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Tag: CTV What You Need To Know (National)

  • It’s prime time again for pumpkin spice

    It all started with Starbucks.

    First introduced in the fall of 2003, the pumpkin spice latte, or PSL, is now the company’s most popular seasonal drink, but that beverage was just the beginning.

    What You Need To Know

    • First introduced in the fall of 2003, the pumpkin spice latte, or PSL, is now Starbucks’ most popular seasonal drink, but that beverage was just the beginning

    • Dunkin’ introduced pumpkin spice drinks in 2007; and not to be outdone, McDonald’s released its own pumpkin spice latte in 2013

    • According to Nielsen, Americans spend more than half a billion dollars on pumpkin spice products each year

    • Colleen Harmeling, a marketing professor at Florida State University, said the products “evoke deeply rooted, nostalgic memorie” through their taste and smell

    Dunkin’ introduced pumpkin spice drinks in 2007. And not to be outdone, McDonald’s released its own pumpkin spice latte in 2013.

    “What I think pumpkin spice has done is it has evoked storytelling through the senses,” said Colleen Harmeling, a marketing professor at Florida State University.” … Taste and smell are some of our most powerful senses to evoke deeply rooted, nostalgic memories.”

    And consumers are willing to pay big time to feel that nostalgia.

    “It just gives you all the warm and cozy vibes, and you want to go home and bake something,” said Anna Vold, who looks forward to it every year.

    “They’re really good, and it makes the time of year feel like fall, especially because we live by the beach,” said Elise Mori, who was walking in Manhattan Beach, California.

    According to Nielsen, Americans spend more than half a billion dollars on pumpkin spice products each year.

    “My girlfriend gets it. I don’t,” said Eli Spence, who lives in Malibu, California. “In the fall? She’s all into it, a lot a lot of pumpkin spice stuff.”

    And experts say part of the draw is that it’s for a limited time.

    “This builds on some of our evolutionary psychology,” Harmeling said. “So when something is seasonal, we tend to try to get as much of it as possible during that seasonal season before that is lost to us again.”

    So what is pumpkin spice exactly? Some ingredients can vary, but it’s mainly a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and allspice, but not everyone is into the fall flavors.

    “I hate them. I think they’re way too sweet,” said Olivia Threthewey, who was visiting California from Australia.

    “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve noticed that I would just rather have, you know, regular coffee,” Spence said.

    Pumpkin spice become such a cultural icon that Miriam-Webster added the term to its dictionary in 2022. One company even tracked a 34% increase in the number of pumpkin spice mentions on U.S. menus in the last 10 years.

    The classic pumpkin spice latte has transformed into a trend that now includes dishwashing soap, body wash and even dog treats.

    Shoppers can also purchases pumpkin spice-scented flushable wipes, deodorant, avocado oil, and for those looking for that added luxury, a pumpkin spice latte-themed diamond ring.

    “I keep it relatively constricted into my drinks and my food,” Mori said. “I don’t really use pumpkin spice other stuff.”

    “If some people love it, then that’s fine,” Trethewey said.

    A quick online search also reveals a variety of memes, PSL tatoos and a private Facebook group known as the “Leaf Rakers Society,” which Starbucks launched in 2018 to celebrate all things fall. No haters allowed.

    With regards to marketing, Harmeling said, “The more permanent the product, the more risky it is to me, and also the less sensory the products, the more risky it is.”

    However, she said the biggest threat to the pumpkin spice trend may be releasing it too early.

    “The storytelling starts to break down,” Harmeling said. “I mean, pumpkin spice in July? It sounds kind of icky.”

    But no matter how consumers feel about it, “this is like one constant thing that, you know, we can rely on — like the fall is coming, there’ll be pumpkin spice,” Vold said.

    And there’s no doubting this little latte has done a whole lot to bring a taste of fall to millions of Americans.

    Ariel Wesler

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  • Fired CDC director testifies about ultimatum over vaccine recommendations

    WASHINGTON –– Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez has begun her testimony before a congressional committee Wednesday morning — three weeks after she was fired by the Trump administration.

    What You Need To Know

    • Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Susan Monarez has begun her testimony before a congressional committee Wednesday morning — three weeks after she was fired by the Trump administration

    • Monarez told lawmakers that she was given an ultimatum by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to resign or be terminated after she refused to “preapprove” vaccine recommendations of an advisory panel

    • That panel — the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices — is expected to vote on new vaccine recommendations this week

    • Former Chief Medical Officer Debra Houry, who later resigned after Monarez was fired, joined the former CDC director on Capitol Hill for the hearing

    Monarez told lawmakers on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions that she was given an ultimatum by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. if she refused to “commit in advance to approving” vaccine recommendations and “dismiss career officials responsible for vaccine policy without cause.”

    “On the morning of Aug. 25, Secretary Kennedy demanded two things of me that were inconsistent with my oath of office and the ethics required of a public official,” she told the committee.

    Her remarks Wednesday echoed a chain of events she described in a Wall Street Journal op-ed — that she “was told to preapprove the recommendations of a vaccine advisory panel newly filled with people who have publicly expressed antivaccine rhetoric.”

    That panel — the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices –– is expected to vote on new vaccine recommendations this week.

    In the wake of Monarez’s ouster, several other agency leaders resigned in protest, and President Donald Trump picked Jim O’Neill, who had been serving as Kennedy’s deputy, to step in as interim CDC director. 

    Former CDC Chief Medical Officer Debra Houry, who quit after Monarez was fired, joined the former CDC director on Capitol Hill for the hearing, which was given the title “Reviewing Recent Events at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Implications for Children’s Health.”

    “I resigned because CDC leaders were reduced to rubber stamps, supporting policies not based in science and putting American lives at risk,” Houry told the committee.

    In a hearing earlier this month, Kennedy acknowledged that he had told Monarez to fire scientists at the agency. During his testimony, Kennedy had also addressed what he called “the recent shakeup” at the CDC.

    “We are the sickest country in the world,” Kennedy told lawmakers.
”That’s why we have to fire people at CDC. They did not do their job. This was their job to keep us healthy.”

    When asked about Monarez, Kennedy said, “I told her that she had to resign because I asked her, ‘Are you a trustworthy person?’ And she said, ‘No.’” 

    Monarez refuted Kennedy’s comments calling her “untrustworthy” during her opening statement Wednesday.

    Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, a physician who represents Louisiana and chairs the powerful Senate health committee, said during his opening remarks Wednesday that lawmakers were looking to find “all the facts, not a version of the facts that fits a certain narrative agenda.”

    “It may be impossible to learn who’s telling the truth, but this hearing is an initial step in trying to answer why the top leadership of the CDC was fired or resigned before they could be fired,” he said, adding, “Turmoil at the top of the nation’s top public health agency is not good for the health of the American people.”

    Christina Santucci

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  • U.S. and China reach framework deal for ownership of TikTok

    MADRID — A framework deal has been reached between China and the U.S. for the ownership of popular social video platform TikTok, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said after weekend trade talks in Spain.

    What You Need To Know

    • A framework deal has been reached between China and the U.S. for the ownership of TikTok
    • U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday after trade talks in Madrid that U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would speak Friday to possibly finalize the deal
    • Bessent said the objective was to switch to U.S. ownership from China’s ByteDance
    • China’s international trade representative told reporters that the sides have reached “basic framework consensus”
    • During Joe Biden’s presidency, Congress and the White House used national security grounds to approve a U.S. ban on TikTok unless its Chinese parent company sold its controlling stake

    Bessent said in a press conference after the latest round of trade talks between the world’s two largest economies concluded in Madrid that U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping would speak Friday to possibly finalize the deal. He said the objective was to switch to U.S. ownership from China’s ByteDance.

    “We are not going to talk about the commercial terms of the deal,” Bessent said. “It’s between two private parties. But the commercial terms have been agreed upon.”

    Li Chenggang, China’s international trade representative, told reporters the sides have reached “basic framework consensus” to resolve TikTok-related issues in a cooperative way, reduce investment barriers and promote related economic and trade cooperation.

    The meeting in Madrid is the fourth round of trade talks between U.S. and Chinese officials since Trump launched a tariff war on Chinese goods in April. A fifth round of negotiations is likely to happen “in the coming weeks,” Bessent said, with both governments planning for a possible summit between Trump and Xi later this year or early next year to solidify a trade agreement.

    However, nothing has been confirmed, and analysts say possible trade bumps could delay the visit.

    Why a TikTok deal is needed

    In Madrid, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the team was “very focused on TikTok and making sure that it was a deal that is fair for the Chinese” but also “completely respects U.S. national security concerns.”

    Wang Jingtao, deputy director of China’s Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, told reporters in Madrid there was consensus on authorization of “the use of intellectual property rights such as (TikTok’s) algorithm” — a main sticking point in the deal.

    The sides also agreed on entrusting a partner with handling U.S. user data and content security, he said.

    During Joe Biden’s Democratic presidency, Congress and the White House used national security grounds to approve a U.S. ban on TikTok unless its Chinese parent company sold its controlling stake.

    U.S. officials were concerned about ByteDance’s roots and ownership, pointing to laws in China that require Chinese companies to hand over data requested by the government. Another concern became the proprietary algorithm that populates what users see on the app.

    Trump, a Republican, has repeatedly extended the deadline for shutting down TikTok. The current extension expires Wednesday, two days before Trump and Xi are scheduled to discuss the final details of the framework deal.

    Although Trump hasn’t addressed the forthcoming deadline directly, he has claimed that he can delay the ban indefinitely.

    Wendy Cutler, senior vice president at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said it appears that “both sides have found a way forward to transfer ownership to a U.S. company.”

    “If accurate, this would represent an important step forward in resolving a lingering bilateral dispute,” she said.

    Fentanyl and other issues are still unresolved

    Other long-running issues like export controls, Chinese investments in the U.S. and restrictions on chemicals used to make fentanyl also came up. Bessent indicated that money laundering, related to drug trafficking, “was an area of extreme agreement.”

    Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, who led the Chinese delegation, said the sides held “candid, in-depth and constructive” communications, according to China’s official news agency Xinhua.

