
the peanut farmer who tried to restore virtue to the White House after the Watergate scandal and Vietnam War, then rebounded from a landslide defeat to become a global advocate of human rights and democracy, has died. . The Carter Center said the 39th president died Sunday, , at his home in Plains, Georgia, where he and his wife, who died in November 2023, lived most of their lives. A moderate Democrat, as a little-known Georgia governor with a broad grin, effusive Baptist faith and technocratic plans for efficient government. His promise to never deceive the American people resonated after Richard Nixon’s disgrace and U.S. defeat in southeast Asia. “If I ever lie to you, if I ever make a misleading statement, don’t vote for me. I would not deserve to be your president,” Carter said. Carter’s victory over Republican Gerald Ford, whose fortunes fell after pardoning Nixon, came amid Cold War pressures, turbulent oil markets and social upheaval over race, women’s rights and America’s role in the world. His achievements included brokering Mideast peace by keeping Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin at Camp David for 13 days in 1978. But his coalition splintered under double-digit inflation and the 444-day hostage crisis in Iran. His negotiations ultimately brought all the hostages home alive, but in a final insult, Iran didn’t release them until the inauguration of Ronald Reagan, who had trounced him in the 1980 election. Humbled and back home in Georgia, Carter said his faith demanded that he keep doing whatever he could, for as long as he could, to try to make a difference. He and Rosalynn co-founded in 1982 and spent the next 40 years traveling the world as peacemakers, human rights advocates and champions of democracy and public health. Our founder, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, passed away this afternoon in Plains, Georgia. Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, Carter helped ease nuclear tensions in North and South Korea, avert a U.S. invasion of Haiti and and Sudan. By 2022, the center had monitored at least 113 elections around the world. Carter was determined to as one of many health initiatives. the Carters built homes with Habitat for Humanity. The common observation that he was better as an ex-president rankled Carter. His allies were pleased that he lived long enough to see biographers and historians and declare it more impactful than many understood at the time. Propelled in 1976 by voters in Iowa and then across the South, Carter ran a no-frills campaign. Americans were captivated by the earnest engineer, and while an election-year Playboy interview drew snickers when he said he “had looked on many women with lust. I’ve committed adultery in my heart many times,” voters tired of political cynicism found it endearing. The first family set an informal tone in the White House, carrying their own luggage, trying to silence the Marine Band’s traditional “Hail to the Chief” and enrolling daughter, Amy, in public schools. Carter was lampooned for wearing a cardigan and urging Americans to turn down their thermostats. But Carter set the stage for an economic revival and sharply reduced America’s dependence on foreign oil by deregulating the energy industry along with airlines, trains and trucking. He established the departments of Energy and Education, appointed record numbers of women and nonwhites to federal posts, preserved millions of acres of Alaskan wilderness and pardoned most Vietnam draft evaders. , he ended most support for military dictators and took on bribery by multinational corporations by signing the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. He persuaded the Senate to ratify the Panama Canal treaties and normalized relations with China, an outgrowth of Nixon’s outreach to Beijing. But crippling turns in foreign affairs took their toll. When OPEC hiked crude prices, making drivers line up for gasoline as inflation spiked to 11%, Carter tried to encourage Americans to overcome “a crisis of confidence.” Many voters lost confidence in Carter instead after the infamous address that media dubbed his “malaise” speech, even though he never used that word. After Carter reluctantly agreed to admit the exiled Shah of Iran to the U.S. for medical treatment, the American Embassy in Tehran was overrun in 1979. Negotiations to quickly free the hostages broke down, and then eight Americans died when a top-secret military rescue attempt failed. Carter also had to reverse course on the SALT II nuclear arms treaty after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979. Though historians would later credit Carter’s diplomatic efforts for hastening the end of the Cold war, Republicans labeled his soft power weak. Reagan’s “make America great again” appeals resonated, and