Downtown Valdosta prepares for Love Downtown

The city of Valdosta wants you to show a little extra love this February.

Recommended Stories

  • One year into pandemic, sky begins to clear over U.S. economy

    Despite the U.S. economy's near miss with a depression last year and an ongoing coronavirus pandemic that has brought travel to a virtual halt, Jeff Hurst, the chief executive of vacation rental firm VRBO, sees a boom on the horizon. "Every house is going to be taken this summer," Hurst said, as the expected protection from vaccines arrives in step with warmer weather, unleashing a cooped-up population with record savings stashed away.

  • Rooster kills Indian man during banned cockfight

    A man was killed by a rooster with a blade tied to its leg during an illegal cockfight in southern India, police said, bringing focus on a practice that continues in some Indian states despite a decades-old ban. The rooster, with a 3-inch knife tied to its leg, fluttered in panic and slashed its owner, 45-year-old Thangulla Satish, in his groin last week, police inspector B. Jeevan said Sunday. According to Jeevan, Satish was injured while he prepared the rooster for a fight.

  • Fact-checking the wildest claims from Trump’s CPAC speech

    The president returned to some of his favourite debunked theories about the election, and much more

  • Arrival of 'sticky bombs' in Indian Kashmir sets off alarm bells

    Security forces battling a decades-long insurgency in Indian-controlled Kashmir are alarmed by the recent arrival in the disputed region of small, magnetic bombs that have wreaked havoc in Afghanistan. "Sticky bombs", which can be attached to vehicles and detonated remotely, have been seized during raids in recent months in the federally administered region of Jammu and Kashmir, three senior security officials told Reuters. "These are small IEDs and quite powerful," said Kashmir Valley police chief Vijay Kumar, referring to improvised explosive devices.

  • Trump teases a 2024 run and commands GOP loyalty to his holy name in first signature post-presidency speech

    ‘I may even decide to beat them for a third time,’ president says, perpetuating his lie about a ‘stolen election’

  • Scoop: Trump had to be talked out of an early endorsement in Ohio's 2022 U.S. Senate race

    Donald Trump had to be talked out of making an early endorsement in Ohio's 2022 U.S. Senate race, a sign of his eagerness to reengage politically, people familiar with the conversations tell Axios.What we're hearing: The former president discussed endorsing former state GOP chair Jane Timken last week during a meeting at Mar-a-Lago with RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, but top advisers — including Donald Trump Jr. — urged him to wait.Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.“It’s way too early to make endorsement decisions in many of the races, particularly when primaries are more than a year away," Trump adviser Jason Miller told Axios.Endorsements will come only after candidate establish their campaigns and are vetted by the Trump operation, including filling out a questionnaire that will "help ensure all endorsees are conservative America First Republicans," Miller said.Trump's endorsement, which is highly coveted by Republicans across the country, could be the deciding factor for the Ohio GOP, a state party that's veered away from traditional John Kasich conservatism toward a full-on embrace of Trumpism.Between the lines: During their meeting, Trump asked McDaniel what she thought about Timken, who recently resigned as state party chair. He also wondered whether McDaniel thought Timken is "loyal" to him, two sources familiar with their conversation said.McDaniel spoke positively about Timken and her chances of succeeding Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), the sources said, despite it being against the RNC's bylaws for the chairwoman to get involved in primary campaigns. “Chairwoman McDaniel is good friends with Jane Timken and thinks highly of her. But, Chairwoman McDaniel did not make any recommendations on endorsements to President Trump and remains neutral in the primary,” RNC spokesperson Mike Reed said.Trump later spoke with Timken and discussed the race.Timken's name originally came up while Trump and McDaniel were discussing Bob Paduchik's run for chair of the Ohio GOP. The Trump-backed candidate was named to the position Friday.Later in the week, Trump huddled with his top political team, including Don Jr., former campaign managers Bill Stepien and Brad Parscale, former social media director Dan Scavino, former deputy campaign manager Justin Clark and Miller, as Politico first reported.While the team was discussing a number of races, the younger Trump said his father should not be endorsing in Ohio so early, one person familiar with the meeting told Axios.Don Jr. said there were too many unknowns in the race right now, and added there are multiple candidates who are running, or thinking about running, who are pro-Trump.Be smart: Donald Trump has already made several endorsements ahead of the 2022 elections, including Paduchik, Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) for reelection and his former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a candidate for governor of Arkansas.Like this article? Get more from Axios and subscribe to Axios Markets for free.

  • Marjorie Taylor Greene Demonizes Big Tech. She and Her Husband Just Sold Up to $210,000 in Tech Stocks.

