Shoveling snow? Over-exertion and cold temps can raise your heart risks

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Digging out from the weekend’s massive snow and ice storm could be hazardous to your heart.

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Pennsylvania health officials announced three snow-removal related deaths Sunday. All were between the ages of 60 to 84. The Lehigh County coroner’s office cautioned people to take breaks and avoid over-exerting themselves.

Shoveling snow is heavy, hard work — research has shown that doing it for even a short time can make the heart work as hard as it does during a major workout. Adding to that stress, the cold temperatures cause blood vessels, including those feeding the heart, to constrict. That raises blood pressure which in turn increases the risk of a heart attack, stroke or cardiac arrest, according to the American Heart Association.

Snow shoveling is especially risky for anyone with known heart disease or who’s already survived a heart attack, as well as older adults and people with risk factors including high blood pressure or cholesterol. People who think they’re healthy can get in trouble, too, with that combination of heavy exertion in cold weather – especially if they’re generally sedentary until a snowstorm comes along.

The heart association advises that if you have to shovel, go slow and try to push the snow instead of lifting and throwing it. It also urges people to learn common warning signs of a heart attack and to call 911 if they experience them.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Mexico investigates soccer field attack that killed at least 11 people

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SALAMANCA, Mexico (AP) — Beer cans, candles and blood-stained clothing littered a soccer field in central Mexico on Monday, a day after gunmen killed 11 people and injured 12 others during a gathering after an amateur match.

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While authorities investigate the killings, Guanajuato state Gov. Libia Dennise García said Monday that “security in the region has been reinforced” with state and federal forces. She said on social media that the state “will act decisively to protect families, restore peace to the community, and bring those responsible to justice.”

The massacre took place in the municipality of Salamanca, in the state with the highest number of homicides in the country. The region has been wracked by intense violence linked to the territorial dispute between the local Santa Rosa de Lima cartel — a violent group primarily dedicated to fuel theft and trafficking — and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, CJNG.

Salamanca Mayor César Prieto — the only official to provide early details on Sunday — described the massacre as part of a “wave of violence” and appealed to President Claudia Sheinbaum for help.

It also comes a few months before the start of the FIFA World Cup, which Mexico is co-hosting with Canada and the United States, and as the government seeks to highlight its progress in security.

Sheinbaum didn’t address the events in Salamanca during her news briefing on Monday, deferring to the local prosecutor’s office, which has only confirmed an ongoing investigation.

Authorities have not offered any hypotheses regarding the possible motive for the attack.

Security analyst David Saucedo, who was based in Guanajuato for many years, suggests the attack was likely an “indiscriminate” act by the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel.

According to Saucedo, the group may have targeted the public specifically to provoke a federal military surge into territory currently held by its rivals, the Jalisco Cartel — a move he says “undermines the image of security Mexico hopes to project on the eve of the World Cup.”

The Jalisco cartel is the fastest-growing criminal organization in Mexico. It was declared a terrorist organization by the Trump administration, which also targeted the Santa Rosa de Lima cartel.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Trump threatens to hike tariffs on South Korean goods over inaction on trade deal

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By JOSH BOAK, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Monday he is increasing tariffs on South Korean goods because the country’s national assembly has yet to approve the trade framework announced last year.

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Trump said on social media that import taxes would be raised on autos, lumber and pharmaceutical drugs from South Korea with the rate on other goods going from 15% to 25%. The U.S. president previously imposed the tariffs by declaring an economic emergency and bypassing Congress, while South Korea needed legislative approval for the framework announced in July and affirmed during Trump’s October visit to the country.

“Our Trade Deals are very important to America. In each of these Deals, we have acted swiftly to reduce our TARIFFS in line with the Transaction agreed to,” Trump said. “We, of course, expect our Trading Partners to do the same.”

The threat was a reminder that the tariff drama unleashed last year by Trump is likely to be repeated again and again this year. The global economy and U.S. voters might find the world’s trade structure constantly being subject to disruption and new negotiations as Trump has already sought to levy tariffs in order to bend other nations to his will.

Trump has in the past tied his tariffs to commitments by South Korea to invest $350 billion in the U.S. economy over several years, including efforts to revitalize American shipyards. But the Trump administration’s relations with South Korea have at times been rocky with the raid last year by immigration officials at a Hyundai manufacturing site in Georgia that caused 475 people to be detained.

Monday’s announcement of new tariffs fits a pattern in which Trump plans to continue to deploy tariffs, possibly to the detriment of relations with other countries.

Just last week, the president threatened tariffs on eight European nations unless the U.S. gained control of Greenland, only to pull back on his ultimatum after meetings at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Trump on Saturday said he would put a 100% tax on goods from Canada if it followed through with plans to bolster trade with China.

Trump has bragged about his trade frameworks as drawing in new investment to the U.S., yet many of his heavily hyped deals have yet to be finalized. The European Parliament has yet to approve a trade deal pushed by Trump that would put a 15% tax on the majority of goods made by the EU’s 27 member states.

