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‘Bachelor in Paradise’ alum Jade Roper Tolbert says she is ‘forever changed’ as she opens up about missed miscarriage
‘Bachelor in Paradise’ alum Jade Roper Tolbert says she is ‘forever changed’ as she opens up about missed miscarriage
Prior to Sunday's revelation of the miscarriage, Jade Roper and Tanner Tolbert had not disclosed Jade's pregnancy
2023-08-14 09:45
The son of Colombia's president says his father's election campaign received money of dubious origin
The son of Colombia's president says his father's election campaign received money of dubious origin
The son of Colombian President Gustavo Petro acknowledged Thursday that his father’s 2022 election campaign received money of dubious origin, according prosecutors investigating the son for alleged illicit enrichment and money laundering. Nicolás Petro, who was a legislator representing a northern coastal region, agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in the probe after being charged Tuesday. Prosecutor Mario Andrés Burgos, who heads the investigation, said the younger Petro has revealed that unjustified increases detected in his assets came from two individuals being questioned by Colombian authorities. The money went partly into his own accounts and partly into the campaign that made his father Colombia's first elected leftist president, the prosecutor said. On Tuesday, when he was charged, prosecutors said the younger Petro took thousands of dollars from drug traffickers and used it to buy luxurious homes and expensive cars. Nicolás Petro, 36, pleaded innocent to the charges, but agreed to cooperate with authorities. The case has come at a time when Colombia’s president is losing popularity and has been exposed to attacks by opposition parties, which have become increasingly reluctant to cooperate with his legislative agenda. The investigation stems from a shocking declaration made by the son's former wife, Daysuris Vásquez, to local news magazine Semana in March. Vasquez said she was present at meetings where Nicolás Petro arranged a 600 million peso ($150,000) donation from a politician who was once convicted in Washington of drug trafficking and who wanted to contribute to Gustavo Petro’s 2022 presidential campaign. She accused her ex-husband of pocketing the money and said that the father’s presidential campaign had no knowledge of the donation. On Thursday, prosecutors said the “resources” in the case were around $270,000 that was delivered by Samuel Santander Lopesierra and Gabriel Hilsaca to Nicolás Petro. Lopesierra was convicted and extradited to the United States, where he was sentenced for drug trafficking. Hilsaca is the son of Alfonso Hilsaca, who is currently being prosecuted on charges of murder and criminal conspiracy in Colombia. Burgos said the president’s son has promised to deliver audio recordings and documentary evidence that would corroborate that part of the money he received was used to finance his father’s electoral campaign without being duly reported to authorities.. Prosecutors also accused Vásquez of co-operating in the money laundering scheme and said she helped her husband hide thousands of dollars in cash in suitcases that the couple kept at their home. The couple, who no longer live together, were arrested Saturday and have been held at the headquarters of the Chief Prosecutor’s Office in Bogota. Thursday’s hearing was held to hear arguments on whether Nicolás Petro’s detention should be switched to house arrest. The president has said he would not interfere with the investigation, and wrote a message on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, in which he said he hoped his son would “reflect on his mistakes.” Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Panama Canal foresees its income falling after shipping limited due to a drought Appeals court allows Biden asylum restrictions to temporarily stay in place as case plays out New Zealand to boost its defense capabilities as it faces increasing tensions in the Pacific
2023-08-04 09:07
Takeaways on debt ceiling: McCarthy's balancing act, Biden's choice and the challenges ahead
Takeaways on debt ceiling: McCarthy's balancing act, Biden's choice and the challenges ahead
It’s a deal no one in Washington claims to really like. But after weeks of negotiations, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy have struck an agreement to raise the debt ceiling and avert a potentially devastating government default. The stakes are high for both men — and now each will have to persuade lawmakers in their parties to vote for it. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said last week that the United States could run out of cash to pay the bills and default on its obligations if the debt ceiling is not raised by June 5. The ultimate agreement, hammered out by Biden, McCarthy and a small group of their deputies, is a two-year budget deal that would essentially hold spending flat for 2024, while boosting it for defense and veterans, and capping increases at 1% for 2025. It would suspend the debt limit until January 2025, after the next presidential election. Republicans had insisted on reducing spending and had passed their own bill with much larger cuts last month. The package would also make policy tweaks, including by adding work requirements for some food aid recipients and streamlining an environmental law that Republicans say has made it harder to build energy projects. Takeaways from the deal, and from the negotiations that led up to it: McCARTHY’S DELICATE BALANCING ACT Ever since McCarthy won the House speakership on the 15th ballot in January, it was clear that the debt ceiling negotiations would be his first and perhaps biggest test. Known more for strategy than policy, McCarthy has had a challenge