11-24-2024  2:17 am   •   PDX and SEA Weather

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NORTHWEST NEWS

'Bomb Cyclone' Kills 1 and Knocks out Power to Over Half a Million Homes Across the Northwest US

A major storm was sweeping across the northwest U.S., battering the region with strong winds and rain. The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks through Friday and hurricane-force wind warnings were in effect. 

'Bomb Cyclone' Threatens Northern California and Pacific Northwest

The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks beginning Tuesday and lasting through Friday. Those come as the strongest atmospheric river  that California and the Pacific Northwest has seen this season bears down on the region. 

More Logging Is Proposed to Help Curb Wildfires in the US Pacific Northwest

Officials say worsening wildfires due to climate change mean that forests must be more actively managed to increase their resiliency.

Democrat Janelle Bynum Flips Oregon’s 5th District, Will Be State’s First Black Member of Congress

The U.S. House race was one of the country’s most competitive and viewed by The Cook Political Report as a toss up, meaning either party had a good chance of winning.

NEWS BRIEFS

OMSI Opens Indoor Ice Rink for the Holiday Season

This is the first year the unique synthetic ice rink is open. ...

Thanksgiving Safety Tips

Portland Fire & Rescue extends their wish to you for a happy and safe Thanksgiving Holiday. ...

Portland Art Museum’s Rental Sales Gallery Showcases Diverse Talent

New Member Artist Show will be open to the public Dec. 6 through Jan. 18, with all works available for both rental and purchase. ...

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library of Oregon Announces New State Director and Community Engagement Coordinator

“This is an exciting milestone for Oregon,” said DELC Director Alyssa Chatterjee. “These positions will play critical roles in...

Multnomah County Library Breaks Ground on Expanded St. Johns Library

Groundbreaking marks milestone in library transformations ...

Forecasts warn of possible winter storms across US during Thanksgiving week

WINDSOR, Calif. (AP) — Forecasters through the U.S. issued warnings that another round of winter weather could complicate travel leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday, while California and Washington state continue to recover from storm damage and power outages. In California,...

Will a winter storm hit the US over Thanksgiving week? Here's what forecasts show so far

WINDSOR, Calif. (AP) — Forecasters warned over the weekend that another round of winter weather could complicate travel leading up to Thanksgiving in parts of the U.S. In California, where a person was found dead in a vehicle submerged in floodwaters on Saturday, authorities braced...

Moore and UAPB host Missouri

Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions (1-5) at Missouri Tigers (4-1) Columbia, Missouri; Sunday, 5 p.m. EST BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Tigers -34.5; over/under is 155.5 BOTTOM LINE: UAPB visits Missouri after Christian Moore scored 20 points in UAPB's 98-64 loss to...

Carroll runs for 3 TDs, Missouri beats Mississippi State 39-20

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — Things had a chance to unravel for Missouri early in its matchup with Mississippi State on Saturday, but a big play changed it all. Trailing 3-0 and giving up great field position to the Bulldog offense, the Tigers got a fumble recovery from Dylan Carnell...

OPINION

A Loan Shark in Your Pocket: Cellphone Cash Advance Apps

Fast-growing app usage leaves many consumers worse off. ...

America’s Healing Can Start with Family Around the Holidays

With the holiday season approaching, it seems that our country could not be more divided. That division has been perhaps the main overarching topic of our national conversation in recent years. And it has taken root within many of our own families. ...

Donald Trump Rides Patriarchy Back to the White House

White male supremacy, which Trump ran on, continues to play an outsized role in exacerbating the divide that afflicts our nation. ...

Why Not Voting Could Deprioritize Black Communities

President Biden’s Justice40 initiative ensures that 40% of federal investment benefits flow to disadvantaged communities, addressing deep-seated inequities. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

National monument proposed for North Dakota Badlands, with tribes' support

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A coalition of conservation groups and Native American tribal citizens on Friday called on President Joe Biden to designate nearly 140,000 acres of rugged, scenic Badlands as North Dakota's first national monument, a proposal several tribal nations say would preserve the...

What to know about Scott Turner, Trump's pick for housing secretary

Scott Turner, President-elect Donald Trump choice to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development, is a former NFL player who ran the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council during Trump’s first term. Turner, 52, is the first Black person selected to be a member...

Daniel Penny doesn't testify as his defense rests in subway chokehold trial

NEW YORK (AP) — Daniel Penny chose not to testify and defense lawyers rested their case Friday at his trial in the death of an agitated man he choked on a subway train. Closing arguments are expected after Thanksgiving in the closely watched manslaughter case about the death of...

ENTERTAINMENT

Book Review: Chris Myers looks back on his career in ’That Deserves a Wow'

There are few sports journalists working today with a resume as broad as Chris Myers. From a decade doing everything for ESPN (SportsCenter, play by play, and succeeding Roy Firestone as host of the interview show “Up Close”) to decades of involvement with nearly every league under contract...

