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Kasper Schmeichel refused to blame Cameron Carter-Vickers as he brushed off the nightmare own goal conceded in the Champions League draw against Club Brugge. The Celtic No1 revealed he had screamed at the centre-back to warn him but, unaware, Carter-Vickers rolled the ball into his own goal. It was a calamitous start for Celtic but the Denmark internationalist insisted there will be no dwelling on the mistake. "It's one of those things," he said. "I'm showing for Nicolas, I think Nicolas is going to pass to me. "I think Nicolas does well to get the pass to Cam but I think he is surprised by it and obviously, he is getting pressed. "It's so loud in here that he hasn't heard me that I'm screaming that I'm not in. "It's one of those things, we just move on. It happens." In the aftermath, Schmeichel gathered his team-mates - with the help of captain Callum McGregor - for a mental reset after a sluggish start to the league phase contest. Read more: Celtic quickfire crisis meeting explained after CCV howler Celtic starlet hits five goals in five Euro games He explained: "I think it is important when things aren't going [well], any time there is a chance in the game to just mentally reset to say, 'Listen, we are getting caught too many times in a mid-block. Either we go and we press high or we stay and defend'. "They were having a little bit too much time on the ball, a little bit too much joy so it was important for us just to shore things up a little bit and get to halftime so we could restructure." Asked whether a point was a fair result, the Celtic shot-stopper said: "Probably on reflection, We weren't ourselves in the first half, we didn't get up to the tempo of the game or get to the intensity that we know we can. "Luckily we had half-time to change that, changed our press a little bit and things got better in the second half." The result takes Celtic to eight points in the league phase after five matches with the club still in the qualification spots for the knockout rounds in 20th. Schmeichel, though, reckons the points haul could have been higher. "I think there were chances for us to win tonight," he said. "Reasonably happy."
Alabama and Mississippi tumbled out of the top 10 of the Associated Press Top 25 poll Sunday, and Miami and SMU moved in following a chaotic weekend in the SEC and across college football in general. Oregon is No. 1 for the sixth straight week and Ohio State, Texas and Penn State held their places behind the Ducks, who are the last unbeaten team. The shuffling begins at No. 5, where Notre Dame returned for the first time since Week 2 after beating Army for its ninth straight win. No. 6 Georgia and No. 7 Tennessee each moved up two spots, No. 8 Miami got a three-rung promotion and No. 9 SMU jumped four places for its first top-10 ranking since 1985. SMU clinched a spot in the ACC title game and would play Miami, if the Hurricanes win at Syracuse this week, or No. 12 Clemson. Indiana dropped from No. 5 to No. 10 following its first loss, 38-15 loss at Ohio State. The Buckeyes would play Oregon in the Big Ten championship game if they beat Michigan for the first time in four years this Saturday. The SEC’s hopes for landing four spots in the College Football Playoff took a hit with two of their teams losing as double-digit favorites. Texas, Georgia and Tennessee are the only SEC teams with fewer than three losses after Alabama lost 24-3 at Oklahoma and Mississippi lost 24-17 at Florida. Alabama and Mississippi each dropped six spots in the AP poll, the Crimson Tide to No. 13 and the Rebels to No. 15. Texas A&M was the third SEC team to lose, 43-41 at Auburn in four overtimes. The Aggies tumbled five places to No. 20 but would play Georgia in the SEC championship game if they knock off Texas this week. Losses by BYU and Colorado created a four-way tie for first in the Big 12. No. 14 Arizona State, picked to finish last in the conference, handed BYU its second straight loss and is the highest-ranked Big 12 team. No. 17 Iowa State earned a five-rung promotion with its win at Utah. BYU is No. 19, and Colorado, which lost to Kansas, is No. 23. If the four teams each finish 7-2 in conference play, it’s Iowa State vs. Arizona State in the Big 12 championship game. No. 11 Boise State is first among the four ranked Group of Five teams. The Broncos got a one-spot bump despite struggling to beat a two-win Wyoming team. Tulane is No. 18, UNLV is No. 21 and Army is No. 25. Oregon, which was idle, was the consensus No. 1 team for the fourth straight week. The Ducks will be unbeaten in the regular season for the first time since 2010 if they beat Washington at home Saturday. Boise State’s ranking is its highest since it was No. 8 in the final poll of the 2011 season. Arizona State’s ranking is its highest since it was No. 12 in the final poll of the 2014 season. Indiana-Ohio State was the final top-five matchup of the regular season. The five were the most in a regular season since 1996. There also