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Big city mayors get audience with administration officials to pitch a request for help with migrants

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Biden administration officials hosted big city mayors at the White House on Thursday to discuss how to manage a growing number of migrants, one day after those leaders sent a letter asking for more federal help. Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson met with White House chief of staff Jeff Zients and Homeland Security Department officials before heading to Capitol Hill for meetings with lawmakers. “I had a good series of conversations,” said Johnston, who led the coalition. “I think we shared our sense of urgency and we shared this belief that we need funding, but really what we want is a longer-term solution.” The other Democratic mayors who signed onto the letter to President Joe Biden were Karen Bass of Los Angeles, Sylvester Turner of Houston and Eric Adams of New York. The meeting came together quickly and not all five could make it.Adams said he was abruptly returning home from a planned trip to Washington so he could “deal with a...

Lights shut off during immigration chaos at Chicago City Council special meeting

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

CHICAGO — A special Chicago City Council meeting led to some chaos as the council members met to vote on a possible referendum on the city's status as a Sanctuary City.For the referendum vote to happen, there needs to be at least 26 alderpeople present. The fractured body, throughout the contentious day, made multiple attempts to vote but came up short. Mayor Johnson in Washington D.C. over migrant crisis The meeting comes as Mayor Brandon Johnson is in Washington D.C. in an urgent attempt to get funding to deal with the crisis.The meeting ended with shouts and accusations. Venezuelan migrants accused of stealing nearly $3K in merchandise from Oak Brook Macy’s The lights were turned off in the midst of a chaotic debate as alderpeople argued about what constitutes a quorum."It's becoming very frustrating to get business done in the appropriate manner," 32nd Ward Ald. Scott Waguespack said. Dozens of alderpeople argued for citizens to vote on Chicago's decades-old Sanctuary ...

After loss of baby, couple honors her memory with NICU little libraries

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

It has been almost a year and a half since Nina Trader and her husband Derek Braasch made their way up into Central DuPage Hospital. But now instead of pushing a stroller, they push a cart packed with boxes full of books. It’s all in the name of Sophia, the premature baby girl they lost."This was our first child. We went through fertility issues for seven years before conceiving her," Nina Trader said. "She was 25 weeks and a day. Only 15 ounces. It was tough.”The family spent weeks in the NICU. Sophia’s passing had the couple drowning in grief. They knew they needed to find a way to turn their pain into purpose. Dr. Jeffrey Lawhead is the medical director of the NICU at Central DuPage Hospital."In the rare occasions when things don't end up well, the families are really trying to figure out what it's all about, what's the meaning of it and how can we honor our daughter or son's existence," he said. More from Erin: Doctor, retired music teacher team up to bring healing music ...

Step up your heart health with stairs

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

It’s a leading cause of death worldwide – poor heart health. But a new study shows you can cut your risk by climbing just 50 stairs a day.They’re everywhere and free of charge.Dr. Danny Luger is a preventive cardiologist at Rush Hospital.“You’re engaging the large muscles in your legs and you’re increasing the workload, so the heart rate spikes up and you’re getting a muscular engagement,” he said.Think of the staircase as a gym. And with every step – there are about 10 per flight – your heart health climbs.“Coronary events or cardiovascular events, strokes and heart attacks were reduced by 20 percent just going from minimally active to slightly active,” Luger said.That’s what Tulane University researchers learned after evaluating data from more than 450,000 adults in the United Kingdom – a 20 percent reduction if you skip the elevator and take the stairs.  More from Med Watch: How nature can nurture your mental health “Going from sedentary to minimally active really confers the g...

Senate committee debates code of ethics for Supreme Court justices

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) -- Senators on the Judiciary Committee discussed a possible code of ethics for Supreme Court justices and announced attempts to investigate whether extravagant gifts from wealthy donors to the justices created conflicts of interest."The fundamental question here is how bad, how corrupting is the billionaire influence at the Supreme Court," said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.)Democrats say it's long past time to implement a code of ethics for Supreme Court justices."The highest court in the land cannot have the lowest standard of ethics in the government," voiced Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)Senators Durbin and Whitehouse vow to investigate potentially unethical behavior in the Supreme Court by issuing subpoenas to conservative political activist Leonard Leo and Republican donors Harlan Crow and Robin Arkley."Billionaires who are invested heavily in influencing the Supreme Court have been caught giving enormous secret gifts to individual justices," Sen. Whitehouse c...

