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The House Ethics Committee in the US has accused Florida Republican Matt Gaetz of “regularly” paying for sex, including with a 17-year-old girl, and purchasing and using illicit drugs all while he was a member of Congress. Mr Gaetz has denied all wrongdoing. The 37-page report by the bipartisan panel includes explicit details of sex-filled parties and holidays that Mr Gaetz, now 42, allegedly took part in from 2017 to 2020 while representing Florida’s western panhandle. The findings conclude that he violated multiple state laws related to sexual misconduct while in office. “The committee determined there is substantial evidence that representative Gaetz violated House rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favours or privileges, and obstruction of Congress,” the report states. The report brings to a close a nearly four-year investigation into Mr Gaetz, who spent the majority of his time in Washington enmeshed in scandals, which ultimately derailed his nomination by President-elect Donald Trump as attorney general. His political future is uncertain, although Mr Gaetz indicated recently that he would be interested in running for the open Senate seat in Florida. The long-anticipated release of the report comes after at least one Republican joined all five Democrats on the panel earlier this month in a secret vote to release the report about their former colleague despite initial opposition from Republican politicians, including House speaker Mike Johnson, to publishing findings about a former member of Congress. While ethics reports have previously been released after a member’s resignation, it is extremely rare. Mr Gaetz objected to its release, saying last week that he would have “no opportunity to debate or rebut” the findings as a former member of the House. On Monday, Mr Gaetz filed a lawsuit seeking to block the release of the report, which he says contains “untruthful and defamatory information” that would “significantly damage” his “standing and reputation in the community.” Mr Gaetz’s complaint argues he is no longer under the committee’s jurisdiction since he resigned from Congress. “The committee’s position that it may nonetheless publish potentially defamatory findings about a private citizen over whom it claims no jurisdiction represents an unprecedented expansion of Congressional power that threatens fundamental constitutional rights and established procedural protections,” Mr Gaetz’s lawyers wrote in their request for a temporary restraining order. In addition to soliciting prostitution, the Ethics Committee report states that Mr Gaetz “accepted gifts, including transportation and lodging in connection with a 2018 trip to the Bahamas, in excess of permissible amounts”. That same year, investigators say he arranged for his chief of staff to obtain a passport for a woman he was sexually involved with, falsely telling the State Department that she was his constituent. One of the final pieces of “substantial evidence” the committee gathered determined that Mr Gaetz “knowingly and willfully sought to impede and obstruct” the report. The report contains dozens of pages of exhibits, including text messages and financial records, travel receipts and online payments among various people involved. In some of the text exchanges, Mr Gaetz appears to be inviting various women to events, getaways or parties, and arranging air travel and lodging. At one point he asks one woman if she has a “cute black dress” to wear. There are also discussions of shipping goods. One of the exhibits is a text exchange that appears to be between two of the women concerned about their cash flow and payments. In another, a person asks Mr Gaetz for help to pay an educational expense. The often secretive, bipartisan panel has investigated claims against Mr Gaetz since 2021. However, its work became more urgent last month when Mr Trump picked him shortly after election day as his first choice to be the nation’s top law enforcement officer. Mr Gaetz resigned from Congress that same day, putting him outside the purview of the Ethics Committee’s jurisdiction. But Democrats had pressed to make the report public even after Mr Gaetz was no longer a member and had withdrawn as Mr Trump’s choice to lead the Justice Department. A vote on the House floor this month to force the report’s release failed; all but one Republican voted against it.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2025 is slowly starting to take shape. And while the eventual players, coaches and contributors to receive pro football’s highest individual honor will not be announced until February, there have been some news lately. First was the reveal of the modern-era player semifinalists , a group including several players with ties to the New England Patriots . Later, news broke that Patriots owner Robert Kraft would once again not make it out of committee in his own bid to become a Hall of Famer — a 13th straight year he has failed to advance past the semifinals. Friday, Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo was asked about both topics. “I don’t know how that process works, but I don’t think there’s anyone more deserving than Robert Kraft to be in the Hall of Fame,” Mayo said about Kraft. He also spoke about one of his former teammates, Vince Wilfork, advancing to the next round in the process. “When I came into the league in 2008 and I was Rookie of the Year, it was all because of those guys up front. It started with Vince at the nose,” he added when speaking about Wilfork. “Honestly, for a defensive lineman, he was a dominant player. Sometimes the stats don’t do it justice, but he was a dominant player for a very long time. I hope he gets in. I don’t have a vote, but I hope he gets in.” Wilfork is among seven former Patriots players — including two who never appeared in a game for them — to get one step closer to Canton. For Robert Kraft, meanwhile, the waiting game continues.