were five in 1936 and 1943. No. 24 Missouri, a 39-20 winner at Mississippi State, returned to the Top 25 after a one-week absence. Washington State’s four-week run in the rankings ended with its second straight loss, 41-38 loss at Oregon State.Kawhi Leonard hinted at his upcoming return in a cryptic social media postBitcoin is at the doorstep of $100,000 as post-election rally rolls on NEW YORK (AP) — Bitcoin is jumping again, rising above $98,000 for the first time Thursday. The cryptocurrency has been shattering records almost daily since the U.S. presidential election, and has rocketed more than 40% higher in just two weeks. It's now at the doorstep of $100,000. Cryptocurrencies and related investments like crypto exchange-traded funds have rallied because the incoming Trump administration is expected to be more “crypto-friendly.” Still, as with everything in the volatile cryptoverse, the future is hard to predict. And while some are bullish, other experts continue to warn of investment risks. Penn State wins trademark case over retailer's use of vintage logos, images WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. (AP) — Penn State has won a closely watched trademark fight over an online retailer’s use of its vintage logos and images. A Pennsylvania jury awarded Penn State $28,000 in damages earlier this week over products made and sold by the firms Vintage Brand and Sportswear Inc. Penn State accused them of selling “counterfeit” clothing and accessories without the university’s permission, while the defendants argued that the vintage images were in the public domain. At least a dozen other schools have sued the defendants on similar grounds, but the Penn State case was the first to go to trial. Has a waltz written by composer Frederic Chopin been discovered in an NYC museum? NEW YORK (AP) — A previously unknown musical work written by composer Frederic Chopin appears to have been found in a library in New York City. The Morgan Library & Museum says the untitled and unsigned piece is the first new manuscript of the Romantic era virtuoso to be discovered in nearly a century. Robinson McClellan, the museum’s curator, says he stumbled across the work in May while going through a collection brought to the Manhattan museum years earlier. He worked with outside experts to verify the document's authenticity. But there’s debate whether the waltz is an original Chopin work or merely one written in his hand. Volcano on Iceland's Reykjanes Peninsula erupts for the 7th time in a year GRINDAVIK, Iceland (AP) — A volcano on the Reykjanes Peninsula in southwestern Iceland is spewing lava from a fissure in its seventh eruption since December. Iceland's seismic monitors said the eruption started with little warning late Wednesday and created a long fissure but looked to be smaller than eruptions in August and May. Around 50 houses were evacuated after the Civil Protection agency issued the alert, along with guests at the famous Blue Lagoon resort, according to the national broadcaster. The repeated eruptions over the past year have caused damage to the town of Grindavík and forced people to relocate. Australian teen and British woman who drank tainted alcohol in Laos have died, bringing toll to 5 VIENTIANE, Laos (AP) — An Australian teenager and a British woman have died after drinking tainted alcohol in Laos in what Australia’s prime minister said was every parent’s nightmare. Officials earlier said an American and two Danish tourists also had died following reports that multiple people had been sickened in town popular with backpackers. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told Parliament that 19-year-old Bianca Jones had died after being evacuated from Vang Vieng, Laos, for treatment in a Thai hospital. Her friend, also 19, remains hospitalized in Thailand. Later Thursday, Britain said a British woman also died and the media in the U.K. identified her as 28-year-old Simone White. US ahead in AI innovation, easily surpassing China in Stanford's new ranking The U.S. leads the world in developing artificial intelligence technology, surpassing China in research and other important measures of AI innovation, according to a newly released Stanford University index. There’s no surefire way to rank global AI leadership but Stanford researchers have made an attempt by measuring the “vibrancy” of the AI industry across a variety of dimensions, from how much research and investment is happening to how responsibly the technology is being pursued to prevent harm. Following the U.S. and China were the United Kingdom, India and the United Arab Emirates. Pop star Ed Sheeran helps favorite soccer team sign player before getting on stage with Taylor Swift It turns out British pop star Ed Sheeran is also good at recruiting soccer players. Sheeran is a minority shareholder at English soccer team Ipswich Town and it needed his help over the summer to get a player to join the club. Ipswich CEO Mark Ashton tells a Soccerex industry event in Miami: “Ed jumped on a Zoom