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German court: Former Chancellor Schröder has no right to office in the Bundestag

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

BERLIN — Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder wanted his seven-room office and his staff of four back in the Bundestag office. But the Berlin Administrative Court ruled that he must continue to work without access to his office and his team.In May 2022, the budget committee of the German parliament had decided to no longer grant Schröder these privileges. The 79-year-old had faced strong blowback for his continued ties to Russia, which have included seats on the boards of Russian energy companies and personal friendship with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He filed a lawsuit against the committee’s decision in August 2022.For more than 50 years, a longstanding informal practice allows chancellors to have office space and staff in the German parliament’s buildings in Berlin to be used for the completion of tasks arising from their former position. So far, the offices have been made available for life. Former Chancellor Angela Merkel, for example, still has nine employees. Acco...

Jenny Craig is reportedly winding down its weight-loss centers and warning of mass layoffs

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

(CNN) — Jenny Craig is reportedly shutting down some of its weight-loss centers and warning employees of mass layoffs amid upheaval in the industry from popular new prescription drugs like Ozempic.Jenny Craig alerted employees to potential layoffs as it begins “winding down physical operations” and hunts for a buyer, according to NBC News. Jenny Craig has nearly 500 weight-loss centers in the United States and Canada.The company, founded in 1983, did not disclose to CNN how many weight loss centers will close or how many employees will be impacted.“Like many other companies, we’re currently transitioning from a brick-and-mortar retail business to a customer-friendly, e-commerce driven model. We will have more details to share in the coming weeks as our plans are solidified,” a spokesperson for Jenny Craig said in a statement to CNN.Jenny Craig’s program provides nutritionally balanced menus, which include entrees, desserts and snacks, d...

ProPublica: GOP megadonor paid private school tuition for grandnephew of Justice Clarence Thomas

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

 (CNN) — A Texas billionaire and GOP megadonor paid boarding school tuition for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ grandnephew, and the justice did not report the financial assistance for the child he helped raised on his annual disclosures, according to a new ProPublica report — the latest revelation raising ethical questions around the high court.The ProPublica report on Thursday revealed that the billionaire Harlan Crow paid tuition for Mark Martin, who lived with Thomas’ family as a child and for whom the justice became a legal guardian. ProPublica cited a 2009 bank statement and an interview with a former administrator at the Georgia boarding school Martin attended.The former administrator at the school, Hidden Lake Academy, told ProPublica that Crow paid for Martin’s tuition for the year or so Martin was at the boarding school. The administrator said, according to ProPublica, that he had been told by Crow that Crow also paid for...

Ravens’ Lamar Jackson ‘didn’t really care for other teams,’ mum about trade request

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

Lamar Jackson, despite a public trade request and the opportunity to negotiate with other teams, made clear one thing clear Thursday in his first conversation with the media in five months: He always wanted to be Raven.“I didn’t really care for other teams,” he said at a news conference at the team’s facility in Owings Mills, his first comments since agreeing to a record-breaking five-year, $260 million deal that makes him the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL in terms of annual salary. “I wanted to get something done here.”“In the end, it was really two people,” Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta added. “I was dealing with Lamar Jackson the agent. … It wasn’t always easy [and] I’d rather deal with Lamar Jackson the player. But in the end, it was just Lamar and I talking, texting, emailing each other trying to get a deal done. There were really no other factors involved.”Jackson demurred when asked what...

The banking crisis isn’t over. But how bad will it get?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

By KEN SWEET and MICHELLE CHAPMAN (AP Business Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — Uncertainty continues to pummel the banking industry, despite assurances from financial regulators and bankers such as Jamie Dimon this week that the worst of the recent crisis is over and the health of the banking system remains strong.Bank shares have sold off on Wall Street this week following the government seizure and subsequent sale of First Republic Bank to JPMorgan. It was the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history and the third failure of a midsize lender in two months. While many thought the sale of First Republic “would stop the ‘who’s next?’ conversations, investors are clearly continuing to focus on remaining players that are deemed the weakest” analysts at UBS wrote in a note to clients.The bigger worry is that the bank failures might lead to doubts about relatively healthy banks, creating a financial contagion that could impact the wider economy. Averting tha...

