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Trump isn't back in office but he's already pushing his agenda and negotiating with world leadersNEW YORK (AP) — He's making threats, traveling abroad and negotiating with world leaders. Donald Trump has more than a month and a half to go before he's sworn in for a second term. But the Republican president-elect is already moving aggressively not just to fill his Cabinet and outline policy goals, but to achieve those priorities . Trump has threatened to impose a 25% tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico, prompting emergency calls and a visit from Canada's prime minister that resulted in what Trump claimed were commitments from both U.S. allies on new border security measures. The incoming president has warned there will be “ALL HELL TO PAY" if, before his inauguration on Jan. 20, 2025, Hamas does not release the hostages being held in Gaza . He has threatened to block the purchase of U.S. Steel by a Japanese company, warning "Buyer Beware!!!” And this weekend, Trump was returning to the global stage, joining a host of other foreign leaders for the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral five years after it was ravaged by a fire. On Saturday, he met with French President Emmanuel Macron — joined at the last minute by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy — and had plans to see Britain's Prince William also in Paris. Absent in Paris: lame duck President Joe Biden, who has largely disappeared from headlines, except when he issued a pardon of his son , Hunter, who was facing sentencing for gun crimes and tax evasion. First lady Jill Biden is attending in his place. “I think you have seen more happen in the last two weeks than you’ve seen in the last four years. And we’re not even there yet,” Trump said in an over-the-top boast at an awards ceremony Thursday night . For all of Trump's bold talk, though, it is unclear how many of his efforts will bear fruit. The pre-inauguration threats and deal-making are highly unusual, like so much of what Trump does, said Julian Zelizer, a political historian at Princeton University. “Transitions are always a little complicated in this way. Even though we talk about one president at a time," he said, “the reality is one president plus. And that plus can act assertively sometimes." Zelizer said that is particularly true of Trump, who was president previously and already has relationships with many foreign leaders such as Macron, who invited both Trump and Biden to Paris this weekend as part of the Notre Dame celebration. “Right now he’s sort of governing even though he’s not the president yet. He’s having these public meetings with foreign leaders, which aren't simply introductions. He's staking out policy and negotiating things from drug trafficking to tariffs," Zelizer said. Trump already has met with several foreign leaders, in addition to a long list of calls. He hosted Argentinian President Javier Milei in Florida at his Mar-a-Lago club in November. After the tariff threat, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a pilgrimage to Mar-a-Lago for a three-hour dinner meeting. Canadian officials later said the country is ready to make new investments in border security, with plans for more helicopters, drones and law enforcement officers. Last Sunday, Trump dined with Sara Netanyahu, wife of the Israeli prime minister. Incoming Trump aides have also been meeting with their future foreign counterparts. On Wednesday, several members of Trump's team, including incoming national security adviser Mike Waltz, met with Andriy Yermak, a top aide to Zelenskyy, in Washington, as Ukraine tries to win support for its ongoing efforts to defend itself from Russian invasion, according to a person familiar with the meeting. Yermak also met with Trump officials in Florida, he wrote on X . That comes after Trump's incoming Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, traveled to Qatar and Israel for high-level talks about a cease-fire and hostage deal in Gaza, according to a U.S familiar with the efforts, meeting with the prime ministers of both countries. There is no prohibition on incoming officials or nominees meeting with foreign officials, and it is common and fine for them to do so — unless those meetings are designed to subvert or otherwise impact current U.S. policy. Trump aides were said to be especially cognizant of potential conflicts given their experience in 2016, when interactions between Trump allies and Russian officials came under scrutiny. That included a phone call in which Trump's incoming national security adviser, Michael Flynn, discussed new sanctions with Russia’s ambassador to the United States, suggesting things would improve after Trump became president. Flynn was later charged with lying to the FBI about the conversation. Trump’s incoming press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that, “All transition officials have followed applicable laws in their interactions with foreign nationals.” She added: “World leaders recognize that President Trump is returning to power and will lead with strength to put the best interests of the United States of America first again. That is why many foreign leaders and officials have reached out to correspond with President Trump and his incoming team.” Such efforts can nonetheless cause complications. If, say, Biden is having productive conversations on a thorny foreign policy issue and Trump weighs in, that could make it harder for Biden “because people are hearing two different voices” that may be in conflict, Zelizer said. Leaders like Russia's Vladimir Putin and Netanyahu may also anticipate a more favorable incoming administration and wait Biden out, hoping for more a better deal. It also remains unclear how extensively the Biden administration has been kept apprised of Trump transition efforts. Although there is no requirement that an incoming administration coordinate calls and meetings with foreign officials with the State Department or National Security Council, that has long been considered standard practice. That is, in part, because transition teams, particularly in their early days and weeks, do not always have the latest information about the state of relations with foreign nations and may not have the resources, including interpretation and logistical ability, to handle such meetings efficiently. Still, the Biden and Trump teams have been talking, particularly on the Middle East, with the incoming and outgoing administrations having agreed to work together on efforts to free hostages who remain in held in Gaza, according to a U.S. official, who, like others, was not authorized to comment publicly about the sensitive talks and spoke on condition of anonymity. That includes conversations between Witkoff and Biden’s foreign policy team as well as Waltz and Biden national security adviser Jake Sullivan. Last month, Biden administration officials said they had kept Trump’s team closely apprised of efforts to broker a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah on the Israel-Lebanon border. “I just want to be clear to all of our adversaries, they can’t play the incoming Trump administration off of the Biden administration. I’m regularly talking to the Biden people. And so, this is not a moment of opportunity or wedges for them," Waltz said Friday in a Fox Business interview. But when it comes to immigration, Biden administration officials haven’t been entirely in the loop on discussions around how to execute on Trump’s pledge to deport millions of migrants, according to four administration officials with knowledge of the transition who spoke on condition of anonymity. That’s not terribly surprising given how differently the teams view migration. Trump’s team, meanwhile, is already claiming credit for everything from gains in the stock and cryptocurrency markets to a decision by Walmart to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion policies Trump opposes. “Promises Kept — And President Trump Hasn’t Even Been Inaugurated Yet,” read one press release that claimed, in part, that both Canada and Mexico have already pledged "immediate action” to help “stem the flow of illegal immigration, human trafficking, and deadly drugs entering the United States." Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has stopped short of saying Trump mischaracterized their call in late November. But she said Friday that Trump “has his own way of communicating, like when we had the phone call and he wrote that we were going to close the border. That was never talked about in the phone call.” Earlier this week, Mexico carried out what it claimed was its largest seizure of fentanyl pills ever. Seizures over the summer had been as little as 50 grams per week, and after the Trump call, they seized more than a ton. Security analyst David Saucedo said that "under the pressure by Donald Trump, it appears President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration is willing to increase the capture of drug traffickers and drug seizures that Washington is demanding.” Biden, too, tried to take credit for the seizure in a statement Friday night. ___ Associated Press writers Matthew Lee, Aamer Madhani, Colleen Long and Ellen Knickmeyer in Washington and Mark Stevenson in Mexico City contributed to this report.

