
Girl and her mother killed in Russian strikes as Ukraine reports frontline progress
By Pavel Polityuk KYIV A 10-year-old girl and her mother were among four civilians killed in a Russian
2023-07-31 21:17

9 injured in shooting near beach in Hollywood, Florida; some taken to children's hospital
Nine people are injured after gunfire erupted along a beach boardwalk in Hollywood, Florida, sending people frantically running for cover along the crowded beach on Memorial Day
2023-05-30 10:59

Swiss Banks Can Handle More Rate Hikes, SNB’s Schlegel Says
Switzerland’s lenders are strong enough to cope with possible additional interest-rate increases by the Swiss National Bank, its
2023-07-08 11:49

DeSantis car crash revealed misuse of government vehicles for 2024 campaign, report claims
The Tennesse car crash involving four vehicles in Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s motorcade has revealed that his campaign has misused government vehicles by using cars owned by the state of Florida in his presidential run, a report claims. The crash that took place on Tuesday as the campaign team was travelling to fundraisers in three cities in the state shows how the campaign is using state resources, but it remains almost impossible to discover who’s funding it after a new law passed by the Florida legislature to shield Mr DeSantis’s travel records from the public, according to the Orlando Sentinel. The research director for nonprofit government watchdog Integrity Florida, Ben Wilcox, told the paper: “The legislature has enabled him to hide his travel records so we don’t know and have no way to hold him accountable if he is using state resources in his campaign or if that is even the case”. Orlando Democratic state representative Anna Eskamani told the paper that “It’s absurd that he’s using public resources and public infrastructure to campaign. He’s using state resources to boost himself politically”. The crash took place as the campaign was heading to a fundraiser when an accident further ahead caused traffic to slow down. A Tennessee Highway Patrol officer heading the motorcade stopped short, and the cars behind the officer rear-ended each other, according to Chattanooga Police. “If the accident hadn’t been reported, we wouldn’t have known otherwise about the use of state vehicles,” Ms Eskamani added. “It makes you wonder how often state vehicles and public employees are being used at out-of-state campaign events.” One DeSantis staffer was treated on the scene of the crash for minor injuries. There were no further injuries, police said. Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) agents were also involved in the accident. Police said all the vehicles in the crash were government-owned. FDLE spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger told the paper: “We’ve never answered questions about our protective operations assets (number of agents used, vehicles etc.)” The federal campaign finance report filed on 15 July covering the three months leading up to 30 June doesn’t include any payments to FDLE for travel or security. The report states that $76,256 were spent on private security. The DeSantis campaign has recently been in the news for spending large amounts without much to show for it, and recently laying off 38 people – a third of the campaign staff. Travel and staffing appear to be large expenses for the campaign as Mr DeSantis has been reported to be travelling with a larger group of staffers compared to other candidates. The campaign had raised $20m as of 30 June and they had spent $8.2m – more than a million on payroll and almost as much on travel – $896,000. Mr DeSantis is reported to prefer to fly in private jets provided by a number of top donors, the Sentinel notes. Since the start of his gubernatorial re-election campaign last year, there have been questions about whose private jets he’s using and if they’re reported as in-kind contributions or gifts. “I don’t think we’ve ever had a sitting governor run for [president],” Mr Wilcox told the paper. The director of public access for the Florida Center for Government Accountability, Michael Barfield, told the paper that “at the end of the day, taxpayers don’t know what their money is being spent on”. He added that the group is considering its next legal steps. “We’re questioning the validity of the exemption,” Mr Barfield said. “We don’t think it meets a public purpose, so we will brainstorm about potential legal action.” Ms Eskamani said the legislature could repeal the public records exemption, but that “It would take a political will that doesn’t exist, even for something as nonpartisan as access to travel records”. The Independent has reached out to the DeSantis campaign for comment. Read More A new challenger has emerged to Trump – and his extreme anti-woke message is working DeSantis cornered on his Bud Light boycott after threatening legal action over stock drop Judge refuses to dismiss lawsuit against Disney’s efforts to neutralize governing district takeover Judge refuses to dismiss lawsuit against Disney’s efforts to neutralize governing district takeover DeSantis questioned about his Bud Light boycott after complaining about stock drop Trump calls additional charges in Jack Smith’s superseding indictment ‘harassment’
2023-07-29 23:28

Who is Sunny Hostin's son? 'The View' host shares rare pic of Gabriel Hostin as she visits him in Portugal with husband Emmanuel
'The View' host Sunny Hostin visited her son Gabriel 'Gabe' Hostin, who is interning in Portugal, along with her husband Emmanuel
2023-06-26 10:54

Is Amanza Smith OK? 'Selling Sunset' star hospitalized after back pain turns out to be life-threatening infection
Amanza Smith spent 10 days in the hospital and had to undergo surgery to fight the infection that had spread throughout her body
2023-06-12 10:53

This soldier died in Ukraine. Now his face is on a desk to inspire Russian schoolchildren
Grasping a bouquet of roses, black headscarf tied tight and wearing a polka-dot dress, a middle-aged woman arrives in a nondescript, pink-walled hall in the Russian region of Chuvashia.
2023-07-17 17:19

Stock market today: World shares are mixed, with markets in Japan and US closed for holidays
Shares are mixed in Europe and Asia after a modest advance on Wall Street that kept the market on track for a fourth straight weekly gain
2023-11-23 18:25

Bankman-Fried loses bid for documents from former FTX law firm
NEW YORK A U.S. judge on Friday denied Sam Bankman-Fried's push to get a law firm that advised
2023-06-23 23:24

Bangladesh: Political violence grips country as election looms
A rejuvenated main opposition has intensified protests ahead of general elections in January.
2023-11-02 06:24

Spain's PLD Space aborts test rocket launch -webcast
Spanish startup PLD Space aborted a test launch of its reusable Miura-1 rocket at the last moment early
2023-06-17 09:47

Sunak Spends £1.6 Billion to Try to Show COP He’s On Message
Rishi Sunak pledged to spend £1.6 billion ($2 billion) on climate projects, as the British premier arrives at
2023-12-01 14:19
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