(Bloomberg) — Never miss an episode. Listen and follow The Big Take DC on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. After a messy, public competition between hopefuls, President-elect Donald Trump nominated hedge fund manager Scott Bessent to be the next Treasury secretary. On today’s Big Take DC podcast, hosts Saleha Mohsin and David Gura discuss why Trump chose Bessent, and how Bessent might approach the job. Listen and follow The Big Take DC on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Terminal clients: click here to subscribe. Here is a lightly edited transcript of the conversation: David Gura: The hedge fund manager Scott Bessent is President-elect Donald Trump’s pick ... to be the next Secretary of the Treasury, and he finally got the nod ... after a very public – and kinda messy! – competition. Saleha Mohsin: It was a knife fight for a very stressful job. Gura: Bloomberg’s Saleha Mohsin covered that contest, as it played out – on television, on op-ed pages, and at Mar-a-Lago, where Trump has been preparing for his second term. And it dragged on for weeks: Mohsin: Scott Bessent looked like he was tipped to get the job, easy peasy. And then, he left town, he left Palm Beach, and Howard Lutnick, the co-chair of Trump’s transition efforts, and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, he moved in. Gura: And, Saleha says: Mohsin: We had Lutnick out there, talking and having his allies come in for him, and against Bessent, and then you had Bessent doing the same thing... Gura: That strategy backfired. Saleha says it made the president-elect so irritated, that he brought in more candidates, including Kevin Warsh, a former Federal Reserve governor, and Marc Rowan, the CEO of Apollo Global Management. In the end, Trump nominated Lutnick to run the Commerce Department... Warsh reportedly said he’s more interested in the job of Fed chair, when that opens up. So, Bessent got Treasury: Gura: What was it that sort of tipped things in his favor at the end? Mohsin: It might have been that no one really, other than Bessent, really wowed Trump. Gura: Trump has picked someone who knows Wall Street, and that seems to have impressed Wall Street: stocks rose and the dollar weakened, after the president-elect announced his decision. I’m David Gura, and this is the Big Take DC, from Bloomberg News. Today on the show, I’m joined by my co-host Saleha Mohsin to talk through... who is Scott Bessent? And if he’s confirmed by the US Senate, how will he approach the job, and advance his boss’ economic agenda? So President-elect Trump made this announcement after the market closed on a Friday. I think I got the email at 6:55 Eastern time. As you and our colleagues have talked to investors, what are they telling you about the president-elect’s pick? Mohsin: Markets seem happy. They see Bessent as bringing stability, which is something that we had in Trump 1.0. You know, as much turnover as you saw in Trump’s Cabinet, Steven Mnuchin stayed as Treasury secretary for all four years, and he was able to leverage relationships because people knew this man is going to stay, and he understands the plumbing of the global financial system. You know, that’s something that markets really want. They want stability, and if Bessent can somehow manage to provide that, I think he’ll end up being a successful Treasury secretary. Gura: What kind of career has Scott Bessent had up to this point? What’s his background? Mohsin: Yeah so he worked for George Soros. He was involved in the investor bet that broke the pound in the early ‘90s. And so he comes with a keen interest in currency policy. And you can tell he talks about that a lot and Donald Trump talks about dollar policy a lot. He also set up and ran his own hedge fund since about 2015 or 16, I think, he has been overseeing that and it was about a year or a little over a year ago that he re-entered Trump’s orbit, and started looking at Trump’s policies and saw that Trump’s stock was going to go up and he was right. Gura: You said “re-entered” Trump’s orbit. When did they meet? Mohsin: So, Bessent told me that he has known the Trump family for like 30 years, uh, and I think he knew Trump’s brother, and so he said, Oh, well, Donald Trump probably knew my face, but didn’t quite know exactly who I was, but he was close to Donald Trump Jr. That was sort of his door into Trump world about a year ago, and that’s how he got a first meeting with Donald Trump. Gura: What do your sources say about how the work that he’s done, so working with these big hedge funds, is likely to shape his perspective on this job, and maybe it would just be useful for you to describe all that a Treasury secretary has to do. It’s a huge remit. Mohsin: Yeah, it’s, it’s huge. People like to call the Treasury secretary the Chief Financial Officer of the United States, but that actually only refers to one third of the job. A Treasury secretary oversees debt issuance. And that’s somewhere we could see from a Treasury secretary Scott Bessent, a little bit of creativity, maybe in how our massive deficit is issued and how that’s structured and, and sort of the tenor of notes and things. He’s also going to be involved in tax policy and financial stability, international economic diplomacy. So being the representative for that at G7 and G20 meetings. And then the other big component is national security, and foreign policy by way of economic sanctions. Gura: As you talk to investors about him, do any of them express any reservations about him not having experience in Washington, not being a creature of D.C.? Not being someone like Janet Yellen, for instance, who spent the bulk of her career in Washington in a lot of these big, high profile jobs doing quite a bit of management? Mohsin: So there’s always a steep learning curve for a Treasury secretary, particularly when it comes to dealings with Congress. The example that comes up frequently, a more recent kind of screw up there or confusion or misreading of the room is Steven Mnuchin. I think it was 2017, he had to raise the debt ceiling and he went into a room full of Republican lawmakers and it was a private conference and said, just raise the debt ceiling for me. And they burst out of that room telling every reporter that this is what he said, “for me.” We’re not going to do it for you. We serve the American people, not you. And it was such a blunder. You know, Steven Mnuchin came in, he didn’t know any lawmakers very closely or how all this stuff really worked from a Washington perspective, did not have experience in the public sector. Tim Geithner knew. He came from the Federal Reserve. He’d been at Treasury as a civil servant in the 90s. Hank Paulson had no experience on