he beat Carter in all but six states. Born Oct. 1, 1924, James Earl Carter Jr. in 1946, the year he graduated from the Naval Academy. He brought his young family back to Plains after his father died, abandoning his Navy career, and . Carter reached the state Senate in 1962. After rural white and Black voters elected him governor in 1970, he drew national attention by declaring that “the time for racial discrimination is over.” Carter published more than 30 books and remained influential as his center turned its democracy advocacy onto U.S. politics, monitoring an audit of Georgia’s 2020 presidential election results. After Carter said he felt “perfectly at ease with whatever comes.” “I’ve had a wonderful life,” “I’ve had thousands of friends, I’ve had an exciting, adventurous and gratifying existence.” ___Govt to introduce AI-related policies, announces communications Minister Gurung
Published 4:58 pm Tuesday, November 26, 2024 By Data Skrive Top 25 teams will take the court in six games on Wednesday’s college basketball slate. That includes the Ole Miss Rebels squaring off against the UConn Huskies at Baha Mar Convention Center. Watch women’s college basketball, other live sports and more on Fubo. What is Fubo? Fubo is a streaming service that gives you access to your favorite live sports and shows on demand. Use our link to sign up for a free trial. Get the latest news sent to your inbox Catch tons of live women’s college basketball , plus original programming, with ESPN+ or the Disney Bundle.HOUSEHOLDS face paying higher energy bills before they drop in price in the drive for clean energy, Ed Miliband has hinted. The Energy Secretary says consumers will see costs eventually fall but didn’t rule out costs rising in the short-term in the push to decarbonise the grid by 2030. 2 A predicted rise in 2025 is set to mark the third consecutive hike for energy costs Credit: Alamy But the Tories say the “rush” to wean the electricity system off fossil fuels by the end of the decade will cause more hardship for Brits. Proposals show the government and private firms will spend £40 billion each year as part of the eco move with a pledge to bring down bills by up to £300 in five years. He said: “I can’t guarantee what’s going to happen to bills next month, because we’re in the grip of the international fossil fuel markets.” The Cabinet Minister also said he will be able to bypass any local opposition to build onshore wind farms - with decisions previously left to councils. READ MORE ON POLITICS SECOND SLUMP Reeves admits latest GDP 'disappointing' as UK economy shrinks AGAIN A predicted rise in 2025 is set to mark the third consecutive hike for energy costs after Ofgem raised its price cap in October. The energy regulator also confirmed last month the cost of yearly energy bills will rise by around £21 to £1,738 come January. And now experts at Cornwall Insights forecast the average dual fuel bill for those not on a fixed deal will rise from £1,738 to £1,762 in April. Analysts at the firm said "continued uncertainty" regarding the future of the Russia-Ukraine conflict could impact wholesale prices. Most read in Money PLANNING SHEIKH-UP Billionaire Dubai ruler planning TENTH house on Highland estate SHUTTERS DOWN Locals gutted as 'best boozer' in Scots town closes forever BEAN AND GONE 'So sad', cry coffee lovers as popular cafe announces shock closure SHUTTING UP SHOP Lidl forced to close popular Scottish branch amid planning feud Watch how clever contraption helps cut my energy bills by £130 a year 2 Ed Miliband has warned the UK is stuck 'in the grip of the international fossil fuel markets' Credit: PA
Penn State notes: James Franklin names Nick Saban as potential commissionerValley District Lions Club rings bells again for this year's Christmas season in Preston County (West Virginia)
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Morningstar, Inc. Increases Quarterly Dividend to 45.5 Cents Per SharePer the NFL transaction wire, the Seahawks claimed DB A.J. Finley off waivers from the Chargers. To make room, DE Myles Adams was waived. Seattle also released RB Brittain Brown and DB Faion Hicks from their practice squad and signed DB Ryan Cooper and WR Cornell Powell . Adams, 26, wound up going undrafted out of Rice back in April of 2021. He later signed a rookie contract with the Panthers, but was waived coming out of training camp. After a brief stint on the Panthers’ practice squad, the Seahawks signed Adams to their taxi squad in December 2021 only to release him a few weeks later. Seattle signed him in January of 2021. He’s re-signed on three consecutive one-year deals. In 2024, Adams has appeared in three games for the Seahawks and recorded three total tackles. This article first appeared on NFLTradeRumors.co and was syndicated with permission.