Storms hit Porthcawl Millions of people in Britain face life-threatening weather conditions after Storm Darragh hit on Saturday—just two weeks after Storm Bert . The storm left 130,000 homes and businesses without power overnight and into the morning. A red weather warning was in place in the west of Wales and the Bristol Channel. Millions of people received a phone alert advising them to stay home. Events ranging from Christmas markets, to flights at Cardiff airport to the Everton vs Liverpool football match have been cancelled or postponed. In Porthcawl, South Wales, a block of flats had its roof ripped off by strong winds. Disasters are a window into the way society works. The storms this autumn have exposed how unprepared Britain is for extreme weather. When storms hit, the most marginalised in society are often the most vulnerable to devastation. The government’s advice to people is to stock up on torches and batteries as they face power cuts. They are expected to fend for themselves, especially as fire and rescue services have been stripped back by years of austerity. If people go out in the storm, the media blames them for not following the warnings. The storms give a glimpse of the more chaotic world we can expect as climate change worsens. Climate change fuels more tropical storms. But the Met Office says that autumn storms in Britain could also get more frequent and more intense. Warming water in the oceans means that storms tend to have more energy, leading to stronger winds. The storms also pick up more water from the oceans leading to more rainfall. And rising sea levels contribute to storm surges in coastal areas. Firefighters say they know an emergency when they see it. Matt Wrack FBU firefighters’ union leader, said, “We have had so many warnings now but still our politicians are not taking climate change seriously. “They’re not accelerating changes to our economy and our society as quickly as they need to. And they’re not investing in a vital piece of climate change adaptation—the fire and rescue service.” Since 2010, central government funding for the fire service has been cut by 30 percent and 12,000 firefighter jobs have been lost. The storms in Britain and Valencia in the Spanish state have shown that ordinary people will get together to clean up the damage after a storm hits. Even if the state abandons people, their friends and neighbours don’t. We need to demand more action to stop the climate emergency, to rapidly cut back fossil fuel use and invest in rescue services to protect more people. Voices from the streets Police clamped down on Traveller chilren What are the disagreements over the bill? Ukip leader Nick Tenconi attacks meetingHouston's Al-Shaair apologizes for hit on Jacksonville's Lawrence that led to concussion HOUSTON (AP) — Houston’s Azeez Al-Shaair took to X to apologize to Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence after his violent blow to the quarterback’s facemask led to him being carted off the field with a concussion. Back in the starting lineup after missing two games with a sprained left shoulder, Lawrence scrambled left on a second-and-7 play in the second quarter of Houston’s 23-20 win on Sunday. He initiated a slide before Al-Shaair raised his forearm and unleashed on the defenseless quarterback. In the long post, Al-Shaair says "To Trevor I genuinely apologize to you for what ended up happening.” Jets are sticking with struggling Aaron Rodgers as their starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers will remain the New York Jets’ starting quarterback despite speculation the team could bench him in what has been a disappointing season. Interim coach Jeff Ulbrich said during a video call that he still believes Rodgers, who turned 41 on Monday, gives the Jets their best chance to win. Rodgers was 21 of 39 for 185 yards and touchdown passes to Davante Adams and Isaiah Davis but also had an interception returned 92 yards for a touchdown by Leonard Williams in the Jets’ 26-21 loss to Seattle on Sunday. Hall of Famer Randy Moss reveals he's 'battling something' internal and asks for prayers Hall of Fame wide receiver Randy Moss revealed he’s dealing with a health issue and asked fans to pray for him and his family. The 47-year-old ESPN football analyst made the announcement on Instagram from the set of the network’s “Sunday NFL Countdown” show. He directed his message to men and urged them to get checkups and bloodwork done, without specifying for any particular illness. Moss explained why he’s been wearing tinted sunglasses, saying, “I’m battling something, man, and it’s something internal, your boy is going to get through it.” College playoff bracket offers last dress rehearsal and one more chance to see where the SEC stands The next set of College Football Playoff rankings will be released Tuesday night under heavy scrutiny before the final bracket is set on Sunday. It will be one last chance to see just how much the selection committee loves the Southeastern Conference. The best gauge will be whether Miami, which suffered its second loss over the weekend, is placed behind any or all three SEC teams with three losses — Alabama, Mississippi and South Carolina, all of which are coming off wins. Whatever happens, the SEC is likely to have at least five teams in the 12-team field when the final bracket comes out. Mollie Marcoux Samaan stepping down as LPGA commissioner after 3 1/2 years of record prize money Mollie Marcoux Samaan is leaving after more than three years as LPGA commissioner. In a surprise announcement Monday, Marcoux Samaan says she will step down in January, just three weeks before the LPGA starts its 75th season. Liz Moore is the chief legal and technology officer. She'll be serving as interim commissioner until a search committee can find a permanent replacement. Marcoux Samaan was the athletic director at Princeton when she took over the LPGA in May 2021. Prize money has soared during her tenure. She also has faced criticism for the LPGA not gaining in popularity during a rise in women's sports. Kansas holds off Auburn for No. 1 in AP Top 25 as SEC grabs 3 of top 4 spots; UConn slides to No. 25 Kansas continues to hold the No. 1 ranking in The Associated Press Top 25 men’s college basketball poll. Auburn is pushing the Jayhawks in the latest poll after winning the Maui Invitational and checked in at No. 2. Two-time reigning national champion UConn nearly fell out entirely after an 0-3 week at Maui, falling from No. 2 to 25th. The Southeastern Conference had three of the top four teams with No. 3 Tennessee and No. 4 Kentucky behind the Tigers. The poll featured six new teams, headlined by No. 13 Oregon, No. 16 Memphis and No. 18 Pittsburgh. TCU, Duke climb into top 10, Notre Dame drops in women's AP Top 25; UCLA and UConn remain 1-2 TCU has its best ranking ever in The Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball poll after a convincing win over Notre Dame. The Horned Frogs jumped eight spots to No. 9, the first time the school has ever been in the top 10. The Fighting Irish, who were third last week, fell seven spots to 10th after losses to TCU and Utah. UCLA remained No. 1, followed by UConn, South Carolina, Texas and LSU. USC, Maryland and Duke are next. USC QB Miller Moss enters transfer portal after losing starting job to Jayden Maiava LOS ANGELES (AP) — Southern California quarterback Miller Moss is entering the transfer portal after losing the Trojans’ starting job last month. Moss started the Trojans’ bowl victory last season and their first nine games this season before coach Lincoln Riley replaced him with Jayden Maiava in early November. Moss signed with USC before Riley arrived at the school. Moss also stayed after Caleb Williams transferred from Oklahoma to rejoin Riley, and he served as Williams’ backup for two seasons before getting his chance to play with six touchdown passes in last year’s Holiday Bowl. Michael Andretti's Formula 1 dream comes to bittersweet fruition without his involvement Michael Andretti has been sidelined from his namesake motorsports organization and won’t have any role with the Formula 1 program he spent the last four years desperately trying to launch. His effort to get a program partnered with General Motors into F1 was approved last week, a month after he stepped aside from his teams. F1’s decision to expand its grid for Cadillac F1 came amidst a federal antitrust investigation into why Liberty Media refused to admit Andretti Global and after Andretti partners Dan Towriss and Mark Walter claimed controlling interest of the fledgling effort. Ryan Poles to remain Bears general manager and lead search for new head coach LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — Chicago Bears president Kevin Warren said Ryan Poles will remain the general manager and serve as the point person in the search for a head coach to replace the fired Matt Eberflus. He says Poles will have the “final say” if the two have differing opinions on who should get the job. Chicago had never fired a coach during a season. But a six-game losing streak marked by questionable coaching decisions spurred the founding NFL franchise to change course. The Bears let Eberflus go Friday and replaced him on an interim basis with offensive coordinator Thomas Brown.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Southern California quarterback Miller Moss is entering the transfer portal after losing the Trojans' starting job last month. Moss made his announcement on social media Monday. Moss started the Trojans ' bowl victory last season and their first nine games this season before coach Lincoln Riley replaced him with Jayden Maiava in early November. “Being a USC Trojan was a lifelong dream of mine,” Moss wrote. “Putting on the cardinal and gold and competing on behalf of my teammates and school is something I will forever take pride in. I poured everything I have into this — body, heart, mind and soul — and am humbled by and proud of what my teammates and I accomplished.” Moss, who was born in Los Angeles and went to high school in the San Fernando Valley, signed with USC before Riley arrived at the school. Moss also stayed with the Trojans after Caleb Williams transferred from Oklahoma to rejoin Riley, and he served as Williams’ backup for two seasons before getting his chance to play with six touchdown passes in last year's Holiday Bowl. Moss completed 64.4% of his passes this season for 2,555 yards with 18 touchdowns and nine interceptions. After a spectacular 378-yard performance to beat LSU in the Trojans' season opener, Moss didn't play poorly as a starter, but he also wasn't a difference-maker while USC stumbled to a 4-5 record. Moss threw seven interceptions in his final five starts before losing the job to Maiava. The Trojans went 1-4 in that stretch under Moss, who plays as a more traditional pocket passer while Maiava has the mobility usually favored for quarterbacks in Riley's spread offense. “Looking towards the future, I'm unwaveringly committed to becoming an even better quarterback and leader, and to achieving this at the next level,” Moss wrote. Moss has already graduated from USC, putting him in the portal as a graduate student. USC (6-6) is headed to a lower-tier bowl game again to finish this season, its third under Riley. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Smart Cities Expansion: From USD 870.61B in 2022 to USD 6820.8B by 2031, at 25.7%. 11-26-2024 08:55 PM CET | IT, New Media & Software Press release from: SkyQuest Technology Group Smart Cities Market Scope: Key Insights : Smart Cities Market size was valued at USD 870.61 billion in 2022 and is poised to grow from USD 1094.3 billion in 2023 to USD 6820.8 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 25.7% during the forecast period (2024-2031). Discover Your Competitive Edge with a Free Sample Report : https://www.skyquestt.com/sample-request/smart-cities-market Access the full 2024 Market report for a comprehensive understanding @ https://www.skyquestt.com/report/smart-cities-market In-Depth Exploration of the global Smart Cities Market: This report offers a thorough exploration of the global Smart Cities market, presenting a wealth of data that has been meticulously researched and analyzed. It identifies and examines the crucial market drivers, including pricing strategies, competitive landscapes, market dynamics, and regional growth trends. By outlining how these factors impact overall market performance, the report provides invaluable insights for stakeholders looking to navigate this complex terrain. Additionally, it features comprehensive profiles of leading market players, detailing essential metrics such as production capabilities, revenue streams, market value, volume, market share, and anticipated growth rates. This report serves as a vital resource for businesses seeking to make informed decisions in a rapidly evolving market. Trends and Insights Leading to Growth Opportunities The best insights for investment decisions stem from understanding major market trends, which simplify the decision-making process for potential investors. The research strives to discover multiple growth opportunities that readers can evaluate and potentially capitalize on, armed with all relevant data. Through a comprehensive assessment of important growth factors, including pricing, production, profit margins, and the value chain, market growth can be more accurately forecast for the upcoming years. Top Firms Evaluated in the Global Smart Cities Market Research Report: IBM Corporation Siemens Microsoft Huawei ABB Honeywell NEC Oracle Google Nokia Samsung Motorola Key Aspects of the Report: Market Summary: The report includes an overview of products/services, emphasizing the global Smart Cities market's overall size. It provides a summary of the segmentation analysis, focusing on product/service types, applications, and regional categories, along with revenue and sales forecasts. Competitive Analysis: This segment presents information on market trends and conditions, analyzing various manufacturers. It includes data regarding average prices, as well as revenue and sales distributions for individual players in the market. Business Profiles: This chapter provides a thorough examination of the financial and strategic data for leading players in the global Smart Cities market, covering product/service descriptions, portfolios, geographic reach, and revenue divisions. Sales Analysis by Region: This section provides data on market performance, detailing revenue, sales, and market share across regions. It also includes projections for sales growth rates and pricing strategies for each regional market, such as: North America: United States, Canada, and Mexico Europe: Germany, France, UK, Russia, and Italy Asia-Pacific: China, Japan, Korea, India, and Southeast Asia South America: Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, etc. Middle East and Africa: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria, and South Africa This in-depth research study has the capability to tackle a range of significant questions that are pivotal for understanding the market dynamics, and it specifically aims to answer the following key inquiries: How big could the global Smart Cities market become by the end of the forecast period? Let's explore the exciting possibilities! Will the current market leader in the global Smart Cities segment continue to hold its ground, or is change on the horizon? Which regions are poised to experience the most explosive growth in the Smart Cities market? Discover where the future opportunities lie! Is there a particular player that stands out as the dominant force in the global Smart Cities market? Let's find out who's leading the charge! What are the key factors driving growth and the challenges holding back the global Smart Cities market? Join us as we uncover the forces at play! To establish the important thing traits, Ask Our Experts @ https://www.skyquestt.com/speak-with-analyst/smart-cities-market Table of Contents Chapter 1 Industry Overview 1.1 Definition 1.2 Assumptions 1.3 Research Scope 1.4 Market Analysis by Regions 1.5 Market Size Analysis from 2023 to 2030 11.6 COVID-19 Outbreak: Medical Computer Cart Industry Impact Chapter 2 Competition by Types, Applications, and Top Regions and Countries 2.1 Market (Volume and Value) by Type 2.3 Market (Volume and Value) by Regions Chapter 3 Production Market Analysis 3.1 Worldwide Production Market Analysis 3.2 Regional Production Market Analysis Chapter 4 Medical Computer Cart Sales, Consumption, Export, Import by Regions (2023-2023) Chapter 5 North America Market Analysis Chapter 6 East Asia Market Analysis Chapter 7 Europe Market Analysis Chapter 8 South Asia Market Analysis Chapter 9 Southeast Asia Market Analysis Chapter 10 Middle East Market Analysis Chapter 11 Africa Market Analysis Chapter 12 Oceania Market Analysis Chapter 13 Latin America Market Analysis Chapter 14 Company Profiles and Key Figures in Medical Computer Cart Business Chapter 15 Market Forecast (2023-2030) Chapter 16 Conclusions Address: 1 Apache Way, Westford, Massachusetts 01886 Phone: USA (+1) 351-333-4748 Email: sales@skyquestt.com About Us: SkyQuest Technology is leading growth consulting firm providing market intelligence, commercialization and technology services. It has 450+ happy clients globally. This release was published on openPR.Rivian receives conditional $6.6-billion federal loan for plant expansion, new models

Eastern Kentucky secures 77-72 win over Southern IllinoisSome Democrats are frustrated over Joe Biden reversing course and pardoning his son Hunter

Matt Gaetz may have withdrawn his name from consideration to become Donald Trump ’s attorney general over sexual misconduct accusations — but alleged sexual abuser Pete Hegseth is still fighting to persuade Republican senators to confirm him to one of the most powerful positions in government. Hegseth was already facing an uphill confirmation battle to become the Secretary of Defense given that he is best known as a Fox News host with no government experience. The emergence of a disturbing sexual assault accusation against him from 2017 isn’t helping matters — and Trump’s team is pissed. According to four sources familiar with the situation, some top Trump transition officials and others close to the president-elect have been puzzled, if not infuriated, that Hegseth did not preemptively inform them of the allegations against him before they made their way into the press — most notably through the publication of a police report detailing the alleged incident at a hotel in Monterey, California. “How did he not know? Why didn’t he tell us?” a source close to Trump says. “Pete wasn’t interviewing for a job at McDonald’s; this is the fucking Pentagon! ... Even if the allegations are fake, it doesn’t matter because he was supposed to tell us what we needed to know so we could be better prepared to defend him — not learn about it from the media.” There was, the sources say, a vetting process for the Hegseth pick, but it did not uncover these details, nor was it especially invasive. Trump’s transition team did not sign agreements with the White House or the Justice Department to allow the FBI to conduct background checks on the president-elect’s nominees. “When we ask, ‘Is there anything else we need to know about?’ that is usually a good time to mention a police report,” a Trump adviser says. “Obviously he remembered that this all happened and there is no way — I don’t think — he could have believed this wouldn’t come out once he got nominated.” Editor’s picks The 100 Best TV Episodes of All Time The 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time Steven Cheung, the Trump campaign’s communications director, says in a statement: “Pete Hegseth dedicated his entire life as a warrior for the troops and for our country.” He adds, “With Pete as our Secretary of Defense, America’s enemies are on notice and our military will be great again. We look forward to his confirmation and to him serving as Secretary of Defense.” Mediate has also reported on the Trump team’s anger with Hegseth for not divulging more about the allegation before Trump announced the pick earlier this month, with one source noting: “He told the campaign there’s no issues.” Hegseth went to Capitol Hill on Thursday to reassure senators that, despite the allegations, he should be placed in charge of the world’s most powerful military. Republican lawmakers gave mixed reactions when speaking with the media about Hegseth’s candidacy, with some brushing off the police report — which was made public Wednesday — as nothing more than allegations, and some, like Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-S.D.), noting that it is a “pretty big problem, given that we have, you know, we have a sexual assault problem in our military,” per NBC News . “The matter was fully investigated and I was completely cleared and that’s where I am going to leave it,” Hegseth told reporters after his day in Congress. Trending Stories Shaboozey Deserves More Than What the CMA Awards Gave Him — Including an Apology Kendrick Lamar's Surprise New Album 'GNX' Is Here Billy Preston Was Beloved by the Beatles and Stones. His Fall From Grace Was a Rock Tragedy Tesla Has Highest Rate of Deadly Accidents Among Car Brands, Study Finds Hegseth was accompanied by Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, who is currently a senator himself. Vance also accompanied Gaetz as he met with senators on Tuesday, a day before the congressman-turned-Cameo star withdrew his name from contention to become attorney general. This story has been updated to include a comment from the Trump campaign.

