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superph customer service Margaret Ruff, a second grade teacher at Hollis Elementary School, staples letters to a bulletin board outside her classroom as she prepares for the start of the 2023 school year. Ruff was hoping teachers’ wages go up so she can afford to teach for the long term. Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer Maine needs to improve its teacher certification processes and invest in career pathways to grow and strengthen its educator workforce, according to a new report from an education nonprofit done in collaboration with the Maine Department of Education. Maine, like most states, has struggled to fully staff its schools . Last spring the state estimated it would have widespread shortages for the 2024-25 school year, and allowed emergency hiring for teachers in many subjects, including health, special education, computer science, music, social studies, early childhood, art, English, English as a second language, science and math. Educate Maine, a nonprofit that advocates for education policies, released a report this week after working with the state to develop the Teach Maine Center , a hub for teachers with the goal of advancing the profession in the state. The purpose of the report was to learn how teachers think Maine could grow and sustain its educator workforce, a first step in setting up the center. Educate Maine and the Maine DOE organized forums in every county between October 2023 and May 2024, where teachers answered questions about how to improve recruitment, support and advancement in their field. About 250 teachers from more than 100 districts participated. The report offers seven recommendations to improve Maine’s teacher workforce, ranging from financial support to legislative advocacy: • The first is to reduce barriers, like time commitment and costs, in the teacher certification process. The report says accepting out-of-state certifications, counting work experience toward certification requirements, and adding one-on-one coaching, better customer service and financial support could all ease barriers. In a related recommendation, it suggests expanding or creating undergraduate scholarships, loan forgiveness and paying student teachers to encourage people to come into the field. “As a second career it becomes ‘pay to play’ – you have to have money to do the courses and student teach,” an unnamed Cumberland County teacher said during a forum. • It also suggests creating apprenticeships and accelerated programs for educational technicians or substitutes to become teachers. • The report proposes developing more ways for teachers to connect to each other through workshops, physical hubs and mentorships. • And suggests that investment in non-teaching positions like ed techs, substitutes and bus drivers would enrich the overall school ecosystem. • The final three recommendations are for more public celebration of the work teachers do, adding opportunities for growth or leadership within the profession and improved advocacy skills. The report says the nature of public education is changing because of forces like politics and social media, and that many teachers say the cost-benefit analysis of becoming a teacher just doesn’t make sense anymore. “The time, financial costs, and opportunity costs (e.g. forgoing paid work while student teaching) of becoming a teacher are very high for what is a very low salary compared to other professional occupations,” the report reads. “The work is meaningful with many benefits, but high costs to obtain credentials when salaries are not keeping up with the cost of living turns people away from even considering the profession.” The report concludes by saying that Maine’s policy will need to change to improve its recruitment and retention of educators. “We heard over and over again: increase teacher pay, eliminate the Windfall Elimination provision (social security offset penalization), pay student teachers, create more pathways into the profession, and build more housing,” it reads. We invite you to add your comments. We encourage a thoughtful exchange of ideas and information on this website. By joining the conversation, you are agreeing to our commenting policy and terms of use . More information is found on our FAQs . You can modify your screen name here . Comments are managed by our staff during regular business hours Monday through Friday as well as limited hours on Saturday and Sunday. Comments held for moderation outside of those hours may take longer to approve. Please sign into your Sun Journal account to participate in conversations below. If you do not have an account, you can register or subscribe . Questions? Please see our FAQs . Your commenting screen name has been updated. Send questions/comments to the editors. « Previous Next »President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday vowed to name a new prime minister in the coming days to prevent France from sliding deeper into political turmoil, rejecting growing pressure from the opposition to resign. Macron adopted a defiant tone in an address to the nation, seeking to limit an escalating political crisis after Prime Minister Michel Barnier's government was ousted in a historic no-confidence vote. Contemporary France's shortest-serving premier, Barnier resigned after Wednesday's parliamentary defeat in a standoff over the budget forced his government to step down, the first such toppling of a French administration in over 60 years. Macron now faces the task for the third time this year of selecting a new prime minister and did not come up with a name in his address. "I will appoint a prime minister in the coming days," he said, adding this person would be charged with forming a "government of general interest" with a priority of passing a budget. He also lashed out at the French far right and hard left for uniting in an "anti-republican front" to bring down the government. He said lawmakers had "knowingly" chosen "to topple the budget and the government just days before the Christmas holidays." The French presidency said earlier that Barnier and his ministers would remain "in charge of daily business until the appointment of a new government". Limiting any impression of political chaos is all the more important for Macron given that on Saturday he will host world leaders -- including US President-elect Donald Trump -- for the reopening of the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris after a devastating 2019 fire. Pointing to how the edifice was rebuilt within the five-year timeline he had set, Macron said: "It's the proof we're able to do great things, that we can do the impossible." In an unusual move, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, France's top diplomat for just two-and-a-half months, urged unity in a message on social media, saying "instability is vulnerability" at a time of international uncertainty. A majority of lawmakers on Wednesday supported the no-confidence vote proposed by the hard left and backed by the far right headed by Marine Le Pen. Barnier's ejection in record time came after snap parliamentary elections in June resulted in a hung parliament. No political force was able to form an overall majority and the far right held the key to the government's survival. The trigger for Barnier's ouster was his 2025 budget plan, including austerity measures unacceptable to a majority in parliament, but which he argued were necessary to stabilise France's finances. On Monday he forced through a social security financing bill without a vote, but the ousting of the government means France is still without a budget. New legislative elections cannot be called until a year after the previous ones in summer 2024. But while Macron has more than two years of his presidential term left, some opponents are calling on him to resign to break the deadlock. According to a poll by Odoxa-Backbone Consulting for Le Figaro daily, 59 percent of French want the president to step down, while a survey by Harris for RTL put the figure even higher, at 64 percent. Bur Macron said: "The mandate that you gave to me democratically (in 2022 elections) is a five-year mandate and I will exercise it fully, right up to the end." "The 30 months we have ahead of us must be 30 months of useful action for the country." But he admitted his decision to call snap parliamentary elections this summer that resulted in a hung parliament "was not understood". "Many have