    But Li, China’s international trade representative, said Beijing opposes the “politicization” and “weaponization” of technology, trade and economic issues, adding that China would “never seek any agreement at the expense of principle, the interests of the companies, and international fairness and justice.”

    He criticized the U.S. for overstretching the concept of national security and imposing sanctions on more Chinese companies. Calling it “a typical, unilateral, bullying practice,” Li said China demanded restrictive measures be removed.

    “The U.S. side should not on one hand ask China to accommodate its concerns, whilst at the same time continue to suppress Chinese companies,” Li said.

    As the weekend talks were underway, Trump said the war in Ukraine would end if all NATO countries stopped buying Russian oil and placed tariffs on China of 50% to 100% for doing so. The Chinese Commerce Ministry on Monday called the demand “a classic example of unilateral bullying and economic coercion.”

    A leaders’ summit may be in sight

    China’s foreign ministry on Monday did not say if Beijing has invited Trump for a state visit.

    Analysts have suggested that the summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation countries in South Korea at the end of October could provide an opportunity.

    The plan for another round of trade talks is “encouraging but seems to be cutting things close,” Cutler said, adding that more work is needed at lower levels for a Trump-Xi meeting to take place and that there are other opportunities for them to meet next year.

    For now, “there is little time to hammer out a meaningful trade agreement,” she said. “What we are more likely to see is a series of ad-hoc deliverables, possibly a Chinese commitment to buy more U.S. soybeans and other products, a U.S. agreement to hold back on announcing certain further U.S. high-tech export controls, and another 90-day rollover of the tariff pause.”

    A previous version of this Associated Press story misstated Chinese President Xi Jinping’s title.

    Associated Press

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  • Patel: DNA evidence found near scene of Charlie Kirk’s shooting matches suspect

    OREM, Utah — DNA on a towel wrapped around a rifle found near where conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated matched that of the 22-year-old accused in the killing, FBI Director Kash Patel said on Monday.

    What You Need To Know

    • FBI Director Kash Patel says DNA on a towel wrapped around a rifle found near where conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated matches that of the 22-year-old accused in the killing

    • Patel told Fox News Channel on Monday investigators also have used DNA to link suspect Tyler Robinson with a screwdriver recovered from the rooftop where the fatal shot was fired

    • Authorities in Utah are preparing to file capital murder charges against Robinson as early as Tuesday in the killing of Kirk, a dominant figure in conservative politics

    • Patel says Robinson wrote in a note before the shooting that he had an opportunity to take out Kirk

    Investigators also have used DNA evidence to link the suspect, Tyler Robinson, with a screwdriver recovered from the rooftop where the fatal shot was fired, Patel told Fox News Channel on Monday.

    Authorities in Utah are preparing to file capital murder charges against Robinson as early as Tuesday in the killing of Kirk, a dominant figure in conservative politics who became a confidant of President Donald Trump after founding Arizona-based Turning Point USA, one of the nation’s largest political organizations.

    Kirk, who brought young, conservative evangelical Christians into politics, was shot Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University during one of his many campus stops. The shooting raised fears about increasing political violence in a deeply polarized United States.

    Officials have said Robinson carried a hatred for Kirk and ascribed to a “leftist ideology” that had grown in recent years. Robinson’s family and friends said he spent large amounts of time scrolling the “dark corners of the internet,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Sunday.

    Patel told Fox News that Robinson had written in a note before the shooting that he had an opportunity to take out Kirk and was going to do it. Investigators were able to recover the note’s contents after it had been destroyed, the FBI director said, paraphrasing from the note without revealing more details.

    Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk speaks at a Turning Point event on Sept. 4, 2024, in Mesa, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)

    Authorities said Robinson has not been cooperating with law enforcement. They say that he may have been “radicalized” online and that ammunition found in the gun used to kill Kirk included anti-fascist and meme-culture language engravings. Court records show that one bullet casing had the message, “Hey, fascist! Catch!”

    Robinson was arrested late Thursday near where he grew up around St. George, in the southwestern corner of Utah between Las Vegas and Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks. It’s unclear whether he has an attorney who could speak on his behalf.

    Tributes to Kirk continue across the country. A line of mourners wrapped around the Kennedy Center in Washington for a vigil on Sunday, and there were moments of silence at several professional sporting events.

    Vice President JD Vance, who counted Kirk as a close friend, planned to serve as a substitute host on Monday for Kirk’s talk show on Rumble, a streaming platform.

    “Please join me as I pay tribute to my friend,” Vance wrote on social media.

    Associated Press

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  • Authorities piece together more information about Kirk assassination suspect

    OREM, Utah — Family and friends of the 22-year-old accused of fatally shooting conservative activist Charlie Kirk described his politics as veering left in recent years as he spent large amounts of time scrolling the “dark corners of the internet,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Sunday.

    What You Need To Know

    • Utah Gov. Spencer Cox says investigators are not yet ready to discuss a motive in the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk but the 22-year-old who was arrested leaned to the left
    • Cox said that information comes from interviews with suspect Tyler Robinson’s family and friends
    • Cox is a Republican who’s called for partisans on both sides to tone down their rhetoric after the assassination
    • Cox also confirmed reports that Robinson was in a romantic relationship with his roommate, who is transgender
    • Cox stressed the roommate knew nothing of the attack and has been cooperating with law enforcement

    Investigators were still piecing together information about the suspect, Tyler Robinson, and not yet ready to discuss a potential motive. But Cox noted that Robinson, who is not cooperating with law enforcement, disliked Kirk and may have been “radicalized” online.

    Kirk founded Turning Point USA to bring more young, conservative evangelical Christians into politics as effective activists, and he was a confidant of President Donald Trump, leading to a flood of tributes that included a vigil Sunday night at the Kennedy Center in Washington. Kirk, a 31-year-old father of two, became prominent in part through his speaking tours, and he was shot Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University.

    “There clearly was a leftist ideology,” Cox said on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” citing interviews with Robinson’s relatives and acquaintances. “Friends have confirmed that there was kind of that deep, dark internet, the Reddit culture, and these other dark places of the internet where this person was going deep.”

    Charlie Kirk speaks before he is shot during Turning Point’s visit to Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (Tess Crowley/The Deseret News via AP)

    He pointed to references found engraved on the ammunition used to kill Kirk, which included anti-fascist and meme-culture language. Court records show that one bullet casing had the message, “Hey, fascist! Catch!”

    A Republican who has called on all partisans to tone down their rhetoric following the attack, the governor added: “I really don’t have a dog in this fight. If this was a radicalized MAGA person, I’d be saying that as well.”

    Utah’s governor says a motive still isn’t pinned down

    Cox stressed on several Sunday morning news shows that investigators are still trying to pin down a motive for the attack on Kirk. The governor said more information may come out once Robinson appears in court Tuesday.

    Cox said the suspect’s partner was transgender, which some politicians have pointed to as a sign Robinson was targeting Kirk for his anti-transgender views. But authorities have not said whether it is relevant as they investigate Robinson’s motive.

    “The roommate was a romantic partner, a male transitioning to female,” Cox said. “I can say that he has been incredibly cooperative, this partner has been very cooperative, had no idea that this was happening.”

    Investigators have spoken to Robinson’s relatives and carried out a search warrant at his family’s home in Washington, Utah, about 240 miles (390 kilometers) southwest of Utah Valley University.

    State records show Robinson is registered to vote but not affiliated with a political party and is listed as inactive, meaning he did not vote in the two most recent general elections. His parents are registered Republicans.

    The suspect grew up in southwestern Utah

    Robinson grew up around St. George, in the southwestern corner of Utah between Las Vegas and natural landmarks including Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks.

    He became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, known widely as the Mormon church, at a young age, church spokesperson Doug Andersen said.

    Online activity by Robinson’s mother reflects an active family that traveled widely. In one photo, a young Robinson can be seen smiling as he grips the handles of a .50-caliber heavy machine gun outside a military facility.

    A high school honor roll student who scored in the 99th percentile nationally on standardized tests, he was admitted to Utah State University in 2021 on a prestigious academic scholarship, according to a video of him reading his acceptance letter that was posted to a family member’s social media account.

    But he attended for only one semester, according to the university. He is currently enrolled as a third-year student in the electrical apprenticeship program at Dixie Technical College in St. George.

    Tributes emphasize Kirk’s religious faith

    The vigil at the Kennedy Center was among numerous tributes to Kirk that also included moments of silence at professional sporting events. The line of mourners in Washington wrapped around the center. Some people wore suits or summer dresses, while others were dressed in jeans and wore “Make America Great Again” caps.

    Seventeen-year-old Domiano Maceri and his mother drove about 50 miles (80 kilometers) from Purceville, Virginia, to attend the Kennedy Center event. He said Kirk helped him find a way to better talk with friends who hold different opinions.

    “I definitely feel like I was inspired in different ways,” Maceri said as he waited to get inside. “It definitely gave me confidence to speak to my friends about my beliefs more.”

    Speakers included White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, two House members whose remembrances of Kirk were briefly stalled when they teared up, and House Speaker Mike Johnson.

    “Father, help us remember the principles of your word that Charlie worked every day — to advance that we not return evil for evil but we overcome evil with good,” Johnson prayed.

    At Dream City Church in Phoenix, where Kirk hosted one of his “Freedom Night in America” gatherings, attendees viewed clips of the conservative activist discussing his desire to be “remembered for courage for my faith.”

    During a question-and-answer session, a church pastor, Angel Barnett, called on the crowd to honor Kirk by carrying on his message.

    “The left is nervous,” Barnett said. “And they’re concerned because they’ve lost control. Charlie started that, and we will continue it.”

    Added church panelist Brandon Tatum: “These cowards thought that they could end or eliminate the movement.”

    “They just made it bigger. They just made it stronger.”

    Associated Press

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  • NATO scrambles jets to shoot down Russian drones in Poland

    WOHYN, Poland — Multiple Russian drones crossed into Poland in what European officials described Wednesday as an deliberate provocation, causing NATO to send fighter jets to shoot them down. A NATO spokesman said it was the first time the alliance confronted a potential threat in its airspace.

