wolf winner casino
House Ethics Committee accuses Gaetz of paying for sex, including with 17-year-old girl
Atlanta's Akins Ford: 2025 Raptor Details Released!
Arizona WR Tetairoa McMillan to enter 2025 NFL DraftLA Galaxy wins record 6th MLS CupEnzo Maresca ‘thankful’ for connection at Leicester ahead of return with Chelsea
'Mighty Murrumbidgee' gets some long-awaited care as river restoration beginsSouth Korean Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun voluntarily appeared at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning at around 1:30am local time on Dec 8. SEOUL - South Korean prosecutors on Dec 8 arrested former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun over his alleged role in President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration of martial law on Dec 3, Yonhap News Agency said. The prosecutors’ office was not immediately available for comments. Mr Kim voluntarily appeared at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning at around 1:30am local time (12.30am Singapore time), the report said. The office was not immediately available for comments. Mr Kim, who offered his resignation on Dec 4, was seen as a central figure in the brief martial law declaration. A senior military official and filings to impeach Mr Yoon by opposition members said Mr Kim had made the proposal to Mr Yoon. Mr Yoon survived an impeachment vote - which was prompted by his short-lived attempt to impose martial law - in parliament on Dec 7, but the leader of his own party said the president would eventually have to step down. Three minority opposition parties filed a complaint with the prosecution against Mr Yoon, Mr Kim and martial law commander Park An-su, accusing them of treason. Mr Kim faces a travel ban as prosecutors investigate the matter, Yonhap said. The national police are also investigating claims of treason against Mr Yoon and top ministers. Mr Yoon shocked the nation late on Dec 3 when he gave the military sweeping emergency powers to root out what he called “anti-state forces” and obstructionist political opponents. He rescinded the order six hours later, after parliament defied military and police cordons to vote unanimously against the decree. The martial law declaration plunged South Korea, Asia’s fourth-largest economy and a key US military ally, into its greatest political crisis in decades, threatening to shatter the country’s reputation as a democratic success story. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you. Read 3 articles and stand to win rewards Spin the wheel nowWASHINGTON — The House Ethics Committee on Monday accused Matt Gaetz of “regularly” paying for sex, including once with a 17-year-old girl, and purchasing and using illicit drugs as a member of Congress, as lawmakers released the conclusions of a nearly four-year investigation that helped sink his nomination for attorney general. The 37-page report by the bipartisan panel includes explicit details of sex-filled parties and vacations that Gaetz, now 42, took part in from 2017 to 2020 while the Republican represented Florida’s western Panhandle. Congressional investigators concluded that Gaetz violated multiple state laws related to sexual misconduct while in office, though not federal sex trafficking laws. They also found that Gaetz “knowingly and willfully sought to impede and obstruct” the committee’s work. “The Committee determined there is substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House Rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress,” the report said. Before the report came out, Gaetz denied any wrongdoing and criticized the committee’s process. “Giving funds to someone you are dating — that they didn’t ask for — and that isn’t ‘charged’ for sex is now prostitution?!?” he posted on X, the website formerly known as Twitter. “There is a reason they did this to me in a Christmas Eve-Eve report and not in a courtroom of any kind where I could present evidence and challenge witnesses.” Gaetz , who was first elected in 2017, spent the majority of his time in Washington enmeshed in scandals that ultimately derailed his selection by President-elect Donald Trump to lead the Justice Department . Gaetz abruptly resigned from Congress last month. His political future is uncertain, although Gaetz