Tag: thousand

7-year-old snowboarder aims for sixth 100-day season

With Killington Resort officially open in Vermont, skiers and riders were excited to kick off their season on Thursday. Among them was Harley Ruffle, a 7-year-old who has gained thousands of followers on social media with his journey on a snowboard.Harley Ruffle is only 7 years old, but he has already completed five seasons of snowboarding for at least 100 days. His quick progress already has him riding with professionals. He first picked up a snowboard at only 2 years old. His family was at a ski shop for his older brother, but ended up leaving with another rider. Harley’s mom, Jill Ruffle, said she turned around and Harley had strapped himself into a mini snowboard. “We brought him into the store in a stroller and he’s on snow, balancing on a snowboard with absolutely zero problems,” she said. From then on, snowboarding was all he wanted to do. Harley is homeschooled and started going to the mountain as much as possible to practice. His mom said that while he began riding with the Killington Mountain School last season, he started with no formal training. She said right away she noticed Harley’s ability to quickly pick up new skills. He landed his first front flip at just 4 years old. “I just try it, and most of the time I get it,” Harley said. Since he began snowboarding, Harley has made it to the mountain a total of 678 days. One season, he was out for 172 days. Now, he is hoping for his sixth 100-day season this year. “That wasn’t something we set out to happen. It was just, again, his passion led to that,” said Jill Ruffle. Harley’s mom began posting videos of him riding several years ago to document his snowboarding journey. Since then, he’s gained over 26,000 followers and sponsors who have supported his progress, providing him with equipment and more. “He’s a goofy, happy little snowboarder,” she said. “I think they want to end up where — you know, see where he ends up on his journey.”Harley’s family has built a community through his snowboarding. He became family friends with professional snowboarders who enjoy riding with him. “Ever since I’ve known him, I swear it was before he could even talk, he was on a snowboard, you know, just smiling, doing his thing,” said professional rider Zeb Powell. Harley said he is happy to begin another season on the slopes. He said he has been waiting to get in his first runs for weeks, and with another year starting, he’s aiming for another 100 days on the mountain.

With Killington Resort officially open in Vermont, skiers and riders were excited to kick off their season on Thursday. Among them was Harley Ruffle, a 7-year-old who has gained thousands of followers on social media with his journey on a snowboard.

Harley Ruffle is only 7 years old, but he has already completed five seasons of snowboarding for at least 100 days. His quick progress already has him riding with professionals.

He first picked up a snowboard at only 2 years old. His family was at a ski shop for his older brother, but ended up leaving with another rider. Harley’s mom, Jill Ruffle, said she turned around and Harley had strapped himself into a mini snowboard.

“We brought him into the store in a stroller and he’s on snow, balancing on a snowboard with absolutely zero problems,” she said.

From then on, snowboarding was all he wanted to do. Harley is homeschooled and started going to the mountain as much as possible to practice. His mom said that while he began riding with the Killington Mountain School last season, he started with no formal training. She said right away she noticed Harley’s ability to quickly pick up new skills. He landed his first front flip at just 4 years old.

“I just try it, and most of the time I get it,” Harley said.

Since he began snowboarding, Harley has made it to the mountain a total of 678 days. One season, he was out for 172 days. Now, he is hoping for his sixth 100-day season this year.

“That wasn’t something we set out to happen. It was just, again, his passion led to that,” said Jill Ruffle.

Harley’s mom began posting videos of him riding several years ago to document his snowboarding journey. Since then, he’s gained over 26,000 followers and sponsors who have supported his progress, providing him with equipment and more.

“He’s a goofy, happy little snowboarder,” she said. “I think they want to end up where — you know, see where he ends up on his journey.”

Harley’s family has built a community through his snowboarding. He became family friends with professional snowboarders who enjoy riding with him.

“Ever since I’ve known him, I swear it was before he could even talk, he was on a snowboard, you know, just smiling, doing his thing,” said professional rider Zeb Powell.

Harley said he is happy to begin another season on the slopes. He said he has been waiting to get in his first runs for weeks, and with another year starting, he’s aiming for another 100 days on the mountain.

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November 15, 2025
Supreme Court urged to block California laws requiring companies to disclose climate impacts

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups urged the Supreme Court on Friday to block new California laws that will require thousands of companies to disclose their emissions and their impacts on climate change.

One of the laws is due to take effect on Jan. 1, and the emergency appeal asks the court to put it on hold temporarily.

Their lawyers argue the measures violate the 1st Amendment because the state would be forcing companies to speak on its preferred topic.

“In less than eight weeks, California will compel thousands of companies across the nation to speak on the deeply controversial topic of climate change,” they said in an appeal that also spoke for the California Chamber of Commerce and the Los Angeles County Business Federation.

They say the two new laws would require companies to disclose the “climate-related risks” they foresee and how their operations and emissions contribute to climate change.

“Both laws are part of California’s open campaign to force companies into the public debate on climate issues and pressure them to alter their behavior,” they said. Their aim, according to their sponsors, is to “make sure that the public actually knows who’s green and who isn’t.”

One law, Senate Bill 261, will require several thousand companies that do business in California to assess their “climate-related financial risk” and how they may reduce that risk. A second measure, SB 253, which applies to larger companies, requires them to assess and disclose their emissions and how their operations could affect the climate.

The appeal argues these laws amount to unconstitutional compelled speech.

“No state may violate 1st Amendment rights to set climate policy for the Nation. Compelled-speech laws are presumptively unconstitutional — especially where, as here, they dictate a value-laden script on a controversial subject such as climate change,” they argue.

Officials with the California Air Resources Board, whose chair Lauren Sanchez was named as defendant, said the agency does not comment on pending litigation.

The first-in-the-nation carbon disclosure laws were widely celebrated by environmental advocates at the time of their passage, with the nonprofit California Environmental Voters describing them as a “game-changer not just for our state but for the entire world.”

Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), who authored SB 253, said at the time that the laws were “a simple but powerful tool in the fight to tackle climate change.”

“When corporations are transparent about the full scope of their emissions, they have the tools and incentives to tackle them,” Wiener said.

Michael Gerrard, a climate-change legal expert at Columbia University, described Friday’s motion as “the latest example of businesses and conservatives weaponizing the 1st Amendment.” He pointed to the Citizens United case, which said businesses have a free speech right to unlimited campaign contributions, as another example.

“Exxon tried and failed to use this argument in 2022 when it attempted to block an investigation by the Massachusetts Attorney General into whether it misled consumers and investors about the risks of climate change,” he said in an email. “Exxon claimed this investigation violated its First Amendment rights; the Massachusetts courts rejected this attempt.”

Under the Biden administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted similar climate-change disclosure rules. Companies would have been required to disclose the impact of climate change on their business and what they intended to do to mitigate the risk.

But the Chamber of Commerce sued and won a lower court ruling that blocked those rules.

And in March, Trump appointees said the SEC would retreat and not defend the “costly and unnecessarily intrusive climate-change disclosure rules.”

The emergency appeal challenging California’s disclosure laws was filed by Washington attorney Eugene Scalia, a son of the late Justice Antonin Scalia.

The companies have tried and failed to persuade judges in California to block the measures. Exxon Mobil filed a suit in Sacramento, while the Chamber of Commerce sued in Los Angeles.

In August, U.S. District Judge Otis Wright II in Los Angeles refused to block the laws on the grounds they “regulate commercial speech,” which gets less protection under the 1st Amendment. He said businesses are routinely required to disclose financial data and factual information on their operations.

The business lawyers said they had appealed to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals asking for an injunction, but no action has been taken.

Shortly after the chamber’s appeal was filed, state attorneys for Iowa and 24 other Republican-leaning states joined in support. They said they “strongly oppose this radical green speech mandate that California seeks to impose on companies.”

The justices are likely to ask for a response next week from California’s state attorneys before acting on the appeal.

Savage reported from Washington, D.C., Smith from Los Angeles.

David G. Savage, Hayley Smith

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November 14, 2025
Video: Train plows into truck carrying thousands of pears

After a speeding train collided with a semi-truck carrying pears in the Netherlands, authorities have released video of the incident to “raise awareness and improve behavior.”Jeremy Roth for CNN’s “Take a Look at This (TALAT)” reports that authorities are using the truck driver’s ill-timed hesitation as a cautionary tale about safety at railroad crossings.The train’s collision with the truck’s cargo trailer sent thousands of pears flying across the scene.See the TALAT video in the player above, and learn what happened when a bear got trapped in an SUV in ColoradoVideo released by Pro Rail shows the truck approaching the crossing, pausing, and then reversing as safety arms closed around it.The driver appeared unsure of what to do and attempted to move just as the commuter train bore down. Pro Rail reported minor injuries and shared the video on social media. They advised drivers to move through lowered safety arms if they become stuck.

(Video: CNN, PRO RAIL, TMX, LARIMER COUNTY SD, Pro Rail/TMX via CNN Newsource) —

After a speeding train collided with a semi-truck carrying pears in the Netherlands, authorities have released video of the incident to “raise awareness and improve behavior.”

Jeremy Roth for CNN’s “Take a Look at This (TALAT)” reports that authorities are using the truck driver’s ill-timed hesitation as a cautionary tale about safety at railroad crossings.

The train’s collision with the truck’s cargo trailer sent thousands of pears flying across the scene.

See the TALAT video in the player above, and learn what happened when a bear got trapped in an SUV in Colorado

Video released by Pro Rail shows the truck approaching the crossing, pausing, and then reversing as safety arms closed around it.

The driver appeared unsure of what to do and attempted to move just as the commuter train bore down.

Pro Rail reported minor injuries and shared the video on social media. They advised drivers to move through lowered safety arms if they become stuck.

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November 5, 2025
Photos: World Series champion Dodgers parade through Downtown L.A.

Dodgers fans filled the streets of downtown Los Angeles early Monday morning, to celebrate the Dodgers becoming baseball’s first back-to-back World Series champion in 25 years.

The celebratory parade is commenced at 11 a.m., with the Dodgers traveling on top of double-decker buses through downtown with a final stop at Dodger Stadium.

The 2025 Dodgers team has been a bright spot for many Angelenos during an otherwise tumultuous year for the region, after historic firestorms devastated thousands of homes in January and then widespread immigration sweeps over the summer by the Trump administration.

(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)

Manager Dave Roberts holds the Commissioner’s Trophy during the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration Monday.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Fans fill the streets of downtown Los Angeles following the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration.

(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani during the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration.

(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)

Ramon Ontivros, left, and Michelle Ruiz, both from Redlands, join fans lining the streets of downtown Los Angeles.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Fans fill the streets of downtown Los Angeles following the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration.

(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)

From left, Mike Soto, Luis Espino, and Francisco Espino, join fans lining the streets of downtown Los Angeles.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Mia Nava, 9, waves a flag. “She’s skipping school today and her teachers know her passion.” Said her mom, Jennie Nava.

(Carlin Stiehl/For The Times)

Alex Portugal holds onto a championship belt at Dodger Stadium. Claudia Villar Lee, poses with a model of the World Series trophy around her neck.

(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)

Young fans line the streets of downtown Los Angeles for the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration.

Kayla Bartkowski, Allen J. Schaben, Carlin Stiehl, Eric Thayer

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November 3, 2025
Alaska Airlines grounds flights across the nation due to IT outage

Thousands of Americans hoping to get airborne found themselves stuck on the ground Thursday evening as Alaska Airlines experienced an IT outage that prevented any of its planes from taking off.

“A temporary ground stop is in place,” the airline announced on social media at 4:20 p.m. “We apologize for the inconvenience. If you’re scheduled to fly tonight, please check your flight status before heading to the airport.”

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, where the carrier is based, reported 82 Alaska Airlines flight delays and 17 cancellations, according to Flight Aware. Los Angeles International Airport, meanwhile, reported eight Alaska Airlines flight delays and one cancellation.

The outage marked the second time in recent months that IT issues prevented Alaska Airlines from flying. The airline grounded all flights for a three-hour period in July after a similar outage.

As of 7 p.m. the outage remained in effect, and the airline said that it was actively working to restore operations. It did not provide any details on what was causing the tech problems.

Customers have also reported problems with accessing the airline’s website and app.

The airline flies to 40 destinations worldwide, including 37 states and 12 countries, according to its website.

Clara Harter

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October 23, 2025
Hamas releases all 20 remaining living hostages as part of Gaza ceasefire

Hamas released all 20 remaining living hostages held in Gaza on Monday, as part of a ceasefire pausing two years of war that pummeled the territory, killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, and had left scores of captives in militant hands.The hostages, all men, returned to Israel, where they will be reunited with their families and undergo medical checks. The bodies of the remaining 28 dead hostages are also expected to be handed over as part of the deal, although the exact timing remained unclear.Meanwhile, a convoy of Israeli vehicles, Red Cross jeeps and buses left Ofer Prison for the occupied West Bank on Monday afternoon, carrying some of the 250 long-term prisoners set to be released in the exachange. The buses are headed to the center of Beitunia, the nearest Palestinian town, where friends and families await their arrival.In Tel Aviv, families and friends of the hostages who gathered in a square broke into wild cheers as Israeli television channels announced that the first group of hostages was in the hands of the Red Cross. Tens of thousands of Israelis watched the transfers at public screenings across the country.Israel released the first photos of hostages arriving home, including one showing 28-year-old twins Gali and Ziv Berman embracing as they were reunited. Hostages previously released had said the twins from Kfar Aza were held separately.The photos of the first seven hostages released Monday showed them looking pale but less gaunt than some of the hostages freed in January.Earlier, while Palestinians awaited the release of hundreds of prisoners held by Israel, an armored vehicle flying an Israeli flag fired tear gas and rubber bullets at a crowd. As drones buzzed overhead, the group scattered.The tear gas followed the circulation of a flier warning that anyone supporting what it called “terrorist organizations” risked arrest. Israel’s military did not respond to questions about the flier, which The Associated Press obtained on site.While major questions remain about the future of Hamas and Gaza, the exchange of hostages and prisoners raised hopes for ending the deadliest war ever between Israel and the militant group.The ceasefire is also expected to be accompanied by a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza, parts of which are experiencing famine.U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in the region, where he plans to discuss the U.S.-proposed deal and postwar plans with other leaders.The war began when Hamas-led militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and 251 taken hostage.In Israel’s ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the dead were women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the U.N. and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.The toll is expected to grow as bodies are pulled from rubble previously made inaccessible by fighting.The war has destroyed large swaths of Gaza and displaced about 90% of its some 2 million residents. It has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies.”Much of Gaza is a wasteland,” U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher told the AP on Sunday. Living hostages being released firstThe hostages’ return caps a painful chapter for Israel. Since they were captured in the attack that ignited the war, newscasts have marked their days in captivity and Israelis have worn yellow pins and ribbons in solidarity. Tens of thousands have joined their families in weekly demonstrations calling for their release.As the war dragged on, demonstrators accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of dragging his feet for political purposes, even as he accused Hamas of intransigence. Last week, under heavy international pressure and increasing isolation for Israel, the bitter enemies agreed to the ceasefire.With the hostages’ release, the sense of urgency around the war for many Israelis will be effectively over.It remains unclear when the remains of 28 dead hostages will be returned. An international task force will work to locate deceased hostages who are not returned within 72 hours, said Gal Hirsch, Israel’s coordinator for the hostages and the missing.Meanwhile, buses lined up in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip on Monday morning in anticipation of the release of prisoners.The exact timing has not been announced for the release of Palestinian prisoners. They include 250 people serving life sentences for convictions in attacks on Israelis, in addition to 1,700 seized from Gaza during the war and held without charge. They will be returned to the West Bank or Gaza or sent into exile.Trump is traveling to Israel and EgyptTrump arrived Monday in Israel, where the White House said he will meet with families of the hostages and speak at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. Vice President JD Vance said Trump was likely to meet with newly freed hostages.”The war is over,” Trump told to reporters as he departed — even though his ceasefire deal leaves many unanswered questions about the future of Hamas and Gaza.Among the most thorny is Israel’s insistence that a weakened Hamas disarm. Hamas refuses to do that and wants to ensure Israel pulls its troops completely out of Gaza.So far, the Israeli military has withdrawn from much of Gaza City, the southern city of Khan Younis and other areas. Troops remain in most of the southern city of Rafah, towns of Gaza’s far north, and the wide strip along the length of Gaza’s border with Israel.The future governance of Gaza also remains unclear. Under the U.S. plan, an international body will govern the territory, overseeing Palestinian technocrats running day-to-day affairs. Hamas has said Gaza’s government should be worked out among Palestinians.Later Monday, Trump will head to Egypt, where he and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi will lead a summit with leaders from more than 20 countries on the future of Gaza and the broader Middle East.Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority, will attend, according to a judge and adviser to Abbas, Mahmoud al-Habbash. The plan envisions an eventual role for the Palestinian Authority — something Netanyahu has long opposed. But it requires the authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, to undergo a sweeping reform program that could take years.The plan also calls for an Arab-led international security force in Gaza, along with Palestinian police trained by Egypt and Jordan. It said Israeli forces would leave areas as those forces deploy. About 200 U.S. troops are now in Israel to monitor the ceasefire.The plan also mentions the possibility of a future Palestinian state, another nonstarter for Netanyahu.___Magdy reported from Cairo and Lidman from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Josef Federman in Truro, Massachusetts; Bassem Mroue in Beirut; Jalal Bwaitel in Ramallah, West Bank, and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel contributed to this report.

