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A conservative case for disqualifying Trump in 2024

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

By Adam Liptak | New York TimesWASHINGTON Two prominent conservative law professors have concluded that Donald Trump is ineligible to be president under a provision of the Constitution that bars people who have engaged in an insurrection from holding government office. The professors are active members of the Federalist Society, the conservative legal group, and proponents of originalism, the method of interpretation that seeks to determine the Constitution’s original meaning.The professors William Baude of the University of Chicago and Michael Stokes Paulsen of the University of St. Thomas studied the question for more than a year and detailed their findings in a long article to be published next year in The University of Pennsylvania Law Review.“When we started out, neither of us was sure what the answer was,” Baude said. “People were talking about this provision of the Constitution. We thought: ‘We’re constitutional scholars, and this is an imp...

A’s president Kaval, quiet since Las Vegas deal, blames Oakland as Schnitzer fire burns

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

Dave Kaval hasn’t made a peep since the A’s made an agreement to relocate to Las Vegas in April. But when an old foe, Schnitzer Steel, went up in flames on Wednesday night, the A’s team president lit up his social media feed with a flurry of posts using Schnitzer’s moment to deflect some blame off his organization and owner John Fisher.For Kaval, the Schnitzer fire sparked an opportunity to blame the City of Oakland for not backing the team’s counter-lawsuits against Schnitzer — which filed lawsuits against the A’s during their Howard Terminal proceedings. He also said the city failed to hold up its end of the now-dead Howard Terminal project.He sides with MLB commissioner Rob Manfred’s statement that the A’s and Oakland never had a ballpark deal in place, a claim that prompted Oakland mayor Sheng Thao to travel to the All-Star Game in Seattle and hand-deliver documents to the contrary — that Oakland and the A’s were ...

New report details years of gifts, trips for Justice Thomas

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

By Tierney Sneed | CNNThe lifestyle Justice Clarence Thomas has enjoyed over the last three decades bankrolled by gifts and hospitality from his wealthy friends is more extensive than previously known, according to a new ProPublica report, and has included numerous flights on private planes, skybox tickets to sporting events, stays at luxury resorts, and a standing invitation to play at a high-end private golf club in Florida.The new report is the broadest look yet at how Thomas’ social circle has funded – with limited disclosure to the public – a regular stream of extravagant excursions and events since he became a Supreme Court justice. These costly trips and travel perks often went unreported on the justice’s financial disclosure forms, ProPublica said in its investigation.Thomas is already under intense scrutiny for gifts he received from Harlan Crow, a GOP megadonor who treated Thomas and his wife to extravagant vacations, paid for the tuition of a Thomas family member and ente...

Letters: Invasive plants | Above the law | Supporting evidence | Oaths meaningless | Defrauding supporters

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

Submit your letter to the editor via this form. Read more Letters to the Editor.Only volunteers canstop invasive plantsThe Earth is in the midst of the Sixth Extinction crisis, caused mostly by loss of habitat. A large part of that habitat loss is caused by invasive non-native plants.Most of these plants are listed by the California Department of Food and Agriculture because they are harmful to the environment, and they are designated a “public nuisance.”The East Bay Regional Park District and other public agencies have recently been doing everything they can to attract more people to the parks. And they have been very successful. Unfortunately, they haven’t made the same effort to protect wildlife and habitat. Recreation leads to more recreation, which leads to more trail-building, mountain biking and other habitat destruction.Mike VandemanSan RamonTrump is notabove the lawA grand jury made up of everyday Americans reviewed mountains of evidence and determined there was...

The 10 most expensive homes reported sold in Los Gatos in the week of July 31

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

A house in Los Gatos that sold for $5 million tops the list of the most expensive residential real estate sales in Los Gatos in the past week.In total, 10 residential real estate sales were recorded in the area during the past week, with an average price of $1.9 million. The average price per square foot ended up at $1,016.The prices in the list below concern real estate sales where the title was recorded during the week of July 31 even if the property may have been sold earlier.10. $650,000, single-family residence in the 17900 block of Madrone DriveThe sale of the single-family residence in the 17900 block of Madrone Drive, Los Gatos, has been finalized. The price was $650,000, and the new owners took over the house in July. The house was built in 1926 and has a living area of 1,296 square feet. The price per square foot was $502. The house features two bedrooms and one bathrooms.9. $750,000, single-family house in the 18400 block of Circle DriveA sale has been finalized for the d...

