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CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Miami probably was one win away from getting into the College Football Playoff. Iowa State definitely was one win away. Their consolation prize of sorts: playing one another. The Hurricanes and Cyclones — a meteorological matchup — have accepted bids to the Pop-Tarts Bowl, to be played Dec. 28 in Orlando, Florida. Iowa State (10-3) is looking for its first 11-win season in the program's 133-year history, and Miami (10-2) is seeking its first 11-win season since 2003. Miami's loss at Syracuse to close the regular season wound up being the game the Hurricanes could point to as the reason they missed out on the CFP. Iowa State could have played its way in and lost the Big 12 title game to CFP-bound Arizona State on Saturday. “I think everyone that doesn't get in feels disappointment,” Miami coach Mario Cristobal said. “We feel the onus of just doing better. Just do better, go forward, have an opportunity to get better.” It's essentially the same task for both teams: regrouping after seeing the playoff slip away. “I think that’s what’s made Iowa State football really special is our ability to have great resiliency," Cyclones coach Matt Campbell said. "And I know our kids are super-excited about the opportunity to finish off. Obviously (Saturday) was disappointing. But this group and this football team has the opportunity to just continue to fight.” A big question for Miami: whether quarterback Cam Ward will play. The likely Heisman Trophy finalist has thrown for 155 touchdown passes in his career at Incarnate Word, Washington State and Miami. That’s tied for the most by anyone in Division I (FBS and FCS) history; Case Keenum threw 155 in his career at Houston. Many draft-bound players not in the playoff will be opting out of bowl games over the coming weeks. There's been no indication from Miami yet that Ward or any other draft-bound player has made a decision. “I think it’s important that our guys, anyone playing and closing out the season, understands the importance of that next step for a program like ours," Cristobal said. "And I think our guys do.” Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-footballGeoffrey Hinton says he doesn’t regret the work he did that laid the foundations of artificial intelligence, but wishes he thought of safety sooner. The British-Canadian computer scientist often called the godfather of AI said over the weekend that he doesn’t have any guilty regret, which he said is when someone has done something when they know they shouldn’t have at the time. “In the same circumstances, I would do the same again,” he said of his research, which dates back to the 1980s and has formed the underpinnings of AI. “However, I think it might have been unfortunate in that we're going to get superintelligence faster than I thought, and I wish I'd thought about safety earlier.” Superintelligence surpasses the abilities of even the smartest humans. Hinton thinks it could arrive in the next five to 20 years and humanity may have to “worry seriously about how we stay in control.” Hinton made his prediction during a press conference in Stockholm, where he is due to a receive the Nobel Prize in physics on Tuesday. Hinton, a University of Toronto professor emeritus, and co-laureate John Hopfield, a Princeton University professor, are being given the prize because they developed some of the foundations of machine learning, a computer science that helps AI mimic how humans learn. Hinton kicked off his Nobel week on Saturday with the press conference, where he appeared with laureates in chemistry and economics and was asked about AI safety and regulation. Hinton left a job at Google last year to speak more freely about the technology's dangers, which he has said could include job losses, bias and discrimination, echo chambers, fake news, battle robots and even the end of humanity. On Saturday, he said he considers lethal autonomous weapons to be a short-term danger. "There isn't going to be any regulation there," he said, pointing out that European regulations have a specific clause exempting military use of AI from restrictions. "Governments are unwilling to regulate themselves, when it comes to lethal autonomous weapon, and there is an arms race going on between all the major arms suppliers like the United States, China, Russia, Britain, Israel and possibly even Sweden, though I don't know." A day later, Hinton put his concerns about AI aside to deliver a lecture with Hopfield explaining the research that earned them their Nobel. "Today I am going to do something very foolish." Hinton said in introducing his portion of the pair's hour-long speech. "I am going to try and describe a complicated technical idea for a general audience without using any equations." The audience chuckled. The talk began with Hopfield describing a network he invented that could store and reconstruct images in data. It led Hinton to later create the Boltzmann machine, which learns from examples, rather than instructions, and when trained, can recognize familiar characteristics in information, even if it has not seen that data before. Hinton said students in his lab and others run by fellow AI pioneers Yoshua Bengio and Yann LeCun were using Boltzmann machines to pre-train neural networks — machine learning models that make decisions in a manner similar to the human brain — between 2006 and 2011. By 2009, two of Hinton's students had showed the technique "worked a little bit better than the best existing techniques for recognizing fragments of phonemes in speech and that then changed the speech recognition community," Hinton said. Phonemes are small units of sound that can change the meaning of a word. Google later began working on technology based on Hinton's discoveries and "suddenly the speech recognition on the Android got a lot better." Even though the kind of Boltzmann machines Hinton was working with back then are no longer used in the same ways as he used them, he said "they allowed us to make the transition from thinking that deep neural networks would never work to seeing that deep neural networks actually could be made to work." Nobel Week will continue Monday with a discussion about the future of health before an awards ceremony and banquet is held Tuesday. Hinton has said he will donate a portion of the prize money — equivalent to about C$1.45 million — he and Hopfield will be given to Water First, which is working to boost Indigenous access to water, and a charity supporting neurodiverse young adults. He is also reportedly due to donate an early Boltzmann chip to the Nobel Prize Museum. The Nobel is not the only prize Hinton scooped up this month. On Friday, he, Bengio, LeCun, Chinese-American computer scientist Fei-Fei Li and Nvidia founder Jensen Huang, were awarded the Vin Future Prize, a US$3 million prize for science breakthroughs in a ceremony in Vietnam. Hinton, Bengio and LeCun previously won the A.M. Turing Award, known as the Nobel Prize of computing, together in 2018. This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Dec. 8, 2024. Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press
Published 6:38 pm Sunday, December 29, 2024 By Joshua Windus President of the Sumter County branch of the NAACP, Eugene Edge, recalled conversations he had with President Carter. “He always had a story to tell me.” Edge told how they would discuss affairs in the black and white communities: “There is some racism in the white community, and he would advise me on some things that we could do to, to deter that, and because, you know, I was involved in the NAACP, so he would offer suggestions.” At the time, Edge was not the president, but was on the executive committee. Edge told how the executive committee made decisions on discriminative cases or those involving police brutality. “If there was enough evidence that we saw there was enough probable cause to go after that case, you know, the executive committee would make those decisions.” He told how the conversations often centered with ways to support the black community. “Well most of it was like I said, it was dealing with the black community, on ways to help the black community politically.” While Edge recalled the conversations warmly, he mentioned that President Carter only once came close to becoming involved in local politics. “I’ve never told many people this story.” Edge told what led to President Carter’s reconsideration: “He called me over to his house one day, and we sat in his living room. And he said that some of the people from the white community was concerned that Dr. Marshall, who was the president of the NAACP at the time, was dividing the community with his strategy, and they had contacted President Carter, and to see what he could do.” Edge told how this prompted the former President to considering becoming involved. “He said Rosalynn and I, when we left the White House, we said that we would not get involved in local politics, and we have maintained that, we’ve stuck to that. And he said, but you tell me what you want me to do, if you want me to stay out of it, or get involved. And he said, here’s my proposal. He said that I’m very close friends with Julian Bond, who was the national president at the time. If you want me to, I could, I would make a call to Julian and we could move you to be president of the Sumter County branch of the NAACP.” Carter asked his advice: “But you tell me now, what do you want me to do? Do you want me to stay out of it or do you want me to proceed?’ and I told President Carter, these are my words, I told him, I said well, Mr. President, the NAACP is set up as a democracy just like this country. The president is voted in by the members of the branch, and the president is voted out. I said it would be unethical for somebody to come in who is not a member and remove him as president and while the members have already voted him in. I said Dr. Marshall may be controversial, but yet he speaks for the hurt and the pain of a lot of the people in the black community. My advice to you is to stay out of it. So those are the words that I, that I relayed to President Carter.” Edge detailed his own views of Marshall: “I agree with some of the sentiments of the white community, Dr. Marshall was quite controversial. I understood that, but at the same time, some of the things that he did, it was needed to be done.” He noted changing the name for the 44th freedom fund banquet for the NAACP to the John D. Marshall Freedom Fund Gala. For more stories about Jimmy Carter please go to www.americustimesrecorder.com/ category/jimmy-carter/The Canaries led briefly in the first half having been 1-0 down, Josh Maja's strike earning a point for the home side shortly after Torbjorn Heggem's own goal had made it 2-1 to the visitors. The general mood among City supporters was a positive one after the final whistle, however, as their side ended a run of three straight defeats even with a squad depleted by injury and suspension. See the best of those fans' reactions from social media below. 🔰🗣️ “Really entertaining game of Championship football.” 🟡🟢 You can’t say that #NCFC aren’t good to watch 😅 pic.twitter.com/Jt98X5W8c5 Wind, rain and goals - and an excellent away point for Norwich at The Hawthorns - WBA will feel hard done by but City could have won it.. #ncfc #otbc pic.twitter.com/xiP6PpZ1hM A point against West Brom isn’t the worst. There were good things to build on, but a striker is badly needed in January if we’re feeling ambitious. Up the Nodge 🔰 #ncfc pic.twitter.com/iOOojw0VWG West brom is a tough place to visit, so a point here this afternoon is a decent result for us💛💚. Onto Plymouth Tuesday night #ncfc pic.twitter.com/V9R5Gu7X5g A very decent point away from home at a very tough ground,well tough this season at least there's so much improvement! (and so much yet to come) The next 2 games are at home plus Mclean/Nunez should be back so i'll cautiously say things are starting to look up #ncfc #canarycall Considering the circumstances of his arrival, Marcondes is quickly becoming one of our best summer additions. Credit to him! #ncfc With the recent injury list, and slump in form, that's a draw that feels like a win. Happily take that, well played fellas 👏👏👏!!! #NCFC 💚💛 #NCFC seem to be matching the better teams in the league which is pleasing.Played well today after weathering an early storm,thought we might collapse but we stuck with it & ended up playing some slick counters.Away point against a good team in that weather,take that! #canarycall Leaky... 💧 This is the first time Norwich City have conceded two or more goals in six consecutive games outside of the top flight for 17 years, since the days of Jim Duffy and Glenn Roeder in 2007 #ncfc Great point. Hopefully Cordoba and Slimane knocks are nothing serious and with McLean back midweek, we desperately need that win. #NCFC Good point on the road against one of the best teams in the league, given injury situation. Crnac et al were bought to develop into top players, not to be them right away. I trust the coaches to do that. Patience is key, and they have the tools to set them up for success. #ncfc
Ducks assign forward Jansen Harkins to AHLVivek Vishwakarma/iStock via Getty Images While the market has cruised to all-time highs, Snap, Inc. ( NYSE: SNAP ) actually trades closer to the lows after being public for nearly a decade. The social messaging company is even reporting record revenues If you'd like to learn more about how to best position yourself in undervalued stocks mispriced by the market to start December, consider joining Out Fox The Street . The service offers a model portfolio, daily updates, trade alerts and real-time chat. Sign up now for a risk-free 2-week trial to started finding the best stocks with potential to double and triple in the next few years. Stone Fox Capital (aka Mark Holder) is a CPA with degrees in Accounting and Finance. He is also Series 65 licensed and has 30 years of investing experience, including 10 years as a portfolio manager. Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, but may initiate a beneficial Long position through a purchase of the stock, or the purchase of call options or similar derivatives in SNAP over the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article. The information contained herein is for informational purposes only. Nothing in this article should be taken as a solicitation to purchase or sell securities. Before buying or selling any stock, you should do your own research and reach your own conclusion or consult a financial advisor. Investing includes risks, including loss of principal. Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.None
The Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions became the first two NFL teams to reach 10 wins in Week 12's early-afternoon window. The Chiefs survived an upset bid from the Carolina Panthers to keep their spot atop the AFC standings. Detroit's day was a bit different, as it blew past the Indianapolis Colts to keep its edge in the NFC. Not all teams in playoff spots avoided upsets, though, as the Washington Commanders and Houston Texans went down. Washington and Houston did not drop out of their playoff positions yet, but the results at least allowed some chasing teams to potentially gain ground. Division Leaders 1. Kansas City (10-1) 2. Buffalo (9-2) 3. Pittsburgh (8-3) 4. Houston (7-5) Wild-Card Race 5. Los Angeles Chargers (7-3) 6. Baltimore (7-4) 7. Denver (6-5) 8. Miami (5-6) 9. Indianapolis (5-7) 10. Cincinnati (4-7) 11. Cleveland (3-8) 12. New York Jets (3-8) 13. Tennessee (3-8) 14. New England (3-9) 15. Las Vegas (2-8) 16. Jacksonville (2-9) Kansas City avoided an unexpected slip-up with a last-minute with over Carolina to become the first AFC team to reach 10 wins. The Chiefs are still a full game ahead of the Buffalo Bills for home-field advantage. The long-time rivals are the only likely contenders for the No. 1 overall seed. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Houston Texans each lost in Week 12 to drop further away from the Chiefs. Pittsburgh's primary concern has to be the AFC North title because it is only a game in front of the Baltimore Ravens. The gap can drop to a half-game if the Ravens beat the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night. Houston is still comfortably in front in the AFC South since it has a two-game lead and two head-to-head wins over the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts fell to 5-7 with a loss to the Lions, but they are still in the mix for the final wild-card spot. Both the Colts and Miami Dolphins have five wins and they will be rooting for the Las Vegas Raiders to upset the Denver Broncos in the late-afternoon window. Conversely, a Denver victory would put three seven-win teams in the wild-card places and it would force Miami and Indianapolis to be near-perfect down the stretch. Division Leaders 1. Detroit (10-1) 2. Philadelphia (8-2) 3. Arizona (6-4) 4. Atlanta (6-5) Wild-Card Race 5. Minnesota (9-2) 6. Green Bay (7-3) 7. Washington (7-5) 8. Los Angeles Rams (5-5) 9. Seattle (5-5) 10. San Francisco (5-5) 11. Tampa Bay (5-6) 12. New Orleans (4-7) 13. Chicago (4-7) 14. Dallas (4-7) 15. Carolina (3-8) 16. New York Giants (2-9) Detroit continued to cruise with its win over the Colts. The Lions are 10-1, but they only have a one-game edge in the NFC North over the Vikings, who eked out an overtime win over the Bears. Detroit owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over Minnesota and the two teams do not meet again until Week 18 at Ford Field. The Eagles can join the Lions and Vikings in the group of teams with nine or 10 wins if they beat the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday night. Philadelphia already picked up an edge in the NFC East on Sunday afternoon due to the Washington Commanders' loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The Eagles are three games ahead of the Commanders in the loss column right now. The Rams need a Sunday night win to take advantage of Washington's loss in the wild-card race. The Commanders are two games up in the win column over the Rams, Seahawks and 49ers at the moment. All three of those teams could win in the late-afternoon and night windows to make the gap smaller.KBC Group NV Raises Stock Holdings in NexPoint Residential Trust, Inc. (NYSE:NXRT)
Trump taps Rollins as agriculture chief, completing proposed slate of Cabinet secretaries