Hamas released all 20 remaining living hostages held in Gaza on Monday, as part of a ceasefire pausing two years of war that pummeled the territory, killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, and had left scores of captives in militant hands.

Seven of the hostages were released early Monday, while the remaining 13 were freed a few hours later.

The 20, all men, were being reunited with their families and expected to undergo medical checks.

The bodies of the remaining 28 dead hostages are also expected to be handed over as part of the deal, although the exact timing remained unclear.

Families and friends of the hostages who gathered in a square in Tel Aviv broke into wild cheers as Israeli television channels announced that the first group of hostages was in the hands of the Red Cross. Tens of thousands of Israelis watched the transfers at public screenings across the country.

Israel released the first photos of hostages arriving home, including one showing 28-year-old twins Gali and Ziv Berman embracing as they were reunited. Hostages previously released had said the twins from Kfar Aza were held separately.

The photos of the first seven hostages released Monday showed them looking pale but less gaunt than some of the hostages freed in January.

Palestinians, meanwhile, awaited the release of hundreds of prisoners held by Israel. In the West Bank, an armored vehicle flying an Israeli flag fired tear gas and rubber bullets at a crowd waiting near Ofer Prison. As drones buzzed overhead, the group scattered.

The tear gas followed the circulation of a flier warning that anyone supporting what it called “terrorist organizations” risked arrest. Israel’s military did not respond to questions about the flier, which The Associated Press obtained on site.

While major questions remain about the future of Hamas and Gaza, the exchange of hostages and prisoners raised hopes for ending the deadliest war ever between Israel and the militant group.

The ceasefire is also expected to be accompanied by a surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza, parts of which are experiencing famine.

U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in the region, where he plans to discuss the U.S.-proposed deal and postwar plans with other leaders.

The war began when Hamas-led militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and 251 taken hostage.

In Israel’s ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the dead were women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the U.N. and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.

The toll is expected to grow as bodies are pulled from rubble previously made inaccessible by fighting.

The war has destroyed large swaths of Gaza and displaced about 90% of its some 2 million residents. It has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies.

“Much of Gaza is a wasteland,” U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher told the AP on Sunday.

Living hostages being released first

The hostages’ return caps a painful chapter for Israel. Since they were captured in the attack that ignited the war, newscasts have marked their days in captivity and Israelis have worn yellow pins and ribbons in solidarity. Tens of thousands have joined their families in weekly demonstrations calling for their release.

As the war dragged on, demonstrators accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of dragging his feet for political purposes, even as he accused Hamas of intransigence. Last week, under heavy international pressure and increasing isolation for Israel, the bitter enemies agreed to the ceasefire.

With the hostages’ release, the sense of urgency around the war for many Israelis will be effectively over.

It remains unclear when the remains of 28 dead hostages will be returned. An international task force will work to locate deceased hostages who are not returned within 72 hours, said Gal Hirsch, Israel’s coordinator for the hostages and the missing.

Meanwhile, buses lined up in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip on Monday morning in anticipation of the release of prisoners.

The exact timing has not been announced for the release of Palestinian prisoners. They include 250 people serving life sentences for convictions in attacks on Israelis, in addition to 1,700 seized from Gaza during the war and held without charge. They will be returned to the West Bank or Gaza or sent into exile.

Trump is traveling to Israel and Egypt

Trump arrived Monday in Israel, where the White House said he will meet with families of the hostages and speak at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. Vice President JD Vance said Trump was likely to meet with newly freed hostages.

“The war is over,” Trump told to reporters as he departed — even though his ceasefire deal leaves many unanswered questions about the future of Hamas and Gaza.

Among the most thorny is Israel’s insistence that a weakened Hamas disarm. Hamas refuses to do that and wants to ensure Israel pulls its troops completely out of Gaza.

So far, the Israeli military has withdrawn from much of Gaza City, the southern city of Khan Younis and other areas. Troops remain in most of the southern city of Rafah, towns of Gaza’s far north, and the wide strip along the length of Gaza’s border with Israel.

The future governance of Gaza also remains unclear. Under the U.S. plan, an international body will govern the territory, overseeing Palestinian technocrats running day-to-day affairs. Hamas has said Gaza’s government should be worked out among Palestinians.

Later Monday, Trump will head to Egypt, where he and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi will lead a summit with leaders from more than 20 countries on the future of Gaza and the broader Middle East.

Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority, will attend, according to a judge and adviser to Abbas, Mahmoud al-Habbash. The plan envisions an eventual role for the Palestinian Authority — something Netanyahu has long opposed. But it requires the authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, to undergo a sweeping reform program that could take years.

The plan also calls for an Arab-led international security force in Gaza, along with Palestinian police trained by Egypt and Jordan. It said Israeli forces would leave areas as those forces deploy. About 200 U.S. troops are now in Israel to monitor the ceasefire.

The plan also mentions the possibility of a future Palestinian state, another nonstarter for Netanyahu.

___

Magdy reported from Cairo and Lidman from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Josef Federman in Truro, Massachusetts; Bassem Mroue in Beirut; Jalal Bwaitel in Ramallah, West Bank, and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel contributed to this report.

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October 13, 2025
Israel prepares to welcome the last living hostages from Gaza

Hamas released seven hostages into the custody of the Red Cross on Monday, the first to be released as part of a breakthrough ceasefire after two years of war between Israel and Hamas in the devastated Gaza Strip.There was no immediate information on their condition. Hamas has said 20 living hostages will be exchanged for over 1,900 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.Video above: Israel prepares to welcome the last living hostages from Gaza as a ceasefire holdsFamilies and friends of hostages broke out into wild cheers as Israeli television channels announced that the hostages were in the hands of the Red Cross. Tens of thousands of Israelis were watching the transfers at public screenings across the country, with a major event being held in Tel Aviv.Palestinians awaited the release of hundreds of prisoners held by Israel. U.S. President Donald Trump was arriving in the region along with other leaders to discuss the U.S.-proposed deal and postwar plans. A surge of humanitarian aid was expected into famine-stricken Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people have been left homeless.While major questions remain about the future of Hamas and Gaza, the exchange of hostages and prisoners marked a key step toward ending the deadliest war ever between Israel and the militant group.The ceasefire, which began noon Friday (0900 GMT), is aimed at winding down the deadliest and most destructive war ever fought between Israel and the Hamas militant group.The war began with Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, that killed some 1,200 people and saw 250 others taken hostage. The war in Gaza has killed over 67,000 Palestinians, local health officials there say.Israelis on Monday prepared to welcome home the last 20 living hostages from devastated Gaza and mourn the return of the dead, in the key exchange of the breakthrough ceasefire after two years of war.Palestinians awaited the release of hundreds of prisoners held by Israel. U.S. President Donald Trump was arriving in the region along with other leaders to discuss the U.S.-proposed deal and postwar plans. A surge of humanitarian aid was expected into famine-stricken Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people have been left homeless.While major questions remain about the future of Hamas and Gaza, the exchange of hostages and prisoners marked a key step toward ending the deadliest war ever between Israel and the militant group.Living hostages expected firstHamas released a list early Monday morning of the 20 living hostages it will free as part of the ceasefire.Major Israeli TV stations were airing special overnight broadcasts ahead of the hostages’ release as anticipation grew. People began to gather near a large screen in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv before dawn.“It’s very exciting,” said Meir Kaller, who spent a sleepless night there.Video below: President Trump to visit Middle East amid U.S.-mediated ceasefireThe hostages’ return caps a painful chapter for Israel. Since they were captured in the October 2023 Hamas attack that ignited the war, newscasts have marked their days in captivity and Israelis have worn yellow pins and ribbons in solidarity. Tens of thousands have joined their families in weekly demonstrations calling for their release.As the war dragged on, demonstrators accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of dragging his feet for political purposes, even as he accused Hamas of intransigence. Last week, under heavy international pressure and increasing isolation for Israel, the bitter enemies agreed to the ceasefire.With the hostages’ release, the sense of urgency around the war for many Israelis will be effectively over.Israel expects the living hostages to be released together Monday. They will be handed to the International Committee of the Red Cross and then to the Israeli military, which will take them to the Reim military base to be reunited with families.It is unlikely that the remains of up to 28 other hostages will be returned at the same time. An international task force will work to locate deceased hostages who are not returned within 72 hours, said Gal Hirsch, Israel’s coordinator for the hostages and the missing.The timing has not been announced for the release of Palestinian prisoners. They include 250 people serving life sentences for convictions in attacks on Israelis, in addition to 1,700 seized from Gaza during the war and held without charge. They will be returned to the West Bank or Gaza or sent into exile.While Israel considers the prisoners to be terrorists, Palestinians view them as freedom fighters against Israeli occupation. Israel has warned Palestinians in the West Bank against celebrating after people are released, according to a prisoner’s family and a Palestinian official familiar with the plans. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they feared retribution.Red Cross vehicles were seen driving in both Gaza and Israel early Monday.Trump in Israel and EgyptTrump was first visiting Israel, where a White House schedule said he will meet with families of the hostages and speak at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. Vice President JD Vance said Trump was likely to meet with newly freed hostages.“The war is over,” Trump asserted to reporters as he departed, adding he thought the ceasefire would hold.Trump will continue to Egypt, where President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi’s office said he will co-chair a “peace summit” Monday with regional and international leaders.Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority, will attend, a judge and adviser to Abbas, Mahmoud al-Habbash, told The Associated Press. Netanyahu has rejected any role in postwar Gaza for Abbas, though the U.S. plan leaves the possibility open if his Palestinian Authority undergoes reforms. Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007.Other key questions in the ceasefire deal have yet to be resolved, including the future governance of Gaza and who will pay for a billion-dollar reconstruction process. Israel wants to ensure that the weakened Hamas disarms, and Netanyahu has warned Israel could do it “the hard way.” Hamas refuses to disarm and wants to ensure Israel pulls its troops completely out of Gaza.The Israeli military has withdrawn from much of Gaza City, the southern city of Khan Younis and other areas. Troops remain in most of the southern city of Rafah, towns of Gaza’s far north and the wide strip along Gaza’s border with Israel.Under the U.S. plan, an international body will govern Gaza, overseeing Palestinian technocrats running day-to-day affairs. Hamas has said Gaza’s government should be worked out among Palestinians.The plan calls for an Arab-led international security force in Gaza, along with Palestinian police trained by Egypt and Jordan. It said Israeli forces would leave areas as those forces deploy. About 200 U.S. troops are now in Israel to monitor the ceasefire.The plan also mentions the possibility of a future Palestinian state, another nonstarter for Netanyahu.‘Much of Gaza is a wasteland’The United Nations has said Israel so far has approved 190,000 metric tons of aid to enter Gaza, which was besieged after Israel ended the previous ceasefire in March.The Israeli military body in charge of humanitarian aid in Gaza said the amount of aid entering was expected to increase Sunday to around 600 trucks per day, as stipulated in the agreement.“Much of Gaza is a wasteland,” U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher told the AP on Sunday. He said the U.N. has a plan for the next two months to restore basic medical and other services, bring in thousands of tons of food and fuel and remove rubble.Two years of warThe war began when Hamas-led militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 250 taken hostage.Video below: Vigil held for Israeli hostages in Northwest BaltimoreIn Israel’s ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the deaths were women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the U.N. and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.The toll will grow as bodies are pulled from rubble previously made inaccessible by fighting.The war has destroyed large swaths of Gaza and displaced about 90% of its 2 million residents. It has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies.Federman reported from Truro, Massachusetts. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue in Beirut, Jalal Bwaitel in Ramallah, West Bank, and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv contributed to this report.

CAIRO, Cairo Governorate —

Hamas released seven hostages into the custody of the Red Cross on Monday, the first to be released as part of a breakthrough ceasefire after two years of war between Israel and Hamas in the devastated Gaza Strip.

There was no immediate information on their condition. Hamas has said 20 living hostages will be exchanged for over 1,900 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

Video above: Israel prepares to welcome the last living hostages from Gaza as a ceasefire holds

Families and friends of hostages broke out into wild cheers as Israeli television channels announced that the hostages were in the hands of the Red Cross. Tens of thousands of Israelis were watching the transfers at public screenings across the country, with a major event being held in Tel Aviv.

Palestinians awaited the release of hundreds of prisoners held by Israel. U.S. President Donald Trump was arriving in the region along with other leaders to discuss the U.S.-proposed deal and postwar plans. A surge of humanitarian aid was expected into famine-stricken Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people have been left homeless.

While major questions remain about the future of Hamas and Gaza, the exchange of hostages and prisoners marked a key step toward ending the deadliest war ever between Israel and the militant group.

The ceasefire, which began noon Friday (0900 GMT), is aimed at winding down the deadliest and most destructive war ever fought between Israel and the Hamas militant group.

