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Exclusive: Shabana Mahmood plans to ‘use full power of the state’ to curb rise in targeted attacks using websitesConvicted sex offenders will be forced to notify police with the details of any dating app and social media accounts or face up to five years in jail, under plans announced by Shabana Mahmood.In a move intended to help curb the explosion in targeted attacks using websites, the home secretary said “the full power of the state” would be used to bear down on online abusers. Continue reading...

By KEVIN FREKING and LISA MASCARO WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republican leaders are determined to push ahead with a GOP health care bill that excludes efforts to address the soaring monthly premiums millions of Americans will soon endure as pandemic-era tax credits for people who buy insurance through the Affordable Care Act expire at year’s end. Related Articles FAA head vows to maintain safety measures implemented after tragic DC plane crash States sue Trump administration again over billions in withheld electric vehicle charging funds The US labels another Latin American cartel a terrorist group as the anti-drug war escalates Trump expands travel ban, adding 5 more countries and imposing new limits on others Trump will go to Delaware for the dignified transfer of the 2 National Guard members killed in Syria Speaker Mike Johnson had discussed the prospect of allowing more politically vulnerable GOP lawmakers a chance to vote on their amendment that would temporarily extend pandemic-era subsidies for ACA coverage. But after days of private talks, leadership sided with the more conservative wing of the conference, which has assailed the subsidies as propping up a failed ACA marketplace. “We looked for a way to try to allow for that pressure release valve,” Johnson said Tuesday at the Capitol. “In the end, it was not — an agreement wasn’t made.” The maneuvering surrounding the health care vote all but guarantees that many Americans will see substantially higher insurance costs in 2026. In the Senate, a bipartisan group was still trying to come up with a compromise to extend the subsidies, which fueled this year’s government shutdown. But senators made clear that any potential legislation would likely wait until January, after the holiday break. Instead, House Republicans will pursue their 100-plus-page health care package that focuses on long-sought GOP proposals designed to expand insurance coverage options for small businesses and the self-employed. A test vote is expected Wednesday. The Republicans’ package would clamp down on middlemen called pharmacy benefit managers who work to manage drug costs and process claims for insurance plans. The bill would also expand access to what’s referred to as association health plans, which would allow more small businesses and self-employed individuals to band together and purchase health coverage. An analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office and the Joint Committee on Taxation estimates the package would decrease the number of people with health insurance by an average of 100,000 per year over a 2027-2035 window, while reducing the federal deficit by $35.6 billion. Failing to address expiring insurance subsidies ‘political malpractice’ Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., blasted the leadership’s decision to not allow for a vote to temporarily extend the health insurance subsidies, saying it amounted to “political malpractice.” Lawler, who hails from a competitive district, noted that most people who get their health coverage through the Affordable Care Act live in states that President Donald Trump won and said the changes proposed for a temporary extension were “conservative reforms.” He also criticized Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries for not pushing Democrats to support a pair of bipartisan extension efforts. “You have two leaders who are not serious about solving this problem,” Lawler said of Johnson and Jeffries. Still, the centrist Republicans indicated they would not try to block the Republican leadership’s measure from coming to a vote. Johnson defended the House GOP’s bill, which includes priorities that Republicans have been working on for several years. “We have a long list of things that we know will reduce premiums, increase access and quality of care,” Johnson said. “The Democrats have zero ideas, zero concepts and zero legislative plans on anything they’ll propose other than just subsidizing the broken system.” Democrats said even if the bill passes the House, it…