It’s no secret that people here in the South have a fascination with snow. It is not very common, relatively speaking, so any mention of the word prompts posts, shares, and a full range of emotions. In the midst of Sunday football, I have watched closely as meteorologist colleagues try to be a credible vaccine for a viral post about snow in the southeastern U.S. over ten days from now. What’s the fallout from such posts? A post on a popular Georgia pop culture site included one weather map indicating the possibility of a foot or more of snow in parts of the South, including the Atlanta area, by the second week of January. It has gone viral. The site is awesome, and one that follow routinely too, so it is not surprising how widespread the post has been. Friends have been messaging me all day asking if it is true. Such maps and information are certainly available to anybody, which creates a challenge for the meteorology community. I witness all types of platforms posting long-range snow forecasts. Colleagues like James Spann in Alabama and Brad Panovich in North Carolina routinely push back on what we call “snow pornography.” It plays on the snow lover’s desire, and the social media culture rooted in clicks, views, or shares. When I saw the model information being shared, I cringed. To the site’s credit, they mentioned that such information could change. However, the context was missing, and it was probably better not to post it at all. Atlanta News First meteorologist Ella Dorsey commented on Instagram , “This is just one run of the Euro model. The next run showed 0.2 inches of snow for the same period.” She went on to explain that a weather pattern shift to colder temperature is expected, but information this far out is not reliable for precipitation forecasts. Meteorologist Tyler Mauldin also said in the same thread, “A little early to be posting! Forecasting snow, it’s hard enough three days out, much less 10 days.” As I recently wrote in Forbes.com , “These ‘pick your favorite mode scenarios’ often disappear in the next model run.... credible meteorologists should not convey information based on one model run.” As weather professionals, we know the limitations of long-range or single model runs. However, many people do not and will post or share information without proper context. So what Dr. Shepherd! I hear you. It may all seem innocent, but there are serious implications of “snow porn.” When those forecasts do not verify, people question the credibility of the weather community. When these “fantasy storms” never develop, it amplifies false narratives that weather forecasts are always wrong. As I have written many times, forecasts are right most of the time, but people have biases or shortcomings in how they consume the information. They may not understand percent chance of rain, limitations of weather Apps, or other metrics of uncertainty. There is also a tendency to latch on to the rare bad forecast and overlook the more numerous correct ones. Most people will remember a kicker’s field goal miss in the Super Bowl, and forgot that he made every kick all season. It also “clouds” the boundary of expertise. Meteorologists are trained experts who understand the limitations, tendencies, and biases in weather model information. My colleagues and I are aware of fantasy snowstorms and hurricanes that dissipate in the next model run or when things are ten or more days out. A 2019 study out of Pennsylvania State University has describe the barriers in numerical model weather predictability. Part of the challenge is that many people do not really understand how forecasts are made. The atmosphere is a fluid within a rotating frame of reference. There is a whole lot of physics, calculus, and complex computational processing going on y’all. Those calculations are further affected by slight differences in the initial condition of the model, data quality or scale, and changes in the weather scenario between runs. To mitigate against these challenges, we use numerous models or ensembles (multiple manifestations) to reduce uncertainty. We do not anchor forecasts in one single outcome or scenario. Another challenge is that once bad, viral forecasts are in the public space, confirmation bias sets in. People have seen or heard what they want to happen and will often resist credible explanations. We saw this during Hurricane Helene when colleagues were being threatened or attacked for explaining that we cannot control hurricanes. Confirmation bias and “wishcasting” are powerful motivators if you want to believe that a snow scenario is possible. I will defer to my psychology colleagues for deeper explanations. However, trust me, it is as real as the irrational overload on French toast ingredients purchased at the very mention of snow in the South. I encourage you to stop, take inventory of the source, and process the information carefully before pushing the “share” button or running to the grocery storm. Having said all of that, conditions are trending towards a colder pattern for the South by the middle of January. That means snowfall could be in future cards, but it is certainly too early to confirm base on a model you are seeing in late December.PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lowered its holdings in NVR, Inc. ( NYSE:NVR – Free Report ) by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,064 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 37 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in NVR were worth $10,440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NVR. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in NVR by 125.7% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 3,024 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $24,494,000 after purchasing an additional 1,684 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of NVR by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,405 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $19,480,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in NVR by 7.7% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 406 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,283,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in NVR by 98.9% in the first quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 17,469 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $141,498,000 after acquiring an additional 8,684 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in NVR by 1,285.4% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 568 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,601,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock. Insider Buying and Selling In other news, Director David A. Preiser sold 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9,302.64, for a total value of $2,325,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 239 shares in the company, valued at $2,223,330.96. This trade represents a 51.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink . Also, CAO Matthew B. Kelpy sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9,450.00, for a total transaction of $3,780,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 208 shares in the company, valued at $1,965,600. This represents a 65.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here . Insiders sold a total of 775 shares of company stock valued at $7,294,073 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock. Analyst Ratings Changes Check Out Our Latest Research Report on NVR NVR Stock Performance Shares of NYSE:NVR opened at $9,007.24 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 6.21, a quick ratio of 3.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $9,422.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $8,587.74. The company has a market cap of $27.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.20. NVR, Inc. has a 12 month low of $6,052.58 and a 12 month high of $9,964.77. NVR ( NYSE:NVR – Get Free Report ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $130.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $131.00 by ($0.50). The business had revenue of $2.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.71 billion. NVR had a return on equity of 38.20% and a net margin of 16.51%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $125.26 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that NVR, Inc. will post 494.48 EPS for the current year. About NVR ( Free Report ) NVR, Inc operates as a homebuilder in the United States. The company operates through, Homebuilding and Mortgage Banking segments. It engages in the construction and sale of single-family detached homes, townhomes, and condominium buildings under the Ryan Homes, NVHomes, and Heartland Homes names. The company markets its Ryan Homes products to first-time and first-time move-up buyers; and NVHomes and Heartland Homes products to move-up and luxury buyers. Featured Articles Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NVR? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for NVR, Inc. ( NYSE:NVR – Free Report ). 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NoneGiannis Antetokounmpo scored 34 points and the visiting Milwaukee Bucks rallied for an 118-113 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday. The Bucks bounced back from losses to the Atlanta Hawks and Boston Celtics for their eighth win in 10 games and improved to 10-3 since dropping eight of their first 10, including a 13-point loss at Brooklyn on Oct. 27. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Scenes from Georgia's victory over Texas in the SEC Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on December 7, 2024. (Photos: Jim Blackburn) Click for more. PHOTOS: Georgia Defeats Texas for SEC ChampionshipWASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump said Saturday that he will nominate former White House aide Brooke Rollins to be his agriculture secretary, the last of his picks to lead executive agencies and another choice from within his established circle of advisers and allies. The nomination must be confirmed by the Senate, which will be controlled by Republicans when Trump takes office Jan. 20. Rollins would succeed Tom Vilsack , President Joe Biden’s agriculture secretary who oversees the sprawling agency that controls policies, regulations and aid programs related to farming, forestry, ranching, food quality and nutrition. Then-President Donald Trump looks to Brooke Rollins, president and CEO of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, as she speaks during a Jan. 11, 2018, prison reform roundtable in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington. Rollins, who graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in agricultural development, is a longtime Trump associate who served as White House domestic policy chief during his first presidency. The 52-year-old is president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a group helping to lay the groundwork for a second Trump administration. Rollins previously served as an aide to former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and ran a think tank, the Texas Public Policy Foundation. The pick completes Trump’s selection of the heads of executive branch departments, just two and a half weeks after the former president won the White House once again. Several other picks that are traditionally Cabinet-level remain, including U.S. Trade Representative and head of the small business administration. Brooke Rollins, assistant to the president and director of the Domestic Policy Council at the time, speaks during a May 18, 2020, meeting with restaurant industry executives about the coronavirus response in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington. Rollins, speaking on the Christian talk show “Family Talk" earlier this year, said Trump was an “amazing boss” and confessed that she thought in 2015, during his first presidential campaign, that he would not last as a candidate in a crowded Republican primary field. “I was the person that said, ‘Oh, Donald Trump is not going to go more than two or three weeks in the Republican primary. This is to up his TV show ratings. And then we’ll get back to normal,’” she said. “Fast forward a couple of years, and I am running his domestic policy agenda.” Trump didn’t offer many specifics about his agriculture policies during the campaign, but farmers could be affected if he carries out his pledge to impose widespread tariffs. During the first Trump administration, countries like China responded to Trump’s tariffs by imposing retaliatory tariffs on U.S. exports like the corn and soybeans routinely sold overseas. Trump countered by offering massive multibillion-dollar aid to farmers to help them weather the trade war. Brooke Rollins speaks at an Oct. 27 campaign rally for then-Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden in New York. President Abraham Lincoln founded the USDA in 1862, when about half of all Americans lived on farms. The USDA oversees multiple support programs for farmers; animal and plant health; and the safety of meat, poultry and eggs that anchor the nation’s food supply. Its federal nutrition programs provide food to low-income people, pregnant women and young children. And the agency sets standards for school meals. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, has vowed to strip ultraprocessed foods from school lunches and to stop allowing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program beneficiaries from using food stamps to buy soda, candy or other so-called junk foods. But it would be the USDA, not HHS, that would be responsible for enacting those changes. In addition, HHS and USDA will work together to finalize the 2025-2030 edition of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. They are due late next year, with guidance for healthy diets and standards for federal nutrition programs. Gomez Licon reported from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Associated Press writers Josh Funk and JoNel Aleccia contributed to this report. Among President-elect Donald Trump's picks are Susie Wiles for chief of staff, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state, former Democratic House member Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz for attorney general. Susie Wiles, 67, was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 presidential campaign and its de facto manager. Trump named Florida Sen. Marco Rubio to be secretary of state, making a former sharp critic his choice to be the new administration's top diplomat. Rubio, 53, is a noted hawk on China, Cuba and Iran, and was a finalist to be Trump's running mate on the Republican ticket last summer. Rubio is the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “He will be a strong Advocate for our Nation, a true friend to our Allies, and a fearless Warrior who will never back down to our adversaries,” Trump said of Rubio in a statement. The announcement punctuates the hard pivot Rubio has made with Trump, whom the senator called a “con man" during his unsuccessful campaign for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. Their relationship improved dramatically while Trump was in the White House. And as Trump campaigned for the presidency a third time, Rubio cheered his proposals. For instance, Rubio, who more than a decade ago helped craft immigration legislation that included a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. illegally, now supports Trump's plan to use the U.S. military for mass deportations. Pete Hegseth, 44, is a co-host of Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend” and has been a contributor with the network since 2014, where he developed a friendship with Trump, who made regular appearances on the show. Hegseth lacks senior military or national security experience. If confirmed by the Senate, he would inherit the top job during a series of global crises — ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian proxies to the push for a cease-fire between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah and escalating worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea. Hegseth is also the author of “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free,” published earlier this year. Trump tapped Pam Bondi, 59, to be attorney general after U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration. She was Florida's first female attorney general, serving between 2011 and 2019. She also was on Trump’s legal team during his first impeachment trial in 2020. Considered a loyalist, she served as part of a Trump-allied outside group that helped lay the groundwork for his future administration called the America First Policy Institute. Bondi was among a group of Republicans who showed up to support Trump at his hush money criminal trial in New York that ended in May with a conviction on 34 felony counts. A fierce defender of Trump, she also frequently appears on Fox News and has been a critic of the criminal cases against him. Trump picked South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a well-known conservative who faced sharp criticism for telling a story in her memoir about shooting a rambunctious dog, to lead an agency crucial to the president-elect’s hardline immigration agenda. Noem used her two terms leading a tiny state to vault to a prominent position in Republican politics. South Dakota is usually a political afterthought. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, Noem did not order restrictions that other states had issued and instead declared her state “open for business.” Trump held a fireworks rally at Mount Rushmore in July 2020 in one of the first large gatherings of the pandemic. She takes over a department with a sprawling mission. In addition to key immigration agencies, the Department of Homeland Security oversees natural disaster response, the U.S. Secret Service, and Transportation Security Administration agents who work at airports. The governor of North Dakota, who was once little-known outside his state, Burgum is a former Republican presidential primary contender who endorsed Trump, and spent months traveling to drum up support for him, after dropping out of the race. Burgum was a serious contender to be Trump’s vice presidential choice this summer. The two-term governor was seen as a possible pick because of his executive experience and business savvy. Burgum also has close ties to deep-pocketed energy industry CEOs. Trump made the announcement about Burgum joining his incoming administration while addressing a gala at his Mar-a-Lago club, and said a formal statement would be coming the following day. In comments to reporters before Trump took the stage, Burgum said that, in recent years, the power grid is deteriorating in many parts of the country, which he said could raise national security concerns but also drive up prices enough to increase inflation. “There's just a sense of urgency, and a sense of understanding in the Trump administration,” Burgum said. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ran for president as a Democrat, than as an independent, and then endorsed Trump . He's the son of Democratic icon Robert Kennedy, who was assassinated during his own presidential campaign. The nomination of Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services alarmed people who are concerned about his record of spreading unfounded fears about vaccines . For example, he has long advanced the debunked idea that vaccines cause autism. Scott Bessent, 62, is a former George Soros money manager and an advocate for deficit reduction. He's the founder of hedge fund Key Square Capital Management, after having worked on-and-off for Soros Fund Management since 1991. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the nation’s first openly gay treasury secretary. He told Bloomberg in August that he decided to join Trump’s campaign in part to attack the mounting U.S. national debt. That would include slashing government programs and other spending. “This election cycle is the last chance for the U.S. to grow our way out of this mountain of debt without becoming a sort of European-style socialist democracy,” he said then. Oregon Republican U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer narrowly lost her reelection bid this month, but received strong backing from union members in her district. As a potential labor secretary, she would oversee the Labor Department’s workforce, its budget and put forth priorities that impact workers’ wages, health and safety, ability to unionize, and employer’s rights to fire employers, among other responsibilities. Chavez-DeRemer is one of few House Republicans to endorse the “Protecting the Right to Organize” or PRO Act would allow more workers to conduct organizing campaigns and would add penalties for companies that violate workers’ rights. The act would also weaken “right-to-work” laws that allow employees in more than half the states to avoid participating in or paying dues to unions that represent workers at their places of employment. Scott Turner is a former NFL player and White House aide. He ran the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council during Trump’s first term in office. Trump, in a statement, credited Turner, the highest-ranking Black person he’s yet selected for his administration, with “helping to lead an Unprecedented Effort that Transformed our Country’s most distressed communities.” Sean Duffy is a former House member from Wisconsin who was one of Trump's most visible defenders on cable news. Duffy served in the House for nearly nine years, sitting on the Financial Services Committee and chairing the subcommittee on insurance and housing. He left Congress in 2019 for a TV career and has been the host of “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business. Before entering politics, Duffy was a reality TV star on MTV, where he met his wife, “Fox and Friends Weekend” co-host Rachel Campos-Duffy. They have nine children. A campaign donor and CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, Write is a vocal advocate of oil and gas development, including fracking — a key pillar of Trump’s quest to achieve U.S. “energy dominance” in the global market. Wright also has been one of the industry’s loudest voices against efforts to fight climate change. He said the climate movement around the world is “collapsing under its own weight.” The Energy Department is responsible for advancing energy, environmental and nuclear security of the United States. Wright also won support from influential conservatives, including oil and gas tycoon Harold Hamm. Hamm, executive chairman of Oklahoma-based Continental Resources, a major shale oil company, is a longtime Trump supporter and adviser who played a key role on energy issues in Trump’s first term. President-elect Donald Trump tapped billionaire professional wrestling mogul Linda McMahon to be secretary of the Education Department, tasked with overseeing an agency Trump promised to dismantle. McMahon led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s initial term from 2017 to 2019 and twice ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the U.S. Senate in Connecticut. She’s seen as a relative unknown in education circles, though she expressed support for charter schools and school choice. She served on the Connecticut Board of Education for a year starting in 2009 and has spent years on the board of trustees for Sacred Heart University in Connecticut. Brooke Rollins, who graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in agricultural development, is a longtime Trump associate who served as White House domestic policy chief during his first presidency. The 52-year-old is president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a group helping to lay the groundwork for a second Trump administration. She previously served as an aide to former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and ran a think tank, the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Trump chose Howard Lutnick, head of brokerage and investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald and a cryptocurrency enthusiast, as his nominee for commerce secretary, a position in which he'd have a key role in carrying out Trump's plans to raise and enforce tariffs. Trump made the announcement Tuesday on his social media platform, Truth Social. Lutnick is a co-chair of Trump’s transition team, along with Linda McMahon, the former wrestling executive who previously led Trump’s Small Business Administration. Both are tasked with putting forward candidates for key roles in the next administration. The nomination would put Lutnick in charge of a sprawling Cabinet agency that is involved in funding new computer chip factories, imposing trade restrictions, releasing economic data and monitoring the weather. It is also a position in which connections to CEOs and the wider business community are crucial. Doug Collins is a former Republican congressman from Georgia who gained recognition for defending Trump during his first impeachment trial, which centered on U.S. assistance for Ukraine. Trump was impeached for urging Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden in 2019 during the Democratic presidential nomination, but he was acquitted by the Senate. Collins has also served in the armed forces himself and is currently a chaplain in the United States Air Force Reserve Command. "We must take care of our brave men and women in uniform, and Doug will be a great advocate for our Active Duty Servicemembers, Veterans, and Military Families to ensure they have the support they need," Trump said in a statement about nominating Collins to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs. Karoline Leavitt, 27, was Trump's campaign press secretary and currently a spokesperson for his transition. She would be the youngest White House press secretary in history. The White House press secretary typically serves as the public face of the administration and historically has held daily briefings for the press corps. Leavitt, a New Hampshire native, was a spokesperson for MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, before joining his 2024 campaign. In 2022, she ran for Congress in New Hampshire, winning a 10-way Republican primary before losing to Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas. Leavitt worked in the White House press office during Trump's first term before she became communications director for New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik, Trump's choice for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has been tapped by Trump to be director of national intelligence, keeping with the trend to stock his Cabinet with loyal personalities rather than veteran professionals in their requisite fields. Gabbard, 43, was a Democratic House member who unsuccessfully sought the party's 2020 presidential nomination before leaving the party in 2022. She endorsed Trump in August and campaigned often with him this fall. “I know Tulsi will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our Intelligence Community,” Trump said in a statement. Gabbard, who has served in the Army National Guard for more than two decades, deploying to Iraq and Kuwait, would come to the role as somewhat of an outsider compared to her predecessor. The current director, Avril Haines, was confirmed by the Senate in 2021 following several years in a number of top national security and intelligence positions. Trump has picked John Ratcliffe, a former Texas congressman who served as director of national intelligence during his first administration, to be director of the Central Intelligence Agency in his next. Ratcliffe was director of national intelligence during the final year and a half of Trump's first term, leading the U.S. government's spy agencies during the coronavirus pandemic. “I look forward to John being the first person ever to serve in both of our Nation's highest Intelligence positions,” Trump said in a statement, calling him a “fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans” who would ensure “the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.” Trump has chosen former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin to serve as his pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency . Zeldin does not appear to have any experience in environmental issues, but is a longtime supporter of the former president. The 44-year-old former U.S. House member from New York wrote on X , “We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI.” “We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water,” he added. During his campaign, Trump often attacked the Biden administration's promotion of electric vehicles, and incorrectly referring to a tax credit for EV purchases as a government mandate. Trump also often told his audiences during the campaign his administration would “Drill, baby, drill,” referring to his support for expanded petroleum exploration. In a statement, Trump said Zeldin “will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet.” Trump has named Brendan Carr, the senior Republican on the Federal Communications Commission, as the new chairman of the agency tasked with regulating broadcasting, telecommunications and broadband. Carr is a longtime member of the commission and served previously as the FCC’s general counsel. He has been unanimously confirmed by the Senate three times and was nominated by both Trump and President Joe Biden to the commission. Carr made past appearances on “Fox News Channel," including when he decried Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris' pre-Election Day appearance on “Saturday Night Live.” He wrote an op-ed last month defending a satellite company owned by Trump supporter Elon Musk. Rep. Elise Stefanik is a