NEW YORK and AMSTERDAM , Dec. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- S&P Dow Jones Indices ("S&P DJI"), the world's leading index provider, today announced the results of the annual Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) rebalancing and reconstitution. The DJSI are float-adjusted market capitalization weighted indices that measure the performance of companies selected using environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. The DJSI, including the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World), were launched in 1999 as the pioneering series of global sustainability benchmarks available in the market. The index family is comprised of global, regional and country benchmarks. As a result of this year's review, the following top three largest companies based on free-float market capitalization have been added to and deleted from the DJSI World. All changes are effective on Monday, December 23, 2024 . Additions: Airbus SE, Schlumberger Ltd, BAE Systems Plc Deletions: Alphabet Inc 1 , UnitedHealth Group Inc, ASML Holding NV 2 The full results and list of DJSI constituents will be available as of Monday, December 23 2024 , at https://www.spglobal.com/esg/csa/djsi-annual-review S&P Dow Jones Indices will be renaming a number of its sustainability and ESG-related indices (see Index Announcement ). As part of this update, the family of Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) will be renamed Dow Jones Best-in-Class Indices. The changes will become effective on Monday, February 10, 2025 . The S&P Global CSA Scores will continue to be a key factor in selecting constituents for the DJSI when they are renamed Dow Jones Best-in-Class Indices in February 2025 . For more information about the DJSI methodology, please visit: www.spglobal.com/spdji . ABOUT S&P DOW JONES INDICES S&P Dow Jones Indices is the largest global resource for essential index-based concepts, data and research, and home to iconic financial market indicators, such as the S&P 500® and the Dow Jones Industrial Average®. More assets are invested in products based on our indices than products based on indices from any other provider in the world. Since Charles Dow invented the first index in 1884, S&P DJI has been innovating and developing indices across the spectrum of asset classes helping to define the way investors measure and trade the markets. S&P Dow Jones Indices is a division of S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI), which provides essential intelligence for individuals, companies, and governments to make decisions with confidence. For more information, visit: www.spglobal.com/spdji . 1 Still member of DJSI World Enlarged and DJSI North America 2 Still member of DJSI World Enlarged S&P DJI MEDIA CONTACTS: spdji.comms@spglobal.com View original content: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sp-dow-jones-indices-announces-dow-jones-sustainability-indices-2024-review-results-302331745.html SOURCE S&P Dow Jones IndicesPresident-elect Donald Trump has chosen health economist Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a critic of pandemic lockdowns and vaccine mandates, to lead the National Institutes of Health, the nation's leading medical research agency. Trump, in a statement Tuesday evening, said Bhattacharya, a 56-year-old physician and professor at Stanford University School of Medicine, will work in cooperation with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, "to direct the Nation’s Medical Research, and to make important discoveries that will improve Health, and save lives.” Philadelphia news 24/7: Watch NBC10 free wherever you are “Together, Jay and RFK Jr. will restore the NIH to a Gold Standard of Medical Research as they examine the underlying causes of, and solutions to, America’s biggest Health challenges, including our Crisis of Chronic Illness and Disease," he wrote. The decision to choose Bhattacharya for the post is yet another reminder of the ongoing impact of the COVID pandemic on the politics on public health. Bhattacharya was one of three authors of the Great Barrington Declaration, an October 2020 open letter maintaining that lockdowns were causing irreparable harm. The document — which came before the availability of COVID-19 vaccines and during the first Trump administration — promoted “herd immunity,” the idea that people at low risk should live normally while building up immunity to COVID-19 through infection. Protection should focus instead on people at higher risk, the document said. “I think the lockdowns were the single biggest public health mistake,” Bhattacharya said in March 2021 during a panel discussion convened by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Stories that affect your life across the U.S. and around the world. The Great Barrington Declaration was embraced by some in the first Trump administration, even as it was widely denounced by disease experts. Then- NIH director Dr. Francis Collins called it dangerous and “not mainstream science.” His nomination would need to be approved by the Senate. Trump on Tuesday also announced that Jim O’Neill, a former HHS official, will serve as deputy secretary of the sprawling agency. Trump said O’Neill “will oversee all operations and improve Management, Transparency, and Accountability to, Make America Healthy Again,” the president-elect announced. O’Neill is the only one of Trump’s health picks so far who brings previous experience working inside the bureaucracy to the job. Trump’s previous choices to lead public health agencies — including Kennedy, Dr. Mehmet Oz for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator and Dr. Marty Makary for Food and Drug Administration commissioner — have all been Washington outsiders who are vowing to shake up the agencies. Bhattacharya, who faced restrictions on social media platforms because of his views, was also a plaintiff in Murthy v. Missouri, a Supreme Court case contending that