The LA Galaxy might have been without their most influential player this season in Sunday’s MLS Cup final but that did not stop them winning the trophy for the sixth time, beating New York Red Bulls on home soil in Carson, California. It was a wild scene at the end. Galaxy players, including injured superstar Riqui Puig — wearing his jersey backwards — streamed onto the field, mistakenly believing the final whistle had blown, before being ushered back to the sidelines. But the celebrations would begin soon enough. Advertisement Puig was out after his injury-defying heroics against Seattle Sounders in the last round but Greg Vanney’s team came racing out of the blocks, taking a 2-0 lead through goals by Joseph Paintsil and Dejan Joveljic inside the opening 13 minutes. The Red Bulls were shell-shocked and their star player Emil Forsberg had failed to touch the ball before they found themselves two goals down. They found some control as the first half wore on though, and pulled a goal back when Sean Nealis converted from a corner in the 28th minute. The second half was a much more even affair, with Gabriel Pec missing a big chance for Galaxy and Forsberg doing the same for Red Bulls, but Vanney’s side held out to stop their opponents from lifting the MLS Cup for the very first time. We analyse the key talking points from Galaxy’s win on home soil at Dignity Health Sports Park... Vanney has been Galaxy’s biggest signing This final was a match-up between two old foes with starkly different levels of success in American soccer. The Red Bulls have been rebranded. Their original look and feel as the New York/New Jersey Metrostars has been repackaged in the colors of the popular energy drink. For mainstream Americans, Red Bull is a drink consumed at parties and nightclubs. It’s a perennial Formula One championship-winning team. Red Bull gives you wings, not league titles. The Galaxy have been here before. They’re used to the expectation that LA’s first MLS club should be in a final. But hard times, brought about by failed visions and mediocrity, set the club back years, a decade to be exact. GO DEEPER LA Galaxy back in MLS Cup, a decade on from the glory days History has repeated itself for the Galaxy, ever so slightly. Bruce Arena, the league’s most successful head coach to date, rescued the club in 2008 after their celebrity hire Ruud Gullit missed the mark. Arena had won two MLS Cup titles before taking the Galaxy job 16 years ago. He won three more in LA. Arena was a proven coach, like Vanney, who was brought in to stabilize a volatile club after the Galaxy moved on from former Boca Juniors star Guillermo Barros Schelotto. Advertisement Barros Schelotto was a former MLS MVP with the Columbus Crew but he was unable to establish a winning culture. Vanney had played in MLS Cup finals as a player (never winning) but had won a final with Toronto in 2017. He had dressed in the Galaxy’s white kit as a player and understood the demands of America’s most popular team. The Galaxy signed Puig from Barcelona, lured Pec from Brazil and sold an MLS dream to Paintsil. Marco Reus played in a UEFA Champions League final last spring, then boarded a flight to LA to live out his American dream. But it’s Vanney, a known commodity in MLS, who has been LA’s biggest signing. He’s now a two-time MLS Cup-winning manager and the match-day architect of the club’s return to relevance. Order has been restored to the galaxy. How did Galaxy cope without Puig? Puig became the heart and soul of the Galaxy in 2024. The No 10 was more than a creative playmaker: he became the emotional leader on match day. Galaxy players throughout the week said publicly that they would play for Puig — and they made good on the promise. He was up in the fancy seats, wearing a tailored suit, but somehow it still felt like Puig was at the heart of it all. Mark Delgado , who stepped into the starting XI in Puig’s absence, had called the former Barcelona man “irreplaceable.” Delgado was right, but LA did a good job of trying. Vanney echoed that sentiment in the build-up to the final, knowing that he would have to adjust tactically, and that he did. Without Puig, the Galaxy conceded possession to the Red Bulls. New York held 54 per cent of the possession, as the Galaxy hoped to force the visitors into mistakes. Vanney opted for Delgado, a two-way No 8, and Uruguayan defensive midfielder Gaston Brugman . Delgado is a trusted player for Vanney. The final on Saturday was his fourth MLS Cup under the American manager. Advertisement Brugman was a mainstay in Vanney’s midfield last season, but the 32-year-old has been overtaken by American Edwin Cerrillo , 24, a tough tackler, and a player who came of age in 2023 when he stared down Lionel Messi during a regular season match in LA. Still, it was Brugman who provided the opening assist of the match. A perfectly threaded pass to the Ghana international Paintsil. JP2⃣8⃣ pic.twitter.com/dE5kfV2mo7 — LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) December 7, 2024 The goal was created after a clever one-two between Cerrillo and Brugman. Painstil searched for a Puig jersey as the partisan crowd were in raptures, finally dedicating his goal to his injured team-mate. The Galaxy split open the spine of the Red Bull to go up 2-0 after 13 minutes. This time it was Delgado, whose one-time pass released Joveljic. The Serbian dribbled untouched into the Red Bull penalty area and finished with his weak foot past New York goalkeeper Carlos Coronel . His dedicatory celebration was a nod to Galaxy legend Robbie Keane. An awkward double somersault from Joveljic that harkened back to the glory days in Los Angeles. Dejan is CLINICAL. pic.twitter.com/7XnAcXxPCy — LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy) December 7, 2024 In the first half, Vanney’s game plan without Puig bore fruit — and it was enough to put Galaxy in an unassailable position. Forsberg falls short in the final Red Bull are a well-known global football entity. They’ve become known as the sports conquistadores, traveling about the world and selling their footballing methodologies. Brazil, Germany and Austria have budding Red Bull clubs. In the U.S., the former Metrostars are a Red Bull brand that’s still searching for an identity. The addition of Emil Forsberg signaled that the club were willing to bring in well-known attacking players, rather than relying on homegrowns and the occasional MLS journeyman. The Swedish international was decisive in the playoffs, but he was a non-factor on Saturday. In the build-up to the game, he laid out his intentions. “I came here to... bring the Red Bulls back to something special,” he said. “The goal was to come here to win.” As a No 10, Forsberg lacked an attacking partner, and he was anything but clinical in the final moments of the match. He failed to have a touch in the 13 minutes between the game starting and Galaxy going two goals ahead, too. Advertisement Forsberg represents what the Red Bull project in MLS could be: European pedigree and experience. But the Red Bulls can’t only be about fight and grit. But where will the goals come from in the future? What style of play does Sandro Schwarz want to implement and will he be given the tools to evolve the club’s style of play? New York was in an MLS Cup final again, but so many questions remain about the longevity of their success. (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)UConn head coach Dan Hurley insists he's not overvaluing Wednesday night's game between his 25th-ranked Huskies and No. 15 Baylor in Storrs, Conn. Sure, it comes on the heels of the two-time reigning national champion Huskies (5-3) responding to losing all three games during the Maui Invitational with a blowout victory over Maryland Eastern Shore on Saturday. UConn, which had won 17 consecutive games entering the Maui tournament, fell 23 spots from No. 2 to nearly out of the Associated Press Top 25 poll released Monday. "I think it's such a long season and we're eight games in," Hurley said when asked about facing the Bears. "Our performance in Maui shocked the college basketball world and the sports world, and obviously a lot went on there." "I don't think it's a must-win game in Game Nine of the season, but it's an opportunity to play in Gampel (Pavilion), where we play great and are very comfortable, and we know we're gonna have a great crowd." "We also know we're playing a top-level team, so it's a big game for us and it's a big game for them." Wednesday's game signifies the start of a tough stretch in UConn's schedule. The Huskies will visit Texas on Sunday and challenge No. 7 Gonzaga in New York on Dec. 14 before beginning Big East play on Dec. 18 against Xavier, which fell from No. 22 to out of the poll on Monday. But let's go back to Saturday's 99-45 dismantling of the Hawks. Jaylin Stewart started in place of the injured Alex Karaban (head) and joined Liam McNeeley by scoring 16 points to put UConn back in the win column. Solo Ball contributed 12 points, Aidan Mahaney had 11 and Tarris Reed Jr. (10 points, 12 rebounds) and Jayden Ross (10 points, 10 rebounds) each recorded a double-double. "This experience they're getting, (Stewart), Jayden Ross, Solo Ball, these guys are going to keep getting better and better," Hurley said. "Jaylin Stewart has flashed. That Memphis game (in which he scored 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting), he flashed a lot in that one. "... These sophomores are just going to keep getting better and better. That's why I do think we do need the grace and support of our people here at UConn. Because they're going to be such different players in January and February." Coming off a split in the Bahamas, Baylor (5-2) bounced back from a 77-62 setback to then-No. 11 Tennessee on Nov. 22 with a decisive 91-60 victory over New Orleans last Wednesday. "I know we're all a little tired," Bears coach Scott Drew said. "Whenever you come back from the Bahamas and a trip like that, the first game, you can be playing in mud. And I think the guys did a pretty good job, for the most part." Jayden Nunn drained six of his seven 3-pointers in the first half and finished with a season-high 23 points to power Baylor past the Privateers. Robert Wright III scored 18 points, Jeremy Roach had 17 and Miami transfer Norchad Omier recorded his third consecutive double-double after finishing with 12 points and a season-high 13 rebounds. --Field Level Media