that front. You would, you would hope people like that, they come in without hubris of knowing what you don’t know and then relying on people to help you navigate. And also just understanding that you come from a world where it’s about relationships and deal making, um, and just learning on the fly. You know, Bessent comes from Wall Street, but he doesn’t have the same experience of some of the big heavyweights that we’ve seen as Treasury secretary. So Bob Rubin, Hank Paulson, Steven Mnuchin, they loomed large because of their Goldman experience. Paulson, he was CEO, and he said that something about the way at Goldman you learn about serving the client, not serving your own ego, really prepared him to work in government, where his biggest client was the President. So Bessent doesn’t come from that sort of traditional part of Wall Street. Gura: After the break... What we know about how aligned Bessent is with Trump, and what that could tell us about how Bessent may approach the role of Treasury secretary.... Scott Bessent, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next treasury secretary, helped Trump hone his messaging – about the economy – on the campaign trail. And when Trump announced he’d picked Bessent to lead Treasury, he said will quote, “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.” How much uncertainty is there, Saleha, about where Scott Bessent stands on the president-elect’s biggest economic priorities? Mohsin: We know quite a bit, David, because he was, Bessent was kind of openly auditioning for this role. He would meet with reporters, do ed boards. He’s written op-eds for the Journal, for The Economist, for Fox, talking about different policies. I think it was Friday, November 15th, Bessent wrote an op ed talking about how supportive he is of tariffs as a tool of foreign policy, trade policy, national security. And so markets now are digging into those comments, things that he’s said, they kind of see someone with a Wall Street pedigree like Bessent as someone who might be a bit of a, a hindrance to Trump’s more protectionist or populist tendencies, but, that’s the open question to me, is how much say will Scott Bessent as Treasury secretary have over tariffs, if you have Howard Lutnick over at Commerce, who’s also overseeing USTR, the US Trade Representative’s office, to focus on tariffs and trade. I think markets should kind of keep an eye on how much sway Bessent really has with tariffs. Gura: We had this knife fight play out in the run up to these nominations of Howard Lutnick and Scott Bessent. Are people confident that the fight ends there, that when that moves into the Cabinet room, we’re not going to see the same kind of, of fighting? Mohsin: No, people are not confident in that at all. [laughs] In the first administration, we saw these kinds of knife fights play out. You know, cabinet officers leaking to the press or going on Fox News to make their case for the policy that they want implemented over someone else. And it doesn’t always bode well. Lutnick has secured a pretty big job. He has Commerce secretary, he’s also overseeing USTR, and that’s a new idea. Trump decided to put that under Lutnick’s purview, so the two men do not get along. That’s why it didn’t turn out where one is NEC director and one’s Treasury secretary, because Trump and the team realize these two men can’t work together. Gura: Scott Bessent said in an interview over the weekend, his top priority is going to be taxes. Is he going beyond just pushing for the continuation of the so called Trump tax cuts? Is it, is it bigger than that? Mohsin: Oh, I, yeah, I want, I have so many questions on how tax policy is going to unfold because you know, the first hundred day plan is a huge thing that we’re going to be watching for as we see officials rolled out and policy plans rolled out and, and signals given. Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, some of those tax cuts expire at the end of 2025, I think. Republicans own Congress, both chambers in their hands. So let’s see how far they can get. But I don’t know that Bessett has said anything, in grave detail, uh, about where that would go. We know publicly Donald Trump has talked about a lot of different kinds of tax cuts. Gura: Bessent is someone who has not shied away from talking about the deficit. He talked about it during an interview on Bloomberg Television, back in October: Bessent: I am very concerned about what is happening right now. We have never had a budget deficit like this. We are at 7% of GDP in terms of the deficit. We’ve never had this deficit. When it’s not a recession, not a war. And what do we have to show for it? Gura: How does he plan to reduce the size of the deficit? Mohsin: Yeah, I love deficit talk because everyone comes up with these great ideas of how to reduce the deficit, but Congress needs to do that, right? A Treasury secretary can lead the charge. Congress is the keeper of the purse, when it comes to spending and, and taxes. Any time an administration or a government has accomplished that, it is because Wall Street or investors or markets have thrown a tantrum that you have too much deficit. And I don’t see how a Trump administration or Congress makes the very difficult trade offs and cuts in spending that will be unpopular with voters unless they can blame it on markets or blame it on someone else. Gura: Scott Bessent’s going to play a role in picking the next chair of the Federal Reserve, advising the President elect on that. Mohsin: Yeah, let’s talk about the Fed. Donald Trump thinks that presidents should have a say on interest rates. We don’t know what that really means. And so I don’t know maybe this is some kind of creative thinking on Bessent’s part to say, okay look, he really wants to fire Powell or he really wants to set monetary policy or have a say. Maybe the way to do it where we’re not just causing a constitutional and markets crisis by sacking the Federal Reserve Chair, we do it by creating this shadow Fed Chair situation where you nominate or announce the name of who you will pick, send to the Senate for confirmation to be the next Federal Reserve Chair, and that person is providing forward guidance on what they would do, so markets start to look to that person’s comments over the sitting Federal Reserve Chair. But this is my number one question to Scott Bessent right now, is like how would that play out and how seriously should we take this plan? Gura: Effectively like a Fed chair in waiting. Mohsin: Yeah. Yeah. Gura: You covered the Treasury Department when Steven Mnuchin was running it, and he was there, as you said, for all four years of Donald Trump’s first term. If Scott Bessent is confirmed, what is going