D’Angelo Russell interested in playing for surprising country’s national teamHow Washington outsider Jimmy Carter wooed voters tired of Vietnam and Watergate
Week 14 of the NFL: Saquon Barkley is on track to break one of the league's most important recordsI am writing to share with you a cherished memory of mine from the 1990 Habitat for Humanity Milagro en la Frontera project in Mexico where I had the honor of meeting President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn. President Jimmy Carter speaking to a gathering at a Habitat for Humanity worksite in Mexico in 1990. At the time, I was a graduate student in Toronto, Canada, and I flew down to San Diego to meet a college friend, Heidi Ernst Jones, who had flown from Washington D.C. Together, we had the privilege of providing our time and skills building homes. One of the highlights was helping to set up Millard and Linda Fuller’s tent, and it was during this time that we had the opportunity to chat with President and Mrs. Carter. Jeremy Fisher, right, at a Habitat for Humanity worksite in Mexico in 1990. I must say, they were truly approachable and engaging. I was struck by their warmth, intelligence, and genuine concern for others. They both took the time to ask about our backgrounds and interests, and I was impressed by their ability to connect with people on a personal level. It was clear that they cared deeply about the work Habitat for Humanity was doing and were genuinely interested in hearing about the experiences of volunteers. Looking back, I realize that meeting the Carters was a unique and unforgettable experience. They were such kind and generous individuals, and I left the encounter feeling inspired and energized. Heidi and I still reminisce about that experience 30 years ago. On a Habitat for Humanity worksite in Mexico in 1990, from left, were Jeremy Fisher, Linda Fuller, Millard Fuller, Heidi Ernst (Jones). In closing, I just wanted to express my gratitude for the example that the Carters have set for all of us. In an era where politics can be divisive and polarizing, it is refreshing to see leaders who embody compassion, empathy, and humility. I believe that if more politicians modeled themselves after the Carters, we would see a more compassionate and equitable society. Thank you for allowing me to share this memory with you. I hope that it brings a smile to your face and inspires you as it has me. Fisher is with JPMorgan Chase & Co. as their Senior Government and Not-For-Profit Banker in the Carolinas and Tennessee, based out of Charlotte. He said his work with Habitat For Humanity started in 1986 when he was a student at Lenoir-Rhyne College (now University). He worked projects in Peru and Guatemala (1988) then worked with Habitat when he was a graduate student at University of Toronto from 1988-1990. Receive the latest in local entertainment news in your inbox weekly!By KEVIN FREKING WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans teed up a vote this week on bipartisan legislation to gradually expand by 66 the number of federal judgeships across the country. Democrats, though, are having second thoughts now that President-elect Donald Trump has won a second term. The White House said Tuesday that if President Joe Biden were presented with the bill, he would veto it. A Congress closely divided along party lines would be unlikely to overturn a veto, likely dooming the bill’s chances this year. It’s an abrupt reversal for legislation that the Senate passed unanimously in August. But the GOP-led House waited until after the election to act on the measure, which spreads out the establishment of the new district judgeships over about a decade to give three presidential administrations the chance to appoint the new judges. Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., said the bill was negotiated with the understanding that three unknown, future presidents would have the chance to expand and shape the judiciary. No party would be knowingly given an advantage. He said he begged GOP leadership to take up the measure before the presidential election. But they did not do so. “It was a fair fight and they wanted no part of it,” Nadler said. Rep. Jim Jordan, the Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, explained the timing this way: “We just didn’t get to the legislation.” The change of heart about the bill from some Democrats and the new urgency from House Republicans for considering it underscores the contentious politics that surrounded federal judicial vacancies. Senate roll-call votes are required for almost every judicial nominee these days, and most votes for the Supreme Court and appellate courts are now decided largely along party lines. Lawmakers are generally hesitant to hand presidents from the opposing party new opportunities to shape the judiciary. Related Articles National Politics | Trump lawyers and aide hit with 10 additional felony charges in Wisconsin over 2020 fake electors National Politics | After withdrawing as attorney general nominee, Matt Gaetz lands a talk show on OANN television National Politics | What will happen to Social Security under Trump’s tax plan? National Politics | Republican-led states are rolling out plans that could aid Trump’s mass deportation effort National Politics | Elon Musk warns Republicans against standing in Trump’s way — or his Nadler said that the bill would give Trump 25 judicial nominations on top of the 100-plus spots that are expected to open up over the next four years. “Donald Trump has made clear that he intends to expand the power of the presidency and giving him 25 new judges to appoint gives him one more tool at his disposal to do that,” Nadler said. Nadler said he’s willing to take up comparable legislation in the years ahead and give the additional judicial appointments to “unknown presidents yet to come,” but until then, he was urging colleagues to vote against the bill. Still, few are arguing against the merits. Congress last authorized a new district judgeship more than 20 years ago, while the number of cases being filed continues to increase with litigants often waiting years for a resolution. “I used to be a federal court litigator, and I can tell you it’s desperately needed,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said of the bill. Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., first introduced the bill to establish new judgeships in 2020. Last year, the policy-making body for the federal court system, the Judicial Conference of the United States, recommended the creation of several new district and court of appeals judgeships to meet increased workload demands in certain courts. “Judges work tirelessly every day to meet growing demands and resolve cases as quickly as possible, but with the volume we have and the shortage of judges we have, it just makes it a very difficult proposition,” Judge Timothy Corrigan, of the Middle District of Florida, said in a recent blog post on the website of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. The blog post states that caseloads are creating delays that will erode public confidence in the judicial process, but the bill would meet many of the federal judiciary’s needs for more judges. Jordan said that as of June 30th, there were nearly 750,000 pending cases in federal district courts nationwide, with each judge handling an average of 554 filings. When asked if House Republicans would have brought the bill up if Vice President Kamala Harris had won the election, Jordan said the bill is “the right thing to do” and that almost half of the first batch of judges will come from states where both senators are Democrats, giving them a chance to provide input on those nominations before Trump makes them. But in its veto threat, the White House Office of Management and Budget said the bill would create new judgeships in states where senators have sought to hold open existing judicial vacancies. “These efforts to hold open vacancies suggest that concerns about judicial economy and caseload are not the true motivating force behind passage of the law,” the White House said. Shortly before the White House issued the veto threat, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said he would be curious to hear Biden’s rationale for such action. “It’s almost inconceivable that a lame-duck president could consider vetoing such an obviously prudential step for any reason other than selfish spite,” McConnell said.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Tanner McKee’s first career NFL touchdown pass was thrown to a Philadelphia Eagles fan named Patrick. OK, McKee actually threw the 20-yard TD to Pro Bowl wide receiver A.J Brown, who — in a momentary lapse of reason — chucked the souvenir football into the Lincoln Financial field stands. Uh-oh. “I felt so bad,” Brown said, “because I threw it so far.” McKee, a sixth-round pick out of Stanford in 2023, is a career third-string QB who had never played a regular-season snap until he was pressed into emergency duty Sunday against Dallas. Jalen Hurts did not start because of a concussion and Kenny Pickett — who ran and threw for a TD in the Eagles' 41-7 win — was knocked of the game with injured ribs. That opened the door for the 24-year-old McKee to play in a game in which the Eagles clinched the NFC East. He did his part — including the 20-yard strike in the third that made it 34-7. The celebration was temporarily muted when he realized his ball — a milestone keepsake for any player — was somewhere in the stands. Little did McKee know the ball was coming back to him. Eagles fans kicked off a bit of a relay with the ball once they realized its significance to McKee. The fan who caught the ball was promised a jersey from Brown. He sent the ball to one fan, who passed it to Eagles security chief “Big” Dom DiSandro to hand to another Eagles employee to Brown and finally to McKee. Souvenir secured. “I appreciate whoever gave the ball back,” McKee said. “(Brown) was like, ‘I’m sorry, bro. I got the ball back.’ So, yeah, it was good. He made a great play, and obviously a great catch.” It was Brown's throw that needed work. Brown stripped off and signed his game jersey and handed it to a fan named Patrick as a thank-you for returning the football — all while fans chanted “E-A-G-L-E-S!” around him. “We've got great fans here,” Brown said. McKee needed more room on the trophy shelf — he threw a second TD pass in the fourth quarter. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL
Mbappe, Vinicius and Bellingham all on target in Real Madrid's 3-2 win over AtalantaKolkata: The Raj Bhavan on Monday said that it has formed a two-member panel to probe media reports that Governor CV Ananda Bose had unveiled his own bust at the Raj Bhavan on completion for his two years as Governor in West Bengal. Notably, on completion of two years as the Governor, Bose on November 1 had started a programme ‘Apna Bharat – Jagta Bengal’. Some government organisations, including the Indian Museum, participated in the Raj Bhavan event, organising a series of events. The office of the Governor also mentioned that the bust of the Governor was gifted to Bose by a sculptor and also denied reports of unveiling of the same by the Governor. “Dr. C. V. Ananda Bose, of West Bengal, stands out for his compassion and dedication, deeply attuned to the hopes and struggles of the everyday citizens. His unwavering commitment to transparency and accessibility embodies his belief that true governance flourishes through a genuine connection with the people; which has earned him the endearing title of "People's Governor" - a testament to his heartfelt devotion,” read part of the statement issued by Raj Bhavan. Incidentally, a political row erupted after Governor CV Ananda Bose unveiled his own bust at the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata. Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Jawhar Sircar taking to X said, “West Bengal Governor CV Ananda unveils own statue at Raj Bhavan... This is so stupid! No wonder this fellow was rejected as Secretary to the Govt of India — and has been politicking ruthlessly, thereafter, in a Zero-Merit party!”
