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Dutch leader of party in fragile ruling coalition quits politics, citing burnout
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Dutch centre-right leader Pieter Omtzigt announced Friday evening he is quitting both the fragile four-party ruling coalition and national politics. Citing his mental health, the 51-year-old said in a social media video that he is unable to recover from burnout in the current political climate. “It was a huge honor…
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IRS whistleblower on Hunter Biden is out as acting commissioner just days after getting the job
WASHINGTON (AP) — Just days after being promoted to acting IRS commissioner, the whistleblower who testified publicly about investigations into Hunter Biden’s taxes is out of the job, according to three people familiar with the decision. Gary Shapley, who previously testified to Congress as Republicans reviewed the business dealings of Joe Biden’s son, will be…
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Trump moves to invoke Schedule F to make it easier to fire some federal workers
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has begun making one of the controversial personnel changes for government employees that was spelled out in the conservative Project 2025 blueprint for his second term. He’s starting the process of reclassifying 50,000 federal employees under what’s known as Schedule F, which can make civil servants into political appointees…
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Planned Parenthood asks Montana judge to block law that bans 2nd trimester abortion method
HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Planned Parenthood of Montana on Tuesday asked a state judge to temporarily block a law that bans the abortion method most commonly used after 15 weeks of gestation, arguing it is unconstitutional. The organization filed the complaint over the law to ban dilation and evacuation abortions just hours after Republican Gov.…
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Ontario, Bell won’t say how much money they made from inmate phone calls
TORONTO — Neither Bell Canada nor the Ontario government will say how much money they made from a jail phone system that charged what lawyers describe as “exorbitant” rates for inmate calls over eight years. Bell operated the Offender Telephone Management System from 2013 to 2021 — which allowed inmates to only place collect calls…
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Ontario water, air quality a concern: auditor general state of environment report
TORONTO — Deforestation, contaminated air, polluted water and the loss of wetlands are a growing concern, Ontario’s auditor general concluded in a “state of the environment report” released Tuesday. Bonnie Lysyk also said Ontario’s environment has improved in many areas over the last several decades. Yet she found the Doug Ford government is not providing…
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B.C. casinos will require all to show government ID under self exclusion program
VANCOUVER — Everyone who enters a British Columbia casino will soon be required to present government-issued identification, in what the BC Lottery Corporation says is an initiative to support people who have registered for self-exclusion. The corporation says the measure will be rolled out this summer, with more details to be announced in coming weeks,…
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ChatGPT chief says artificial intelligence should be regulated by a US or global agency
The head of the artificial intelligence company that makes ChatGPT told Congress on Tuesday that government intervention will be critical to mitigating the risks of increasingly powerful AI systems. “As this technology advances, we understand that people are anxious about how it could change the way we live. We are too,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman…
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Mass. US Attorney Rachael Rollins to resign after Justice Department watchdog probe
BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins will resign following a monthslong investigation by the Justice Department’s inspector general into her appearance at a political fundraiser and other potential ethics issues, her attorney said Tuesday. The Justice Department’s watchdog has yet to release its report detailing the findings of its investigation, but an attorney…
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Memorial University sought $13,800 in PR help as president’s Indigenous claim probed
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Memorial University in Newfoundland and Labrador agreed to spend $13,800 on outside public relations help as questions arose about its former president’s claims of Indigenous heritage. A contract obtained through access-to-information legislation shows National Public Relations offered the university’s board of regents “communications counsel around a sensitive issue involving its president.”…