    What You Need To Know

    • Multiple Russian drones crossed into Poland in what European officials described as an deliberate provocation, causing NATO to send fighter jets to shoot them down

    • A NATO spokesman said it was the first time the alliance confronted a potential threat in its airspace

    • The incursion happened late Tuesday and into the early hours of Wednesday during a wave of strikes by the Kremlin on Ukraine
    • The NATO response swiftly raised fears that the war could spill over — a fear that has been growing in Europe as Russia steps up its attacks and peace efforts go nowhere

    The incursion, which occurred during a wave of strikes by the Kremlin on Ukraine, and the NATO response swiftly raised fears that the war could spill over — a fear that has been growing in Europe as Russia steps up its attacks and peace efforts go nowhere.

    Russia’s Defense Ministry said it did not target Poland, while Belarus, a close ally of Moscow, said it tracked some drones that “lost their course” because they were jammed.

    However, several European leaders said they believed the incursion amounted to an intentional expansion of Russia’s assault against Ukraine.

    “Russia’s war is escalating, not ending,” European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters in Brussels. “What (Russian President Vladimir) Putin wants to do is to test us. What happened in Poland is a game changer,” and it should result in stronger sanctions.

    Polish airspace has been violated many times since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but never on this scale in Poland or anywhere else in NATO territory.

    Poland said some of the drones came from Belarus, where Russian and Belarusian troops have begun gathering for war games scheduled to start Friday.

    It was not immediately clear how many drones were involved. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told parliament 19 violations were recorded over seven hours, but he said information was still being gathered. Polish authorities said nine crash sites were found, with some of them hundreds of kilometers from the border.

    “There are definitely no grounds to suspect that this was a course correction mistake or the like,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told parliament. “These drones were very clearly put on this course deliberately.”

    Dutch fighter jets came to Poland’s aid and intercepted some drones. Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski later thanked the Dutch government “for the magnificent performance of Dutch pilots in neutralizing” the drones.

    NATO met to discuss the incident, which came three days after Russia’s largest aerial attack on Ukraine since the war began.

    Poland says some drones came from Belarus

    Tusk told parliament that the first violation came at approximately 11:30 p.m. Tuesday and the last around 6:30 a.m. Wednesday. Earlier, Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz wrote on X that more than 10 objects crossed into Polish airspace.

    “What is new, in the worst sense of the word, is the direction from which the drones came. This is the first time in this war that they did not come from Ukraine as a result of errors or minor Russian provocations. For the first time, a significant portion of the drones came directly from Belarus,” Tusk said in parliament.

    The Russian Defense Ministry said its overnight strikes targeted Ukraine’s military-industrial complex in the western regions of the country — which border Poland — with no planned targets on Polish territory.

    In an unusual message of outreach, the ministry said it was ready to hold consultations with Poland’s Defense Ministry.

    Belarusian Maj. Gen. Pavel Muraveiko, the chief of the country’s general staff and first deputy defense minister, appeared to try to put some distance between his country and the incursion.

    In an online statement, he said that as Russia and Ukraine traded drone strikes overnight, Belarusian air defense forces tracked “drones that lost their course” after they were jammed, adding that Belarusian forces warned their Polish and Lithuanian counterparts about “unidentified aircraft” approaching their territory.

    Drones or parts of drones were found in eight locations in Poland, according to Polish officials. At a ninth site, objects of unknown origin were found.

    A house was hit in the village of Wyryki in the Lublin region near the Ukrainian border, Mayor Bernard Blaszczuk told the TVP Info television news channel. The roof was severely damaged, but no one was hurt.

    Rattled NATO members vow support

    NATO air defenses supported Poland in what spokesman Col. Martin O’Donnell called “the first time NATO planes have engaged potential threats in Allied airspace.” That included the Dutch F-35 fighter jets that intercepted drones, according to Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans.

    The alliance “is committed to defending every kilometer of NATO territory, including our airspace,” O’Donnell said.

    Tusk told parliament consultations took place under Article 4 of the NATO treaty — a clause that allows countries to call for urgent discussions with their allies. The consultations happened Wednesday at a previously planned meeting. They do not automatically lead to any action under Article 5, which is NATO’s collective security guarantee.

    Mark Lyall Grant, U.K. national security adviser from 2015 to 2017, said the incursion was obviously an escalation of Russia’s war in Ukraine, but there was not yet enough evidence to say it was an attack on a NATO member.

    But many European leaders expressed deep concern, including those in the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia that are the NATO members most nervous about Russian aggression.

    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called it an “extremely dangerous precedent for Europe” and called for Russia to “feel the consequences.”

    “Moscow always tests the limits of what is possible and, if it does not encounter a strong response, remains at a new level of escalation,” he said. “Not just one Shahed (drone), which could be dismissed as an accident, but at least eight attack drones that were aimed in the direction of Poland.”

    By midday in Washington, U.S. President Donald Trump’s only public comments about the incursion was a short post on social media: “What’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace with drones? Here we go!”

    Trump was set to speak later Wednesday to Polish President Karol Nawrocki, according to a White House official who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

    Phillips O’Brien, professor of strategic studies at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, said the incident underscored the failure of NATO member states to accurately assess the threat posed by Russia and properly prepare for war.

    “NATO states, even front line ones, have clearly not prepared for war of the type that is happening now,” he said in his Substack newsletter.

    Poland has complained about Russian objects entering its airspace during attacks on Ukraine before.

    In August, Poland’s defense minister said that a flying object that crashed and exploded in a cornfield in eastern Poland was identified as a Russian drone, and called it a provocation.

    In March, Poland scrambled jets after a Russian missile briefly passed through Polish airspace on its way to a target in western Ukraine. And in 2022, a missile that was likely fired by Ukraine to intercept a Russian attack landed in Poland, killing two people.

    Russian attacks hit central and western Ukraine

    Meanwhile, the Ukrainian air force said Russia fired 415 strike and decoy drones, as well as 42 cruise missiles and one ballistic missile overnight.

    Ukrainian air defenses intercepted or jammed 386 drones and 27 cruise missiles, according to the report.

    One person was killed and at least five wounded, while several homes and businesses were damaged, according to local officials.

    The Russian Defense Ministry said in its morning report Wednesday that it had destroyed 122 Ukrainian drones over various Russian regions overnight, including over the illegally annexed Crimea and areas of the Black Sea.

    Associated Press

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  • Employers add 22,000 jobs in August, falling short of forecasts

    WASHINGTON — The U.S. job market has gone from healthy to lethargic during President Donald Trump’s first seven months back in the White House, as hiring has collapsed and inflation has started to climb once again as his tariffs take hold.

    What You Need To Know

    • The U.S. job market has gone from healthy to lethargic during President Donald Trump’s first seven months back in the White House

    • Friday’s jobs report showed employers added a mere 22,000 jobs in August, as the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3%

    • Factories and construction firms shed workers

    • The new data exposed the widening gap between the booming economy Trump promised and the more anemic reality of what he’s managed to deliver so far.

    Friday’s jobs report showed employers added a mere 22,000 jobs in August, as the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3%. Factories and construction firms shed workers. Revisions showed the economy lost 13,000 jobs in June, the first monthly losses since December 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The new data exposed the widening gap between the booming economy Trump promised and the more anemic reality of what he’s managed to deliver so far. The White House prides itself on operating at a breakneck speed, but it’s now asking the American people for patience, with Trump saying better job numbers might be a year away.

    “We’re going to win like you’ve never seen,” Trump said Friday. “Wait until these factories start to open up that are being built all over the country, you’re going to see things happen in this country that nobody expects.”

    The plea for patience has done little to comfort Americans, as economic issues that had been a strength for Trump for a decade have evolved into a persistent weakness. Approval of Trump’s economic leadership hit 56% in early 2020 during his first term, but that figure was 38% in July of this year, according to polling by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

    The situation has left Trump searching for others to blame, while Democrats say the problem begins and ends with him.

    Trump maintained Friday that the economy would be adding jobs if Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell had slashed benchmark interest rates, even though doing so to the degree that Trump wants could ignite higher inflation. Investors expect a rate cut by the Fed at its next meeting in September, although that’s partially because of weakening job numbers.

    Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Trump’s tariffs and freewheeling policies were breaking the economy and the jobs report proved it.

    “This is a blaring red light warning to the entire country that Donald Trump is squeezing the life out of our economy,” Schumer said.

    By many measures, Trump has dug himself into a hole on the economy as its performance has yet to come anywhere close to his hype.

    — Trump in 2024 suggested that deporting immigrants in the country illegally would protect “Black jobs.” But the Black unemployment rate has climbed to 7.5%, the highest since October 2021, as the Trump administration has engaged in aggressive crackdowns on immigration.

    — At his April tariffs announcement, Trump said, “Jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country and you see it happening already.” Since April, manufacturers have cut 42,000 jobs and builders have downsized by 8,000.

    — Trump said in his inaugural address that the “liquid gold” of oil would make the nation wealthy as he pivoted the economy to fossil fuels. But the logging and mining sectors — which includes oil and natural gas — have shed 12,000 jobs since January. While gasoline prices are lower, the Energy Information Administration in August estimated that crude oil production, the source of the wealth promised by Trump, would fall next year by an average of 100,000 barrels a day.

    — At 2024 rallies, Trump promised to “end” inflation on “day one” and halve electricity prices within 12 months. Consumer prices have climbed from a 2.3% annual increase in April to 2.7% in July. Electricity costs are up 4.6% so far this year.

    The Trump White House maintains that the economy is on the cusp of breakout growth, with its new import taxes poised to raise hundreds of billions of dollars annually if they can withstand court challenges.

    At a Thursday night dinner with executives and founders from companies including Apple, Google, Microsoft, OpenAI and Meta, Trump said the facilities being built to develop artificial intelligence would deliver “jobs numbers like our country has never seen before” at some point “a year from now.”

    But Michael Strain, director of economic policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, noted that Trump’s promise that strong job growth is ahead contradicts his unsubstantiated claims that recent jobs data was faked to embarrass him. That accusation prompted him to fire the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics last month after the massive downward revisions in the July jobs report.

    Strain said it’s rational for the administration to say better times are coming, but doing so seems to undermine Trump’s allegations that the numbers are rigged.

    “The president clearly stated that the data were not trustworthy and that the weakness in the data was the product of anti-Trump manipulation,” Strain said. “And if that’s true, what are we being patient about?”

