How to Watch Top 25 Women’s College Basketball Games – Friday, November 22
AP Trending SummaryBrief at 4:13 p.m. ESTLONDON: When the Arab uprisings swept through the Middle East and North Africa in 2011, many in the West hoped the fall of these entrenched regimes would herald a new era of development and good governance. Instead, it marked the beginning of a period of unprecedented suffering for millions. Nearly 14 years later, in the wake of a grinding civil war, there are now renewed hopes that Syria, after its brutally suppressed uprising, might finally be stepping into the light following the toppling of the Bashar Assad regime. However, as a diverse array of victorious armed opposition groups struggle to impose order and unity on a fractured nation, many observers share a common fear — that Syria could become another Libya. Indeed, since the NATO-backed uprising that ousted Muammar Qaddafi, Libya has become a byword for state failure — divided between rival administrations, plagued by criminality, and used as a proxy battleground by foreign powers keen to exploit its oil and strategic location. While 2024 offered glimpses of possible reconciliation between the North African nation’s competing factions, steps toward national elections, and perhaps even justice for its long-suffering citizens, the country remains deeply unstable as it enters the new year. In April, Abdoulaye Bathily, the UN special envoy to Libya, resigned, citing the country’s entrenched political stalemate. His resignation followed 18 months of attempts to mediate between Libya’s divided factions, but a “lack of political will and good faith” thwarted progress. “The selfish resolve of current leaders to maintain the status quo must stop,” Bathily told the Security Council. The delay of the national reconciliation conference, originally scheduled for April, highlighted the ongoing gridlock. While Libya’s oil-rich economy offers immense potential, it remains plagued by a fractured political landscape — with the Tripoli-based UN-recognized Government of National Unity headed by Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh opposing the eastern administration allied with General Khalifa Haftar, commander of the Tobruk-based Libyan National Army. Bathily’s departure underscored the international community’s struggle to bring stability to a nation divided since the 2011 uprising. Despite his efforts, Libya’s entrenched rivalries and external meddling have kept progress elusive, prolonging the suffering of its population. Libya’s fragile peace was repeatedly shattered in 2024, with violence escalating across major cities and border regions. In May, clashes in Zawiya between militias loyal to the GNU left one dead and six injured. Violence escalated in Tripoli in July, where clashes between the Interior Ministry’s Special Deterrence Forces, also known as RADA, and Presidential Council units resulted in 13 fatalities, including civilians. August brought another tragedy in Tripoli, with nine killed in militia fighting. Although political leaders have periodically called for ceasefires, the lack of cohesive state authority has allowed armed factions to exploit and perpetuate the chaos, leaving Libyans trapped in repeated cycles of violence. Amid this summer of bloodshed, there was a glimmer of justice. In July, Libya’s Derna Criminal Court sentenced 12 officials to up to 27 years in prison for their roles in the catastrophic Sept. 10, 2023, dam collapse. The disaster, triggered by Storm Daniel, unleashed torrents of water that obliterated entire neighborhoods in the coastal city of Derna, claiming thousands of lives. Neglected infrastructure and corruption were deemed key factors in the disaster, as funds earmarked for dam maintenance were found to have been misappropriated. The court’s verdict represented a rare moment of accountability in a nation fraught with impunity. While some saw this as a step toward justice, critics argue systemic reform is still absent. Rebuilding efforts in Derna remain slow, hindered by political infighting. Meanwhile, the disaster’s survivors, grappling with trauma and displacement, want to see comprehensive infrastructure upgrades to prevent future tragedies. September brought a breakthrough as Libya’s rival legislative bodies agreed to appoint Naji Mohamed Issa Belqasem as interim central bank governor, ending months of turmoil over financial leadership. This crisis erupted when Tripoli’s Presidential Council moved to replace longstanding Governor Sadiq Al-Kabir, leading eastern factions to halt oil production in protest. Libya’s oil-dependent economy suffered immensely, with crude exports plummeting from 1 million barrels per day in August to just 400,000 in September. The