Workday restored after reports of hourslong outage

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

(KRON) – A widespread outage that hit Workday Thursday morning appears to be resolved, according to Downdetector, a site that monitors reports of website issues. Reports of the outage began coming in shortly before 5 a.m. and rose steadily throughout the morning. SF man convicted in 2021 Walgreens smash-and-grab Commenters on Downdetector reported difficulties logging into the platform, problems sending verification emails, and trouble making purchase order receipts, among other issues. Visitors to the Workday website were met with a message that read, "Workday is currently unavailable."Shortly after 2 p.m., reports of outage problems began to taper off on Downdetector.“Workday is backup!” wrote one commenter on the site."We are experiencing a service interruption. Your service will be restored as quickly as possible," the message continued. "We apologize for the inconvenience. If you are a Workday customer and require additional assistance please contact the Workday Administrator...

Suspect arrested in deadly Austin 'road rage' shooting after 'minor' I-35 crash

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The Austin Police Department arrested a man they believe shot and killed a 46-year-old woman in a "road rage homicide" on Sept. 30.Justin Justice, 28, was charged in connection with the incident, according to police. PREVIOUS: Celebration of life for north Austin road rage victim Homicide Detective Israel Pina with the Austin Police Department said the victim, Teressa Gandy Ferguson was taking her usual route home on Interstate 35, when she was involved in a “minor crash” between the Rundberg and Anderson Lane exits. Justin Justice, 28 | Mugshot provided by APDAccording to APD, she was on the phone with a friend and told them she pulled over to exchange information with the other driver, which is when police believe she was shot.Ferguson was found in the driver's seat with injuries that were not believed to be sustained in the crash, according to a news release from the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force.Police were able to determine Justice shot and killed Fergus...

Verdict reached in driveway shooting of Austin man

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

CALDWELL COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Jurors delivered a guilty verdict on a manslaughter charge in the trial of Martindale resident Terry Turner, who had originally been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Adil Dghoughi.In early October 2021, Turner shot and killed Dghoughi through his driver’s side window as he backed out of Turner’s driveway in Martindale, according to investigators. More than a week later, Turner turned himself in but bonded out of jail that same day. According to testimony delivered during the trial this week, Turner woke in the middle of the night to use the bathroom when he noticed a car in his driveway, according to his attorneys.They said he went outside to confront the driver, who would turn out to be Dghoughi. Turner’s attorneys said Dghoughi was parked toward the front of Turner’s driveway, the car partially hidden by a camping trailer. PAST COVERAGE: Victim’s girlfriend testifies in Day 1 of Martindale man’s murder trial “As he opens the d...

Warming trend ramps up by the weekend

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Warmer south winds are blowing into the area as the recent cold airmass exits Texas. A warming trend carries us into next week when temperatures approach record highs.Thursday morning, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport recorded their first freeze of the season nearly two weeks ahead of what is typical. This was a tie for the airport's fifth-earliest freeze on record. Some rural valleys were as cold as 29°.Southerly winds have replaced the cold northerly direction, warming days and nights through the weekend and into next week. There are no more freezes expected in the near future as overnight lows step up noticeably, and daytime highs return to the 80s in many areas this weekend.Daylight Saving Time comes to an end early Sunday morning, so don't forget to let your clocks "fall back" one hour. BLOG: El Niño into 2024: What that means for winter and spring BLOG: NOAA releases winter forecast Austin Interactive Weather Stats (2023) FIRST WARNING WEATHER: S...

Infant mortality rate increases for first time in 20 years, up 8% in Texas

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:31:58 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The infant mortality rate increased by 3% from 2021 to 2022, the first increase in 20 years, according to provisional data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The rate showed a statistically significant increase in four states, including Texas, where there were 8% more deaths in 2022 than there were in 2021, per the CDC report. Infant mortality refers to the death of a child before they reach their first birthday, and the infant mortality rate is calculated from the number of infant deaths annually for every 1,000 live births. The CDC’s provisional data showed 5.6 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022, which was 3% higher than in 2021. Healthy People, an organization that sets national objectives to improve health, has a goal of reducing the number of infant deaths per 1,000 to five by 2030. The five leading causes of infant death in 2021 were birth defects, preterm birth or low birth weight, sudden infant death syndrome, i...