B.C. Premier David Eby is promising to seek new export opportunities for the province after U.S. president-elect Donald Trump threatened to impose a 25-per-cent tariff on all Mexican and Canadian goods. British Columbia exports billions of dollars’ worth of commodities and products – coal and lumber, plastics and machinery – every month, with just over half bound for the United States. It could be worse. Canada as a whole sends three-quarters of its exports to the U.S. B.C. has less exposure to that single market thanks to a long-running policy, embraced by political parties of every stripe, of maintaining a diversified trade portfolio. “We’re going to continue to do our work to expand those trading opportunities,” Mr. Eby told reporters Wednesday. In the 1980s, B.C.’s political leaders set their economic sights on Asia, opening trade offices in Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan with the intent of reducing the province’s dependence on its dominant customer to the south. The province has bankrolled countless trade missions and now maintains 19 overseas trade offices. Yet the U.S. has consistently remained its most important trading partner over the past four decades. At best, the diversification strategy has dampened the siren call of the behemoth at its doorstep. “Canada is so privileged to be next door to this giant economic engine of the United States,” noted former B.C. premier Glen Clark in an interview. “We understand the laws there, we understand the language, we understand the people, and it’s very close, so it’s a natural.” But too much dependence on a single market – no matter how big, no matter how easy – comes with risk. Mr. Trump’s tariff threat should be a catalyst for a fresh commitment to cultivate new markets, said Mr. Clark, who led 13 trade missions to China alone during his term as premier, from 1996 to 1999. “Reviving that trade policy, only with different focus on parts of the world, makes a lot of sense as we move forward in this kind of dangerous time.” In 1987, Mike Harcourt, then the NDP opposition leader, stood up in the legislature and endorsed the Social Credit government’s early trade missions. Even as some Socred backbenchers dismissed the trips as “boondoggles,” Mr. Harcourt pressed for a more aggressive strategy. “We support those initiatives, but we’re not bold enough,” he said, insisting that the province needed to establish outposts in China and India. At the time, the Canada-U.S. softwood lumber dispute was demonstrating the ability of the U.S. to cripple the province’s forest sector. That conflict continues today – a textbook example for Canada of how U.S. protectionism can supersede good trade relations. British Columbia’s position as a trade gateway for Pacific Rim countries was already a reality before politicians tried to help. The year Mr. Harcourt was calling for trade offices in China, just 46 per cent of the province’s exports went to the United States. When he became Premier in 1991, Mr. Harcourt took the opportunity to pursue new markets aggressively. “I started talking about Vancouver being, not the last stop of the CPR railway, but the front door to Asia for Canada,” he said in an interview. But today he believes the province’s trade strategy needs an urgent update to prepare for 2025, when Mr. Trump returns to office. B.C.’s Trade Diversification Strategy was updated in 2023, but much has changed since. The value of softwood lumber exports has stagnated and is now rivalled by sales of machinery and equipment. Meanwhile, energy exports – especially coal – are climbing in value. Mr. Trump’s tariff threats aside, global trade relations are also more complex, particularly with China and India. The two countries are host to almost half of B.C.’s international trade offices outside the U.S. David Emerson helped steer Canada toward trade diversification. As deputy finance minister under then-Premier Bill Bennett and deputy minister to Premier Bill Vander Zalm, he crafted B.C.’s Asian Pacific trade strategy and later introduced the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative as the federal Minister of International Trade. He also was the minister who negotiated the one and only settlement on softwood lumber, in 2006. That agreement expired in 2015. Mr. Emerson says this is not a good time for British Columbia – and Canada – to face a strong protectionist leader in the U.S., because the alternatives are limited. “I do believe we need to grow market penetration in markets other than the U.S., but the greatest potential is in markets where we now have terrible relations,” he said. “Today, relations with China and India are a mess, and the great trade diversification strategy has run into serious trouble.” China is B.C.’s second-largest export destination – one that is growing in value. But Canada and China are in the midst of a trade spat. In August, Ottawa announced a 100-per-cent import tariff on Chinese electric vehicles and a 25-per-cent tariff on steel and aluminum products from China, after the U.S. and the European Union introduced similar measures. The following month, Beijing launched an anti-dumping investigation into imports of rapeseed from Canada. Meanwhile, Mr. Trump has signalled he is prepared to reignite trade tensions between the U.S. and China, which could put other trading partners in the crossfire. Canada’s relations with India soured after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last year that there were credible allegations the Indian government had links to the assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. Canada has since alleged that India’s Home Affairs Minister, Amit Shah, ordered the targeting of Sikh activists in Canada. Both countries have now expelled each other’s top diplomatic officials. Mr. Trump’s rationale for slapping tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports is to punish both countries for lax border security, allowing illegal migrants and illicit drugs to slip through into the U.S. On Wednesday, Mr. Trudeau met with the premiers to strategize and emerged with a promise to strengthen border security by pumping more money into the Canada Border Services Agency and the RCMP. Mr. Eby, who advocated for that investment as an answer to Mr. Trump’s complaints, said Canada should put up a united front to take on the U.S. trade threat. But in the meantime, he said, he’ll renew his government’s commitment to diversification. “This was definitely the right direction, obviously, in hindsight, and we do have to redouble those efforts, given the instability south of the border.” The decades of previous efforts have shown, however, that changing those trade patterns will be exceptionally difficult.It’s fair to say Timothée Chalamet is a young man of many talents. Obviously, he can act, as he’s put in stellar performances in a plethora of films. He can also sing, as evidenced by his work in the 2024 movie schedule entry A Complete Unknown , in which he plays Bob Dylan. What has me most surprised right now, though, is the fact that the A-lister knows how to talk about sports. In fact, the video of his recent appearance on ESPN’s College GameDay is so good that it has me convinced Chalamet could make the jump to commentating. The 28-year-old actor has been in the midst of a press tour for the highly anticipated A Complete Unknown and made some time to join the crew of the aforementioned talk show. On the ESPN program, the Dune star served as a guest picker, making his selections for the winners of the day’s collegiate football games. Whenever someone does that, they have to come correct, and it certainly seems like the Oscar nominee definitely conducted the necessary research. Check out the TikTok clip down below: Don’t get me wrong. I’ve never been under the impression that Timothée Chalamet is some kind of sports novice. However, I’m downright flabbergasted to hear him discuss college football like this. It’s honestly hard to tell whether he’s just using his stellar acting chops here. Despite that, I’m just as impressed as other fans who’ve been commenting on the post. Chalamet even received some words of support from fellow actor Glen Powell . The Twisters star – who’s an avid fan of the Texas Longhorns – posted the following to his Instagram story: So I may be mostly joking when I say that the Call Me by Your Name alum could actually become an analyst at some point, though it’s hard not to be impressed by this viral video. He certainly has the presence and seems to be more than holding his own alongside College GameDay ’s more seasoned panelists. Also, that mustache the actor is sporting just makes him look all the more legitimate, if I’m being honest. Timothée Chalamet Totally Crashed A Timothée