to determine how successful he is at the job? Mohsin: With Trump, it’s always maintaining Trump’s trust, and always making sure you’re aware of who he’s meeting with and trying to be the last person in the room as Bessent learned when he left Palm Beach and thought that he had bagged the job of Treasury secretary and then it kind of blew up. Mnuchin learned that. Steven Mnuchin learned that if you leave the president with Peter Navarro, then the trade advisor and like a you know a known China hawk, in the room with president too long, Trump is going to start asking questions like can we aggressively intervene in the US dollar to make it weaker and can we do x y and z that might really blow up, um, foreign relations or economic relations with other countries? So I think Scott, Scott Bessent will have to learn sort of to make sure that you stay in the good graces of the president, stay visible and are keeping tabs and keeping Treasury-related policies firmly in the hands of the Treasury department and not let others encroach on that remit.The AP Top 25 men’s college basketball poll is back every week throughout the season! Get the poll delivered straight to your inbox with AP Top 25 Poll Alerts. Sign up here . NORFOLK, Va. (AP) — Rashad King’s 21 points helped Northeastern defeat Old Dominion 75-71 on Sunday. King added nine rebounds for the Huskies (8-3). LA Pratt added 15 points while going 7 of 14 from the field while they also had six rebounds. Masai Troutman shot 4 for 7 (0 for 3 from 3-point range) and 7 of 9 from the free-throw line to finish with 15 points. Robert Davis Jr. led the way for the Monarchs (3-8) with 17 points and six rebounds. Caelum Swanton-Rodger added 12 points, six rebounds and three blocks for Old Dominion. Sean Durugordon finished with 10 points. Harold Woods put up seven points in the first half for Northeastern, who led 31-26 at halftime. Northeastern turned a four-point second-half lead into a 13-point advantage with a 9-0 run to make it a 52-39 lead with 9:50 left in the half. King scored 14 second-half points in the victory. Northeastern’s next game is Wednesday against UMass on the road, and Old Dominion visits UL Monroe on Saturday. ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .
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Tweet Facebook Mail Mysterious flying objects overhead. Concern and confusion. And calls for military intervention. This isn't the plot of "War of the Worlds," but rather the result of numerous unidentified possible drone sightings on the East Coast in recent weeks . The possible drones have been spotted over residential neighborhoods, restricted sites and critical infrastructure. The sightings have put intense pressure on federal agencies to provide more information about the aircraft, as officials have urged calm and emphasised there is no evidence suggesting the sightings pose a security threat. READ MORE: Remaining Bali Nine members 'relieved and happy' to be back in Australia This photo provided by Brian Glenn shows what appears to be multiple drones flying over Bernardsville, New Jersey, on Dec. 5. (CNN) "I want to assure the American public that we are on it," Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Sunday on ABC's "This Week." Reported drone activity prompted at least one airport – New York's Stewart International Airport – to temporarily close its runways for about an hour on Friday night. "This has gone too far," said New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Saturday, adding last month she "directed the New York State Intelligence Center to actively investigate drone sightings and coordinate with federal law enforcement to address this issue." Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he's asking DHS to deploy special detection systems that use 360-degree technology to detect drones. "If the technology exists for a drone to make it up into the sky, there certainly is the technology that can track the craft with precision and determine what the heck is going on," Schumer said Sunday while discussing the technology. The FBI and DHS said in a joint statement Thursday there is "no evidence at this time that the reported drone sightings pose a national security or public safety threat or have a foreign nexus." READ MORE: Four Australians hospitalised after suspected cocktail poisoning in Fiji Despite reassurances from federal officials, local politicians continue to press for more information and resources to investigate the sightings. In Morris County, New Jersey, officials have called for the "federal government to marshal all federal resources at its disposal, including the military, to end the unauthorized flight of drones over our county and other parts of New Jersey." Drones, a broad term for unmanned aerial vehicles, are widely owned across the United States. A total of 791,597 drones are registered with the FAA, nearly evenly divided between commercial and recreational use. They are used in various industries, including photography, agriculture and law enforcement. There remains significant confusion about the exact nature of the sightings and how many are cases of "mistaken identity," as suggested by Mayorkas and White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby. Here's more on what we know and don't know about the reported sightings. READ MORE: 'It will be a nasty day': Victoria braces for fires amid extreme heat In this image taken from video provided by MartyA45_, several drones appear to be flying over Randolph, N.J., on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (MartyA45_ /TMX via AP, File) (AP) Where have the drones been seen? Drone sightings have been reported in at least six states: New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Virginia. The sightings began on November 18 near Morris County, New Jersey, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Republican New Jersey Assemblyman Paul Kanitra told CNN's Sara Sidner Friday morning there had been drone sightings every night since then. Unnerved residents have frequently reported seeing drones hovering overhead, sometimes traveling in clusters. Concerns escalated after drones were spotted near the Picatinny Arsenal, a US military research facility, and over President-elect Donald Trump's golf course in Bedminster, according to military officials and state lawmakers. The sightings prompted the FAA to issue temporary flight restrictions over the properties. "Several instances of unidentified drones entering the airspace" were also reported above Naval Weapons Station Earle, a US Navy base south of Middletown, although no direct threats were identified. Democratic Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey posted videos to his X account showing what appeared to be a cluster of drones over the Round Valley Reservoir Thursday night. But on Saturday, he posted on X most of the aircraft he initially thought were drones, were "almost certainly planes." Representatives from the federal agencies investigating the drones have briefed local officials behind closed doors, stating the drones sometimes appear to fly in a coordinated pattern and can remain in flight for up to six hours, according to Montvale, New Jersey, Mayor Mike Ghassali. New York State Police said Friday afternoon in a post on X they had received "numerous reports of drone sightings over the past 24 hours" and they were investigating the reports. "We have no evidence at this time that any of the reported sightings pose a public safety threat." READ MORE: What the weather on Christmas Day is forecast to be in your city This photo provided by Trisha Bushey shows the evening sky and points of light near in Lebanon Township, N.J., on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024. (Trisha Bushey via AP) (AP) Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella said the drones, often seen flying at night, have been spotted hovering over critical infrastructure, including Port Liberty New York near the Goethals Bridge, the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and Fort Wadsworth, one of the oldest military installations in the country. Hochul announced Sunday that federal authorities are deploying a new "state-of-the-art drone detection system" to the state. She continued to call for the passing of the federal Counter-UAS Authority Security, Safety, and Reauthorisation Act, which she said would "give New York and our peers the authority and resources required to respond to circumstances like we face today." Hochul spoke with Mayorkas twice on Saturday regarding the ongoing drone activity in her state, according to a source familiar with the conversations. Connecticut State Police announced Friday they have deployed a drone detection system to assist in the investigation of unauthorised drone sightings reported over Fairfield County. READ MORE: Nine Australians flew to Bali in 2005. Today three are dead and the final five have returned home "It's very unsettling to public safety and security, both here in Fairfield and elsewhere," Republican state Senator Tony Hwang said in a statement Friday. Pennsylvania Govenor Josh Shapiro said his administration is "aware of" reported drone sightings and is taking them seriously. The Democratic governor said Friday evening he directed the Pennsylvania State Police to further investigate the sightings, and police will be flying helicopters to try to "determine where these drones are originating from and what the purpose of these drones are." In Massachusetts, Govenor Maura Healey posted on X Saturday about the "growing number of drone sightings" in her state. She said state police were working alongside "local and federal partners" and urged drone operators to adhere to regulations. Two men were arrested Saturday night on trespassing charges after a drone came "dangerously close" to Logan International Airport in Boston, police said in a statement. And in Virginia, Governor Glenn Youngkin said in a Saturday statement state police and the Department of Emergency Management were coordinating closely with "numerous federal partners" to respond to drone reports. He emphasised the "significant number of national security and critical infrastructure sites" in Virginia. "There's no question that people are seeing drones," Mayorkas told ABC's George Stephanopoulos on Sunday. "And I want to assure the American public that we, in the federal government, have deployed additional resources, personnel, technology to assist the New Jersey State Police in addressing the drone sightings." READ MORE: 'Build to rent' properties promising longer tenancies and more security The FBI and DHS have said they believe most of the drone sightings are cases of "mistaken identity". (AP) What are the aircraft? The FBI and DHS have said they believe most of the drone sightings are cases of "mistaken identity," with members of the public misidentifying small, legally operating manned aircraft as drones. Some of the sightings may also be commercial drones, Mayorkas told CNN's Wolf Blitzer Friday. "We know of no threat or nefarious activity," Mayorkas said. "If we learn of any cause for concern, we will be transparent in our communication of it." Some of the more recent sightings might be due to copycats flying their drones as the phenomena get more news coverage, former FBI supervisory special agent Tom Adams told CNN Friday. He said there are often innocent explanations for the sightings as well. "I can tell you from my firsthand experience conducting operations for the FBI, as well as investigations into the suspected sighting of drones at critical infrastructure, it was fairly common for planets, crewed aircraft and even low Earth orbit satellites to be misidentified as drones at night," Adams said. At a news briefing on Saturday, an FBI official reiterated the sightings were largely manned aircraft mistaken for drones. The official noted similar flight approach patterns from nearby airports matched the visual sightings reported to tip lines. The FBI official said the tip line has received 5000 tips, but fewer than 100 have led to leads "deemed worthy of further investigative activity." No evidence supporting "large-scale UAS activity" has been found, the official said, using the acronym for "unmanned aircraft system." READ MORE: Officer who shot Lindt Cafe terrorist says he was haunted by harrowing day There's been a "slight overreaction" to the reports, the FBI official said. Still, "we can't ignore the sightings that have been there, and we are concerned about those just as much as anybody else is," the official added. An official with the Department of Defense, however, was less confident about the nature of the sightings. "We don't know if it's malicious, if it is criminal. But I will tell you that it is – it is irresponsible," the official said. "Here on the military side, we are just as frustrated with the irresponsible nature of this activity." The official added highly trained security personnel have reported sightings of drones at Picatinny Arsenal and Naval Weapons Station Earle, both in New Jersey. The points of origin and operators have not been identified, the official said. The Pentagon shut down speculation the drones may originate from a foreign entity or adversary on Wednesday, hours after US Rep. Jeff Van Drew, a New Jersey Republican, told Fox News the drones were from "a mothership" from Iran that is "off the East Coast of the