WOMEN'S AP TOP 25: Gamecocks remain at No. 2; Trojans jump to No. 4By ZEKE MILLER, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team on Tuesday signed an agreement to allow the Justice Department to conduct background checks on his nominees and appointees after a weeks-long delay. The step lets Trump transition aides and future administration staffers obtain security clearances before Inauguration Day to access classified information about ongoing government programs, an essential step for a smooth transiton of power. It also allows those nominees who are up for Senate confirmation to face the background checks lawmakers want before voting on them. Teams of investigators have been standing by to process clearances for Trump aides and advisers. “This agreement with the Department of Justice will ensure President Trump and his team are ready on Day 1 to begin enacting the America First Agenda that an overwhelming majority of our nation supported on Election Day,” said Susie Wiles, Trump’s designate to be White House chief of staff. Related Articles The announcement comes a week after the Trump transition team signed an agreement with the Biden White House to allow transition staff to coordinate with the existing federal workforce before taking office on Jan. 20. The White House agreement was supposed to have been signed by Oct. 1, according to the Presidential Transition Act, and the Biden White House had issued both public and private appeals for Trump’s team to sign on. Security clearances are required to access classified information, including on ongoing operations and threats to the nation, and the Biden White House and outside experts have emphasized to Trump’s team the importance of having cleared personnel before Inauguration Day so they could be fully briefed and ready to run the government. Republican Senators have also insisted on FBI background checks for Trump’s nominees before they face confirmation votes, as has been standard practice for decades. Lawmakers have been particularly interested in seeing the findings of reviews into Trump’s designated nominee for defense secretary, former Fox News host Pete Hegseth, and for Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to be director of national intelligence. “That’s why it’s so important that we have an FBI background check, a committee review of extensive questions and questionnaires, and a public hearing,” said. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine on Monday. John Thune, the incoming Senate Republican leader, said the Trump team “understands there’s going to have to be a thorough vetting of all these nominees.” AP congressional correspondent Lisa Mascaro contributed.
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Tesla and Rivian are settling their battery tech theft lawsuitOliver Glasner: Crystal Palace are heading in right direction after Ipswich winHuntington Bancshares ( NASDAQ:HBAN – Get Free Report ) and Citigroup ( NYSE:C – Get Free Report ) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, risk, dividends, valuation and earnings. Dividends Huntington Bancshares pays an annual dividend of $0.62 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Citigroup pays an annual dividend of $2.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Huntington Bancshares pays out 59.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Citigroup pays out 64.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Huntington Bancshares is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio. Profitability This table compares Huntington Bancshares and Citigroup’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets. Analyst Ratings Huntington Bancshares currently has a consensus target price of $16.26, indicating a potential downside of 9.08%. Citigroup has a consensus target price of $73.00, indicating a potential upside of 4.52%. Given Citigroup’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Citigroup is more favorable than Huntington Bancshares. Volatility and Risk Huntington Bancshares has a beta of 1.03, indicating that its stock price is 3% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Citigroup has a beta of 1.44, indicating that its stock price is 44% more volatile than the S&P 500. Institutional and Insider Ownership 80.7% of Huntington Bancshares shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.7% of Citigroup shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.9% of Huntington Bancshares shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Citigroup shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth. Earnings and Valuation This table compares Huntington Bancshares and Citigroup”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation. Citigroup has higher revenue and earnings than Huntington Bancshares. Huntington Bancshares is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Citigroup, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. Summary Huntington Bancshares beats Citigroup on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks. About Huntington Bancshares ( Get Free Report ) Huntington Bancshares Incorporated operates as the bank holding company for The Huntington National Bank that provides commercial, consumer, and mortgage banking services in the United States. The company offers financial products and services to consumer and business customers, including deposits, lending, payments, mortgage banking, dealer financing, investment management, trust, brokerage, insurance, and other financial products and services. It also provides 24-hour grace, asterisk-free checking, money scout, $50 safety zone, standby cash, early pay, instant access, savings goal getter, and Huntington heads up; digitally powered consumer and business financial solutions to consumer lending, regional banking, branch banking, and wealth management