federal officials improperly suppressed conservative views on social media as part of their efforts to combat misinformation. The Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration in that case. After Elon Musk acquired Twitter in 2022, he invited Bhattacharya to the company's headquarters to learn more about how his views had been restricted on the platform, which Musk renamed X. More recently, Bhattacharya has posted on X about scientists leaving the site and joining the alternative site Bluesky, mocking Bluesky as "their own little echo chamber.” Bhattacharya has argued that vaccine mandates that barred unvaccinated people from activities and workplaces undermined Americans' trust in the public health system. He is a former research fellow at the Hoover Institution and an economist at the RAND Corporation. The National Institutes of Health falls under HHS, which Trump has nominated Kennedy to oversee. The NIH's $48 billion budget funds medical research on vaccines, cancer and other diseases through competitive grants to researchers at institutions across the nation. The agency also conducts its own research with thousands of scientists working at NIH labs in Bethesda, Maryland. Among advances that were supported by NIH money are a medication for opioid addiction, a vaccine to prevent cervical cancer, many new cancer drugs and the speedy development of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines. ___ Associated Press writers Jill Colvin and Amanda Seitz contributed to this report.Military leaders are rattled by a list of ‘woke’ officers that a group urges Hegseth to fire(Bloomberg) -- It’s shaping up to be a good week for blue-chip and small-cap stocks which led Friday’s advance as this year’s big tech winners struggled to gain ground. Other beneficiaries of the incoming administration’s looser regulation and business-friendly stance put forth strong showings. The dollar rose, on course for an eighth straight week of gains, the currency’s longest run of the year, while Bitcoin set an all-time high in its race toward the $100,000 mark. Listen and follow The Big Take daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen. The S&P 500 edged up 0.3% while an equal-weighted version of the gauge — where Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. has the same influence as Nvidia Corp. — climbed 0.8%, on track for an all-time closing high. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8% while an index of bank stocks climbed to the highest in more than two years, the Russell 2000 jumped 1.9%. The biggest technology stocks, like Nvidia, Alphabet Inc. and Facebook-parent company Meta Platforms Inc., lagged. Fundstrat’s Thomas Lee sees room for more gains in small-caps and cyclicals given the incoming administration’s plans for deregulation and general “animal spirits.” And the rally in the broader market may still have some gas left. “When sentiment reaches a ‘bullish extreme’ is when we see equities priced to ‘perfection,’” according to Lee. “By several measures, we are not there at that point yet.” To Bank of America Corp. strategists the Nasdaq 100, which has rallied more than 4% this month, is approaching a level versus the S&P 500 that could trigger the unwinding of the trade favoring US equities. The tech-heavy gauge drifted in Friday trading, while still on track for a 1.6% weekly gain. Meanwhile, data on Friday showed S&P Global flash November composite output index for service providers and manufacturers advanced to 55.3 — the highest level since April 2022. The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped around one basis point to 4.41%. “The US flash PMIs for November were bullish in aggregate thanks to strength in services,” according to Vital Knowledge’s Adam Crisafulli, who said the details suggested a goldilocks scenario, “with favorable growth developments and cooling price pressures.” The dollar was on track for its longest streak of weekly wins since September 2023. A Bloomberg gauge of the currency’s strength has risen around 2.5% so far this month, adding to October’s gains of nearly 3%. “The US dollar’s run can continue,” said Peter McLean, head of multi-asset portfolio solutions at Stonehage Fleming. “We also have those geopolitical tensions, which are escalating at the moment. It’s natural for investors to seek refuge in the dollar.” Bouts of volatility, driven by escalations in the war in Ukraine earlier in the week, eased Friday. The ongoing conflict pushed WTI crude above $71 a barrel while gold traded at over $2,700 an ounce, heading toward its biggest weekly gain since March 2023. The rally in Bitcoin set a fresh high on bets that Trump’s support for crypto and a looser regulatory environment will help the industry. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency is fast approaching $100,000. The latest developments included Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler’s decision to step down in January. His tenure was marked by a flurry of crypto enforcement actions, which the industry expects will peter out under Trump. S&P Global’s composite Purchasing Managers’ Index for the euro area dipped back beneath the level that separates growth from contraction in November. The region’s sovereign bonds rallied while the euro dropped to a two-year low. Asian equities are on pace for their first back-to-back monthly losses this year amid dollar strength and lingering concerns over the Chinese economy. Still, the region’s more favorable valuations versus the US market are aiding recovery in some assets. Elsewhere in Asia, Adani Group companies advanced after a $27 billion rout on Thursday following a US indictment against Gautam Adani over allegations of bribery. The company denied the allegations. Corporate Highlights: Some of the main moves in markets: Stocks Currencies Cryptocurrencies Bonds Commodities This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation. --With assistance from Margaryta Kirakosian, Andre Janse van Vuuren and Sujata Rao. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com ©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
