WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump launched a blitz of picks for his Cabinet, but he took his time before settling on billionaire investor Scott Bessent as his treasury secretary nominee. The Republican not only wanted someone who jibes with him, but an official who can execute his economic vision and look straight out of central casting while doing so. With his Yale University education and pedigree trading for Soros Fund Management before establishing his own funds, Bessent will be tasked with a delicate balancing act. Trump expects him to help reset the global trade order, enable trillions of dollars in tax cuts, ensure inflation stays in check, manage a ballooning national debt and still keep the financial markets confident. “Scott will support my Policies that will drive U.S. Competitiveness, and stop unfair Trade imbalances, work to create an Economy that places Growth at the forefront, especially through our coming World Energy Dominance,” Trump said in a statement. But for all the confidence, Trump was cautious in picking the 62-year-old, a sign that he understood the stakes after winning a presidential election largely shaped by inflation hitting a four-decade peak in 2022. He felt comfortable making faster decisions on Fox News host Pete Hegseth for defense secretary, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for health and human services secretary. His choice of Bessent went against the opinion of billionaire Elon Musk, who is co-leading Trump’s advisory panel known as the “Department of Government Efficiency” initiative. The head of Tesla and SpaceX posted on his social media site X before Trump’s selection that Bessent would be “a business-as-usual choice.” The pick also showed the internal tensions of a candidate who won by appealing to blue-collar voters but who depends on an administration staffed by those, who like Trump, enjoy a life of extreme wealth. Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., was unimpressed by Bessent. “Donald Trump pretends to be an economic populist, but it wouldn’t be a Trump Treasury Department without a rich political donor running the show,” Wyden said in a statement rushed out immediately after the announcement Friday evening. “When it comes to the economy, the government under Trump is of, by, and for the ultra-wealthy.” Bessent caught Trump’s attention during the campaign with his ideas for 3% growth, a reduced budget deficit equal to 3% of gross domestic product and 3 million additional barrels a day of oil production. Larry Kudlow, the TV host and a director of the White House National Economic Council during Trump’s initial term, supported him. But critics in Trump’s orbit said Bessent was weak on tariffs. Another onetime contender, Howard Lutnick, the billionaire CEO of the investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald, was more pro-tariffs but less reassuring to some business leaders. Trump picked him to head the Commerce Department and take the lead on trade issues. Trump also looked at other candidates, including former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh, Marc Rowan, the chief executive of Apollo Global Management, and Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn. Trump’s decision on his treasury chief is tied in part to most Republican voters’ biggest motivation for returning him to the White House: the state of the U.S. economy and the pressure from high prices. According to AP VoteCast, an early November survey of about 120,000 voters nationwide, about 3 in 10 voters said they wanted total upheaval in how the country is run. Bessent has been deeply critical of President Joe Biden’s economic policies, saying in remarks at the conservative Manhattan Institute that he was “alarmed” by the size of government spending and deficits and that Biden had embraced a “central planning” mindset that he thought belonged on “the scrap heap of history.” Biden, for his part, chose Janet Yellen, the former Federal Reserve chair, to be his treasury secretary, relying on her credibility as an economist as his administration successfully pushed for $1.9 trillion in pandemic aid in 2021. But inflation jumped as the United States recovered from pandemic shutdowns, driven by supply chain challenges, global conflict and — according to Biden administration critics — an excessive amount of pandemic aid. !function(e,n,i,s){var d="InfogramEmbeds";var o=e.getElementsByTagName(n)[0];if(window[d]&&window[d].initialized)window[d].process&&window[d].process();else if(!e.getElementById(i)){var r=e.createElement(n);r.async=1,r.id=i,r.src=s,o.parentNode.insertBefore(r,o)}}(document,"script","infogram-async","https://e.infogram.com/js/dist/embed-loader-min.js"); Government officials and economists are uncertain about what Trump would prioritize. The Republican campaigned on jacking up tariffs against China and other trade partners. But people in his economic orbit privately insist that what he cares about are fair terms in which other countries such as China don’t disadvantage the United States by subsidizing industries, manipulating currencies and suppressing their own workers’ wages. The president-elect wants to extend and expand his 2017 tax cuts, many of which are set to expire after 2025. He’s also proposed an array of tax cuts, such as no taxes on tips or overtime pay or Social Security benefits, that would create possible deficit increases. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, an independent fiscal watchdog, estimated that Trump could possibly add between $1.7 trillion to $15.6 trillion to projected deficits over 10 years, a sign of the uncertainty regarding his economic plans. The economist Olivier Blanchard, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, this week laid out the contradictions of “Trumponomics.” Deficit-funded tax cuts and tariff hikes could be inflationary, yet Trump won November’s election in large part because of voter frustration with inflation. There’s also his promise of deportations of unauthorized immigrants that could lower employment, though it’s not clear what Trump will do once in office. “The U.S. should be thinking about reducing the deficit, quite apart from Trump,” Blanchard said in a webcast. “Trump is probably going to make it worse.” Trump’s treasury secretary might ultimately face the additional responsibility of trying to pressure Fed Chair Jerome Powell to do as Trump wants, since the inflationary pressures outlined by Blanchard likely mean the Fed would try to slow growth to keep inflation from overheating, likely upsetting Trump. “The risk of a conflict between the Trump administration and the Fed is very high,” Blanchard said in a webcast.Uniqlo's 'powder soft' £60 jacket that's as stylish as it is warm reduced by £40 in winter sale
Washington, Dec 9 (AP) Donald Trump on Sunday pushed Russian leader Vladimir Putin to act to reach an immediate ceasefire with Ukraine, describing it as part of his active efforts as president-elect to end the war despite being weeks from taking office. “Zelenskyy and Ukraine would like to make a deal and stop the madness," Trump wrote on social media, referring to Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. In a television interview that aired Sunday, Trump also said he would be open to reducing military aid to Ukraine and pulling the United States out of NATO. Those are two threats that have alarmed Ukraine, NATO allies and many in the US national security community. Asked on NBC's “Meet the Press” if he were actively working to end the nearly 3-year-old Ukraine war, Trump said, “I am.” He refused to say if he had spoken to Putin since winning election in November. “I don't want to say anything about that, because I don't want to do anything that could impede the negotiation,” Trump said. Trump's call for an immediate ceasefire went beyond the public policy stands taken by the Biden administration and Ukraine and drew a cautious response from Zelenskyy. It also marks Trump wading unusually deeply into efforts before his January 20 inauguration to resolve one of the major global crises facing the lame-duck Biden administration. Trump made his proposal after a weekend meeting in Paris with French and Ukrainian leaders in Paris, where many world leaders gathered to celebrate the restoration of Notre Dame cathedral after a devastating fire. None of the advisers traveling with him appeared to have expertise on Ukraine. Kyiv would like to close a deal, Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. “There should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin.” “I know Vladimir well. This is his time to act. China can help. The World is waiting!” Trump added. He was referring to mediation efforts by China that many in the West have seen as favouring Russia. Zelenskyy described his discussions on Saturday with Trump, brought together by French President Emmanuel Macron, as “constructive" but has given no further details. Zelenskyy cautioned that Ukraine needs a “just and robust peace, that Russians will not destroy within a few years”. “When we talk about an effective peace with Russia, we must talk first of all about effective peace guarantees. Ukrainians want peace more than anyone else. Russia brought war to our land,” he said on Sunday in a post on the Telegram messaging app. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to Trump's post by repeating Moscow's long-standing message that it is open to talks with Ukraine. Peskov referenced a decree by Zelenskyy from October 2022 that declared the prospect of any talks “impossible” as long as Putin was Russia's leader. That decree came after Putin proclaimed four occupied regions of Ukraine to be part of Russia, in what Kyiv and the West said was a clear violation of Ukrainian sovereignty. Trump's former national security adviser, retired Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, warned there was no such thing as a quick fix to ending Russia's war with Ukraine. “What I'm worried about is this kind of flawed idea that Putin can be placated, right, that Putin will come to some kind of a deal,” McMaster told “Fox News Sunday." “I think it's really important for President Trump to adhere to his instinct in this connection ... peace through strength,” McMaster said, adding, “How about give them what they need to defend themselves, and then saying to Putin, You're going to lose this war?” While Trump has said before that he would like to see a quick ceasefire in Ukraine, his proposal on Sunday was framed as a direct appeal to Russia. The