call with him at the training ground, just before he stepped on stage with Taylor Swift. Hopefully that was a key part in getting the player across the line.” Ashton didn’t disclose the player in question, saying only: “He’s certainly scoring a few goals.” Chris Stapleton wins 4 CMA Awards, but Morgan Wallen gets entertainer of the year It was mostly Chris Stapleton’s night at the Country Music Association Awards. Stapleton won four times and took the stage to perform three times Wednesday night at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. But an absent Morgan Wallen won the biggest award, entertainer of the year. Stapleton's wins included single of the year and song of the year for “White Horse,” and his eighth trophy as male vocalist of the year. Best female vocalist of the year went to Laney Johnson. An all-star ensemble including both Stapleton and Johnson performed in tribute to George Strait, who won the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award. Chris Sale and Tarik Skubal take Cy Young Awards after both were pitching triple crown winners Atlanta’s Chris Sale and Detroit’s Tarik Skubal have each won their first Cy Young Award. The left-handers were honored Wednesday night after sharing the MLB lead with 18 wins while leading their respective leagues in strikeouts and ERA. Sale went 18-3 and topped the National League with 225 strikeouts, while his 2.38 ERA in 29 starts was the best among all major league qualifiers in his first season with the Braves. The 35-year-old was an All-Star for the eighth time and won his first Gold Glove this year. Skubal, who turned 28 on Wednesday, went 18-4 with a 2.39 ERA and a big league-best 228 strikeouts in 31 starts to take the American League prize in a unanimous vote. Percival Everett and Jason De León win National Book Awards NEW YORK (AP) — Percival Everett’s “James” has won the National Book Award for fiction. The book is a daring reworking of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” For nonfiction, Jason De León’s “Soldiers and Kings: Survival and Hope in the World of Human Smuggling” won. The prize for young people’s literature was given to Shifa Saltagi Safadi’s “Kareem Between.” And the poetry award went to Lena Khalaf Tuffaha’s “Something About Living.” In the translation category, the winner was Yáng Shuāng-zǐ’s “Taiwan Travelogue,” translated from the Mandarin Chinese by Lin King.
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Californians who try to withdraw money but don’t have enough in their bank accounts won’t fall deeper into a financial hole from having to pay a fine, thanks to a new state law. The law covers instances in which banks charge customers when their withdrawals are declined instantaneously, such as at ATMs, because of insufficient funds. It takes effect Jan. 1. Assembly Bill 2017 applies to banks and credit unions that are regulated by the state; Gov. Gavin Newsom signed it in September. The bill was backed by several consumer advocacy groups, including the California Low-Income Consumer Coalition and East Bay Community Law Center, which called penalties for insufficient funds “ junk fees ” and said getting rid of them will protect financially vulnerable consumers. Tim Grayson, the bill’s author, said when he introduced it in May that it would “help prevent fee creep in the banking industry.” Grayson, a Democrat from Concord, is an incoming senator who was in the Assembly through the end of the 2024 legislative session. The Consumer Federation of America, a sponsor of the bill, said common charges for insufficient funds are $30 or more. The California Credit Union League, which at first opposed the bill and said credit unions “do not charge these types of fees,” eventually took a neutral position. But the state Department of Financial Protection & Innovation has found that many credit unions do have income from insufficient-fund charges; a 2022 state law tasked the agency with collecting data from banks and credit unions about their fees. The law by Grayson is similar to a rule by the Consumer Protection Financial Bureau — the federal watchdog agency that’s in President-elect Donald Trump’s crosshairs — that applies to federally chartered banks. In line with the growing nationwide push to eliminate junk fees , Newsom also signed another bill addressing overdraft fees: Senate Bill 1075 will limit credit-union fees for insufficient funds to $14 unless a lower federal limit is set. That becomes law in 2026. And he signed Assembly Bill 2863 , which will make it easier for consumers to cancel subscriptions and requires companies to get consent from their customers before charging them to renew or when a free trial ends. It goes into effect July 1.FTC opens wide-ranging antitrust probe into MicrosoftCommunity gathers to distribute Of One Accord Christmas boxes