NEW YORK and AMSTERDAM , Dec. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- S&P Dow Jones Indices ("S&P DJI"), the world's leading index provider, today announced the results of the annual Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) rebalancing and reconstitution. The DJSI are float-adjusted market capitalization weighted indices that measure the performance of companies selected using environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria. The DJSI, including the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World), were launched in 1999 as the pioneering series of global sustainability benchmarks available in the market. The index family is comprised of global, regional and country benchmarks. As a result of this year's review, the following top three largest companies based on free-float market capitalization have been added to and deleted from the DJSI World. All changes are effective on Monday, December 23, 2024 . Additions: Airbus SE, Schlumberger Ltd, BAE Systems Plc Deletions: Alphabet Inc 1 , UnitedHealth Group Inc, ASML Holding NV 2 The full results and list of DJSI constituents will be available as of Monday, December 23 2024 , at https://www.spglobal.com/esg/csa/djsi-annual-review S&P Dow Jones Indices will be renaming a number of its sustainability and ESG-related indices (see Index Announcement ). As part of this update, the family of Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) will be renamed Dow Jones Best-in-Class Indices. The changes will become effective on Monday, February 10, 2025 . The S&P Global CSA Scores will continue to be a key factor in selecting constituents for the DJSI when they are renamed Dow Jones Best-in-Class Indices in February 2025 . For more information about the DJSI methodology, please visit: www.spglobal.com/spdji . ABOUT S&P DOW JONES INDICES S&P Dow Jones Indices is the largest global resource for essential index-based concepts, data and research, and home to iconic financial market indicators, such as the S&P 500® and the Dow Jones Industrial Average®. More assets are invested in products based on our indices than products based on indices from any other provider in the world. Since Charles Dow invented the first index in 1884, S&P DJI has been innovating and developing indices across the spectrum of asset classes helping to define the way investors measure and trade the markets. S&P Dow Jones Indices is a division of S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI), which provides essential intelligence for individuals, companies, and governments to make decisions with confidence. For more information, visit: www.spglobal.com/spdji . 1 Still member of DJSI World Enlarged and DJSI North America 2 Still member of DJSI World Enlarged S&P DJI MEDIA CONTACTS: spdji.comms@spglobal.com View original content: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sp-dow-jones-indices-announces-dow-jones-sustainability-indices-2024-review-results-302331745.html SOURCE S&P Dow Jones IndicesFresh rallies in Georgia after PM said 'won battle' with pro-EU protesters
Chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen returns to a tournament after a dispute over jeans is resolvedNEW YORK (AP) — Top-ranked chess player Magnus Carlsen is headed back to the World Blitz Championship on Monday after its governing body agreed to loosen a dress code that got him fined and denied a late-round game in another tournament for refusing to change out of jeans . Lamenting the contretemps, International Chess Federation President Arkady Dvorkovich said in a statement Sunday that he'd let World Blitz Championship tournament officials consider allowing “appropriate jeans” with a jacket, and other “elegant minor deviations” from the dress code. He said Carlsen's stand — which culminated in his quitting the tournament Friday — highlighted a need for more discussion “to ensure that our rules and their application reflect the evolving nature of chess as a global and accessible sport.” Carlsen, meanwhile, said in a video posted Sunday on social media that he would play — and wear jeans — in the World Blitz Championship when it begins Monday. “I think the situation was badly mishandled on their side,” the 34-year-old Norwegian grandmaster said. But he added that he loves playing blitz — a fast-paced form of chess — and wanted fans to be able to watch, and that he was encouraged by his discussions with the federation after Friday's showdown. “I think we sort of all want the same thing,” he suggested in the video on his Take Take Take chess app’s YouTube channel. “We want the players to be comfortable, sure, but also relatively presentable.” The events began when Carlsen wore jeans and a sportcoat Friday to the Rapid World Championship, which is separate from but held in conjunction with the blitz event. The chess federation said Friday that longstanding rules prohibit jeans at those tournaments, and players are lodged nearby to make sartorial switch-ups easy if needed. An official fined Carlsen $200 and asked him to change pants, but he refused and wasn't paired for a ninth-round game, the federation said at the time. The organization noted that another grandmaster, Ian Nepomniachtchi, was fined earlier in the day for wearing sports shoes, changed and continued to play. Carlsen has said that he offered to wear something else the next day, but officials were unyielding. He said “it became a bit of a matter of principle,” so he quit the rapid and blitz championships. In the video posted Sunday, he questioned whether he had indeed broken a rule and said changing clothes would have needlessly interrupted his concentration between games. He called the punishment “unbelievably harsh.” “Of course, I could have changed. Obviously, I didn’t want to,” he said, and “I stand by that.”