By ALEXA ST. JOHN DETROIT (AP) — Sixteen states and the District of Columbia are suing President Donald Trump’s administration for what they say is the unlawful withholding of over $2 billion dollars in funding for two electric vehicle charging programs, according to a federal lawsuit announced Tuesday. Related Articles House Speaker Johnson rebuffs efforts to extend health care subsidies, pushing ahead with GOP plan FAA head vows to maintain safety measures implemented after tragic DC plane crash The US labels another Latin American cartel a terrorist group as the anti-drug war escalates Trump expands travel ban, adding 5 more countries and imposing new limits on others Trump will go to Delaware for the dignified transfer of the 2 National Guard members killed in Syria The lawsuit filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington is the latest legal battle that several states are pursuing over funding for EV charging infrastructure that they say was obligated to them by Congress under former President Joe Biden, but that the Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration are “impounding.” “The Trump Administration’s illegal attempt to stop funding for electric vehicle infrastructure must come to an end,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a release. “This is just another reckless attempt that will stall the fight against air pollution and climate change, slow innovation, thwart green job creation, and leave communities without access to clean, affordable transportation.” The Department of Transportation did not immediately respond to request for comment. The Trump administration in February ordered states to halt spending money for EV charging that was allocated in the bipartisan infrastructure law passed under the previous administration. Several states filed a lawsuit in May against the administration for withholding the funding from the $5 billion National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program for a nationwide charging buildout. A federal judge later ordered the administration to release much of the funding for chargers in more than a dozen states. Tuesday’s separate lawsuit addresses the withholding of funding obligations for two other programs: $1.8 billion for the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Grant program, as well as about $350 million in Electric Vehicle Charger Reliability and Accessibility Accelerator money. Tuesday’s lawsuit is led by attorneys general from California and Colorado, joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia, and the governor of Pennsylvania. The Trump administration has been hostile to EVs and has dismantled several policies friendly to cleaner cars and trucks that were put in place under Biden, in favor of policies that instead align with Trump’s oil and gas industry agenda. Once in office a second time, President Trump immediately ordered an end to what he has called Biden’s “EV mandate.” While Biden targeted for half of new vehicle sales in the U.S. to be electric by 2030, policies did not force American consumers to buy or automakers to sell electric vehicles. Biden did set stringent tailpipe emissions and fuel economy rules in an effort to encourage more widespread EV uptake, as the auto industry would have had to meet both sets of requirements with a greater number of EVs in their sales mix. Under the Biden administration, consumers could also receive up to $7,500 in tax incentives off the price of an EV purchase. The Trump administration has proposed rolling back both tailpipe rules and the gas mileage standards, cut the fines to automakers for not meeting those standards, and eliminated the EV credits. Trump has also repeated incorrect information about the status of the federal charging programs; without all of the funds available, only a fraction of what was…

Riverside-based Swift Beef Co., a unit of a global food processing giant from Brazil, plans to permanently lay off 374 workers at its Riverside meat processing factory by early February. Swift’s parent JBS USA Food Co. plans to invest more than $785 million in new plants outside of California. Nikki Richardson, a spokeswoman with Greeley, Colo.-based JBS USA, said in a statement issued to the Southern California News Group that the closure of the “case ready production facility” in Riverside is part of an initiative to simplify operations across its network. A case ready facility for beef is a centralized plant that converts large cuts of meat into smaller, consumer-sized portions such as steaks, roasts and ground beef. The finished products are weighed, labeled and packaged in retail trays, ready to be placed in refrigerated supermarket display cases. Earlier this year, JBS announced investment projects in Colorado, including $50 million to upgrade the Greeley beef packing plant with a new distribution center, $400 million in LaFayette, Georgia, for a new prepared foods facility, $135 million in Perry, Iowa, to build a new facility capable of producing 130 million pounds of sausage annually, and $200 million in Cactus, Texas, and Greeley beef production facilities. JBS USA is a unit of JBS S.A. in Brazil, the world’s largest beef and pork processor, with more than $77 billion in sales in 2024. Production for customers buying from the Riverside facility will be transitioned to other JBS facilities, Richardson said. That switch began last week and is expected to conclude by early next year. The permanent layoffs in Riverside are to be completed by Feb. 2, Richardson wrote in a Dec. 3 letter filed with the state’s Employment Development Department. The filing was made as part of the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act — commonly referred to as WARN — which are required when an employer lays off more than 50 employees. All affected employees are notified at least 60 days before their terminations are scheduled to occur, according to Richardson. “JBS is committed to supporting impacted team members through this transition,” Richardson