customers; direct and indirect consumer loans, as well as dealer finance loans and deposits; and private banking, wealth management and legacy planning through investment and portfolio management, fiduciary administration and trust, institutional custody, and full-service retail brokerage investment services. The company offers equipment financing, asset-based lending, distribution finance, structured lending, and municipal financing solutions, as well as Huntington ChoicePay. In addition, it offers lending, liquidity, treasury management and other payment services, and capital markets; government and non-profits, healthcare, technology and telecommunications, franchises, financial sponsors, and global services; and corporate risk management, institutional sales and trading, debt and equity issuance, and additional advisory services. The company offers its products through a network of channels, including branches and ATMs, online and mobile banking, and through customer call centers to customers in middle market banking, corporate, specialty, and government banking, asset finance, commercial real estate banking, and capital markets. The company was founded in 1866 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. About Citigroup ( Get Free Report ) Citigroup Inc., a diversified financial service holding company, provides various financial product and services to consumers, corporations, governments, and institutions worldwide. It operates through five segments: Services, Markets, Banking, U.S. Personal Banking, and Wealth. The Services segment includes Treasury and Trade Solutions, which provides cash management, trade, and working capital solutions to multinational corporations, financial institutions, and public sector organizations; and Securities Services, such as cross-border support for clients, local market expertise, post-trade technologies, data solutions, and various securities services solutions. The Markets segment offers sales and trading services for equities, foreign exchange, rates, spread products, and commodities to corporate, institutional, and public sector clients; and market-making services, including asset classes, risk management solutions, financing, prime brokerage, research, securities clearing, and settlement. The banking segment includes investment banking; advisory services related to mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, restructurings, and corporate defense activities; and corporate lending, which includes corporate and commercial banking. The U.S. Personal Banking segment provides co-branded cards and retail banking services. The Wealth segment provides financial services to high-net-worth clients through banking, lending, mortgages, investment, custody, and trust product offerings; and to professional industries, including law firms, consulting groups, accounting, and asset management. The company was founded in 1812 and is headquartered in New York, New York. Receive News & Ratings for Huntington Bancshares Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Huntington Bancshares and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards was fined $75,000 by the NBA for "public criticism of the officiating and using inappropriate and profane language." The two-time All-Star's comments occurred after a 113-103 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Saturday. "The s--t was terrible," Edwards said. "They don't want to talk back to my coach, they don't want to talk back to me. I said one thing to the ref, and he gave me a tech. Motherf--ker told one of my teammates if I would have said 'y'all calling a bad foul' he would have given me a tech." The Timberwolves have lost two straight games, sitting at 14-13 this season. Inconsistency has defined the start of the 2024-25 season for Minnesota, as the team has been unable to capitalize on momentum following a trip to the Western Conference Finals. Trade acquisitions such as Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo have struggled to adjust to the change of scenery, and the Timberwolves have dropped from the best net rating in the association last season to the No. 5 mark to open the year (via NBA.com ). Edwards has remained efficient to start his fifth year in the league, averaging 25.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game on 44.8/42.1/80.5 shooting splits. It's worth noting that he's averaging just 4.2 free-throw attempts per game this season after recording 6.4 shots from the charity stripe each night last year. Edwards is also avoiding the paint compared to past years, though. He's taking a career-low 14.7 percent of his shots within three feet of the basket after attempting 27.6 percent of his total shots in that range throughout his first four years in the association (via Basketball Reference ). He acknowledged that he hasn't been able to get to the rim as frequently, which may be affecting his ability to draw fouls. "If you watch the game, there's nothing for me to do if I get downhill," Edwards said after a 133-107 loss to the New York Knicks on Thursday. "Everybody want me to get downhill. I know that's my strength. I get to the rim, lay the ball up, dunk the ball, but I can't do that if there's no lane, it's not open. Every team we play did a great job of sitting in the gaps. When I get to the rim, putting four people at the rim." "So, I mean there's nothing I can do about going to the hole right now," he added. Edwards has been fined for criticizing officiating in the past, as he was penalized $40,000 during the 2023-24 season. The Timberwolves will attempt to put an end to their brief losing streak against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Benefits claimants have increasingly found that they can get more money being signed off sick than looking for a job and there is “clearly a problem” with incentives in the system, the employment minister has acknowledged. Alison McGovern said that the current system “doesn’t work for anybody” because it made it hard for the long-term sick to find work while pushing up costs for taxpayers. McGovern said that it was “bleak” that rising numbers of young people were being signed off sick with problems such as mental health conditions. She said that the welfare system needed to change so that disabled people were helped to find work rather than being left “on the scrap heap”. It was “obvious”, she noted, that the current system wasOliver Glasner: Crystal Palace are heading in right direction after Ipswich win