Moment doorbell camera catches 'thief' barging into shop and 'stealing phone' - as 'shaken up' victim appeals for help and issues safety warningMinister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has sharply criticized a former Rivers State governor, Dr. Peter Odili, accusing him of self-interest. Wike also asked between himself and Odili, who has turned Rivers State into his personal estate? Speaking at a thanksgiving service organised by the factional Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Hon. Martin Chike Amaewhule, at the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Oro-Igwe/Eliogbolo Archdeaconry Church of the Holy Spirit, Eliozu Parish, Port Harcourt, on Sunday, Wike, through a statement by his media aide Lere Olayinka, lamented Odili’s alleged habit of prioritizing personal gain over statesmanship. Olayinka quoted Wike as saying that it was unfortunate that somebody who is supposed to be seen as an elder statesman and called a father can reduce himself to a sycophant and a trader. He asked; “Must you be a trader all the time? As governor for eight years, what else are you looking for?” The Minister said; “You know, I didn’t want to say anything. But somebody called me last night and told me what someone said on social media. I said until I read it myself. This morning, I read in the newspapers what our former governor, Sir Dr Peter Odili, said.“What did he say? He said that the present governor has been able to stop one man who wanted to convert Rivers State to his personal estate. Wike pointed to several appointments allegedly dominated by Odili’s family members and questioned his past contributions as governor. He said, “Between him and myself, who has turned Rivers State to his personal estate? His wife is a chairman of Governing Council, his daughter is a Commissioner, his other daughter is a Judge, and he is the general overseer. Who has now turned Rivers State to his private estate? I am sure if care is not taken, if there is a chance, he can even arrange a marriage for the governor. “It was his nephew, his late senior brother’s son that was recommended for Commissioner. He took the slot and gave it to his own daughter. Someone who didn’t remember to stand for the son of his late elder brother, is that an elder statesman? He added, “All of you here remember when I was governor, this same Odili praised me to high heaven. In fact, he said then that all past governors in Rivers State combined did not do better than me. “In 2007, after he left office, he couldn’t come near power in the State because Amaechi was the governor then. He was gone! “Like somebody said that God will use someone to lift up someone. When I came in as governor in 2015, I won’t use the word resurrected, but I brought him back to life. “All of us know about Pamo University. But for us, there wouldn’t have been anything called Pamo University. Rivers State was sponsoring 100 students per session and for every semester, each of the students was paying nothing less than N5m. Then, Rivers people were attacking me up and down. “I personally called Julius Berger to build a mansion for him to live. He was calling everyone to the house then, telling them, come and see what Wike has done for me. Wike has shown me love. He was taking them round the house. Related News You gave me encouragement, Fubara tells Rivers residents I have done more for Rivers, Wike slams Secondus, Omehia Firms award scholarships to 611 Rivers students “Now, because you have organised a Christmas Carol for the governor, I didn’t say you should not do your Christmas Carol. But why reduce yourself to such a laughing stock? People will still see it on television how he was telling the whole world then how God used me to bring him back to life politically. “Why not do your Christmas Carol, collect what you can collect and leave me alone? Wike also expressed disappointment in Odili’s recent comments praising the current Rivers State governor while undermining Wike’s achievements. “The governor that all of us made has not spent one year in office and the same Odili was already saying that the governor has beaten the records of all the past governors of Rivers State. “When I was there, he said I had surpassed the records of all the past governors, including himself. What can he even show that he did in his eight years as governor? But a governor has not spent one year, you are saying he has done more than all the past governors. “You spent eight years as governor and someone who hasn’t spent one year has surpassed your records, what manner of elder talk like that? Is that what an elder statesman should be known for? “When I was governor, my pictures were everywhere in his house. Sitting room, bedroom, kitchen, even in the toilet, my picture was everywhere. But today, all the pictures have been removed. Asking what can be learned from such an elder statesman, Wike said; “What can I learn from this kind of elder? What kind of advice can one get from him? This moment you are saying something, the next moment you are saying something else. “You see, if your children begin to ask you, is this not the same man you were praising before? What would you tell them?” On the state’s governorship issue, the Minister asked; “When I was plotting who will be governor after me, was he (Odili) there? Then, he was complaining about this governor, saying that he couldn’t stand before the public to talk. But