The war began with Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, that killed some 1,200 people and saw 250 others taken hostage. The war in Gaza has killed over 67,000 Palestinians, local health officials there say.

Israelis on Monday prepared to welcome home the last 20 living hostages from devastated Gaza and mourn the return of the dead, in the key exchange of the breakthrough ceasefire after two years of war.

Palestinians awaited the release of hundreds of prisoners held by Israel. U.S. President Donald Trump was arriving in the region along with other leaders to discuss the U.S.-proposed deal and postwar plans. A surge of humanitarian aid was expected into famine-stricken Gaza, where hundreds of thousands of people have been left homeless.

While major questions remain about the future of Hamas and Gaza, the exchange of hostages and prisoners marked a key step toward ending the deadliest war ever between Israel and the militant group.

Living hostages expected first

Hamas released a list early Monday morning of the 20 living hostages it will free as part of the ceasefire.

Major Israeli TV stations were airing special overnight broadcasts ahead of the hostages’ release as anticipation grew. People began to gather near a large screen in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv before dawn.

“It’s very exciting,” said Meir Kaller, who spent a sleepless night there.

Video below: President Trump to visit Middle East amid U.S.-mediated ceasefire

The hostages’ return caps a painful chapter for Israel. Since they were captured in the October 2023 Hamas attack that ignited the war, newscasts have marked their days in captivity and Israelis have worn yellow pins and ribbons in solidarity. Tens of thousands have joined their families in weekly demonstrations calling for their release.

As the war dragged on, demonstrators accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of dragging his feet for political purposes, even as he accused Hamas of intransigence. Last week, under heavy international pressure and increasing isolation for Israel, the bitter enemies agreed to the ceasefire.

With the hostages’ release, the sense of urgency around the war for many Israelis will be effectively over.

Israel expects the living hostages to be released together Monday. They will be handed to the International Committee of the Red Cross and then to the Israeli military, which will take them to the Reim military base to be reunited with families.

Emilio Morenatti
People gather prior to the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, at a plaza known as the hostages square in Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, Oct. 13, 2025.

It is unlikely that the remains of up to 28 other hostages will be returned at the same time. An international task force will work to locate deceased hostages who are not returned within 72 hours, said Gal Hirsch, Israel’s coordinator for the hostages and the missing.

The timing has not been announced for the release of Palestinian prisoners. They include 250 people serving life sentences for convictions in attacks on Israelis, in addition to 1,700 seized from Gaza during the war and held without charge. They will be returned to the West Bank or Gaza or sent into exile.

While Israel considers the prisoners to be terrorists, Palestinians view them as freedom fighters against Israeli occupation. Israel has warned Palestinians in the West Bank against celebrating after people are released, according to a prisoner’s family and a Palestinian official familiar with the plans. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they feared retribution.

Red Cross vehicles were seen driving in both Gaza and Israel early Monday.

Trump in Israel and Egypt

Trump was first visiting Israel, where a White House schedule said he will meet with families of the hostages and speak at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. Vice President JD Vance said Trump was likely to meet with newly freed hostages.

“The war is over,” Trump asserted to reporters as he departed, adding he thought the ceasefire would hold.

Trump will continue to Egypt, where President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi’s office said he will co-chair a “peace summit” Monday with regional and international leaders.

Mahmoud Abbas, leader of the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority, will attend, a judge and adviser to Abbas, Mahmoud al-Habbash, told The Associated Press. Netanyahu has rejected any role in postwar Gaza for Abbas, though the U.S. plan leaves the possibility open if his Palestinian Authority undergoes reforms. Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007.

Other key questions in the ceasefire deal have yet to be resolved, including the future governance of Gaza and who will pay for a billion-dollar reconstruction process. Israel wants to ensure that the weakened Hamas disarms, and Netanyahu has warned Israel could do it “the hard way.” Hamas refuses to disarm and wants to ensure Israel pulls its troops completely out of Gaza.

The Israeli military has withdrawn from much of Gaza City, the southern city of Khan Younis and other areas. Troops remain in most of the southern city of Rafah, towns of Gaza’s far north and the wide strip along Gaza’s border with Israel.

Under the U.S. plan, an international body will govern Gaza, overseeing Palestinian technocrats running day-to-day affairs. Hamas has said Gaza’s government should be worked out among Palestinians.

The plan calls for an Arab-led international security force in Gaza, along with Palestinian police trained by Egypt and Jordan. It said Israeli forces would leave areas as those forces deploy. About 200 U.S. troops are now in Israel to monitor the ceasefire.

The plan also mentions the possibility of a future Palestinian state, another nonstarter for Netanyahu.

‘Much of Gaza is a wasteland’

The United Nations has said Israel so far has approved 190,000 metric tons of aid to enter Gaza, which was besieged after Israel ended the previous ceasefire in March.

The Israeli military body in charge of humanitarian aid in Gaza said the amount of aid entering was expected to increase Sunday to around 600 trucks per day, as stipulated in the agreement.

“Much of Gaza is a wasteland,” U.N. humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher told the AP on Sunday. He said the U.N. has a plan for the next two months to restore basic medical and other services, bring in thousands of tons of food and fuel and remove rubble.

Two years of war

The war began when Hamas-led militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 250 taken hostage.

Video below: Vigil held for Israeli hostages in Northwest Baltimore

In Israel’s ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the deaths were women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the U.N. and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.

The toll will grow as bodies are pulled from rubble previously made inaccessible by fighting.

The war has destroyed large swaths of Gaza and displaced about 90% of its 2 million residents. It has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies.

Federman reported from Truro, Massachusetts. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue in Beirut, Jalal Bwaitel in Ramallah, West Bank, and Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv contributed to this report.

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October 12, 2025
Hostages freed, prisoners released, as Trump hails ‘golden age’ in Mideast

REIM, Israel — Israelis and Palestinians cried, cheered and gave thanks Monday as Hamas militants released their last 20 living hostages in exchange for more than 1,900 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

It was the first phase of a ceasefire deal put in place last month even as President Trump — the driving force behind the agreement — gave what amounted to a victory speech in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, before departing for a peace summit in Egypt.

Greeted with a standing ovation before he said a word, Trump heralded the deal as ushering in “a golden age” for Israel and the Middle East.

“After so many years of unceasing war and endless danger, today, the skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still, and the sun rises on a Holy Land that is finally at peace,” he said.

Palestinians in the West Bank city of Ramallah celebrate the release of prisoners by Israel on Oct. 13, 2025.

(Issam H.S. Alasmar / Anadolu / Getty Images)

His words belied the many complications facing an agreement that remains far from a comprehensive road map that could definitively end a war that killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and pulverized much of the Gaza Strip, even as it scarred Israeli society with the deaths of 1,200 people and brought unprecedented international condemnation of the country’s leadership.

The night before the scheduled morning handover, tens of thousands Israelis streamed into Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, as well as to the roadside near southern Israel’s Reim military base, where the hostages were to be brought after their release.

A party atmosphere prevailed on the road to Reim, as Sikorsky Super Stallion helicopters landed in a dusty field to the cheers of a nearby crowd, which raised Israeli and American flags and swayed to a song whose lyrics promised, “I’m coming home, tell the world I’m coming home.”

Passing cars honked in salute, with one passenger rolling down her window and shouting, “The kidnapped are returning!”

“Since Thursday my smile has been stuck, my jaw hurts from it, after two years of not doing it at all,” said Sarit Kenny, 65, a resident of a kibbutz nearby who said she had attended a rally every week since the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, to call for the hostages’ return.

She pointed to the American flag in her hand, saying she wanted it to be an expression of her appreciation of Trump.

Matan Zangauker is reunited with his mother at the initial reception point after his release by the militant group Hamas.

(Israel Defense Forces / Associated Press)

“He’s the one who actually did this. He did what our prime minister didn’t do,” she said.

Jonathan Kaneh, 46, who owned a polymer factory in the kibbutz of Orim, saw in the release a more somber moment. On Oct. 7, Hamas militants on a truck shot at him as he was riding his bicycle; the bullet grazed his arm but he was otherwise unhurt. At the same time, the war precipitated by the attack had forced him to shutter his business.

He had arrived early at the site to mark the start of the attack two years ago, which began at 6:29 a.m.

“It was important to me to come here, to close this circle. A lot of people, their lives stopped in this place,” he said, his voice turning deep with emotion.

For many others, the day represented a moment combining religion and the sense of history, with the hostages’ release falling on the religious holiday of Simchat Torah, just as their kidnapping had been on Simchat Torah two years earlier.

“It’s my luck to be here now, and most of the people are feeling same, that we had to be here,” said 70-year-old Uzi Bar-On, as he sat on a lawn chair and made coffee on a portable stove, with Jimmy, his dog, by his side.

At a gathering at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, people react in anticipation of the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza.

(Oded Balilty / Associated Press)

Bar-On said that the last two years had seen him consumed with thoughts of revenge against Hamas and the people of Gaza, but that the hostage release could help Israelis to move on.

“First I want to see the hostages. When I see them with my own eyes, not through the press, then maybe I can start to think differently,” he said.

When the convoy of vans and military vehicles bearing the first group passed by, the crowd erupted in a flurry of cheers.

It seemed timed to coincide with the moment Air Force One was about to land at Ben Gurion International Airport, before Trump would be whisked away to Jerusalem to meet hostage families before his Knesset address.

Aside from touting the achievements of his administration (and impugning former Presidents Obama and Biden), Trump gave a full-throated endorsement of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a deeply unpopular figure with many Israelis, who blame their leader for embroiling the country in the war in the first place and accuse him of prolonging it for his own political purposes.

But Trump insisted that Netanyahu did “a great job,” and diving into Israel’s domestic affairs, urged the president to pardon Netanyahu of corruption charges he’s facing. Trump also heaped praise on envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner for their efforts in brokering the deal, while musing about the idea of Israel making peace with Iran.

Later he flew to Egypt for a summit in Sharm el Sheikh, where he met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Sisi and a raft of Arab and Islamic leaders to discuss the next steps for Gaza.

“We have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to put the old feuds and bitter hatreds behind us,” Trump said at the summit, which saw Sisi award Egypt’s highest civilian honor to Trump.

Netanyahu did not attend, with his office saying that the timing conflicted with the Jewish holiday.

President Trump addresses the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, in Jerusalem on Oct. 13, 2025.

(Evelyn Hockstein / Associated Press)

The Trump-brokered deal stipulates Hamas will release the bodies of 28 hostages who died in captivity, with each one returned in exchange for 15 bodies of Palestinians killed during Oct. 7.

Four bodies were released Monday. In recent days, Hamas said it was facing difficulties retrieving corpses from the rubble of Gaza’s war-ravaged buildings.

A few hours after the release of the second batch of hostages, buses carrying about 1,700 Gaza residents detained in Israel without charge over the last two years left for the Palestinian enclave, along with 250 prisoners serving life sentences for convictions in attacks on Israelis.

Two busloads of 88 people were released in Ramallah, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where families assembled at the Ramallah Cultural Palace — a place normally reserved for performances — to greet relatives, some they hadn’t seen in decades.

When the buses arrived, Palestinian security forces tried to maintain order but were soon overwhelmed by the crowd. The prisoners and detainees emerged with their heads shaved, looking gaunt and pale in the afternoon sun — a measure, many said, of the harsh treatment they received.

Despite their joy at the release, few were willing to be interviewed, saying Israeli authorities had warned them to not celebrate or speak to the media under threat of rearrest.

“When I saw all the people here, we forgot all of our pain. But our brothers detained inside are still suffering,” said one released prisoner who had spent 20 years in an Israeli jail. One hand held a cigarette, while the other carried a phone he was using to talk to his niece for the first time.

“I’m tired, but thank God for everything,” said Yahya Nimr Ahmad Ibrahim, a Fatah member arrested in 2003 and sentenced to 23 years. Wrapped in a Palestinian black-and-white kaffiyeh, he looked frail as family members carried him on their shoulders in celebration.

The list of Palestinian detainees to be released was a point of contention up to the very last minute, according to Palestinian rights groups, which count at least 100 additional prisoners with lifetime sentences who would not be released.

The head of the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs, Raed Abu Al-Hummus, said the commission had received hundreds of phone calls from people enraged that their loved ones weren’t being released.

Palestinians rejoice over their release from Israeli prisons.

(Ayman Nobani / DPA / Picture Alliance / AP Images)

For others, the prisoner release was bittersweet: 154 of the 250 prisoners were to be exiled to Gaza, Egypt, Malaysia or Turkey, and with their family members subject to travel restrictions, it was unlikely they would see them anytime soon.

Elsewhere in the crowd, bewilderment laced with anger when families who had been informed that their loved ones would be released discovered they weren’t on the buses after all.

“We don’t know what happened. The Israeli army called me last night, told me my brother was coming here. They even came and smashed up our house so we wouldn’t celebrate. Then we heard he’s to be exiled, but no one knows where he is,” said Raed Imran, the brother of Mohammad Imran, a Palestinian Islamic Jihad member who was serving 13 life sentences.

Beside him was his sister, Ibtisam, crying.

“We prepared all his favorite foods, all of them,” she said, barely able to keep her voice steady from crying. “We’ve been working since two days for this moment. We even have the dishes in the car, ready for him when he came out.”

Imran began to tear up as well.

“We just don’t know. No one has told us anything,” he said.

As the afternoon sun waned, the crowd began to thin out, save for a few families asking anyone who seemed in authority to give them information about their missing loved ones. But soon enough, they too walked away.

Nabih Bulos

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October 12, 2025
The Trump loyalist who picked up where Musk left off with slashing federal workforce: ‘We’re having fun’

WASHINGTON — It has been four months since Elon Musk, President Trump’s bureaucratic demolition man, abandoned Washington in a flurry of recriminations and chaos.

But the Trump administration’s crusade to dismantle much of the federal government never ended. It’s merely under new management: the less colorful but more methodical Russell Vought, director of Trump’s Office of Management and Budget.

Vought has become the backroom architect of Trump’s aggressive strategy — slashing the federal workforce, freezing billions in congressionally approved spending in actions his critics often call illegal.

Now Vought has proposed using the current government shutdown as an opportunity to fire thousands of bureaucrats permanently instead of merely furloughing them temporarily. If any do return to work, he has suggested that the government need not give them back pay — contrary to a law Trump signed in 2019.

Those threats may prove merely to be pressure tactics as Trump tries to persuade Democrats to accept spending cuts on Medicaid, Obamacare and other programs.

But the shutdown battle is the current phase of a much larger one. Vought’s long-term goals, he says, are to “bend or break the bureaucracy to the presidential will” and “deconstruct the administrative state.”

He’s still only partway done.

“I’d estimate that Vought has implemented maybe 10% or 15% of his program,” said Donald F. Kettl, former dean of the public policy school at the University of Maryland. “There may be as much as 90% to go. If this were a baseball game, we’d be in the top of the second inning.”

Along the way, Vought (pronounced “vote”) has chipped relentlessly at Congress’ ability to control the use of federal funds, massively expanding the power of the president.

“He has waged the most serious attack on separation of powers in American history,” said Elaine Kamarck, an expert on federal management at the Brookings Institution.