UN facilitated the agreement, urging an end to unilateral decisions that deepen institutional divisions. While the resolution temporarily eased tensions, it highlighted the broader issue of competing power centers undermining Libya’s economic stability. With the interim governor tasked to form a board of directors, the deal’s success hinges on sustained cooperation, a rare commodity in Libya’s fragmented political landscape. The murder of Abdel-Rahman Milad, a notorious Libyan Coast Guard commander known as “Bija,” in September spotlighted Libya’s lawlessness and corruption. Sanctioned by the UN in 2018 for human trafficking, Milad symbolized the overlap of state and criminal enterprise. Speculation still abounds about the reason behind his killing — ranging from militia infighting to fears he might expose high-level corruption. Milad’s killing also raised questions about the EU’s reliance on Libyan partners accused of human rights abuses to help control the flow of migration to Europe. Observers see his death as a byproduct of power struggles between rival gangs and a reflection of Libya’s inability to reform its fractured governance and security apparatus. While Milad’s death may serve as a test for Libya’s broken justice system, there has been some progress on addressing historic injustices. October saw the International Criminal Court unseal arrest warrants for six Libyans implicated in war crimes during the Second Libyan Civil War of 2014-20. The suspects, linked to the Kaniyat militia, face charges including murder, torture and sexual violence. These crimes occurred in Tarhuna, a town notorious for mass graves uncovered in 2020 after the militia’s retreat. The ICC warrants mark a significant step toward accountability and highlight ongoing international scrutiny of Libya’s human rights record. However, Libya’s weak judicial system and fragmented governance pose challenges to enforcing these warrants. As families of victims seek closure, the outcome may set a precedent for addressing atrocities committed during Libya’s protracted conflict. In November, the GNU’s Interior Minister Emad Al-Trabelsi sparked widespread condemnation from human rights groups when he announced plans to establish a morality police force. The new force would enforce conservative social norms, including mandatory veiling for girls over the age of nine and restrictions on women’s mobility without a male guardian. Al-Trabelsi justified the move as preserving “Islamic social values,” dismissing personal freedom as incompatible with Libyan society. However, the measures appear to have been slapped down by the GNU. There are also doubts that the government even has the means to enforce such rules. “Al-Trabelsi’s sweeping moral measures were never likely to materialize,” Jalel Harchaoui, a Libya expert and senior fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, told Arab News. “Enforcing such rules requires broad territorial control, religious credibility, and a clear moral gap to address. “Much of Libya’s population is already conservative, the Interior Ministry lacks religious backing, and no armed actor — Al-Trabelsi included — can truly project power citywide, let alone nationwide. “Unsurprisingly, nothing substantial has followed the initial announcement, which had drawn so much international attention.” While national elections intended to reunify the country have been repeatedly postponed, November’s municipal polls marked a rare democratic exercise, with voting held simultaneously in Libya’s east and west for the first time since 2014. Despite logistical challenges and political tensions, voter turnout hit 77 percent, signaling public demand for stability. The elections even included areas previously under military control, where mayors had been replaced with appointees. International observers, including the G7, praised the process as a step toward national reconciliation. However, skepticism remains about whether these local elections can pave the way for overdue presidential and parliamentary votes. Libya has become one of the busiest and most deadly routes used by migrants and refugees attempting to reach Europe — something that armed groups have long facilitated for a profit or have sought to curtail, often brutally, in exchange for EU funding. Tragedy struck Libya’s migrant routes repeatedly in 2024, with multiple fatal incidents highlighting the perils faced by those seeking refuge. In September, a boat capsized near Tobruk, leaving 22 missing. October brought another disaster, with only one survivor from a vessel carrying 13 passengers. Then in November, 28 people disappeared off Libya’s coast when their rubber boat got into difficulty. Rights groups criticized both Libyan