A Somali man trekked 21 hours as temperatures hovered around 0 degrees Fahrenheit to make it across the northern U.S. border into Manitoba, Canada, CBC, a Canadian news agency reported.

The freezing and exhausted man shared his story with a CBC news reporter at about 4:30 a.m. Saturday.

"I have a problem. America is [the] problem now," he said, according to the report.

He was eventually picked up by Canadian police who brought him to get medical care. 

The man is one of several Somali refugees who have fled into Manitoba since Donald Trump took office, CBC reported. Concerned about their legal status in the U.S., they've braved freezing temperatures on exhausting treks to make it over the northern border.

Donald Trump has named Mike Dubke, founder of conservative media firm Crossroads Media, to be head of the White House communications team, NBC News reported. 

Dubke is expected to start in his new role as early as Friday, an administration official told NBC. 

Crossroads Media is a conservative media firm "specializing in advertising strategy and placement for political candidates, issue advocacy organizations and trade associations," according to their website. 

A senior Democratic lawmaker said the creation of a 9/11-style commission to investigate Russian interference in the presidential election has gained bipartisan support.

Rep. Elijah Cummings told msnbc the creation of the commission was necessary "to really get into how all of this happened, what was the relationship between the Trump campaign and the Russians, and try to figure out how to make sure that this does not happen again."

Cummings, the ranking member on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform said the Republican co-sponsor of a bill to create the commission is "a Congressman from North Carolina" whose name would be made public Friday.

Sen. Ben Cardin, the leading Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has previously called for an independent commission into election meddling. 

Police have canceled a Silver Alert for a Willimantic woman who had been missing since Sunday night.

Police have canceled the alert that had been been issued for 45-year-old Maria Bustamante-Fernandez.

She was reported missing after 7:30 p.m. Sunday.

Woodbridge police have received several reports of bobcat sightings in town and they are urging residents to keep themselves and their pets away from the animals. 

Police said they have received reports of bobcats on Rimmon, Peck Hill and Newton roads.  

If you see a bobcat. protect children and pets, back away slowly and deliberately and, if you can, make a lot of noise to scare the animal away. 

Laurie Rosenbaum, of Woodbridge, said she's taking precaution, but also watching to see if she can see the striking creatures for herself. 

“It would be kind of cool to see one, I think, but maybe from a distance,” she said.

If you see a bobcat that appears to be sick or injured, or that is roaming an area frequented by humans, call Woodbridge police at (203) 387-2511.

The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Wildlife Division also records bobcat sightings. You can report bobcat sightings to the Wildlife Division at deep.wildlife@ct.gov or by calling 860-424-3011. Provide our name and contact information, as well as the date, location, and time of sighting.

Tens of thousands of people across the United States are expected to skip work and attend rallies and marches Friday as part of a "general strike" to "get our democracy back," NBC News reported. 

Strike4Democracy, one of the groups organizing the nationwide event, which is called the "#F17 General Strike," said more than 100 public protests are expected. Event pages on Facebook indicate the potential for high participation: Nearly 20,000 people have responded to the page for a New York City march alone.

It will be the second straight day of national protests, following Thursday's "Day Without Immigrants" campaign, which was aimed at making a point about the economic impact immigrants have on the U.S. labor force.

Firefighters are battling a heavily involved fire on Warbler Way in the Gales Ferry section of Ledyard and mutual aid has been called in.

Several departments are responding and people are asked to avoid the area.

No additional information was immediately available.

Days after parents of a 3-year-old girl said they daughter was locked inside a Wallingford daycare, the daycare will be holding a meeting for parents to discuss what happened Tuesday.

Bernadette Sorbo, the mother of 3-year-old Aubrie, said her daughter is picked up at 6 p.m. every day, but the doors were locked and the building appeared to be closed when Aubrie’s dad went to pick her up at YMCA's Learning Community at Choate Rosemary Hall Tuesday, so he called Sorbo to get a code to enter the building.

Sorbo said she was only a few minutes away when she received the calls so she drove to the daycare and the pair found their daughter in the bathroom, covered in feces.