He’s done that mainly by using OMB, the White House office that oversees spending, to control the day-to-day purse strings of federal agencies — and deliberately keeping Congress in the dark along the way.

“If Congress has given us authority that is too broad, then we’re going to use that authority aggressively,” Vought said last month.

Federal judges have ruled some of the administration’s actions illegal, but they have allowed others to stand. Vought’s proposal to use the shutdown to fire thousands of bureaucrats hasn’t been tested in court.

Vought developed his aggressive approach during two decades as a conservative budget expert, culminating in his appointment as director of OMB in Trump’s first term.

In 2019, he stretched the limits of presidential power by helping Trump get around a congressional ban on funding for a border wall, by declaring an emergency and transferring military funds. He froze congressionally mandated aid for Ukraine, the action that led to Trump’s first impeachment.

Even so, Vought complained that Trump had been needlessly restrained by cautious first-term aides.

“The lawyers come in and say, ‘It’s not legal. You can’t do that,’” he said in 2023. “I don’t want President Trump having to lose a moment of time having fights in the Oval Office over whether something is legal.”

Vought is a proponent of the “unitary executive” theory, the argument that the president should have unfettered control over every tentacle of the executive branch, including independent agencies such as the Federal Reserve.

When Congress designates money for federal programs, he has argued, “It’s a ceiling. It is not a floor. It’s not the notion that you have to spend every dollar.”

Most legal experts disagree; a 1974 law prohibits the president from unilaterally withholding money Congress has appropriated.

Vought told conservative activists in 2023 that if Trump returned to power, he would deliberately seek to inflict “trauma” on federal employees.

“We want the bureaucrats to be traumatically affected,” he said. “When they wake up in the morning, we want them to not want to go to work.”

When Vought returned to OMB for Trump’s second term, he appeared to be in Musk’s shadow. But once the flamboyant Tesla chief executive flamed out, the OMB director got to work to make DOGE’s work the foundation for lasting changes.

He extended many of DOGE’s funding cuts by slowing down OMB’s approval of disbursements — turning them into de facto freezes.

He helped persuade Republicans in Congress to cancel $9 billion in previously approved foreign aid and public broadcasting support, a process known as “rescission.”

To cancel an additional $4.9 billion, he revived a rarely used gambit called a “pocket rescission,” freezing the funds until they expired.

Along the way, he quietly stopped providing Congress with information on spending, leaving legislators in the dark on whether programs were being axed.

DOGE and OMB eliminated jobs so quickly that the federal government stopped publishing its ongoing tally of federal employees. (Any number would only be approximate; some layoffs are tied up in court, and thousands of employees who opted for voluntary retirement are technically still on the payroll.)

The result was a significant erosion of Congress’ “power of the purse,” which has historically included not only approving money but also monitoring how it was spent.

Even some Republican members of Congress seethed. “They would like a blank check … and I don’t think that’s appropriate,” said former Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

But the GOP majorities in both the House and Senate, pleased to see spending cut by any means, let Vought have his way. Even McConnell voted to approve the $9-billion rescission request.

Vought’s newest innovation, the mid-shutdown layoffs, would be another big step toward reducing Congress’ role.

“The result would be a dramatic, instantaneous shift in the separation of powers,” Kettl said. “The Trump team could kill programs unilaterally without the inconvenience of going to Congress.”

Some of the consequences could be catastrophic, Kettl and other scholars warned. Kamarck calls them “time bombs.”

“One or more of these decisions is going to blow up in Trump’s face,” she said.

“FEMA won’t be capable of reacting to the next hurricane. The National Weather Service won’t have the forecasters it needs to analyze the data from weather balloons.”

Even before the government shutdown, she noted, the FAA was grappling with a shortage of air traffic controllers. This week the FAA slowed takeoffs at several airports in response to growing shortages, including at air traffic control centers in Atlanta, Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth.

In theory, a future Congress could undo many of Vought’s actions, especially if Democrats win control of the House or, less likely, the Senate.

But rebuilding agencies that have been radically shrunken would take much longer than cutting them down, the scholars said.

“Much of this will be difficult to reverse when Democrats come back into fashion,” Kamarck said.

Indeed, that’s part of Vought’s plan.

“We want to make sure that the bureaucracy can’t reconstitute itself later in future administrations,” he said in April in a podcast with Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist who was slain on Sept. 10.

He’s pleased with the progress he’s made, he told reporters in July.

“We’re having fun,” he said.

Doyle McManus

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October 10, 2025
Government shutdown begins as nation faces new period of uncertainty
Plunged into a government shutdown, the U.S. is confronting a fresh cycle of uncertainty after President Donald Trump and Congress failed to strike an agreement to keep government programs and services running by Wednesday’s deadline.What we know: The Senate voted down two short-term spending bills on Tuesday: one Democratic proposal and one Republican proposal that passed in the House.The Senate has adjourned until Wednesday morning. The House is not in session this week.Senate Democrats are demanding that health care subsidies and Medicaid cuts be addressed before passing a funding bill.Thousands of federal workers are facing furloughs or layoffs.This is the first government shutdown in nearly seven years. Roughly 750,000 federal workers are expected to be furloughed, some potentially fired by the Trump administration. Many offices will be shuttered, perhaps permanently, as Trump vows to “do things that are irreversible, that are bad” as retribution. His deportation agenda is expected to run full speed ahead, while education, environmental and other services sputter. The economic fallout is expected to ripple nationwide.”We don’t want it to shut down,” Trump said at the White House before the midnight deadline.But the president, who met privately with congressional leadership this week, appeared unable to negotiate any deal between Democrats and Republicans to prevent that outcome.This is the third time Trump has presided over a federal funding lapse, the first since his return to the White House this year, in a remarkable record that underscores the polarizing divide over budget priorities and a political climate that rewards hardline positions rather than more traditional compromises.Plenty of blame being thrown aroundThe Democrats picked this fight, which was unusual for the party that prefers to keep government running, but their voters are eager to challenge the president’s second-term agenda. Democrats are demanding funding for health care subsidies that are expiring for millions of people under the Affordable Care Act, spiking the costs of insurance premiums nationwide.Republicans have refused to negotiate for now and have encouraged Trump to steer clear of any talks. After the White House meeting, the president posted a cartoonish fake video mocking the Democratic leadership that was widely viewed as unserious and racist.What neither side has devised is an easy offramp to prevent what could become a protracted closure. The ramifications are certain to spread beyond the political arena, upending the lives of Americans who rely on the government for benefit payments, work contracts and the various services being thrown into turmoil.”What the government spends money on is a demonstration of our country’s priorities,” said Rachel Snyderman, a former White House budget official who is the managing director of economic policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a think tank in Washington.Shutdowns, she said, “only inflict economic cost, fear and confusion across the country.” Economic fallout expected to ripple nationwideAn economic jolt could be felt in a matter of days. The government is expected Friday to produce its monthly jobs report, which may or may not be delivered.While the financial markets have generally “shrugged” during past shutdowns, according to a Goldman Sachs analysis, this one could be different partly because there are no signs of broader negotiations.”There are also few good analogies to this week’s potential shutdown,” the analysis said.Across the government, preparations have been underway. Trump’s Office of Management and Budget, headed by Russ Vought, directed agencies to execute plans for not just furloughs, as are typical during a federal funding lapse, but mass firings of federal workers. It’s part of the Trump administration’s mission, including its Department of Government Efficiency, to shrink the federal government.What’s staying open and shutting downThe Medicare and Medicaid health care programs are expected to continue, though staffing shortages could mean delays for some services. The Pentagon would still function. And most employees will stay on the job at the Department of Homeland Security.But Trump has warned that the administration could focus on programs that are important to Democrats, “cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like.”As agencies sort out which workers are essential, or not, Smithsonian museums are expected to stay open at least until Monday. A group of former national park superintendents urged the Trump administration to close the parks to visitors, arguing that poorly staffed parks in a shutdown are a danger to the public and put park resources at risk.Video below: House Speaker rejects Democrats’ calls for health care negotiations as government shuts downNo easy exit as health care costs soarAhead of Wednesday’s start of the fiscal year, House Republicans had approved a temporary funding bill, over opposition from Democrats, to keep government running into mid-November while broader negotiations continue.But that bill has failed repeatedly in the Senate, including late Tuesday. It takes a 60-vote threshold for approval, which requires cooperation between the two parties. A Democratic bill also failed. With a 53-47 GOP majority, Democrats are leveraging their votes to demand negotiation.Senate Majority Leader John Thune has said Republicans are happy to discuss the health care issue with Democrats — but not as part of talks to keep the government open. More votes are expected Wednesday.The standoff is a political test for Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, who has drawn scorn from a restive base of left-flank voters pushing the party to hold firm in its demands for health care funding.”Americans are hurting with higher costs,” Schumer said after the failed vote Tuesday.House Speaker Mike Johnson sent lawmakers home nearly two weeks ago after having passed the GOP bill, blaming Democrats for the shutdown.”They want to fight Trump,” Johnson said Tuesday on CNBC. “A lot of good people are going to be hurt because of this.”Trump, during his meeting with the congressional leaders, expressed surprise at the scope of the rising costs of health care, but Democrats left with no path toward talks.During Trump’s first term, the nation endured its longest-ever shutdown, 35 days, over his demands for funds Congress refused to provide to build his promised U.S.-Mexico border wall.In 2013, the government shut down for 16 days during the Obama presidency over GOP demands to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Other closures date back decades. ___Associated Press writers Matt Brown, Joey Cappelletti, Will Weissert, Fatima Hussein and other AP reporters nationwide contributed to this report.
Plunged into a government shutdown, the U.S. is confronting a fresh cycle of uncertainty after President Donald Trump and Congress failed to strike an agreement to keep government programs and services running by Wednesday’s deadline.

What we know:
- The Senate voted down two short-term spending bills on Tuesday: one Democratic proposal and one Republican proposal that passed in the House.
- The Senate has adjourned until Wednesday morning. The House is not in session this week.
- Senate Democrats are demanding that health care subsidies and Medicaid cuts be addressed before passing a funding bill.
- Thousands of federal workers are facing furloughs or layoffs.
- This is the first government shutdown in nearly seven years.
Roughly 750,000 federal workers are expected to be furloughed, some potentially fired by the Trump administration. Many offices will be shuttered, perhaps permanently, as Trump vows to “do things that are irreversible, that are bad” as retribution. His deportation agenda is expected to run full speed ahead, while education, environmental and other services sputter. The economic fallout is expected to ripple nationwide.

“We don’t want it to shut down,” Trump said at the White House before the midnight deadline.

But the president, who met privately with congressional leadership this week, appeared unable to negotiate any deal between Democrats and Republicans to prevent that outcome.

This is the third time Trump has presided over a federal funding lapse, the first since his return to the White House this year, in a remarkable record that underscores the polarizing divide over budget priorities and a political climate that rewards hardline positions rather than more traditional compromises.

Plenty of blame being thrown around

The Democrats picked this fight, which was unusual for the party that prefers to keep government running, but their voters are eager to challenge the president’s second-term agenda. Democrats are demanding funding for health care subsidies that are expiring for millions of people under the Affordable Care Act, spiking the costs of insurance premiums nationwide.

Republicans have refused to negotiate for now and have encouraged Trump to steer clear of any talks. After the White House meeting, the president posted a cartoonish fake video mocking the Democratic leadership that was widely viewed as unserious and racist.

What neither side has devised is an easy offramp to prevent what could become a protracted closure. The ramifications are certain to spread beyond the political arena, upending the lives of Americans who rely on the government for benefit payments, work contracts and the various services being thrown into turmoil.

“What the government spends money on is a demonstration of our country’s priorities,” said Rachel Snyderman, a former White House budget official who is the managing director of economic policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a think tank in Washington.

Shutdowns, she said, “only inflict economic cost, fear and confusion across the country.”

Economic fallout expected to ripple nationwide

An economic jolt could be felt in a matter of days. The government is expected Friday to produce its monthly jobs report, which may or may not be delivered.

While the financial markets have generally “shrugged” during past shutdowns, according to a Goldman Sachs analysis, this one could be different partly because there are no signs of broader negotiations.

“There are also few good analogies to this week’s potential shutdown,” the analysis said.

Across the government, preparations have been underway. Trump’s Office of Management and Budget, headed by Russ Vought, directed agencies to execute plans for not just furloughs, as are typical during a federal funding lapse, but mass firings of federal workers. It’s part of the Trump administration’s mission, including its Department of Government Efficiency, to shrink the federal government.

What’s staying open and shutting down

The Medicare and Medicaid health care programs are expected to continue, though staffing shortages could mean delays for some services. The Pentagon would still function. And most employees will stay on the job at the Department of Homeland Security.

But Trump has warned that the administration could focus on programs that are important to Democrats, “cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like.”

As agencies sort out which workers are essential, or not, Smithsonian museums are expected to stay open at least until Monday. A group of former national park superintendents urged the Trump administration to close the parks to visitors, arguing that poorly staffed parks in a shutdown are a danger to the public and put park resources at risk.

Video below: House Speaker rejects Democrats’ calls for health care negotiations as government shuts down

No easy exit as health care costs soar

Ahead of Wednesday’s start of the fiscal year, House Republicans had approved a temporary funding bill, over opposition from Democrats, to keep government running into mid-November while broader negotiations continue.

But that bill has failed repeatedly in the Senate, including late Tuesday. It takes a 60-vote threshold for approval, which requires cooperation between the two parties. A Democratic bill also failed. With a 53-47 GOP majority, Democrats are leveraging their votes to demand negotiation.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune has said Republicans are happy to discuss the health care issue with Democrats — but not as part of talks to keep the government open. More votes are expected Wednesday.

The standoff is a political test for Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, who has drawn scorn from a restive base of left-flank voters pushing the party to hold firm in its demands for health care funding.

“Americans are hurting with higher costs,” Schumer said after the failed vote Tuesday.

House Speaker Mike Johnson sent lawmakers home nearly two weeks ago after having passed the GOP bill, blaming Democrats for the shutdown.

“They want to fight Trump,” Johnson said Tuesday on CNBC. “A lot of good people are going to be hurt because of this.”

Trump, during his meeting with the congressional leaders, expressed surprise at the scope of the rising costs of health care, but Democrats left with no path toward talks.

During Trump’s first term, the nation endured its longest-ever shutdown, 35 days, over his demands for funds Congress refused to provide to build his promised U.S.-Mexico border wall.

In 2013, the government shut down for 16 days during the Obama presidency over GOP demands to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Other closures date back decades.