    The White House maintained that Friday’s jobs report was an outlier in an otherwise good economy.

    Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, said the Atlanta Federal Reserve is expecting annualized growth of 3% this quarter, which he said would be more consistent with monthly job gains of 100,000.

    Hassett said inflation is low, income growth is “solid” and new investments in assets such as buildings and equipment will ultimately boost hiring.

    But Daniel Hornung, who was deputy director of the National Economic Council in the Biden White House, said he didn’t see evidence of a coming rebound in the August jobs data.

    “Pretty broad based weakening,” Hornung said. “The decline over three months in goods producing sectors like construction and manufacturing is particularly notable. There were already headwinds there and tariffs are likely exacerbating challenges.”

    Stephen Moore, an economics fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation and supporter of the president, said the labor market is “definitely softening,” even as he echoed Trump’s claims that the jobs numbers are not reliable.

    He said the economy was adjusting to the Trumpian shift of higher tariffs and immigration reductions that could lower the pool of available workers.

    “The problem going forward is a shortage or workers, not a shortage of jobs,” Moore said. “In some ways, that’s a good problem to have.”

    But political consultant and pollster Frank Luntz took the contrarian view that the jobs report won’t ultimately matter for the political fortunes of Trump and his movement because voters care more about inflation and affordability.

    “That’s what the public is watching, that’s what the public cares about,” Luntz said. “Everyone who wants a job has a job, for the most part.”

    From the perspective of elections, Trump still has roughly a year to demonstrate progress on improving affordability, Luntz said. Voters will generally lock in their opinions about the economy by Labor Day before the midterm elections next year.

    In other words, Trump still has time.

    “It’s still up for grabs,” he said. “The deciding point will come Labor Day of 2026.”

    Associated Press

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  • DHS: 475 detained in immigration raid at Georgia Hyundai plant

    SAVANNAH, Ga. — About 475 people were detained in an immigration enforcement action at a Hyundai factory in Georgia on Thursday, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

    In a press briefing Friday, the special agent in charge of the effort said the department executed a judicial search warrant as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into allegations of unlawful employment practices at the factory where the South Korean auto giant manufactures electric vehicles.

    What You Need To Know

    • About 475 people were detained in an immigration enforcement action at a Hyundai factory in Georgia on Thursday, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

    • In a press briefing Friday, the special agent in charge of the effort said the department executed a judicial search warrant as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into allegations of unlawful employment practices at the factory where the South Korean auto giant manufactures electric vehicles.

    • No criminal charges have been filed in what Homeland Security Special Agent in Charge Steven Schrank said was the largest single-site enforcement operation in the history of DHS investigations
    • A majority of the 475 people who were detained were South Korean nationals, and all were illegally present in the United States or working unlawfully in the country, Schrank said

    “This operation underscores our commitment to protecting jobs for Georgians and Americans, ensuring a level playing field for businesses that comply with the law, safeguarding the integrity of our economy and protecting workers from exploitation,” Homeland Security Special Agent in Charge Steven Schrank said Friday.

    No criminal charges have been filed in what Schrank said was the largest single-site enforcement operation in the history of Homeland Security investigations.

    A majority of the 475 people who were detained were South Korean nationals, and all were illegally present in the United States or working unlawfully in the country, Schrank said. He added that they had entered the country through a variety of means, including illegally crossing the border, entering through a visa waiver that prohibited them from working and overstaying visas. 

    “Each individual was questioned on their status,” Schrank said. “Their documents were checked.”

    Those determined to be illegally present have been turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement for removal.

    The arrests were the result of a monthslong investigation conducted through a collaboration of agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security; ICE; the U.S. Labor Department; the FBI; the Drug Enforcement Administration; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; the IRS; the U.S. Marshals Service; and the Georgia State Patrol. 

    Thursday’s raid targeted one of Georgia’s largest and most high-profile manufacturing sites, touted by the governor and other officials as the largest economic development project in the state’s history. Hyundai Motor Group, South Korea’s biggest automaker, began manufacturing EVs a year ago at the $7.6 billion plant, which employs about 1,200 people, and has partnered with LG Energy Solution to build an adjacent battery plant, slated to open next year.

    ICE spokesman Lindsay Williams confirmed that federal authorities conducted an enforcement operation at the 3,000-acre site west of Savannah, Georgia. He said agents were focused on the construction site for the battery plant.

    In a televised statement, South Korea’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lee Jae Myung said the country is taking active measures to address the case, dispatching diplomats from its embassy in Washington and consulate in Atlanta to the site, and planning to form an on-site response team centered on the local mission.

    “The business activities of our investors and the rights of our nationals must not be unjustly infringed in the process of U.S. law enforcement,” he said.

    At an event with President Donald Trump earlier this year, Hyundai announced it would invest an additional $5 billion in the United States, on top of an already announced $21 billion it had committed for U.S. investments from 2025 to 2028. The company plans to build a new steel plant in Louisiana, expand its U.S. auto production and create a robotics innovation hub.

    Trump’s administration has undertaken sweeping ICE operations as part of a mass deportation agenda. Immigration officers have raided farms, construction sites, restaurants and auto repair shops.

    The Pew Research Center, citing preliminary Census Bureau data, says the U.S. labor force lost more than 1.2 million immigrants from January through July. That includes people who are in the country illegally as well as legal residents.

    Hyundai and LG’s battery joint venture, HL-GA Battery Company, said in a statement that it’s “cooperating fully with the appropriate authorities” and paused construction of the battery site to assist their work.

    Operations at Hyundai’s EV manufacturing plant weren’t interrupted, said plant spokesperson Bianca Johnson.

    Susan Carpenter, Associated Press

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  • U.S. job openings slipped to 7.2M in July, more evidence labor market is cooling

    WASHINGTON — U.S. employers posted 7.2 million job vacancies in July as the American labor market continues to cool.

    What You Need To Know

    • U.S. employers posted 7.2 million job vacancies in July as the American labor market continued to cool

    • The Labor Department reported Wednesday that job openings were down from 7.4 million in June and came in modestly below what economists had forecast

    • The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) showed that layoffs rose

    • The number of Americans quitting their jobs — a sign of confidence in their ability to find better pay, opportunities or working conditions elsewhere — was almost unchanged at 3.2 million from June

    The Labor Department reported Wednesday that job openings fell from 7.4 million in June and came in modestly below what economists had forecast.

    The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) showed that layoffs rose slightly. The number of Americans quitting their jobs — a sign of confidence in their ability to find better pay, opportunities or working conditions elsewhere — was almost unchanged from June at 3.2 million.

    Jobs openings remain at healthy levels but have fallen steadily since peaking at a record 12.1 million in March 2022 as the U.S. economy roared back from COVID-19 lockdowns.

    The U.S. job market has lost momentum this year, partly because of the lingering effects of 11 interest rate hikes by the inflation fighters at the Federal Reserve in 2022 and 2023 and partly because President Donald Trump’s trade wars have created uncertainty that is paralyzing managers making hiring decisions.

    On Friday, the Labor Department will put out unemployment and hiring numbers for August. They are expected to show that businesses, government agencies and nonprofits added nearly 80,000 jobs last month, according to a survey of forecasters by the data firm FactSet. That would mark a modest improvement on the disappointing 73,000 they created in July.

    Worse than the lackluster July hiring figures were Labor Department revisions that slashed a stunning 258,000 jobs off May and June payrolls. A furious Trump responded to the bad numbers by firing the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the technocratic agency that compiles the statistics, and nominating a partisan idealogue to replace her.

    So far this year, the economy has been generating 85,000 jobs a month, down from 168,000 last year and an average 400,000 a month during the hiring boom of 2021-2023.

    In a time of uncertainty, employers are less likely to hire, but they’re not letting workers go either. Layoffs remain below pre-pandemic levels.

    Associated Press

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  • Gov. Greg Abbott vows to swiftly sign redrawn congressional map favoring GOP

    AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Senate gave final approval to a new, Republican-leaning congressional voting map early Saturday, sending it to Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature.

    What You Need To Know

    • The Texas Senate has given final approval to a new, Republican-leaning congressional voting map with five new districts that would favor Republicans, sending it to Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature

    • President Donald Trump has pushed for the map to help the GOP maintain its slim majority in Congress in the 2026 midterm elections

    • The Republican Abbott is expected to quickly sign it into law. Democrats have vowed to challenge it in court, however

    • The effort by Trump and Texas’ Republican-majority Legislature prompted state Democrats to hold a two-week walkout and kicked off a wave of redistricting efforts across the country

    President Donald Trump has pushed for the map to help the GOP maintain its slim majority in Congress in the 2026 midterm elections. It has five new districts that would favor Republicans.

    Abbott, a Republican, said in a statement Saturday morning that he plans to swiftly sign the redrawn map into law.

    “I promised we would get this done, and delivered on that promise,” the Texas governor said.

    However, Democrats have vowed to challenge the redistricting in court.

    The effort by Trump and Texas’ Republican-majority Legislature prompted state Democrats to hold a two-week walkout and kicked off a wave of redistricting efforts across the country.

    Democrats had prepared for a final show of resistance, with plans to push the Senate vote into the early morning hours in a last-ditch attempt to delay passage.

    State Sen. Carol Alvarado, leader of the Senate Democratic caucus, announced on social media that she planned to filibuster the bill with a long speech and intended to speak for several hours. But just when she expected to start, the Senate broke for a long dinner break.

    When members returned, Alvarado never had a chance to filibuster because Republicans accused her of breaking Senate rules by attempting to fundraise off the coming filibuster.

    Sen. Charles Perry said it “appears to be potentially unlawful, at least unethical, using state resources for a campaign purpose.”

    A spokesperson for Alvarado did not immediately respond to an email and phone call from The Associated Press.

    “Shutting down a filibuster over a fundraising email is unprecedented,” Democratic Sen. Sarah Eckhardt said in a post on social media platform X. “It exposes the hypocrisy of Republicans, who will turn around and raise millions off stealing Texans’ votes while silencing their voices.”

    The weekslong showdown has roiled the Texas Legislature, marked by a Democratic walkout and threats of arrest from Republicans. Much of the drama unfolded in the House, where the map ultimately passed Wednesday.