quick responses from Ukraine and Russia demonstrated the seriousness with which they regarded the idea from the incoming American president. Both Trump and President Joe Biden pointed this weekend to Russia's disengagement in Syria, where the Russian military largely moved out of the way while Syrian rebels overthrew the country's Russian-allied president, as evidence of the extent to which the Ukraine war has sapped Russia's resources. Biden said at the White House on Sunday that resistance from Ukraine had "left Russia unable to protect its main ally in the Middle East”. The Biden administration and other supporters of Ukraine have made a point of not being seen to press Ukraine for an immediate truce. Ukraine's allies fear a quick deal would be largely on the terms of its more powerful neighbour, potentially forcing damaging concessions on Ukraine and allowing Russia to resume the war again once it has built back up its military strength. Trump portrays himself as up to making fast deals to resolve conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East that have frustrated many of the Biden administration's own mediation efforts. There is no prohibition on incoming officials or nominees meeting with foreign officials, and it is common and fine for them to do so — unless those meetings are designed to subvert or otherwise affect current US policy. The Logan Act bars private citizens from trying to intervene in “disputes or controversies” between the United States and foreign powers without government approval. But the 1799 statute has produced just two criminal cases, none since the 1850s and neither resulting in a criminal conviction. In the NBC interview taped on Friday, Trump renewed his warning to NATO allies that he did not see continued US participation in the Western military alliance as a given during his second term. Trump has long complained that European and the Canadian governments in the mutual-defence bloc are freeloading on military spending by the US, by far the most powerful partner in NATO. NATO and its member governments say a majority of countries in the bloc are now hitting voluntary targets for military spending, due in part to pressure from Trump in his first term. Asked whether he would consider the possibility of pulling out of NATO, Trump indicated that was an open question. “If they're paying their bills, and if I think they're treating us fairly, the answer is absolutely I'd stay with NATO,” he said. But if not, he was asked if he would consider pulling the US out of the alliance. Trump responded, “Absolutely. Yeah, absolutely.” Trump expressed the same openness when asked if Ukraine should brace for possible cuts in US aid. “Possibly,” he said. US arms and other military support are vital to Ukraine's efforts to fend off invading Russian forces, and Biden has been surging assistance to Ukraine before leaving office. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin on Saturday announced nearly USD 1 billion more in longer-term weapons support to Ukraine. Austin spoke to his Ukrainian counterpart Sunday about the status of the war and US military backing, the Pentagon said. Russian forces kept up their grinding advance in eastern Ukraine, taking the village of Blahodatne, according to a statement Sunday by Russia's defence ministry. If confirmed, that gain would bring Russian forces a step closer toward capturing the town of Velyka Novosilka and disrupting a key logistics route for the Ukrainian army, military analysts said. (AP) PY PY (This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) in West Bengal on Friday announced its intention to hire political analysts , content writers, digital marketing executives, designers, and interns in a social media post. The party’s West Bengal State secretary Mohammad Salim said it was an initiative to build a stronger network by focusing on creative methods, new age technology, and data-driven social media outreach for targeted campaigns to reach young voters “This is not a sudden decision. We already have a social media presence. These new hires will strengthen the existing workforce,” Mr. Salim told The Hindu . He also said the CPI(M) did not believe in outsourcing its work, unlike other political parties. Asked if the decision aligned with the CPI(M)‘s ideology, Mr. Salim, said: “We are the only party which has an ideology to begin with.” “We are not outsourcing our ideologies. Anybody who has strong ideologies — that cannot change,” he added. “Apply with the goal to transform & reform our public policies, for the people, by the people,” the party’s post said. Mr. Salim said content was already being improved in the party’s social media pages, and on YouTube. The CPI(M), a cadre-driven and ideology-based party, has for many decades largely relied on its own cadre to run the show, and has criticised other parties for hiring professionals for “policy development”. The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) has worked with political analysts, including I-PAC, for electoral successes. The CPI(M) ruled West Bengal for 34 years, from 1977 to 2011, and had a significant presence in the Lok Sabha. However, the party has failed to secure a single seat in the Lok Sabha since 2019, and its presence is dwindling. In the 2021 Assembly election, it failed to win a single seat. Published - November 23, 2024 08:08 pm IST Copy link Email Facebook Twitter Telegram LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit West Bengal / Communist Party of India -MarxistREVIVER® HELPS DRIVE THE SPIRIT OF GIVING THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