___

Associated Press writers Matt Brown, Joey Cappelletti, Will Weissert, Fatima Hussein and other AP reporters nationwide contributed to this report.
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September 30, 2025
Senate adjourns after failed funding votes as government heads for shutdown at midnight
Senate Democrats have voted down a Republican bill to keep funding the government, putting it on a near-certain path to a shutdown after midnight Wednesday for the first time in nearly seven years.What we know: The Senate voted down two short-term spending bills — one Democratic proposal and one Republican proposal.The Senate has adjourned until tomorrow morning, all but guaranteeing the government will shut down.Senate Democrats are demanding that health care subsidies and Medicaid cuts be addressed before passing a funding bill.Thousands of federal workers face furloughs or layoffs if the government shuts down at midnight Wednesday.There are fewer than 2 hours before the government shuts down for the first time in nearly seven years. The Senate rejected the legislation as Democrats are making good on their threat to close the government if President Donald Trump and Republicans won’t accede to their health care demands. The 55-45 vote on a bill to extend federal funding for seven weeks fell short of the 60 needed to end a filibuster and pass the legislation.Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Republicans are trying to “bully” Democrats by refusing to negotiate on an extension of expanded Affordable Care Act tax credits that expire at the end of the year.”We hope they sit down with us and talk,” Schumer said after the vote. “Otherwise, it’s the Republicans will be driving us straight towards a shutdown tonight at midnight. The American people will blame them for bringing the federal government to a halt.”The failure of Congress to keep the government open means that hundreds of thousands of federal workers could be furloughed or laid off. After the vote, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget issued a memo saying “affected agencies should now execute their plans for an orderly shutdown.”Threatening retribution to Democrats, Trump said Tuesday that a shutdown could include “cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like.”Trump and his fellow Republicans said they won’t entertain any changes to the legislation, arguing that it’s a stripped-down, “clean” bill that should be noncontroversial. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said “we can reopen it tomorrow” if enough Democrats break party lines.The last shutdown was in Trump’s first term, from December 2018 to January 2019, when he demanded that Congress give him money for his U.S.-Mexico border wall. Trump retreated after 35 days — the longest shutdown ever — amid intensifying airport delays and missed paydays for federal workers. Democrats take a stand against Trump, with exceptionsWhile partisan stalemates over government spending are a frequent occurrence in Washington, the current impasse comes as Democrats see a rare opportunity to use their leverage to achieve policy goals and as their base voters are spoiling for a fight with Trump. Republicans who hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate needed at least eight votes from Democrats after Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky opposed the bill.Democratic Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine voted with Republicans to keep the government open — giving Republicans hope that there might be five more who will eventually come around and help end a shutdown.After the vote, King warned against “permanent damage” as Trump and his administration have threatened mass layoffs.”Instead of fighting Trump we’re actually empowering him, which is what finally drove my decision,” King said.Thune predicted Democratic support for the GOP bill will increase “when they realize that this is playing a losing hand.”Shutdown preparations beginThe stakes are huge for federal workers across the country as the White House told agencies last week that they should consider “a reduction in force” for many federal programs if the government shuts down. That means that workers who are not deemed essential could be fired instead of just furloughed.Either way, most would not get paid. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated in a letter to Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst on Tuesday that around 750,000 federal workers could be furloughed each day once a shutdown begins.Federal agencies were already preparing. On the home page of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, a large pop up ad reads, “The Radical Left are going to shut down the government and inflict massive pain on the American people.”Democrats’ health care asksDemocrats want to negotiate an extension of the health subsidies immediately as people are beginning to receive notices of premium increases for the next year. Millions of people who purchase health insurance through the Affordable Care Act could face higher costs as expanded subsidies first put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic expire.Democrats have also demanded that Republicans reverse the Medicaid cuts that were enacted as a part of Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” this summer and for the White House to promise it will not move to rescind spending passed by Congress.”We are not going to support a partisan Republican spending bill that continues to gut the health care of everyday Americans,” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said.Thune pressed Democrats to vote for the funding bill and take up the debate on tax credits later. Some Republicans are open to extending the tax credits, but many are strongly opposed to it.In rare, pointed back-and-forth with Schumer on the Senate floor Tuesday morning, Thune said Republicans “are happy to fix the ACA issue” and have offered to negotiate with Democrats — if they will vote to keep the government open until Nov. 21.A critical, and unusual, vote for DemocratsDemocrats are in an uncomfortable position for a party that has long denounced shutdowns as pointless and destructive, and it’s unclear how or when a shutdown will end. But party activists and lawmakers have argued that Democrats need to do something to stand up to Trump.”The level of appeasement that Trump demands never ends,” said Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt. “We’ve seen that with universities, with law firms, with prosecutors. So is there a point where you just have to stand up to him? I think there is.”Some groups called for Schumer’s resignation in March after he and nine other Democrats voted to break a filibuster and allow a Republican-led funding bill to advance to a final vote.Schumer said then that he voted to keep the government open because a shutdown would have made things worse as Trump’s administration was slashing government jobs. He says things have now changed, including the passage this summer of the massive GOP tax cut bill that reduced Medicaid.Trump’s role in negotiationsA bipartisan meeting at the White House on Monday was Trump’s first with all four leaders in Congress since retaking the White House for his second term. Schumer said the group “had candid, frank discussions” about health care.But Trump did not appear to be ready for serious talks. Hours later, he posted a fake video of Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries taken from footage of their real press conference outside of the White House after the meeting. In the altered video, a voiceover that sounds like Schumer’s voice makes fun of Democrats and Jeffries stands beside him with a cartoon sombrero and mustache. Mexican music plays in the background.At a news conference on the Capitol steps Tuesday morning, Jeffries said it was a “racist and fake AI video.”Schumer said that less than a day before a shutdown, Trump was trolling on the internet “like a 10-year-old.””It’s only the president who can do this,” Schumer said. “We know he runs the show here.”___Associated Press writers Seung Min Kim, Kevin Freking, Matthew Brown, Darlene Superville and Joey Cappelletti in Washington contributed to this report.
Senate Democrats have voted down a Republican bill to keep funding the government, putting it on a near-certain path to a shutdown after midnight Wednesday for the first time in nearly seven years.

What we know:
- The Senate voted down two short-term spending bills — one Democratic proposal and one Republican proposal.
- The Senate has adjourned until tomorrow morning, all but guaranteeing the government will shut down.
- Senate Democrats are demanding that health care subsidies and Medicaid cuts be addressed before passing a funding bill.
- Thousands of federal workers face furloughs or layoffs if the government shuts down at midnight Wednesday.
- There are fewer than 2 hours before the government shuts down for the first time in nearly seven years.
The Senate rejected the legislation as Democrats are making good on their threat to close the government if President Donald Trump and Republicans won’t accede to their health care demands. The 55-45 vote on a bill to extend federal funding for seven weeks fell short of the 60 needed to end a filibuster and pass the legislation.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Republicans are trying to “bully” Democrats by refusing to negotiate on an extension of expanded Affordable Care Act tax credits that expire at the end of the year.

“We hope they sit down with us and talk,” Schumer said after the vote. “Otherwise, it’s the Republicans will be driving us straight towards a shutdown tonight at midnight. The American people will blame them for bringing the federal government to a halt.”

The failure of Congress to keep the government open means that hundreds of thousands of federal workers could be furloughed or laid off. After the vote, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget issued a memo saying “affected agencies should now execute their plans for an orderly shutdown.”

Threatening retribution to Democrats, Trump said Tuesday that a shutdown could include “cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like.”

Trump and his fellow Republicans said they won’t entertain any changes to the legislation, arguing that it’s a stripped-down, “clean” bill that should be noncontroversial. Senate Majority Leader John Thune said “we can reopen it tomorrow” if enough Democrats break party lines.

The last shutdown was in Trump’s first term, from December 2018 to January 2019, when he demanded that Congress give him money for his U.S.-Mexico border wall. Trump retreated after 35 days — the longest shutdown ever — amid intensifying airport delays and missed paydays for federal workers.

Democrats take a stand against Trump, with exceptions

While partisan stalemates over government spending are a frequent occurrence in Washington, the current impasse comes as Democrats see a rare opportunity to use their leverage to achieve policy goals and as their base voters are spoiling for a fight with Trump. Republicans who hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate needed at least eight votes from Democrats after Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky opposed the bill.

Democratic Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine voted with Republicans to keep the government open — giving Republicans hope that there might be five more who will eventually come around and help end a shutdown.

After the vote, King warned against “permanent damage” as Trump and his administration have threatened mass layoffs.

“Instead of fighting Trump we’re actually empowering him, which is what finally drove my decision,” King said.

Thune predicted Democratic support for the GOP bill will increase “when they realize that this is playing a losing hand.”

Shutdown preparations begin

The stakes are huge for federal workers across the country as the White House told agencies last week that they should consider “a reduction in force” for many federal programs if the government shuts down. That means that workers who are not deemed essential could be fired instead of just furloughed.

Either way, most would not get paid. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated in a letter to Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst on Tuesday that around 750,000 federal workers could be furloughed each day once a shutdown begins.

Federal agencies were already preparing. On the home page of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, a large pop up ad reads, “The Radical Left are going to shut down the government and inflict massive pain on the American people.”

Democrats’ health care asks

Democrats want to negotiate an extension of the health subsidies immediately as people are beginning to receive notices of premium increases for the next year. Millions of people who purchase health insurance through the Affordable Care Act could face higher costs as expanded subsidies first put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic expire.

Democrats have also demanded that Republicans reverse the Medicaid cuts that were enacted as a part of Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” this summer and for the White House to promise it will not move to rescind spending passed by Congress.

“We are not going to support a partisan Republican spending bill that continues to gut the health care of everyday Americans,” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said.

Thune pressed Democrats to vote for the funding bill and take up the debate on tax credits later. Some Republicans are open to extending the tax credits, but many are strongly opposed to it.

In rare, pointed back-and-forth with Schumer on the Senate floor Tuesday morning, Thune said Republicans “are happy to fix the ACA issue” and have offered to negotiate with Democrats — if they will vote to keep the government open until Nov. 21.

A critical, and unusual, vote for Democrats

Democrats are in an uncomfortable position for a party that has long denounced shutdowns as pointless and destructive, and it’s unclear how or when a shutdown will end. But party activists and lawmakers have argued that Democrats need to do something to stand up to Trump.

“The level of appeasement that Trump demands never ends,” said Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt. “We’ve seen that with universities, with law firms, with prosecutors. So is there a point where you just have to stand up to him? I think there is.”

Some groups called for Schumer’s resignation in March after he and nine other Democrats voted to break a filibuster and allow a Republican-led funding bill to advance to a final vote.

Schumer said then that he voted to keep the government open because a shutdown would have made things worse as Trump’s administration was slashing government jobs. He says things have now changed, including the passage this summer of the massive GOP tax cut bill that reduced Medicaid.

Trump’s role in negotiations

A bipartisan meeting at the White House on Monday was Trump’s first with all four leaders in Congress since retaking the White House for his second term. Schumer said the group “had candid, frank discussions” about health care.

But Trump did not appear to be ready for serious talks. Hours later, he posted a fake video of Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries taken from footage of their real press conference outside of the White House after the meeting. In the altered video, a voiceover that sounds like Schumer’s voice makes fun of Democrats and Jeffries stands beside him with a cartoon sombrero and mustache. Mexican music plays in the background.

At a news conference on the Capitol steps Tuesday morning, Jeffries said it was a “racist and fake AI video.”

Schumer said that less than a day before a shutdown, Trump was trolling on the internet “like a 10-year-old.”

“It’s only the president who can do this,” Schumer said. “We know he runs the show here.”

___

Associated Press writers Seung Min Kim, Kevin Freking, Matthew Brown, Darlene Superville and Joey Cappelletti in Washington contributed to this report.
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September 30, 2025
Feds sue L.A. County sheriff for ‘unreasonable’ delays in issuing concealed gun permits

The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and Sheriff Robert Luna, claiming the department violated county gunowners’ 2nd Amendment rights by delaying thousands of concealed carry permit application decisions for “unreasonable” periods of time.

In a statement, the Justice Department claimed that the Sheriff’s Department “systematically denied thousands of law-abiding Californians their fundamental Second Amendment right to bear arms outside the home — not through outright refusal, but through a deliberate pattern of unconscionable delay.”

The complaint, filed in the Central District of California, the federal court in Los Angeles, cites data provided by the Sheriff’s Department about the more than 8,000 concealed carry permit applications and renewal applications it received between Jan. 2, 2024, and March 31 this year.

During that period, the Justice Department wrote, it took an average of nearly 300 days for the Sheriff’s Department to schedule interviews to approve the applications or “otherwise” advance them.

As a result, of the nearly 4,000 applications for new concealed carry licenses it received during those 15 months, “LASD issued only two licenses.” Two others were denied, the Justice Department said, while the rest remained pending or were withdrawn.

The Sheriff’s Department did not immediately provide comment Monday. In March, when the Trump administration announced its 2nd Amendment investigation, the department said it was “committed to processing all Concealed Carry Weapons [CCW] applications in compliance with state and local laws.”

The department’s statement said it had approved 15,000 applications for concealed carry licenses but that because of “a significant staffing crisis in our CCW Unit” it was “diligenty working through approximately 4,000 active cases.”

Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi said Monday that the Justice Department was working to safeguard the 2nd Amendment, which “protects the fundamental constitutional right of law-abiding citizens to bear arms.”

“Los Angeles County may not like that right, but the Constitution does not allow them to infringe upon it,” Bondi said. “This Department of Justice will continue to fight for the Second Amendment.”

The federal agency’s complaint alleged that the practice of delaying the applications in effect forced gun permit applicants “to abandon their constitutional rights through administrative exhaustion.”

In December 2023, the California Rifle and Pistol Assn. sued the Sheriff’s Department over what it alleged were improper delays and rejections of applications for concealed carry licenses. In January, U.S. District Court Judge Sherilyn P. Garnett ordered the department to reduce delays.

In the new complaint, the Justice Department called on the court to issue a permanent injunction.

Gun rights groups heralded the move by the Trump administration.

“This is a landmark lawsuit in that it’s the first time the Department of Justice has ever filed a case in support of gun owners,” Adam Kraut, executive director of the Second Amendment Foundation, said in a statement. “We are thrilled to see the federal government step up and defend the Second Amendment rights of citizens and hope this pattern continues around the country.”