Mums and babies dying during childbirth has increased for the first time in a decade, a shock report shows. Lord Darzi, who recently completed a landmark review of the NHS as a whole, looked at rates of women dying during or shortly after pregnancy , and babies dying within 28 days of being born. His latest report found rates of neonatal deaths - babies born at 20 weeks or after, but who die before they are 28-days-old - and maternal deaths - women who die while pregnant or up to six weeks after due to issues linked to pregnancy - increased for the first time in 10 years and are continuing to rise. It comes after a string of major maternity scandals at struggling NHS trusts at which poor care was linked to hundreds of baby deaths and many more being left brain damaged. Lord Darzi is co-director of the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London which conducted the review. He said: "Our latest report on patient safety in England reveals alarming declines. The deterioration in maternity care, in particular, requires immediate action. Our analysis highlights a troubling increase in neonatal and maternal deaths, with black women disproportionately affected." Between 2013 and 2020, the neonatal death rate fell by 17%, from 1.7 to 1.3 per 1,000 live births. But it rose to 1.5 per 1,000 live births in 2022, an increase of 15.4%. Maternal deaths were described as "steady" between 2011 and 2013 and 2017 and 2019, although between 2017 and 2019 and 2020 to 2022, the rate increased from 8.8 to 13.4 deaths per 100,000. The report described the figure as "a statistically significant increase of 52.3%". It also pointed to an uneven spread of the impacts of unsafe care, which are "greater in the North than the South". Lord Darzi added: "The NHS is now falling behind leading nations in patient safety. We urgently need to address these issues to repair the health service, and provide high-quality care for all patients and their families." James Titcombe, chief executive of the charity Patient Safety Watch, said: "These findings and recommendations must contribute to urgent and meaningful discussion about the changes needed, so that when we revisit the data in two years, we see these troubling trends reversed and tangible progress in reducing the devastating impact of healthcare harm on patients, families, and healthcare professionals." A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "Patient safety is paramount, and all women and their babies deserve safe, high-quality care. We are working to introduce a culture of transparency in our health service and will never turn a blind eye to failure. We are committed to driving up standards in healthcare through our Plan for Change, and we will tackle the shocking inequalities that exist across the country. We will also work closely with NHS England to train thousands more midwives to better support women throughout their pregnancy and beyond."Chargers QB Justin Herbert does not practice because of left ankle injury
Alex Ovechkin has a broken left fibula and is expected to be out four to six weeks, an injury that pauses the Washington Capitals superstar captain’s pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goals record. The Capitals updated Ovechkin’s status Thursday after he was evaluated by team doctors upon returning from a three-game trip. The 39-year-old broke the leg in a shin-on-shin collision Monday night with Utah's Jack McBain, and some of his closest teammates knew it was not good news even before Ovechkin was listed as week to week and placed on injured reserve. “Everyone’s bummed out,” said winger Tom Wilson, who has played with Ovechkin since 2013. “We were sitting there saying: ‘This is weird. Like, it’s unbelievable that he’s actually hurt.’ It’s one of those things where like, he’s going to miss games? I’ve been around a long time, and it’s new to me.” Ovechkin in his first 19 seasons missed 59 games — and just 35 because of injury. Durability even while throwing his body around with his physical style is a big reason he is on track to pass Gretzky’s mark of 894 goals that once looked unapproachable. “He doesn’t go out there and just coast around,” Wilson said. “He’s played 20 years every shift running over guys and skating. He’s a power forward, the best goal-scorer ever maybe, and he’s a power forward that plays the game really hard.” Ovechkin surged to the top of the league with 15 goals in his first 18 games this season. He was on pace to break the record and score No. 895 sometime in February. “You know when goal-scorers start scoring, it’s dangerous,” said defenseman John Carlson, who has been teammates with Ovechkin since 2009-10. “There was a bit of that in the downs that everyone was feeling about it too, of course. We see him coming to the rink every day, we know what’s at stake. You never want anyone to get injured, but there’s a lot to it and certainly he was playing his best hockey in years.” ___ AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl Stephen Whyno, The Associated PressMemoirs of a Brit on Death Row Presents The Harrowing Journey of Survival and Justice
AP Sports SummaryBrief at 4:44 p.m. EST
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