and European policies that push migrants into perilous crossings. The Mediterranean remains a graveyard for those fleeing violence and poverty, with international efforts to address the crisis falling short. The Kremlin’s strategic ambitions in Libya are likely to keep growing in the new year as it seeks to offset losses in Syria following the overthrow earlier this month of Assad, a key ally who had permitted Russian use of air and naval bases. Moscow has deepened ties with General Haftar’s Libyan National Army in recent years, using Libya as a launchpad for expanding its influence in North Africa and the Sahel. The Wagner Group, a Russian private military contractor recently rebranded as the Africa Corps, has established bases in southern Libya, supporting resource extraction and military operations across the continent. Russia’s efforts to consolidate its presence in Libya align with broader objectives to counter NATO and secure Mediterranean access for its ships. As Libya’s rival factions vie for power, analysts believe this kind of foreign influence could further complicate efforts to achieve peace and sovereignty. While Syria embarks on its own delicate transition out of war and dictatorship, Libya stands as a cautionary tale for what can happen when factionalism, greed, and foreign interests are allowed to trump the needs and aspirations of a long-suffering people.WASHINGTON , Nov. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Since Donald Trump's election victory, Iran decided against retaliatory strikes on Israel and Qatar reportedly agreed to expel Hamas executives from Doha . Today at the National Press Club, families of hostages held in Gaza appealed for the President-Elect's intervention. Barry Rosen , who was held captive during the Iran hostage crisis for 444 days, drew powerful parallels to the current situation. "As someone who endured solitary confinement and mock executions before President Reagan secured our release, I see the 101 hostages held by Hamas living in conditions that are profoundly more inhumane than what I went through," said Rosen. "With Trump now poised to return to the White House, we turn to a leader who has proven himself as the ultimate dealmaker." "We are approaching a dark milestone where seven American citizens will have been held hostage longer than during the Iran crisis," warned Ronen Neutra, father of American hostage Omer Neutra . " Iran's hostages were released just minutes after President Ronald Reagan was sworn in. We believe President-Elect Trump can have a Reagan moment of his own." Dr. Shoshan Haran, who endured 50 days of captivity with her daughter and young grandchildren Yahel and Naveh before being released, shared her harrowing experience. "Today, my grandchildren await their father's return with unwavering hope, praying for him daily. They've already planned every detail of his homecoming—where to hang the balloons, where to display the drawings they've made for him." She expressed confidence in Trump's proven leadership abilities: "We have witnessed President-Elect Trump's unprecedented achievements in the Middle East through the Abraham Accords. This demonstrated his unique ability to bring parties together and achieve what many thought impossible." Her son-in-law Tal Shoham remains in captivity after 412 days. Nizar Zakka , President of Hostage Aid Worldwide who was freed from Iranian captivity in 2019 during the Trump administration, shared his perspective: "As someone who spent 1,362 days in captivity, I deeply understand what it means to have your freedom stripped away. This is probably the largest hostage crisis in recent history, and a global humanitarian crisis that demands our collective attention." "This dire humanitarian crisis cannot be a political issue," emphasized Orna Neutra , mother of Omer who has now spent 412 days in Hamas captivity. "As winter approaches for the second time, with all resources depleted, Omer and the others are out of time." "At the Republican convention, we listened to Mr. Trump threaten Hamas: 'We want our hostages back, and they better be back before I assume office, or you will be paying a very big price,'" recalled Ronen Neutra . "We urge President Trump to seize the moment." For additional information or media inquiries, please contact Sophie Gilpin at [email protected] . Contact: Sophie Gilpin Email: [email protected] SOURCE Hostage Aid Worldwide