Connor Sheets

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September 30, 2025
Turning Point, moving forward without Charlie Kirk, makes first return to Utah since his killing

Turning Point USA’s college tour will return to Utah on Tuesday for its first event in the state since its founder, Charlie Kirk, was assassinated on a college campus earlier this month.The stop, at Utah State University in Logan, is about two hours north of Utah Valley University, where Kirk was killed Sept. 10 by a gunman who fired a single shot through the crowd while Kirk was speaking.The assassination of a top ally of President Donald Trump and one of the most significant figures in his Make America Great Again movement has galvanized conservatives, who have vowed to carry on Kirk’s mission of encouraging young voters to embrace conservatism and moving American politics further right. Kirk himself has been celebrated as a “martyr” by many on the right, and Turning Point USA, the youth organization he founded, has seen a surge of interest across the nation, with tens of thousands of requests to launch new chapters in high schools and on college campuses.Tuesday’s event, which was scheduled before Kirk’s death, will showcase how Turning Point is finding its path forward without its charismatic leader, who headlined many of its events and was instrumental in drawing crowds and attention.The college tour is now being headlined by some of the biggest conservative names, including Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly and Glenn Beck. Tuesday’s event will feature conservative podcast host Alex Clark and a panel with Sen. Mike Lee, Rep. Andy Biggs, former Rep. Jason Chaffetz and Gov. Spencer Cox.And it will further a pledge his widow, Erika Kirk, made to continue the campus tour and the work of the organization he founded. She now oversees Turning Point along with a stable of her late husband’s former aides and friends.‘Nothing is changing’Erika Kirk has sought to assure her husband’s followers that she intends to continue to run the operation as her late husband intended, closely following plans he laid out to her and to staff.“We’re not going anywhere. We have the blueprints. We have our marching orders,” she said during an appearance on his podcast last week.That will include, she said, continuing to tape the daily podcast.“My husband’s voice will live on. The show will go on,” she said, announcing plans for a rotating cast of hosts. She said they intended to lean heavily on old clips of her husband, including answering callers’ questions.“We have decades’ worth of my husband’s voice. We have unused material from speeches that he’s had that no one has heard yet,” she said.Erika Kirk, however, made clear that she does not intend to appear on the podcast often, and so far seems to be assuming a more behind-the-scenes role than her husband.Mikey McCoy, Kirk’s former chief of staff, said Erika Kirk is in daily contact with members of the Trump administration, and has described her as “very strategic” and different from her husband.The events have served as tributes to KirkThe events so far have served as tributes to the late Kirk, with a focus on prayer, as well as the question-and-answer sessions that he was known for.At Virginia Tech last week, the state’s Republican governor, Glenn Youngkin, urged the crowd to carry Kirk’s legacy forward.“The question that has been asked over and over again is: Who will be the next Charlie? And as I look out in this room and I see thousands of you, I want to repeat the best answer that I have heard: You will be the next Charlie,” he said. “All of you.”He also praised Erika Kirk as an “extraordinary” leader.“Over the course of the last two weeks, Erika Kirk has demonstrated that she not only has the courage of a lion, but she has the heart of a saint. We have grieved with her and her family. We have prayed for her and her family,” he said. “Is there anyone better to lead Turning Point going forward than Erika Kirk?”He then turned the stage over to Kelly, who said Charlie Kirk had asked her to join the tour several months ago. She said she knew appearing onstage carried risk, but felt it was important to be there “to send a message that we will not be silenced by an assassin’s bullet, by a heckler’s veto, by a left-wing, woke professor or anyone who tries to silence us from saying what we really believe,” she said to loud cheers.At another event at the University of Minnesota last week, conservative commentator Michael Knowles gave a solo speech in lieu of the two-man conversation with Kirk that was originally planned. Then he continued Kirk’s tradition of responding to questions from the audience, which ranged from one man quibbling about Catholic doctrine to another arguing that the root of societal problems stems from letting women vote. (To the latter, he responded that women aren’t to blame because “men need to lead women.”)As Knowles spoke, a spotlight shined on a chair left empty for Kirk.Knowles said Kirk was instrumental in keeping together disparate conservative factions, and he worries about the MAGA movement fracturing without Kirk doing the day-to-day work to build bridges between warring groups.“Charlie was the unifying figure for the movement. It’s simply a fact,” he said. “There is no replacing him in that regard.”“The biggest threat right now is that without that single figure that we were all friends with, who could really hold it together, things could spin off in different directions,” Knowles said. “We have to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

LOGAN, Utah —

Turning Point USA’s college tour will return to Utah on Tuesday for its first event in the state since its founder, Charlie Kirk, was assassinated on a college campus earlier this month.

The stop, at Utah State University in Logan, is about two hours north of Utah Valley University, where Kirk was killed Sept. 10 by a gunman who fired a single shot through the crowd while Kirk was speaking.

The assassination of a top ally of President Donald Trump and one of the most significant figures in his Make America Great Again movement has galvanized conservatives, who have vowed to carry on Kirk’s mission of encouraging young voters to embrace conservatism and moving American politics further right. Kirk himself has been celebrated as a “martyr” by many on the right, and Turning Point USA, the youth organization he founded, has seen a surge of interest across the nation, with tens of thousands of requests to launch new chapters in high schools and on college campuses.

Tuesday’s event, which was scheduled before Kirk’s death, will showcase how Turning Point is finding its path forward without its charismatic leader, who headlined many of its events and was instrumental in drawing crowds and attention.

The college tour is now being headlined by some of the biggest conservative names, including Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly and Glenn Beck. Tuesday’s event will feature conservative podcast host Alex Clark and a panel with Sen. Mike Lee, Rep. Andy Biggs, former Rep. Jason Chaffetz and Gov. Spencer Cox.

And it will further a pledge his widow, Erika Kirk, made to continue the campus tour and the work of the organization he founded. She now oversees Turning Point along with a stable of her late husband’s former aides and friends.

‘Nothing is changing’

Erika Kirk has sought to assure her husband’s followers that she intends to continue to run the operation as her late husband intended, closely following plans he laid out to her and to staff.

“We’re not going anywhere. We have the blueprints. We have our marching orders,” she said during an appearance on his podcast last week.

That will include, she said, continuing to tape the daily podcast.

“My husband’s voice will live on. The show will go on,” she said, announcing plans for a rotating cast of hosts. She said they intended to lean heavily on old clips of her husband, including answering callers’ questions.

“We have decades’ worth of my husband’s voice. We have unused material from speeches that he’s had that no one has heard yet,” she said.

Erika Kirk, however, made clear that she does not intend to appear on the podcast often, and so far seems to be assuming a more behind-the-scenes role than her husband.

Mikey McCoy, Kirk’s former chief of staff, said Erika Kirk is in daily contact with members of the Trump administration, and has described her as “very strategic” and different from her husband.

The events have served as tributes to Kirk

The events so far have served as tributes to the late Kirk, with a focus on prayer, as well as the question-and-answer sessions that he was known for.

At Virginia Tech last week, the state’s Republican governor, Glenn Youngkin, urged the crowd to carry Kirk’s legacy forward.

“The question that has been asked over and over again is: Who will be the next Charlie? And as I look out in this room and I see thousands of you, I want to repeat the best answer that I have heard: You will be the next Charlie,” he said. “All of you.”

He also praised Erika Kirk as an “extraordinary” leader.

“Over the course of the last two weeks, Erika Kirk has demonstrated that she not only has the courage of a lion, but she has the heart of a saint. We have grieved with her and her family. We have prayed for her and her family,” he said. “Is there anyone better to lead Turning Point going forward than Erika Kirk?”

He then turned the stage over to Kelly, who said Charlie Kirk had asked her to join the tour several months ago. She said she knew appearing onstage carried risk, but felt it was important to be there “to send a message that we will not be silenced by an assassin’s bullet, by a heckler’s veto, by a left-wing, woke professor or anyone who tries to silence us from saying what we really believe,” she said to loud cheers.

At another event at the University of Minnesota last week, conservative commentator Michael Knowles gave a solo speech in lieu of the two-man conversation with Kirk that was originally planned. Then he continued Kirk’s tradition of responding to questions from the audience, which ranged from one man quibbling about Catholic doctrine to another arguing that the root of societal problems stems from letting women vote. (To the latter, he responded that women aren’t to blame because “men need to lead women.”)

As Knowles spoke, a spotlight shined on a chair left empty for Kirk.

Knowles said Kirk was instrumental in keeping together disparate conservative factions, and he worries about the MAGA movement fracturing without Kirk doing the day-to-day work to build bridges between warring groups.

“Charlie was the unifying figure for the movement. It’s simply a fact,” he said. “There is no replacing him in that regard.”

“The biggest threat right now is that without that single figure that we were all friends with, who could really hold it together, things could spin off in different directions,” Knowles said. “We have to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

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September 30, 2025
Farm-to-Fork event draws thousands to downtown Sacramento

IT WAS A BUSY AND VERY PACKED WEEKEND IN DOWNTOWN SACRAMENTO WITH THE FARM TO FORK. AT TERRA MADRE AMERICAS. THIS WAS THE FIRST OF A SERIES OF WEEKEND EVENTS TO TAKE OVER THE CAPITAL CITY. KCRA 3’S MARICELA DE LA CRUZ IS IN SACRAMENTO TONIGHT, SO MARICELA, HOW MANY PEOPLE ATTENDED THE FIRST YEAR OF THIS COMBINED EVENT? YES, IT WAS A VERY SUCCESSFUL EVENT. WE’RE TOLD THAT OVER 100,000 PEOPLE MADE IT OUT HERE TO DOWNTOWN SACRAMENTO TO ENJOY THIS THREE DAY EVENT. YES, HE’S TIRED FIGHTING IN THIS TOWN. A WEEKEND FILLED WITH SPIRITS, WINE, FOOD, LIVE MUSIC AND THE MAIN EVENT. THOUSANDS OF VISITORS. I WENT THROUGH ALL OF THE EXPERIENCES EARLY ON, SO THE FOOD TASTING, THE LITTLE TINY BIT OF COFFEE TASTING, THE WINE TASTING HAS BEEN ABSOLUTELY GREAT. AN ESTIMATED 165,000 PEOPLE TURNED OUT FOR FARM TO FORK AT TERRA MADRE AMERICAS THIS WEEKEND. IT’S SO ACCESSIBLE THAT YOU DON’T HAVE TO PAY TO ENTER. IT’S JUST WHAT YOU WANT TO SAMPLE. AND EVEN THEN, IF LIKE THERE’S NOT A COST TO ENTRY, YOU CAN SAMPLE WHAT THEY HAVE TO OFFER WITHOUT HAVING TO PAY A LOT. THE EVENT IS PART OF VISIT SACRAMENTO’S TEN YEAR PARTNERSHIP WITH SLOW FOOD INTERNATIONAL, AND ORGANIZERS WERE PLEASANTLY SURPRISED BY THE TURNOUT. FARM TO FORK HAS ALWAYS BEEN POPULAR. WE KNEW THAT ABOUT 100,000 PEOPLE ATTEND THAT EVENT. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME EVENT, SO TOUGH TO GAUGE WHO’S GOING TO SHOW UP, BUT WE’VE BEEN BLOWN AWAY AT THE RESPONSE. I MEAN, EVERYBODY THAT’S HERE SEEMS TO BE HAVING A GREAT TIME. THE VENDORS HAVE BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL. TERRA MADRE AMERICAS KICKS OFF A SERIES OF EVENTS RUNNING THROUGH OCTOBER WITH AFTERSHOCK FESTIVAL STARTING THURSDAY AND IRONMAN CALIFORNIA THE WEEKEND AFTER THAT, ALL PROMISING A BOOST TO SACRAMENTO’S ECONOMY. CERTAINLY, A LOT OF PUBLICITY FOR THE REGION. YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU LOOK AT AFTERSHOCK, 65% OF THE ATTENDEES DON’T LIVE IN THIS REGION. SO YOU HAVE A LOT OF VISITORS COMING INTO TOWN. BUT FROM AN ECONOMIC IMPACT STANDPOINT, IT’S WELL OVER $50 MILLION. WHEN YOU FACTOR IN ALL THESE EVENTS THEY’RE SPENDING AT OUR HOTELS, THEY’RE SPENDING WITH LOCAL BUSINESSES. THEY’RE UTILIZING RIDESHARES FOR VENDORS LIKE HARRIGAN, THE EVENT EXCEEDED EXPECTATIONS. IT MAKES A REALLY BIG DEAL. LIKE I SAID, I’VE BEEN DOING FARM TO FORK THE PAST FEW YEARS, AND I REALLY DO RELY ON IT AS ONE OF MY BIGGEST EVENTS OF THE YEAR, NOT JUST FOR SALES, BUT FOR MARKETING AND FOR VISITORS. AND ALL THE EXPERIENCE WITH SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE. YEAH, I’M HAVING A REALLY GREAT TIME SO FAR. REALLY AWESOME OPTIONS FOR EATING THE BAR HAS BEEN REALLY FUN. THEY’VE GOT A CONCERT GOING THAT’S FUN, AND THEY’VE GOT THE EXHIBIT INSIDE OF THE SAFE CREDIT UNION. AND OUT HERE ALONG 14TH STREET, CREWS ARE ALREADY CLEARING OUT THE AREA OF THIS VERY SUCCESSFUL EVENT. AND WE KNOW THAT OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS AND WEEKS, WE’RE ALSO GOING TO START SEEING MORE OF THE CREWS BEING OUT IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF SACRAMENTO CITY AS WE GET READY FOR AFTERSHOCK. IN CALIFORNIA. IRONMAN. FOR NOW, WE’RE LIVE IN DOWNTOWN SACRAMENTO. MARICELA DE

Farm-to-Fork event draws thousands to downtown Sacramento

Updated: 11:40 PM PDT Sep 28, 2025

Editorial Standards ⓘ

The Farm-to-Fork at Terra Madre Americas event in downtown Sacramento attracted an estimated 165,000 people, featuring spirits, wine, food, live music, and thousands of visitors enjoying the festivities.Sheryl Renay Sharama, who attended the food festival, said, “I went through all of the experiences earlier on, so the food tasting, the little tiny bit of coffee tasting, the wine tasting has been absolutely great.”Constanza Neyra, another attendee, highlighted the accessibility of the event, noting, “It’s so accessible that you don’t have to pay to enter. It’s just what you want to sample, and even then, if, like, there’s not a cost to enter, you can sample what they have to offer without having to pay a lot.”The event is part of Visit Sacramento’s 10-year partnership with Slow Food International, and organizers were pleasantly surprised by the turnout. Mike Testa from Visit Sacramento said, “Farm-to-Fork has always been popular. We knew that about 100,000 people attended that event. This is a first-time event, so it’s tough to gauge who’s going to show up, but we’ve been blown away by the response. I mean, everybody that’s here seems to be having a great time. The vendors have been very successful.”Terra Madre Americas kicks off a series of events running through October, including the Aftershock Festival, which begins Thursday and Ironman California the following weekend, all promising a boost to Sacramento’s economy. Testa added, “Certainly, a lot of publicity for the region. When you look at Aftershock, 65% of the attendees don’t live in this region, so you have a lot of visitors coming into town. But, from an economic impact standpoint, it’s well over $50 million. When you factor in all these events, they’re spending at our hotels, they’re spending with local businesses, and are utilizing rideshares.”For vendors like Nurelle Harrigan, the event exceeded expectations. Harrigan said, “It makes a really big deal. I’ve been doing Farm-to-Fork the past few years, and I really do rely on it as one of my biggest events of the year, not just for sales but for marketing.”Visitors enjoyed an all-day experience with something for everyone. Khendel Turner shared, “I’m having a really great time so far. Really awesome options for eating. The bars have been really fun. They’ve got a concert going on that’s fun, and they’ve got exhibits going on inside the Safe Credit Union.”

The Farm-to-Fork at Terra Madre Americas event in downtown Sacramento attracted an estimated 165,000 people, featuring spirits, wine, food, live music, and thousands of visitors enjoying the festivities.

Sheryl Renay Sharama, who attended the food festival, said, “I went through all of the experiences earlier on, so the food tasting, the little tiny bit of coffee tasting, the wine tasting has been absolutely great.”

Constanza Neyra, another attendee, highlighted the accessibility of the event, noting, “It’s so accessible that you don’t have to pay to enter. It’s just what you want to sample, and even then, if, like, there’s not a cost to enter, you can sample what they have to offer without having to pay a lot.”