blamed me for it and I know, many continue to blame me. It's a fact and it's my responsibility," he said. Hard-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon said that Macron was the "cause of the problem" in France "and would go due to the force of events" before his term ends. Barnier is Macron's fifth prime minister since coming to power in 2017. Each successive premier has served for a shorter period and, given the composition of the National Assembly, there is no guarantee that Barnier's successor would last any longer. Loyalist Defence Minister Sebastien Lecornu and Macron's centrist ally Francois Bayrou have been touted as possible contenders, as has former Socialist premier and interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve. Bayrou, who leads the MoDem party, had lunch with the president at the Elysee, a source close to him told AFP. sjw/ah/gvPatrick Mahomes threw three touchdown passes and Spencer Shrader kicked a 31-yard field goal on the game's final play as the Kansas City Chiefs topped the Carolina Panthers 30-27 on Sunday afternoon at Charlotte. It was a bounce-back effort for the Chiefs (10-1), who lost for the first time this season a week earlier against the Buffalo Bills. Kansas City never trailed yet had to use a 57-yard drive to move into scoring position to close the game. Mahomes was 27 of 37 for 269 yards, tight end Noah Gray caught two touchdown passes and Shrader kicked two field goals. Carolina's Chuba Hubbard ran 1 yard for a touchdown with 1:46 remaining and tacked on a two-point conversion run to knot the score at 27-all. It was the second try on the conversion after a defensive pass penalty on an incomplete throw. Bryce Young threw for 263 yards and a touchdown for the Panthers (3-8), who had a two-game winning streak snapped. Eddy Pineiro kicked field goals from 30, 32, 29 and 33 yards. Carolina tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders was carted off the field just before halftime and was hospitalized with a neck injury. Sanders had movement in all extremities, according to head coach Dave Canales. Both teams scored touchdowns on their first possessions of the second half. Carolina used 15 plays and more than 8 1/2 minutes, resulting in Young's 1-yard TD pass to David Moore. Kansas City pushed its edge to 27-16 on a 75-yard march in 10 plays with DeAndre Hopkins grabbing Mahomes' 3-yard pass. The Chiefs seemed in a hurry to wipe away the disappointment from the previous week. Samaje Perine returned the opening kickoff 56 yards into Carolina territory and on the third snap, Mahomes connected with Gray for a 35-yard touchdown. The next four scoring plays were field goals - two for each team. The Chiefs then drove 92 yards in 14 plays to score on Gray's 11-yard reception, pushing their lead to 20-6 with 44 seconds left in the first half. Kansas City scored on all four of its first-half possessions. The Panthers weren't finished, moving to the Kansas City 11 before settling for their third field goal on the last play of the half. --Field Level Media

Controversial Love Islander lined up for All Stars in their FOURTH attempt at showFormer Florida congressman Matt Gaetz has withdrawn as President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general following scrutiny over a federal sex trafficking investigation. The Republican's announcement came one day after meeting with senators in an effort to win their support for his confirmation to lead the Justice Department. Here's the latest: As incoming White House chief of staff, one of Susie Wiles ’ vexing challenges will be policing the buffet line of powerful interests who want something from Donald Trump. It’s a world she knows well. During Trump’s first presidency, she lobbied for many of them. Trump was first elected on a pledge to “drain the swamp” in Washington. But his transactional approach to the presidency instead ushered in a lobbying boom that showered allies, including Wiles, with lucrative contracts, empowered wealthy business associates and stymied his agenda after his administration was ensnared in a series of influence-peddling scandals. Now, as Trump prepares to return to power , his victory is likely to embolden those who think they can get his ear, raising the prospect that his second administration could face many of the same perils as his first. That will test the ability of Wiles to manage a growing number of high-powered figures — including Trump’s children, his son-in-law Jared Kushner and billionaires like Elon Musk — who will not be dependent on her for access to the president. ▶ Read more about Susie Wiles and her new role Vance accompanied Matt Gaetz in meetings with GOP senators on Wednesday. “I’m extremely grateful for the work Matt put into the nomination process,” the Ohio senator posted on X. “Matt is a patriot, and I look forward to seeing what he does next.” President Joe Biden still believes President-elect Donald Trump is a dangerous figure in U.S. democracy, his top spokesperson said Thursday. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said “his thinking on that has not changed” even as the Biden White House emphasizes its commitment to the “peaceful transfer of power.” Jean-Pierre told reporters there is no double-speak in Biden’s approach. Biden framed Donald Trump as a “fundamental threat” to the nation’s identity as a democracy and its stability as a global superpower when he defeated Trump in 2020. He did it as a candidate for reelection. He did it again when he dropped out and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. But Jean-Pierre said Biden recognizes the legitimacy of Trump’s election to another term, even if it’s not the result he wanted. “The American people spoke,” she said, adding that Biden wants to be an example of how to respect U.S. elections. That was an opaque reference to Trump’s refusal to accept Biden’s victory in 2020 and the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters as Congress met to affirm the results. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre says she hasn’t spoken to her designated successor, Karoline Leavitt. Jean-Pierre told reporters gathered Thursday at the White House that she hopes the second Trump administration will be forthright with the public by talking to reporters. Trump’s first White House dramatically curtailed its initial interactions with the White House press corps, and Jean-Pierre said Biden and his staff “worked really hard to bring back the norms” with press briefings and interactions. “We’ve tried to do this in a very respectful way,” she said. Jean-Pierre declined to “speak to what any administration is going to do” in the future, but added that the back-and-forth with the press is part of “what democracy is all about.” In other presidential transition news, Trump is urging federal lawmakers to kill a bill that would protect journalists from having to disclose information about anonymous sources or other records obtained during reporting. The proposal that passed in the U.S. House of Representatives, but is pending in the Senate, also bars the government from requesting data from phone or email providers. The bill includes exceptions such as when there’s a reasonable threat of imminent violence or an act of terrorism. As of now, only some states grant absolute protection from disclosing sources or other records. “Republicans must kill this bill!” Trump posted on Truth Social and shared a video from PBS News Hour interviewing the CEO of the Committee to Protect Journalist, Jodie Ginsburg, talking about the proposal. Last month, The Associated Press, along with more than 100 news outlets and organizations, signed a letter authored by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press asking senators to support the bill. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre isn’t commenting on Matt Gaetz withdrawing his nomination as president-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general in the new administration. “We really, truly want to respect the transfer of power,” Jean-Pierre said Thursday during a White House press briefing, explaining her steadfast refusal to comment on Trump personnel moves. But Jean-Pierre nonetheless used the matter to take a subtle jab at how Trump, who was twice indicted by the federal government, has reacted to federal law enforcement. “Look, the president has said when it comes to investigation, that department should be independent. there should be no partisanship. There should be no loyalty to one party or the other,” she said. “The loyalty should be to the Constitution, and the loyalty should be to the rule of law.” Trump has insisted that it was Biden and his lieutenants who weaponized the Justice Department by indicting him for his role in trying to overturn Biden’s 2020 election victory and for hoarding national security documents after Trump left the White House in January 2021. That latter case has been thrown out by a Trump-appointed judge. The former case is still pending. Taken together, there are a striking number of incidents in which potential high-ranking government officials in Trump’s second administration face allegations of sexual abuse. Here’s a look at some of the cases: President-elect Donald Trump: He was found liable by a New York City jury for sexual abuse and defamation and eventually ordered to pay the woman, E. Jean Carroll , $83 million in damages. Pete Hegseth, nominee for secretary of defense: A woman told police she was sexually assaulted in 2017 by Hegseth after he took her phone, blocked the door to a California hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to a detailed investigative report made public this week. Hegseth told police the encounter had been consensual and denies wrongdoing. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., nominee for secretary of health and human services: A woman who babysat for Kennedy and his second wife told Vanity Fair magazine he groped her in the late 1990s, when she was 23. Kennedy did not deny the allegation, telling a podcast: “I had a very, very rambunctious youth.” He texted the woman an apology after the story was published. Linda McMahon, nominee for secretary of education: A lawsuit filed last month alleges McMahon knowingly enabled sexual exploitation of children by a World Wrestling Entertainment employee as early as the 1980s. She denies the allegations. Elon Musk, Trump’s choice to lead the new Department of Government Efficiency: The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX was accused of sexual misconduct by a flight attendant contracted by SpaceX who worked on his private jet in 2016. He denied the claim. ▶ Read more about the allegations of sexual misconduct Among those who were seen as contenders before Gaetz was picked is former acting attorney general Matt Whitaker , who Trump chose earlier this week to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO. Other names that were floated as potential attorney general nominees include Jeff Jensen, a former U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri, and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. Trump last week chose Todd Blanche , an attorney who led the legal team that defended the Republican at his hush money criminal trial , to serve as the second-highest ranking Justice Department official. Emil Bove, a former federal prosecutor, was chosen to be the principal associate deputy attorney general. An attorney who represents two women who say they were paid by Gaetz for sex says his clients are “relieved to have this chapter behind them.” “They’re grateful for the opportunity to move forward with their lives,” said Joel Leppard, whose clients testified before the House Ethics Committee. “They’re hoping that this brings final closure for all the parties involved.” Leppard revealed earlier this week details about his clients’ testimony to House Ethics Committee to release its report on the Gaetz investigation. Leppard said his clients were paid a total of $10,000 by the congressman. One of his clients testified that she saw Gaetz having sex with a 17-year-old at a party in 2017, while he was in Congress. Though Gaetz has withdrawn his name from consideration for attorney general, he isn’t Trump’s only appointee in hot water. A woman told police she was sexually assaulted in 2017 by Pete Hegseth after he took her phone, blocked the door to a California hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to a detailed investigative report made public late Wednesday. Hegseth, a former Fox News personality and Trump’s nominee to be defense secretary, told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing, the report said. Earlier today, Hegseth held a round of private meetings alongside incoming Vice President JD Vance in an attempt to shore up support and told reporters afterward: “The matter was fully investigated and I was completely cleared, and that’s where I’m gonna leave it.” ▶ Read more about the allegations against Hegseth In his Nov. 13 resignation letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson, Gaetz said, “I hereby resign, as United States Representatives for Florida’s First Congressional District, effective immediately, and I do not intend to take the oath of office for the same office in the 119th Congress, to pursue the position of Attorney General in the Trump Administration.” He transmitted a similar letter to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as the state began a special election process to fill the vacancy. Attorneys involved in a civil case brought by a Gaetz associate were notified this week that an unauthorized person accessed a file shared between lawyers that included unredacted depositions from a woman who said Gaetz had sex with her when she was 17 and a second woman who says she saw the encounter, according to attorney Joel Leppard. Leppard said that two women he represents told House Ethics Committee investigators that Gaetz paid them for sex on multiple occasions beginning in 2017 when Gaetz was in Congress. The files the person was able to access were part of a defamation case filed by a Gaetz associate against the former representative’s onetime political ally Joel Greenberg , who pleaded guilty in 2021 to sex trafficking of a minor, and admitted that he had paid at least one underage girl to have sex with him and other men. The apparent breach was first reported Tuesday by The New York Times. Gaetz has denied all the allegations. ▶ Read more about the apparent file breach Trump had announced last week that he’d chosen Todd Blanche, an attorney who’s defended him in some of his criminal cases, to serve as deputy attorney general. That’s the second highest ranking position at the Justice Department. A former federal prosecutor, Blanche has been a key figure defended him both in the New York hush money criminal trial that ended in a conviction in May, and the federal cases brought by Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said Thursday in a post on X that he believes the now-former congressman “will continue to contribute to our nation’s wellbeing for years to come.” Graham, a member of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, also said he looks forward to working with Trump “regarding future nominees to get this important job up and running.” The caption of the Instagram photo reads “The end of an era. No one loves America more than this guy.” The Florida representative was once embroiled in a sex trafficking investigation involving underage girls by the Justice Department, the very department President-elect Trump had tapped him to lead. Gaetz has vehemently denied any wrongdoing, and in February 2023 said the investigation ended with no federal charges against him.He was also being investigated by the House Ethics panel, but Republicans declined yesterday to release the committee’s findings over objections from Democrats in a split vote. ▶ Read more about the Justice Department’s investigation into Gaetz He had abruptly resigned from his congressional seat upon being nominated as attorney general amid a long-running House Ethics investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct, which was seen as a way to halt the probe. The House Ethics panel’s Republicans declined this week to release the committee’s findings into Gaetz over objections from Democrats in a split vote. But the committee did agree to finish its work and is scheduled to meet again Dec. 5 to discuss the matter. However, Gaetz did win re-election earlier this month for the new Congress which convenes Jan. 3. But it’s unclear if he would take office. There’s also been plans for a special election in Florida for his seat. “President Trump remains committed to choosing a leader for the Department of Justice who will strongly defend the Constitution and end the weaponization of our justice system,” said Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for the Trump-Vance transition team. In a message on his Truth Social network, Trump also said he was looking forward to seeing what Gaetz will do next after withdrawing as his pick. “He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect,” Trump posted. “Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!” Matt Gaetz has just withdrawn as President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general following continued scrutiny over a federal sex trafficking investigation that cast doubt on the former congressman’s ability to be confirmed as the nation’s chief federal law enforcement officer. The Florida Republican’s announcement came one day after meeting with senators in an effort to win their support for his confirmation to lead the Justice Department. Gaetz’s withdrawal is a blow to Trump’s push to install steadfast loyalists in his incoming administration and the first sign that Trump could face resistance from members of his own party.