Ireland fans will face a nightmare trek to make the Nations League play-off first-leg against Bulgaria on March 20. The Bulgarian FA have confirmed that the match will take place in Plovdiv, 150km south east of the capital Sofia. With no flights scheduled between Dublin and Plovdiv, the best option will be to fly into Sofia and get a two-hour bus to Bulgaria’s second-largest city. READ MORE: Aiden McGeady details awkward way Celtic stars brought him ‘down a peg or two’ READ MORE: Warning issued as accounts show millions in combined League of Ireland losses But that is complicated by the fact that the only direct flight option listed between Dublin and Sofia around the date of the match involves a four-night stay - and the cost of the return flight is already over €500. Meanwhile, the capacity of the recently renovated Hristo Botev Stadium is just over 18,000 - with around 900 seats (five percent) available for away fans. Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrímsson confirmed why the Bulgarians selected Plovdiv as the venue for the game. “We just met them after the draw and it's confirmed that it's Plovdiv, they were re-laying the grass before the last game, that's why they played the last game in Sofia,” he said. “It's a better stadium, a newer stadium so they want to play there.” While the team will take a chartered flight straight into Plovdiv, Hallgrímsson still has to work out the timing of their arrival and departure. “Because it's the first game, I think it's a little bit tricky,” he said. “Do we do Monday and Tuesday in Dublin and then fly, and do Wednesday, MD-1 training session there in the stadium? “And then coming back home, again the tricky thing is, do we fly straight after the match or stay a day down there? “It's now logistics work for the federation. I think they are going next week for a site visit, just to check the hotel and locations so we can prepare in advance.” Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
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Larry Wilson: Mr. Schiff goes to Washington, againI was talking by phone last week with California’s new senator-elect, Adam Schiff, as he plowed through papers in a temporary basement office of the Capitol in his transition from House member to Congress’s upper chamber — famously, or formerly, “the greatest deliberative body in the world.” More on his feelings about that in a bit. First, as we began our conversation — this was a day before his clownish former House colleague Matt Gaetz dropped out from consideration as attorney general — we had a laugh about the often-ludicrous qualities of so many of the names put forward by the president-elect for his cabinet. “When he was president before” — and before Schiff led an impeachment prosecution against him in the Senate trial — “I had a meeting with him in the Oval Office. And I said, ‘You know, we should work together on infrastructure,’ and I also brought up the high cost of prescription drugs ... He was affable, and personable, and I think the first thing he said to me was, ‘You know, you do a really good job.’ And I think he meant, on TV. Because it echoed something that Jared Kushner told me during his deposition” for the impeachment. “During one of the recesses he came up to me and said, ‘You do a really good job on TV.’ Trump had just attacked me for the very first time, on Twitter. ‘Sleazy Adam Schiff spends too much time on TV,’ and blah blah blah. And I said, ‘Well, apparently your father-in-law doesn’t think so.’ And his response was, ‘Oh, yes he does, and that’s why.’ ... He’s obviously picked a lot of his cabinet by watching them on Fox. And he also watches his adversaries on Fox.” I asked Schiff if he would be able to work with Trump during his second term. “Well, I think he sees political value in attacking me. It’s why I was such a constant feature in his rallies. Even up to the very end, his closing argument was about me — ‘He’s the enemy from within.’ All I can do is do my job. Try to get stuff done in defending our democracy, our rights and freedoms. He can call me whatever he wants. I’m not going to lose focus on core responsibilities.” Back to the difference between being a congressman and a senator. Schiff and the 11 other new incoming senators — six Democrats, six Republicans — just spent the last week in official orientations about how the upper house works. After 20 years in the House, he was at least a bit familiar. But some things are different. “It’s been a combination of briefings from Senate officers and the sergeant at arms — including with our spouses; they wanted us all to get to know each other — about your Washington office, and your district office, and personal security. We would take a meal break and have lunch together. Social interaction is very important. We had other sessions with veteran senators of both parties about things to do, and things not. A main thing seems to be: Don’t just work