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FILE - The Rikers Island jail complex is shown in the Bronx borough of New York, on Tuesday, May 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File) AP The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A judge on Wednesday found New York City in contempt for failing to staunch violence and brutality at its jails, a scathing ruling that puts the troubled Rikers Island jail complex on the verge of a federal takeover. In a written ruling, U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain in Manhattan said the city had placed incarcerated people in “unconstitutional danger” by failing to comply with 18 separate provisions of court orders pertaining to security, staffing, supervision, use of force and the safety of young detainees. The long-squalid conditions have worsened significantly in the nine years since the city settled abuse and violence claims, she wrote, exacerbated by jail leadership’s “unwillingness or inability” to implement ordered reforms. As a result, Swain ordered the city and lawyers suing on behalf of detainees to confer with a court-appointed monitor on a proposed framework for a federal receivership — an extraordinary intervention that would cede city control of one of the nation’s largest, most notorious jail systems. Mayor Eric Adams, who has vehemently opposed a federal takeover, said on Wednesday that the city had made “significant progress towards addressing the decades-long neglect and issues on Rikers Island.” “We are proud of our work, but recognize there is more to be done and look forward to working with the federal monitoring team on our shared goal of continuing to improve the safety of everyone in our jails,” his statement continued. But in her ruling, Swain found the administration’s efforts were “insufficient to turn the tide within a reasonable period.” The city appears to have acted in bad faith at times in its failure to comply with court-ordered reforms, repeatedly “withholding essential information” from the monitor, she wrote. “The Court is inclined to impose a receivership: namely, a remedy that will make the management of the use of force and safety aspects of the Rikers Island jails ultimately answerable directly to the Court,” Swain wrote, ordering the sides to provide her by Jan. 14 a plan for an “efficient, effective receivership.” The 65-page ruling stemmed from litigation that started more than a decade ago with allegations by a public defender organization, the Legal Aid Society, and others that the city’s Department of Correction had engaged in a pattern of excessive and unnecessary force. The Legal Aid Society and law firm Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP hailed the “historic decision” and said it “will finally create a pathway for reform that can protect those who have been failed” by jail leadership. “The court’s recognition that the current structure has failed, and that receivership free from political and other external influences is the path forward, can ensure that all New Yorkers, regardless of incarceration status, are treated with the respect and dignity guaranteed to them under the law,” they said. In a separate statement, Benny Boscio, the president of the union representing correction officers, claimed the ruling was based on an “erroneous narrative,” adding that jail staff had been “defunded, short staffed, scapegoated and handcuffed” by city lawmakers and the federal monitor. For now, barring further action from Swain, the city remains in control of its jails. The jail complex, which is housed on a hard-to-reach island in the East River, has long suffered from rampant disorder and neglect. But rates of violence, use of force, self-harm, and deaths in custody in city jails have gotten “demonstrably worse” since the city and parties agreed in October 2015 to a settlement, consent decree and the appointment of a federal monitor, Swain said. “Worse still, the unsafe and dangerous conditions in the jails, which are characterized by unprecedented rates of use of force and violence, have become normalized despite the fact that they are clearly abnormal and unacceptable,” the judge wrote. RECOMMENDED • syracuse .com US seeks to break up Google, forcing Chrome sale as part of monopoly punishment Nov. 21, 2024, 11:34 a.m. Businessman behind huge Trump sign in Upstate NY running to fill Stefanik’s seat Nov. 24, 2024, 6:52 a.m. Nineteen people died in custody at Rikers Island in 2022. Nine more died in 2023, and five died in the first eight months of this year. At the same time, rates of stabbings and slashings, fights, assaults on staff “remain extraordinarily high,” Swain said. There has been “no substantial reduction in the risk of harm currently facing those who live and work in the Rikers Island jails,” the judge wrote. Under a plan approved by the city council in 2019, New York City is legally required to shutter Rikers Island and replace it with four smaller and more modern jails by 2027. But as the jail population has grown in recent years, Adams, a Democrat, has voiced resistance to the closure, urging lawmakers to come up with a “Plan B.” Earlier this year, the city’s budget director acknowledged that officials would likely not meet the mandated deadline.