    Democrats had already delayed the bill’s passage during hours of debate, pressing Republican Sen. Phil King, the measure’s sponsor, on the proposal’s legality, with many alleging that the redrawn districts violate the Voting Rights Act by diluting voters’ influence based on race.

    King vehemently denied that accusation, saying, “I had two goals in mind: That all maps would be legal and would be better for Republican congressional candidates in Texas.”

    “There is extreme risk the Republican majority will be lost” in the House if the map does not pass, King said.

    The showdown has also inflamed a broader, state-by-state redistricting battle, with governors from both parties pledging to redraw congressional maps.

    California Democrats approved legislation Thursday calling for a special election in November for residents to vote on a redrawn congressional map designed to help Democrats win five more House seats next year. Gov. Gavin Newsom quickly signed it.

    “This is not something six weeks ago that I ever imagined that I’d be doing,” Newsom said. “This is a reaction to an assault on our democracy in Texas.”

    California’s map needs voter approval because, unlike in Texas, a nonpartisan commission normally draws the map to avoid the sort of political battle that is playing out.

    On Friday, Abbott called California’s redistricting “a joke” and asserted that Texas’ new map is constitutional but California’s would be overturned.

    Battle for the House waged via redistricting

    On a national level, the partisan makeup of existing districts puts Democrats within three seats of a majority. The incumbent president’s party usually loses seats in the midterms.

    The Texas redraw is already reshaping the 2026 race, with Democratic Rep. Lloyd Doggett, the dean of the state’s congressional delegation, announcing Thursday that he will not seek reelection to his Austin-based seat if the new map takes effect. Under the proposed map, Doggett’s district would overlap with that of another Democratic incumbent, Rep. Greg Casar.

    The president has pushed other Republican-controlled states including Indiana and Missouri, to also revise their maps to add more winnable GOP seats. Ohio Republicans were also already scheduled to revise their maps to make them more partisan.

    “Republicans are not finished in the United States,” Abbott said.

    Redistricting typically occurs once a decade, immediately after a census. While some states have their own limitations, there is no national impediment to a state trying to redraw districts in the middle of the decade.

    The U.S. Supreme Court has said the Constitution does not outlaw partisan gerrymandering, only using race to redraw district lines.

    ‘Fight fire with fire’

    More Democratic-run states have commission systems like California’s or other redistricting limits than Republican ones do, leaving the GOP with a freer hand to swiftly redraw maps. New York, for example, cannot draw new maps until 2028, and even then only with voter approval.

    Republicans and some Democrats championed a 2008 ballot measure that established California’s nonpartisan redistricting commission, along with a 2010 one that extended its role to drawing congressional maps.

    Both sides have shown concern over what the redistricting war could lead to.

    California Assemblyman James Gallagher, the Republican minority leader, said Trump was “wrong” to push for new Republican seats elsewhere. But he warned that Newsom’s approach, which the governor has dubbed “fight fire with fire,” is dangerous.

    “You move forward fighting fire with fire, and what happens?” Gallagher asked. “You burn it all down.”

    Spectrum News Staff, Associated Press

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  • DOJ releases transcripts of interviews with Epstein ex-girlfriend Maxwell

    WASHINGTON — Jeffrey Epstein’s imprisoned former girlfriend repeatedly denied to the Justice Department witnessing any sexually inappropriate interactions with Donald Trump, according to records released Friday meant to distance the Republican president from the disgraced financer.

    What You Need To Know

    • Jeffrey Epstein’s imprisoned former girlfriend repeatedly denied to the Justice Department witnessing any sexually inappropriate interactions with Donald Trump

    • That’s according to records released Friday meant to distance the Republican president from the disgraced financer

    • The Trump administration issued hundreds of pages of transcripts from interviews Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche conducted with Ghislaine Maxwell last month

    • The administration has scrambled to present itself as transparent amid a fierce backlash over an earlier refusal to disclose records from the sex-trafficking case

    The Trump administration issued transcripts from interviews that Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche conducted with Ghislaine Maxwell last month as the administration was scrambling to present itself as transparent amid a fierce backlash over an earlier refusal to disclose a trove of records from the sex-trafficking case.

    The records show Maxwell repeatedly showering Trump with praise and denying under questioning from Blanche that she had observed Trump engaged in any form of sexual behavior. The administration was presumably eager to make such denials public at a time when the president has faced questions about a long-ago friendship with Epstein and as his administration has endured continued scrutiny over its handling of evidence from the case.

    The transcript release represents the latest Trump administration effort to repair self-inflicted political wounds after failing to deliver on expectations that its own officials had created through conspiracy theories and bold pronouncements that never came to pass. By making public two days worth of interviews, officials appear to be hoping to at least temporarily keep at bay sustained anger from Trump’s base as they send Congress evidence they had previously kept from view.

    After her interview with Blanche, Maxwell was moved from the low-security federal prison in Florida to a minimum-security prison camp in Texas to continue serving a 20-year sentence for her 2021 conviction on allegations that she lured teenage girls to be sexually abused by Epstein. Her trial featured sordid accounts of the sexual exploitation of girls as young as 14 told by four women who described being abused as teens in the 1990s and early 2000s at Epstein’s homes.

    Neither Maxwell’s lawyers nor the federal Bureau of Prisons have explained the reason for the move, but one of her lawyers, David Oscar Markus, said in a social media post Friday that Maxwell was “innocent and never should have been tried, much less convicted.”

    ‘Never inappropriate’

    “I actually never saw the President in any type of massage setting,” Maxwell said, according to the transcript. “I never witnessed the President in any inappropriate setting in any way. The President was never inappropriate with anybody. In the times that I was with him, he was a gentleman in all respects.”

    Maxwell recalled knowing about Trump and possibly meeting him for the first time in 1990, when her newspaper magnate father, Robert Maxwell, was the owner of the New York Daily News. She said she had been to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, sometimes alone, but hadn’t seen Trump since the mid-2000s.

    Asked if she ever heard Epstein or anyone else say Trump “had done anything inappropriate with masseuses” or anyone else in their orbit, Maxwell replied, “Absolutely never, in any context.”

    Maxwell was interviewed over the course of two days last month by Blanche at a Florida courthouse. She was given limited immunity, allowing her to speak freely without fear of prosecution for anything she said except for in the event of a false statement.

    Meanwhile, the Justice Department on Friday began sending to the House Oversight Committee records from the investigation that the panel says it intends to make public after removing victim’s information.

    High-profile contacts

    The case had long captured public attention in part because of the wealthy financer’s social connections over the years to prominent figures, including Prince Andrew, former President Bill Clinton and Trump, who has said he had a falling-out with Epstein years ago and well before Epstein came under investigation.

    Maxwell told Blanche that Clinton was initially her friend, not Epstein’s, and that she never saw him receive a massage — nor did she believe he ever did. The only times they were together, she said, were the two dozen or so times they traveled on Epstein’s plane.

    “That would’ve been the only time that I think that President Clinton could have even received a massage,” Maxwell said. “And he didn’t, because I was there.”

    She also spoke glowingly of Britain’s Prince Andrew and dismissed as “rubbish” the late Virginia Giuffre’s claim that she was paid to have a relationship with Andrew and that he had sex with her at Maxwell’s London home.

    Maxwell sought to distance herself from Epstein’s conduct, repeatedly denying allegations made during her trial about her role. Though she acknowledged that at one point Epstein began preferring younger women, she insisted she never understood that to “encompass children.”

    “I did see from when I met him, he was involved or — involved or friends with or whatever, however you want to characterize it, with women who were in their 20s,” she told Blanche. “And then the slide to, you know, 18 or younger looking women. But I never considered that this would encompass criminal behavior.”

    Epstein was arrested in 2019 on sex-trafficking charges, accused of sexually abusing dozens of teenage girls, and was found dead a month later in a New York jail cell in what investigators described as a suicide.

    A story that’s consumed the Justice Department

    The saga has consumed the Trump administration following a two-page announcement from the FBI and Justice Department last month that Epstein had killed himself despite conspiracy theories to the contrary, that a “client list” that Attorney General Pam Bondi had intimated was on her desk did not actually exist, and that no additional documents from the high-profile investigation were suitable to be released.

    The announcement produced outrage from conspiracy theorists, online sleuths and Trump supporters who had been hoping to see proof of a government coverup. That expectation was driven in part by comments from officials, including FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino, who on podcasts before taking their current positions had repeatedly promoted the idea that damaging details about prominent people were being withheld.

    Patel, for instance, said in at least one podcast interview before becoming director that Epstein’s “black book” was under the “direct control of the director of the FBI.”

    The administration had an early stumble in February when far-right influencers were invited to the White House in February and provided by Bondi with binders marked “The Epstein Files: Phase 1” and “Declassified” that contained documents that had largely already been in the public domain.

    After the first release fell flat, Bondi said officials were poring over a “truckload” of previously withheld evidence she said had been handed over by the FBI and raised expectations of forthcoming releases.

    But after a weekslong review of evidence in the government’s possession, the Justice Department determined that no “further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted.” The department noted that much of the material was placed under seal by a court to protect victims and “only a fraction” of it “would have been aired publicly had Epstein gone to trial.”

    Faced with fury from his base, Trump sought to quickly turn the page, shutting down questioning of Bondi about Epstein at a White House Cabinet meeting and deriding as “weaklings” supporters who he said were falling for the “Jeffrey Epstein Hoax.”

    The Justice Department has responded to a subpoena from House lawmakers by pledging to turn over information.

    Associated Press

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  • FBI searches home and office of ex-Trump national security adviser John Bolton

    Bolton served as Trump’s third national security adviser for 17 months and clashed with him over Iran, Afghanistan and North Korea.

    Spectrum News Staff, Associated Press

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  • U.S. measles count nears 1,200 cases as the Texas outbreak continues to slow

    The U.S. logged fewer than 30 measles cases this week as Ohio health officials confirmed three outbreaks in two counties were over.

    What You Need To Know

    • There are 1,168 confirmed measles cases in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday

    • Health officials in Texas, where the nation’s biggest outbreak raged during the late winter and spring, said they’ll now post case counts only once a week

    • Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that’s airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs

    • The best way to avoid measles is to get the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine

    There have been 1,197 confirmed measles cases this year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday. Health officials in Texas, where the nation’s biggest outbreak raged during the late winter and spring, confirmed two cases in the last week.