Chalamet Look-Alike Contest, And The Video Is Great Alas, the chances of Timothée Chalamet making such a career change seem slim to none, especially given how much success he’s seen over the past year. This year alone, the New York-born star marked the release of the critically acclaimed Dune: Part Two (which is available to stream with a Max subscription ). A Complete Unknown has already garnered positive reviews via early reactions on social media. Funny enough, Chalamet booked a sports film earlier this year in the form of Josh Safdie’s’ Marty Supreme. Considering that I’m more of a basketball fan than a football devotee, I’d now love to see the Wonka star try his hand at some NBA or college b-ball commentary. It wouldn’t be all that surprising if he were to crush that as well, given his turn on ESPN. The odds of that happening may be slim but, given his NY roots, I’m going to hold onto the hope that the actor jumps onto a Knicks broadcast at some point and provides even more thoughtful sports commentary. ESPN’s College GameDay airs from 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. ET on Saturdays, and you’ll definitely want to keep tuning in as the regular season winds down and the bowl and championship games begin. Also, be sure to check out A Complete Unknown when it opens in theaters on December 25, and you can check out some of Timothée Chalamet’s best movies in the meantime. CINEMABLEND NEWSLETTER Your Daily Blend of Entertainment News

LOS ANGELES — Until he sustained a season-ending knee injury last week in the Western Conference final, Galaxy playmaker Riqui Puig was having a tremendous season. So I heard. I watched Puig play only twice this year, once in the Galaxy's season-opening 1-1 draw with Inter Miami and a second time in his team's Fourth of July defeat to LAFC at the Rose Bowl. Outside of short highlight clips on social media, I never saw the former Barcelona prospect, not even when he assisted on the goal that sent the Galaxy to the MLS Cup final. That wasn't a reflection of my interest. Some of my friends will make fun of me for publicly admitting this, but I like Major League Soccer. I covered the league in my first job out of college and have casually kept up with it since. I take my children to a couple of games a year. My 11-year-old son owns Galaxy and LAFC hats but no Dodgers or Lakers merchandise. When flipping through channels in the past, if presented with the choice of, say, college football or MLS, I usually watched MLS. But not this year. While the MLS Cup final between the Galaxy and New York Red Bulls will be shown on Fox and Fox Deportes, the majority of games are now exclusively behind a paywall, courtesy of the league's broadcasting deal with Apple. MLS Season Pass subscriptions were reasonably priced — $79 for the entire season for Apple TV+ subscribers, $99 for non-subscribers — but I was already paying for DirecTV Stream, Netflix, Amazon Prime, PlayStation Plus and who knows what else. MLS became a casualty in my household, as well as in many others, and the possibility of being out of sight and out of mind should be a concern for a league that is looking to expand its audience. Which isn't to say the league made a mistake. This was a gamble MLS had to take. Now in the second year of a 10-year, $2.5 billion deal with Apple, MLS did what Major League Baseball is talking about doing, which is to centralize its broadcasting rights and sell them to a digital platform. Regional sports networks have been decimated by cord cutting, making traditional economic models unsustainable. The move to Apple not only increased the league's broadcast revenues — previous deals with ESPN, Fox and Univision were worth a combined $90 million annually, according to multiple reports — but also introduced a measure of uniformity in the league. The quality of the broadcasts are better than they were under regional sports networks. Viewers know where to watch games and when, as every one of them is on Season Pass and most of them are scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. local time either on Wednesday or Saturday. "That's been fueling our growth and driving our fan engagement," MLS Commissioner Don Garber said Friday at his annual state of the league address. Apple and MLS declined to reveal the number of League Pass subscribers, but the league provided polling figures that indicated 94% of viewers offered positive or neutral reviews of League Pass. The average viewing time for a game is about 65 minutes for a 90-minute game, according to Garber. In other words, the League Pass is well-liked — by the people who have it. The challenge now is to increase that audience. The launch of League Pass last year coincided with the arrival of Lionel Messi, which presumably resulted in a wave of subscriptions. But the league can't count on the appearance of the next Messi; there is only one of him. MLS pointed to how its fans watch sports on streaming devices or recorded television than any other U.S. sports league, as well as how 71% of its fans are under the age of 45. The league also pointed to how it effectively drew more viewers to the Apple broadcast of Inter Miami's postseason opener with a livestream of a "Messi Cam' on TikTok, indicating further collaborations with wide-reaching entities could be in its future. Garber mentioned how Season Pass is available in other countries. The commissioner also made note of how Apple places games every week in front of its paywall. "What we have, really, is a communication problem," Garber said. "This is new, and we've got to work with Apple, we've got to work with our clubs and we've got to work with our partners to get more exposure to what we think is a great product." The greatest benefit to the league could be Apple's vested interest in improving the on-field product. MLS insiders said Apple has not only encouraged teams to sign more high-profile players but also pushed the league to switch to a fall-to-spring calendar more commonplace in other parts of the world, reasoning that doing so would simplify the process of buying and selling players. The on-field product is what matters. The on-field product is why MLS continues to face competition for viewers from overseas leagues. The on-field product is why the league hasn't succeeded in converting every soccer fan into a MLS fan. And ultimately, if casual viewers such as myself are to pay to watch the Galaxy or LAFC on a screen of some kind, the on-field product will be why. Get local news delivered to your inbox!Vikings legend Randy Moss references health battle, asks for prayersUSC QB Miller Moss enters transfer portal after losing starting job to Jayden Maiava

Despite their impressive 10-6 start, the Lakers aren't standing still. According to Clutch Point's Anthony F. Irwin , Los Angeles has maintained "constant contact" with the Brooklyn Nets regarding veteran forward Dorian Finney-Smith. The 6'7" forward is putting up solid numbers across the board - 10.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, and nearly a steal per game - but it's his three-point shooting that should have Lakers fans intrigued (he's currently 41% from beyond the arc). With JJ Redick as the Lakers' head coach, Finney-Smith could be an excellent fit for his system. Redick has mentioned his desire to have the Lakers take more threes. Another sharpshooter could help the rookie head coach further diversify his offensive strategy. © Petre Thomas-Imagn Images The timing makes sense. While the Lakers are thriving behind Anthony Davis's MVP-caliber campaign (30.1 points, 11.1 rebounds, 1.9 blocks) and LeBron James's near triple-double averages, they're still searching for that perfect 3-and-D wing to complete their roster. Enter Finney-Smith, who's quietly having a career year in Brooklyn. The landscape for a deal looks promising. Brooklyn, having already shipped out Mikal Bridges this offseason, has clearly signaled their intentions for rebuilding. Future draft compensation might be enough to pry Finney-Smith loose - a reasonable price for a Lakers team in win-now mode. For a Lakers squad that's already getting contributions from rookie sensation Dalton Knecht and steady play from Rui Hachimura and D'Angelo Russell, adding Finney-Smith's defensive versatility and reliable shooting could be the final piece needed for a championship push. The question now becomes: what price are the Lakers willing to pay to bolster their title chances? Related: Charles Barkley Criticizes the Lakers' Handling of Bronny James Related: Stephen A. Smith Says Bronny Doesn't Belong in the NBAFAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — Brayden O'Connor's 17 points helped George Mason defeat Tulane 76-64 on Saturday. O'Connor went 7 of 10 from the field for the Patriots (7-3). Darius Maddox shot 4 for 11 (3 for 6 from 3-point range) and 6 of 6 from the free-throw line to add 17 points. Jalen Haynes shot 4 of 11 from the field and 7 of 9 from the free-throw line to finish with 15 points. Rowan Brumbaugh led the way for the Green Wave (4-6) with 12 points and four assists. Gregg Glenn III added 11 points and 11 rebounds for Tulane. Mari Jordan also had 11 points. George Mason took the lead with 14:04 left in the first half and never looked back. O'Connor led their team in scoring with 15 points in the first half to help put them up 45-27 at the break. George Mason was outscored by Tulane in the second half by a six-point margin, but still wound up on top, while Haynes led the way with a team-high 10 second-half points. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .

ATLANTA — On Jan. 18 and 19 the AT&T Playoff Playlist Live! will be held at State Farm Arena in advance of the College Football Playoff national championship on Jan. 20. The star-studded lineup was announced Thursday at a news conference at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Performances will include Lil Wayne and GloRilla on Saturday; and Camila Cabello, Myles Smith and Knox on Sunday. On game day, the Allstate Championship Tailgate, taking place just outside Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the Home Depot Backyard, will feature country acts on the Capital One Music Stage, including global superstar Kane Brown and iHeartCountry “On The Verge” artist Ashley Cooke. The concerts are just two of the festivities visiting fans can enjoy in the days leading up to the big game. The fan experience for both ticket holders and the general public has been a focus for event planners. All weekend long, an estimated 100,000 people from across the country are expected to attend fan events preceding kickoff. “It will be an opportunity for fans of all ages to come together to sample what college football is all about, and you don’t have to have a ticket to the game to be a part of it,” said Bill Hancock, executive director of the CFP in a press release. “We’ve worked closely with the Atlanta Football Host Committee to develop fan-friendly events that thousands will enjoy come January.” On Saturday, Jan. 18, Playoff Fan Central will open at the Georgia World Congress Center in downtown Atlanta. The free, family-friendly experience will include games, clinics, pep rallies, special guest appearances, autograph signings and exhibits celebrating college football and its history. That day, fans can also attend Media Day, presented by Great Clips, which will feature one-hour sessions with student-athletes and coaches from each of the College Football Playoff national championship participating teams. ESPN and social media giants X, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok will be taping live broadcasts from the event. On Sunday, Jan. 19, the Trophy Trot, both a 5K and 10K race, will wind its way through the streets of downtown Atlanta. Each Trophy Trot participant will receive a T-shirt and finisher’s medal. Participants can register at atlantatrackclub.org . On Sunday evening, the Georgia Aquarium will host the Taste of the Championship dining event, which offers attendees the opportunity to indulge in food and drink prepared by local Atlanta chefs. This premium experience serves as an elevated exploration of local cuisine on the eve of the national championship. Tickets to the Taste of the Championship event are available on etix.com . Atlanta is the first city ever to repeat as host for the CFP national championship. The playoff was previously held in Atlanta in 2018. “We are honored to be the first city to repeat as host for the CFP national championship and look forward to welcoming college football fans from around the country in January,” said Dan Corso, president of the Atlanta Sports Council and Atlanta Football Host Committee. “This event gives us another opportunity to showcase our incredible city.” The College Football Playoff is the event that crowns the national champion in college football. The quarterfinals and semifinals rotate annually among six bowl games — the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, Capital One Orange Bowl, Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential and the Allstate Sugar Bowl. This year’s quarterfinals will take place on Dec. 31, 2024 and Jan. 1, 2025, while the semifinals will be Jan. 9-10, 2025. The CFP national championship will be Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. For additional information on the College Football Playoff, visit CollegeFootballPlayoff.com . Get local news delivered to your inbox!ASP Isotopes Inc. Responds to Short Seller ReportGrid Studio, popular for framing iPhones, other Apple products, and gaming devices, has kicked off its Black Friday deals. has Grid frames, which offer high-quality options with a lot of nostalgia. For example, you can have , iPhone X, Apple Watch, Apple’s most famous iPhone chips, and more at home. What’s interesting about Grid Studio is its attention to detail. For iPhone models, the frame has a brief description of the product and highlights all of its prominent parts, such as sensors, the main board, cameras, the SIM tray, and more. Grid pays tribute to the original iPhone. While auctions of sealed iPhones cost thousands of dollars, this frame is available for $299 during the Black Friday: The iPhone 2G (1st generation), which went on sale 16 years ago on June 29, laid the foundation for the modern smartphone, forever changing the way we access the world’s information. From no app store to an App Store, iCloud, iTunes...It’s amazing how we’ve advanced over the years. Thanks, to Apple for revolutionizing and simplifying smartphone usage, the iPhone 2G is truly a legend, with respect to history and how Apple led the way. From November 26 to December 2, Grid Studio offers discounted prices on select items: Sign up for our exclusive daily deals list, sent every AM. By signing up, I agree to the and have reviewed the In addition, there’s a storewide discount of 20%, which doesn’t cover special frames. You need to redeem the code at checkout. With that discount, users can get Grid Studio frames with Apple pins, which are throwbacks to meaningful Apple products through almost 50 years of history, a Grid with ten years of Apple chips, and even standalone processors, such as the A7 for the iPhone 5S or the A10, which powered the iPad 6, iPad 7, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, and the iPod touch 7. You can learn more about , and keep checking for the latest deals on everything tech.