together and not socialize. Invite people out to dinner. Don’t judge a book by its cover — guys who you know from TV” may be different in real life. I asked about the “greatest deliberative body” idea: “It really seems like a different culture in the Senate,” Schiff said. “There’s a recognition that you can’t get anything done unless you can find a partner on the other side of the aisle. It’s a small place and you can get to know each other well. There is a group of folks in the Senate who don’t want to get anything done. But apart from that group, there’s lots of opportunities to collaborate and deliver and so I’m very excited about it. It’s very entrepreneurial.” “I was worried,” he continued. “I’d been hearing that the character of the Senate was changing — that a number of the bomb throwers in the House had come over — but the climate is very different. There’s a real willingness to say, ‘Hey, we may disagree on this and that, but I know you’re interested in housing, or rural hospitals, so let’s work together.’” Although I didn’t want to get too deep into the weeds on the inevitable question of what’s next for Democrats after they lost the White House, still don’t have the House and lost the Senate, I was still curious about how California’s new senator could work with a guy who rails against him: “This president, given his track record, is going to abuse his office. But my first priority is to get things done. Playing defense is secondary.” Larry Wilson is on the Southern California News Group editorial board. lwilson@scng.com.Wiikwemkoong Leads the Way in Green Innovation with EV Infrastructure ProjectTrump tells 37 people on death row with commuted sentences to ‘go to hell’
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Creating and maintaining an effective team, whether in business or education, has never been more important than today. After surviving the worst global pandemic in a century, and navigating economic challenges in an ever-changing political environment, ensuring you already have an effective team can be daunting. Perhaps in higher education, with the potential of lower enrollments, rising expenditures and more limited financial resources for funding higher wages, finding and keeping your IT team will be difficult. In some ways, just keeping your employees engaged has become a global challenge. According to a 2024 on the state of the global workplace, “the majority of the world’s employees continue to struggle at work and in life, with direct consequences for organizational productivity.” The study also estimated $8.9 trillion was lost in global GDP due to this problem. Given today’s nimble work population, if higher education cannot afford current salary levels, and the institutional environment is already poor, employees will simply move on to more promising job opportunities. So, to create and maintain a successful team, in your IT department and throughout your campus, you should carefully define, analyze and review your work environment from the top down. A September 2024 article on the business website Upwork titled, " ," lists a number of important and helpful steps you can take to achieve this goal. As we all reflect upon our staff and our general work environment in higher education, especially over the past several years, I pulled together a top 25 to-do list for the upcoming year. The list is in no particular order, but intended to recognize the dedication of the IT staff, which at times are forgotten or go unnoticed. The list is also intended to consider all the technological tools at our disposal, how to use them effectively, how to leverage educational technology in the future, and how to lead and manage our employees. 1. Work to recruit and retain the very best IT staff for my institution. 2. Protect my campus from a major cyber or ransomware attack. 3. Make certain all of our institutional data backups are both secure and fully tested, so we can confidently rely upon them for full operational use. 4. Before the next big decision at a meeting, ask the question, “Who should have been at the table who hasn’t been invited before?” 5. Provide special thanks to the staff at the help desk. Provide the staff with coffee, treats and make them feel they are valued. Offer them praise and validation for jobs well done. 6. Whatever direction the political winds are blowing, make sure our students, faculty and staff are thought of as essential to our country’s successful and peaceful future. 7. Ensure AI is utilized ethically and incorporate the elements of transparency, impartiality, accountability, reliability, security and privacy. 8. Continue working to ensure instruction can be supplemented and supported with educational technology which fosters individualized learning for each student. 9. Make use of technology which is translucent — meaning it’s there when you need it but doesn’t overtake the classroom or the moment, or interfere with important social interaction or conversation. 10. Make certain the CIO or CTO always has a seat at the table for administrative discussions and decisions. 11. Have all faculty, staff and students continually utilize good cybersecurity practices. 12. Create an environment where campus administrators support and practice cybersecurity protocols, and consistent cyber training occurs. 