has indicated interest in running for the open Senate seat in Florida. The committee painted a damning portrait of Gaetz’s conduct, using dozens of pages of exhibits, including text messages, financial records, travel receipts, checks and online payments, to document a party and drug-fueled lifestyle. The committee said it compiled the evidence after issuing 29 subpoenas for documents and testimony and contacting more than two dozen witnesses. In addition to soliciting prostitution, the report said Gaetz “accepted gifts, including transportation and lodging in connection with a 2018 trip to the Bahamas, in excess of permissible amounts.” That same year, investigators said, Gaetz arranged for a staffer to obtain a passport for a woman with whom he was sexually involved, falsely telling the State Department that she was his constituent. In some of the text exchanges made public, he appeared to be inviting various women to events, getaways or parties, and arranging airplane travel and lodging. At one point he asked one woman if she had a “cute black dress” to wear. There were also discussions of shipping goods. One of the exhibits was a text exchange that appeared to be between two of the women concerned about their cash flow and payments. In another, a person asked Gaetz for help to pay an educational expense. Regarding the 17-year-old girl, the report said there was no evidence Gaetz knew she was a minor when he had sex with her. The woman told the committee she did not tell Gaetz she was under 18 at the time and that he learned she was a minor more than a month after the party. But Gaetz stayed in touch with her after that and met up with her for “commercial sex” again less than six months after she turned 18, according to the committee. Florida law says it is a felony for a person 24 or older to have sex with a minor. The law does not allow a claim of ignorance or misrepresentation of a minor’s age as a defense. Joel Leppard, who represents two women who told the committee that Gaetz paid them for sex, said the findings “vindicate” the accounts of his clients and “demonstrate their credibility.” “We appreciate the Committee’s commitment to transparency in releasing this comprehensive report so the truth can be known,” Leppard said in a statement. At least one Republican joined all five Democrats on the committee earlier this month in voting to release the report despite initial opposition from GOP lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, to publishing findings about a former member of Congress. While ethics reports have previously been released after a member’s resignation, it is extremely rare. On behalf of the Republicans who voted against making the report public, the committee chairman, Rep. Michael Guest of Mississippi, wrote that while the members did not challenge the findings, “we take great exception that the majority deviated from the Committee’s well-established standards,” to drop any investigation when a person is not longer a member of the chamber. Guest added that releasing this report sets a precedent that “is a dangerous departure with potentially catastrophic consequences.” But Maryland Rep. Glenn Ivey, a Democratic member of the committee, said that for transparency, it was crucial for the public and Congress as an institution to read the findings. “I think that’s important for my colleagues here in the House to know how the committee reviews certain acts,” he told The Associated Press. “Some of these were obviously conduct that crossed the line, but some of them weren’t.” Mounting a last-ditch effort to halt the publication of the report, Gaetz filed a lawsuit Monday asking a federal court to intervene. He cited what he called “untruthful and defamatory information” that would “significantly damage” his “standing and reputation in the community.” Gaetz’s complaint argued that he was no longer under the committee’s jurisdiction because he had resigned from Congress. The often secretive, bipartisan committee has investigated claims against Gaetz since 2021. But its work became more urgent last month when Trump picked him shortly after the Nov. 5 election Day to be the nation’s top law enforcement officer. Gaetz resigned from Congress that same day, putting him outside the purview of the committee’s jurisdiction.
