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Summer Warmth Ahead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

How about that weather yesterday? Low humidity and a ton of sunshine allowed temps to launch into the mid to upper 70s, providing Boston and many towns and cities with the first 70 degree day of the year. With the really low relative humidity and a gusty wind, the brush fire danger was high, and again will be today. Once again a red flag warning is in place… no cigarettes out the window and no fire pits/outdoor burning today. Highs this afternoon fall a few degrees shy of yesterday’s, but still a mild day overall. Tomorrow, it’s a full send into summer as most towns and cities crack 80. Mid 80s will be common away from the immediate coast, but even beach temps likely reach well into the 70s with the exception for parts of Cape Cod and Cape Ann. Friday is very warm again inland, but likely a lot cooler at the coast. Late morning temps warm well into the 70s at the coast, then an ocean breeze knocks temps back into the 60s to 50s by mid to late afternoon. Meantime, i...

Sen. Tim Scott plans to launch 2024 exploratory committee Wednesday

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

(CNN) — Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina plans to launch an exploratory committee for president on Wednesday, according to a source familiar with his plans.Scott — the only Black Republican in the Senate — has been testing the waters for months. Since setting off on a listening tour in February focused on “Faith in America,” he’s made frequent visits to Iowa.He’s scheduled to hold events in the early voting state on Wednesday.The Post and Courier was first to report on the plans.“I’ve been doing a lot of thinking the past few months,” Scott wrote in a Tuesday night email to his supporters teasing a Wednesday morning announcement on Fox. “I’ve been thinking about my faith. I’ve been thinking about the future of our country. And I’ve been thinking about the Left’s plan to ruin America.”Scott easily won reelection to the Senate last fall and ended the year with more...

Manhattan DA Bragg sues GOP House Judiciary chairman to prevent interference in Trump case

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

(CNN) — Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is suing House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, over what the lawsuit filed Tuesday describes as a “transparent campaign to intimidate and attack” his office’s case against former President Donald Trump.The suit injects more legal drama into Bragg’s investigation of Trump, which has been dogged for weeks by accusations from Republicans that the prosecutor’s pursuit of the former president was purely political, with the claims being central to Jordan’s own probe.Bragg is seeking to block a subpoena for testimony from Mark Pomerantz, a former senior prosecutor in his office, as well as other demands for “confidential documents and testimony from the district attorney himself as well as his current and former employees and officials.” The 50-page suit is asking a federal court to give emergency and permanent relief that would block enforcement of Jordan’s s...

To Odell Beckham Jr.’s high school coach, the Ravens’ wide receiver has come a long way: ‘He’s a professional now’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

First, Lamar Jackson and Odell Beckham Jr. enjoyed dinner at Prime 112, an upscale steakhouse in Miami Beach. Then they headed a couple of miles up the road to popular nightclub LIV, where a waitress could be seen holding up a lighted sign that read “Welcome Lamar & OBJ.”The Ravens quarterback and his newest wide receiver were already friends before they bonded over Beckham’s one-year deal reportedly worth $15 million guaranteed that was announced Easter Sunday. Jackson has yet to sign the $32.4 million nonexclusive franchise tag the Ravens placed on him last month five days after he requested to be traded, but that demand, for now, seems to have fizzled like a three-day-old bottle of champagne.One person who knows Beckham even better than Jackson, though, is Nelson Stewart, his high school coach from Isidore Newman in New Orleans. It’s where Peyton and Eli Manning once starred, their nephew and prized recruit Arch Manning played quarterback this past sea...

With homers, steals and celebrations, Orioles’ young talent delivering an exciting brand of baseball

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

The Orioles debuted a new celebration prop Monday night, and within hours, Ben Roberts and his 12-year-old son, Owen, had plans to bring their own version to Oriole Park on Tuesday night.Roberts, an Orioles fan from Severna Park, ordered a hose on Amazon late on Monday and swung by a dollar store Tuesday to purchase a funnel and duct tape. The result: a replica of the orange-and-black “homer hose,” which Orioles players now drink water out of to celebrate home runs.“It’s a lot of fun,” Owen, who asked Austin Hays to autograph the hose, said of coming to games. “I told [my dad] tonight — I was like, ‘We need to keep on coming.’”The Orioles (6-5) put together an enthralling, come-from-behind victory Tuesday night against the Oakland Athletics (2-9) for their latest dramatic win.It’s hard to define “fun,” but if home runs and steals are the barometer, there aren’t many MLB teams more fun than the Oriole...