The masked gunman who stalked and killed UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel used ammunition emblazoned with the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose,” a law enforcement official said Thursday. The gunman is still at large and a manhunt is underway. Here's the latest: Just minutes before the shooting, the suspect was seen on surveillance footage purchasing the two items from a nearby Starbucks. Both the water bottle and protein bar wrapper were later recovered from a trash can in the vicinity of the killing, according to a police spokesperson. They’ve been sent to the city’s medical examiner for expedited fingerprint testing. As the suspect remained at large Thursday afternoon, New York police were sorting through a growing number of leads coming in through a public hotline. Many have been unfounded, including a tip from a commuter who claimed to have spotted the shooter on a Long Island Rail Road train Wednesday evening. Police searched the train, but found no sign of the gunman. Members of the public have also provided police with several different names of people who bear a resemblance to the gunman — though they have yet to confirm the shooter’s identity. NYPD spokesperson Carlos Nieves urged anyone with information to contact the department “even if it seems trivial.” “We ask you to call the tip line because that little piece of information could be the missing piece of the puzzle that ties everything together,” he said. Users’ reactions — and in many cases jokes — populated comment sections teeming with frustration toward health insurers broadly and UnitedHealthcare in particular. “I would be happy to help look for the shooter but vision isn’t covered under my healthcare plan,” one comment read on Instagram. “Thoughts and prior authorizations!” wrote another user. Images released by police of a person they say is wanted for questioning in connection with the shooting match the lobby of the HI New York City hostel on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Both feature a black-and-white checkered floor and a distinctive bench in the shape of a semicircle. Matheus Taranto, a guest at the hostel who’s visiting from Brazil, says he saw police at the lodging Wednesday evening. He said an officer wouldn’t let him access a bathroom where he wanted to brush his teeth. “I asked why, he was like, no, nothing happened,” said Taranto, 24. He didn’t connect the dots with the shooting until later. In Minnesota, police in the Minneapolis suburb of Maple Grove, where Thompson lived, said Thursday they believe a bomb threat on Wednesday night was a hoax. Maple Grove police put out a statement Thursday saying a “suspected swatting investigation” was underway. The department said it received a report of a bomb threat directed at two addresses around 7 p.m. CT Wednesday. The Minneapolis Bomb Squad and the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office assisted, but investigators found no suspicions devices or other items. “The case is considered an active investigation, while the incident appears to be a hoax. No further comments will be made at this time,” the police statement said. Police reports provided to The Associated Press by the department show that officers made contact with family members at one of the homes and were told they had seen nothing suspicious and had received no direct threats. Back in Thompson’s home state of Minnesota, authorities were investigating a bomb threat that reportedly was made against his home Wednesday night, after his death. It was first reported by TMZ. City Prosecutor Andrew Draper confirmed to The Associated Press via email Thursday that he received an email Wednesday night “regarding a bomb threat. I reported it to the Maple Grove Police Department and do not have any additional information.” Maple Grove police officials did not immediately respond to requests for details Thursday. Local ATF spokesperson Ashlee Sherrill said: “ATF was made aware of the incident in Maple Grove last night, but no ATF resources were deployed. We are unable to confirm any further details.” A local FBI spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for information on the FBI’s involvement in the investigation. The words emblazoned on the ammunition used in the shooting – “deny,” “defend” and “depose” – were written in permanent marker, according to a law enforcement official. The official wasn’t authorized to publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity. — Jake Offenhartz As of Thursday morning, police were still searching for the shooter. They released new photos of a person they said is wanted for questioning in connection with the shooting. The images match the lobby of the HI New York City hostel on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, including its black-and-white checkered floor and a distinctive bench in the shape of a semi-circle. An employee at the hostel said police had visited but declined to provide further information. Danielle Brumfitt, a spokesperson for the lodging, said in an emailed statement that they are cooperating with the NYPD but can’t comment due to the active investigation. According to the official who spoke to AP about the ammunition messaging, investigators are running DNA and fingerprint analysis on items found near the shooting, including a water bottle, that they believe the suspect may have discarded. Additionally, they’re looking into whether the suspect had pre-positioned a bike as part of an escape plan. Doctors and patients have become particularly frustrated with prior authorizations, which are requirements that an insurer approve surgery or care before it happens. UnitedHealthcare was named in an October report detailing how the insurer’s prior authorization denial rate for some Medicare Advantage patients has surged in recent years. The report from the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations also named rivals Humana and CVS. Insurers say tactics like prior authorization are needed to limit unnecessary care and help control spiraling medical costs. Frustrations extend beyond the coverage of care. Expensive breakthrough medications to slow Alzheimer’s disease or help with obesity are frequently not covered or have coverage limits. In the U.S. health care system, patients get coverage through a mix of private insurers such as UnitedHealthcare and government-funded programs such as Medicaid and Medicare. That can prove particularly frustrating for doctors and patients because coverage often varies by insurer. Polls reflect those frustrations with the U.S. health care system in general and insurance companies in particular. About two-thirds of Americans said health insurance companies deserve “a lot of blame” for high health care costs, according to a KFF poll conducted in February . Thompson’s wife, Paulette Thompson, told NBC News that he told her “there were some people that had been threatening him.” She didn’t have details but suggested the threats may have involved issues with insurance coverage. Eric Werner, the police chief in the Minneapolis suburb where Thompson lived, said his department had not received any reports of threats against the executive. A message left at the scene of an insurance executive’s fatal shooting — “deny,” “defend” and “depose” — echoes a phrase commonly used to describe insurer tactics to avoid paying claims. The three words were emblazoned on the ammunition a masked gunman used to kill UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson , a law enforcement official told The Associated Press on Thursday. They’re similar to the phrase “delay, deny, defend” — the way some attorneys describe how insurers deny services and payment, and the title of a 2010 book that was highly critical of the industry. Police haven’t officially commented on the wording or any connection between them and the common phrase. But Thompson’s shooting and the messages on the ammunition have sparked outrage on social media and elsewhere, reflecting a deepening frustration Americans have over the cost and complexity of getting care. ▶ Read more about the messaging left behind by the shooter The New York Police Department released photos Thursday morning, asking for the public’s assistance in identifying the individual pictured. Police say the person is wanted for questioning in connection with the shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO. A Senate panel has been investigating how frequently three major insurers, including UnitedHealthcare, deny care to patients who are enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans. It has also investigated the use of artificial intelligence in deny those claims. Medicare Advantage is the private version of Medicare, which provides health insurance to millions of older Americans. The Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee’s report released earlier this year found that as UnitedHealthcare relied more on its automated system to review claims denials increased for post-acute treatment, which includes nursing home or rehabilitation care. The insurer denied nearly a quarter of claims, a rate that doubled over just a two-year period from 2020 to 2022. Joseph Kenny, the NYPD chief of detectives, says the shooter wore a black face mask, black-and-white sneakers and a distinctive gray backpack. He arrived outside the hotel about five minutes before UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson did, then waited and ignored other pedestrians before he approached Thompson from behind. After the assailant began to fire, his 9 mm pistol jammed but he quickly fixed it and kept firing, Kenny said, another sign of the shooter’s professionalism. “From watching the video, it does seem that he’s proficient in the use of firearms as he was able to clear the malfunctions pretty quickly,” Kenny said. The hostels were on Manhattan’s Upper West Side and police were following a tip that the suspect may have stayed at one of the residences, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the investigation. The official requested anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the ongoing search. According to an employee of Kama Central Park, two detectives arrived at the hostel at 7 a.m. Thursday with a photo of the shooter and asked staff if they recognized the man. They did not, the employee said, and the detectives left soon after. An employee at the nearby HI New York City hostel also confirmed that police had visited the location Thursday, but declined to provide further information. — Jake Offenhartz New York Mayor Eric Adams said Thursday the shooter used a silencer — something he’d never encountered in his 22 years as a police officer. “In all of my years in law enforcement I have never seen a silencer before,” Adams, a retired NYPD captain, said in an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “And so that was really something that was shocking to us all.” The masked gunman used ammunition emblazoned with the words “deny,” “defend” and “depose,” a law enforcement official said Thursday. The official was not authorized to publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity. The words on the ammunition may have been a reference to strategies insurance companies use to try to avoid paying claims. Investigators recovered several 9 mm shell casings from outside the hotel, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny had said earlier. — Mike Balsamo, Jake Offenhartz and Michael R. Sisak The chief executive of UnitedHealthcare, one of the nation’s largest insurers, was killed Wednesday in midtown Manhattan in what police described as a targeted attack by a shooter outside a hotel where the company was holding a conference. ▶ Read more about the key things to know about the fatal attackI watched the interview with Sam Altman by Andrew Ross Sorkin of the New York Times. It seemed like a fundamental way station in the story that people are telling about large language models and related technology. Here are some of the main points that stood out to me about the journey, and how it has informed not just business, but society as a whole. First of all, Sorkin asked Altman about the trajectory of the technology itself, and he brought this up early on the interview. Why, he asked, did people get suddenly more interested when ChatGPT first came out? In response Altman talked about what he called the “chanciness” of change, and suggested that one reason for massive investments directly after the unveiling of ChatGPT is that people were having a lot of fun talking to the model, interacting directly, and seeing firsthand what the technology was capable of. “We said, ‘Well, if that's what people want, we can make it much easier to use,’” he explained. “You don't have to sign up for a developer account and do all these other things, and we can sort of train it to be good at conversations. And so we said, okay, let's make this as a product.” Since then, as the two noted, it’s been off to the races. Is There a Wall? Artificial Intelligence and Its Limitations Sorkin and his interview subject also discussed limitations and constraints on technological progress. Altman seemed to suggest that we shouldn’t worry so much about whether there is a wall, but understand what’s already happened, and be enthusiastic about the potential that it shows. In a sense, these technologies have already proven themselves. As for drivers of this program, he suggested that algorithmic progress is at least as important as expanding compute. He pointed to the transformer as a major innovation, and if you look back in the blog, I had been laying out how new models take advantage of this architecture to jump to the next level. The AI Arms Race Noting an “arms race” in terms of processing power, Sorkin asked Altman about who the competitors are, and how that works. Later in the interview, he got into some of the tensions within the industry, where Altman largely declined to wade into the fray, but instead talked about his positive past history with Elon Musk, and his general desire to work with others across the field, rather than foment conflict. Now, without trying to cherry-pick Altman’s responses to Sorkin’s sort of personal inquiries, I think it’s notable to provide this quote and take notice, in the context that there’s a lot of talk flying around about business clout and political sway, specifically centered around whether anti-competitive behavior can come out of unusual political relationships: “I believe pretty strongly that Elon will do the right thing,” Altman said. “It can be profoundly unAmerican, to use political power, to the degree that Elon has it, to hurt your competitors and (unfairly position) your own businesses. ... I don't think Elon would do it.” For more on the background, and his other thoughts on this score, you can watch the segment. The Long March In terms of AI safety and the singularity, Altman, when asked about pain points, suggested that there’s going to be a big gap between AGI and the eventual singularity. We can be nervous now, he said, about some things, but major challenges will crop up on that open road well after we’ve attained these current sets of goals that humanity has for AI. In general, he said, he has faith that researchers will solve a lot of the practical problems with emerging digital sentience, to wit – how do we coexist with other thinkers who don’t have physical bodies, but are stuck in a mainframe somewhere? A Sense of Place Talking about the unique value and contributions of OpenAI, Altman noted that the company was essentially in the right place, at the right time. “We discovered an important new type of (tech),” he said. As an analogy, he talked about transistors and how they facilitated the eventual cloud and big data eras, invoking Moore’s law. Gordon Moore’s now-famous prediction has become a staple of reading the tea leaves on tech, and figuring out how and why we arrived at this point. To Those Who Write