United States of America." "There is not any truth to that," deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said Wednesday. "There is no Iranian ship off the coast of the United States, and there's no so-called mothership launching drones towards the United States." The FBI is leading the investigation into the sightings alongside the Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, while the US Coast Guard is assessing jurisdictional responses. On Sunday, US Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota said the US government needs to be more transparent about the reported sightings. "One, we need a briefing for the members of the Senate to figure out what's going on here," the Minnesota Democrat said during an appearance on CBS' "Face the Nation." "Two, we need more transparency." Despite federal officials' assurances the drones don't pose a public safety threat, Belleville, New Jersey, Mayor Michael Melham has said he has received guidance police should call the county bomb squad and local fire departments should wear hazmat suits if they encounter a downed drone. "We just don't know what these things are, so we are being cautious," Melham said. READ MORE: Protesters flood Sydney's CBD after antisemitic attacks Declassified spy satellite images reveal centuries-old battle site View Gallery Why shooting at drones may not be the answer In contrast to federal officials' pleas for calm regarding the sightings, Trump has urged the Biden administration to either release any information it has about the mysterious sightings or shoot the drones out of the sky. "Mystery Drone sightings all over the Country. Can this really be happening without our government's knowledge. I don't think so! Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shoot them down!!!" Trump posted on Truth Social. US Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who sits on the Senate's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, similarly said Thursday the aircraft "should be shot down, if necessary, because they're flying over sensitive areas." But shooting down unidentified aircraft poses its own problems. Speaking to CNN's Wolf Blitzer, Mayorkas said, "It's not as though anyone can just take down a drone in the sky. That in and of itself would be dangerous." Similarly, a source familiar with the national investigation into the aircraft told CNN shooting them out of the sky would be "beyond risky," posing an unnecessary risk to people on the ground and legal challenges. The source noted the government has various strategies that can be deployed if a drone poses an imminent threat, but so far, the mysterious flights have not been deemed threatening. "Blowing it out of the sky is the last resort," the source said. READ MORE: US city gets first ever tornado warning Who regulates drones? Part of the challenge in monitoring drone activity stems from the fact regulation of the skies is almost entirely under federal jurisdiction, according to the chief executive of a company tracking unauthorised drone flights. "The laws that regulate aircraft are not built to empower police to deal with the drones," Axon CEO Rick Smith told CNN News Central Friday, "so if your local state fair has a drone coming towards it that police believe might be dangerous, right now there's nothing they can do about it." FAA regulations allow operators of recreational drones to fly up to 400 feet above the ground in airspace not controlled by FAA air traffic controllers. The FAA does grant waivers on a case-by-case basis to those wanting to operate drones in more congested airspace or at higher altitudes. DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP : Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play .BillionToOne to Present at the 43rd Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Shohei Ohtani is keeping elite company. The Japanese superstar caps 2024 by winning The Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for the third time, tying him with basketball great Michael Jordan. He trails only four-time winners Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods and LeBron James. “I’m very honored,” Ohtani said through translator Matt Hidaka in an exclusive interview with the AP. ”Obviously all the hard work has paid off. Maybe next year, I’ll get the award again.” In balloting by 74 sports journalists from the AP and its members, Ohtani received 48 votes. He previously won the award in 2023 and 2021 , when he was with the Angels. “Growing up in Japan, I did follow Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods,” he said. “I would see their accolades and how they were successful in the United States.” The AP honor has been given out since 1931. Golfer Babe Didrikson won six times, the most by a man or woman. Swimmer Léon Marchand of France, who won four gold medals at the Paris Olympics, was second with 10 votes in balloting announced Monday. Golfer Scottie Scheffler, whose victories this year included the Masters and an Olympic gold medal, was third with nine. The AP Female Athlete of the Year will be announced Tuesday. Moving from the beleaguered Los Angeles Angels to the powerhouse Los Angeles Dodgers, Ohtani won his third Most Valuable Player award and first in the National League, led his new team to its eighth World Series championship and created Major League Baseball’s 50/50 club by hitting 54 home runs and stealing 59 bases. Ohtani signed a then-record $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers in December 2023. Already a two-way superstar, he embellished his reputation even further despite not pitching all season while he rehabilitated from a second major right elbow surgery he had in September 2023. Ohtani went wild on offense, making every at-bat a must-see moment. The 6-foot-4 designated hitter batted a career-high .310 while easily surpassing his previous career highs in home runs and stolen bases. In September, he reached the previously unheard of 50/50 mark in a performance for the ages . Against the Miami Marlins in Florida, Ohtani went 6 for 6 with three homers, 10 RBIs, two stolen bases and 17 total bases. "It wouldn’t shock me if he went 60/60 and 20 wins a year from now,” Brad Ausmus, who managed the Angels in 2019 during Ohtani’s second season in Anaheim, said recently. “This guy is the greatest athlete to ever play the sport of baseball and there’s not a close second.” Ohtani said he knew the Dodgers' franchise record for most homers in a season was 49. His previous best was 46, set in 2021. "I kind of wanted to get over that bar,” he said. “I was pleasantly surprised I was able to pass that record.” Ohtani carried the Dodgers offensively during the regular season, and he