"We found our daughter in the toilet and she was covered in her own feces with nobody around," "I got her off the potty. I wiped her down and cleaned her off and we went over to the cubby."

Then the parents called police.

Wallingford Police said they were dispatched to the YMCA's Learning Community at 333 Christian St. at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday for a welfare check.

The daycare reported the incident to the Connecticut Office of Early Childhood a day later and the agency is investigating.

Sean Doherty, the executive director of the Wallingford YMCA, told NBC Connecticut their mission is "to promote children's emotional, social, physical and intellectual development while meeting the needs of families. We believe in the core values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility. We've been in communication with our parent community since this incident and have conducted an immediate and thorough investigation to prevent an incident like this from occurring again."

The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Friday and parents are invited to discuss this, or any other concerns they have.

A week after a blizzard dumped a foot of snow in New Haven, the city is issuing targeted parking bans on streets where more snow still needs to be removed.

“This is from a public safety standpoint,” Deputy Director of Emergency Operations Rick Fontana said. “we’ve got to get cars off the street to get these cleared.”

After a sweep of the city, the New Haven Fire Department identified several streets still obstructed by snow.

“Maybe a piece of fire apparatus couldn’t get down,” Fontana said.

A number of the trouble spots are in the Fair Haven section of the city.

On Thursday, a caravan of New Haven Public Works trucks led by a snow thrower made its way down several residential streets where parking ban signs are posted.

“They’ve had you know all yesterday afternoon and all morning to move their cars. As you can see, pavement, and they can move them back in.”

Jose Mejias, who lives on Poplar Street, isn't satisfied with the cleanup in the area outside of his home.

“They came with the equipment. Use the equipment properly,” Mejias said. “Early this morning they came and towed the vehicles and once they towed the vehicles you can see the cleaning they did, very, very poor cleaning.”

Some residents told NBC Connecticut they support the city enforcing the parking ban.

“Get ‘em off the streets or tow them.” Gary Deraleau said. “Let them clear the streets so people got a place to go.”

But Deraleau said he wishes the snow removal trucks went through his neighborhood earlier in the week.

The city trucks plan to dump all the snow they picked up at East Shore Park.

“People need to be patient, but it does take time and I think the streets as we go through the removal process, these streets will get back to normal,” Fontana said.

President Donald Trump is considering retired Army Gen. Keith Kellogg to replace Michael Flynn as national security advisor.

“General Keith Kellogg, who I have known for a long time, is very much in play for NSA - as are three others,” Trump tweeted Friday.

The search for a new national security advisor comes on the heels of Flynn’s resignation late Monday evening after he misled Vice President Mike Pence about his correspondence with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak. 

Though the White House has not released the other candidates’ names, many are speculating that former CIA Director David Petraeus is on the shortlist. After pleading guilty to mishandling classified information in 2015, Petraeus could prove controversial for the Trump administration. 

Kellogg, who is now serving as the acting national security advisor while Trump finds Flynn’s replacement, is a decorated veteran who did two tours in Vietnam.

The two minarets from the Turkish-American Religious Foundation mosque tower over the neighboring homes and daycare on Middletown Avenue in New Haven.

Islam requires the minarets, the call to prayer towers, be taller than the dome on the mosque.

“There seems to be a height violation,” City of New Haven Director of Communications Laurence Grotheer said.

That violation prompted the city’s building department to issue a stop work order for any further construction on the unfinished mosque.

“The building on that site has become non-compliant with the permit that was issued for the site,” Grotheer said.

City officials did not discover the dilemma until November after the 81-foot crescent-topped towers from Turkey were erected.

New Haven granted the permit based on a design plan showing the minarets were supposed to be 57 feet," Grotheer said. “The city is working with cooperative owners to resolve the issue and come up with a reasonable solution.”

NBC Connecticut exclusively obtained the response the mosque's architect, John Torello submitted to the city’s building official and zoning enforcement officer Jim Turcio, in which he says he does not believe any violations exist.

