a standing ovation and spoke about her years of fighting for civil rights, and the work still to come.“By God’s grace and mercy I want you to know, I’m not tired yet. With every breath in my body I want you to know I will continue to advocate and stop those who are try...

Carlos Rodon, Yankees lose to Rays hours after trade deadline

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

Ahead of Tuesday’s game against the Rays, the Yankees largely stood pat at the MLB trade deadline, deciding to double down on a playoff run with their current roster.That plan got off to an uninspiring start.The Yankees’ season-long offensive issues continued Tuesday and starting pitcher Carlos Rodon struggled with his command in a 5-2 loss to Tampa Bay in the Bronx. New York remains 3.5 games out of the final American League Wild Card spot with no major reinforcements coming.“It’s on us,” manager Aaron Boone said afterward. “It’s on the people in that room. We gotta figure it out if we’re gonna get to where we want to go. I know it looks bad right now. We understand that, but we’ve got to fight from within now.”For the second day in a row, the Yankees only managed three hits against a front-line Rays starting pitcher. Zach Eflin struck out five over six scoreless innings, following up Monday night’s gem by Tyler Glas...

Mets Notebook: Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso committed to team despite upcoming ‘transitory year’

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

KANSAS CITY — Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso are committed to the Mets, even if the Mets aren’t committed to winning next season.Comments by right-hander Max Scherzer about his talk with Billy Eppler this weekend were published in The Athletic on Tuesday hours ahead of the 6 p.m. ET trade deadline. Scherzer told MLB insider Ken Rosenthal that the Mets informed him of their plans to reset in 2024 before trading him to the Texas Rangers on Saturday night.Eppler, according to Scherzer, called 2024 a “transitory year.”He also told Lindor the same. The shortstop said he still believes in the vision of the team, even if that vision doesn’t include a title next season.“It’s a repositioning of players and assets in the organization and trying to build a sustainable system,” Lindor said Tuesday afternoon at Kauffman Stadium ahead of the Mets series against the Kansas City Royals. “They’re trying to put forward a farm system that i...

‘Big-time breathing room’: Orioles pile on Blue Jays, 13-3, claim season series for first time since 2017

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

For the second straight night, Ryan Mountcastle and Gunnar Henderson supplied much of the Orioles’ offense to back a quality start from a pitcher named Kyle.After driving in all four of Baltimore’s runs in Monday’s series-opening victory over the Toronto Blue Jays, Henderson and Mountcastle combined for six RBIs as Kyle Bradish provided seven innings in a 13-3 win. With Tuesday’s victory, the Orioles won the season series against the Blue Jays for the first time since 2017 and maintained their 1 1/2-game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East.Mountcastle continued his dominance over Toronto. Entering the game with a .313 average and .996 OPS against the Blue Jays in his career, Mountcastle went 3-for-4 with two doubles. Henderson homered for the second straight game, notably doing so off left-hander Hyun Jin Ryu after struggling off lefties for much of his rookie season, and finished with four RBIs. Anthony Santander recorded that many on on...

Numbers drawn for $1.1B Mega Millions jackpot: Check your tickets here

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

(NEXSTAR) — The winning numbers for the record-setting $1.1 billion Mega Millions jackpot have been drawn. If you're lucky enough to be holding a ticket that matches all of the numbers drawn Tuesday, seen below, you could be the winner of the fourth-largest prize in game history and the sixth-largest lottery prize in U.S. history.The winning numbers are 8, 24, 30, 45, and 61, and Mega Ball 12. The Megaplier was 4X. Why the winner of the $1.1B Mega Millions jackpot would take home way less This jackpot has been brewing since April when a $20 million prize was won by a ticket sold in Syracuse, New York, just four days after a $483 million Mega Millions jackpot was hit by a ticket sold in Queens.Ahead of Tuesday’s drawing, Mega Millions officials estimated the jackpot’s size at $1.1 billion with a cash value of $550.2 million. That puts it as the fourth-largest in the game’s history behind a $1.337 billion prize won by a 2022 ticket sold in Illinois. It ...

Sesame Place San Diego's free admission for kids begins

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

CHULA VISTA, Calif. -- Children can now splash it up for free at Sesame Place San Diego in a limited-time deal.The free admission, which started Tuesday and goes through Oct. 29, is valid for kids ages 3 to 9 when accompanied by an adult with a paid ticket, Sesame Place San Diego said in a press release Tuesday. The theme/water park features water slides, an interactive Sesame Street Neighborhood with the iconic 123 Stoop, a parade, theater show, meet-and-greet opportunities with Sesame Street characters, among others. How to visit Cabrillo National Monument for free this week Count's Splash Castle, a new multi-level interactive water-play attraction which includes three giant tipping buckets that dump over 1,300 gallons of water, recently opened to visitors.Guests will also be able to enjoy themed weekends in August:Best Friends Weekend: Take part in a variety of activities with your best friends from Aug. 4 - 6.B is for Bubbles Weekend: Dance, explore and play with all things bu...

Firefighter killed in B.C. identified as Zak Muise, 25, called ‘vital’ member of team

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:48:17 GMT

The young Ontario firefighter who died last week in British Columbia has been identified as Zak Muise in an online obituary and a tribute by the firefighting contractor he worked for.Big Cat Wildfire shared a photo of Muise in his uniform and called him a “vital member” of one of its crews.The 25-year-old died Friday as he helped battle the massive Donnie Creek wildfire in northeastern B.C.RCMP have said he was killed when his heavy-duty ATV rolled over a steep drop on a gravel road in a remote area about 150 kilometres north of Fort St. John.A brief online obituary posted on the website of a Waterford, Ont., funeral home in the name of his family says Muise is survived by his parents and five older siblings.It says Muise was “loved by many,” and the family is grateful to all firefighters and other first responders “who are still fighting.”It says a funeral is scheduled for later this month in Simcoe, Ont., and that a public memorial in B.C. is al...