representative from New York and one of Trump's staunchest defenders going back to his first impeachment. Elected to the House in 2014, Stefanik was selected by her GOP House colleagues as House Republican Conference chair in 2021, when former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney was removed from the post after publicly criticizing Trump for falsely claiming he won the 2020 election. Stefanik, 40, has served in that role ever since as the third-ranking member of House leadership. Stefanik’s questioning of university presidents over antisemitism on their campuses helped lead to two of those presidents resigning, further raising her national profile. If confirmed, she would represent American interests at the U.N. as Trump vows to end the war waged by Russia against Ukraine begun in 2022. He has also called for peace as Israel continues its offensive against Hamas in Gaza and its invasion of Lebanon to target Hezbollah. President-elect Donald Trump says he's chosen former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO. Trump has expressed skepticism about the Western military alliance for years. Trump said in a statement Wednesday that Whitaker is “a strong warrior and loyal Patriot” who “will ensure the United States’ interests are advanced and defended” and “strengthen relationships with our NATO Allies, and stand firm in the face of threats to Peace and Stability.” The choice of Whitaker as the nation’s representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an unusual one, given his background is as a lawyer and not in foreign policy. Trump will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be ambassador to Israel. Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel's interests as it wages wars against the Iran-backed Hamas and Hezbollah. “He loves Israel, and likewise the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement. “Mike will work tirelessly to bring about peace in the Middle East.” Huckabee, who ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and 2016, has been a popular figure among evangelical Christian conservatives, many of whom support Israel due to Old Testament writings that Jews are God’s chosen people and that Israel is their rightful homeland. Trump has been praised by some in this important Republican voting bloc for moving the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Trump on Tuesday named real estate investor Steven Witkoff to be special envoy to the Middle East. The 67-year-old Witkoff is the president-elect's golf partner and was golfing with him at Trump's club in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 15, when the former president was the target of a second attempted assassination. Witkoff “is a Highly Respected Leader in Business and Philanthropy,” Trump said of Witkoff in a statement. “Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud." Trump also named Witkoff co-chair, with former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler, of his inaugural committee. Trump asked Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Army National Guard officer and war veteran, to be his national security adviser, Trump announced in a statement Tuesday. The move puts Waltz in the middle of national security crises, ranging from efforts to provide weapons to Ukraine and worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea to the persistent attacks in the Middle East by Iran proxies and the push for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah. “Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda,” Trump's statement said, "and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!” Waltz is a three-term GOP congressman from east-central Florida. He served multiple tours in Afghanistan and also worked in the Pentagon as a policy adviser when Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates were defense chiefs. He is considered hawkish on China, and called for a U.S. boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing due to its involvement in the origin of COVID-19 and its mistreatment of the minority Muslim Uighur population. Stephen Miller, an immigration hardliner , was a vocal spokesperson during the presidential campaign for Trump's priority of mass deportations. The 39-year-old was a senior adviser during Trump's first administration. Miller has been a central figure in some of Trump's policy decisions, notably his move to separate thousands of immigrant families. Trump argued throughout the campaign that the nation's economic, national security and social priorities could be met by deporting people who are in the United States illegally. Since Trump left office in 2021, Miller has served as the president of America First Legal, an organization made up of former Trump advisers aimed at challenging the Biden administration, media companies, universities and others over issues such as free speech and national security. Thomas Homan, 62, has been tasked with Trump’s top priority of carrying out the largest deportation operation in the nation’s history. Homan, who served under Trump in his first administration leading U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was widely expected to be offered a position related to the border, an issue Trump made central to his campaign. Though Homan has insisted such a massive undertaking would be humane, he has long been a loyal supporter of Trump's policy proposals, suggesting at a July conference in Washington that he would be willing to "run the biggest deportation operation this country’s ever seen.” Democrats have criticized Homan for his defending Trump's “zero tolerance” policy on border crossings during his first administration, which led to the separation of thousands of parents and children seeking asylum at the border. Dr. Mehmet Oz, 64, is a former heart surgeon who hosted “The Dr. Oz Show,” a long-running daytime television talk show. He ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate as the Republican nominee in 2022 and is an outspoken supporter of Trump, who endorsed Oz's bid for elected office. Elon Musk, left, and Vivek Ramaswamy speak before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at an Oct. 27 campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York. Trump on Tuesday said Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Ramaswamy will lead a new “Department of Government Efficiency" — which is not, despite the name, a government agency. The acronym “DOGE” is a nod to Musk's favorite cryptocurrency, dogecoin. Trump said Musk and Ramaswamy will work from outside the government to offer the White House “advice and guidance” and will partner with the Office of Management and Budget to “drive large scale structural reform, and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before.” He added the move would shock government systems. It's not clear how the organization will operate. Musk, owner of X and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, has been a constant presence at Mar-a-Lago since Trump won the presidential election. Ramaswamy suspended his campaign in January and threw his support behind Trump. Trump said the two will “pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.” Russell Vought held the position during Trump’s first presidency. After Trump’s initial term ended, Vought founded the Center for Renewing America, a think tank that describes its mission as “renew a consensus of America as a nation under God.” Vought was closely involved with Project 2025, a conservative blueprint for Trump’s second term that he tried to distance himself from during the campaign. Vought has also previously worked as the executive and budget director for the Republican Study Committee, a caucus for conservative House Republicans. He also worked at Heritage Action, the political group tied to The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. Scavino, whom Trump's transition referred to in a statement as one of “Trump's longest serving and most trusted aides,” was a senior adviser to Trump's 2024 campaign, as well as his 2016 and 2020 campaigns. He will be deputy chief of staff and assistant to the president. Scavino had run Trump's social media profile in the White House during his first administration. He was also held in contempt of Congress in 2022 after a month-long refusal to comply with a subpoena from the House committee’s investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Blair was political director for Trump's 2024 campaign and for the Republican National Committee. He will be deputy chief of staff for legislative, political and public affairs and assistant to the president. Blair was key to Trump's economic messaging during his winning White House comeback campaign this year, a driving force behind the candidate's “Trump can fix it” slogan and his query to audiences this fall if they were better off than four years ago. Budowich is a veteran Trump campaign aide who launched and directed Make America Great Again, Inc., a super PAC that supported Trump's 2024 campaign. He will be deputy chief of staff for communications and personnel and assistant to the president. Budowich also had served as a spokesman for Trump after his presidency. McGinley was White House Cabinet secretary during Trump's first administration, and was outside legal counsel for the Republican National Committee's election integrity effort during the 2024 campaign. In a statement, Trump called McGinley “a smart and tenacious lawyer who will help me advance our America First agenda, while fighting for election integrity and against the weaponization of law enforcement.” Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter.