Dylan Hernández: MLS deal with Apple TV could be hurting league's efforts to grow its fan baseThe length of your fingers may hold a vital clue to your drinking habits, according to a new study. There is evidence that alcohol consumption is influenced by prenatal sex steroids, so experts from Swansea University and colleagues from the Medical University of Lodz decided to use a sample of students for their research into the subject. Their findings have just been published in the American Journal of Human Biology. The researchers found relationships between high alcohol consumption and long 4th digits relative to 2nd digits. This showed that high prenatal testosterone relative to estrogen is linked to high student alcohol consumption. Professor John Manning, of Swansea's Applied Sports, Technology, Exercise and Medicine (A-STEM) research team, said, "Alcohol consumption is a major social and economic problem. Therefore, it is important to understand why alcohol use shows considerable differences across individuals." The study used a sample of 258 participants—169 of them female—and it revealed consumption rates varied between the sexes. In comparison to women, men show higher alcohol consumption and higher mortality from alcohol abuse . He said, "A pattern like this suggests an involvement of sex hormones, such as testosterone and estrogen. Digit ratio (2D:4D: the relative lengths of the 2nd [index] and 4th [ring] fingers) is thought to be an index of early testosterone (long 4th digit) and estrogen (long 2nd digit). "It is known that alcohol-dependent patients have very long 4th digits relative to their 2nd digits, suggesting high testosterone relative to estrogen exposure before birth. As expected, the associations were stronger for men than women." The researchers hope their conclusions will bring a better understanding of the factors underlying the pattern of alcohol consumption, from abstinence to occasional use to harmful dependence. This is the latest paper which has highlighted Professor Manning's work in the field of digit ratios. Previous research has examined how digit ratio may provide vital information concerning outcomes after contracting COVID-19 , as well as oxygen consumption in footballers. More information: Barbara Ślawski et al, Is Alcohol Consumption Pattern Dependent on Prenatal Sex‐Steroids? A Digit Ratio (2D:4D) Study Among University Students, American Journal of Human Biology (2024). DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.24187LOS ANGELES — Top-ranked South Carolina felt something it hasn't known in over 2 1/2 years. The sting of defeat after being thoroughly dominated in a 77-62 loss to No. 5 UCLA on Sunday. Gone was the overall 43-game winning streak. Done was the run of 33 consecutive road victories. And the No. 1 ranking it's held for 23 consecutive polls will disappear Monday. "This is what we usually do to teams," coach Dawn Staley said. "We were on the receiving end of it." South Carolina hadn't lost since April 2023, when Caitlin Clark and Iowa beat the Gamecocks in the national semifinals of the NCAA Tournament. The Bruins (5-0) shot 47% from the floor and 3-point range, hit 11 of 14 free throws and had five players in double figures. "They actually executed our game plan to a T," Staley said. The Gamecocks (5-1) were held to 36% shooting, had just two players in double figures and neither was leading scorer Chloe Kitts, who was held to 2 points on 1 of 7 shooting. They never led, got beat on the boards, 41-34, and were outscored 26-18 in the paint and 8-1 in fast break points. They only made eight trips to the free throw line. "Our kids fought," Staley said, "but we ran into a buzzsaw." South Carolina did manage to limit 6-foot-7 UCLA star Lauren Betts, who had 11 points and 14 rebounds, despite no longer having a dominant center of their own. The Bruins responded by getting the ball to others and eight of their 10 players scored. "We did an excellent job on Betts and we got killed by everyone else," Staley said. Tessa Johnson was the only other Gamecock in double figures with 14. "We needed a lot more than Tessa today," Staley said. The Gamecocks never got their offense in gear, starting the game 0 for 9 before trailing 20-10 at the end of the first quarter. They were down 43-22 at halftime. "Our shot selection is something we're dealing with on a daily basis," Staley said. The Gamecocks outscored UCLA 40-34 in the second half, but the Bruins' big early lead easily held up. "Beautiful basketball by UCLA," Staley said. "You can't help but to love up on it cause it was fluid on both sides of the ball." Given that it's only late November, the Gamecocks have plenty of time to figure things out. "We had some really good contributions from people that don't play a whole lot and we could probably give a little bit more minutes to," Staley said. "Taking a loss will help us focus on anybody that we play."

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B.C. Premier David Eby is promising to seek new export opportunities for the province after U.S. president-elect Donald Trump threatened to impose a 25-per-cent tariff on all Mexican and Canadian goods. British Columbia exports billions of dollars’ worth of commodities and products – coal and lumber, plastics and machinery – every month, with just over half bound for the United States. It could be worse. Canada as a whole sends three-quarters of its exports to the U.S. B.C. has less exposure to that single market thanks to a long-running policy, embraced by political parties of every stripe, of maintaining a diversified trade portfolio. “We’re going to continue to do our work to expand those trading opportunities,” Mr. Eby told reporters Wednesday. In the 1980s, B.C.’s political leaders set their economic sights on Asia, opening trade offices in Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan with the intent of reducing the province’s dependence on its dominant customer to the south. The province has bankrolled countless trade missions and now maintains 19 overseas trade offices. Yet the U.S. has consistently remained its most important trading partner over the past four decades. At best, the diversification strategy has dampened the siren call of the behemoth at its doorstep. “Canada is so privileged to be next door to this giant economic engine of the United States,” noted former B.C. premier Glen Clark in an interview. “We understand the laws there, we understand the language, we understand the people, and it’s very close, so it’s a natural.” But too much dependence on a single market – no matter how big, no matter how easy – comes with risk. Mr. Trump’s tariff threat should be a catalyst for a fresh commitment to cultivate new markets, said Mr. Clark, who led 13 trade missions to China alone during his term as premier, from 1996 to 1999. “Reviving that trade policy, only with different focus on parts of the world, makes a lot of sense as we move forward in this kind of dangerous time.” In 1987, Mike Harcourt, then the NDP opposition leader, stood up in the legislature and endorsed the Social Credit government’s early trade missions. Even as some Socred backbenchers dismissed the trips as “boondoggles,” Mr. Harcourt pressed for a more aggressive strategy. “We support those initiatives, but we’re not bold enough,” he said, insisting that the province needed to establish outposts in China and India. At the time, the Canada-U.S. softwood lumber dispute was demonstrating the ability of the U.S. to cripple the province’s forest sector. That conflict continues today – a textbook example for Canada of how U.S. protectionism can supersede good trade relations. British Columbia’s position as a trade gateway for Pacific Rim countries was already a reality before politicians tried to help. The year Mr. Harcourt was calling for trade offices in China, just 46 per cent of the province’s exports went to the United States. When he became Premier in 1991, Mr. Harcourt took the opportunity to pursue new markets aggressively. “I started talking about Vancouver being, not the last stop of the CPR railway, but the front door to Asia for Canada,” he said in an interview. But today he believes the province’s trade strategy needs an urgent update to prepare for 2025, when Mr. Trump returns to office. B.C.’s Trade Diversification Strategy was updated in 2023, but much has changed since. The value of softwood lumber exports has stagnated and is now rivalled by sales of machinery and equipment. Meanwhile, energy exports – especially coal – are climbing in value. Mr. Trump’s tariff threats aside, global trade relations are also more complex, particularly with China and India. The two countries are host to almost half of B.C.’s international trade offices outside the U.S. David Emerson helped steer Canada toward trade diversification. As deputy finance minister under then-Premier Bill Bennett and deputy minister to Premier Bill Vander Zalm, he crafted B.C.’s Asian Pacific trade strategy and later introduced the Asia-Pacific Gateway and Corridor Initiative as the federal Minister of International Trade. He also was the minister who negotiated the one and only settlement on softwood lumber, in 2006. That agreement expired in 2015. Mr. Emerson says this is not a good time for British Columbia – and Canada – to face a strong protectionist leader in the U.S., because the alternatives are limited. “I do believe we need to grow market penetration in markets other than the U.S., but the greatest potential is in markets where we now have terrible relations,” he said. “Today, relations with China and India are a mess, and the great trade diversification strategy has run into serious trouble.” China is B.C.’s second-largest export destination – one that is growing in value. But Canada and China are in the midst of a trade spat. In August, Ottawa announced a 100-per-cent import tariff on Chinese electric vehicles and a 25-per-cent tariff on steel and aluminum products from China, after the U.S. and the European Union introduced similar measures. The following month, Beijing launched an anti-dumping investigation into imports of rapeseed from Canada. Meanwhile, Mr. Trump has signalled he is prepared to reignite trade tensions between the U.S. and China, which could put other trading partners in the crossfire. Canada’s relations with India soured after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last year that there were credible allegations the Indian government had links to the assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. Canada has since alleged that India’s Home Affairs Minister, Amit Shah, ordered the targeting of Sikh activists in Canada. Both countries have now expelled each other’s top diplomatic officials. Mr. Trump’s rationale for slapping tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports is to punish both countries for lax border security, allowing illegal migrants and illicit drugs to slip through into the U.S. On Wednesday, Mr. Trudeau met with the premiers to strategize and emerged with a promise to strengthen border security by pumping more money into the Canada Border Services Agency and the RCMP. Mr. Eby, who advocated for that investment as an answer to Mr. Trump’s complaints, said Canada should put up a united front to take on the U.S. trade threat. But in the meantime, he said, he’ll renew his government’s commitment to diversification. “This was definitely the right direction, obviously, in hindsight, and we do have to redouble those efforts, given the instability south of the border.” The decades of previous efforts have shown, however, that changing those trade patterns will be exceptionally difficult.USC QB Miller Moss enters transfer portal