The United States is poised this year to renegotiate its amended 2020 trade pact with Canada and Mexico. There are also ongoing Section 232 investigations under the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, as well as an upcoming Supreme Court decision on whether Trump exceeded his authority by declaring tariffs under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Gov. Tim Walz orders weapons screening requirement at Capitol

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Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Monday issued an executive order requiring weapons screening at the state Capitol following an advisory report released earlier this month recommending new security measures.

The order, which is set to go into effect starting the first day of the 2026 legislative session on Feb. 17, directs the Minnesota State Patrol to “put in place the equipment and trained personnel necessary” for the new requirement, though it leaves the exact choices up to the discretion of the state Department of Public Safety.

It’s based on the recommendations of an “independent security assessment” commissioned by the state public safety department, according to the governor’s office. The Advisory Committee on Capitol Area Security approved the recommendations earlier this month.

Walz’s order does not mention specific security measures like X-ray machines or metal detectors. Minnesota was among 13 states that had neither, according to a 2021 review by the Council of State Governments.

The state Capitol was wired to support metal detectors during major renovations completed in 2017. The governor’s office referred questions about specifics to the Department of Public Safety, which didn’t have specifics on Monday.

“We are now working through the details to ensure screening is implemented in a way that is thoughtful, accessible and minimizes disruption for the public and those who work in the building. That includes entrance locations, staffing, accessibility considerations and clear guidance on what people can expect when they arrive,” said Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson. “Because those details matter, we want to take the time to get this right.”

Senate also will require weapons screening

The expense of new security measures will be covered by the State Patrol’s general fund dollars, according to the governor’s office.

In addition to weapons screening at the Capitol, the Minnesota Senate on Monday also announced plans to boost security. Starting on Feb. 17, the Senate will require members of the public to pass through a full-body scanner before entering the Senate Gallery, the observation area above the floor where members gather to vote.

Changes announced by Senate President Bobby Joe Champion, DFL-Minneapolis, also include a ban on members of the public carrying firearms in the Senate Gallery.

“Minnesota has been an outlier state in the lack of protection we provide at the Capitol, one of only ten states that didn’t screen for weapons, and only six that didn’t regulate their possession,” Sen. Bonnie Westlin, DFL-Plymouth, said in a news release announcing the change. “Weapons screening was the top safety priority recommended by the Axtell Group report our committee adopted earlier this month.”

Changes come after killing of Rep. Melissa Hortman

While some lawmakers had called for more security and a ban on firearms from the Capitol for years, the issue took on a new sense of urgency in the wake of the June assassination of former House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, and her husband, Mark, and the shootings of Sen. John Hoffman, DFL-Champlin, and his wife, Yvette.

“Government cannot function effectively when elected officials fear for their safety. In the last year, Minnesota has seen horrific acts of political violence,” Walz said in a news release. “This executive order will make the Capitol – the central seat of Minnesota’s state government – safer, ensuring the people’s house remains open, welcoming, and secure.

Last summer’s political violence — and a subsequent break-in at the Capitol by a nude intruder who guards found sitting in the Senate President’s Chair — increased political pressure to harden security. Before that break-in, state public safety leaders had told news media that they had already boosted security, though the intrusion highlighted ongoing vulnerabilities. An independent review by the private security firm Axtell Group followed.

Members of the Advisory Committee on Capitol Area Security unanimously supported most of the independent review’s recommendations, though Republican lawmakers Rep. Jim Nash, R-Waconia, and Sen. Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove, declined to support the weapons screening. Legislative Republicans have largely opposed efforts to curb gun rights at the state Capitol.

Besides Nash and Limmer, members of the Advisory Committee on Capitol Area Security include DFL Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, who serves as chair, Supreme Court Chief Justice Natalie Hudson, Sen. Westlin and Rep. Kelly Moller, DFL-Shoreview.

Walz and the DFL-controlled Senate are boosting security measures, though the House, which is tied 67-67 between DFL and Republican members, has not announced any changes.

In a statement on the new security at the Capitol, House DFL Leader Zack Stephenson praised Walz’s executive order.

“This is personal for House DFLers,” Stephenson said. “While we are pleased with today’s action, we will continue to advocate for a full ban on guns at the State Capitol.”

It wasn’t immediately clear on Monday how the new security orders might brush against the public’s right to carry weapons in the state Capitol.

The Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, a prominent state gun rights group with a history of success in challenging firearms restrictions, said it was aware of the governor and Senate’s decision and was reviewing legal options.

“Permit to Carry holders will still be able to carry at the Minnesota State Capitol Complex,” Gun Owners Caucus Chair Bryan Strawser said in a post to X. “We will work with state officials to ensure that the statutory right of MN Permit to Carry holders at the state capitol is not infringed.”

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