today, he is organising Christmas Carol for the same governor he was against then. “He has forgotten all that he said in the past. I named this after you, I named that after your wife. What have I not done? “You said we should not be part of the government, we have left. We are managing, you have taken assembly money, they are not dying of hunger and they will not die of hunger. We are okay. I’m focusing on my job in Abuja and all this sycophancy won’t take him to the level I have attained. “This is a man who wanted to run for president then, he didn’t have the balls, he chickened out. Simply because Obasanjo said no, he would not contest, he ran away. Because of him, I never invited Obasanjo to Rivers State to commission projects. I felt it would humiliate him.” Click the link below to watch the video: https://x.com/MobilePunch/status/1873482169102028823?t=FkZAEo721HmMp1mbzeEjXg&s=19Gerry Hutch has labelled the housing crisis “disgraceful” and vowed to prioritise homelessness if elected. The independent candidate, who is out on bail following an international investigation into money laundering by the Hutch Organised Crime Group , is standing in his native Dublin Central. When he encountered Newstalk ’s Henry McKean on Sheriff Street, close to where he grew up, Hutch said he wanted to help locals “as much as possible” and dismissed claims that his candidacy was not serious. “There’s no sense in running if you’re not going to be genuine and truthful,” he said. “If I get elected, I’ll do what I can.” When pressed what cause he would champion in Dáil Éireann, Hutch said would have one main priority. “ Homelessness , housing for the people - affordable housing,” he said. “People cannot get on the property ladder; we need affordable housing. “Someone who is starting to get on the property ladder has to be earning 120 grand a year. “It’s disgraceful; it’s not for the people around here.” Plenty of homes in Sheriff Street have Hutch No. 1 posters and the candidate said he is standing in response because of popular demand. “The people have asked me to run,” he said. “They’ve asked me to run over the years and, lately, they’ve pushed and pushed me - and I’m running.” In fact, Hutch said he only wished he got involved in politics sooner. “Maybe I should have run as a politician when I was 20,” he said. “I’m coming out of semi-retirement to do this for the people. “I could just chill out and not do it but they’re pushing me into it.” Other high profile candidates in the constituency include Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald, Fine Gael Minister Paschal Donohoe, Gary Gannon of the Social Democrats, Neasa Hourigan of the Greens and former Dublin MEP Clare Daly. You can find out who is most likely to take the constituency’s four seats by listening to Newstalk ’s Calling It podcast with Ivan Yates and Seán Defoe. You can listen back here: Main image shows Gerry Hutch. Picture by: RollingNews.ie
Democrats emerged from their bruising election losses in November with a decidedly mixed financial picture, new federal filings show. The Democratic National Committee appeared flush with cash, despite recent post-election staff cuts, and a leading liberal super PAC appeared to have tens of millions of dollars in unpaid bills. Vice President Kamala Harris’ defunct campaign, meanwhile, had just $1.8 million remaining in its bank accounts after spending more than $1 billion in a failed effort to defeat Republican Donald Trump. The Harris campaign reported no debts. But the filings with the Federal Election Commission overnight – which cover fundraising and spending between October 17 and November 25 – offer just a snapshot of the financial outlook for a party working to regroup after losing the White House and the Senate and failing to flip the House last month. Aides to key committees say they are still dealing with outstanding invoices and other accounting issues as they close the books on the costly presidential contest. A full view of Democrats’ finances might not be apparent until January when candidates, parties and outside groups file their year-end reports with the FEC. Quarter-billion spending spree The filings show Harris burned through money during the final, intense home stretch of the campaign, plowing more than $270 million into the effort to win the presidency from October 17 through the post-election period. That frenzied spending in the final weeks of the campaign and Democrats’ aggressive efforts to secure donations after the election drew intense scrutiny and raised alarms that her campaign was grappling with unpaid bills. But after record-breaking fundraising, Harris’ campaign reported $1.82 million in cash on hand as of November 25. In the weeks since the election, Democrats have continued to bombard supporters with fundraising appeals, seeking more contributions. A fundraising email sent this week, for instance, from Harris’ joint fundraising committee with national and state Democratic parties, sought donations to a “Harris Fight Fund” program, which it said is aimed at electing “Democrats down the ticket ready to hold Trump accountable.” The fine print shows the proceeds going first to the Democratic National Committee in an effort to shore up the national party’s finances. In its filing Thursday with the FEC, the DNC reported more than $47 million remaining in the bank and no debts – despite recently shedding staff post-election . That’s