SAN FRANCISCO — Oklahoma City Thunder star Jalen Williams went down grabbing at his eye against the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday night after Jonathan Kuminga dunked over him with 39 seconds left in the first half. Williams stayed on the floor for a couple of minutes before he limped and got helped to the locker room. In 16 minutes of action, Williams had 13 points, seven assists, six rebounds and a pair of steals, helping the Thunder to a 62-50 lead at intermission. Williams is second on the Thunder averaging 22.1 points per game and leads the team with 6.5 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game.Trump has promised again to release the last JFK files. But experts say don’t expect big revelationsA Stafford man is expected to receive two life sentences for sexually assaulting a girl about a decade ago, starting when she was 9 years old. Anthony Dean Arzu, 58, was convicted of five charges Thursday in Stafford Circuit Court, including sodomy, rape and three counts of aggravated sexual battery. The sodomy and rape convictions carry mandatory life sentences because the victim was under 13 at the time. Arzu could also receive up to 60 additional years on the other convictions when he is sentenced in March. According to the evidence presented by prosecutor Ed Lustig during a two-day trial that ended about 11 p.m. Thursday, Arzu became friends with the girl’s father years ago while working together at a restaurant. The father had taken custody of the victim, her sister and three brothers after their mother became homeless. At some point in 2014, the evidence showed, Arzu invited the father and his children to come live with him and his son in a two-bedroom townhouse in Stafford. The father slept on a couch while the six children all shared one bedroom. The girls, now grown, claimed that at times while their father was at work Arzu would show them pornography and improperly touch himself in front of them. The younger girl said Arzu went even further with her, performing sex acts on her when she was 9 and 10 years old. A charge involving the older sister was thrown out prior to being considered by the jury. Neither girl reported the abuse until after the younger girl turned 18. They were living with their mother in Kentucky when the mother, who had gotten back on her feet, noticed a post under a picture of the young woman on social media by Arzu that read, “Goddess status.” The mother told her daughters that Arzu’s post was “weird,” and the daughters finally told her what had happened years ago. The Stafford Sheriff’s Office was contacted and Detective Joshua Lynch obtained warrants against Arzu. Arzu has been in the Rappahannock Regional Jail since June. During the trial, Arzu denied the allegations and accused the mother of coaxing her daughters to lie. The mother denied that claim, saying that before learning about the abuse she was grateful to Arzu and others for providing care for her children. The daughters still live in Kentucky. In an unrelated case, Arzu was arrested in Stafford in 2018 on sexual abuse allegations involving a 3-year-old girl. Those charges were later dropped.
WASHINGTON: It’s a daunting reality for Democrats: Republican Donald Trump’s support has grown broadly since he last sought the presidency. In his defeat of Democrat Kamala Harris, Trump won a bigger percentage of the vote in each one of the 50 states, and Washington, D.C., than he did four years ago. He won more actual votes than in 2020 in 40 states, according to an Associated Press analysis. Certainly, Harris’ more than 7 million vote decline from President Joe Biden’s 2020 total was a factor in her loss, especially in swing-state metropolitan areas that have been the party’s winning electoral strongholds. But, despite national turnout that was lower than in the high-enthusiasm 2020 election, Trump received 2.5 million more votes than he did four years ago. He swept the seven most competitive states to win a convincing Electoral College victory, becoming the first Republican nominee in 20 years to win a majority of the popular vote. Trump cut into places where Harris needed to overperform to win a close election. Now Democrats are weighing how to regain traction ahead of the midterm elections in two years, when control of Congress will again be up for grabs and dozens of governors elected. There were some notable pieces to how Trump’s victory came together: Trump took a bite in Northern metros Though Trump improved across the map, his gains were particularly noteworthy in urban counties home to the cities of Detroit, Milwaukee and Philadelphia, electoral engines that stalled for Harris in industrial swing states Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Harris fell more than 50,000 votes — and 5 percentage points — short of Biden’s total in Wayne County, Michigan, which makes up the lion’s share of the Detroit metro area. She was almost 36,000 votes off Biden’s mark in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, and about 1,000 short