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Unlocked: Top 10 behind-the-paywall stories of 2023

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

It’s been a busy year in EU policy land as lawmakers, leaders and officials raced to tie up loose ends before the European Parliament election next June, with some efforts more successful than others. The EU’s green ambitions became the center of a right-wing backlash as the real-life impact of proposed reforms started to bite. Europe’s drive for manufacturing self-sufficiency gained new political prominence, upending the bloc’s budget and competition rules and reshaping the way Europe thinks about trade. And policymakers started to lay out how they’ll govern new technologies, with an agreement on an AI act and new enforcement of the bloc’s digital rules. But POLITICO’s crack team of policy journalists have also been beavering away on plenty more juicy scoops and insider takes that didn’t initially make it over the paywall. So, as a special, extremely nerdy, Christmas gift for all the policy wonks out there, here’s a selection of our most popular articles.The...

Why Germany’s lifeless coalition won’t die

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

BERLIN — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made a simple promise to Germans after taking office: “You’ll never walk alone.” Scholz, a Social Democrat, borrowed the phrase from Liverpool Football Club’s anthem and has invoked it, mantra-like, at moments of tension, such as when Russia cut off natural gas deliveries to Germany, sending prices through the roof. Yet after two years in office, it is Scholz who walks increasingly alone amid a flurry of crises that have rocked and divided his three-way coalition with the Greens and the fiscally conservative Free Democrats (FDP), prompting voters to question whether the chancellor is up to the job and if his government should serve a full four-year term. To add insult to injury, Scholz received a fresh dose of COVID just in time for Christmas. After a year in which the German chancellor nearly poked one of his eyes out and won the dubious distinction of being the least-liked chancellor in his country’s mo...

Charlie Coyle scores twice as Bruins beat Sabres 4-1 to end 4-game skid

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Charlie Coyle scored twice and Brad Marchand had two assists to lead the Boston Bruins to a 4-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday night.Mason Lohrei and Morgan Geekie also scored for the Bruins, who ended a four-game losing streak. Jeremy Swayman made 25 saves.Erik Johnson scored for the Sabres. Devon Levi made 21 saves.Special teams played a big role in the outcome as the Bruins scored on their first three power-play chances. Meanwhile, the Sabres went 0 for 6 with the man advantage.Lohrei opened the scoring 4:19 in, sending the rebound of a shot past Levi.Coyle stretched the lead to two goals, scoring on a power play with 6:18 left in the first period. Jake DeBrusk got the puck behind the Buffalo net and spotted a wide-open Coyle in front of the Buffalo crease. Coyle then buried a one-timer.Coyle scored his second power-play goal of the game 4:18 into the second, when his shot deflected off Johnson’s skate into the net.Geekie made it 4-0 with 6:16 left ...

Bruins get back on track with 4-1 win in Buffalo

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

The Bruins may or may not have gotten everything on their Christmas list, but they at least got a little of their mojo back on Wednesday.Coming out of the three-day holiday break riding a four-game losing streak, the B’s put on a special teams clinic to knock off the Sabres in Buffalo on Wednesday, 4-1.The B’s went 3-for-4 on the power play and 6-for-6 on the penalty kill to notch their first regulation win in seven games, dating back to December 9.Charlie Coyle led the way with a pair of power-play goals, wiht Jake DeBrusk getting both primary assists. Brad Marchand also picked up a couple of helpers.“Our game wasn’t at where we’d been playing for the most part this year, so we wanted to reset, come back and start building our game again in this second part of the season,” Coyle told TNT. “That was a pretty good effort for the most part.”Jeremy Swayman (25 saves) snapped a three-game personal losing streak (0-1-2) in which his teammat...

Orca sightings have surged in SoCal. What experts believe is keeping the whales here

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

SAN DIEGO (KSWB) — There has seemingly been dozens of orca sightings in the waters off the Southern California coast over the past few weeks. Whale watching groups from San Diego to Los Angeles — and in at least one instance as far north as Oxnard — started spotting the creatures in early December, as they swim and hunt dolphins around their boats.It has thrilled onlookers and whale watching operators alike who are witnessing a rare surge in activity for a species that had not been spotted in Southern California waters with this frequency for about two years.So, why have they suddenly started spending so much time off the coast of Southern California? Whale experts say it is hard to know exactly. 52-foot whale washes up on Pacific Beach in San Diego There are at least three different types of killer whales that are known to swim through California's waters: transient, offshore and resident whales. Transients and residents tend to keep close to the coast, but only the transients a...