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Trump's casting call as he builds out his administration: TV experience preferredPLAINS, Ga. (AP) — Newly married and sworn as a Naval officer, Jimmy Carter left his tiny hometown in 1946 hoping to climb the ranks and see the world. Less than a decade later, the death of his father and namesake, a merchant farmer and local politician who went by “Mr. Earl,” prompted the submariner and his wife, Rosalynn, to return to the rural life of Plains, Georgia, they thought they’d escaped. The lieutenant never would be an admiral. Instead, he became commander in chief. Years after his presidency ended in humbling defeat, he would add a Nobel Peace Prize, awarded not for his White House accomplishments but “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.” The life of James Earl Carter Jr., the 39th and longest-lived U.S. president, ended Sunday at the age of 100 where it began: Plains, the town of 600 that fueled his political rise, welcomed him after his fall and sustained him during 40 years of service that redefined what it means to be a former president. With the stubborn confidence of an engineer and an optimism rooted in his Baptist faith, Carter described his motivations in politics and beyond in the same way: an almost missionary zeal to solve problems and improve lives. Carter was raised amid racism, abject poverty and hard rural living — realities that shaped both his deliberate politics and emphasis on human rights. “He always felt a responsibility to help people,” said Jill Stuckey, a longtime friend of Carter's in Plains. “And when he couldn’t make change wherever he was, he decided he had to go higher.” Carter's path, a mix of happenstance and calculation , pitted moral imperatives against political pragmatism; and it defied typical labels of American politics, especially caricatures of one-term presidents as failures. “We shouldn’t judge presidents by how popular they are in their day. That's a very narrow way of assessing them," Carter biographer Jonathan Alter told the Associated Press. “We should judge them by how they changed the country and the world for the better. On that score, Jimmy Carter is not in the first rank of American presidents, but he stands up quite well.” Later in life, Carter conceded that many Americans, even those too young to remember his tenure, judged him ineffective for failing to contain inflation or interest rates, end the energy crisis or quickly bring home American hostages in Iran. He gained admirers instead for his work at The Carter Center — advocating globally for public health, human rights and democracy since 1982 — and the decades he and Rosalynn wore hardhats and swung hammers with Habitat for Humanity. Yet the common view that he was better after the Oval Office than in it annoyed Carter, and his allies relished him living long enough to see historians reassess his presidency. “He doesn’t quite fit in today’s terms” of a left-right, red-blue scoreboard, said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who visited the former president multiple times during his own White House bid. At various points in his political career, Carter labeled himself “progressive” or “conservative” — sometimes both at once. His most ambitious health care bill failed — perhaps one of his biggest legislative disappointments — because it didn’t go far enough to suit liberals. Republicans, especially after his 1980 defeat, cast him as a left-wing cartoon. It would be easiest to classify Carter as a centrist, Buttigieg said, “but there’s also something radical about the depth of his commitment to looking after those who are left out of society and out of the economy.” Indeed, Carter’s legacy is stitched with complexities, contradictions and evolutions — personal and political. The self-styled peacemaker was a war-trained Naval Academy graduate who promised Democratic challenger Ted Kennedy that he’d “kick his ass.” But he campaigned with a call to treat everyone with “respect and compassion and with love.” Carter vowed to restore America’s virtue after the shame of Vietnam and Watergate, and his technocratic, good-government approach didn't suit Republicans who tagged government itself as the problem. It also sometimes put Carter at odds with fellow Democrats. The result still was a notable legislative record, with wins on the environment, education, and mental health care. He dramatically expanded federally protected lands, began deregulating air travel, railroads and trucking, and he put human rights at the center of U.S. foreign policy. As a fiscal hawk, Carter added a relative pittance to the national debt, unlike successors from both parties. Carter nonetheless struggled to make his achievements resonate with the electorate he charmed in 1976. Quoting Bob Dylan and grinning enthusiastically, he had promised voters he would “never tell a lie.” Once in Washington, though, he led like a joyless engineer, insisting his ideas would become reality and he'd be rewarded politically if only he could convince enough people with facts and logic. This served him well at Camp David, where he brokered peace between Israel’s Menachem Begin and Epypt’s Anwar Sadat, an experience that later sparked the idea of The Carter Center in Atlanta. Carter's tenacity helped the center grow to a global force that monitored elections across five continents, enabled his freelance diplomacy and sent public health experts across the developing world. The center’s wins were personal for Carter, who hoped to outlive the last Guinea worm parasite, and nearly did. As president, though, the approach fell short when he urged consumers beleaguered by energy costs to turn down their thermostats. Or when he tried to be the nation’s cheerleader, beseeching Americans to overcome a collective “crisis of confidence.” Republican Ronald Reagan exploited Carter's lecturing tone with a belittling quip in their lone 1980 debate. “There you go again,” the former Hollywood actor said in response to a wonky answer from the sitting president. “The Great Communicator” outpaced Carter in all but six states. Carter later suggested he “tried to do too much, too soon” and mused that he was incompatible with Washington culture: media figures, lobbyists and Georgetown social elites who looked down on the Georgians and their inner circle as “country come to town.” Carter carefully navigated divides on race and class on his way to the Oval Office. Born Oct. 1, 1924 , Carter was raised in the mostly Black community of Archery, just outside Plains, by a progressive mother and white supremacist father. Their home had no running water or electricity but the future president still grew up with the relative advantages of a locally prominent, land-owning family in a system of Jim Crow segregation. He wrote of President Franklin Roosevelt’s towering presence and his family’s Democratic Party roots, but his father soured on FDR, and Jimmy Carter never campaigned or governed as a New Deal liberal. He offered himself as a small-town peanut farmer with an understated style, carrying his own luggage, bunking with supporters during his first presidential campaign and always using his nickname. And he began his political career in a whites-only Democratic Party. As private citizens, he and Rosalynn supported integration as early as the 1950s and believed it inevitable. Carter refused to join the White Citizens Council in Plains and spoke out in his Baptist church against denying Black people access to worship services. “This is not my house; this is not your house,” he said in a churchwide meeting, reminding fellow parishioners their sanctuary belonged to God. Yet as the appointed chairman of Sumter County schools he never pushed to desegregate, thinking