"The current situation is the result of an interpretation that fails to recognize the provisions of the zoning regulations that allow the current construction which was reviewed by the Building Inspector at all phases of design and construction for applicability to code and life safety requirements," the letter states.

While some have called the minarets and "eyesore," others say they are not bothered by the towers.

“Never had an issue with it. The neighbors are great people, they’ve been here for years,” Joseph Lopez said.

The mosque is located in the ward that Alderman Gerald Antunes represents.

“We don’t want to violate religious rights, but we still have some laws on the books and they were aware of them,” Atunes said.

Torello said if you average the height of the minarets, the dome and the roof of the building, there is no violation of city code.

For now, the future of the mosque is up in the air.

The Founding Fathers were not always in agreement. When considering the executive branch, for instance, they debated whether to address their leader as his highness, his excellency or just Mr. President.

“They literally don’t even know what to call the president at the beginning, and I think that’s a good sign that they were just making it up as they went along,” said Adam Rothman, a history professor at Georgetown University. “And they’re the people who wrote the damn thing, so what are we supposed to do?”

Centuries later, the job title is settled. But President Donald Trump isn’t the first to put his own unique stamp on the role, which has continued to evolve and expand as each commander in chief faces new, modern obstacles. 

“The executive branch the founders created, there’s little relationship to the executive branch today, which is what you would expect given the types of historical changes that have happened,” said Herbert Sloan, professor emeritus in history at Barnard College.

One reason the job is evolving is there's a lot of wiggle room in its description. Under the provisions of Article II of the Constitution -- which details the framers’ vision for the executive -- the president’s “powers are pretty sketchy, and pretty vague,” Rothman said.

Since Abraham Lincoln, politicians and their constituents have looked to our original revolutionaries for inspiration and guidance. Some go so far as to interpret the Constitution literally, with no room for modernization.

For example, John O. McGinnis, a professor of constitutional law at Northwestern University, believes that “the Constitution was intended to be law” and has “a fixed meaning.” Critics have claimed that Trump’s administration does not respect staples like the First Amendment, but McGinnis does not think that the president’s actions in office have been unconstitutional.

But questioning Trump’s policies through a debate of constitutionality could prove unwise, experts said, as allusions to the founders might be misleading, and judging the administration’s ethics based on an anachronistic document may not be the most effective approach.

The authors of the Constitution could never have anticipated modern demands on the presidency. The job has changed since the founders convened at Independence Hall, and the West Wing has garnered a lot more sway as a consequence.

Andrew Jackson was the first to meaningfully employ the veto, which he used 12 times. Under Lincoln, the executive branch took on more responsibility in order to salvage the Union.

Theodore Roosevelt was the first American president to snag the Nobel Peace Prize for helping to end the Russo-Japanese War, and his interference in conflicts abroad was perceived as an expansion of the president’s jurisdiction.

Today, the executive branch gets a great deal of its influence through foreign policy, and especially through military intervention.

Since World War II, because of modern warfare, there hasn’t been time for the president to report to Congress before taking action, so the legislative branch has delegated more authority to the executive. 

The United States’ “arsenal for democracy," as Franklin D. Roosevelt put it, has complicated the presidency even further. Wherever Trump goes, he is followed by an aide in charge of the "football" -- a case that gives him the ability to deploy nuclear weapons. At a moment’s notice, he may have to choose whether to use them.

“We’ve essentially been living with that reality for at least 50 years,” said Ronald J. Granieri, executive director at the Foreign Policy Research Institute’s Center For the Study of America and the West, and director of research at the Lauder Institute.

Because nuclear weapons have blurred the line between war- and peacetime, a lot of U.S. military policy has been kicked to the commander in chief. Congress hasn’t officially declared war since 1942, though since then, the country has sent troops to all corners of the world. 

"The president can do an awful lot of things … without having to ask Congress’ permission,” Granieri said. “That is a reality.”

Trump has faced criticism for blurring the line between use and abuse of this power through executive orders and memoranda he’s issued in his first month as president, which some of his opponents perceive as an overreach of his office. Similarly, Barack Obama came under fire for some of his 276 executive orders, including the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans policy, which granted temporary amnesty to undocumented parents of American citizens. 

