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The GOP presidential debate puts a spotlight on Wisconsin, one of the few remaining swing states

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — When Republican candidates for president gather for their first debate Wednesday in Milwaukee, the spotlight will not only be on them but also on Wisconsin’s role as one of a shrinking handful of genuine battleground states.Republicans chose Milwaukee for the first debate and for the national convention in just 11 months largely because of Wisconsin’s well-earned status as a swing state. Four of the past six presidential elections have been decided by less than a percentage point here, with Donald Trump winning narrowly in 2016 before losing by a similar margin in 2020.“Everybody needs to be prepared for all-out war as usual,” said longtime Republican strategist Stephan Thompson. To participate in Wednesday’s debate, the Republican National Committee required candidates to meet donor and polling thresholds and sign a pledge to support the GOP candidate in the general election. Trump, the frontrunner who faces criminal charges in four separate cases, ...

Ben Foster quits Hollywood-owned Wrexham and heads back into retirement

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

WREXHAM, Wales (AP) — Ben Foster is heading back into retirement, months after helping Wrexham — the soccer team owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney — gain promotion back into the English Football League.The former Manchester United goalkeeper came out of retirement in March to sign a short-term deal with Wrexham and played a key role in the team winning the fifth-tier National League.The 40-year-old Foster agreed to extend his stay at Wrexham for another year but decided, after a 5-5 draw against Swindon on Saturday, that he will quit the game again.“The honest truth is that my performances this season haven’t reached the level I demand of myself and I feel that now is the right time to retire,” Foster said. “At the forefront of my mind when making this decision, was not only what was best for me but also the club, and making the decision now gives the club every opportunity to assess their options before the (transfer) window closes. Wrexham will always have ...

Blank to have Atlanta team in TGL high-tech golf league founded by Woods, McIlroy

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank is adding a second golf component to his business empire by purchasing one of six teams in Tiger Woods’ high-tech TGL league scheduled to launch in January.Blank, who also owns MLS Atlanta United and the PGA Tour Superstore, said he was drawn to the league’s potential to attract new golf fans with its interaction of tech and live action in a prime-time weekly format. Each of the six teams will have three PGA Tour players.“The players are excited about it,” Blank said. “It’s a different format for them and this will be fun for them. … If it’s fun for the players, it will be fun for the viewers.”Blank’s Atlanta team was officially unveiled on Monday.Woods, Rory McIlroy and former Golf Channel president Mike McCarley have founded TGL under TMRW Sports — pronounced “tomorrow.” The league, which plans to unveil three more teams soon, will operate in partnership with the PGA Tour.“There is no better stalwart support...

Fairfax Co. police officer arrested for DUI after crash that injured 7

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

Officials in Fairfax County, Virginia, have put a police officer on administrative leave after a crash that injured seven Saturday evening.Officer Justin Faison was allegedly off duty and driving a personal vehicle along Route 50 near South Manchester Street in Seven Corners when the crash occurred, the department said in a news release.Seven people were taken to the hospital for treatment of minor injuries, according to the department’s release. Additional information about Faison’s alleged degree of intoxication and the circumstances leading up to the crash were not included in the release.Faison, who has been an officer in the department since 2022, was arrested for driving under the influence and placed on administrative leave “pending the outcome of an Internal Affairs Bureau investigation.”Over the past 12 months, the department has announced at least two other officers who have been arrested for driving under the influence.On Sept. 9, 2022, 15-year dep...

German central bank sees the economy stagnating again in the 3rd quarter

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s central bank anticipates that the country’s economy, Europe’s biggest, will be more or less stagnant again in the current quarter — adding to a string of weak performances.German gross domestic product stagnated in the second quarter after declining in both of the two previous quarters as the country struggled with high energy prices, rising borrowing costs and weakness in China, which has been a key trading partner.The International Monetary Fund forecast last month that Germany would be the globe’s only major economy to shrink this year, even with feeble economic growth around the world amid rising interest rates and the threat of growing inflation.A monthly report Monday from the Bundesbank, Germany’s central bank, indicated that the picture isn’t about to improve. “In the third quarter of 2023, German economic output will probably remain largely unchanged again,” it wrote.The bank said that, while private spending should cont...