Repeatedly rejected politicians trying to control Parliament: PM Modiabrdn Emerging Markets Equity Income Fund, Inc. (AEF) Announces Results Of Strategic Review Including: Changes To The Fund’s Name And Investment Strategy, A 20% Tender Offer And Renewed Performance-based Conditional Tender Offer Policy, And An Increase To Managed Distribution PolicyLAS VEGAS (AP) — Formula 1 on Monday at last said it will expand its grid in 2026 to make room for an American team that is partnered with General Motors. “As the pinnacle of motorsports, F1 demands boundary-pushing innovation and excellence. It’s an honor for General Motors and Cadillac to join the world’s premier racing series, and we’re committed to competing with passion and integrity to elevate the sport for race fans around the world,” GM President Mark Reuss said. “This is a global stage for us to demonstrate GM’s engineering expertise and technology leadership at an entirely new level.” The approval ends years of wrangling that into why Colorado-based Liberty Media, the commercial rights holder of F1, would not initially started by Michael Andretti. Andretti stepped aside from leading his namesake organization, so and be run by new Andretti Global majority owners Dan Towriss and Mark Walter. The team will use Ferrari engines its first two years until GM has a Cadillac engine built for competition in time for the 2028 season. Towriss is the the CEO and president of Group 1001 and entered motorsports via Andretti’s IndyCar team when he signed on financial savings platform Gainbridge as a sponsor. Towriss is now a major part of the motorsports scene with ownership stakes in both Spire Motorsports’ NASCAR team and Wayne Taylor Racing’s sports car team. Walter is the chief executive of financial services firm Guggenheim Partners and the controlling owner of both the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers and Premier League club Chelsea. “We’re excited to partner with General Motors in bringing a dynamic presence to Formula 1,” Towriss said. “Together, we’re assembling a world-class team that will embody American innovation and deliver unforgettable moments to race fans around the world.” Mario Andretti, the 1978 F1 world champion, will have an ambassador role with Cadillac F1. But his son, Michael, will have no official position with the organization now that he has scaled back his involvement with Andretti Global. “The Cadillac F1 Team is made up of a strong group of people that have worked tirelessly to build an American works team,” “I’m very proud of the hard work they have put in and congratulate all involved on this momentous next step. I will be cheering for you!” The approval has been in works for weeks but was held until after last weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix to not overshadow the showcase event of the Liberty Media portfolio. Max Verstappen won his fourth consecutive championship in Saturday night’s race, the third and final stop in the United States for the top motorsports series in the world. Grid expansion in F1 is both infrequent and often unsuccessful. Four teams were granted entries in 2010 that should have pushed the grid to 13 teams and 26 cars for the first time since 1995. One team never made it to the grid and the other three had vanished by 2017. There is only one American team on the current F1 grid — owned by California businessman Gene Haas — but it is not particularly competitive and does not field American drivers. Andretti’s dream was to field a truly American team with American drivers. The fight to add this team has been going on for three-plus years and F1 initially despite . The existing 10 teams, who have no voice in the matter, also largely opposed expansion because of the dilution in prize money and the billions of dollars they’ve already invested in the series. Andretti in 2020 to buy the existing Sauber team. From there, he applied for grid expansion and partnered with GM, the top-selling manufacturer in the United States. The inclusion of GM was championed by the FIA and president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who said Michael Andretti’s application was the only one of seven applicants to to expand F1’s current grid. “General Motors is a huge global brand and powerhouse in the OEM world and is working with impressive partners,” Ben Sulayem said Monday. “I am fully supportive of the efforts made by the FIA, Formula 1, GM and the team to maintain dialogue and work towards this outcome of an agreement in principle to progress this application.” Despite the FIA’s acceptance of Andretti and General Motors from the start, F1 wasn’t interested in Andretti — but did want GM. At one point, F1 asked GM to find another team to partner with besides Andretti. and F1 said it would revisit the Andretti application if and when Cadillac had an engine ready to compete. “Formula 1 has maintained a dialogue with General Motors, and its partners at TWG Global, regarding the viability of an entry following the commercial assessment and decision made by Formula 1 in January 2024,” F1 said in a statement. “Over the course of this year, they have achieved operational milestones and made clear their commitment to brand the 11th team GM/Cadillac, and that GM will enter as an engine supplier at a later time. Formula 1 is therefore pleased to move forward with this application process.” Yet another major shift in the debate over grid expansion occurred earlier this month with the who was largely believed to be one of the biggest opponents of the Andretti entry. “With Formula 1’s continued growth plans in the US, we have always believed that welcoming an impressive US brand like GM/Cadillac to the grid and GM as a future power unit supplier could bring additional value and interest to the sport,” Maffei said. “We credit the leadership of General Motors and their partners with significant progress in their readiness to enter Formula 1.” ___ AP auto racing:None