stayed healthy until Game 2 of the World Series. He injured his left shoulder trying to steal second base against the New York Yankees and finished the Series playing hurt. He underwent surgery a few days after the Dodgers celebrated their championship in early November. "I don’t have full range of motion yet, but it feels a lot better,” he told the AP. “There’s no pain. There’s obviously still a little bit of tightness, but slowly but surely it’s getting better.” Ohtani recently received an updated rehab schedule, and he’s focused on the near-term. “It’s the small steps that I think are very important to get me to the ultimate goal, which is to just get back healthy,” he said. Ohtani is also throwing in the 70 mph range, which is typical for pitchers early in the offseason. "I’m going to continue to ramp up slowly,” he said. The Dodgers’ rotation for next season is in flux, and Ohtani is waiting to see how it shakes out. "We may go with a five-man rotation with a bullpen (game), which is what we did a lot during this season or we may have a six-man rotation,” he said. “But it’s all about balancing out when we can get rest and recuperate. We’ll see where that takes us along the playoff chase. I’ve got to obviously pace myself, but again that situation will guide us to how we get there.” The Dodgers open the 2025 season in Japan, where Ohtani is even more closely watched . "My personal goal is to be fully healthy by the time the opening games do start,” he said. “To be able to pitch and hit would be great, but the situation will kind of guide itself.” Each time Ohtani comes to the plate or steps on the mound, there’s great pressure and expectation for him to perform spectacular feats. "I just go out there and try to stay within myself,” he said. “I can only control what I can control and that’s where you trust your teammates. The guys behind me, you trust they’re going to make the plays for you. I don’t really try to overthink it.” Ohtani generated big bucks for the Dodgers off the field, too. Fans traveled from Japan in droves to see him play around the U.S. At Dodger Stadium, they paid extra for tours of baseball’s third-oldest venue narrated by Japanese-speaking guides and to be on the field during pre-game batting practice. A majority of the fans bought Ohtani-branded merchandise, especially his No. 17 jersey. Ohtani’s presence also helped the Dodgers land a bevy of new Japanese sponsors. Because Ohtani prefers to speak Japanese and use an interpreter with the media, he is shrouded in a bit of mystique. Asked before his first postgame series if he was nervous, he dropped a one-word answer in English: “Nope,” which drew laughter. Japanese-born Dodgers manager Dave Roberts observed Ohtani’s behind-the-scenes interactions with his teammates, coaches and staff, and came away impressed. "I really do believe that as good of a ballplayer as he is, he’s a much better person. He’s very kind, considerate, he cares,” Roberts told the AP. “I’m just proud of any fame or glory or award that he receives because he just does it in such a respectful and humble way.” Ohtani relishes his privacy and rarely shares details about himself off the field. That’s why his February announcement via Instagram that he had wed Mamiko Tanaka , a former basketball player, stunned his new teammates and the rest of the world. The following month, after the Dodgers arrived in South Korea to open the season, he was enveloped in scandal when his longtime interpreter and friend , Ippei Mizuhara, was fired by the Dodgers after being accused of using millions of dollars of Ohtani’s money to place bets with an illegal bookmaker. His new teammates rallied around Ohtani, who was found to have no part in the wrongdoing, and publicly it didn’t seem to affect him even if he was privately distressed by it. By June, the uproar had subsided. Mizuhara pleaded guilty to federal bank and tax fraud charges and admitted to stealing nearly $17 million from Ohtani. The public got a glimpse of Ohtani’s softer side in August, when his dog Decoy delivered a first pitch to his owner on their shared bobblehead night. The Nederlandse Kooikerhondje exchanged an endearing high-five with Ohtani at the plate. As a result, Decoy became a celebrity in his own right, with his breed (pronounced COY-ker-HUND-che) making the list of the most mispronounced words of 2024. He and Ohtani were mentioned during the telecast of last month’s National Dog Show, where the small Spaniel-type breed was among the competitors. "The number of the breed has kind of dwindled, so by him gaining a little bit of popularity hopefully that brings up the number of his breed,” Ohtani said. “I do feel like we were able to, in a small way, contribute to the popularity of the dog and I’m sure Decoy himself would be happy about that.” Ohtani will be looking to top himself next year while eyeing a repeat World Series title. "It’s almost like right now you can lock in the Most Valuable Player in the National League award because no one has that ability or talent,” Roberts said. "I’m just excited to see what ’25 has for Shohei Ohtani.” AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb
( MENAFN - Newsfile Corp) Road Town, British Virgin Islands--(Newsfile Corp. - December 15, 2024) - Ice Open Network (ION) is excited to announce the successful creation of its Genesis Block , officially beginning Phase One of its highly anticipated mainnet rollout. This milestone positions ION as a transformative force in the blockchain space, combining high scalability with a robust ecosystem to accelerate Web3 adoption. Ice Open Network Begins Mainnet Rollout with Genesis Block Creation To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: The creation of the Genesis Block allows community members to begin launching validators starting with November 18. Over 120 validators are expected to join in the coming weeks, reinforcing the network's security and scalability. Early validators will need 3 million ICE coins and the capability and resources to deploy a validator on a server to participate in securing the ION blockchain. Interested parties can reach out to ... for more information. "This launch is a historic moment for Ice Open Network and sets the foundation for a decentralized ecosystem that will scale to billions of users," said Alex Iulian , Founder and CEO of Ice Open Network. "With a vibrant user base of over 40 million and a growing list of projects launching their tokens on ION, we are building one of the most dynamic and scalable blockchain networks. The Genesis Block marks the beginning of a decentralized future powered by innovation and community." The rollout of ION's mainnet comes with significant advancements, including