Home | Advertisement | Grt Jewellers Unveils New Rajahmundry Showroom With A Mixed Reality Print Ad GRT Jewellers unveils new Rajahmundry Showroom with a Mixed Reality Print Ad With more and more print advertising shifting to Mixed Reality (MR), Flam’s latest collaboration with GRT Jewellers showcases the jewelry designer’s new showroom in Rajahmundry. By Telangana Today Published Date - 22 November 2024, 11:20 PM Flam x GRT Jewellers: Experience Rajahmundry's new showroom with immersive MR technology! Rajahmundry: With more and more print advertising shifting to Mixed Reality (MR), Flam’s latest collaboration with GRT Jewellers showcases the jewelry designer’s new showroom in Rajahmundry. A leader in Mixed Reality Publishing, Flam, has been pushing advertising boundaries across mediums like Print, Digital, OOH (Out of Home) and Television. The print ad with the MR experience is live on three leading Telugu publications, namely, Eenadu, Sakshi, and Andhra Jyothi. Upon scanning, the ad transforms from a static to an immersive 3D experience that unveils the launch of the new showroom and the incredible offers for buyers present during the launch. The experience closes out with GRT’s brand film starring Trisha playing over a 3D model of the new showroom. In the experience, they’ve also added a CTA that functions as a Store Locator – a convenient feature for fewer drop-offs from the print ad. The collaboration between Flam and GRT Jewellers marks the beginning of a new phase of retail advertising. With MR experiences now incorporated into the mix, the ability to boost walk-ins stands at a much greater chance than static ads. Mixed Reality only adds to the age of diminishing attention spans, where capturing the hearts and minds of the audience has become more important and harder than ever. Compared to its media counterparts, MR offers a level of depth, interactivity, and enjoyability that turns an audience member into an active participant in the ad’s storytelling. This brings in the much-wanted domino effect of an ad creating a personal connection which turns curiosity into engagement and that engagement, finally into action. Shourya Agarwal, CEO at Flam said, “It’s been exciting to see the adoption for Mixed Reality and the push towards greater storytelling. Working with a legacy brand like GRT was not just incredible but it was gratifying to see their want to continuously innovate. In hindsight, the new GRT Jewellers Mixed Reality experience stands out more than a promotional tool—it is a step forward towards engaging audiences with better brand storytelling. It is now a gateway of what advertising can be with Flam’s new ‘3I’ approach—immersive, interactive and impactful. This shift in approach can bring about the change in the advertising landscape, one that is more inclusive and action driven–resulting in greater brand recall for brands across industries. Follow Us : Tags collaboration Flam GRT Jewellers mixed reality) Related News Opinion: Seek accountability gently SCR sets up Helpline Numbers in view of heavy rains in AP Ram Charan wraps up ‘Game Changer’, says “GAME is about to Change” Rajahmundry: Fishermen, cops rescue woman from suicide attemptSome tech industry leaders are pushing the incoming Trump administration to from other nations. Related Articles The heart of the argument is, for America to remain competitive, the country needs to expand the number of skilled visas it gives out. The previous Trump administration did not increase the skilled visa program, instead clamping down on visas for students and educated workers, increasing denial rates. Not everyone in corporate America thinks the skilled worker program is great. Former workers at IT company Cognizant that said the company favored Indian employees over Americans from 2013 to 2022. A found Cognizant, and other similar outsourcing companies, mainly used its skilled work visas for lower-level positions. Workers alleged Cognizant preferred Indian workers because they could be paid less and were more willing to accept inconvenient or less-favorable assignments. Innovation is our superpower and it relies on people. Sourcing talent from 8 billion people in the world instead of 330 million here makes sense. Nearly half our Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants or their children. Growing them also relies on expanding our skilled workforce. The cap on skilled-worker visas has hardly changed since the computer age started. With AI on the horizon, attracting and building talent is more important than ever. After years of openly allowing millions of undocumented entrants into the country, why is there controversy over legally increasing somewhat the number having desirable skills? Undocumented immigration significantly impacts lower skill level jobs and wages competing with domestic workers at every skill level. Why should special cases be made against those having higher skills? Could they just not walk across the