Theodore Roosevelt was the first to extensively use executive orders, issuing 1,081 during his two terms. Franklin Delano Roosevelt sent through 3,721.

Sloan said, “It doesn’t matter how many executive orders there are. It matters what the executive orders are about.”

Rothman believes the Founders “would have been shocked” by presidents employing executive actions to shape policy. 

When Congress grinds to a halt over ideological differences, a recent phenomenon in American political history, “the temptation for the president is to look to try to do things” without congressional approval, Granieri said. Executive actions, though temporary and unstable, offer the executive branch a way to circumvent the Capitol. 

But, Granieri countered, what makes Trump’s executive orders so out of the ordinary is that unlike Obama, he’s signing them despite having a party majority in both houses of Congress.

Granieri explained that during times of extreme political polarization, voters are more attracted to a seemingly strong president who enacts policy despite the other branches’ perceived inadequacy, and they’re more comfortable with an executive branch that has very few checks and balances.

Citizens are also more willing to circumvent news sources and listen to the president directly. With the advent of social media, politicians have had a direct line to their public through Facebook and Twitter, a resource Trump has used more than past presidents to inform his base. 

Though Obama has 84.7 million Twitter followers to Trump's 25.1 million, the former president tended to tweet out press releases. Trump has embraced Twitter to share 140-character opinions on policy and badger or bypass the press, which is supposed to hold him accountable.

Granieri said that this kind of political climate can give rise to demagogues -- one of the Founding Fathers' biggest fears.

But George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson existed in a very different reality. Rothman thinks “we should take the debates of the founders seriously but not literally,” as any interpretation of the framers’ intentions requires “an imaginative leap."

In the end, it doesn’t really matter what they thought, or feared. Just like the legislative and judicial branches, the presidency has changed since 1789. What’s important is shaping ethical policy, according to observers. 

“I think there are an awful lot of reasons to be alarmed about what’s going on and to oppose it,” Sloan said. “But the least important reason for opposing Trump’s abuse of executive power is that the founders, the framers of the Constitution, didn’t want this.”

Anthony Lorick, of Ansonia, loves his Hodge Avenue home and the life he lives in it. He watches documentaries in the living room and makes his favorite “creations” in the kitchen, simple things he appreciates even more knowing how close he came to losing everything.

In 2010, Lorick was driving, high on drugs, when he rolled his car and we ejected. In an instant he was paralyzed from the waist down.

“It took about six months to get used to the idea that I couldn’t walk anymore,” Lorick said.

In the years since, the father of six has worked hard to clean up his life and through Independent Living Centers (ILC) and their programs, he has reclaimed it. ILCs helped Lorick move from a nursing home, where he was constantly unhappy, to an Ansonia apartment that fits all his needs.

“They widened the doors and they gave me a walk in bathroom,” Lorick said.

They also helped build a ramp for his wheelchair and most importantly give him back his sense of freedom.

Now Lorick’s house and the ILCs are at risk because of proposed state budget cuts. On Thursday, Lorick and others spoke out against them.

“These are people with disabilities people in wheelchairs that are losing their housing. They have to go to someone, someone who will listen and that's us,” Sue Salters, and ILC employee, said.

The state Office of Policy Management released a statement about the proposed cuts.

“We have a solemn obligation to present a balanced budget proposal to the General Assembly and to close a projected $1.7 billion deficit, there were difficult program reductions. In this slow growth economic environment, we are aligning state government spending to revenues just like the households and businesses of Connecticut, and those expenditure cuts- $850 million last year and a proposed $1.36 billion this year- are going to impact the services the state can and will provide.”

“We are a small organization but what I think they [the state] are missing is that personal piece,” said Salters.

Branford residents will still have to travel out of town to buy their bulk paper towels and mayonnaise by the gallon at Costco. The wholesale giant its backing out of plans to build a new location off Interstate 95 after almost two years of planning.

In a letter Branford’s first selectman received this week, Costco said it was “business decision” that prompted the cancelling of the development that could brought with it an estimated $800,000 in taxes and several hundred new jobs.