13. Ensure the IT department can communicate clearly, concisely, consistently and effectively to the campus community. 14. Work diligently to promote the concept of servant leadership throughout IT and the campus. Manage others as you would prefer to be managed yourself. 15. Foster IT leadership that leads with purpose, collaboration and teamwork. 16. When leading, celebrate successes as well as acknowledging failures. Learn from both to chart a successful course for the future. 17. Strive for a work-life balance, both for yourself and staff. 18. Provide training and professional development opportunities for team members. 19. Ensure you have developed a team atmosphere and a culture of trust. 20. Encourage IT leadership and staff to get out of the office and travel the campus to meet and greet faculty, staff and students on a regular basis. 21. Create a work environment with clear goals, measurable objectives and expectations. 22. Work to empower staff and appropriately delegate responsibility so there can be mutual professional growth and development. 23. Encourage staff to take calculated risks and learn from them. 24. Manage but don’t micromanage. 25. Continually motivate your IT staff with positivity. Tackling some or all of these items takes strong, resilient and empathetic leadership. Sam Walton, a well-known American businessperson and founder of Walmart and Sam’s Club, probably said it best: “Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it's amazing what they can accomplish.” The upcoming months may bring a fair amount of uncertainty and dynamic challenges. The key for leaders and managers is to believe that positive change can pay long-term dividends. The one-word quote from the hit TV series , from the coach himself, makes for a perfect parting message: “BELIEVE.” We can achieve a great deal by following and sharing each of these wishes to ensure our mutually productive future. Believe me.
Is Enron back? If it’s a joke, some former employees aren’t laughingUNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Brian Moore Jr. scored 20 points to help Norfolk State defeat Grambling 76-70 on Friday night. Moore had 10 rebounds for the Spartans (8-6). Christian Ings finished 6 of 6 from the field to add 13 points. Kuluel Mading finished 4 of 8 from the field to finish with 10 points. Ernest Ross and Louis Hutchinson each scored 15 points for the Tigers (2-9). Kintavious Dozier had 14 points. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .
UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Brian Moore Jr. scored 20 points to help Norfolk State defeat Grambling 76-70 on Friday night. Moore had 10 rebounds for the Spartans (8-6). Christian Ings finished 6 of 6 from the field to add 13 points. Kuluel Mading finished 4 of 8 from the field to finish with 10 points. Ernest Ross and Louis Hutchinson each scored 15 points for the Tigers (2-9). Kintavious Dozier had 14 points. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .Lisa Weston has announced her candidacy for La Crosse’s District 12 city council seat, challenging long-time incumbent Doug Happel’s bid for reelection. District 12 begins at state Highway 33 and follows Pammel Creek to Hintgen Elementary School. Weston Weston has spent much of her adult life in La Crosse. She graduated with a degree in secondary education from UW-La Crosse in 2005 and later returned to the area after earning her master's degree from the University of Northern Iowa. She is an as an associate director of residence life at UW-L and wants to continue making a difference in the community. “La Crosse is a great, family friendly place to live and work,” said Weston. “I have always been civically engaged, as I grew up with parents who role-modeled the importance of giving back to the community and doing the hard work of public servants. Even as a teenager, I knew a great deal about how the school board, fire department, and church decisions were made because of how my parents spent their time.” This background has influenced her decision to run, and if elected, she hopes to use her experience to make a difference in La Crosse. “I value collaboration, effective communication, and being a problem solver. I care a great deal about ensuring that community members can share their voice, feedback, and ideas,” said Weston. “I know that most La Crosse residents want a sense of belonging, safety, and a variety of opportunities for social interaction and meaningful work. We want our children to have the same in this community. And I know, first hand, that many college students who come here to study at our institutions of higher education, experience this, and often want to stay.” While Weston has not previously run for elected office, she has a history of community involvement. Currently, she volunteers at several local organizations including the Mormon Coulee Lion’s Club, State Road PTO, and the English Lutheran Church. The spring election for La Crosse mayor, council members in districts 7-13, and a special election for the District 5 seat will take place Tuesday, April 1. All positions are elected to four-year terms. The deadline to file ballot documents is 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 7, at the city clerk’s office.