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Supreme Court rejects novel legislative theory but leaves a door open for 2024 election challenges

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

The U.S. Supreme Court shot down a controversial legal theory that could have changed the way elections are run across the country but left the door open to more limited challenges that could increase its role in deciding voting disputes during the 2024 presidential election.The court’s 6-3 ruling Tuesday drove a stake through the most extreme version of the so-called independent state legislature theory, which holds that legislatures have absolute power in setting the rules of federal elections and cannot be second-guessed by state courts. That decision cheered voting rights groups.“We beat back the most serious legal threat our democracy has ever faced today,” said Kathay Feng of Common Cause, whose lawsuit challenging congressional districts drawn by North Carolina’s Republican-controlled legislature triggered the case.But for some critics of the theory, the danger is not entirely past.The court found that state courts still must act within “ordinary bounds” when revi...

Muslims at Hajj pilgrimage brave intense heat to cast stones at pillars representing the devil

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

MINA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of Muslim pilgrims on Wednesday braved intense heat to perform the symbolic stoning of the devil during the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.With morning temperatures rising past 42 degrees Celsius (107 degrees Farenheit), huge crowds of pilgrims walked or took buses to the vast Jamarat complex just outside the holy city of Mecca, where large pedestrian bridges lead past three wide pillars representing the devil.Using pebbles collected the night before at a campsite known as Muzdalifa, the pilgrims stone the pillars. It’s a reenactment of the story of the Prophet Ibrahim — known as Abraham in Christian and Jewish traditions — who is said to have hurled stones at Satan to resist temptation.The ceremony was marred by tragedy on a number of occasions in the 1990s and 2000s, when hundreds died in stampedes during the stoning ritual. Saudi authorities have since built an expanded network of massive pedestrian bridges and redesigned the...

Norway approves 19 oil and gas projects, saying the resulting investments are worth over $19 billion

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Norway announced Wednesday it approved 19 oil and gas projects on the Norwegian continental shelf, saying the total investments are worth over 200 billion kroner ($19 billion).“The projects are also an important contribution to Europe’s energy security,” said Terje Aasland, Norway’s minister for petroleum and energy.Norway was the only net exporter of oil and gas in Europe, he said, adding, “By carrying out these projects we ensure new production from the latter half of the 2020s, so that we can maintain high Norwegian deliveries.”The projects consist of new developments, further development of existing fields, and investments in projects for increased extraction at existing fields.Norway, one of the world’s wealthiest countries due to its vast oil and gas reserves, said earlier this month that it wants to open parts of its continental shelf for commercial deep-sea mining in line with the country’s strategy to seek new economic opportunities and redu...

Canadians come up short on citizenship test: A look at what’s In The News for today

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today. Citizenship test and Canada DayCanadians’ hearts may be brimming with pride as Canada Day approaches, but a new poll suggests their minds aren’t full of the knowledge they would need to pass a citizenship test.In a survey of more than 1,500 Canadian adults, Leger (LEH”-zhay) found that only 23 per cent would pass the citizenship test, based on their answers to 10 randomly selected questions.People who wish to become Canadian need to answer 20 questions about citizens’ rights and responsibilities, as well as Canada’s history, geography, economy, government, laws and symbols. They need to get 75 per cent of them right to pass — but the average score of the Canadians who were surveyed was only 49 per cent.Ottawa urged to back Washington in pipline disputeA progressive public policy think tank is urging the federal government to side agains...

France heightens security after unrest prompted by police shooting of 17-year-old

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

NANTERRE, France (AP) — France’s government on Wednesday announced heightened police presence around Paris and other big cities and called for calm after scattered violence erupted over the death of a 17-year-old delivery driver who was shot and killed during a police check.The death prompted nationwide concern and triggered unrest in multiple towns. Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said 31 people were arrested, 25 police officers injured and 40 cars burned in overnight unrest.The tensions focused around the Paris suburb of Nanterre, where lawyers say 17-year-old Nael M. was killed Tuesday during a traffic check. The police officer suspected of firing on him was detained and faces potential manslaughter charges, according to the Nanterre prosecutor’s office. Videos purported to be of the incident were “extremely shocking,” Darmanin said, pledging a full investigation. The images show two police officers leaning into the driver-side window of a yellow car, before the vehicle p...