in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. It wasn’t only Harris’ shortfall that helped Trump carry the states, a trio that Democrats had collectively carried in six of the seven previous elections before Nov. 5. Trump added to his 2020 totals in all three metro counties, netting more than 24,000 votes in Wayne County, more than 11,000 in Philadelphia County and almost 4,000 in Milwaukee County. It’s not yet possible to determine whether Harris fell short of Biden’s performance because Biden voters stayed home or switched their vote to Trump — or how some combination of the two produced the rightward drift evident in each of these states. Harris advertised heavily and campaigned regularly in each, and made Milwaukee County her first stop as a candidate with a rally in July. These swings alone were not the difference in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, but her weaker performance than Biden across the three metros helped Trump, who held on to big 2020 margins in the three states’ broad rural areas and improved or held steady in populous suburbs. Trump’s team and outside groups supporting him knew from their data that he was making inroads with Black voters, particularly Black men younger than 50, more concentrated in these urban areas that have been key to Democratic victories. When James Blair, Trump’s political director, saw results coming in from Philadelphia on election night, he knew Trump had cut into the more predominantly Black precincts, a gain that would echo in Wayne and Milwaukee counties. “The data made clear there was an opportunity there,” Blair said. AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of more than 120,000 voters, found Trump won a larger share of Black and Latino voters than he did in 2020, and most notably among men under age 45. Democrats won Senate races in Michigan and Wisconsin but lost in Pennsylvania. In 2026, they will be defending governorships in all three states and a Senate seat in Michigan. Trump gained more than Harris in battlegrounds Despite the burst of enthusiasm Harris’ candidacy created among the Democratic base when she entered the race in July, she ended up receiving fewer votes than Biden in three of the seven states where she campaigned almost exclusively. In Arizona, she received about 90,000 fewer votes than Biden. She received about 67,000 fewer in Michigan and 39,000 fewer in Pennsylvania. In four others — Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina and Wisconsin — Harris won more votes than Biden did. But Trump’s support grew by more — in some states, significantly more. That dynamic is glaring in Georgia, where Harris received almost 73,000 more votes than Biden did when he very narrowly carried the state. But Trump added more than 200,000 to his 2020 total, en route to winning Georgia by roughly 2 percentage points. In Wisconsin, Trump’s team reacted to slippage it saw in GOP-leaning counties in suburban Milwaukee by targeting once-Democratic-leaning, working-class areas, where Trump made notable gains. In the three largest suburban Milwaukee counties — Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha — which have formed the backbone of GOP victories for decades, Harris performed better than Biden did in 2020. She also gained more votes than Trump gained over 2020, though he still won the counties. That made Trump’s focus on Rock County, a blue-collar area in south central Wisconsin, critical. Trump received 3,084 more votes in Rock County, home of the former automotive manufacturing city of Janesville, than he did in 2020, while Harris underperformed Biden’s 2020 total by seven votes. That helped Trump offset Harris’ improvement in Milwaukee’s suburbs. The focus speaks to the strength Trump has had and continued to grow with middle-income, non-college educated voters, the Trump campaign’s senior data analyst Tim Saler said. “If you’re going to have to lean into working-class voters, they are particularly strong in Wisconsin,” Saler said. “We saw huge shifts from 2020 to 2024 in our favor.” Trump boosted 2020 totals as Arizona turnout dipped Of the seven most competitive states, Arizona saw the smallest increase in the number of votes cast in the presidential contest — slightly more than 4,000 votes, in a state with more than 3.3 million ballots cast. That was despite nearly 30 campaign visits to Arizona by Trump, Harris and their running mates and more than $432 million spent on advertising by the campaigns and allied outside groups, according to the ad-monitoring firm AdImpact. Arizona, alone of the seven swing states, saw Harris fall short of Biden across small, midsize and large counties. In the other six states, she was able to hold on in at least one of these