the activation of the ION Bridge once the network reaches 100 validators . This will enable seamless migration of ICE tokens from Binance Smart Chain (BSC) to the ION blockchain, ensuring a smooth transition for the community. Additionally, the integration with major exchanges will provide liquidity and accessibility, supporting the ecosystem's rapid growth. Alongside its blockchain infrastructure, ION's Startup Program contributes to its strength, bringing an active user base of over 40 million from various projects already integrated into the ecosystem. These projects, including token launches on ION, are expected to generate substantial activity, making this one of the most active blockchain ecosystems from day one. As part of its broader mission, ION offers a scalable Layer 1 blockchain capable of handling millions of transactions per second . Its innovative dApp framework , including a drag-and-drop builder, enables anyone, even without technical expertise, to create and deploy decentralized applications. This user-friendly approach is key to driving the transition from Web2 to Web3, making blockchain technology accessible to a global audience. The ION team also expressed gratitude to the community for their patience and support throughout the journey. "We are determined to overcome challenges and succeed together," the team shared in a statement. "Your commitment fuels our progress." For those looking to become validators or learn more about Ice Open Network, visit ice or contact ... . About Ice Open Network Ice Open Network (ION) is a high-performance Layer 1 blockchain designed for exceptional scalability and rapid transaction processing, capable of handling millions of transactions per second, positioning it among the fastest in the industry. Serving an ecosystem with over 40 million users , ION's mission is to facilitate the transition of billions of users from Web2 to Web3, creating a decentralized future that emphasizes privacy, data ownership, and user autonomy. At the core of ION is an innovative dApp framework featuring a no-code drag-and-drop builder, enabling anyone, regardless of technical expertise, to create and deploy decentralized applications effortlessly. By combining blockchain scalability with an accessible development framework, ION is driving Web3 adoption and empowering a broader range of users and developers. Contact Info: Name: Madison Hart Email: ... Organization: Ice Open Network Website: To view the source version of this press release, please visit SOURCE: Plentisoft MENAFN15122024004218003983ID1108995576 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.BERLIN: In only a few years, Germans have become a nation of online shoppers, with most now turning to devices to buy clothes, groceries and medicines in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. A survey showed that 99 percent of adults in Germany, where more than 70 percent of companies still use fax machines, now shop online, with 39 percent of respondents doing so at least once a week. This is despite Germans being more negative on technology trends than the European average, with a 2022 McKinsey study finding them particularly critical of hyper-personalization. But that is changing, according to the study from the German GfK institute with Mastercard, seen exclusively by Reuters. Alvaro Pinilla furnished his new apartment in Berlin online, buying lamps, kitchen utensils, rugs and furniture online. “It is the comfort of not having to leave home,” the 30-year-old lawyer told Reuters. “I also think that online prices are as competitive, or even better than, in a physical store.” Black Friday and Cyber Monday, as well as the impending Christmas season, will mark highs for online trade and Germany’s main retail association HDE expects sales of 87.1 billion euros ($91.66 billion) for the e-commerce industry this year. “If there’s a week when I haven’t bought anything, my brain tells me ‘time to treat yourself’,” said Pinilla, who plans to take advantage of Black Friday discounts to buy a new coat, boots, scarf and gloves. The survey of more than 1,000 respondents found that fashion is by far the most popular product category in online retail: Two-thirds ordered clothing and shoes online in the past 12 months, while at the start of the pandemic in 2020 it was 43 percent. “I’ve kind of got into the habit of buying online during the pandemic,” Pinilla told Reuters, adding he had got better at finding the things he wanted. Germany accounted for $37.6 billion of Amazon’s revenue in 2023, making it the company’s biggest international market. Sarah Schedler also enjoys buying clothes online, because she feels she can find what she needs faster than in a store. “If something is at full price, I usually put it on my wish list and then wait until it’s reduced,” said Schedler, a 29-year-old content manager. “I’m a bit of a sales queen.” Electronics are the second most popular category for online shoppers, the GfK survey showed, with almost half of Germans ordering these products online this year. Schedler plans to replace her 10-year-old laptop this Black Friday as she has seen good deals. “I have the feeling that the prices are somehow lower online, but it could just be my feeling,” she said. In just four years, online grocery shopping has also risen to 25 percent from 7 percent in 2020, while the proportion of people who order personal care products on the Internet has almost doubled, from 18 percent in 2020 to 35 percent in 2024, GfK said. Almost four in 10 Germans prefer to shop on their mobile phone, 10 percent a tablet and half from a computer, the survey showed. “Most people always have their smartphone ready ... This makes it easy to make spontaneous purchases,” said Peter Robejsek, Mastercard Germany managing director. HDE estimates sales of almost 47 billion euros were generated via smartphones, which accounted for a record 55 percent of total online retail sales in Germany last year. — Reuters
Shohei Ohtani wins 3rd AP Male Athlete of the Year award, tying Michael Jordan for 1 shy of record