Was it the Mouse King? ‘Nutcracker’ props stolen from a Michigan ballet company

CANTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Did the Mouse King strike? A ballet group in suburban Detroit is scrambling after someone stole a trailer filled with props for upcoming performances of the beloved holiday classic “The Nutcracker.” The lost items include a grandfather...

Wrestling with the ghosts of 'The Piano Lesson'

The piano on the set of “The Piano Lesson” was not a mere prop. It could be played and the cast members often did. It was adorned with pictures of the Washington family and their ancestors. It was, John David Washington jokes, “No. 1 on the call sheet.” “We tried to haunt...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

A man called 911 for help during a home invasion. Las Vegas police fatally shot him

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A Las Vegas man called for police help during a home invasion before an officer fatally shot...

Uruguay's once-dull election has become a dead heat in the presidential runoff

MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AP) — Uruguayans will return to the polls on Sunday for a second round of voting to choose...

Nigeria turns to natural gas as transport prices soar after petrol subsidies were removed

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — When Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu ended the costly subsidies that made petrol...

These Peruvian women left the Amazon, but their homeland still inspires their songs and crafts

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Sadith Silvano’s crafts are born from ancient songs. Brush in hand, eyes on the cloth, the...

Tens of thousands of Spaniards protest housing crunch and high rents in Barcelona

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Tens of thousands of Spaniards marched in downtown Barcelona on Saturday to protest the...

Canada's top military commander calls out US senator for questioning a woman's role in combat

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia (AP) — The first woman to command Canada's military called out a U.S. senator on Saturday...

Kimberly Hefling AP Education Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Decrying the state of American education, President Barack Obama on Friday said states will get unprecedented freedom to waive basic elements of the sweeping Bush-era No Child Left Behind law, calling it an admirable but flawed effort that has hurt students instead of helping them.

Obama's announcement could fundamentally affect the education of tens of millions of children. It will allow states to scrap the requirement that all children must show they are proficient in reading and math by 2014 - a cornerstone of the law - if states meet conditions designed to better prepare and test students.

And the president took a shot at Congress, saying his executive action was needed only because lawmakers have not stepped in to improve the law for years.

"Congress hasn't been able to do it. So I will," Obama said. "Our kids only get one shot at a decent education."

Under the plan Obama outlined, states can ask the Education Department to be exempted from some of the law's requirements if they meet certain conditions, such as imposing standards to prepare students for college and careers and setting evaluation standards for teachers and principals.

Despite allowing states to do away with the approaching 2014 deadline, Obama insisted he was not weakening the law, but rather helping states set higher standards. He said that the current law was forcing educators to teach to the test, give short shrift to subjects such as history and science, and lower standards as a way of avoiding penalties and stigmas.

The law is a signature legacy of President George W. Bush's administration and was approved with strong bipartisan support nearly a decade ago. But its popularity tanked as the years went on, as disputes over money divided Congress, schools said they were being labeled "failures," and questions soared over the testing and teacher-quality provisions.

"The goals behind No Child Left Behind were admirable, and President Bush deserves credit for that," Obama said during a statement from the White House.

"Higher standards are the right goal. Accountability is the right goal. Closing the achievement gap is the right goal. And we've got to stay focused on those goals," Obama said. "But experience has taught us that in its implementation, No Child Left Behind had some serious flaws that are hurting our children instead of helping them."

Obama said better education was at the heart of a solid American economy of middle-class jobs, and that compared with other nations, the United States was slipping.

Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., who chairs the House Education Committee, has questioned whether the Education Department has the authority to offer waivers in exchange for changes it supports. He's said Obama has allowed "an arbitrary timeline" to dictate when Congress should get the law rewritten and that the committee needs more time to develop its proposals.

Kline on Thursday called the administration's plan a political move and said he could not support a process that sets a precedent by granting the education secretary "sweeping authority to handpick winners and losers."

Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., the ranking member on the Senate committee that oversees education, said the president's plan would undermine the policymaking authority of Congress.

Education Secretary Arne Duncan has said the plan would not undermine efforts in Congress because the waivers could serve as a bridge until Congress acts.

In Obama's plan, states granted waivers would have more control over how troubled schools are handled, although to qualify for a waiver they would have to show they had a plan to help low-performing schools. A majority of states are expected to apply for waivers, which will be given to qualified states early next year.

Critics say the law placed too much emphasis on standardized tests, raising the stakes so high for school districts that it may have driven some school officials to cheat. In particular, the requirement that all students be on grade level in math and reading by 2014 has been hugely unpopular.

Duncan has warned that 82 percent of schools next year could fail to reach proficiency requirements and thus be labeled "failures," although some experts questioned the figure.

The law has been due for a rewrite since 2007. Obama and Duncan had asked Congress to overhaul it by the start of this school year but a growing ideological divide in Congress has complicated efforts to do so.

The GOP-led House Education Committee has forwarded three bills that would revamp aspects of the law but has yet to fully tackle some of the more contentious issues such as teacher effectiveness and accountability.

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Associated Press writers Ben Feller and Julie Pace contributed to this story.

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