ASK IRA: Are Bulls or Raptors the Heat’s preferred opponent in Friday’s winner-take-all game?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

Q: Ira, if Toronto beats Chicago that is a tough matchup for the Heat. – Joel.A: And if Chicago beat Toronto on Wednesday night, that’s a tough matchup for the Heat. I understand what you’re saying about Toronto’s length being a concern, particularly considering what the Hawks did to the Heat on the boards. But Chicago has a pair of players in DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine that can singularly will their team to victory. Of the three potential play-in opponents, I thought the Hawks were the best draw for the Heat. And then we saw what happened there.Q: I think this was more about the Hawks and less about the Heat. They really do have a good team. Two All-Star guards, good length on the wings and a great rim protector. Give Erik Spoelstra this team and they make it to the Eastern Conference finals. Next up the No. 8 spot. – Douglas.A: Which just shows with Quin Snyder the difference a quality coach can make. And yes, even going in, the Heat had the best p...

Howie Carr: RFK Jr., the outcast Kennedy, has Dems reeling

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

The more state-run media call Robert F. Kennedy Jr. a crackpot and a lunatic and an “anti-vaccine quack,” the more I’m thinking I like this guy.Bobby Jr. is coming to Boston next week to formally announce his candidacy for the 2024 Democrat nomination for president.At age 69, he’s the youngster on the Democrat side, after incumbent president Dementia Joe Biden (80) and spiritual nut Marianne Williamson (71 in July).It tells you something about modern politics that for most of his dissipated life, despite the most appalling sorts of behavior – hard drugs, booze, philandering to the max — Bobby Junior was a well-respected member in good standing of the Democrat party.He began slowly drifting off the Democrat plantation years ago, but he always had that Kennedy thing going for him, especially the famous name of his martyred father.But then he committed the ultimate blasphemy – he profaned the sainted Dr. Anthony Fauci, wrote a best-selling expose about him. And after that he was,...

OBF: Terrorism at Boston Marathon failed to break city’s spirit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

Ten years after he bombed the Boston Marathon with his brother, the lone surviving murderer and one-time pride of Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School continues to decay in federal prison.His death penalty sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2022. But the editorial board of John Henry’s broadsheet can take comfort in the fact that a ban on federal executions remains in place.We mention Rolling Stone’s favorite cover boy (never by name) here because the 127th running of the Boston Marathon on Monday is another reminder of just how badly he and his brother failed.A decade later and the terrorists still lost.We are big on names here when it comes to the innocent lives lost on Marathon Monday 2013: Martin Richard, Krystle Campbell and Lingzi Lu. Nor can we forget Sean Collier, murdered by the two bombers two nights later. And unlike the producers of “Patriots Day,” we will always include Boston Police Officer Dennis Simmonds in any tribute. He died in April 2014 from head inju...

Pedestrian fatally struck by GO train in East Gwillimbury; Barrie trains delayed

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

Trains on the Barrie GO line are currently stopped north of Aurora after a pedestrian was fatally struck during the Wednesday morning commute.York Regional Police received reports someone was hit by a train around 5:30 a.m. near Yonge Street and Holland Landing Road in East Gwillimbury.Metrolinx confirmed a person was killed on the tracks north of East Gwillimbury GO station and trains cannot move through the area until an investigation is complete.“Customers at Allandale, Barrie South, Bradford, East Gwillimbury and Newmarket GO stations can proceed to the bus loop for service,” reads a tweet from GO Transit. “Customers at Aurora GO can expect a GO train in approximately one hour.”Riders are encouraged to check GO Transit’s service updates for the latest.Emergency personnel have reported a fatality, and service on your line has been modified. Customers at Allandale, Barrie South, Bradford, East Gwillimbury and Newmarket GO stations can proceed to the b...

Taliban say there’s no obstacles for UN work in Afghanistan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:49:12 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Taliban’s chief spokesman said Wednesday there are no obstacles for the U.N. to function in Afghanistan, after they barred Afghan women from working at the global body.Last week, the country’s Taliban rulers took a step further in the restrictive measures they have imposed on women and said that female Afghan staffers employed with the U.N. mission can no longer report for work. The ban is being actively enforced by the country’s intelligence agency, which reports to the Taliban’s leadership in Kandahar. The U.N. says it cannot accept the decision, calling it unlawful and an unparalleled violation of women’s rights. It says women are crucial for the delivery of life-saving aid to millions of Afghans, and has instructed its national staff, male and female, to stay at home. Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban-led government’s chief spokesman and part of the supreme leader’s inner circle, denied authorities were to blame for Afghanis...