The event is part of Visit Sacramento’s 10-year partnership with Slow Food International, and organizers were pleasantly surprised by the turnout. Mike Testa from Visit Sacramento said, “Farm-to-Fork has always been popular. We knew that about 100,000 people attended that event. This is a first-time event, so it’s tough to gauge who’s going to show up, but we’ve been blown away by the response. I mean, everybody that’s here seems to be having a great time. The vendors have been very successful.”

Terra Madre Americas kicks off a series of events running through October, including the Aftershock Festival, which begins Thursday and Ironman California the following weekend, all promising a boost to Sacramento’s economy. Testa added, “Certainly, a lot of publicity for the region. When you look at Aftershock, 65% of the attendees don’t live in this region, so you have a lot of visitors coming into town. But, from an economic impact standpoint, it’s well over $50 million. When you factor in all these events, they’re spending at our hotels, they’re spending with local businesses, and are utilizing rideshares.”

For vendors like Nurelle Harrigan, the event exceeded expectations. Harrigan said, “It makes a really big deal. I’ve been doing Farm-to-Fork the past few years, and I really do rely on it as one of my biggest events of the year, not just for sales but for marketing.”

Visitors enjoyed an all-day experience with something for everyone. Khendel Turner shared, “I’m having a really great time so far. Really awesome options for eating. The bars have been really fun. They’ve got a concert going on that’s fun, and they’ve got exhibits going on inside the Safe Credit Union.”

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September 28, 2025
$1,500 for a name? A look inside the world of baby name consulting

Between setting up a nursery and packing a go bag, some parents may find themselves stressing over what to name a new baby. Yes, there is Google and a plethora of baby name books at public libraries. But now, parents have the option of hiring a baby name consultant. Taylor Humphrey of Woodside, California, has been in the industry for a decade and has had a hand in naming thousands of babies. It all started on Instagram. Humphrey said she has had a “lifelong love of baby names,” which turned into posts on her grid exploring the etymology, numerology and spiritual meaning of names. She said expecting parents started sending her messages through the social media app.“It was happening so frequently that eventually I decided that I was going to turn this into a business,” Humphrey said. Her pricing starts at $1,500 and can run up to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on what parents are looking for. The base package includes a name report and several consultations over the phone or video call. “I work with parents who are currently trying to conceive, and they may be facing an IVF journey. I work with a lot of pregnant parents,” Humphrey said. “I’ve had a few frantic parents who are like, ‘We’re at the hospital and they’re not letting us leave. We’ve got to sign the birth certificate. What do we name our baby?’”Her clients are primarily wealthy families. Her reach extends from the Bay Area to Nebraska and even some international clients. Lauren Williams of Omaha, Nebraska, reached out to Humphrey a month before her son was due in 2023. She and her husband both had meaningful family names they were considering, but could not seem to come to an agreement on what to name their son. They thought Humphrey might be able to help them merge ideas. Humphrey did help them come up with some new name combinations as well as some names that were not already on their list, but were similar. Humphrey also told the Williams family to be patient in picking a name.“I think the most helpful or important thing that she told me in the long run was, ‘Do not name your baby until they are born and you see them.’ So, we went with that advice,” Williams said. The Nebraska parents ended up welcoming Carter Allen Williams into the world in September 2023. “Having her support has been important because otherwise it’s a really stressful decision,” Williams said. She and her husband are now expecting a baby girl in the next few weeks and have once again hired Humphrey to help them pick a name. “Generally speaking, I’m there to kind of mirror back to them and reflect what I hear them saying,” Humphrey said. “Names are so deeply personal, and they really are going to be your child’s legacy.”See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

SAN FRANCISCO —

Between setting up a nursery and packing a go bag, some parents may find themselves stressing over what to name a new baby.

Yes, there is Google and a plethora of baby name books at public libraries. But now, parents have the option of hiring a baby name consultant. Taylor Humphrey of Woodside, California, has been in the industry for a decade and has had a hand in naming thousands of babies.

It all started on Instagram. Humphrey said she has had a “lifelong love of baby names,” which turned into posts on her grid exploring the etymology, numerology and spiritual meaning of names. She said expecting parents started sending her messages through the social media app.

“It was happening so frequently that eventually I decided that I was going to turn this into a business,” Humphrey said.

Her pricing starts at $1,500 and can run up to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on what parents are looking for. The base package includes a name report and several consultations over the phone or video call.

“I work with parents who are currently trying to conceive, and they may be facing an IVF journey. I work with a lot of pregnant parents,” Humphrey said. “I’ve had a few frantic parents who are like, ‘We’re at the hospital and they’re not letting us leave. We’ve got to sign the birth certificate. What do we name our baby?’”

Her clients are primarily wealthy families. Her reach extends from the Bay Area to Nebraska and even some international clients.

Lauren Williams of Omaha, Nebraska, reached out to Humphrey a month before her son was due in 2023. She and her husband both had meaningful family names they were considering, but could not seem to come to an agreement on what to name their son. They thought Humphrey might be able to help them merge ideas.

Humphrey did help them come up with some new name combinations as well as some names that were not already on their list, but were similar. Humphrey also told the Williams family to be patient in picking a name.

“I think the most helpful or important thing that she told me in the long run was, ‘Do not name your baby until they are born and you see them.’ So, we went with that advice,” Williams said.

The Nebraska parents ended up welcoming Carter Allen Williams into the world in September 2023.

“Having her support has been important because otherwise it’s a really stressful decision,” Williams said.

She and her husband are now expecting a baby girl in the next few weeks and have once again hired Humphrey to help them pick a name.

“Generally speaking, I’m there to kind of mirror back to them and reflect what I hear them saying,” Humphrey said. “Names are so deeply personal, and they really are going to be your child’s legacy.”

See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

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September 27, 2025
Stampede at a political rally for popular actor Vijay in southern India kills 36, injures 40

A stampede at a rally for a popular Indian actor and politician in the southern state of Tamil Nadu killed at least 36 people and injured 40 others, the state’s health minister said late Saturday.Related video above: US tariffs on Indian imports doubled in August, impacting businesses and consumersMa Subramanian told The Associated Press that the victims were dead by the time they were taken to a hospital and that the injured were stable. The dead included eight children, Subramanian said.The rally, which officials say was attended by tens of thousands of people, was being addressed by Vijay, one of Tamil Nadu’s most successful actors-turned-politicians in the district of Karur.Indian media reports, quoting local officials, said that as Vijay spoke to the surging crowd, a group of his supporters and fans fell while trying to get close to his bus, causing the stampede. Supporters had gathered at the political rally amid intensely hot temperatures and Vijay arrived hours late, officials said.”There was indiscipline” at the rally, Subramanian said, adding that an investigation had been ordered.Quoting officials, the Press Trust of India news agency reported that at least 30 people fainted while Vijay was addressing the rally from atop his campaign vehicle and were rushed in ambulances to area hospitals. He halted his speech mid-way when workers raised alarm after noticing that people were fainting and falling, it said, adding that as they were removed to hospitals, Vijay continued his speech.However, he ended his speech shortly after sensing an abnormal situation in a section of the huge gathering, the news agency said.Hours after the accident, Vijay offered his condolences.”My heart is shattered,” he posted on X. “I am writhing in unbearable, indescribable pain and sorrow that words cannot express.”Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the “unfortunate incident” was “deeply saddening.””My thoughts are with the families who have lost their loved ones. Wishing strength to them in this difficult time. Praying for a swift recovery to all those injured,” he said on social media.In southern Indian states, particularly Tamil Nadu, some film stars have larger-than-life status, rooted in the ancient Tamil culture of hero worship and image worship. Many have become politicians, and some have even been given divine status.In 2024, Vijay retired from acting and launched his own political party. It was unclear whether he plans to run for office in Tamil Nadu state.Stampedes are relatively common in India when large crowds gather. In January, at least 30 people were killed as tens of thousands of Hindus rushed to bathe in a sacred river during the Maha Kumbh festival, the world’s largest religious gathering.

NEW DELHI (AP) —

A stampede at a rally for a popular Indian actor and politician in the southern state of Tamil Nadu killed at least 36 people and injured 40 others, the state’s health minister said late Saturday.

Related video above: US tariffs on Indian imports doubled in August, impacting businesses and consumers

Ma Subramanian told The Associated Press that the victims were dead by the time they were taken to a hospital and that the injured were stable. The dead included eight children, Subramanian said.

The rally, which officials say was attended by tens of thousands of people, was being addressed by Vijay, one of Tamil Nadu’s most successful actors-turned-politicians in the district of Karur.

Indian media reports, quoting local officials, said that as Vijay spoke to the surging crowd, a group of his supporters and fans fell while trying to get close to his bus, causing the stampede. Supporters had gathered at the political rally amid intensely hot temperatures and Vijay arrived hours late, officials said.

“There was indiscipline” at the rally, Subramanian said, adding that an investigation had been ordered.

Quoting officials, the Press Trust of India news agency reported that at least 30 people fainted while Vijay was addressing the rally from atop his campaign vehicle and were rushed in ambulances to area hospitals. He halted his speech mid-way when workers raised alarm after noticing that people were fainting and falling, it said, adding that as they were removed to hospitals, Vijay continued his speech.

However, he ended his speech shortly after sensing an abnormal situation in a section of the huge gathering, the news agency said.

Hours after the accident, Vijay offered his condolences.

“My heart is shattered,” he posted on X. “I am writhing in unbearable, indescribable pain and sorrow that words cannot express.”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the “unfortunate incident” was “deeply saddening.”

“My thoughts are with the families who have lost their loved ones. Wishing strength to them in this difficult time. Praying for a swift recovery to all those injured,” he said on social media.

In southern Indian states, particularly Tamil Nadu, some film stars have larger-than-life status, rooted in the ancient Tamil culture of hero worship and image worship. Many have become politicians, and some have even been given divine status.

In 2024, Vijay retired from acting and launched his own political party. It was unclear whether he plans to run for office in Tamil Nadu state.

Stampedes are relatively common in India when large crowds gather. In January, at least 30 people were killed as tens of thousands of Hindus rushed to bathe in a sacred river during the Maha Kumbh festival, the world’s largest religious gathering.

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September 27, 2025
After insurance pullback, advocates demand a ‘bill of rights’ for California policyholders

A leading consumer group is proposing a policyholder rights initiative that would require insurers to offer coverage to California homeowners who fireproof their homes — or lose the right to sell home or auto insurance in the state for five years.

The Insurance Policyholder Bill of Rights was filed with state Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta’s office last week by Consumer Watchdog, the Los Angeles advocacy group whose founder Harvey Rosenfield authored Proposition 103, the 1988 initiative that governs California home and auto insurance law.

The initiative for the November 2026 ballot also would give policyholders not renewed by their insurer 180 days to make home repairs and improvements necessary for renewal if they face unavoidable permit, construction and other delays.

“The Insurance Policyholder Bill of Rights guarantees that people who invest in wildfire mitigation get coverage and prevents companies from canceling people simply because they file a claim,” Rosenfield said in a statement.

Insurers can seek six-month waivers of the rule in certain geographic areas but would need to show they have an overconcentration of risk there.

The proposed initiative comes after insurers began pulling back from the California market a few years ago after a spate of wildfires and began seeking double-digit rate increases. However, it is unclear whether the group will even start gathering the 500,000-plus signatures it would need to make the ballot.

Carmen Balber, executive director of Consumer Watchdog, said the measure was prompted by a separate initiative filed by a Roseville, Calif., insurance broker that would repeal core reforms of Proposition 103, which established an elected insurance commissioner with the right to review requests for rate hikes before they take effect.

The proposed initiative — called the California Insurance Market Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2026 — was filed by Elizabeth Hammack, owner of Panorama Insurance Associates. It would allow insurer rate increases to take effect prior to any rate review, though they could be suspended later if the insurance commissioner determines the market is not “reasonably competitive.”

Additionally, insurers would have to provide premium credits to policyholders who take steps to reduce fire dangers on their property, under the measure.

The measure also would abolish another core element of Proposition 103, by banning payments to “intervenors” such as Consumer Watchdog, which insert themselves in the rate-review process and seek to block or reduce increases — a provision that has irked the industry since its inception.

Hammack did not immediately respond Monday to requests for comment.

In an earlier email exchange with The Times, she said: “I drafted up the initiative and filed it out of pure frustration about the horrible California insurance market dysfunction and the feeling of just needing to do something, anything, to make a difference.”

Balber said it requires $5.5 million to gather the required signatures for an initiative. While the group is confident it could raise the funds, she said it would not proceed with its own measure unless Hammack raises money and moves forward beyond the filing stage — or if Consumer Watchdog is swamped by donations.

“There are hundreds, if not thousands of Californians who are fed up with the insurance industry and after the Los Angeles fires, I can guarantee you that there are people out there who would be begging to fund a ballot measure that would finally hold the insurance industry accountable,” she said.

Proposed ballot initiatives in California must be reviewed by the attorney general, who prepares a title and brief summary. After that, proponents have 180 days to gather signatures.

The proposed dueling ballot measures come at a time when there is widespread anger not only over rate increases, but how some insurers have handled claims stemming from the Jan. 7 Los Angeles-area fires, which destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 19 people.

The Eaton Fire Survivors Network in Altadena and local politicians have demanded that Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara halt anymore rate increases for State Farm General, California’s largest home insurer, unless complaints over its claims handling are resolved.

In addition to State Farm, the state’s insurer of last resort, the California FAIR Plan, has come under attack for denying smoke-damage claims. That prompted Gov. Newsom to send a letter this month calling on the plan to handle the claims “expeditiously and fairly.”

The plan has taken on hundreds of thousands of policyholders in recent years as insurers began pulling out of the state’s fire-plagued homeowners market. Hammack’s initiative seeks to have the plan establish a schedule to shrink its roles when more coverage from carriers becomes available.

Her measure also would require the California insurance commissioners to have at least five years of insurance experience, either with a regulator, insurer or in other roles, such as actuarial science.

Times staff writer Paige St. John contributed to this report.

Laurence Darmiento

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September 22, 2025
Israel begins ground offensive in Gaza City with thousands of troops

BEIRUT — Israel began a ground offensive into Gaza City, military officials said Tuesday, slow-rolling into the beleaguered city from multiple directions despite international opprobrium and even as hundreds of thousands of Palestinian residents remain within Gaza’s devastated confines.

Weeks of intense bombardment that all but leveled the Gaza Strip’s largest urban center made way for what Israeli military officials said was the ground maneuver phase of the operation to occupy the city.

“We are operating in the depths of the territory… Our aim is to deepen the blows to Hamas until its defeat,” said the Israeli military’s chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, in a video statement said to be from the border with Gaza on Tuesday.

“All our operations are carried out according to an orderly plan, with the release of the hostages and the defeat of Hamas before our eyes.”

Two divisions — comprising tens of thousands of soldiers — began entering the city late Monday from its western flank. Another is supposed to join in the coming days, while two other divisions encircle the city. Some 130,000 reservists are expected to be mobilized, the Israeli military said.