San Francisco 49ers CEO Jed York faces insider trading allegations in Chegg cheating lawsuit

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

San Francisco 49ers CEO Jed York and others are at the center of a pair of lawsuits accusing them of engaging in insider trading at Chegg Inc., a Santa Clara-based online education platform under fire for allegedly helping students cheat during the height of the pandemic.Two shareholder-filed lawsuits, consolidated in the U.S. District Court for Northern California earlier this year, also accuse York, Chegg CEO Dan Rosensweig and six others of breaching their fiduciary duties to shareholders.The lawsuits say York, specifically, made insider stock deals based on “nonpublic information,” demonstrating “his motive in facilitating and participating in the scheme.”Started in 2006, Chegg debuted on the New York Stock Exchange in 2013 — the same year York joined its board of directors — at $12.50 a share, raising $187.5 million for its initial public offering.In 2019, Chegg and the 49ers announced a multi-year partnership to fund $100,000 in scholarships...

Warriors to face Suns on NBA Opening Night, per report

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

The Warriors, like they have so often over the last decade, will open their season in the national spotlight.They will host the Phoenix Suns in the second game of the NBA’s Opening Night on Oct. 24, according to league insider Shams Charania. It will be Kevin Durant’s first game in front of Bay Area fans since leaving the Warriors in the summer of 2019 after Golden State. He has played once at Chase Center since then, in 2021 in front of an empty arena due to COVID restrictions.The game will also be the first time Chris Paul will don a Warriors jersey in a regular-season game, and he’ll be facing his former teammates after being traded to Washington for Bradley Beal, then flipped to the Warriors for a package that included Jordan Poole.Coach Steve Kerr’s starting lineup will be a major focus for observers, as Paul has never come off the bench in his 18 years of regular-season and playoff games, but the Warriors’ starting lineup from last season — ...

After days of heavy rain, Norway braces for more flooding

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

By Jan M. Olsen | Associated PressCOPENHAGEN, Denmark — Rescuers on Thursday evacuated inundated areas of southeastern Norway and residents braced for more landslides and flooding as rivers swollen by days of heavy rain carried large amounts of water through the mountainous landscape.People living near waterways were moved to safety, taking their belongings from their homes and moving their cars to higher ground. Helicopters were on standby to help move people out of remote areas while volunteers assisted in towns like Hønefossen.The Begna river, which runs through the town, had gone over its banks Thursday and because of fear of landslides, the municipality announced an evacuation. Some 200 people were taken in buses to a nearby hotel, aided by people from the Red Cross and the civil defense.“Darn, this is bad. I don’t think everyone understands how much water we are talking about. The peak is far from being reached. More is to come when the locks are opened,” Ton...

Letters: Secret deals | A difficult job | ALS research

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

Submit your letter to the editor via this form. Read more Letters to the Editor.State should put endto secret land dealsRe: “Land deals near Travis Air Force Base require scrutiny” (Page A6, Aug. 8).How is it possible to buy land anonymously in California, especially land surrounding a major military base?California should not permit overseas investors nor Limited Liability Corporations (LLCs) registered in New Jersey (which permits hiding the identity of buyers) from buying property in California. This is a major threat to national security. It is too easy for foreign governments and overseas speculators to buy up property in California.Our Legislature must pass laws to prevent this.Susan PriceSan JoseThank Gov. Newsomfor doing difficult jobRe: “Newsom intervened on banned books, so why not school closures?” (Page A9, Aug. 6).I found it ironic that Dan Walters’ column complaining about Gov. Gavin Newson yet again over the school closures was put next t...

49ers would have signed retired Pro Bowl QB if they made Super Bowl, Shanahan says

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:47:36 GMT

(KRON) -- After Brock Purdy and Josh Johnson suffered injuries in the NFC Championship Game, the San Francisco 49ers found themselves out of options at quarterback. Trey Lance broke his ankle in Week 2 of the season, and Jimmy Garoppolo broke his foot in Week 13. With no healthy quarterbacks remaining, Kyle Shanahan planned to get creative if the 49ers had advanced to the Super Bowl. The San Francisco head coach confirmed Wednesday that the team would have signed longtime San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers if the team had found a way to beat the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game. Bruce Bochy to manage first game in SF since 2019 retirement Rivers played 16 seasons for the Chargers and one for the Indianapolis Colts. He made the Pro Bowl eight times and is the sixth-leading passer in NFL history. His last NFL season was in 2020, and he would have been 41 years old for Super Bowl LVII. Still, Shanahan said he would have been ready to go. “He was ...