categories. Even more telling, it is also the only swing state where Trump improved his margin in every single county. While turnout in Maricopa County, Arizona’s most populous as the home to Phoenix, dipped slightly from 2020 — by 14,199 votes, a tiny change in a county where more than 2 million people voted — Trump gained almost 56,000 more votes than four years ago. Meanwhile, Harris fell more than 60,000 votes short of Biden’s total, contributing to a shift significant enough to swing the county and state to Trump, who lost Arizona by fewer than 11,000 votes in 2020. Rightward shift even in heavily Democratic areas The biggest leaps to the right weren’t taking place exclusively among Republican-leaning counties, but also among the most Democratic-leaning counties in the states. Michigan’s Wayne County swung 9 points toward Trump, tying the more Republican-leaning Antrim County for the largest movement in the state. AP VoteCast found that voters were most likely to say the economy was the most important issue facing the country in 2024, followed by immigration. Trump supporters were more motivated by economic issues and immigration than Harris’, the survey showed. “It’s still all about the economy,” said North Carolina Democratic strategist Morgan Jackson, a senior adviser to Democrat Josh Stein, who won North Carolina’s governorship on Nov. 5 as Trump also carried the state. “Democrats have to embrace an economic message that actually works for real people and talk about it in the kind of terms that people get, rather than giving them a dissertation of economic policy,” he said. Governor’s elections in 2026 give Democrats a chance to test their understanding and messaging on the issue, said Democratic pollster Margie Omero, whose firm has advised Wisconsin’s Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in the past and winning Arizona Senate candidate Ruben Gallego this year. “So there’s an opportunity to really make sure people, who governors have a connection to, are feeling some specificity and clarity with the Democratic economic message,” Omero said.AP Trending SummaryBrief at 4:13 p.m. EST
Georgia quarterback Carson Beck announced Saturday that he will forgo his final year of eligibility and enter the 2025 NFL Draft. Beck, 22, led the Southeastern Conference with 28 touchdown passes and finished third in the SEC with 3,485 passing yards. He also led the conference in interceptions, however. Beck will be a spectator for the Bulldogs in the College Football Playoff after undergoing surgery Monday to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his right (throwing) elbow. Gunner Stockton is in line to guide No. 2 seed Georgia into the CFP, starting with the Bulldogs' quarterfinal game against No. 7 seed Notre Dame at the Sugar Bowl on Wednesday in New Orleans. "There's unfinished business still this season and I'll be here to support however I can, finish strong!" Beck said in a statement posted on social media. Beck, a fifth-year senior, finished with a 24-3 record in his career with Georgia. "The past five years at the University of Georgia have been nothing short of a dream come true and I will forever cherish the memories that have been made. Thank you Dawg Nation for the time I've been here and to those who've supported and believed in me, thank you," Beck wrote on social media. "It's been an incredible journey and all these moments have ultimately led me to take the next step in my football career. With that being said, I will be declaring for the 2025 NFL Draft. Go Dawgs!" Beck, the Bulldogs' starter all year, was replaced in the second half of the SEC title game with the injury. Stockton helped to guide the Bulldogs to a 22-19 overtime win over Texas and clinch a first-round bye in the first 12-team playoff. --Field Level MediaPulling back 6.5% this week, Fonterra Co-operative Group's NZSE:FCG) one-year decline in earnings may be coming into investors focusMarie Gluesenkamp Perez has a blunt message for fellow Democrats as they wail and wonder how they'll make their way back from the political wilderness. It's going to take time. And lots of work. "This is not like, 'Oh, here's one weird trick ... Use this word, not that word,' " said the 36-year-old congresswoman, fresh off reelection in a rural district Donald Trump just carried for the second time. Gluesenkamp Perez likened the Democrats' mission to building a bicycle wheel, saying there is no universal blueprint. "Every spoke matters and needs to be in appropriate tension," she said. "You can't just make one cast-iron spoke and expect the wheel to hold up." Gluesenkamp Perez, the mother of a toddler and owner of a family-run auto repair shop, became a political folk hero in 2022 by pulling off