border anyway, why make it more inconvenient to those with desirable skills? Knowledge and technology are key drivers of the U.S. economy. Students come from all over the world to learn at U.S. universities, and their spending contributed $50 billion to U.S. exports last year. Technological advantage is what keeps us ahead of the rest of the world. Highly skilled immigrants contribute much more in taxes than they receive in public benefits. The skills immigrants bring to America can make us all better off. According to Forbes, the majority of billion-dollar startups were founded by foreigners. I’ve interviewed dozens of data analysts and programmers from Berkeley, UCSD, USD and a few other schools and 75% of them are foreign. There simply are not enough American graduates to fill the AI and data mining related jobs now exploding in the U.S. If we wish to remain a competitive economy, we need highly skilled and bright immigrants to come here and stay. Being able to employ highly skilled workers from a larger pool of candidates would strengthen the competitiveness of U.S. companies by increasing their capacity to perform research and innovate. This would boost the country’s economic output. Skilled workers from other nations that cannot remain in the U.S. will find jobs working for foreign rivals. The demand for H-1B visas far exceeds the current cap of 85,000, demonstrating a need to modify this program. Every country needs skilled workers, at all levels, to grow its economy. We should take advantage of the opportunity these workers provide our employers who need these skills. It should be blended into our immigration policies allowing for both short and long term visas. San Diego is a premiere example of how highly skilled workers from around the globe enrich a community and its regional economy. Of course Visa levels need to be increased. But let’s go further. Tie visas and immigration with a provision that those who are admitted and educated at a U.S. university be incentivized, or even required, to be employed in the U.S. in exchange for their admittance. While attracting high-skilled immigrants can fill critical gaps in sectors like technology, health care and advanced manufacturing, increasing high-skilled immigration could displace American workers and drive down wages in certain industries. There are already many qualified American workers available for some of these jobs. We should balance the need for specialized skills with the impact on the domestic workforce. I believe we can begin to increase the number of visas after a careful review of abuse. We should expand skilled visas to drive innovation and economic growth. Individuals who perform high-skilled work in labor-restricted industries or graduate from respected colleges with relevant degrees should be prioritized for naturalization. We depend on immigration for GDP growth, tax revenue, research, and so much more. Despite the abhorrent rhetoric and curtailing of visas in the first term, I hope the incoming administration can be persuaded to enact positive changes to a clearly flawed system. But it should be based upon need, not politics. There are several industries that have or could have skilled workforce shortages, especially if the next administration tightens immigration as promised and expected. Over the years, there have been nursing shortages that have been met partially by trained and skilled nurses from other countries. The physician shortage is expected to get worse in the years to come. So, this visa program may very well be needed. While skilled immigration could boost our economy and competitiveness, the U.S. should prioritize developing our domestic workforce. Hiring foreign nationals in sensitive industries or government-related work, especially in advanced technology or defense, raises security concerns. A balanced approach could involve targeted increases in non-sensitive high-demand fields coupled with investment in domestic STEM education and training programs. This could address immediate needs while strengthening the long-term STEM capabilities of the American workforce. Alan Gin, University of San DiegoHaney Hong, San Diego County Taxpayers AssociationRay Major, economist
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump said Wednesday that he has chosen Keith Kellogg, a highly decorated retired three-star general, to serve as his special envoy for Ukraine and Russia. Kellogg, who is one of the architects of a staunchly conservative policy book that lays out an “America First” national security agenda for the incoming administration, will come into the role as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine enters its third year in February. Trump made the announcement on his Truth Social account, and said “He was with me right from the beginning! Together, we will secure PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH, and Make America, and the World, SAFE AGAIN!” Kellogg, a retired Army lieutenant general who has long been Trump’s top adviser on