Staff report ANDERSON, S.C. — The Catawba women’s basketball team will look back on Wednesday’s game in a few weeks and will still be trying to figure out how they won it. But the Indians really did win 63-62 at Anderson in the South Atlantic Conference opener for both teams. Freshman Bailee Goodlett (North Rowan) made the game-winning drive with eight seconds left, as a crowd of 118 looked on in the Abney Center. Catawba scored a meager 18 points in the first half and it looked like the Indians might get shut out until Goodlett banked in a 3-pointer after more than four minutes had been played. Catawba shot six free throws all night. Yes, six. That should get you beat in a Division II game. Catawba also allowed 19 offensive rebounds. That also should get you beat. But the Indians (3-1, 1-0) hung in there and they had one heck of a 27-point fourth quarter. Sydney Gueterman was a star. She doesn’t always play a lot, but she was hot and Catawba was desperate. She filled it up in the fourth quarter and scored 15. Janiya Foskey had a terrific game with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Goodlett made her second 3-pointer in the fourth quarter in a key situation and then she came through again at the end. Anderson (2-3, 0-1) and Catawba were both playing short-handed. Catawba 9 9 18 27 — 63 Anderson 11 14 18 19 — 62 CATAWBA scoring — Gueterman 15, Foskey 14, Goodlett 10, Wilson 9, Ingram 8, Baker 3, Dixon-Booker 2, Fuertes 2.People in the Syrian capital Damascus are bracing themselves as insurgents appear to be on the brink of entering the city. or signup to continue reading The head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdel Rahman, told dpa the capture of Damascus by the rebels and the fall of President Bashar al-Assad's government are now only a matter of time. The British-based war monitor has been one of the leading sources of information about the war-torn country for years. It relies on a network of informants in Syria. The Syrian government, meanwhile, sought to counter speculation about the imminent capture of Damascus by the rebels. Interior Minister Mohammad al-Rahmoun told state television that there is a "very strong security ring on the outskirts of Damascus" and advised people to stay in their homes. An army spokesman said in a televised address that forces in the vicinity of Damascus were being reinforced. "Our armed forces units are strengthening their deployment lines throughout the Damascus countryside and the southern region to prevent any incidents as a result of the chaos that the terrorists are trying to create through their platforms, tools and sleeper cells in some areas," the spokesman said. Syrian rebels and local opposition forces have already surrounded areas on the outskirts of Damascus, activists and the observatory said earlier on Saturday. While government troops said they were "repositioning", insurgents were gaining further territory in the south of the country and on the border with Israel, increasing the pressure on al-Assad. Al-Assad's office in Damascus denied rumours that the president had fled. "We confirm that the Syrian president is pursuing his work and national and constitutional tasks from the capital, Damascus," a statement by the Syrian presidency said. It further stated that there would be no short-term foreign visits. The stated objective of the insurgents is the overthrow of the government. The leader of the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), Abu Mohamed al-Joulani, issued a statement encouraging his fighters. "Damascus is waiting for you," he said. He later issued a second statement, stating that "the fall of the criminal regime is very near" and urged his fighters "to have mercy" on residents. He also instructed Syrian government forces to go to their homes and stay there, or lay down their arms, and they would be safe. Residents in the Damascus countryside told dpa that they had seen government troops withdrawing towards the capital city on foot. The cities of Muadamiyat al-Sham, Jaramana and Sahnaya witnessed demonstrations by local people in support of the opposition forces, who advanced towards Syrian army checkpoints. Soldiers reportedly withdrew from the checkpoints, allowing local rebel factions then took control of these locations. The civil war in Syria flared up again suddenly last week with a rebel offensive led by HTS. The group seized many areas in the north-west of the country, including the key cities of Aleppo and Hama. Other groups have since joined in, some in the south of the country. They are now positioned on the outskirts of Damascus. HTS fighters are reportedly already operating in the strategically important city of Homs, north of Damascus. The group stated that forces stationed behind enemy lines had begun "special operations" within the city. Simultaneously, there is a massive assault from several sides. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed that armed confrontations were occurring in Homs. However, it remains unclear whether the rebel alliance has sufficient fighters to capture Homs, home to about 1.4 million people. The fighting is the latest stage in a conflict that began in 2011 with protests against al-Assad's government that were ruthlessly put down by security forces. The spiral of violence led to a civil war with international involvement, in which Russia, Iran, Turkey and the United States are pursuing their own interests. Some 14 million people have been displaced. According to UN estimates, more than 300,000 civilians have died so far. No political solution has been in sight for years. The Israeli military has deployed additional forces to the border with Syria as rebels continued their advances throughout the country. The Israel Defense Forces said on Telegram that they were deploying additional defensive forces to the Golan Heights and along the border. The announcement was the second of its kind in 24 hours. The IDF later said it was determined to prevent any violation of the sovereignty of the state of Israel. Advertisement Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date. We care about the protection of your data. Read our . AdvertisementGoogle Says Don't Underestimate Me