MONTREAL — Second Cup Canada is cutting ties with a franchisee operating at Montreal’s Jewish General Hospital who was allegedly filmed making hateful and antisemitic comments during a protest in the city last week. Second Cup Canada announced Saturday it was cutting ties with a franchisee for “making hateful remarks and gestures,” and adding in a statement the actions breach the franchise agreement as well as inclusion and community values held by the chain. Peter Mammas, CEO of Montreal-based Foodtastic, which owns Second Cup Canada, said in an interview on Sunday that he was at the movies when his phone started pinging non-stop. He saw the videos and the company’s operations staff spoke to employees that knew the woman, and they confirmed it was indeed the franchisee. Video shot during a pro-Palestinian demonstration outside of Concordia University’s downtown Montreal campus Thursday shows a woman walking around, masked, saying the “final solution is coming your way” — wording used to describe a Nazi plan to eliminate Jews in Europe during the Second World War. Another video also shows what appears to be the same woman, unmasked, making a Nazi salute while walking away. “We’re all for free speech and respectful conversations, but this wasn’t that,” Mammas said. “This was hate speech, and it was something that we thought could incite violence and we’re completely against that, so we sat down with our team and decided to revoke the franchise agreement.” Attempts to reach the franchisee were unsuccessful on Sunday. “Second Cup has zero tolerance for hate speech,” the coffee chain said in a statement on X. “In co-ordination with the hospital, we’ve shut down the franchisee’s café and are terminating their franchise agreement.” Mammas said lawyers for the franchisee and Second Cup were expected to meet on Monday. The regional health agency serving West-Central Montreal, which includes the Jewish General Hospital, said it was made aware of the video “containing antisemitic and hateful messaging.” The video is related to a franchisee of Second Cup, one of the private tenants operating within the (Jewish General), Carl Thériault, a spokesman, said in a statement on Sunday. “We fully support Second Cup’s decision to take swift and decisive action in this matter by shutting down the franchisee’s cafés and terminating their lease agreement.” The hospital has two locations operated by the same franchisee and both were shuttered on Saturday by the owners of the chain. The health agency “is committed to fostering a culture of inclusion and stands firmly against antisemitism and any other form of discrimination or hate speech,” Thériault said. “We have franchisees who are Muslim, we have franchisees who are Jewish, we have franchisees that are Greek, French, we have employees from all different nations,” Mammas said. “So we definitely have no issue with that and we don’t take any political side, but ... hate speech ... you know we can’t accept that.”
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Green Bay Packers wide receiver Romeo Doubs left his team’s game against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday because of a concussion. Doubs’ injury came on a third-quarter play in the end zone that resulted in a pass interference penalty against San Francisco’s Renardo Green. Doubs stayed down briefly after the play, then got up slowly before heading to the sideline. He went into the injury tent before walking to the locker room. The Packers then announced Doubs was out for the rest of the game because of a concussion. He had three catches for 54 yards before leaving. San Francisco defensive tackle Jordan Elliott left in the first half of the game to get evaluated for a concussion and was ruled out at halftime. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
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Seven-day ceasefire deal reached between rival sectarian groups in PakistanLUKE LITTLER has revealed what he got for Christmas including an odd gift from his mum. The darts sensation stormed into the Round of 16 of the World Darts Championship on Saturday - days after unwrapping his Christmas gifts . He beat Ian White 4-1 and likely had his mind focused on the upcoming clash as he rummaged through his stocking on Christmas morning, after booking his place in round three with a win over Ryan Meikle. Littler received a number of presents on Christmas Day, including a gift he may not need. Asked about his haul, Littler said: “Oh, some clothes. A new gaming chair. A headset. "An Xbox gift card from my mum – even though I am sponsored by them! Some new shoes.” Littler, 17, was in a fiery mood during his win over White. He admitted he is not always Mr Nice Guy at the oche and he showed an aggressive side as he roared after sealing the fourth set. The world number four said after the match: “I am not a nice person at times on the board. I don’t think anyone else is. "But it’s always good to have that a bit of aggression. READ MORE on all the build-up to the Ally Pally extravaganza... All the info: News, features and interviews: “It’s good for myself to show that I can be ruthless. Ian has been around for many years. He played my granddad. “But for myself, it’s good to be ruthless, especially on that last dart as many people do see.” Littler even found time to poke fun at himself as he pretended to cry when he greeted his family post-game. The teen broke down after his win over Meikle and went over to his parents for an emotional hug.Schlumberger Limited (NYSE:SLB) Shares Bought by Commerce Bank