Near the end of the interview, Altman threw all of us who live in the human writing world a bone when he suggested that AI will not replace humans as a creative force. “We need to find new economic models where creators can have new revenue streams,” he said. To which I think most freelancers, and those working in beleaguered newsrooms, would agree. The interview ended with some touching remarks about parenthood, and Altman‘s own impending role as a father, with his thoughts about the next generations and what they will face. “The industrial revolution comes along, so machines take all of our jobs,” he said, moving through historic periods of change. “What does this mean? Computer revolution comes along. Computers take a bunch of current jobs. What does it mean? And the answer, at least in terms of what it means to be human, is: not very much. The economy will change, the kinds of jobs people will do will change, and people will care way more, and love their kids way more than they care about AI and anything else that any technology can deliver. The sort of the deep human drives are so powerful and have been here for so long. Evolution is pretty slow ... I think in some sense, my kids will grow up in a super different world, and in some other sense, it will be exactly the same.” This is my roundup of what I heard from one of the brightest stars in technology at this month’s event which is often so notable in terms of the industry as a whole. It’s almost Christmas time, and we’re looking at 2024 as a year that is coming to a close. It’s fascinating and staggering how much progress has taken place in just four short quarters. 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Monday, December 23, 2024 Amtrak travellers across the Northeast Corridor are experiencing significant delays following a major service disruption caused by downed wires on tracks in Philadelphia. This issue has affected train operations between New York’s Penn Station and Philadelphia, creating widespread rail congestion during one of the busiest travel periods of the year. With Christmas and Hanukkah just days away, these delays come at an especially inconvenient time for holiday travelers. The problem began over the weekend, halting service between key stations in New York and Philadelphia. Although limited operations resumed on Sunday afternoon, delays persisted throughout the day and into Monday morning. Amtrak has reported that signal power issues are causing ongoing disruptions along the Northeast Corridor, particularly in and out of New York. The single-tracking conditions implemented to manage traffic have further contributed to delays, impacting trains operating between Washington, D.C., and Boston. This disruption has led to rail congestion across the entire network, creating ripple effects for passengers on long-distance routes. For travelers relying on Amtrak to reach their holiday destinations, the situation has caused frustration and uncertainty. Discover everything and anything about travel , tourism , trade shows at the Travel And Tour World , including breaking travel news and weekly travel updates for travel trade , airlines , cruise , railways , technology , travel association , DMCs, and video interviews and promotional videos . In response to the challenges, Amtrak has canceled several services, particularly those traveling to and from Boston. The company is actively working to resolve the issue, but no specific timeline has been provided for the restoration of full operations. To ease the burden on affected passengers, Amtrak has implemented several measures: Travelers are strongly advised to monitor the status of their reservations and plan for potential disruptions to their journeys. This disruption comes during a peak travel period, as families and individuals make their way across the Northeast for Christmas and Hanukkah celebrations. The Northeast Corridor is one of Amtrak’s busiest routes, connecting major metropolitan areas such as Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston. The delays have not only affected regular commuters but also holiday travelers relying on train services to avoid crowded airports and highways. With the holiday season in full swing, the timing of these disruptions has added to the stress of travel. Many passengers have reported difficulties in finding alternative transportation options, as bus and air travel networks are already operating at capacity. The downed wires in Philadelphia have caused significant challenges for Amtrak’s operations team, which has been working around the clock to restore service. However, the single-tracking conditions currently in place have limited the number of trains that can pass through critical sections of the network. This has created bottlenecks in high-traffic areas, particularly around New York Penn Station, which serves as a central hub for the Northeast Corridor. Amtrak is coordinating closely with local transportation agencies and utility providers to repair the damaged infrastructure. However, the complex nature of the repairs means that it may take time to fully restore normal operations. Amtrak has issued the following recommendations for travelers impacted by the disruption: Discover everything and anything about travel , tourism , trade shows at the Travel And Tour World , including breaking travel news and weekly travel updates for travel trade , airlines , cruise , railways , technology , travel association , DMCs, and video interviews and promotional videos . The issues facing Amtrak highlight the vulnerability of critical rail infrastructure in the United States, particularly in high-traffic corridors like the Northeast. While the company is actively working to address the immediate problem, the situation underscores the need for long-term investments in rail infrastructure to ensure reliability and resilience during peak travel periods. Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor is a vital transportation link for millions of passengers each year, and disruptions like these can have significant economic and logistical consequences. With growing demand for rail travel, particularly as a more sustainable alternative to driving or flying, ensuring the reliability of these routes will be increasingly important. Discover everything and anything about travel , tourism , trade shows at the Travel And Tour World , including breaking travel news and weekly travel updates for travel trade , airlines , cruise , railways , technology , travel association , DMCs, and video interviews and promotional videos . As Amtrak continues to address the downed wires and related signal issues, travelers should prepare for ongoing delays and cancellations. While the company has made efforts to accommodate passengers and minimize inconvenience, the full resolution of the issue will take time. In the meantime, passengers are encouraged to remain flexible with their travel plans and explore alternative options where possible. For those who rely on Amtrak for their holiday travel, patience and preparation will be key to navigating this challenging period. Read Travel Industry News in 104 different regional platforms Get our daily dose of news, by subscribing to our newsletters. Subscribe here . Watch Travel And Tour World Interviews here . Read more Travel News , Daily Travel Alert , and Travel Industry News on Travel And Tour World only.Paris, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 6th Dec, 2024) and face off in Ligue 1 this weekend as two of French 's most storied clubs prepare to meet twice in the space of a fortnight. Les Verts, whose 10 French titles is second only to , were also drawn to face in the last 64 of the French Cup just before . Back in the flight after two seasons in the second division, have relied heavily on their home form to stay afloat this term. have won four of their last five at their Geoffroy-Guichard stadium, where they have collected but one of their 13 points so far. Last weekend they crashed to a 5-0 loss at after being reduced to 10 men before half-time. "There will be other obstacles, and big ones. We have a very tough season ahead, we know that," said Olivier Dall'Oglio in the wake of that defeat. "When there are challenges of that type, we're going to need to overcome them and not collapse like I saw the team collapse." , conversely, have thrived on their travels and have the league's away record with six wins seven matches. Roberto De Zerbi's side climbed