Customs and Border Protection agents seized over three dozen live beetles being smuggled inside Japanese snacks at Los Angeles International Airport, authorities said Wednesday. CBP agriculture specialists examining an air cargo shipment in January discovered the beetles concealed inside multiple packages of snacks, potato chips and chocolate, the agency said. The contraband was valued at…
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By AAMER MADHANI and ZEKE MILLER WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump promised voters an administration that wouldn’t waste precious American lives and taxpayer treasure on far-off wars and nation building. Related Articles National Politics | Democratic senators protest after they say Trump gives Musk’s staff access to classified info National Politics | Trump unleashes…
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Public-employee unions need to understand their uneconomic actions eventually hurt not just the taxpaying public, but even union members. That was made clear on Jan. 31 when the Board of Trustees of the Santa Unified School District voted to lay off 286 teachers, counselors, social workers and other employees this year. The district is suffering…
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Sara Gran got hooked on mysteries early, especially the work of Donald J. Sobel, creator of “Two-Minute Mysteries” and the “Encyclopedia Brown” series. “Growing up, he meant so much to me,” says the novelist, short story writer and publisher during a December Zoom interview from her Marina del Rey home. “It’s difficult to put into…
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I’m just sorry that P.T. Barnum isn’t alive to see this. The Greatest Show on Earth is the new Department of Government Efficiency. If it started as a joke (DOGE was an internet meme of a dog and then a sardonically named crypto coin), it’s no joke now. An elected billionaire and an appointed billionaire…
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A newly proposed state bill with bipartisan support would keep CAL FIRE firefighters employed year-round — and help with staffing issues, its supporters said. The Fight for Firefighters Act proposes to transition about 3,000 seasonal firefighters who are employed for nine months a year into 12-month employees to increase the number of firefighters ready to…
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By ZEN SOO, Associated Press Business Writer HONG KONG (AP) — The U.S. Postal Service is reversing course a day after placing a ban on all inbound packages from China and Hong Kong. The post office had announced Tuesday that it would no longer accept parcels from the China and Hong Kong after the U.S.…
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A movement to oppose the early actions of President Donald Trump’s administration is taking off online, with plans to protest across the U.S. on Wednesday. The movement has organized under the hashtags #buildtheresistance and #50501, which stands for 50 protests, 50 states, one day. Many of the protests are planned at state capitols, with some…
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By RUSS BYNUM, Associated Press BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) — A judge Wednesday threw out a felony indictment against a former Georgia prosecutor, ending her trial on charges that she abused her power by trying to protect the men who chased and killed Ahmaud Arbery in 2020. Former District Attorney Jackie Johnson for years denied influencing police who…
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By John Gittelsohn | Bloomberg Economic losses from the fires that tore through Los Angeles County in January range from $95 billion to $164 billion, according to a new report, potentially making the blazes the second-costliest natural disaster in US history. The Eaton and Palisades fires, which both erupted Jan. 7, killed at least 29…
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