Judge rejects request to sideline a San Jose State volleyball player on grounds she’s transgenderNEW YORK (AP) — The immigration officers sat in their vehicles before dawn near a two-story building. A New York subway line rumbled overhead, then an officer’s voice crackled over the radio. After watching for about two hours, he said, “I think that’s Tango,” using a term for target. “Gray hoodie. Backpack. Walking quickly.” The immigration officers surrounded and handcuffed a 23-year-old man from Ecuador who had been convicted of sexually assaulting a minor. Kenneth Genalo, head of Enforcement and Removal Operations for Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New York, said a popular misconception is that officers can sweep into a community and pick up a wide swath of people who are in the United States illegally and send them to their home countries. “It’s called targeted enforcement,” Genalo said. “We don’t grab people and then take them to JFK and put them on a plane.” With Donald Trump returning to the White House, there is intense interest in how the Republican will carry out his immigration agenda , including a campaign pledge of mass deportations . His priorities could run into the realities faced by agents focused on enforcement and removals, including the unit in New York that offered The Associated Press a glimpse into its operations: The number of people already on its lists to target eclipses the number of officers available to do the work. The Biden administration had narrowed deportation priorities to public safety threats and recent border crossers. Trump’s incoming “border czar,” Tom Homan , says officials in the new administration also will prioritize those who pose a risk , such as criminals, before moving on to immigrants whom courts have ordered removed from the U.S. But Homan also has signaled that enforcement could be wider: “If you’re in the country illegally you got a problem,” he said recently on Dr. Phil’s Merit TV. It’s a tall order. About 1.4 million people have final orders of removal, while about 660,000 under immigration supervision either have been convicted of crimes or are facing charges . But only 6,000 officers within ICE are tasked with monitoring noncitizens in the country and then finding and removing those not eligible to stay. Those staffing numbers have largely remained static as their caseload has roughly quadrupled over the past decade to 7.6 million. About 10% of that workforce was pulled from their regular duties last year to go to the U.S.-Mexico border at times when immigration spiked. Jason Houser, ICE chief of staff earlier in the Biden administration, said the number of officers needed to pursue those deemed a public safety threat are at direct odds with the goal of deporting people in large numbers . “You’re not going to be able to do both of those with the resources you have, with the deportation officers you have,” Houser said. “Just the arithmetic, the time-intensive nature of those sort of arrests will overwhelm any ability to get to those large scale numbers.” Genalo said the officers in charge of individual cases have to get a lead, ensure they have the legal authority to arrest someone and then track the person down. They generally aren’t allowed to enter a residence, so they want to catch people outside. On this recent operation, about a dozen officers gathered before 5 a.m. at a White Castle parking lot in the Bronx. After putting on their body armor and checking their equipment, they circled around for a briefing. Besides the 23-year-old Ecuadorian man, they were going after a 36-year-old Mexican man convicted of forcibly touching a young girl and another Ecuadorian also convicted of sexual abuse of a minor. The first target, the 23-year-old man, who pleaded guilty to raping a 14-year-old girl, was believed to usually leave the apartment building around 7 a.m. or 7:30 a.m. Sometimes he was with a woman and child. “Light came on in the first floor of the apartment,” an officer waiting outside said over the radio. Then later: “Someone came out of the basement, but it’s not our target.” They finally spotted him, swept him into the back of a vehicle and quickly left the neighborhood. Inside, the man’s 22-year-old wife didn’t know what had happened until he called later from detention. In an interview, she said they met in Ecuador and had a child — a bubbly 3-year-old girl with braids — and she was pregnant with their second. He worked construction while she was a manicurist. She said she knew why her husband had been arrested but felt there were important mitigating factors. She said they knew it was possible her husband could be sent back to Ecuador after his criminal case wrapped up but that it was still a shock. ICE deported more than 270,000 people over a recent 12-month period, the highest annual tally in a decade, the agency said in a recent report . But it also said it made fewer arrests of noncitizens, in part because of the demand of sending staff to the border. Of those arrested, a greater proportion had serious criminal histories. Some cities and states work with ICE to turn over people in their custody who aren’t U.S. citizens. But many left-leaning states and cities have so-called sanctuary policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. In New York City, for example, ICE used to have an office at the jail to easily take custody of noncitizens. In 2014, then-Mayor Bill de Blasio signed legislation kicking out ICE and restricting police cooperation. His successor, Eric Adams, has shown willingness to revisit some of those policies. He recently met with Homan and told reporters they agreed on pursuing people who commit violent crimes. Genalo said agents spend time and resources picking up immigrants few would argue should have the right to stay in America. “How can you state that sanctuary policies help the community when you’re releasing all these criminals right back into the community?” he said. “We’re safer when we collaborate.” Staffing is also an issue. He said he’s supposed to have about 325 officers, but in recent years, the number has been about 30% lower. Many immigration advocates have long-standing concerns about ICE’s tactics, and those concerns are deepening with Trump’s return to office in January. Advocates say the incoming administration’s position of going after public safety threats is already longtime policy. They object to rhetoric they say paints immigrants as people to be feared. They say there can be nuances in some cases: Maybe someone committed a crime a long time ago and has been rehabilitated, or someone facing a final order of removal moved and never got the notice. During Trump’s first term, there were a lot of “collateral arrests” where immigration officers would detain others besides those being targeted, said Jehan Laner, a senior staff attorney for the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. That destabilizes communities, she said, adding, “We saw them go after everyone.” Genalo said he couldn’t comment on the incoming administration’s plans but stressed that officers are going after specific targets with criminal histories. He said he has a docket of about 58,000 people who either have criminal convictions or pending charges. “I’m pretty sure we’re going to be tied up for a while dealing with the criminal population,” Genalo said.