    There are three other major outbreaks in North America. The longest, in Ontario, Canada, has resulted in 2,083 cases from mid-October through June 10. The province logged its first death June 5 in a baby who got congenital measles but also had other preexisting conditions.

    Another outbreak in Alberta, Canada, has sickened 868 as of Thursday. And the Mexican state of Chihuahua had 2,179 measles cases and four deaths as of Friday, according to data from the state health ministry.

    Other U.S. states with active outbreaks — which the CDC defines as three or more related cases — include Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota and Oklahoma.

    In the U.S., two elementary school-aged children in the epicenter in West Texas and an adult in New Mexico have died of measles this year. All were unvaccinated.

    Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that’s airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It is preventable through vaccines, and has been considered eliminated from the U.S. since 2000.

    How many measles cases are there in Texas?

    There are a total of 744 cases across 35 counties, most of them in West Texas, state health officials said Tuesday.

    Throughout the outbreak, 96 people have been hospitalized.

    State health officials estimated less than 1% of cases — fewer than 10 — are actively infectious. Fifty-five percent of Texas’ cases are in Gaines County, where the virus started spreading in a close-knit, undervaccinated Mennonite community. The county has had 411 cases since late January — just under 2% of the county’s residents.

    The April 3 death in Texas was an 8-year-old child, according to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Local health officials said the child did not have underlying health conditions and died of “what the child’s doctor described as measles pulmonary failure.” A unvaccinated child with no underlying conditions died of measles in Texas in late February; Kennedy said the child was 6.

    How many measles cases are there in New Mexico?

    New Mexico held steady Friday with a total of 81 cases.

    Seven people have been hospitalized since the outbreak started. Most of the state’s cases are in Lea County. Sandoval County near Albuquerque has six cases, Eddy County has three, Doña Ana County has two. Chaves, Curry and San Juan counties have one each.

    An unvaccinated adult died of measles-related illness March 6. The person did not seek medical care.

    How many cases are there in Oklahoma?

    Oklahoma stayed steady Friday with a total of 16 confirmed and three probable cases.

    The state health department is not releasing which counties have cases.

    How many cases are there in Arizona?

    Arizona has four cases in Navajo County. They are linked to a single source, the county health department said Monday. All four were unvaccinated and had a history of recent international travel.

    How many cases are there in Colorado?

    Colorado has seen a total of 14 measles cases in 2025, which includes one outbreak of eight related cases.

    The outbreak is linked to a Turkish Airlines flight that landed at Denver International Airport in mid-May, and includes four cases in Arapahoe County, three in El Paso County and one in Denver, plus a person who doesn’t live in Colorado.

    Other counties that have seen measles this year include Archuleta and Pueblo.

    How many cases are there in Illinois?

    Illinois health officials confirmed a four-case outbreak on May 5 in the far southern part of the state. It grew to eight cases as of June 6, but no new cases were reported in the following week, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

    The state’s other two cases so far this year were in Cook County, and are unrelated to the southern Illinois outbreak.

    How many cases are there in Kansas?

    Kansas has a total of 76 cases across 11 counties in the southwestern part of the state, with three hospitalizations. All but two of the cases are connected, and most are in Gray County.

    How many cases are there in Montana?

    Montana had 20 measles cases as of Tuesday. Twelve were in Gallatin County, which is where the first cases showed up — Montana’s first in 35 years.

    Flathead and Yellowstone counties had two cases each, and Hill County had four cases.

    There are outbreaks in neighboring North Dakota and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan.

    How many cases are there in North Dakota?

    North Dakota, which hadn’t seen measles since 2011, was up to 34 cases as of June 6, but has held steady since. Two of the people have been hospitalized, and all of the people with confirmed cases were not vaccinated.

    There were 16 cases in Williams County in western North Dakota on the Montana border. On the eastern side of the state, there were 10 cases in Grand Forks County and seven cases in Cass County. Burke County, in northwest North Dakota on the border of Saskatchewan, Canada, had one case.

    Where else is measles showing up in the U.S.?

    Measles cases also have been reported this year in Alaska, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.

    Earlier outbreaks in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania were declared over by health officials after six weeks of no new cases. Tennessee’s outbreak also appears to be over.

    Cases and outbreaks in the U.S. are frequently traced to someone who caught the disease abroad. The CDC said in May that more than twice as many measles have come from outside of the U.S. compared to May of last year, and most of those are in unvaccinated Americans returning home. In 2019, the U.S. saw 1,274 cases and almost lost its status of having eliminated measles.

    What do you need to know about the MMR vaccine?

    The best way to avoid measles is to get the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. The first shot is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old and the second between 4 and 6 years old.

    Getting another MMR shot as an adult is harmless if there are concerns about waning immunity, the CDC says. People who have documentation of receiving a live measles vaccine in the 1960s don’t need to be revaccinated, but people who were immunized before 1968 with an ineffective vaccine made from “killed” virus should be revaccinated with at least one dose, the agency said.

    People who have documentation that they had measles are immune, and those born before 1957 generally don’t need the shots because so many children got measles back then that they have “presumptive immunity.”

    Measles has a harder time spreading through communities with high vaccination rates — above 95% — due to “herd immunity.” But childhood vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the pandemic and more parents are claiming religious or personal conscience waivers to exempt their kids from required shots.

    What are the symptoms of measles?

    Measles first infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body, causing a high fever, runny nose, cough, red, watery eyes and a rash.

    The rash generally appears three to five days after the first symptoms, beginning as flat red spots on the face and then spreading downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs and feet. When the rash appears, the fever may spike over 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the CDC.

    Most kids will recover from measles, but infection can lead to dangerous complications such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death.

    How can you treat measles?

    There’s no specific treatment for measles, so doctors generally try to alleviate symptoms, prevent complications and keep patients comfortable.

    Associated Press

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  • It’s the first day of Atlantic hurricane season

    Today is the first day of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season. Here are some helpful resources to help you and your family prepare.

    How to prepare?

    Even if you are not in a storm’s path, there are ways to prepare in advance that will make it easier for you when the time comes. It’s important to know if you live in an evacuation zone, and if so, to develop an evacuation plan for you and your family.

    You can assemble a hurricane kit, including items like non-perishable food for your family and pets, water, flashlights, a first aid kit and more.

    Also, reviewing your insurance plans if you own a home and to sign up for flood insurance if it is a separate plan.

    Here is a full breakdown of how to prepare you and your family and what you can do today.

    This year’s forecast

    NOAA and Colorado State University are both predicting above normal activity this season.

    This year’s forecast includes several factors, primarily continued ENSO-neutral conditions, warmer than average ocean temperatures, forecasts for weak wind shear and the potential for higher activity from the West African Monsoon, a primary starting point for Atlantic hurricanes.

    More resources

    Our team of meteorologists dives deep into the science of weather and breaks down timely weather data and information. To view more weather and climate stories, check out our weather blogs section.

    Meteorologist Reid Lybarger

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  • Florida wins its third national title, rallying for 65-63 victory

    SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Florida and Walter Clayton Jr. somehow overcame Houston’s spirit-crushing defense Monday night to will out a 65-63 victory in an NCAA title-game thriller not decided until Clayton’s own D stopped the Cougars from taking a game-winning shot at the buzzer.

    Clayton finished with 11 points, all in the second half, but what he’ll be remembered for most was getting Houston’s Emanuel Sharp to stop in the middle of his motion as he tried to go up for the game-winning 3 in the final seconds.

    Clayton ran at him, Sharp dropped the ball and, unable to pick it up lest he get called for traveling, watched it bounce there while the clock ticked to zero.

    Will Richard had 18 points to keep the Gators (36-4) in it, and they won their third overall title and first since 2007. The Cougars (35-5) and coach Kelvin Sampson were denied their first championship.

    This was a defensive brawl, and for most of the night, Clayton got the worst of it.

    He was 0 for 4 from the field without a point through the first half. He didn’t score until 14:57 remained in the game. He finished with one 3-pointer and, before that, a pair of three-point plays that kept the Gators in striking range.

    It was Florida’s defense, not Houston’s, that controlled the final minute.

    After Alijah Martin made two free throws to put Florida ahead 64-63 — its first lead since 8-6 — the Gators lured Sharp into a triple-team in the corner, where Richard got him to dribble the ball off his leg and out of bounds.

    Florida made one free throw on the next possession and that set up the finale. The ball went to Sharp, who was moving to spot up for a 3 when Clayton ran at him. That left him with no choice but to let the ball go.

    Sampson, who designed a defense that held Florida under 70 points for only the second time this season, looked on in shock.

    Instead of Sampson becoming the oldest coach to win the title at age 69, 39-year-old Todd Golden becomes the youngest since N.C. State’s Jim Valvano in 1983 to win it all.

    Associated Press

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  • A frigid storm drops rare snow as Florida readies plows in the Panhandle

    NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A rare frigid storm charged through Texas and the northern Gulf Coast on Tuesday, blanketing New Orleans and Houston with snow that closed highways, grounded nearly all flights and canceled school for more than a million students more accustomed to hurricane dismissals than snow days.

    What You Need To Know

    • New Orleans shattered its all-time snowfall record with more than 9 inches in parts of the city

    • Florida also broke its all-time snowfall record, more than doubling the old record of 4 inches

    • The storm prompted the first ever blizzard warnings for several coastal counties near the Texas-Louisiana border



    The storm prompted the first ever blizzard warnings for several coastal counties near the Texas-Louisiana border, and snowplows were at the ready in the Florida Panhandle.

    In the Texas capital, two people died in the cold weather, according to a statement from the city of Austin. No details were provided, but the city said emergency crews had responded to more than a dozen “cold exposure” calls. Officials said one person died from hypothermia in Georgia.

    Snow covered the white-sand beaches of normally sunny vacation spots, including Gulf Shores, Alabama, and Pensacola Beach, Florida. The heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain hitting parts of the Deep South came as a blast of Arctic air plunged much of the Midwest and the eastern U.S. into a deep freeze.