defense issues, served as national security adviser to Vice President Mike Pence , was chief of staff of the National Security Council and then stepped in as an acting security adviser for Trump after Michael Flynn resigned. As special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Kellogg will have to navigate an increasingly untenable war between the two nations. The Biden administration has begun urging Ukraine to quickly increase the size of its military by drafting more troops and revamping its mobilization laws to allow for the conscription of troops as young as 18. The White House has pushed more than $56 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s February 2022 invasion and expects to send billions more to Kyiv before Biden leaves office in less than months. Trump has criticized the billions that the Biden administration has poured into Ukraine. Washington has recently stepped up weapons shipments and has forgiven billions in loans provided to Kyiv. The incoming Republican president has said he could end the war in 24 hours, comments that appear to suggest he would press Ukraine to surrender territory that Russia now occupies. As a co-chairman of the American First Policy Institute’s Center for American Security, Kellogg wrote several of the chapters in the group’s policy book. The book, like the Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025,” is a move to lay out a Trump national security agenda and avoid the mistakes of 2016 when he entered the White House largely unprepared. Kellogg in April wrote that “bringing the Russia-Ukraine war to a close will require strong, America First leadership to deliver a peace deal and immediately end the hostilities between the two warring parties.” Kellogg was a character in multiple Trump investigations dating to his first term. He was among the administration officials who listened in on the July 2019 call between Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy in which Trump prodded his Ukrainian counterpart to pursue investigations into the Bidens. The call, which Kellogg would later say did not raise any concerns on his end, was at the center of the first of two House impeachment cases against Trump, who was acquitted by the Senate both times. On Jan. 6, 2021, hours before pro-Trump rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol, Kellogg, who was then Pence’s national security adviser, listened in on a heated call in which Trump told his vice president to object or delay the certification in Congress of President Joe Biden ’s victory. He later told House investigators that he recalled Trump saying to Pence words to the effect of: “You’re not tough enough to make the call.” Baldor reported from Washington. AP writer Eric Tucker in Washington contributed to this report.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An online spat between factions of Donald Trump's supporters over immigration and the tech industry has thrown internal divisions in his political movement into public display, previewing the fissures and contradictory views his coalition could bring to the White House. The rift laid bare the tensions between the newest flank of Trump's movement — wealthy members of the tech world including billionaire Elon Musk and fellow entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and their call for more highly skilled workers in their industry — and people in Trump's Make America Great Again base who championed his hardline immigration policies. The debate touched off this week when Laura Loomer , a right-wing provocateur with a history of racist and conspiratorial comments, criticized Trump’s selection of Sriram Krishnan as an adviser on artificial intelligence policy in his coming administration. Krishnan favors the ability to bring more skilled immigrants into the U.S. Loomer declared the stance to be “not America First policy” and said the tech executives who have aligned themselves with Trump were doing so to enrich themselves. Much of the debate played out on the social media network X, which Musk owns. Loomer's comments sparked a back-and-forth with venture capitalist and former PayPal executive David Sacks , whom Trump has tapped to be the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar." Musk and Ramaswamy, whom Trump has tasked with finding ways to cut the federal government , weighed in, defending the tech industry's need to bring in foreign workers. It bloomed into a larger debate with more figures from the hard-right weighing in about the need to hire U.S. workers, whether values in American culture can produce the best engineers, free speech on the internet, the newfound influence tech figures have in Trump's world and what his political movement stands for. Trump has not yet weighed in on the rift, and his presidential transition team did not respond to a message seeking comment. Musk, the world's richest man who has grown remarkably close to the president-elect , was a central figure in the debate, not only for his stature in Trump's