in sharp contrast to the main super PAC that backed Harris’ candidacy for the White House, which ended the post-election period with nearly $50 million in unpaid bills, the FEC reports show. The group, Future Forward, listed $47.3 million in debts as of November 25, largely related to advertising expenses. Chauncey McLean, who oversees Future Forward, said those bills do not amount to “real debt,” but reflect a requirement by the FEC that the group report an estimate of its spending on advertising on a rolling, real-time basis. “The invoices are already paid,” and the next report the group files will reflect those payments, he said.Meeting Jimmy Carter — and getting a scoop about Bush, Blair and Iraq from the perfect gentlemanWill Utah State or Boise State forfeit vs. San Jose State in the Mountain West semifinals?Bost The conservative group Judicial Watch is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review a case filed by U.S. Rep. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, challenging Illinois’ law allowing mail-in ballots to be counted 14 days after the election. Under Illinois law, ballots postmarked by Election Day can be counted as late as 14 days after the election as they arrive at local election authorities. Bost’s case argued that Illinois’ law violates the federal law establishing Election Day by allowing votes to arrive and be counted for two weeks after the polls close. Two Illinois delegates at the Republican National Convention for President-elect Donald Trump , Laura Pollastrini and Susan Sweeney, are also part of Bost’s lawsuit. People are also reading... Two lower courts have already ruled against Bost’s 2022 case against the Illinois State Board of Elections. The U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago ruled in August that Bost lacked standing to sue in the case. But the legal fight is not over for Judicial Watch, which filed an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court on Nov. 19 asking the court to take up the case in hopes justices might strike down Illinois’ law. “Specific holdings in this case will tend to make the next electoral cycle as fraught as 2020,” the group argues. The filing cited numerous cases from 2020 challenging election laws and outcomes, some of which Judicial Watch was a part of, in efforts to block the counting of mail-in ballots. Many other states also allow late-arriving mail-in ballots to be counted in the days after the election. Federal law regulates counting military ballots. Judicial Watch’s central argument to the U.S. Supreme Court is that the court of appeals in Chicago erred in its ruling that Bost lacked standing. The court ruled it was Bost’s “choice” to spend campaign resources to monitor post-election counting while on his way to a large victory. Bost argued he suffered damages by extending his campaign’s operation for two weeks beyond the election to monitor counting. The appeals court made a “major error by treating candidates’ likely electoral prospects as relevant to the standing analysis, where a challenged statute inflicted real costs on their campaigns,” Judicial Watch argued. “Apparently, judges in pre-election cases must now try to predict electoral outcomes,” the group said. A State Board of Elections spokesperson declined to comment on pending litigation. Bost, who has represented the 12th Congressional District in southern Illinois since 2015, was reelected this month with nearly 75% of the vote, according to preliminary results. Judicial Watch said it worried “illegal votes could diminish his margin of victory” and make it appear that he is growing more unpopular with his constituents. Bost himself argued his races have seen more mail-in ballots in recent campaigns. Judicial Watch also argued Bost filed this case to preemptively correct perceived issues with the vote by mail law, which they believe gives him standing in federal court cases and is something the nation’s high court should be interested in addressing. A Cook County resident drops off her mail-in ballot Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020, at a county courthouse in Maywood. The group called Bost’s challenge “an ideal vehicle” for the court to rule on vote by mail. “The need to have that issue resolved, and outside of emergency litigation, is great,” the group said. Judicial Watch also pointed to largely unfounded concerns about the reliability of elections because of late counting of mail in ballots as another reason the U.S. Supreme Court needs to get involved. “It is important that courts hear and resolve well-pleaded challenges by federal candidates to state time, place and manner regulations affecting their elections,” the group said. “Aside from the interests of the litigants, it is important that the public conclude that elections are run in an orderly, not arbitrary, fashion.” Republicans in Illinois and at the national level embraced mail-in voting in the 2024 election cycle after pushing back against it in recent years. The Illinois Republican Party joined the Republican National Committee’s “bank your vote” initiative, which encouraged reliable Republican voters to vote early or by mail so campaign resources could be focused on turning out people on the fence about voting or who were undecided. 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Will Utah State or Boise State forfeit vs. San Jose State in the Mountain West semifinals?