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Experts rip 'triple crown of bad regs' as Biden admin posts gas stove rule it denied was a ban

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Experts rip 'triple crown of bad regs' as Biden admin posts gas stove rule it denied was a ban

After repeatedly denying that it wants to formally ban natural gas-powered stoves, the Energy Department posted to the Federal Register its finalized regulation targeting kitchen appliances.

Critics from Congress to energy advocacy groups slammed the new rule, which administration officials have long denied would constitute a ban.

But American Energy Alliance president Tom Pyle said it nonetheless wins the “Triple Crown for bad regulations.”

“It’s ineffective, unnecessary, and likely illegal,” Pyle said, going on to acknowledge that the administration had watered down the original 2023-drafted policy.

BIDEN ADMIN BACKS OFF GAS STOVE CRACKDOWN AFTER WIDESPREAD PUSHBACK

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Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

“After receiving severe backlash for moving to ban gas stoves, the Biden-Harris administration settled for this rule, which they claim would lower costs for families. Of course, what they don’t tell you is their so-called savings is a mere 21 cents a year.”

Pyle said that if Democrats continue to hold power, the rule will be a “mere down payment” on future regulatory overreach that will try to control other mundane aspects of daily life like cooking.

“American consumers [are] fully capable of choosing the appliances that best suit their needs,” he said.

The Department of Energy, however, defended the regulation — including against claims that it had waffled on the matter.

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A spokesman said the rule posted to the Federal Register mirrors the regulation devised earlier in the year, and that this final rule has the support of groups like the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers.

A spokesman for the Energy Department it is “building on decades-long efforts with industry to ensure our appliances work more efficiently and save Americans money.”

“When you look past misleading rhetoric, you’ll see that our appliance standards actions are intended for nothing more than promoting innovation and increasing energy efficiency without sacrificing the reliability and performance that Americans have come to expect and rely on,” they said.

However, lawmakers who have tried to blunt “bans” or regulations on home appliances and other implements that require fossil fuel power were not convinced of the new rule’s benefits.

In 2023, Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., successfully drafted an amendment to an energy bill that would prohibit Secretary Jennifer Granholm’s department from implementing the original energy standard for cooktops.

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“If this draconian rule were carried out, it would eliminate anywhere between 50-95% of today’s gas appliances,” Newhouse said at the time.

WHITE HOUSE FINALIZES RULE INCREASING CLEAN ENERGY SUBSIDIES FIVEFOLD IN BID TO SUPPORT GREEN JOBS

President Biden.

President Biden. (Getty Images)

“Gas appliances are at the center of American households. They power our stoves, furnaces, water heaters and fireplaces,” he said, calling natural gas “affordable, reliable and safe.”

On Thursday, a spokesman for Newhouse said the lawmaker’s efforts were a “leading factor” in having the original rule rescinded and revised to its current form.

“While this new rule will still require strenuous federal oversight by Congress, it does prevent states like California and Washington from implementing sweeping, radical rules that are completely unreasonable for consumers and producers and will only pave the way for other states to follow,” the spokesman said.

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Rep. Kelly Armstrong, R-N.D., whose Gas Stove Protection & Freedom Act passed the House but has languished in the Senate for a year, called the new rule being posted “incredibly frustrating and out of touch.”

“Americans are concerned about the fentanyl crisis that is crippling communities, and many Americans are worried about being able to provide for their families and put food on the table. Instead of considering the immediate needs of many Americans, the administration has chosen to prioritize attacking gas stoves to appease climate extremists,” Armstrong said, adding that it shows that the administration wants to control every aspect of life.

Heritage Action for America Vice President Ryan Walker said the Department of Energy is “villanizing natural gas” despite its affordability and clean-burning qualities.

“After insisting they had no plans to ban gas stoves, the Biden-Harris administration just plowed ahead with its new rule that may price the hugely popular appliances out of existence,” Walker said, adding, “The Left only cares about virtue signaling and pandering to their extreme base, not the hardworking Americans trying to make ends meet and put food on the table. The next conservative administration can and should reverse the Biden-Harris appliance crackdown.”

Democrats who were either vociferously opposed to Republican efforts to blunt regulations or in favor of such rules did not offer reaction to the news.

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Rep. Dan Newhouse of Washington

Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Washington. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., the ranking member on the House Energy & Commerce Committee, said of 2023 efforts to stop such regulation, “House Republicans are once again putting polluters over people.”