Quebec advocates take aim at no-pet clauses in leases amid housing crisis

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

MONTREAL — Tobias Gurl thinks his five-year-old collie, Winston, is a pretty ideal roommate: she’s quiet, well-trained and indispensable to her owner’s well-being.Gurl, who has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and is awaiting an autism screening, says Winston is a service dog who has been trained to help him during panic attacks through trained behaviours. Those could be a well-timed nudge, climbing on top of him like a weighted blanket or circling around him to create space when he gets nervous in crowds.But Gurl, 32, and his roommateCJ James, who also has a service dog, are facing a common problem in Montreal: the inability to find an affordable apartment that accepts animals.“We have sunk hours and entire afternoons taking public transit around the city to just try and find a place that will take us, and the most likely prospects just turn us down,” Gurl said.While landlords cannot legally bar service dogs, Gurl and James say they’ve been tur...

Ottawa urged to back U.S., not TC Energy, in $15B lawsuit over demise of Keystone XL

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

WASHINGTON — A progressive public policy think tank is urging the federal government to side against oil and gas transmission giant TC Energy in its ongoing dispute with the United States over the ill-fated Keystone XL project.The Calgary-based company is seeking to recoup US$15 billion in lost revenue from the on-again, off-again cross-border pipeline expansion, which President Joe Biden killed off for good in 2021 on his first day as commander-in-chief. The lawsuit is based on the investor-state dispute rules in the now-expired NAFTA, as well as that deal’s successor, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which included a three-year extension of those rules for so-called “legacy” investors.A new report to be released Wednesday by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives recommends Ottawa back the U.S. defence: that TC Energy has no legal recourse under North American trade rules, past or present.“Though the TC Energy dispute pits a Canadian company against t...

Canadian wildfires send smoke south, triggering air quality warnings

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

Canadian wildfires are continuing to send heavy clouds of smoke south, from Northern Ontario and Quebec, through both provinces and into the U-S.The thick haze has triggered air quality warnings for Chicago, Detroit and Toronto. The trio of cities currently hold three of the top four spots on Air-I-Q’s global ranking for poor air quality.As of this morning, Dubai in the United Arab Emirates tops the list of major cities with a significant score of 411 — putting its air quality in the “Hazardous” category. Detroit ranks second, followed by Chicago, and Toronto in fourth, with an “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” rating of 159.Still, some of the smaller communities in Southern Ontario are fairing far worse, with Sarnia scoring 372, as of 3:30 a.m., a score that places the city not far behind Dubai. Air-I-Q updates its numbers hourly.As of Tuesday afternoon, there were 66 active fires in Northern Ontario, and as of this morning, 76 fires were burning ...

Program for institutions at risk from hate crimes expanded to shelters

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

OTTAWA — A federal program that helps community institutions make safety-related improvements is being expanded to shelters for victims of gender-based violence.The $5-million Security Infrastructure Program covers as much as half the cost of security equipment such as lighting, fencing, cameras and alarm systems, up to $100,000 per project.Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino says eligible recipients, including community centres, educational institutions, places of worship and others, can apply for funding until Aug. 31.However, organizations that have experienced significant, direct hate-motivated crime against their facility might qualify for a new emergency stream of money accessible outside the annual call for applications period.This year, the program will also include shelters that provide support and refuge for individuals and families who have faced gender-based violence, including victims of hate crimes motivated by sex, sexual orientation or gender identity or expressio...

Think you could pass the citizenship test? Poll shows most Canadians would flunk

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 14:49:33 GMT

OTTAWA — Canadians’ hearts may be brimming with pride as Canada Day approaches, but a new poll suggests their minds aren’t full of the knowledge needed to pass a citizenship test.In a survey of 1,512Canadian adults, Leger found that only 23 per cent would pass the citizenship test, based on their answers to 10 randomly selected questions.People who wish to become Canadian need to answer 20 questions about citizens’ rights and responsibilities, as well as Canada’s history, geography, economy, government, laws and symbols. They need to score at least 75 per cent to pass, but the average score of the Canadians who were surveyed was only 49 per cent.The questions focused on things like famous Canadians (Who is John Buchan?), history (Who established the first European settlements in Canada?) and national symbols (Whose portrait is on the Canadian $10 bill?). The correct answers, for those struggling along with most survey respondents, are: a popular governor gene...