movement but his stance on the tech industry's hiring of foreign workers. Technology companies say H-1B visas for skilled workers, used by software engineers and others in the tech industry, are critical for hard-to-fill positions. But critics have said they undercut U.S. citizens who could take those jobs. Some on the right have called for the program to be eliminated, not expanded. Born in South Africa, Musk was once on an a H-1B visa himself and defended the industry's need to bring in foreign workers. “There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent," he said in a post. “It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley.” Trump's own positions over the years have reflected the divide in his movement. His tough immigration policies, including his pledge for a mass deportation, were central to his winning presidential campaign. He has focused on immigrants who come into the U.S. illegally but he has also sought curbs on legal immigration , including family-based visas. As a presidential candidate in 2016, Trump called the H-1B visa program “very bad” and “unfair” for U.S. workers. After he became president, Trump in 2017 issued a “Buy American and Hire American” executive order , which directed Cabinet members to suggest changes to ensure H-1B visas were awarded to the highest-paid or most-skilled applicants to protect American workers. Trump's businesses, however, have hired foreign workers, including waiters and cooks at his Mar-a-Lago club , and his social media company behind his Truth Social app has used the the H-1B program for highly skilled workers. During his 2024 campaign for president, as he made immigration his signature issue, Trump said immigrants in the country illegally are “poisoning the blood of our country" and promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. But in a sharp departure from his usual alarmist message around immigration generally, Trump told a podcast this year that he wants to give automatic green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges. “I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country," he told the “All-In" podcast with people from the venture capital and technology world. Those comments came on the cusp of Trump's budding alliance with tech industry figures, but he did not make the idea a regular part of his campaign message or detail any plans to pursue such changes.
Huawei launches Mate 70 smartphone with own operating systemNEW YORK — Stocks fell in morning trading Friday as Wall Street closes out a holiday-shortened week. The S&P 500 fell 1.4%, with more than 80% of stocks in the benchmark index losing ground. Still, the index is managing to hold onto a modest gain for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 402 points, or 0.9%, to 42,945 as of 10:41 a.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite fell 2%. Both the Dow and the Nasdaq are also holding on to weekly gains. Big Tech and Retail Sectors Face Pressure Technology stocks were the biggest drag on the market Friday. Semiconductor giant Nvidia slumped 3.2%. Its enormous valuation gives it an outsize influence on indexes. Other Big Tech stocks losing ground included Microsoft, with a 2.2% decline. A wide range of retailers also fell. Amazon fell 2.2% and Best Buy slipped 1.9%. The sector is being closely watched for clues on how it performed during the holiday shopping season. Energy was the only sector within the S&P 500 rising. It gained 0.5% as crude oil prices rose 0.8%. Related Story: Market Heads Toward Strong Annual Finish Investors don’t have much in the way of corporate or economic updates to review as the market moves closer to another standout annual finish. The S&P 500 is on track for a gain of around 25% in 2024. That would mark a second consecutive yearly gain of more than 20%, the first time that has happened since 1997-1998. The gains have been driven partly by upbeat economic data showing that consumers continued spending and the labor market remained strong. Inflation, while still high, has also been steadily easing. A report on Friday showed that sales and inventory estimates for the wholesales trade industry fell 0.2% in November, following a slight gain in October. That weaker-than-expected report follows an update on the labor market Thursday that showed unemployment benefits held steady last week. In Asia, Japan’s benchmark index surged as the yen remained weak against the dollar. Stocks in South Korea fell after the main opposition party voted to impeach the country’s acting leader. Markets in Europe gained ground. Related Story: Bond yields held relatively steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury remained at 4.59% from late Thursday. The yield on the two-year Treasury slipped to 4.32% from 4.33% late Thursday. Wall Street will have more economic updates to look forward to next week, including reports on pending home sales and home prices. There will also be reports on U.S. construction spending and snapshots of manufacturing activity.