one of the biggest upsets in the country, coming from nowhere to win a Republican-held House seat representing the southwest corner of Washington state. The victory made her one of just five House Democrats representing districts that Trump carried in 2020. Two have been reelected. Republicans flipped a seat in Pennsylvania and the remaining contests — in Alaska and Ohio — remain too close to call. So when it comes to discussing how Democrats might address their hemorrhaging rural support, Gluesenkamp Perez speaks with some authority. But also some hesitation. "I am not a strategist. I am not a party operative," she said from her Capitol Hill office. "It's the wrong idea to take away from this that I've got some 10-point plan." Still, Gluesenkamp Perez does have some pointed advice as her party seeks to woo and win back the working-class voters who, for decades, were foundational to Democratic success. To wit: Stop talking down to people, as if they're too dumb to know what's politically good for them. Treat those who work with their hands with the same respect and regard as people holding jobs with fancy degrees. And, perhaps above all, run more candidates who've gotten dirt under their fingernails, mud on the soles of their boots or grease stains on their coveralls. "The track record of success is not whether you went to an Ivy League institution," Gluesenkamp Perez said, but rather "what that person has done with their life, how they've contributed to their community, beyond building a resume that's traditionally credentialed." Washington's 3rd Congressional District runs north from the Columbia River, which forms the border with Oregon. The closest thing to a large city is Vancouver, with a population of roughly 200,000. Endless acres of farmland are edged by mountains and lush forest; when the trees blaze with autumn colors, it's a heavenly sight. Swimming against the Trump tide, Gluesenkamp Perez won reelection this month by significantly outperforming Kamala Harris. She pulled more votes than her fellow Democrat not just in the blue bastions of Vancouver and its suburbs, but also in the rural reaches of the district. In fact, the redder the county, the more Gluesenkamp Perez topped the vice president's showing. Part of that is her relatability, as someone who lives in the countryside in a home she and her husband built. Campaigning, the congresswoman spoke of the nearly four-hour round trip the couple drive to take their toddler to the one day care center in their county. She described the frustrations — head-scratching regulations, nit-picky bureaucrats — she's dealt with while running her auto shop. Some of that, of course, is unique to her experience. But there's a broader applicability. Her platform was all about practicality. Making farm loans more accessible. Using tax-preferred savings funds to pay not just for college but also tools used by loggers, plumbers, electricians and the like. Giving people the right to choose where to fix their broken appliances, rather than having to ship them back to the manufacturer. Gluesenkamp Perez doesn't hesitate to break with fellow Democrats on issues like border security — she backed a resolution rebuking Harris for her role in the administration's policies — and hasn't waded into the culture wars that animate many in her party. "I think it's important that we hold our cultural and moral precepts steady and with integrity," said Gluesenkamp Perez, who called for codification of a national right to abortion rather than leaving decisions on women's health to a bunch of "staff bros" in Washington. "But it's also true that I don't ... know any Mexican Americans or Latinos that asked us to use significant political capital to make 'Latinx' happen. You need to be useful to your community and not an ideology." Most voters, she went on, aren't wielding a clipboard and checking off issue boxes. What matters to them is whether a candidate reflects their values and seems "a good fit for the community ... In many ways, the message is the messenger." That means sharing the lived experience of the people whom a lawmaker seeks to represent. "It's important that I lose power when everyone else loses power in the ice storm," said Gluesenkamp Perez. "That my home insurance rates go up, too. That fentanyl is impacting my [child's] playgroups." There is, as the congresswoman suggests, no one-size-fits-all solution for Democrats seeking to reclaim lost rural ground and working-class support. In Montana, Democratic Sen. Jon Tester is about as authentically rural as they come. A plain-spoken farmer and Montana native who famously lost three of his fingers in a childhood meat-grinding accident, his buzz cut and ample belly make him no one's idea