People getting their groceries at the Stop & Shop not far from the site of what would’ve been the new store told NBC Connecticut they weren’t happy about the news.

“I like to buy in bulk, so to be able to have something closer to home would be nice,” Emily LeQuin, of North Branford, said.

“I was waiting for them to come up here. Going to Milford is kind of far. I have my membership and I don’t use it that often because it’s that far,” MaryAnn Ferrucci, of East Haven, said.

Branford’s first selectman, James Cosgrove, said he learned Costco was scrapping its plans through that letter, which was sent to town hall, and is disappointed about all of the jobs that now won’t be coming to town.

“We’re all aware of the fiscal constraints of the state. That burden is being shifted down to the municipalities and the residents and the taxpayers of Connecticut and Branford,” Cosgrove said.

But not everyone sees the news as a loss, including residents who said the presence of a retailer the size of Costco would’ve been a nightmare for the community.

“It’s a small town and I understand there has to be growth, but you still want that small town flavoring,” Kim Healy said.

Cosgrove said Costco didn’t offer more information about why they backed out of the plan, but said the retailer would’ve been welcome.

A woman who says the disgraced team doctor for USA Gymnastics molested her as a child testified Friday that he turned games of hide-and-seek in the basement of his home into abuse sessions, NBC News reported.

"Almost every time I was there for a couple of years, something occurred," the woman, a former family friend, said during a preliminary hearing before a judge ordered disgraced doctor Larry Nassar to stand trial on state sex-abuse charges.

Nassar, 53, is also charged in federal court with possession of child pornography — more than 37,000 images, including Go Pro video he allegedly made himself.

President's Day Weekend is typically one of the busiest weekends for ski resorts throughout New England. Whether you're planning to head north for the weekend or enjoy the mountains right here in Connecticut you will be greeted with plenty of snow. Plus, this weekends weather looks phenomenal for all of New England.

Ski resorts in Connecticut are doing very well, ranging between 40 to as much as 60 inches of snow. 

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The impressive snowpack can be found into areas of Massachusetts, southern Vermont, and southern New Hampshire.

Wachusett Mountain and Jiminy peak are reporting over 60 inches of snow at the summit.

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Northern Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine are experiencing some of the best conditions in recent memory. Most resorts have between 50 and 60 inches of snow at the summit. 

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Noelle Tuttle from Sugarloaf Mountain in Maine says, "Conditions are some of the best we’ve seen in recent years, and getting better by the day." 

Sugarloaf currently has the highest reported snow depth in all of New England at 77 inches. 

JJ Tolland a representative from Jay Peak Resort in Vermont told us conditions are much better this year compared to last year. 

"Our snowfall total for the entire 2015-16 winter was 208 inches. As of 6:00 AM this morning, Jay Peak’s picked up 344 inches so far for the 2016-17 winter, and it’s still dumping. All of this season’s storms so far have either hit the week before or during a holiday week, which has caused our occupancy to be at 100% during all of the critical periods."

The weather conditions this weekend will be quite pleasant. Southern New England can expect temperatures in the low 40s Saturday with partly cloudy skies and into the upper 40s by Sunday with partly cloudy skies.

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Temperatures in northern New England will be near 40 degrees on Saturday with partly cloudy skies and into the middle 30s Sunday with scattered snow showers.

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If you're hitting the slopes this weekend be sure to snap some photos or video. You can tweet them at us using the hashtag #nbcct or email them to us at shareit@nbcconnecticut.com 

A man police said stole almost $200 worth of beer from a Newington market, then dragged a police officer with his car, told police that he did not mean for it to happen, according to the police report.

Joshua Coonradt, 37, has been charged with assault on a police officer, reckless endangerment, larceny, reckless driving, among other charges, Newington Police said. 

Police said they responded to the Best Market at 175 Lowrey Place in Newington just after 2 p.m. last Saturday to investigate a shoplifting in progress and an employee said a man and a woman left the store with $190 worth of beer without paying for it. 