above into second place with a 2-1 win last and sit six points back of leaders . Luis Enrique's side face another critical juncture in their season, travelling to on Friday before a trip to next week in the Champions League. are unbeaten in their last 30 away games in Ligue 1 but were held at home by a struggling team last weekend. With just one win in five in , find themselves outside the 24 qualifying spots for the knockout stages. "We've made mistakes in terms of our performances in the Champions League but it's a good season," the Spaniard said Thursday. "Our problems are good ones because we can push past them. These don't reflect what I've seen on the pitch. " Luis Enrique also moved to quash talk of dressing room discord, dismissing claims of tensions between himself and some players. "I'm not going to respond to rumours and lies," he said. "The team is wonderful and I have nothing to add." and , both of whom are well positioned to advance in the Champions League, meet on Friday before -- who also have 10 points five games in -- host on Saturday. Player to watch: Randal Kolo Muani The international's stock has dropped alarmingly at , to the extent that he has played a total of 33 minutes over the past six league games -- four of which he has not even featured in. The 26-year-old was signed Eintracht for 90 ($95 ) at the start of last season but has not started for the club since the 1-1 draw with on 6, sowing doubt over his future as the transfer window approaches. "It's a difficult period for everyone because we'll have to see what we need in terms of buying players and evaluate those who want to leave," Luis Enrique said on Thursday. "But I hope right up until the end these players will convince me they deserve to play." Key stats 4 - successive home wins for , the longest active streak in Ligue 1. The promoted side have won fix of six this season at the Stade Abbe-Deschamps 10 - matches without a win for Nantes 13 - games unbeaten for in competitions Fixtures ( times GMT) Friday v (1800), v (2000) Saturday v (1600), v (1800), v (2000) Sunday Lens v (1400), v , v (both 1600), v (1945)

Former Florida congressman Matt Gaetz has withdrawn as President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general following scrutiny over a federal sex trafficking investigation. The Republican's announcement came one day after meeting with senators in an effort to win their support for his confirmation to lead the Justice Department. Here's the latest: As incoming White House chief of staff, one of Susie Wiles ’ vexing challenges will be policing the buffet line of powerful interests who want something from Donald Trump. It’s a world she knows well. During Trump’s first presidency, she lobbied for many of them. Trump was first elected on a pledge to “drain the swamp” in Washington. But his transactional approach to the presidency instead ushered in a lobbying boom that showered allies, including Wiles, with lucrative contracts, empowered wealthy business associates and stymied his agenda after his administration was ensnared in a series of influence-peddling scandals. Now, as Trump prepares to return to power , his victory is likely to embolden those who think they can get his ear, raising the prospect that his second administration could face many of the same perils as his first. That will test the ability of Wiles to manage a growing number of high-powered figures — including Trump’s children, his son-in-law Jared Kushner and billionaires like Elon Musk — who will not be dependent on her for access to the president. ▶ Read more about Susie Wiles and her new role Vance accompanied Matt Gaetz in meetings with GOP senators on Wednesday. “I’m extremely grateful for the work Matt put into the nomination process,” the Ohio senator posted on X. “Matt is a patriot, and I look forward to seeing what he does next.” President Joe Biden still believes President-elect Donald Trump is a dangerous figure in U.S. democracy, his top spokesperson said Thursday. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said “his thinking on that has not changed” even as the Biden White House emphasizes its commitment to the “peaceful transfer of power.” Jean-Pierre told reporters there is no double-speak in Biden’s approach. Biden framed Donald Trump as a “fundamental threat” to the nation’s identity as a democracy and its stability as a global superpower when he defeated Trump in 2020. He did it as a candidate for reelection. He did it again when he dropped out and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. But Jean-Pierre said Biden recognizes the legitimacy of Trump’s election to another term, even if it’s not the result he wanted. “The American people spoke,” she said, adding that Biden wants to be an example of how to respect U.S. elections. That was an opaque reference to Trump’s refusal to accept Biden’s victory in 2020 and the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters as Congress met to affirm the results. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre says she hasn’t spoken to her designated successor, Karoline Leavitt. Jean-Pierre told reporters gathered Thursday at the White House that she hopes the second Trump administration will be forthright with the public by talking to reporters. Trump’s first White House dramatically curtailed its initial interactions with the White House press corps, and Jean-Pierre said Biden and his staff “worked really hard to bring back the norms” with press briefings and interactions. “We’ve tried to do this in a very respectful way,” she said. Jean-Pierre declined to “speak to what any administration is going to do” in the future, but added that the back-and-forth with the press is part of “what democracy is all about.” In other presidential transition news, Trump is urging federal lawmakers to kill a bill that would protect journalists from having to disclose information about anonymous sources or other records obtained during reporting. The proposal that passed in the U.S. House of Representatives, but is pending in the Senate, also bars the government from requesting data from phone or email providers. The bill includes exceptions such as when there’s a reasonable threat of imminent violence or an act of terrorism. As of now, only some states grant absolute protection from disclosing sources or other records. “Republicans must kill this bill!” Trump posted on Truth Social and shared a video from PBS News Hour interviewing the CEO of the Committee to Protect Journalist, Jodie Ginsburg, talking about the proposal. Last month, The Associated Press, along with more than 100 news outlets and organizations, signed a letter authored by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press asking senators to support the bill. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre isn’t commenting on Matt Gaetz withdrawing his nomination as president-elect Donald Trump’s attorney general in the new administration. “We really, truly want to respect the transfer of power,” Jean-Pierre said Thursday during a White House press briefing, explaining her steadfast refusal to comment on Trump personnel moves. But Jean-Pierre nonetheless used the matter to take a subtle jab at how Trump, who was twice indicted by the federal government, has reacted to federal law enforcement. “Look, the president has said when it comes to investigation, that department should be independent. there should be no partisanship. There should be no loyalty to one party or the other,” she said. “The loyalty should be to the Constitution, and the loyalty should be to the rule of law.” Trump has insisted that it was Biden and his lieutenants who weaponized the Justice Department by indicting him for his role in trying to overturn Biden’s 2020 election victory and for hoarding national security documents after Trump left the White House in January 2021. That latter case has been thrown out by a Trump-appointed judge. The former case is still pending. Taken together, there are a striking number of incidents in which potential high-ranking government officials in Trump’s second administration face allegations of sexual abuse. Here’s a look at some of the cases: President-elect Donald Trump: He was found liable by a New York City jury for sexual abuse and defamation and eventually ordered to pay the woman, E. Jean Carroll , $83 million in damages. Pete Hegseth, nominee for secretary of defense: A woman told police she was sexually assaulted in 2017 by Hegseth after he took her phone, blocked the door to a California hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to a detailed investigative report made public this week. Hegseth told police the encounter had been consensual and denies wrongdoing. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., nominee for secretary of health and human services: A woman who babysat for Kennedy and his second wife told Vanity Fair magazine he groped her in the late 1990s, when she was 23. Kennedy did not deny the allegation, telling a podcast: “I had a very, very rambunctious youth.” He texted the woman an apology after the story was published. Linda McMahon, nominee for secretary of education: A lawsuit filed last month alleges McMahon knowingly enabled sexual exploitation of children by a World Wrestling Entertainment employee as early as the 1980s. She denies the allegations. Elon Musk, Trump’s choice to lead the new Department of Government Efficiency: The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX was accused of sexual misconduct by a flight attendant contracted by SpaceX who worked on his private jet in 2016. He denied the claim. ▶ Read more about the allegations of sexual misconduct Among those who were seen as contenders before Gaetz was picked is former acting attorney general Matt Whitaker , who Trump chose earlier this week to serve as U.S. ambassador to NATO. Other names that were floated as potential attorney general nominees include Jeff Jensen, a former U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri, and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey. Trump last week chose Todd Blanche , an attorney who led the legal team that defended the Republican at his hush money criminal trial , to serve as the second-highest ranking Justice Department official. Emil Bove, a former federal prosecutor, was chosen to be the principal associate deputy attorney general. An attorney who represents two women who say they were paid by Gaetz for sex says his clients are “relieved to have this chapter behind them.” “They’re grateful for the opportunity to move forward with their lives,” said Joel Leppard, whose clients testified before the House Ethics Committee. “They’re hoping that this brings final closure for all the parties involved.” Leppard revealed earlier this week details about his clients’ testimony to House Ethics Committee to release its report on the Gaetz investigation. Leppard said his clients were paid a total of $10,000 by the congressman. One of his clients testified that she saw Gaetz having sex with a 17-year-old at a party in 2017, while he was in Congress. Though Gaetz has withdrawn his name from consideration for attorney general, he isn’t Trump’s only appointee in hot water. A woman told police she was sexually assaulted in 2017 by Pete Hegseth after he took her phone, blocked the door to a California hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to a detailed investigative report made public late Wednesday. Hegseth, a former Fox News personality and Trump’s nominee to be defense secretary, told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing, the report said. Earlier today, Hegseth held a round of private meetings alongside incoming Vice President JD Vance in an attempt to shore up support and told reporters afterward: “The matter was fully investigated and I was completely cleared, and that’s where I’m gonna leave it.” ▶ Read more about the allegations against Hegseth In his Nov. 13 resignation letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson, Gaetz said, “I hereby resign, as United States Representatives for Florida’s First Congressional District, effective immediately, and I do not intend to take the oath of office for the same office in the 119th Congress, to pursue the position of Attorney General in the Trump Administration.” He transmitted a similar letter to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as the state began a special election process to fill the vacancy. Attorneys involved in a civil case brought by a Gaetz associate were notified this week that an unauthorized person accessed a file shared between lawyers that included unredacted depositions from a woman who said Gaetz had sex with her when she was 17 and a second woman who says she saw the encounter, according to attorney Joel Leppard. Leppard said that two women he represents told House Ethics Committee investigators that Gaetz paid them for sex on multiple occasions beginning in 2017 when Gaetz was in Congress. The files the person was able to access were part of a defamation case filed by a Gaetz associate against the former representative’s onetime political ally Joel Greenberg , who pleaded guilty in 2021 to sex trafficking of a minor, and admitted that he had paid at least one underage girl to have sex with him and other men. The apparent breach was first reported Tuesday by The New York Times. Gaetz has denied all the allegations. ▶ Read more about the apparent file breach Trump had announced last week that he’d chosen Todd Blanche, an attorney who’s defended him in some of his criminal cases, to serve as deputy attorney general. That’s the second highest ranking position at the Justice Department. A former federal prosecutor, Blanche has been a key figure defended him both in the New York hush money criminal trial that ended in a conviction in May, and the federal cases brought by Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said Thursday in a post on X that he believes the now-former congressman “will continue to contribute to our nation’s wellbeing for years to come.” Graham, a member of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, also said he looks forward to working with Trump “regarding future nominees to get this important job up and running.” The caption of the Instagram photo reads “The end of an era. No one loves America more than this guy.” The Florida representative was once embroiled in a sex trafficking investigation involving underage girls by the Justice Department, the very department President-elect Trump had tapped him to lead. Gaetz has vehemently denied any wrongdoing, and in February 2023 said the investigation ended with no federal charges against him.He was also being investigated by the House Ethics panel, but Republicans declined yesterday to release the committee’s findings over objections from Democrats in a split vote. ▶ Read more about the Justice Department’s investigation into Gaetz He had abruptly resigned from his congressional seat upon being nominated as attorney general amid a long-running House Ethics investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct, which was seen as a way to halt the probe. The House Ethics panel’s Republicans declined this week to release the committee’s findings into Gaetz over objections from Democrats in a split vote. But the committee did agree to finish its work and is scheduled to meet again Dec. 5 to discuss the matter. However, Gaetz did win re-election earlier this month for the new Congress which convenes Jan. 3. But it’s unclear if he would take office. There’s also been plans for a special election in Florida for his seat. “President Trump remains committed to choosing a leader for the Department of Justice who will strongly defend the Constitution and end the weaponization of our justice system,” said Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for the Trump-Vance transition team. In a message on his Truth Social network, Trump also said he was looking forward to seeing what Gaetz will do next after withdrawing as his pick. “He was doing very well but, at the same time, did not want to be a distraction for the Administration, for which he has much respect,” Trump posted. “Matt has a wonderful future, and I look forward to watching all of the great things he will do!” Matt Gaetz has just withdrawn as President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general following continued scrutiny over a federal sex trafficking investigation that cast doubt on the former congressman’s ability to be confirmed as the nation’s chief federal law enforcement officer. The Florida Republican’s announcement came one day after meeting with senators in an effort to win their support for his confirmation to lead the Justice Department. Gaetz’s withdrawal is a blow to Trump’s push to install steadfast loyalists in his incoming administration and the first sign that Trump could face resistance from members of his own party.