said. “Opportunities will be made available at other JBS facilities, including relocation support for those interested. Team members who do not have the opportunity or desire to relocate are eligible for a 60-day notice period, and incentives will be offered to those who remain through the completion of the transition.” She said that the layoffs come as her company strengthens its “operational footprint to meet evolving market demands.” The beef industry is seeing higher meat prices in groceries because of tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration, which have led to higher overhead costs for feed, fuel and labor. Beef processors also have been losing millions of dollars with shrinking cattle herds driving livestock prices higher. These cumulative effects pushed prices higher at the grocery store and at restaurants. JBS also has had a run in with the U.S. Department of Labor over labor violations. In January, JBS USA Food Co. agreed to provide $4 million to assist individuals and communities affected by unlawful child labor practices nationwide. In the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2024, labor department investigators found more than 4,000 children had been employed in violation of federal child labor laws. The meat processing company JBS is closing a packing facility in Riverside, affecting 374 employees, according to a notice from the California Employment Development Department. An exterior view of the facility is seen on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG) The meat processing company JBS is closing a packing facility in Riverside, affecting 374 employees, according to a notice from the California Employment Development Department. A JBS sign that reads “beef process” is seen outside the facility gates on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (Photo by…

A Long Beach woman had fentanyl, methamphetamine and marijuana in her system when she allegedly struck three bicyclists with her car in Huntington Beach in October, killing one and leaving the other two critically injured, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said Tuesday, Dec. 16. Reflecting the newly completed toxicology report, more serious charges were added Tuesday against Amber Kristine Calderon, 43, to include vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated with gross negligence, driving under the influence of drugs causing bodily injury, possession of hard drugs with two or more prior convictions, hit and run causing permanent injury or death and two counts of hit and run with injury, said Kimberly Edds, spokeswoman for the DA’s office. The toxicology reports returned Dec. 10 confirmed the substances in her system, leading to the upgraded charges, Edds said. Calderon faces a maximum possible sentence of more than 12 years in state prison if convicted as charged, Edds said. About 6:45 a.m. on Oct. 20, Calderon was allegedly driving to work in her Mercedes Benz sedan southbound on Pacific Coast Highway when she hit three men on bicycles from behind as they rode in the bike lane between Beach Boulevard and Newland Street, Huntington Beach police have said. Killed in the crash was 45-year-old Eric John Williams of Garden Grove, a father of four and innovative pastor who loved specialty coffee, had a passion for cycling and had a talent for connecting deeply with others, his friends have said. Williams had just celebrated 20 years of marriage with his wife, Robyn, and was the founder of the Community Church of West Garden Grove after working as a youth and teaching pastor at Seaside Community Church in Huntington Beach, they said. “Ms. Calderon set in motion a series of events that would rip a young family apart through no fault of its own,” District Attorney Todd Spitzer said, “and those young children will bear the consequences of her actions as they celebrate all of life’s milestones without their father.” Calderon continued southbound after the crash for more than half a mile despite having a flat tire, significant damage to her hood and windshield and a missing passenger side rearview mirror, prosecutors said. She barreled through a state park parking lot kiosk without paying before she was blocked by another motorist who saw the crash and followed her. She was arrested the same day. At the request of prosecutors, an Orange County Superior Court judge also gave Calderon a Watson advisement – in which the judge warns that if a person drives under the influence in the future and kills someone, he or she can be charged with murder. Calderon was also ordered not to drive, consume alcohol or drugs without a prescription, possess drugs without a prescription and not to visit any establishment where marijuana is the primary item of sale, Edds said. Calderon is out of custody after posting $100,000 bail, though prosecutors tried to ask for a higher bail amount when charges were first filed, Edds said. Related Articles Jury gets Tyler Skaggs wrongful-death case against the Angels Burglary suspect armed with pole in Winnetka shot by LAPD, police say What attorneys argued in the Tyler Skaggs wrongful death trial closing statements Redlands police investigate shooting at ‘Hanukkah Town’ home as possible hate crime ‘Secretive and manipulative’ Hemet church leaders killed 2 for greed and control, officials say