    Drew Angerer/GettyWhen she was running for office, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) constantly antagonized tech giants like Facebook for allegedly censoring and silencing pro-Trump Republicans, and vowed to fight what she called the “Silicon Valley Cartel” after being elected to Congress.During her first two months on Capitol Hill, Greene has loudly ratcheted up the anti-tech rhetoric. But shortly after her swearing-in, she quietly moved to offload significant stock holdings in the very same companies she so vehemently denounced—netting a healthy sum in the process.According to her latest financial disclosure form, released on Feb. 19, Greene and her husband sold anywhere from $49,000 to $210,000 worth of shares in Facebook, Google, Apple, and Amazon on Jan. 20.It’s unclear exactly how much Greene and her husband, Perry, made from each individual company stock, since congressional forms only list broad value ranges, but it may have been as much as $65,000 each for the four tech stocks. Some shares were owned jointly between the couple and others were owned solely by her husband.Greene’s only other public financial disclosure form, filed in May 2020 when she was a candidate, lists joint or spousal ownership of up to $65,000 in Apple stock, $30,000 in Facebook stock, $30,000 in Amazon stock, and $15,000 in Google stock. The couple sold these holdings in January at a profit—the official form lists capital gains above $200—but the precise figure is unknown.The Sickening History of Marjorie Taylor Greene’s HometownIn light of the growing push from good-government advocates for lawmakers to sell off their holdings of individual stocks to avoid conflicts of interest, Greene’s sell-off could be perhaps welcomed. But her financial disclosure report shows she remains invested in a number of other companies, from Fortune 500 giants like Goldman Sachs and Lockheed Martin to the sports gambling platform DraftKings and activewear brand Lululemon.There’s also the plain irony that Greene was personally invested in, and later profited off, tech companies that she had excoriated for months as totalitarian tools of evil and social control. A spokesperson for Greene did not respond to requests for comment about her stock sale and why she invested in the companies to begin with.Like many hardcore Trump Republicans, Greene has oriented her politics around “cancel culture” and Big Tech’s alleged censorship of those promoting pro-Trump views. On her social media platforms, where she has hundreds of thousands of followers, Greene posts fresh, steaming outrage about them on a near-daily basis.Facebook, shares of which Greene and her husband sold for up to $65,000 net gain on Jan. 20, have been a constant target for her as a candidate and as a member of Congress. Last September, the platform removed a post from Greene in which she posed with a gun next to images of the progressive “Squad,” on the grounds it incited violence. The GOP candidate claimed she was being canceled and now wears a face mask in Congress with the message “CENSORED.”At various points in 2020, Greene called Facebook racist for promoting a message to support Black-owned businesses during the holiday season and slammed it as anti-semitic for censoring the far-right Islamophobic provocateur Laura Loomer. She also accused Facebook of allowing “ANTIFA” to carry out terrorist attacks and charged that the social media platform had “canceled our kids.”In October, when a Facebook spokesperson tweeted they would not link to a New York Post story on Hunter Biden, the Georgia Republican tweeted in outrage that “the Silicon Valley Cartel has taken the First Amendment and ripped it to shreds.”“When I get to Congress,” declared Greene, “Big Tech will be held accountable!”Ironically, in June 2020, the Facebook investor publicly called on her many thousands of followers to use a competitor instead. “For those of yall tired of being censored by Facebook,” she wrote, “I encourage you to open a Parler account today!”Greene has been less critical of the other tech companies she once owned, but her broadsides against the “Silicon Valley Cartel” leave little room for nuance, especially given Google, Amazon, and Apple’s dominance of the sector.Marjorie Taylor Greene Hangs Anti-Trans Sign Outside Office of Congresswoman With Trans DaughterGreene’s tech stock sell-offs could be interpreted as a sign she wished to sever any financial links to companies she had so stridently opposed. A Greene spokesperson did not respond to questions about why she and her husband sold the shares when they did.Barely two weeks after her stock sale, though, Greene was calling on like-minded conservatives to harness the free market system to develop alternatives to the tech companies she’d previously been financing.“Conservatives must join together to invest, develop, and compete in Big Tech in order to protect our conservative values and speech from the never ending cries of the thought police. This would give people the ability to choose the online “community” they invest themselves in,” tweeted Greene on Feb. 7.“The Silicon Valley cartel controlling social media, free speech, and even targeting to take down rising competition, like Parler, must be stopped. The way to stop it is in the free market, while we still can…”Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

  • Local Florida officials are warning spring breakers to stay away from Miami and 'go to Vegas' if they don't plan on following new rules

    Miami Beach, Florida has implemented stricter safety protocols for the spring break season. This means no more alcohol consumption on the beach.

  • Sen. Joe Manchin on ending the filibuster: 'Jesus Christ, what don't you understand about 'never'?'

    The filibuster means that 60 votes are needed to pass most legislation in the Senate.

  • Canada vaccine committee advises against use of AstraZeneca COVID-19 shots for 65 years and above

    Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization released new guidelines on Monday that advise against vaccinating people who are 65 years and older with AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine, citing lack of information about efficacy in that age group. The vaccine was authorized for people who are 18 and older by drug regulator Health Canada on Friday. Health Canada's decision noted that available clinical trial data was too limited to reliably estimate how well the vaccine worked in people 65 and older.

  • DeSantis joins GOP governors, says $16 billion in federal relief to Florida is unfair

    The $1.9 trillion COVID-19 federal relief package would mean $16 billion in aid to Florida. $10 billion to the state and $6 billion to cities and counties. The governor says it’s unfair.

