Author: chicagoinquirer

by Josh Boak WASHINGTON  — The politics of inflation took a sharp turn Wednesday with a report showing consumer prices rose at the slowest pace since the early months of Joe Biden’s presidency. Republicans have hammered Biden over the cost of groceries, gasoline, utilities and more, saying his $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package and push for electric vehicles were responsible for pushing inflation to a four-decade high. The GOP argument has resonated with voters, but the report on consumer prices for June suggests that inflation has eased dramatically without any of the job losses that some economists and Republican leaders said would occur. Prices…

BC-EU–NATO Summit, 13th Ld-Writethru Jul 12, 2023 9:47 PM – 1241 words By CHRIS MEGERIAN, LORNE COOK and SEUNG MIN KIM Associated Press Eds: UPDATES: Adds video.; With AP Photos.; AP Video. by Chris Megerian, Lorne Cook and Seung Min Kim VILNIUS, Lithuania  — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed fresh pledges of weapons and ammunition to fight Russia’s invasion along with longer-term security commitments from the West on Wednesday even as he expressed disappointment over the lack of a clear path for his country to join NATO as the alliance wrapped up its annual summit. “The Ukrainian delegation is bringing…

by Aaron Morrison The Black Lives Matter movement hits a milestone on Thursday, marking 10 years since its 2013 founding in response to the acquittal of the man who fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Gunned down in a Florida gated community where his father lived in 2012, Martin was one of the earliest symbols of a movement that now wields influence in politics, law enforcement and broader conversations about racial progress in and outside the U.S. BLM activists and organizations plan to mark a decade of the movement with in-person and virtual events. Calls to action include a renewed push…

by Agency reports CHICAGO  — A tornado touched down Wednesday evening near Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, prompting passengers to take shelter and disrupting hundreds of flights. There were no immediate reports of injuries. A confirmed tornado was on the ground around 7 p.m., according to the National Weather Service in Chicago. “This tornado has been touching the ground intermittently so far and is moving east. There are additional circulations along the line south of O’Hare. Seek shelter if in the warned area,” it said. By 8 p.m. the weather service said the Chicago forecast area was “currently tornado warning free.”…

By Emeka ObasiUntil Ishaq Oloyede assumed office as Registrar in 2016, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) was in bazaar mode. His predecessor, Dibu Ojerinde, is still in court trying to explain how five billion naira failed him and four of his children.While Ojerinde is facing allegations of stuffing his pockets with billions of naira, Oloyede has been stuffing the Federal treasury with returns. Indeed, there is so much money coming to and leaving JAMB. Where it goes depends on the discretion of the Registrar.Ojerinde is a first class professor. The first Nigerian Professor of Tests and Measurements. When…

by Brian Slodysko and Eric Tucker WASHINGTON  — When Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas headlined a 2017 program at McLennan Community College in Texas, his hosts had more than a speech in mind. Working with the prominent conservative lawyer Ken Starr, school officials crafted a guest list for a dinner at the home of a wealthy Texas businessman, hoping an audience with Thomas would be a reward for school patrons -– and an inducement to prospective donors. Before Justice Elena Kagan visited the University of Colorado’s law school in 2019, one official in Boulder suggested a “larger donor to staff…

by Chris Megerian, Seung Min Kim and Karl Ritter VILNIUS, Lithuania  — NATO opened its summit Tuesday with fresh momentum after Turkey withdrew its objections to Sweden joining the alliance, a step toward the unity that Western leaders have been eager to demonstrate in the face of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The decision by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a significant move toward Sweden’s membership and it will alleviate tension in Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital. The deal was reached after days of intensive meetings, and it’s poised to expand the alliance’s strength in Northern Europe. “Rumors of the death of…

JERUSALEM  — Israeli protesters blocked highways leading to Jerusalem, Haifa and Tel Aviv on Tuesday, at the start of a day of countrywide demonstrations against the government’s planned judicial overhaul that has divided the nation. The demonstrations came the morning after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s parliamentary coalition gave initial approval for a bill to limit the Supreme Court’s oversight powers, pressing forward with the contentious proposed changes to the judiciary despite widespread opposition. The legislation is one of several bills proposed by Netanyahu’s ultranationalist and ultra-Orthodox allies. The plan has provoked months of sustained protests by opponents who say it…

by Christina A. Cassidy and Linley Sanders Few Republicans have high confidence that votes will be tallied accurately in next year’s presidential contest, suggesting years of sustained attacks against elections by former President Donald Trump and his allies have taken a toll, according to a new poll. The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll finds that only 22% of Republicans have high confidence that votes in the upcoming presidential election will be counted accurately compared to 71% of Democrats, underscoring a partisan divide fueled by a relentless campaign of lies related to the 2020 presidential election. Even as…

by Ed White PONTIAC, Mich.  — Two sons of the late singer Aretha Franklin gave opposing opinions Monday about the Queen of Soul’s final wishes, testifying in an unusual trial that will determine whether a 2014 handwritten document found in couch cushions will lead her estate. Franklin died in 2018 at age 76 without a formal, typewritten will, and five years later her legacy still is tied up in a suburban Detroit court after a niece found different sets of handwritten papers at her home. The issue for a jury: Does a 2014 document count as a will under Michigan law? If so, it could…