    A powdery South made for some head-turning scenes — a snowball fight on a Gulf Shores beach, sledding in a laundry basket in Montgomery, Alabama, pool-tubing down a Houston hill.

    One of the country’s quirkiest cities, New Orleans, didn’t disappoint under the snowy spotlight. There was an attempt at urban skiing along Bourbon Street; a priest and nuns in a snowball fight outside a suburban church; snowboarding behind a golf cart; and sledding down the snow-covered Mississippi River levees on kayaks, cardboard boxes and inflatable alligators.


    High school teacher David Delio and his two daughters glided down the levee on a yoga mat and a boogie board.

    “This is a white-out in New Orleans, this is a snow-a-cane,” Delio said. “We’ve had tons of hurricane days but never a snow day.”

    The nuns at St. Catherine of Siena Catholic School near New Orleans encouraged their students last week to pray to saints, including Our Lady of the Snows — a devotional term for Mary, mother of Jesus — for the snow day they received Tuesday, said the Rev. Tim Hedrick. The priest said he invited the nuns to make snow angels, and they challenged him to a snowball fight that has since received tens of thousands of views on social media.

    “It’s a fun way to show that priests and sisters are humans, too, and they can have fun,” Hedrick said.

    It has been more than a decade since snow last fell on New Orleans. With more than 9 inches of snow in parts of the city Tuesday, New Orleans has far surpassed its record — 2.7 inches on Dec. 31, 1963 — according to the National Weather Service. There were unofficial reports of 10 inches of snow in New Orleans in 1895, NWS meteorologist Christopher Bannan said.

    For Houston, the winter blast marks the latest dramatic fluctuation in extreme weather. Hurricane Beryl devastated the city in July, killing dozens and knocking out power to large swaths of the city. Several months later, a winter storm has dumped the most snow in decades over the Houston area.


    Nearly 2,000 flights to, from or within the U.S. were canceled Tuesday, with about 10,000 others delayed, according to online tracker FlightAware.com. Both Houston airports suspended flight operations starting Tuesday. Nearly every flight was cancelled at New Orleans Louis Armstrong International Airport, but most airlines planned to resume operations Wednesday.

    Alvaro Perez was hunkering down at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston on Tuesday after his flight to El Salvador was canceled. His new departure is scheduled for Thursday.

    “I’ll just ride it and stay here,” Perez said.

    Snow on the Gulf Coast

    Ahead of the storm, governors in Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and even Florida — the Sunshine State — declared states of emergency and many school systems canceled classes Tuesday. School closures were planned in some coastal communities in North and South Carolina.

    The NWS said up to 4 inches of snow fell in the Houston area. Texas transportation officials said more than 20 snowplows were in use across nearly 12,000 lane miles in the Houston area, which lacks its own city or county plows.

    Forecasters say snowfall could stretch from north Georgia, through Atlanta, and into southern portions unaccustomed to such weather.

    Parts of the Florida Panhandle were coated white Tuesday. Tallahassee, Florida’s capital, last saw snow in 2018 — just 0.1 of an inch, according to the weather service. Tallahassee’s highest snowfall on record was 2.8 inches in 1958.

    “Believe it or not, in the state of Florida we’re mobilizing snowplows,” said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.


    Mobile, Alabama, hit 5.4 inches and counting Tuesday, topping the city’s one-day snowfall record of 5 inches, set Jan. 24, 1881, and nearing its all-time snowfall record of 6 inches in 1895, the weather service said.

    The blizzard warning in effect until midday Tuesday was the first issued by the office in Lake Charles, Louisiana, according to meteorologist Donald Jones.

    Louisiana transportation agency workers worked through the night to prepare bridges and roadways. Nonetheless, Louisiana State Police said they have already responded to more than 50 crashes Tuesday, and pleaded for people to stay home.

    Return of the Arctic blast

    This latest cold snap comes from a disruption in the polar vortex, the ring of cold air usually trapped at the North Pole.

    Frigid cold persisted across the eastern two-thirds of the country as the East Coast was blanketed in snow while people from the Northern Plains to the tip of Maine shivered in bitter cold. The NWS said normal temperatures would return slowly by the end of the week.

    A state of emergency was declared in at least a dozen New York counties with up to 2 feet of lake-effect snow and extreme cold expected around Lake Ontario and Lake Erie through Wednesday.

    Wind chills are expected to reach minus 30 to minus 50 across the Dakotas and into the Upper Midwest through Friday, the NWS warned. Subzero wind chills were forecast from the Central Plains eastward through Wednesday night.

    Associated Press

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  • Harris and Trump making furious last-day pushes before Election Day

    Harris and Trump making furious last-day pushes before Election Day

    A presidential campaign that has careened through a felony trial, an incumbent president being pushed off the ticket and multiple assassination attempts comes down to a final push across a handful of states on the eve of Election Day.

    What You Need To Know

    • The presidential campaign comes down to a final push across a handful of states on the eve of Election Day

    • This year’s race has careened through a felony trial, an incumbent president being pushed off the ticket and multiple assassination attempts

    • Kamala Harris will spend all of Monday in Pennsylvania, whose 19 electoral votes offer the largest prize among the states expected to determine the Electoral College outcome

    • Donald Trump makes four stops in three states, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Michigan

    Kamala Harris will spend all of Monday in Pennsylvania, whose 19 electoral votes offer the largest prize among the states expected to determine the Electoral College outcome. The vice president and Democratic nominee will visit working-class areas including Allentown and end with a late-night Philadelphia rally that includes Lady Gaga and Oprah Winfrey.

    Donald Trump plans four rallies in three states, beginning in Raleigh, North Carolina, and stopping twice in Pennsylvania with events in Reading and Pittsburgh. The Republican nominee and former president ends his campaign the way he ended the first two, with a late Monday night event in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

    About 77 million Americans already have voted early, but Harris and Trump are pushing to turn out many millions more supporters Tuesday. Either result on Election Day will yield a historic outcome.

    A Trump victory would make him the first incoming president to have been indicted and convicted of a felony, after his hush-money trial in New York. He will gain the power to end other federal investigations pending against him. Trump would also become the second president in history to win non-consecutive White House terms, after Grover Cleveland in the late 19th century.

    Harris is vying to become the first woman, first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to reach the Oval Office, four years after she broke the same barriers in national office by becoming President Joe Biden’s second in command.

    The vice president ascended to the top of the Democratic ticket after Biden’s disastrous performance in a June debate set into motion his withdrawing from the race. That was just one of a series of convulsions that have hit this year’s campaign.

    Trump survived by millimeters a would-be assassin’s bullet at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. His Secret Service detail foiled a second attempt in September when a gunman had set up a rifle as Trump golfed at one of his courses in Florida.

    Harris, 60, has played down the historic nature of her candidacy, which materialized only after the 81-year-old president ended his reelection bid after his June debate against the 78-year-old Trump accentuated questions about Biden’s age.

    Instead, Harris has pitched herself as a generational change, emphasized her support for abortion rights after the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision ending the constitutional right to abortion services and regularly noted the former president’s role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Assembling a coalition ranging from progressives such as Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York to Republican former Vice President Dick Cheney, Harris has called Trump a threat to democracy and late in the campaign even embraced the critique that Trump is accurately described as a “fascist.”

    Heading into Monday, Harris has mostly stopped mentioning Trump. She is promising to solve problems and seek consensus, while sounding an almost exclusively optimistic tone reminiscent of her campaign’s opening days when she embraced “the politics of joy” and the campaign theme “Freedom.”

    “From the very start, our campaign has not been about being against something, it is about being for something,” Harris said Sunday evening at Michigan State University.

    Trump, renewing his “Make America Great Again” and “America First” slogans, has made his hard-line approach to immigration and withering criticisms of Harris and Biden the anchors of his argument for a second administration. He’s hammered Democrats for an inflationary economy, and he’s pledged to lead an economic “golden age,” end international conflicts and seal the U.S. southern border.

    But Trump also has veered often into grievances over being prosecuted after trying to overturn Biden’s victory and repeatedly denigrated the country he wants to lead again as a “failed nation.” As recently as Sunday, he renewed his false claims that U.S. elections are rigged against him, mused about violence against journalists and said he “shouldn’t have left” the White House in 2021 — dark turns that have overshadowed another anchor of his closing argument: “Kamala broke it. I will fix it.”

    The election is likely to be decided across seven states. Trump won Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin in 2016 only to see them flip to Biden in 2020. North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada add the Sun Belt swath of the presidential battleground map.

    Trump won North Carolina twice and lost Nevada twice. He won Arizona and Georgia in 2016 but saw them slip to Democrats in 2020.

    Harris’ team has projected confidence in recent days, pointing to a large gender gap in early voting data and research showing late-deciding voters have broken her way. They also believe in the strength of their campaign infrastructure. This weekend, the Harris campaign had more than 90,000 volunteers helping turn out voters — and knocked on more than 3 million doors across the battleground states. Still, Harris aides have insisted she remains the underdog.

    Trump’s team has projected confidence, as well, arguing that the former president’s populist appeal will attract younger and working-class voters across racial and ethnic lines. The idea is that Trump can amass an atypical Republican coalition, even as other traditional GOP blocs — notably college-educated voters — become more Democratic.

    Associated Press

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  • Francine made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane along coastal Louisiana

    Francine made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane along coastal Louisiana

    Francine formed into a tropical storm in the Gulf of Mexico on Monday, Sept. 9, becoming the sixth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season.

    What You Need To Know

    • Francine made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane in Louisiana

    • It was the sixth named storm and fourth hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season

    • It brought dangerous storm surge, widespread flooding and strong winds to the Deep South


    It became a hurricane on Tuesday, Sept. 10. It slowly strengthened as it moved northeast in the Gulf, eventually becoming a Category 2 hurricane before moving inland.

    Francine made landfall on Wednesday, Sept. 11, in Terrebonne Parish, La, as a Category 2 storm with maximum winds of 100 mph. Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport reported a wind gust of 78 mph Wednesday night and 7.32 inches of rain in 24 hours. 

    At the storm’s peak, 450,000 people in Louisiana were estimated to be without power. Many of the outages were attributed to falling debris, not structural damage. At one point, around 500 people were in emergency shelters, officials said.