Calls to remove Trump's star from Hollywood Walk of Fame draw mixed reactions

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

LOS ANGELES (KTLA) -- A petition to remove former President Donald Trump’s star from the Hollywood Walk of Fame has received thousands of signatures, but the decision on whether to get rid of it is just as controversial as the man whose name is on it. Andrew Rudick, who started the petition in 2020, has garnered more than 4,200 signatures in three years. Rudick recently told Nexstar's KTLA he has gone to several city organizations in the hopes that they would remove Trump's star permanently. “I think the city should take themselves up on that charge and finally stop being ‘paper lion Democrats’ and act,” he said. “Instead of saying, ‘We’re going to talk the talk,’ you know, you have to walk the walk too...and this is something that can happen.”  Colorado GOP asks Supreme Court to overturn Trump ballot ban in state Trump’s star, which he received in 2007, has been destroyed and replaced several times -- but no star has ever been permanently removed from the Walk of Fame.Johnny Gran...

Obama shares list of favorite movies, including 3 produced by his media company

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

(The Hill) -- Former President Obama released his favorite movies of 2023 list on Wednesday, continuing his post-White House tradition of highlighting the entertainment he enjoyed most over the year.This year’s list was topped by three films made by Higher Ground, the production company founded by the former president and first lady in 2018.Obama opened with an acknowledgement and celebration of the historic Hollywood strikes, which saw movie production freeze for months this summer and fall as both writers and actors demanded better deals. Amazon Prime Video will soon start showing ads during movies, shows — unless you pay an extra fee “Earlier this year, writers and actors went on strike to advocate for better working conditions and protections. It led to important changes that will transform the industry for the better,” he said.The former president’s list includes the three Higher Grounds films — “Rustin,” “Leave the World Behind,” and “American Symphony” — as well as blockbus...

Missing 31-year-old woman located

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

CHICAGO — The Chicago Police Department has located a missing 31-year-old woman who went missing on Tuesday.Police did not provide details on where or when the woman was located.

Wild overwhelm Red Wings, 6-3, for fourth straight win

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

Back on Nov. 26, the Wild spent a listless afternoon losing a hockey game to the Red Wings in Detroit, extending the team’s winless streak to seven games, a skid that cost former coach Dean Evason his job.It was a different team that hit the ice against the Red Wings on Wednesday at Xcel Energy Center. Not a perfect one, but certainly a better one.Marcus Johansson scored twice, and Ryan Hartman started a three-goal unanswered run with the go-ahead goal at 4:36 of the third period as Minnesota beat Detroit, 6-3, for its fourth straight victory.Matt Boldy, Marcus Foligno and Kirill Kaprizov also scored for Minnesota, which won for the seventh straight time at home and improved to 11-3-0 since John Hynes became head coach the day after that bad loss in Detroit.Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat and Daniel Sprong scored for Detroit, which lost for the eighth time in its past 11 games. James Reimer made 25 saves.Boldy scored in the first 38 seconds, sending Minnesota to its 10th straight win w...

Ex-NHL defenseman Ken Klee takes over as pro women’s coach in Minnesota after Charlie Burggraf steps down

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 11:10:26 GMT

The newly established Professional Women’s Hockey League has its first coaching change before its first game, with former NHL defenseman Ken Klee taking over in Minnesota after Charlie Burggraf stepped down on Wednesday.Burggraf did not go into detail on his departure, saying only that he consulted with his family while reaching the decision to step away from coaching and wishing the team success. Minnesota, which features a lineup of numerous home-state players, opens its season on Jan. 3 at Boston, followed by its home-opener against Montreal three days later.The 52-year-old Klee, who spent nine of his 14 NHL seasons with the Washington Capitals, has plenty of coaching experience since finishing his pro career with Phoenix in 2009. He coached the U.S. women’s national team to world championship titles in 2015 and ’16, and also was an assistant coach with AHL Syracuse.“The hockey energy in Minnesota is just fantastic, and I’m delighted to be part of it,” said Klee, who is from Indi...