Jake Burger — who leads Chicago White Sox in HRs — goes on 10-day injured list with a strained left oblique

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

The Chicago White Sox will be without the team leader in home runs after placing infielder Jake Burger on the 10-day injured list with a strained left oblique.“There was some soreness there in the side,” Sox manager Pedro Grifol said before Thursday’s game against the Minnesota Twins at Guaranteed Rate Field. “That area’s a little difficult.”Burger suffered the injury during a fourth-inning at-bat in Wednesday’s 6-4 victory against the Twins.“It was just a freak thing,” Burger said after Wednesday’s game. “I was talking to the training staff after it happened. Sometimes freak things happen. Obviously it was a weird pitch and a weird swing.”Burger has a .224/.312/.612 slash line with five doubles, seven home runs and 14 RBIs in 23 games.The Sox recalled infielder Lenyn Sosa from Triple-A Charlotte. He hit .151 (8-for-53) with one homer, three RBIs and three runs in 16 games with the Sox from April 11-30 before be...

Chicago Cubs call up top prospect Matt Mervis — and he’ll be at Wrigley Field on Friday

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

The Chicago Cubs are adding some thump to their lineup.First baseman Matt Mervis has been called up, sources confirmed to the Tribune. He will join the team Friday for the series opener against the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field.A strong 2022 minor-league season positioned Mervis, 25, for this opportunity. He smashed his way through the Cubs’ minor-league system in 2022, advancing through three levels from High-A South Bend to Triple-A Iowa by the end of the season.Mervis signed with the Cubs as an undrafted free agent in 2020 when the draft lasted only five rounds because of the pandemic. A two-way player out of Duke, Mervis has shown a keen eye and patient approach, cutting down on his strikeouts each time he moved up to the next affiliate.In 24 games at Triple A this year, Mervis produced a .286/.402/.560 slash line with six home runs, seven doubles and 27 RBIs.Mervis should get ample opportunities at first base and the designated hitter spot, especially against right-hande...

Ex-NBA star Shawn Kemp pleads not guilty in parking lot shooting

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

Former NBA All-Star Shawn Kemp pleaded not guilty Thursday in connection with a shooting in a Washington State parking lot in March.Kemp, 53, is accused of firing three shots at an occupied vehicle outside Tacoma Mall on March 8. None of Kemp’s shots struck their intended target, and he was charged with first-degree assault.The former Seattle SuperSonic argued that he fired in self-defense after someone in the vehicle shot at him first. Police claim that surveillance video shows otherwise.Shortly before the shooting, Kemp’s car was burglarized in Seattle and his cellphone was stolen, according to his defense attorneys. Kemp tracked his phone to a Toyota 4Runner that was parked outside Tacoma Mall.According to police, surveillance video shows Kemp arriving in the parking lot and stopping a few spots away from the Toyota. He then exits his car, grabs a small bag, walks toward the alleged thief and opens fire, investigators said.The Toyota driver ducked at least one of the ...

Mets Notebook: Buck Showalter relying on righties in bullpen

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

DETROIT — Once again, the Mets are without a lefty in the bullpen.The club made several transactions Thursday morning in order to make room on the roster for right-hander Justin Verlander, who was activated off the injured list ahead of his first start of the season, and Dominic Leone, a free agent acquisition who joined the team in Detroit.The Mets optioned right-handed reliever John Curtiss and left-handed reliever Zach Muckenhirn to Triple-A Syracuse, they returned right-hander Jose Butto to Syracuse after the pitcher was brought up to serve as the 27th man for Thursday’s doubleheader, and they moved catcher Omar Narvaez to the 60-day IL.The move to send Muckenhirn back to Triple-A isn’t a huge surprise, but it does leave the Mets without a left-hander in the bullpen. Manager Buck Showalter said Brooks Raley is “doing well” dealing with his elbow inflammation but he isn’t eligible to come off IL yet having been placed on there last weekend (the...

Tech review: Emotn N1, a projector with Netflix built-in

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:40:42 GMT

Jim Rossman | Tribune News ServiceMy wife is enamored with the idea of outdoor movie nights.We’ve all seen it on TV or in commercials — throw up a sheet on the side of the garage, toss a blanket on the ground or perhaps lawn chairs for the older folks and fire up the projector to watch a movie outdoors.I think I found an affordable projector that’ll finally make outdoor movie night happen at our house.I’ve been testing the Emotn N1 1080P Smart Projector for a few weeks and I’m really impressed with its ease of use.The projector is the first I’ve reviewed that’s an officially licensed Netflix projector.What does that mean?When you turn on the projector, it’ll ask you to connect it to the internet, through Wi-Fi or Ethernet, and then you’ll Netflix launch and ask you to log in.Once you log into your Netflix account, you can stream all the Netflix content without having to connect a computer or phone.In fact, after you make the internet connection (I used 5GHz Wi-Fi), you can press sho...