Jan. 20th is just around the corner. It is Day 1 in the tariff wars that our next president is intent on launching. The corporate world is trying to dissuade him from that course of action, with no success. It is an economic fact that the cost of tariffs is passed on to the consumer. If tariffs are high enough, some imported products simply cease to be available, which can cause supply chain interruptions. At some point, buyers balk at paying higher prices. When that happens, tariff costs hit business profit margins directly. Everyone loses. In the last column, I explained why Donald Trump is adamant that tariffs are the only way to turn around the trade imbalances that have plagued our country as far back as the aftermath of World War II. In his first term, Trump's tariff policies were partially successful but not without a cost. In his first term, Trump's tariff policies were partially successful but not without a cost. Some countries hit back with their own tariffs. Our farmers were hurt so badly that Trump was forced to authorize a multibillion-dollar package of direct aid to keep many farmers afloat. Yet, the MAGA math suggests that whatever harm is done will be worth it in the long run. However, an important element in this equation is being ignored by Trump and many economists. We will use Germany as just one example. As the powerhouse of Europe, Germany has been enjoying large trade surpluses with the U.S. for many years. Back in the heyday of mercantilism (16th to 18th centuries), a country would take these trade surpluses and convert them into piles of silver and gold that would sit in their monarch's coffers for years. That is not the case today. Germany, as well as China, Japan, and most other European nations have much higher savings and investment rates than we do in the U.S. Why should that matter? Because instead of hoarding their cash profits on trade (the modern-day equivalent of precious metals), they have been taking their current account trade surpluses and recycling those capital flows back into the U.S. and other countries. Those flows find their way into building new plants and equipment in the U.S., creating jobs, investing in our technology, and purchasing our stocks and bonds. This flow of funds allows the American consumer to continue to save less and spend more. The risk is that by raising tariffs, we reverse this process. These offending nations would see their current account trade surplus go down as their exports to the U.S. slowed. That means they would have less capital to invest back in America. I see other differences between the Trump approach and the mercantilists of old. Back in those days of colonial expansion, currencies did not represent the value they do today. Only gold and silver were considered stores of wealth. Today, nations can do more than just raise tariffs in response to a burgeoning tariff war. President-elect Donald Trump, shown during a recent news conference, has already telegraphed his intent to levy tariffs on America's trading partners. Since Trump has already telegraphed his intent to levy tariffs on America's trading partners, exporters have already acted by using their currency to lessen the impact on their trade balance. How? By reducing the value of their currencies against the dollar. If Mexico, for example, is hit with a 10 percent tariff on exports and allows its' currency to depreciate versus the dollar by 10 percent, the price to importers remains the same. No harm is done, and it is business as usual. This is why the U.S. dollar has been strengthening against just about every currency all year. Another area where Trump departs from the mercantilist model is government control. He believes in the heavy hand of government as far as trade is concerned, but he is in the opposite camp where rules, regulations, and taxes by the same government are concerned. Unlike the nations of old, he does not believe that wealth is finite, nor should it be measured by the amount of gold, silver, or even crypto that a nation holds. That puts him at odds with the core belief that supported mercantilism. As for acquiring colonies, his policy appears to be both nationalist and anti-imperialistic. Trump has shown himself to be against foreign entanglements and has no interest in acquiring territory (unlike China, Iran, Russia, and other quasi-mercantilist societies). He does not see it as America's role to right every wrong or spend money or American lives on people and causes which he believes has nothing to do with our interests. That does not mean he plans to withdraw America from the global scene as many might fear. The U.S. is just too big an entity to accomplish that. Instead, because of his mercantilist leanings, if other nations want us to intervene then they must be prepared to pay for that privilege. He has made that point with Taiwan, and with the countries that comprise NATO, and will do so at every opportunity, in my opinion. Many voters see our new president as a strong leader. They applaud his desire to wield more power and authority than others have done in his office. Given the present populist era where distrust of government and our economic system are at historical highs, this is not surprising. Although he has a soft spot for pomp and circumstance and may envy autocratic leaders, he seems less interested in power for power's sake. Time and again, the mercantilist in him, appears to support one conclusion: if there is an advantage to be had (whether in finance, economics, or policy) by simply cutting a deal, that is what he will do.
REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Icelanders will elect a new parliament Saturday after disagreements over immigration, energy policy and the economy forced Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson to pull the plug on his coalition government and call early elections. This is Iceland’s sixth general election since the 2008 financial crisis devastated the economy of the North Atlantic island nation and ushered in a new era of political instability. Opinion polls suggest the country may be in for another upheaval, with support for the three governing parties plunging. Benediktsson, who was named prime minister in April following the resignation of his predecessor, struggled to hold together the unlikely coalition of his conservative Independence Party with the centrist Progressive Party and the Left-Green Movement. Iceland, a nation of about 400,000 people, is proud of its democratic traditions, describing itself as arguably the world’s oldest parliamentary democracy. The island’s parliament, the Althingi, was founded in 930 by the Norsemen who settled the country. Here’s what to look for in the contest. RELATED COVERAGE Volcano on Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula erupts for the 7th time in a year Iceland appears headed for a snap election after governing coalition collapses A rare polar bear showed up on the shores of Iceland. Police shot it How does the election work? Voters will choose 63 members of the Althingi in an election that will allocate seats both by regional constituencies and proportional representation. Parties need at least 5% of the vote to win seats in parliament. Eight parties were represented in the outgoing parliament, and 10 parties are contesting this election. Turnout is traditionally high by international standards, with 80% of registered voters casting ballots in the 2021 parliamentary election. Why now? A windswept island near the Arctic Circle, Iceland normally holds elections during the warmer months of the year. But on Oct. 13 Benediktsson decided his coalition couldn’t last any longer, and he asked President Halla Tómasdóttir to dissolve the Althingi. “The weakness of this society is that we have no very strong party and we have no very strong leader of any party,’’ said Vilhjálmur Bjarnson, a former member of parliament. “We have no charming person with a vision ... That is very difficult for us.” Why is Iceland’s politics so fractured? The splintering of Iceland’s political landscape came after the 2008 financial crisis, which prompted years of economic upheaval after its debt-swollen banks collapsed. The crisis led to anger and distrust of the parties that had traditionally traded power back and forth, and prompted the creation of new parties ranging from the environment focused Left-Green Alliance to the Pirate Party, which advocates direct democracy and individual freedoms. “This is one of the consequences of the economic crash,’’ said Eva H. Önnudóttir, a professor of political science at the University of Iceland. “It’s just the changed landscape. Parties, especially the old parties, have maybe kind of been hoping that we would go back to how things were before, but that’s not going to happen.” What are the issues? Like many Western countries, Iceland has been buffeted by the rising cost of living and immigration pressures. Inflation peaked at an annual rate of 10.2% in February 2023, fueled by the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While inflation slowed to 5.1% in October, that is still high compared with neighboring countries. The U.S. inflation rate stood at 2.6% last month, while the European Union’s rate was 2.3%. Iceland is also struggling to accommodate a rising number of asylum-seekers, creating tensions within the small, traditionally homogenous country. The number of immigrants seeking protection in Iceland jumped to more than 4,000 in each of the past three years, compared with a previous average of less than 1,000. What about the volcano? Repeated eruptions of a volcano in the southwestern part of the country have displaced thousands of people and strained public finances. One year after the first eruption forced the evacuation of the town of Grindavik, many residents still don’t have secure housing, leading to complaints that the government has been slow to respond. But it also added to a shortage of affordable housing exacerbated by Iceland’s tourism boom. Young people are struggling to get a foot on the housing ladder at a time when short-term vacation rentals have reduced the housing stock available for locals, Önnudóttir said. “The housing issue is becoming a big issue in Iceland,’' she said. —— Kirka reported from London.