
Cubs front office deserves an apology for Willson Contreras hysteria
The Chicago Cubs passed on re-signing catcher Willson Contreras, and he's not being placed on the trade block by the St. Louis Cardinals.At last year's MLB trade deadline, the Chicago Cubs had two players who could have fetched a return -- outfielder Ian Happ and catcher Willson Contre...
2023-07-24 08:46

Oil Drops as Likely Fed Hike Weighed Against Tightening Market
Oil fell after four weekly gains as traders weighed prospects for another hike from the Federal Reserve against
2023-07-24 08:25

Sudan's Darfur terror: The radio presenter who gave birth and kept walking
A radio presenter in Sudan has a baby by the road as she flees militias she says killed her other sons.
2023-07-24 07:54

7 Republican presidential candidates meet polling criteria for first RNC debate
Seven Republican presidential candidates have, as of Sunday, met the polling requirements to appear on the August debate stage following new polling from Fox Business in Iowa and South Carolina.
2023-07-24 05:59

Two Alabama firefighters shot at station, one fatally
The city of Birmingham, Alabama was preparing to bury a fallen hero after a firefighter was killed during a shooting at the fire station. Jordan Melton, 29, died following the attack which also wounded fellow firefighter Jamal Jones. Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama was offering a reward of $45,000 for tips leading to an arrest. Melton and Jones were on duty on 12 July at Fire Station 9 in the Norwood area of Birmingham when shots were reported around 8.30am, police said in a release. It appeared the shooting had occurred near the station bay doors. Both firefighters were transported to hospital. Mr Jones was listed in serious condition, according to a fire department statement, but survived. Mr Melton, who had graduated from the academy one month earlier, died from his injuries on 17 July. “You could not be around Recruit Melton and not smile,” Battalion Chief Stan Frierson, from Birmingham Fire & Rescue Service, tweeted. “I am known as a person who doesn’t smile often, but every time we spoke, it would end wit (sic) him saying, Chief, smile. I want [to] tell anyone you could not be around him and not smile.” A public visitation for Mr Melton will be held on Tuesday followed by a public viewing and funeral on Wednesday in Birmingham. “Know that we’re exhausting every resource to find answers and justice for Jordan’s loved ones,” Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin tweeted last week. “Jordan paid the ultimate price for his service to our city, we will not let that sacrifice be in vain.” Police told WVTM13 that the attack was targeted and the suspect(s) had a personal conflict with one of the firefighters. Read More This Alabama town disbanded its police force over a racist text. Here’s what happened next Fargo police officer's funeral scheduled; 2 other officers remain hospitalized after shooting Six suspects arrested for Alabama birthday party shooting that left four people dead and 32 injured Alabama church shooter gets life for killing 3 at potluck Firefighter killed while battling cargo ship fire is posthumously promoted during funeral
2023-07-24 05:51

MLB standings ordered by hard hit rate: Struggling Cardinals still cracking bats
The Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals are at opposite ends of the MLB standings, but both teams are cracking bats at the plate.The Aug. 1 trade deadline is just over a week away, which means every team is keeping an especially close eye on the MLB standings. While some teams sit comfortably...
2023-07-24 05:28

MLB Rumors: Nolan Arenado trade condition, Padres open for business, AL East trade tactics
MLB Rumors: Padres ready to shop stars barring unforeseen turnaroundAs the trade deadline approaches, the buyer and seller markets are starting to become more distinct. Let's take a look at a team from the NL West, shall we?The San Diego Padres currently sit in fourth place with a 48-52 r...
2023-07-24 05:26

White House sets up new pandemic preparedness office
The Biden administration will centre White House efforts to address threats of various transmissible diseases, pathogens and other biological agents in a new permanent office headed by a member of the National Security Council (NSC). The White House announced the creation of the Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy (OPPR) on Friday. OPPR will be “charged with leading, coordinating, and implementing actions related to preparedness for, and response to, known and unknown biological threats or pathogens that could lead to a pandemic or to significant public health-related disruptions in the United States”, according to a handout. The new office will shift the White House’s Covid reponse efforts from a standalone team to a broader group that will include experts working on a number of different potential “public health-related disruptions”, including new variants of the influenza (common flu) virus. “Under President Biden’s leadership, the Administration has taken significant steps to ensure all individuals have continued access to lifesaving protections such as vaccines, treatments, and tests, and that the nation is well prepared to manage the risks of COVID-19 or other causes of potential pandemics in the future,” a White House statement read. The office’s inaugural director will be Major General (retired) Paul Friedrichs, special assistant to President Biden and the Senior Director for Global Health Security and Biodefense on the National Security Council. The new office comes three months after Mr Biden formally ended the national emergency declaration over the pandemic. More than 1.1 million Americans have died from Covid since it first emerged in the US in early 2020. Mr Biden lobbied Congress against passing the resolution to end the national emergency but nevertheless signed the bipartisan piece of legislation when it hit his desk in April. The president had previously declared the Covid pandemic “over” in 2022, telling CBS’s 60 Minutes: “We still have a problem with Covid. We're still doing a lot of work on it. But the pandemic is over. If you notice, no one's wearing masks.” Read More The fight over Alabama's congressional redistricting now shifts back to federal court DeSantis downplays Jan. 6, says it wasn't an insurrection but a 'protest' that 'ended up devolving' Biden names CIA Director William Burns to his Cabinet
2023-07-24 05:17