that seemed almost insurmountable, with a narrow majority and a sizable group of hard-right conservatives certain to oppose anything he negotiated with Biden. And he could still find himself in the middle of a crisis if too many in his caucus revolt when the House votes on the package this week. Through it all, the Californian has exhibited his typical laid-back vibe, projecting confidence about the bill and its success. He said Sunday that he will win a majority of Republicans on the bill and some Democrats. In a conference call on Saturday night, McCarthy said, more than 95 percent of the members in his conference “were overwhelmingly excited about what they see.” But some House Republicans were publicly slamming the deal, arguing it did too little to cut the deficit. Rep. Dan Bishop of North Carolina tweeted a vomit emoji, complaining that some Republicans on the call were praising the speaker for getting what he said is “almost zippo in exchange” for the debt-ceiling hike. BIDEN’S RELUCTANT COMPROMISE For months, Biden and his aides had a mantra: There would be no negotiation on the debt limit. But then he negotiated anyway. It’s not where Biden, a veteran of the nasty 2011 debt-limit battle that saw the nation’s credit rating downgraded for the first time in history, wanted to be. But it was a likely scenario — with a Republican-controlled House that had made it clear from the start that it would not raise the borrowing authority under a Democratic president without extracting spending curbs or other policy concessions. There was no way Biden, who is running for re-election next year, would want a historic default on his watch. Biden has continued to insist that he was negotiating on the budget, not the debt ceiling. But pushed by a reporter Sunday evening who noted that was precisely what Republicans were seeking in exchange for lifting the debt limit, the president seemed to break from his talking point. “Sure, yeah,” Biden said, chuckling slightly. “Can you think of an alternative?” Now he will have to sell it to House Democrats, who must vote for it in big enough numbers to make up for defecting Republicans. Many progressive members in the House have appeared skeptical of the deal, but they remained mostly quiet over the weekend as they waited for more details. But the deal won early praise from another key Democratic group. The New Democrat Coalition, which has roughly 100 members, praised Biden as having negotiated “a viable, bipartisan solution to end this crisis.” LONG-SOUGHT GOP POLICY Republicans were able to win some policy changes they have sought for years, however modest, including on food aid. The bill would raise the age limit for existing work requirements in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps. It would also create a new agency to develop and streamline environmental reviews that Republicans have complained about for decades. The new work requirements for able-bodied SNAP recipients without dependents would phase in by 2025 and expire by 2030. And a provision pushed by Biden would take some vulnerable recipients — like veterans and the homeless — off work requirements entirely. But Republicans made clear that pushing more people to work in exchange for government benefits was a major victory for them, even if mostly symbolic. The bill also would amend the National Environmental Policy Act and designate “a single lead agency” to develop environmental reviews, in hopes of streamlining the process. Republicans had hoped for a much broader permitting package that would make it easier to build and develop energy projects. But Louisiana Rep. Garret Graves, a McCarthy ally who was one of the negotiators, said the bill brings “transformational changes into the permitting and environmental review process” for the first time in four decades. SENATE QUIET, WAITING TO CLOSE McCarthy has said the House will vote on the package Wednesday. If passed, it will then head to the Democratic-led Senate where leaders will have to get agreement from all 100 members to speed up the process and avert a default by next Monday. The White House briefed Democratic senators Sunday and McCarthy briefed Republicans. But most senators remained quiet on the deal as they waited for the full text and to see if McCarthy can navigate it through the House. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky cut themselves out of the negotiating process early on, saying it should be a negotiation between the White House and McCarthy. McConnell issued a statement supporting the legislation on Sunday but some in his caucus have criticized it. The two leaders will have to navigate any potential objections over the coming week as they seek to win full support to move quickly on the deal. “With Republicans like these, who needs Democrats?” tweeted Utah Sen. Mike Lee on Saturday, aligning himself with the House Republicans who say the deal is not conservative enough. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Trump's welcome of Scott into 2024 race shows his calculus: The more GOP rivals, the better for him Stock market today: Asian markets mostly higher after Biden-McCarthy deal on US debt What’s in the cliffhanger deal struck by Biden and McCarthy to raise the debt limit?
2023-05-29 12:10
China overpower Denmark at Sudirman Cup to take top group spot
China overpower Denmark at Sudirman Cup to take top group spot
Hosts China defeated a talented Danish side Thursday to win their group at the Sudirman Cup, propelled by a dominant performance from reigning Olympic...
2023-05-18 21:54
Macron calls to strengthen partnerships in Central Asia visit
Macron calls to strengthen partnerships in Central Asia visit
French President Emmanuel Macron said he wanted to "accelerate cooperation" with Kazakhstan on Wednesday, as part of a visit to boost...