    It moved inland Wednesday night and by Thursday morning, Sept. 12 it had weakened to a tropical storm. By the afternoon it became post-tropical, but continued to spin rain along the Deep South. 

    The remnant low brought rain as far north as the drought-stricken Mid-Mississippi River Valley and Tennessee Valley.


    Here’s a look at the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season so far.

    More Storm Season Resources


    Our team of meteorologists dives deep into the science of weather and breaks down timely weather data and information. To view more weather and climate stories, check out our weather blogs section.

    Spectrum News Staff

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  • Boeing factory workers go on strike after rejecting contract offer

    Boeing factory workers go on strike after rejecting contract offer

    Aircraft assembly workers walked off the job early Friday at Boeing factories near Seattle and elsewhere after union members voted overwhelmingly to go on strike and reject a tentative contract that would have increased wages by 25% over four years.

    What You Need To Know

    • Aircraft assembly workers have walked off the job at Boeing factories near Seattle and elsewhere after union members voted overwhelmingly to reject a tentative contract that would have increased wages by 25% over four years

    • The strike started at 12:01 a.m. PDT Friday, less than three hours after the local branch of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers announced 96% of voting workers rejected the proposed contract and 96% approved the work stoppage

    • The labor action involves 33,000 Boeing machinists, most of them in Washington state
    • It’s expected to shut down production of Boeing’s best-selling airline planes but not affect commercial flights

    The strike started at 12:01 a.m. PDT, less than three hours after the local branch of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers announced 94.6% of voting workers rejected the proposed contract and 96% approved the work stoppage, easily surpassing a two-thirds requirement.

    The labor action involves 33,000 Boeing machinists, most of them in Washington state, and is expected to shut down production of the company’s best-selling airline planes. The strike will not affect commercial flights but represents another setback for the aerospace giant, whose reputation and finances have been battered by manufacturing problems and multiple federal investigations this year.

    The striking machinists assemble the 737 Max, Boeing’s best-selling airliner, along with the 777, or “triple-seven” jet, and the 767 cargo plane at factories in Renton and Everett, Washington. The walkout likely will not stop production of Boeing 787 Dreamliners, which are built by nonunion workers in South Carolina.

    Outside the Renton factory, people stood with signs reading, “Historic contract my ass” and “Have you seen the damn housing prices?” Car horns honked and a boom box played songs such as Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It” and Taylor Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do.”

    The machinists make $75,608 per year on average, not counting overtime, and that would rise to $106,350 at the end of the four-year contract, according to Boeing.

    However, the deal fell short of the union’s initial demand for pay raises of 40% over three years. The union also wanted to restore traditional pensions that were axed a decade ago but settled for an increase in new Boeing contributions of up to $4,160 per worker to employee 401(k) retirement accounts.

    Under the rejected contract, workers would have received $3,000 lump sum payments and a reduced share of health care costs. Boeing also had met a key union demand by agreeing to build its next new plane in Washington state.

    Several workers said they considered the wage offer inadequate and were upset by a recent company decision to change the criteria on which annual bonuses are paid. Toolmaker John Olson, 45, said he has received a 2% percent raise during his six years at Boeing.

    “The last contract we negotiated was 16 years ago and the company is basing the wage increases off of wages from 16 years ago,” Olson said. “They don’t even keep up with the cost of inflation that is currently happening right now.”

    Boeing responded to the strike announcement by saying it was “ready to get back to the table to reach a new agreement.”

    “The message was clear that the tentative agreement we reached with IAM leadership was not acceptable to the members. We remain committed to resetting our relationship with our employees and the union,” the company said in a statement.

    Very little has gone right for Boeing this year, from a panel blowing out and leaving a gaping hole in one of its passenger jets in January to NASA leaving two astronauts in space rather sending them home on a problem-plagued Boeing spacecraft.

    As long as the strike lasts, it will deprive the company of much-needed cash it gets from delivering new planes to airlines. That will be another challenge for new Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg, who six weeks ago was given the job of turning around a company that has lost more than $25 billion in the last six years and fallen behind European rival Airbus.

    Ortberg made a last-ditch effort to salvage a deal that had unanimous backing from the union’s negotiators. He told machinists Wednesday that “no one wins” in a walkout and a strike would put Boeing’s recovery in jeopardy and raise more doubt about the company in the eyes of its airline customers.

    “For Boeing, it is no secret that our business is in a difficult period, in part due to our own mistakes in the past,” he said. “Working together, I know that we can get back on track, but a strike would put our shared recovery in jeopardy, further eroding trust with our customers and hurting our ability to determine our future together.”

    The head of the union local, IAM District 751 President Jon Holden, said Ortberg faced a difficult position because machinists were bitter about stagnant wages and concessions they have made since 2008 on pensions and health care to prevent the company from moving jobs elsewhere.

    “This is about respect, this is about the past, and this is about fighting for our future,” Holden said in announcing the strike.

    The vote also was a rebuke to Holden and union negotiators, who recommended workers approve the contract offer. Holden, who had predicted workers would vote to strike, said the union would survey members to decide which issues they want to stress when negotiations resume.

    Depending on how long the strike lasts, suspension of airplane production could prove costly for the beleaguered Boeing. An eight-week strike in 2008, the longest at Boeing since a 10-week walkout in 1995, cost the company about $100 million daily in deferred revenue.

    Before the tentative agreement was announced Sunday, Jefferies aerospace analyst Sheila Kahyaoglu estimated a strike would cost the company about $3 billion based on the 2008 strike plus inflation and current airplane-production rates.

    Solomon Hammond, 33, another Renton toolmaker, said he was prepared to strike indefinitely to secure a better contract.

    Boeing’s offer “just doesn’t line up with the current climate. The wages are just too low,” Hammond said. “I make $47 an hour and work paycheck to paycheck. Everything costs more.”

    Associated Press

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  • Trump seeks to tie Harris to Afghanistan War withdrawal

    Trump seeks to tie Harris to Afghanistan War withdrawal

    Former President Donald Trump on Monday working to tie Vice President Kamala Harris to the chaotic Afghanistan War withdrawal on the third anniversary of the suicide bombing that killed 13 service members.

    Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, laid wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery in honor of three of the slain service members — Sgt. Nicole Gee, Staff Sgt. Darin Hoover and Staff Sgt. Ryan Knauss. Later in the day, he was going to Michigan to address the National Guard Association of the United States conference.

    What You Need To Know

    • Former President Donald Trump is working to tie Vice President Kamala Harris to the chaotic Afghanistan War withdrawal on the third anniversary of the suicide bombing that killed 13 service members

    • He visited Arlington National Cemetery to pay his respects to the service members killed in the bombing outside the Kabul airport
    • Trump will then go to Michigan to address the National Guard Association of the United States conference

    • Last week, Trump pointed to comments by Harris that she was the last person in the room before Biden made the decision on Afghanistan

    Monday marks three years since the Aug. 26, 2021, suicide bombing at Hamid Karzai International Airport, which killed 13 American service members and more than 100 Afghans. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack.

    On his Truth Social site Monday, Trump called the withdrawal “the most EMBARRASSING moment in the history of our Country. Gross Incompetence – 13 DEAD American soldiers, hundreds of people wounded and dead.”

    “You don’t take our soldiers out first, you take them out LAST, when all else is successfully done,” he said in the post.

    Since President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid, Trump has been zeroing in on Harris, now the Democratic presidential nominee, and her roles in foreign policy decisions. He has specifically highlighted the vice president’s statements that she was the last person in the room before Biden made the decision on Afghanistan.

    “She bragged that she would be the last person in the room, and she was. She was the last person in the room with Biden when the two of them decided to pull the troops out of Afghanistan,” he said last week in a North Carolina rally. “She had the final vote. She had the final say, and she was all for it.”

    In her own statement marking the anniversary of the Kabul airport attack, Harris said she mourns the 13 U.S. service members who were killed. “My prayers are with their families and loved ones. My heart breaks for their pain and their loss,” she said.

    Harris said she honors and remembers all Americans who served in Afghanistan.

    “As I have said, President Biden made the courageous and right decision to end America’s longest war. Over the past three years, our Administration has demonstrated we can still eliminate terrorists, including the leaders of al-Qaeda and ISIS, without troops deployed into combat zones,” she said. “I will never hesitate to take whatever action necessary to counter terrorist threats and protect the American people.”

    The relatives of some of the American service members who were killed appeared on stage at the Republican National Convention last month, saying Biden had never publicly named their loved ones.

    “Joe Biden has refused to recognize their sacrifice,” Christy Shamblin, the mother-in-law of Sgt. Gee, told the crowd. “Donald Trump knew all of our children’s names. He knew all of their stories.”

    In a statement Monday on the Kabul attack anniversary, Biden said the 13 Americans who died were “patriots in the highest sense” who “embodied the very best of who we are as a nation: brave, committed, selfless.”

    “Ever since I became Vice President, I carried a card with me every day that listed the exact number of American service members who were killed in Iraq and Afghanistan—including Taylor, Johanny, Nicole, Hunter, Daegan, Humberto, David, Jared, Rylee, Dylan, Kareem, Maxton, and Ryan,” Biden said.

    Also Monday, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., announced that Congress will posthumously honor the 13 service members by presenting their families with the Congressional Gold Medal next month. It’s the highest civilian award that Congress can bestow.

    Under Trump, the United States signed a peace agreement with the Taliban that was aimed at ending America’s longest war and bringing U.S. troops home. Biden later pointed to that agreement as he sought to deflect blame for the Taliban overrunning Afghanistan, saying it bound him to withdraw troops and set the stage for the chaos that engulfed the country.

    A Biden administration review of the withdrawal acknowledged that the evacuation of Americans and allies from Afghanistan should have started sooner, but attributed the delays to the Afghan government and military, and to U.S. military and intelligence community assessments.

    The top two U.S. generals who oversaw the evacuation said the administration inadequately planned for the withdrawal. The nation’s top-ranking military officer at the time, then-Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley, told lawmakers earlier this year he had urged Biden to keep a residual force of 2,500 forces to give backup. Instead, Biden decided to keep a much smaller force of 650 that would be limited to securing the U.S. embassy.

    Associated Press

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