  • New Orleans Archdiocese Asks Catholics to Avoid Johnson & Johnson COVID Vaccine

    The Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans is asking Catholics to avoid the recently-approved Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine, which it says is “morally compromised” by its “extensive use of abortion-derived cell lines.” In a statement on Friday, the archdiocese noted that while deciding whether to receive the vaccine is an individual choice, that “the latest vaccine from Janssen/Johnson & Johnson is morally compromised as it uses the abortion-derived cell line in development and production of the vaccine as well as the testing.” While a number of COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers have used cells originally derived from an aborted fetus in the 1970s, the archdiocese argues that Johnson & Johnson “extensive use” is worse than that of Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines, which used the cells lines only to test their vaccines, according to Religion News Service. This makes the “connection to abortion … extremely remote,” in the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines, the statement argues, recommending that Catholics choose one of those instead, if provided a choice. While the archdiocese claims the decision is in line with guidance from the Vatican, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the National Catholic Bioethics Center, none of the three have issued statements denouncing the new vaccine. In December, the Vatican issued general guidelines regarding vaccines in which the Holy See said it was “morally acceptable” for Catholics to receive shots that used the HEK293 cells for research. While the HEK293 cells are reportedly originated from an aborted fetus from the 1970s, ethicists have said that the cells and similar cell lines are clones and not the original fetal tissue. The Vatican has made the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine available for all Vatican City residents. Pope Francis reportedly received the shot in January. The Archdiocese of New Orleans’ statement comes after leaders of the USCCB and leaders from other religious organizations sent a letter to the commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last spring regarding ethical concerns over the COVID-19 vaccines. “We are aware that, among the dozens of vaccines currently in development, some are being produced using old cell lines that were created from the cells of aborted babies,” the letter read. “For example, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a substantial contract from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and is working on a vaccine that is being produced using one of these ethically problematic cell lines.” However, a USCCB memo written by Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, who chairs the USCCB’s Committee on Doctrine, and Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, who chairs the organization’s Committee on Pro-Life Activities, argued that the vaccines are moral.

  • Why Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine is probably the best shot

    Some people might prefer Johnson & Johnson's shot because it was tested on variants, has milder side effects, and is easier to get.

  • Hilaria and Alec Baldwin welcome 6th baby together nearly 6 months after birthing their son Eduardo

    The baby was born nearly sixth months after Hilaria Baldwin gave birth to her son Eduardo "Edu" Pao Lucas.

  • The White House says it never wants an assassination like Khashoggi's again, but won't punish MBS for ordering the killing

    Biden's White House has essentially leaned on the importance of the diplomatic relationship with Saudi Arabia in defense of its actions.

  • A man who refused to wear a mask at a high-school basketball game killed a police officer following a confrontation, authorities say

    The police officer, Martinus Mitchum, was fatally shot while trying to break up an altercation between a man and a school employee over face masks.

  • Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez shoots back at Ted Cruz, saying he treated storm-hit Texas as a 'layover' between trips to Cancun and CPAC

    "It appears Texas was just a layover stop for him between Cancun and Orlando to drop a pack of water into someone's trunk," Ocasio-Cortez said.

  • Scoop: Ex-Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale launches super PAC ahead of 2022 midterms

    Former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale has founded a new super PAC and sister advocacy group, public records show.Why it matters: The groups will allow Parscale himself to back candidates aligned with Donald Trump ahead of the 2022 midterms. They could also be used to deploy his new political data firm and harvest vital voter information for other clients.Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Parscale's formations of American Greatness PAC and the nonprofit American Greatness Fund coincide with his return to Trump's inner circle as the former president plots his future political strategy.What's new: Parscale incorporated the American Greatness Fund in Delaware on Feb. 24, according to documents filed with the state.American Greatness PAC had filed a statement of organization with the Federal Election Commission about two weeks earlier.Neither appears to be active yet. Parscale previewed the PAC last month, tweeting a video with pro-Trump messaging that ended with the committee's logo.Between the lines: It's not clear how involved Trump or his political team is with the new entities.A Trump spokesperson referred questions about American Greatness to Parscale, who did not respond to multiple inquiries.When the American Greatness Fund's website went live early last month, the image file bearing the group's logo was titled "Office of 45 Logo Image."The file name was changed after Axios began inquiring about the group.The big picture: Parscale's new groups were formed as Trump games out his political plans.His inner circle huddled at Mar-a-Lago last week, Politico reported.Another former Trump campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, has been tapped to lead a new super PAC aligned with the former president's political priorities.Parscale, whose relationship with Trump has improved since he publicly criticized the former president in December, also attended the meeting. It's not clear whether his American Greatness groups are components of any future Trump efforts.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free

  • Senate Democrats prepare to advance the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan without a $15-an-hour minimum wage

    Democratic efforts to salvage the wage increase with a new tax plan collapsed over the weekend as Senate Democrats gear up to pass the stimulus bill.

  • Royal Caribbean will be 'first' to offer 'fully vaccinated' cruise with sailings starting in Israel

    Royal Caribbean's new ship, Odyssey of the Seas is set to debut with departures from Israel with all passengers and crew over 16 vaccinated.