Jack Smith has contacted Georgia Governor Brian Kemp over Trump’s effort to overturn 2020 election
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has given insight into the possible scope of special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation of Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election. The Republican governor - who survived a Trump-backed attempt to oust him from office last year - told USA Today on Sunday that Mr Smith’s office had contacted him. However it is unclear what stage Mr Smith’s investigation has reached or whether Mr Kemp’s office had provided, or agreed to provide, evidence or testimony. “Our office has been contacted by Jack Smith’s office,” the governor’s spokesman said. Mr Kemp’s office declined to comment further when contacted byThe Independent. News of Mr Smith’s communications with Mr Kemp comes a week after his office reportedly delivered a target letter to Mr Trump’s legal team, a sign that charges are being prepared. The Department of Justice (DoJ) has indicated that the twice-impeached, twice-indicted former president is central to its investigation into the January 6 attack on the US Capitol and the broader effort by the Trump campaign to overturn the election. Mr Trump, who is running for re-election in 2024, announced the arrival of that letter on his Truth Social social media platform two days after he supposedly received it. “On Sunday night, while I was with my family...HORRIFYING NEWS for our country was given to me by my attorneys,” he wrote. “Deranged Jack Smith...sent a letter (again, it was Sunday night!) stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury investigation, and giving me a very short 4 days to report to the Grand Jury, which almost always means an Arrest and Indictment.” The Independent reported, citing sources familiar with the matter, that the letter delivered to Mr Trump informed him that the DoJ is considering charging him with conspiracy to defraud the United States; obstruction of an official proceeding and deprivation of civil rights under colour of law. It set a deadline of midnight on Thursday for Mr Trump to report to the grand jury and declare whether he would testify or offer his own evidence during the pre-trial stage of the investigation. Sources have also told The Independent that an indictment could come anytime, now that deadline has passed. Mr Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election were far from limited to Georgia. His campaign is known to have supported slates of false electors in other states where Mr Trump lost to Joe Biden including Arizona and Wisconsin. For weeks Mr Smith and the DoJ have been largely silent about the status of the Jan 6 investigation which has already led to the conviction of hundreds of rioters. If Mr Trump faces trial, it would almost certainly take place during the 2024 election cycle. A separate trial of the former president, involving the alleged illegal retention of classified materials and presidential records, is set to take place next spring. Read More Nervous Republicans turn to New Hampshire in hopes of stopping Trump The fight over Alabama's congressional redistricting now shifts back to federal court Capitol riot defendant gets probation after rare setback for prosecutors at Oath Keepers trial DeSantis defends Florida curriculum that suggests slaves benefited from forced labour Florida man pleads guilty over Jan 6 riot as state’s governor Ron DeSantis insists there was no insurrection Trump legal team tries again to block Georgia election interference grand jury probe
2023-07-24 04:59

Nova Scotia wrestles with aftermath of devastating floods
By Nia Williams Canada's East Coast province of Nova Scotia began cleaning up on Sunday after torrential rainfall
2023-07-24 04:58

NFL rumors: 3 edge rushers Bears could still add to fill glaring need
There are a lot of new faces on the team that finished with the worst record in the NFL in 2022. The Chicago Bears still have some work to do.Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields has been a popular subject this offseason. The player who ran for the second-most yards by a quarterback in a sing...
2023-07-24 04:48

MLB Rumors: Cardinals excusing two more players from fire sale
Though the Cardinals make out to be clear sellers at the August 1 trade deadline, they recently just called two of their players off-limits.As other teams look to sink their teeth in the St. Louis Cardinals at the MLB trade deadline, the Cards have established some basic ground rules.For sta...
2023-07-24 02:55