of a slick, poll-tested politician. Still, Tester lost his reelection bid to a Republican who moved to the state just a decade ago and revealed a shaky relationship with the truth. (Among the controversies was Tim Sheehy's claim to have been shot while serving in Afghanistan.) That said, when you're flat on your back you have to pick yourself up and start somewhere. Democrats could do worse than listening to someone who's won a pair of tough races and speaks a language rural voters appreciate and understand. Mark Z. Barabak Barabak is a columnist for the Los Angeles Times. Get opinion pieces, letters and editorials sent directly to your inbox weekly!SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy will miss Sunday's game against the Green Bay Packers with a sore throwing shoulder, dealing another blow to the 49ers' playoff hopes. Purdy injured his right shoulder in last Sunday's loss to the Seattle Seahawks . He underwent an MRI on Monday that showed no structural damage and the team initially thought he could play this week. But when Purdy's shoulder didn't feel right when he made a few warmup throws at practice Thursday, those plans changed. “We thought he just needed some rest and we really weren’t concerned about him not being good this week,” coach Kyle Shanahan said Friday. “But when he started up Thursday, it just surprised him, surprised us how it felt. So we had to shut him down.” Shanahan said the team doesn't believe the injury is a long-term concern but he is uncertain whether Purdy will need to miss any additional time. “The MRI doesn’t look like that, so it should be all right,” Shanahan said. “But the way it responded this week, it’s really up in the air for next week. We’ll have to see on Monday.” The 49ers also will be missing star defensive end Nick Bosa, who is out after leaving last week's game in the second half with injuries to his left hip and oblique. Left tackle Trent Williams is questionable with an ankle injury and will be a game-time decision. San Francisco struggled on defense without Bosa last week and now will go the entire game this week without two of the team's most important players. The Niners (5-5) are currently in a three-way tie for second in the NFC West, a game behind first-place Arizona, and have little margin for error if they want to get back to the playoffs after making it to the Super Bowl last season. “I know it’s disappointing,” Shanahan said. “We knew there was a chance for Nick. I think the guys were a little surprised with Brock yesterday, but we addressed all that today. We’re going to have 48 guys in uniform. I know our guys believe in themselves. I believe in them. We’re missing two good players, definitely. But we got a lot of good players out there. So by no means do we not have a chance to win.” This will be the first time Purdy has missed a start because of an injury since taking over as the 49ers’ quarterback in December 2022. Brandon Allen will start in his place. Purdy has completed 66% of his passes this season for 2,613 yards, 13 TDs, eight interceptions and a 95.9 passer rating that is down significantly from his league-leading mark of 113 in 2023. Allen has been mostly a backup since being drafted by Jacksonville in 2016. Allen last started a game in Week 18 of the 2021 season for Cincinnati and has thrown just three passes the last three seasons — including none since joining San Francisco in 2023. Allen said he preparation hasn't changed this week with the exception of getting to work with the first-team receivers instead of running the scout team. “It’s an opportunity.” he said. “The circumstances are what they are. But I think our team all year long we’ve been kind of dealing with injuries here and there. It’s been a big next-man-up mentality. It’s definitely an opportunity for me to go out and play well and put our guys in a good position to win the game. Obviously, we want Brock back and healthy and all that. But for the time being, it is an opportunity for me.” Joshua Dobbs will be the backup Sunday. San Francisco also will be without starting cornerback Charvarius Ward, who returned to the team this week following the death of his 1-year-old daughter on Oct. 28 but needs more time to get back up to speed. Punt returner Jacob Cowing (concussion), linebacker Tatum Bethune (knee) and defensive lineman Kevin Givens (groin) are also out. The Packers will also be without two key defensive players with cornerback Jaire Alexander ruled out after leaving last week's game with a knee injury and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper out with an injured hamstring. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL Josh Dubow, The Associated Press
Padres sign former Rays playoff hero