Pallone did not respond to a request for comment. 

Neither did Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, D-Pa., who previously called cost-related concerns about forcing Americans off natural gas a “conspiracy theory cooked up to embroil Congress in culture wars that shed more heat than light on the issues facing our nation.”

The Philadelphia lawmaker said in 2023 the rule proposed at the time would save consumers $1.7 billion collectively.

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One longtime Democrat did, however, speak out against the original 2023 draft of the rule, as Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.V., said the feds “have no business telling American families how to cook their dinner.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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San Francisco, CA

San Francisco 49ers vs. New Orleans Saints NFL Preseason Week 2 FREE live stream: Time, channel

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San Francisco 49ers vs. New Orleans Saints NFL Preseason Week 2 FREE live stream: Time, channel


The San Francisco 49ers have eyes on them going into Week 2 of the NFL preseason for a matchup with the New Orleans Saints. The game is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) with TV coverage on FOX and streaming on-demand.

  • Watch: Live streams of the 49ers vs. Saints game are available with offers from FuboTV (free trial), SlingTV (low intro rate) and DirecTV Stream (free trial). Regional restrictions may apply.

New Orleans Saints (1-0) at San Francisco 49ers (0-1)

NFL preseason matchup at a glance

When: Sunday, Aug. 18 at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT)

Where: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, Calif.

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TV channel: FOX

Live streams: FuboTV (free trial) | SlingTV (low intro rate) | DirecTV Stream (free trial)

The 49ers still have a massive task to complete that has nothing to do with what happens against the Saints on Sunday night. As of Saturday, they were still working to either close a new deal with wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk or potentially be forced to trade the star in the final days before the 2024 season begins. San Francisco comes off a 17-13 loss to the Tennessee Titans in their preseason opener with most of the team’s key players sitting out.

Watch live streams of the 49ers vs. Saints game: FuboTV (free trial) | DirecTV Stream (free trial) | SlingTV (low intro rate)

The Saints come off a 16-14 win over the Arizona Cardinals in their preseason opener, which was marked by rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler scoring the team’s only touchdown on a 4-yard run in the fourth quarter. Veteran Derek Carr was 2 of 6 passing for 12 yards in limited duty, while the backfield duo of Alvin Kamara and Jamaal Williams were both held out of action. New Orleans goes into Year 2 with Carr as the team’s presumed quarterback and an investment made in protecting him, selecting Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga in the first round (No. 14 overall) in the 2024 NFL Draft.

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The 49ers and Saints are set for an 8 p.m. ET start on FOX. Live streams are available from FuboTV (free trial), DirecTV Stream (free trial) and SlingTV (low intro rate).



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Denver, CO

Man killed in Mar Lee shooting, suspect dead after car chase through south Denver

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Man killed in Mar Lee shooting, suspect dead after car chase through south Denver


Two people were killed after a shooting and car chase through south Denver on Sunday, according to the Denver Police Department.

Officers responded to a shooting near West Arkansas Avenue and South Knox Court in Denver’s Mar Lee neighborhood Sunday afternoon, Denver police said in a post on X.

The shooting victim, a man, was pronounced dead.

Police saw a man suspected in the shooting driving away from the scene and followed him to the area of South University Boulevard and Cherry Hills Farm Drive in the Cherry Hills neighborhood.

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The man crashed twice, hitting one vehicle, and was found dead in his vehicle as a result of suicide, police officials said.

Three people who were in the vehicle the man crashed into were not injured.

This is a developing story and may be updated.

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Seattle, WA

Seattle Seahawks 53-Man Roster Projection: Who Makes Cut After Loss to Titans?

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Seattle Seahawks 53-Man Roster Projection: Who Makes Cut After Loss to Titans?


Unable to maintain a five-point halftime lead, the Seattle Seahawks dropped their first game of the Mike Macdonald era in a 16-15 preseason loss to the Tennessee Titans on Saturday night, leaving just one exhibition audition remaining for the coaching staff to evaluate the roster before final cut downs on August 27.