The officer then tried to stop Coonradt when he drove away just over the Wethersfield town line on Wells Road, but Coonradt reached for a gun on the dashboard and a struggle ensued, police said. 

Coonradt allegedly then sped down Wells Road, dragging the officer alongside the car for around 150 yards until the officer was able to get free, police said. The officer sustained minor injuries. 

Police recovered the Honda Coonradt was driving. On Wednesday, Hartford police located Coonradt after learning about what happened in Newington.

Police said an officer on patrol saw someone on Elliot Street who matched the description of the man from the Newington incident. He was gone, but officers then spotted him at a market on Wethersfield Avenue.

At first Coonradt gave a false name, but he mentioned the Newington incident when officers said they knew who he was, police said.  

"What happened in Newington, I didn't mean to happen," he told police, according to a police record.

Coonradt's bond was originally set at $150,000, but was set at $5,000 on Friday. He has a public defender.

A 23-year-old man was shot in the leg in New Haven on Friday and police are investigating. 

Police said Tyrell Cox-Henderson, of New Haven, was shot in the 100 block of James Street and was then transported to Yale-New Haven Hospital. His injuries are not life-threatening. 

Anyone with information for investigators should call detectives at 203-946-6304.

Watertown Police are looking for a man who failed to appear to face charges in court.

Juan Francisco Veliz, of Waterbury, was arrested on Feb. 13 for an incident that occurred in Watertown. He was charged with disorderly conduct, harassment, threatening, violation of protective order and violation of a restraining order, police said.  

He was released on a $175,000 bond, but didn't show up for his court appearance on Tuesday, according to police.

The 28-year-old is a dual citizen in the United States and in Ecuador. It is not believed that Veliz has fled the country, according to law enforcement sources.

Veliz may be driving a gray Mazda 3 with Connecticut license plate 539 ZUL, police said.

Anyone who knows where Veliz may be is asked to call police at 860-945-5200 or Crimestoppers at 860-945-9940.

Gov. Dannel Malloy has proposed raising the pistol permit fee by $230 and some gun rights supporters are voicing their opposition to the plan.

The NRA, Connecticut Citizens Defense League and the National Shooting Sports Foundation held a news conference this afternoon in response to Malloy's proposal to raise the fee from $70 to $300 for a five-year pistol permit and they argued that they're the political target of a governor who is known for being in support of gun control.

State Rep. Rob Sampson said during the news conference that the governor "comes off as small and petty" with this proposal.

"The last thing we should see is the most powerful person in our state using his office to target a group that he disagrees with politically. I think it's a genuine shame and I think it makes him look small and petty."

Sen. Cathy Osten, a Democrat and chair of the appropriations committee, attended the news conference and said she thinks there are other ways to raise revenue and address the deficit.

Some residents also said they are opposed to the fee increase.

"I think anything that's raised that much is nuts. I think that is outlandish and I'm not much for guns, but I do think that's wrong," Gert Perry, of Newington, said.

She said it's not only about the amount of the fee increase, but she also has concerns about the way the state would spend that money.

"We need to cut some of the riff-raff stuff, the things that aren't important, the padded things," she said. They can't even get a stadium built in Hartford and they're going to do this? What are they going to do with that extra money? I find it appalling."

Sen. Len Fasano responded with a statement.

“It’s obvious that the governor’s drastic fee hike is not about administrative costs. This is about the governor plugging a budget hole by targeting gun owners for political reasons. And no matter where you stand on the state’s gun laws, I think all people can agree that pricing out the poor on something that all citizens have an equal right to is just wrong no matter the issue," Fasano said in a statement. "Increasing the state portion of permit fees from $140 to $370 and $70 to $300 is going to be something that many low-income or fixed-income families and responsible gun owners simply cannot afford. An increase this significant wrongly puts up a clear and immediate financial barrier to certain individuals - all so the governor can make a political statement.”

Some residents said they agree with the proposal.

"Since I don't own a gun, I have no qualms about it at all. So, hey, they can bring it all the way up to $1,000. I could care," Bill Walsh, of Newington, said.

Should the governor's proposal go into effect, Connecticut would have the highest single gun permit fee in the country.