it impractical after the Supreme Court’s 1954 Brown v. Board decision. And while presidential candidate Carter would hail the 1965 Voting Rights Act, signed by fellow Democrat Lyndon Johnson when Carter was a state senator, there is no record of Carter publicly supporting it at the time. Carter overcame a ballot-stuffing opponent to win his legislative seat, then lost the 1966 governor's race to an arch-segregationist. He won four years later by avoiding explicit mentions of race and campaigning to the right of his rival, who he mocked as “Cufflinks Carl” — the insult of an ascendant politician who never saw himself as part the establishment. Carter’s rural and small-town coalition in 1970 would match any victorious Republican electoral map in 2024. Once elected, though, Carter shocked his white conservative supporters — and landed on the cover of Time magazine — by declaring that “the time for racial discrimination is over.” Before making the jump to Washington, Carter befriended the family of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., whom he’d never sought out as he eyed the governor’s office. Carter lamented his foot-dragging on school integration as a “mistake.” But he also met, conspicuously, with Alabama's segregationist Gov. George Wallace to accept his primary rival's endorsement ahead of the 1976 Democratic convention. “He very shrewdly took advantage of his own Southerness,” said Amber Roessner, a University of Tennessee professor and expert on Carter’s campaigns. A coalition of Black voters and white moderate Democrats ultimately made Carter the last Democratic presidential nominee to sweep the Deep South. Then, just as he did in Georgia, he used his power in office to appoint more non-whites than all his predecessors had, combined. He once acknowledged “the secret shame” of white Americans who didn’t fight segregation. But he also told Alter that doing more would have sacrificed his political viability – and thus everything he accomplished in office and after. King's daughter, Bernice King, described Carter as wisely “strategic” in winning higher offices to enact change. “He was a leader of conscience,” she said in an interview. Rosalynn Carter, who died on Nov. 19 at the age of 96, was identified by both husband and wife as the “more political” of the pair; she sat in on Cabinet meetings and urged him to postpone certain priorities, like pressing the Senate to relinquish control of the Panama Canal. “Let that go until the second term,” she would sometimes say. The president, recalled her former aide Kathy Cade, retorted that he was “going to do what’s right” even if “it might cut short the time I have.” Rosalynn held firm, Cade said: “She’d remind him you have to win to govern.” Carter also was the first president to appoint multiple women as Cabinet officers. Yet by his own telling, his career sprouted from chauvinism in the Carters' early marriage: He did not consult Rosalynn when deciding to move back to Plains in 1953 or before launching his state Senate bid a decade later. Many years later, he called it “inconceivable” that he didn’t confer with the woman he described as his “full partner,” at home, in government and at The Carter Center. “We developed a partnership when we were working in the farm supply business, and it continued when Jimmy got involved in politics,” Rosalynn Carter told AP in 2021. So deep was their trust that when Carter remained tethered to the White House in 1980 as 52 Americans were held hostage in Tehran, it was Rosalynn who campaigned on her husband’s behalf. “I just loved it,” she said, despite the bitterness of defeat. Fair or not, the label of a disastrous presidency had leading Democrats keep their distance, at least publicly, for many years, but Carter managed to remain relevant, writing books and weighing in on societal challenges. He lamented widening wealth gaps and the influence of money in politics. He voted for democratic socialist Bernie Sanders over Hillary Clinton in 2016, and later declared that America had devolved from fully functioning democracy to “oligarchy.” Yet looking ahead to 2020, with Sanders running again, Carter warned Democrats not to “move to a very liberal program,” lest they help re-elect President Donald Trump. Carter scolded the Republican for his serial lies and threats to democracy, and chided the U.S. establishment for misunderstanding Trump’s populist appeal. He delighted in yearly convocations with Emory University freshmen, often asking them to guess how much he’d raised in his two general election campaigns. “Zero,” he’d gesture with a smile, explaining the public financing system candidates now avoid so they can raise billions. Carter still remained quite practical in partnering with wealthy corporations and foundations to advance Carter Center programs. Carter recognized that economic woes and the Iran crisis doomed his presidency, but offered no apologies for appointing Paul Volcker as the Federal Reserve chairman whose interest rate hikes would not curb inflation until Reagan's presidency. He was proud of getting all the hostages home without starting a shooting war, even though Tehran would not free them until Reagan's Inauguration Day. “Carter didn’t look at it” as a failure, Alter emphasized. “He said, ‘They came home safely.’ And that’s what he wanted.” Well into their 90s, the Carters greeted visitors at Plains’ Maranatha Baptist Church, where he taught Sunday School and where he will have his last funeral before being buried on family property alongside Rosalynn . Carter, who made the congregation’s collection plates in his woodworking shop, still garnered headlines there, calling for women’s rights within religious institutions, many of which, he said, “subjugate” women in church and society. Carter was not one to dwell on regrets. “I am at peace with the accomplishments, regret the unrealized goals and utilize my former political position to enhance everything we do,” he wrote around his 90th birthday. The politician who had supposedly hated Washington politics also enjoyed hosting Democratic presidential contenders as public pilgrimages to Plains became advantageous again. Carter sat with Buttigieg for the final time March 1, 2020, hours before the Indiana mayor ended his campaign and endorsed eventual winner Joe Biden. “He asked me how I thought the campaign was going,” Buttigieg said, recalling that Carter flashed his signature grin and nodded along as the young candidate, born a year after Carter left office, “put the best face” on the walloping he endured the day before in South Carolina. Never breaking his smile, the 95-year-old host fired back, “I think you ought to drop out.” “So matter of fact,” Buttigieg said with a laugh. “It was somehow encouraging.” Carter had lived enough, won plenty and lost enough to take the long view. “He talked a lot about coming from nowhere,” Buttigieg said, not just to attain the presidency but to leverage “all of the instruments you have in life” and “make the world more peaceful.” In his farewell address as president, Carter said as much to the country that had embraced and rejected him. “The struggle for human rights overrides all differences of color, nation or language,” he declared. “Those who hunger for freedom, who thirst for human dignity and who suffer for the sake of justice — they are the patriots of this cause.” Carter pledged to remain engaged with and for them as he returned “home to the South where I was born and raised,” home to Plains, where that young lieutenant had indeed become “a fellow citizen of the world.” —- Bill Barrow, based in Atlanta, has covered national politics including multiple presidential campaigns for the AP since 2012.
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