Is it illegal for your dog to sit on your lap while driving?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — It's adorable to watch your dog look out the driver's seat window as they rest comfortably on your lap, but it's more dangerous for both you and the dog. Keeping your dog in the backseat while you drive even though they'd prefer your lap isn't a form of unusual punishment, it's actually safer. There's no specific law prohibiting your furry friend from sitting on your lap, but there can be consequences if your furbaby becomes a distraction. Dog rescued after 5 nights, 4 days alone in mountains "There's really no law that restricts a dog to a certain part of the vehicle. With that said though, if somebody rides with a dog, or really any kind of animal on their lap, and it causes them to violate some other traffic law, that's when it's a problem," said Colorado State Patrol Public Information Officer Sgt. Troy Kessler. "It typically becomes careless driving because you're not driving with regard, you're allowing your focus, which shouldn't be on the road, to be taken...

Lakewood city council member calls on stricter rules after dog mauling

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

LAKEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) — After a 6-year-old boy was viciously mauled by dogs in a Lakewood neighborhood, one city leader is calling on stricter enforcement to prevent this from happening again.The incident happened last Wednesday in a neighborhood near Yale and Sheridan. The dog attack happened in Anita Springsteen's ward, she is a Lakewood council member in Ward 3.Springsteen said in order to prevent this from happening again, several city departments need to enforce rules in an area she feels is underserved."I had a lot of concerns about how this little boy was injured so badly," Springsteen said. Fate of dogs unknown after mauling 6-year-old at Lakewood park Diego Dominguez-Inungarai was mauled by two dogs and left bloodied and scarred, undergoing multiple medical procedures and more left to go."I think it's inexcusable that a little boy would be attacked by dogs in this manner," Springsteen said.Diego was walking to a park in the Thraemoor neighborhood with his aunt when the a...

A woman in California was killed after an argument over a Pride flag hanging outside her clothing store, deputies say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

(CNN) — The owner of a clothing store in southern California was killed after an argument about a rainbow Pride flag hanging outside the business, deputies said.Laura Ann “Lauri” Carleton, 66, was found suffering from a gunshot wound Friday evening at her store Mag.Pi in Cedar Glen, just east of Lake Arrowhead, a news release from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said. She was pronounced dead at the scene.“Through further investigation, detectives learned the suspect made several disparaging remarks about a rainbow flag that stood outside the store before shooting Carleton,” the release said.The suspect, who hasn’t been identified by investigators, ran away after the shooting and was later found about a mile away, still armed, deputies said.“When deputies attempted to contact the suspect, a lethal force encounter occurred and the suspect was pronounced deceased,” the sheriff’s department said. “No deputies were injured during the incident.”The shooting c...

Chicago baseball report: Cubs start 7-game road trip with ample opportunities, while White Sox mark special family and career moments

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

The Chicago Cubs did not let a series-opening loss to the lowly Kansas City Royals derail their weekend, delivering a series win led by Justin Steele and Kyle Hendricks.After a week of interleague games against the Cubs and Colorado Rockies, the Sox will see plenty of the American League West with the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics coming to Guaranteed Rate Field.Every Monday throughout the season, Tribune baseball writers will provide an update on what happened — and what’s ahead for the Cubs and Sox.Cubs not taking their schedule for grantedThe Cubs took care of business as they needed to against the second-worst team in baseball over the weekend.Coming off their series win versus the Kansas City Royals, the Cubs must continue to secure series victories the rest of the way, and the current stretch in their schedule provides ample opportunities. They begin a seven-game road trip Monday in Detroit before a four-game set in Pittsburgh that leads into back-to-back ...

Former Chicago Bulls general manager Gar Forman sells Buffalo Grove home for $740,000

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:23:22 GMT

Former Chicago Bulls general manager Gar Forman and his wife, Leslie, on Aug. 15 sold their five-bedroom, 4,011-square-foot house in Buffalo Grove for $740,000.Forman, 63, started with the Bulls as a scout and worked his way up through the team’s leadership ranks until he became the Bulls’ general manager in 2009. He led the Bulls to the playoffs in seven of his 10 seasons as general manager, but he was ousted from the team in April 2020 during a season that was suspended for a time by the COVID-19 pandemic and that also was marked by poor performance.Forman, who also owns a home in the Las Vegas area, most recently has been a special advisor to the New Orleans Pelicans.In Buffalo Grove, the Formans paid $536,000 in 2003 to buy the house from former Bulls guard Fred Hoiberg and his wife, Carol. Years later, in 2015, Hoiberg was hired as the Bulls’ head coach, and Hoiberg worked under Forman until Hoiberg was fired three and a half years later.Built in 1997, the hou...