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'That's unacceptable': Lawmakers call out State Department for persistent passport problems 

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Passport problems have lawmakers increasingly frustrated as their offices are inundated with travelers pleading for help. The State Department says they're surging resources to deal with the backlog, but so far they haven't made much progress. Right now, the State Department says the wait time for a passport is 10 to 13 weeks, or seven to nine weeks to have it expedited for a fee. Senator Eric Schmitt is among the lawmakers who have slammed the State Department for the backlog.  "That's unacceptable," Schmitt said.  Long wait for US passports snarling summer plans Senator Rick Scott echoed the criticism, adding that the agency didn't prepare enough for this post pandemic rush. "If you have more demand, you hire more people. Shocking. How hard is that?" Scott said. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said they are surging resources, including hiring extra workers and approving extra hours. "People working overtime, double...

Zendaya remembers co-star Angus Cloud in emotional social post

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

(KRON) -- "Euphoria" star Zendaya remembered the "boundless light" of her late co-star Angus Cloud in an emotional tribute Tuesday. Cloud was found dead in his Oakland, California, home on Monday, and his cause of death has not yet been released. He was 25 years old. On Tuesday, Zendaya posted a photo of Cloud on Instagram, along with a note about his life. "Words are not enough to describe the infinite beauty that is Angus (Conor)," she wrote. "I’m so grateful I got the chance to know him in this life, to call him a brother, to see his warm kind eyes and bright smile, or hear his infectious cackle of a laugh (I’m smiling now just thinking of it)." Both Cloud and Zendaya are Oakland natives. The two actors attended the Oakland School for the Performing Arts. Lizzo sued by trio of dancers who allege ‘hostile, abusive work environment’ Cloud later moved to New York City, where he was discovered by a casting director. Not long after, "Euphoria" fans fell in love with his character Fe...

New York man rescued after treading water in Atlantic Ocean for over 5 hours: police

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

BABYLON, N.Y. (WPIX) — A 63-year-old man was rescued from the open ocean off of a Long Island, New York beach on Monday after he treaded water for more than five hours, according to officials.Dan Ho, of Copiague, was swimming at Cedar Beach on around 5 a.m. when the current pulled him out to sea around 2.5 miles south from where he entered the ocean, according to authorities. Ho didn't have a floatation device. He found a broken fishing pole in the water and tied his shirt to the pole to wave at passing boats, according to officials. He found a broken fishing pole in the water and tied his shirt to the pole to wave at passing boats in an attempt to be rescued, according to officials. Two men, Jim Hohorst and Michael Ross, eventually spotted Ho in the water and pulled him aboard their boat, authorities said. Hohorst called authorities and met Coast Guard officials to take Ho back to land.Ho was conscious and alert but unable to stand, according to authorities. Ho was treated for hy...

Snoop Dogg just launched a line of ice cream — and it’s coming to a store near you

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

BestReviews is reader-supported and may earn an affiliate commission. Details.There’s a delicious new trend among A-listers, and we officially can’t get enough: Celebs keep dropping ice cream brands. It started in 2020, when scoop shops Serendipity and Salt & Straw collabbed with Selena Gomez and Dwayne Johnson, respectively, on limited edition flavors. The following year, Tyra Banks launched Smize Cream in Los Angeles. Cher has her brand, Cherlato. And now Snoop Dogg is joining the great celebrity scoop race.Snoop just announced that he’s launching a whole line of ice creams under the brand name Dr. Bombay Ice Cream. Seven flavors started hitting Walmart shelves nationwide this week.Free ya mind and rock your taste budsIt should come as no surprise that Snoop’s brand features some playful flavors. Head to a Walmart near you, and you can try Bonus Track Brownie, Cocoa Cream Cookie Dream, Iced Out Orange Cream, Rollin’ In the Dough, S’more Vibes, Syrupy W...

Lizzo sued by trio of dancers who allege 'hostile, abusive work environment'

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

(The Hill) - A group of dancers is suing Lizzo, claiming they were “exposed to an overtly sexual atmosphere that permeated their workplace” while on tour with the “About Damn Time” singer.The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court by the three dancers, accuses Lizzo, her production company and another employee of “creating a hostile, abusive work environment and making their working conditions intolerable.”Filed by the firm West Coast Employment Lawyers on behalf of Arianna Davis, Noelle Rodriguez and Crystal Williams, the lawsuit claims Lizzo pressured some of the plaintiffs into participating in a “severely uncomfortable” nude photo shoot, forced them into a “sexually charged and uncomfortable environment” with nude performers at an Amsterdam nightclub and required the trio to undergo a “brutal” and “excruciating” 12-hour audition in order to keep their jobs.The group, two of whom were former contestants on Amazon’s award-winning Prime Video series “Lizzo’s Watch Out...