2023-11-01 16:57
Taylor Swift appears to slam 'bisexual' rumours on 1989 re-release
Taylor Swift appears to slam 'bisexual' rumours on 1989 re-release
Taylor Swift's re-recorded 2014 album 1989 has dropped just in time for diehard fans to enjoy a weekend filled with nostalgia. The album marks an era when the star transitioned from country to pop muic, and saw her bag a Grammy for Album of the Year. Alongside her impressive spanning career in the limelight, comes trash talk. More specifically, years of misogynistic "slut shaming" surrounding Swift's dating history. Subsequently, Swift took a break from dating for two and a half years – which meant she naturally spent more time with her female friends. From doing so, baseless online rumours were birthed about her sexuality. Now, in a letter written for the re-release of the album, Swift shared her inspiration behind writing 1989, and in doing so, thanked fans for not leaning into claims online. "The voices that had begun to shame me in new ways for dating like a normal young woman? I wanted to silence them," the star wrote. "You see – in the years preceding this, I had become the target of slut shaming – the intensity and relentlessness of which would be criticized and called out if it happened today. The jokes about my amount of boyfriends. The trivialization of my songwriting as if it were a predatory act of boy-crazy psychopath. The media co-signing of this narrative. I had to make it stop because it was starting to really hurt." Swift continued: "It became clear to me that for me there was no such thing as casual dating, or even having a male friend who you platonically hang out with. If I was seen with him, it was assumed I was sleeping with him. And so I swore off hanging out with guys, dating, flirting, or anything that could be weaponized against me by a culture that claimed to believe in liberating women but consistently treated me with the harsh moral codes of the Victorian era." She went on to say that she assumed she "could fix this" by changing her behaviour. "I swore off dating and decided to focus only on myself, my music, my growth, and my female friendships," she explained. "If I only hung out with my female friends, people couldn’t sensationalize or sexualize that – right? I would learn later on that people could and people would." Swift went on to thank fans who didn't buy into spiralling rumours online and who "knew that maybe a girl who surrounds herself with female friends in adulthood is making up for a lack of them in childhood." How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-10-27 23:48
Ramaphosa Says China’s Xi Will Visit South Africa Aug. 22
Ramaphosa Says China’s Xi Will Visit South Africa Aug. 22
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he will host Chinese President Xi Jinping on a state visit later
2023-08-07 16:54
MrBeast's bizarre dinosaur-related injury revelation leaves fans puzzled, Internet labels it 'coolest story of all time'
MrBeast's bizarre dinosaur-related injury revelation leaves fans puzzled, Internet labels it 'coolest story of all time'
MrBeast asserts he hurt his finger while digging up fossils in a desert
2023-10-27 13:04
Recent rate hikes should also be passed on to savers - ECB's De Guindos
Recent rate hikes should also be passed on to savers - ECB's De Guindos
MADRID Recent interest rate hikes by the European Central Bank should be fully transmitted to savers and reflected
2023-06-23 00:59
Man drives off bridge ‘following Google Maps’
Man drives off bridge ‘following Google Maps’
A man who died after driving his car off a collapsed bridge was following Google Maps directions, according to a lawsuit. The family of Philip Paxson, who drowned on 30 September last year while driving home from his daughter’s ninth birthday party, is suing the technology giant for negligence, claiming that it had been informed of the collapse but failed to update its navigation system. Paxson, a medical device salesman and father of two, drove his Jeep Gladiator off the derelict bridge into Snow Creek in Hickory, North Carolina. He was driving through an unfamiliar neighbourhood when Google Maps directed him to cross a bridge that had collapsed nine years prior and was never repaired, a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Wake County Superior Court alleges. “Our girls ask how and why their daddy died, and I’m at a loss for words they can understand because, as an adult, I still can’t understand how those responsible for the GPS directions and the bridge could have acted with so little regard for human life," said his wife, Alicia Paxson. State troopers who found Paxson's body in his overturned and partially submerged truck had said there were no barriers or warning signs along the washed-out roadway. He had driven off an unguarded edge and crashed about six metres (20 feet) below, according to the lawsuit. The North Carolina State Patrol had said the bridge was not maintained by local or state officials, and the original developer’s company had dissolved. The lawsuit names several private property management companies that it claims are responsible for the bridge and the adjoining land. Multiple people had notified Google Maps about the collapse in the years leading up to Paxson's death and had urged the company to update its route information, according to the lawsuit. The Tuesday court filing includes email records from another Hickory resident who had used the map's “suggest and edit” feature in September 2020 to alert the company that it was directing drivers over the collapsed bridge. A November 2020 email confirmation from Google confirms the company received her report and was reviewing the suggested change, but the lawsuit claims Google took no further actions. A spokesperson for Google, which is headquartered in California but maintains a registered office in Raleigh, said: “We have the deepest sympathies for the Paxson family. Our goal is to provide accurate routing information in Maps and we are reviewing this lawsuit.” In a post on Facebook, Paxson’s mother-in-law wrote that it was dark and rainy on the night that he died. “He will be greatly missed by his family and friends,” she wrote. “It was a totally preventable accident. We are grieving his death.” Additional reporting from agencies Read More Google Maps prank sees school renamed 'Hell on Earth' Google’s powerful ‘Bard’ AI can now get into your email BBC reviews Russell Brand’s time at corporation as YouTube demonetises content Google announces huge breakthrough step in finding genes that cause disease
2023-09-21 20:58
Dortmund's Terzic urges calm ahead of title 'euphoria'
Dortmund's Terzic urges calm ahead of title 'euphoria'
With a Bundesliga title just 90 minutes away, Borussia Dortmund coach Edin Terzic called for calm on Thursday, saying "the key...
2023-05-26 09:17
It's a Barbie world — and pink is seeping into what we use, wear and eat
It's a Barbie world — and pink is seeping into what we use, wear and eat
Stores, restaurants and independent entrepreneurs are taking full advantage of the history-making success of the "Barbie" movie to merchandise all kinds of pink products.
2023-08-11 00:59