After taking a deeper dive into Saturday’s defeat in Nashville, which players will be on Seattle’s roster when the regular season opens against Denver on September 8? With less than two weeks until cut down day, here’s my latest shot at projecting the 53-man roster as well as the 16-player practice squad:

Starter: Geno Smith

Backup: Sam Howell

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Practice Squad: TBD

Comfortable wearing a ball cap on the sidelines, Smith may finally get a few reps in the preseason finale next weekend, but his job has never been in danger. With that said, Howell continues to take positive steps forward running Ryan Grubb’s offense, as he completed almost 80 percent of his passes in Saturday’s defeat with a touchdown and no turnovers. The Seahawks should have growing confidence that if Smith gets banged up at any point, they can certainly win games with their new backup beginning to show off his skill set and play to his potential. The same can’t be said for PJ Walker, who has struggled in both preseason games and opened the door for the team to be looking closely to the waiver wire for a third quarterback.

Starter: Ken Walker III

Backups: Zach Charbonnet, George Holani, Kenny McIntosh

Practice Squad: Kobe Lewis

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With Charbonnet nursing a lower body injury right now, it seems even more likely the Seahawks will hold onto each of their top four backs for the start of the regular season, as McIntosh may have locked up his spot with an impressive outing on Saturday night running the ball and snagging passes out of the backfield. Pass protection still remains a concern for him, but he’s shown more than enough to warrant inclusion on the roster, while Holani’s lack of snaps in Nashville suggest the team already has seen enough from him on offense and special teams to this point.

Starters: DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Backups: Jake Bobo, Laviska Shenault, Dareke Young

Practice Squad: Cody White, Easop Winston

Tennessee Titans cornerback Elijah Molden readies to make a tackle against Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Laviska Shenaut.

Tennessee Titans cornerback Elijah Molden (24) readies to make a tackle against Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. (81) during their game at Nissan Stadium in Nashvillet, Tenn., Saturday, Aug. 17, 2024. / Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK

Atop the depth chart, Metcalf, Lockett, Smith-Njigba, and Bobo all entered Saturday as locks to make Seattle’s roster, and at this point, Shenault should be in that group as well. He laid a tremendous lead block to spring Dee Williams for a 41-yard kick return on Saturday night and has continued to make an impact breaking tackles after the catch and as a runner with the ball in his hands, providing a different skill set than the top four receivers on the roster. As far as competitions go, Winston may have closed the gap a little bit on Young after catching a 23-yard touchdown against the Titans, but it’s debatable whether he has done enough to overtake his teammate for a roster spot. With Young being a better overall special teams player and a superior athlete who can line up at multiple spots on offense, he’s still likely the sixth receiver to round out the depth chart.

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Starter: Noah Fant

Backups: AJ Barner, Brady Russell

Practice Squad: Tyler Mabry, Jack Westover

Injured Reserve: Pharaoh Brown

It remains to be seen how severe Brown’s foot injury suffered during joint practices is, but the fact he had to be carted off the field and the Seahawks have yet to provide an update on his status several days later suggests that he may need to miss extended time. Depending on the severity, they could wait until after the final cut downs to place him on injured reserve to ensure he has a chance to play later in the season. Assuming he’s going to miss the start of the regular season, Barner and Russell would immediately step into bigger roles on offense, while keeping both Mabry and Westover as insurance options on the practice squad would be more important.

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Starters: Charles Cross, Laken Tomlinson, Connor Williams, Anthony Bradford, Abraham Lucas

Backups: George Fant, Christian Haynes, Olu Oluwatimi, McClendon Curtis

Practice Squad: Mike Jerrell, Sataoa Laumea, Max Pircher*

*Doesn’t count against 16-man limit on practice squad as International Pathway Player

If anything was proven on Saturday night, there’s a massive, Mount Everest crevasse-sized gap between the Seahawks first and second-string offensive linemen and the third unit, which struggled mightily throughout the second half both in pass protection and run blocking. As late round picks, the team will hope to keep Jerrell and Laumea for further development on the practice squad, but it’s tough to envision either of them making the team if Lucas and Williams both are ready for Week 1 as hoped. Bradford’s dominant performance on Saturday night may have been enough to fend off Haynes – at least for now – in the right guard competition, while Curtis looked better than Stone Forsythe playing with the starters to further cement his roster spot.

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Starters: Leonard Williams, Johnathan Hankins, Jarran Reed

Backups: Byron Murphy II, Mike Morris, Myles Adams

Practice Squad: Devere Levelston

Though they had to play deep into Saturday’s game in large part due to lack of numbers, Morris and Adams both played solid football against the Titans, combining for five pressures, a sack, and four run stops. There’s no question each player should have a spot saved for them on the 53-man roster and will play meaningful roles as rotational defensive linemen, at least until the team potentially brings someone else in off the waiver wire later this month. Murphy only played a few drives last night, which means he’s already in the protection zone for the Seahawks, and it may not be too long before he’s starting alongside Williams and Reed.