CPD warns of Northwest Side theif targeting work vans for tools, equipment

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

CHICAGO  — Chicago police issued a community alert Tuesday, warning Jefferson Park residents of a string of burglaries involving work vans and trucks.According to police, the unknown suspect breaks the driver or passenger side windows to enter the car's rear. Once inside, the suspect makes off with tools and construction equipment. Armored truck robberies on the rise across Chicago area CPD listed the following dates and incident times below:5200 block of West Foster Ave. between midnight July 23 and 7 a.m. July 245300 block of North Natchez Ave. on July 24 at 2:30 a.m.4900 block of North Neva Ave. between 8:30 p.m. July 25 and 8 a.m. July 264600 block of North Melvina Ave. between 9 p.m. July 25 and 6:30 a.m. July 26, 20236200 block of West Rosedale Ave. on July 26 at 4:45 a.m.4500 block of North Laporte Ave. on July 26 at 4 p.m.3800 block of North Olcott Ave. between 10 p.m. July 27 and 5:30 a.m. July 287500 block of West Irving Park Rd. between 9 p.m. July 27 and 8 a.m. July 2...

DeSantis says he'd weigh national TikTok ban if elected

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis said he would consider a national TikTok ban if elected, amid bipartisan security concerns about the Chinese-owned video-sharing app.“I am inclined to not want TikTok in the United States,” the Florida governor told The Wall Street Journal. “I think it’s creating a security vulnerability for us. I think they are mining a lot of data.”However, he emphasized he would stop short of instituting something like the RESTRICT Act. The bipartisan legislation, introduced in March, seeks to give the federal government more power to regulate and ban technology linked to foreign adversaries, such as TikTok.“At the end of the day, I don’t want Big Brother to be getting into everybody’s apps,” DeSantis told the Journal. “It’s about vulnerabilities to our country.”The Florida governor signed a bill barring the use of TikTok on government and school servers and devices in the Sunshine State earlier this year, as part of a slate of legislation aimed at “...

Christie knocks Trump for using donations to help pay legal bills 

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie took aim at former President Trump for using donations to help cover his legal bills amid numerous court battles.“And the fact is, when you look at just his campaign filings yesterday, almost most of the money that middle-class Americans have given to him, he spent on his own legal fees,” Christie said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Tuesday. “I mean, this guy's a billionaire.” Christie said that instead of using his donations to pay for his legal fees, the former president should sell his Trump Tower, his plane or one of his golf courses to do so.“But instead, he's taking $25, $50, $100 from everyday Americans who believe they're giving it to him to help elect him president, and he's paying his legal fees,” Christie said.According to new campaign finance filings, Trump’s joint fundraising committee reported raising nearly $54 million during the first half of 2023. However, the filings also show that his political committees spent about $25 m...

LIVE: Powder Keg Pine Fire in Bastrop estimated at 30 acres, 10% contained

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

BASTROP, Texas (KXAN) — First responders said they're working Tuesday afternoon to evacuate homes as a "precautionary measure" because of a wildfire burning near Bastrop State Park. The fire, which is now called the Powder Keg Pine Fire, is estimated at 30 acres and is 10% contained, according to the Bastrop County Office of Emergency Management.Additionally, the Austin Fire Department said it and other Travis County ESDs sent multiple units as mutual aid to to the fire.Smoke seen from Bastrop County fire Aug. 1, 2023. (KXAN ReportIt photo)Smoke from Bastrop wildfire Aug. 1, 2023 (KXAN ReportIt Photo)Smoke from a Bastrop fire Aug. 1, 2023 (Courtesy Morgan Hay)Smoke from a Bastrop fire Aug. 1, 2023 (Courtesy Morgan Hay)First responders said the houses affected by the evacuations are located between Harmon Road and Pine Hill Loop in Bastrop. It's unclear how many homes are impacted at this time. Neighbors are advised to contact the county hotline at (512) 303-4300 for more information...

Future of Peter Pan Mini-Golf, old McDonald's site in limbo

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 11:53:50 GMT

AUSTIN (Austin Business Journal) -- In the heart of Austin, two adjacent prime properties sit in limbo, caught up in the real estate dealings of a large state agency.One is the fenced-off site of a demolished McDonald's restaurant at South Lamar Boulevard and Barton Springs Road. The other, just to the east, is Peter Pan Mini-Golf, a local business that embodies the fabric of quirky and laid-back old Austin as much as anything else south of Lady Bird Lake.The fate of these sites will be in the hands of an as-yet-unknown individual: a trustee who will be appointed to oversee family trusts that control the land in question and were set up to aid the Texas Juvenile Justice Department and the state's orphans.Read the full story at Austin Business Journal.