Starters: Uchenna Nwosu, Dre’Mont Jones

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Backups: Boye Mafe, Derick Hall, Darrell Taylor

Practice Squad: Jamie Sheriff, Nelson Ceaser

Since Jones remains sidelined, Mafe and Hall have played into the second half in both preseason games, but that shouldn’t send the message either player’s job is in jeopardy. Both have played well in the exhibition contests, with Hall being particularly effective registering a pair of sacks, and they will see extensive roles as rotational rushers in Macdonald’s defense. Taylor came back healthy to make his 2024 debut and while he had some promising rushes, he couldn’t turn any of them into sacks or quarterback hits. The lack of depth at the position keeps him on the roster as a situational rusher. In the undrafted ranks, Sheriff has been a revelation in the first two preseason games with seven combined pressures and the Seahawks would be wise to hang onto him for further development.

Starters: Tyrel Dodson, Jerome Baker

Backups: Tyrice Knight, Jon Rhattigan

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Practice Squad: Patrick O’Connell, Drake Thomas

With Baker and Dodson not playing on Saturday, Knight saw his most extended action yet, leading the Seahawks with eight tackles and making an impressive stop sniffing out a screen for a tackle for loss. The fourth-round pick still has room to grow dissecting run concepts and handling coverage duties, but he stood out in a reserve linebacker group that had plenty of struggles on Saturday. Rhattigan was exploited a couple times in coverage with his inability to get deep enough on his zone drops, while O’Connell committed a killer defensive holding penalty on 3rd and 2 to extend a scoring drive for the Titans. Thomas should thrust himself into the competition in next week’s finale after returning from the PUP list last week, but this remains a position that could be ripe for improvement off the waiver wire.

Starters: Devon Witherspoon, Riq Woolen

Backups: Tre Brown, Mike Jackson, Artie Burns, Nehemiah Pritchett, Dee Williams

Practice Squad: D.J. James, Carlton Johnson

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Tennessee Titans wide receiver Bryce Oliver (80) has a catch blocked by Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Dee Williams (33).

Aug 17, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Titans wide receiver Bryce Oliver (80) has a catch blocked by Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Dee Williams (33) late in the fourth quarter at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Casey Gower-USA TODAY Sports / Casey Gower-USA TODAY Sports

The Seahawks have a wealth of riches at cornerback with Witherspoon, Woolen, and Brown all being locks and Burns likely on the roster as well. Coming back from an injury, Jackson probably finds himself on the right side of the bubble, but he could potentially be dangled as trade bait for cornerback-needy teams with the goal of adding depth at another position or a late round draft pick. Rounding out the depth chart, Pritchett turned in a solid performance on Saturday night and has been far better than James, who gave up a touchdown in coverage and committed two bad penalties to lead to a Titans field goal in the second half. Of those two rookies from Auburn, Pritchett has earned the roster spot, while Williams continues to flash as a return specialist and looked good at cornerback on Saturday, which puts him on the right side of the bubble.

Starters: Julian Love, Rayshawn Jenkins

Backups: K’Von Wallace, Coby Bryant

Practice Squad: Ty Okada

PUP List: Jerrick Reed III

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Saturday night was a clear step back for Bryant, who had two awful missed tackles in the first half, including one whiff that allowed Julius Chestnut to race off for a 23-yard gain on Tennessee’s lone touchdown drive. Still, his versatility and performance throughout camp should keep him on the roster, while Wallace’s spot appears to be safe as well. Recording a diving interception against Malik Willis, Okada has done enough in the preseason for consideration to make the roster as well, but he may be the odd man out due to a numbers game with Seattle likely to choose a player with kick return ability like Williams for one of the final spots instead. He should be a lock for the practice squad, however.

Starters: Jason Myers, Michael Dickson, Chris Stoll

Myers has irked some fans by his struggles with extra points – he missed one for the second straight preseason game on Saturday – but he also nailed all three of his field goal attempts, including a 50-yard connection that could have been a game winner if not for the defense folding in the final two minutes. There’s not another kicker, punter, or long snapper on the roster and the Seahawks have plenty of confidence in this trio moving forward.



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