The Israeli military insists Hamas is using Gaza City as “the central hub” of its military and governing power, according to a briefing from its spokesman, Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin. He added the Palestinian group has turned the city “into the largest human shield in history.”

“We estimate it will take several months to secure the city and its centers of gravity, and additional months to clear the city fully due to deep and entrenched infrastructure,” Defrin said.

In a statement later on Tuesday, Hamas characterized Israel’s accusation that it uses human shields as “a blatant attempt at deception.” It added that Israel is “continuing to perpetrate brutal massacres against innocent civilians.”

Residents reached by messaging apps reported “insane” amounts of bombardment while others said the Israeli military dispatched what they called “booby-trapped robots” — armored personnel carriers filled with explosives repurposed as unmanned drones — into city neighborhoods.

Military officials quoted in Israeli media say troops are proceeding with caution, with the expectation of some 2,000 Hamas fighters bunkered in the city.

Running concurrently with its ground offensive, the Israeli warplanes struck Hodeidah, a vital port city in Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels. The Houthis began firing missiles on Israel in 2023 in a bid to pressure the government into a ceasefire with Hamas.

The Gaza operation went ahead despite widespread condemnation from Israel’s European allies and accusations internationally that it was committing genocide, according to a U.N. commission report released on Tuesday. Israel rejected the commission’s findings.

Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, wrote on X that Israel’s ground offensive “will mean more death, more destruction & more displacement.” She added the European Commission will present measures on Wednesday aimed at pressuring the Israeli government to change course.

Germany, one of Israel’s staunchest supporters, excoriated the decision to occupy Gaza City. It is “the completely wrong path,” German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said in a news conference.

Wadephul appealed to the Israeli government to instead return “to the path of negotiations for a ceasefire and an agreement” on the release of captives held in Gaza.

In Israel, the decision to launch the offensive — taken by the Cabinet of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in August — continues to be a contentious matter that has divided the military leadership and spurred demonstrations against Netanyahu. On Tuesday morning, families of hostages kidnapped by Hamas protested in front of Netanyahu’s house in Jerusalem.

Despite the pummeling and repeated warnings that the roughly 1 million Gaza City residents should flee south to so-called humanitarian areas, more than two-thirds remain, according to Israeli military estimates. Health authorities in Gaza said more than 100 people have been killed since the offensive began; they added that the few remaining operational hospitals are overcrowded and suffering catastrophic shortages in medications and blood units.

“We are seeing massive killing of civilians in a way that I do not remember in any conflict since I am Secretary-General,” said U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a news conference. Israel, he said, did not appear “interested in a serious negotiation for a ceasefire and release of hostages” and that it was determined to “go up to the end.”

Christoph Lockyear, secretary-general of Doctors Without Borders, known as MSF, said that even those Gazans who survived the bombardment on their journey to southern Gaza would “find neither safety nor the basics they need to exist.”

Israeli soldiers work on their tanks and armored personnel carriers at a staging area on the border with the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, on Tuesday.

(Leo Correa / Associated Press)

“What is happening in Gaza is not just a humanitarian catastrophe, it is the systematic destruction of a people. MSF is clear: Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, and doing so with absolute impunity,” he said.

Many residents also say they cannot afford to go to al-Mawasi encampment, the area south of the enclave designated by the Israeli military as a safe zone, with drivers charging more than $1,000. Even for those who could pay such sums, overcrowding means there’s no shelter to be found or even a space for tents; and Israeli strikes have hit safe zones in the past.

Nevertheless, news broadcasts on location on the coastal highway south of Gaza City showed a deluge of thousands of vehicles, many straining under haphazardly piled towers of mattresses, plastic chairs, bags of clothing — anything people could save from their homes ahead of what is expected to be the city’s complete destruction.

Speaking to reporters ahead of his trip to London on Tuesday, President Trump said he “didn’t know too much about” the ground operation, but that Hamas “would have hell to pay” if it used hostages as human shields.

In a later news conference on Tuesday, Netanyahu said Trump invited him to visit the White House in two weeks’ time.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Doha, Qatar, on Tuesday.

(Nathan Howard / Associated Press)

As Israeli armor advanced into Gaza, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was traveling from Tel Aviv to Doha on Tuesday morning, where he hopes to assuage Qatar’s ire over an Israeli strike on the Qatari capital targeting Hamas leaders last week.

A statement from the office of Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani said the meeting with Rubio centered on ways to enhance defense cooperation, along with joint diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire.

But in a news conference in Doha on Tuesday, Majed al-Ansari, the spokesman for the country’s foreign ministry, said ceasefire talks would have “no validity… when one party wants to assassinate anybody who is willing to talk on other side.”

“What kind of talks can be held, about what?” he said.

“Our focus right now is protecting our sovereignty, and we will not look into other issues until this one is resolved.”

In response to the strike, Qatar had threatened to suspend its longtime mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel. During a summit of Arabic and Islamic States on Monday held in Doha, its leaders berated Israel and demanded concrete punitive actions. (A collective communique from the summit announced little more than condemnation.)

Earlier, Rubio said he hoped the government would continue shepherding negotiations.

“If any country in the world can help mediate it, Qatar is the one,” he said.

He added Hamas had a “very short window of time in which a deal can happen,” and that the Trump administration’s preference was for a negotiated settlement.

Demonstrators in Jerusalem hold photos Tuesday depicting Israeli hostages being held in the Gaza Strip.

(Mahmoud Illean / Associated Press)

Hamas dismissed his words in a statement on Tuesday, saying Netanyahu bears “full responsibility” for the hostages’ lives, and that the U.S. used a “policy of deception” to cover up Israeli “war crimes.”

Israel demands the group hand back all hostages, surrender and disarm. Hamas insists on a ceasefire with negotiations that would lead to an exchange of hostages and Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons and Israeli troops’ withdrawing from the Gaza Strip; disarmament would happen when Israel agrees to the creation of an independent Palestinian state.

The war sparked on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people — two-thirds of them civilians, Israeli tallies say — and kidnapping 251 others.

Israel retaliated with a full-on offensive that pulverized wide swaths of the enclave and has so far killed more than 64,000 people, the grand majority of them civilians, according to Gaza health authorities and aid groups; the Israeli military’s former chief of staff said in a recent interview more than 200,000 people have been killed or injured — more than 10% of Gaza’s 2.2 million population, a figure that aligns with the Palestinian Health Ministry’s estimates.

Nabih Bulos

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September 16, 2025
Barrage of Israeli airstrikes kills 32 in Gaza City, including 12 children, hospital says

A barrage of airstrikes killed at least 32 people across Gaza City as Israel ramps up its offensive there and urges Palestinians to evacuate, medical staff reported Saturday.The dead included 12 children, according to the morgue in Shifa Hospital, where the bodies were brought.In recent days, Israel has intensified strikes across Gaza City, destroying multiple high-rise buildings and accusing Hamas of putting surveillance equipment in them.On Saturday, the army said it struck another high-rise used by Hamas in the area of Gaza City. It has ordered residents to leave as part of an offensive aimed at taking over the largest Palestinian city, which it says is Hamas’ last stronghold. Hundreds of thousands of people remain there, struggling under conditions of famine.One of the strikes overnight and into early morning Saturday hit a house in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, killing a family of 10, including a mother and her three children, said health officials. The Palestinian Football Association said a player for the Al-Helal Sporting Club, Mohammed Ramez Sultan, was killed in the strikes, along with 14 members of his family. Images showed the strikes hitting followed by plumes of smoke.Israel’s army did not immediately respond to questions about the strikes.Hostages’ relatives rally in IsraelMeanwhile, relatives of Israeli hostages held by Hamas rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday to demand a deal to release their loved ones and criticized what they said was a counterproductive approach by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in securing a resolution.Einav Zangauker, the mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, described Israel’s attempted assassination of Hamas leaders in Qatar this week as a “spectacular failure.”“President Trump said yesterday that every time there is progress in the negotiations, Netanyahu bombs someone. But it wasn’t Hamas leaders he tried to bomb — it was our chance, as families, to bring our loved ones home,” Zangauker said.Some Palestinians are leaving Gaza City, but many are stuckIn the wake of escalating hostilities and calls to evacuate the city, the number of people leaving has spiked in recent weeks, according to aid workers. However, many families remain stuck due to the cost of finding transportation and housing, while others have been displaced too many times and do not want to move again, not trusting that anywhere in the enclave is safe.In a message on social media Saturday, Israel’s army told the remaining Palestinians in Gaza City to leave “immediately” and move south to what it’s calling a humanitarian zone. Army spokesman Avichay Adraee said that more than a quarter of a million people had left Gaza City — from an estimated 1 million who live in the area of north Gaza around the city.The United Nations, however, put the number of people who have left at around 100,000 between mid-August and mid-September. The U.N. and aid groups have warned that displacing hundreds of thousands of people will exacerbate the dire humanitarian crisis. Sites in southern Gaza where Israel is telling people to go are overcrowded, according to the U.N., and it can cost money to move, which many people do not have.An initiative headed by the U.N. to bring temporary shelters into Gaza said more than 86,000 tents and other supplies were still awaiting clearance to enter Gaza as of last week.Gaza’s Health Ministry said Saturday that seven people, including children, died from malnutrition-related causes over the past 24 hours, raising the toll to 420, including 145 children, since the war began.The bombardment Friday night across Gaza City came days after Israel launched a strike targeting Hamas leaders in Qatar, intensifying its campaign against the militant group and endangering negotiations over ending the war in Gaza.Families of the hostages still held in Gaza are pleading with Israel to halt the offensive, worried it will kill their relatives. There are 48 hostages still inside Gaza, around 20 of them believed to be alive.The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, abducting 251 people and killing some 1,200, mostly civilians. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 64,803 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were civilians or combatants. It says around half of those killed were women and children. Large parts of major cities have been completely destroyed, and around 90% of some 2 million Palestinians have been displaced.

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip —

A barrage of airstrikes killed at least 32 people across Gaza City as Israel ramps up its offensive there and urges Palestinians to evacuate, medical staff reported Saturday.

The dead included 12 children, according to the morgue in Shifa Hospital, where the bodies were brought.

In recent days, Israel has intensified strikes across Gaza City, destroying multiple high-rise buildings and accusing Hamas of putting surveillance equipment in them.

On Saturday, the army said it struck another high-rise used by Hamas in the area of Gaza City. It has ordered residents to leave as part of an offensive aimed at taking over the largest Palestinian city, which it says is Hamas’ last stronghold. Hundreds of thousands of people remain there, struggling under conditions of famine.

One of the strikes overnight and into early morning Saturday hit a house in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, killing a family of 10, including a mother and her three children, said health officials. The Palestinian Football Association said a player for the Al-Helal Sporting Club, Mohammed Ramez Sultan, was killed in the strikes, along with 14 members of his family. Images showed the strikes hitting followed by plumes of smoke.

Israel’s army did not immediately respond to questions about the strikes.

Hostages’ relatives rally in Israel

Meanwhile, relatives of Israeli hostages held by Hamas rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday to demand a deal to release their loved ones and criticized what they said was a counterproductive approach by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in securing a resolution.

Einav Zangauker, the mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, described Israel’s attempted assassination of Hamas leaders in Qatar this week as a “spectacular failure.”

“President Trump said yesterday that every time there is progress in the negotiations, Netanyahu bombs someone. But it wasn’t Hamas leaders he tried to bomb — it was our chance, as families, to bring our loved ones home,” Zangauker said.

Some Palestinians are leaving Gaza City, but many are stuck

In the wake of escalating hostilities and calls to evacuate the city, the number of people leaving has spiked in recent weeks, according to aid workers. However, many families remain stuck due to the cost of finding transportation and housing, while others have been displaced too many times and do not want to move again, not trusting that anywhere in the enclave is safe.

In a message on social media Saturday, Israel’s army told the remaining Palestinians in Gaza City to leave “immediately” and move south to what it’s calling a humanitarian zone. Army spokesman Avichay Adraee said that more than a quarter of a million people had left Gaza City — from an estimated 1 million who live in the area of north Gaza around the city.

The United Nations, however, put the number of people who have left at around 100,000 between mid-August and mid-September. The U.N. and aid groups have warned that displacing hundreds of thousands of people will exacerbate the dire humanitarian crisis. Sites in southern Gaza where Israel is telling people to go are overcrowded, according to the U.N., and it can cost money to move, which many people do not have.

An initiative headed by the U.N. to bring temporary shelters into Gaza said more than 86,000 tents and other supplies were still awaiting clearance to enter Gaza as of last week.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said Saturday that seven people, including children, died from malnutrition-related causes over the past 24 hours, raising the toll to 420, including 145 children, since the war began.

The bombardment Friday night across Gaza City came days after Israel launched a strike targeting Hamas leaders in Qatar, intensifying its campaign against the militant group and endangering negotiations over ending the war in Gaza.

Families of the hostages still held in Gaza are pleading with Israel to halt the offensive, worried it will kill their relatives. There are 48 hostages still inside Gaza, around 20 of them believed to be alive.

The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, abducting 251 people and killing some 1,200, mostly civilians. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 64,803 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many were civilians or combatants. It says around half of those killed were women and children. Large parts of major cities have been completely destroyed, and around 90% of some 2 million Palestinians have been displaced.

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September 13, 2025
‘It’s like a homecoming for everybody’: Lodi Grape Festival celebrates decades of tradition

THE EXCITEMENT. GUYS HAVING FUN SAY YEEHAW! THERE’S NO SHORTAGE OF THINGS TO DO OR SEE INSIDE THE GATES OF THE LODI GRAPE FESTIVAL. IT’S ACTUALLY A FAMILY TRADITION. WE’VE BEEN GOING. I’VE BEEN GOING HERE SINCE I WAS LITTLE. THAT’S HOW IT’S BEEN FOR YEARS. IT’S JUST SOMETHING THAT, LIKE, TRULY MEANS A LOT TO US. IT’S SHOWTIME. THE FESTIVAL DATES BACK TO THE 1930S. ARE WE READY? FOR MANY, THE OUTING IS A TRADITION. WE HAVE LOTS OF MEMORIES HERE. THIS IS THE LAVA. THIS GROUP SAYS THEY’VE BEEN COMING HERE FOR DECADES. AND I HAVE EVERY ONE OF THEM. AND THEY HAVE THE PINS TO PROVE IT. THEY STOPPED MAKING THEM, LIKE TEN YEARS AGO. BUT I HAVE EVERY SINGLE ONE. IT USED TO BE WHEN WE WERE GROWING UP, YOU GOT AS FAR AS THE BEER BOOTH, AND THAT’S THAT’S WHERE ALL THE PARENTS STOP THOSE LONG LINES STILL MARK THE BOOTHS WHERE YOU CAN BUY DRINKS, AND WHILE MANY WILL DRINK THE WINE, CATCHING ME DOUBLE — THE GRAPES. WANT TO BECOME WINE VERY BADLY? THEY DO. SOME WILL TEACH YOU HOW TO MAKE IT. SINCE WE’RE IN THE MIDDLE OF 100,000 ACRES OF CALIFORNIA’S NICEST GRAPES, IT’S A GOOD IDEA THAT YOU SHOULD MAKE SOME WINE. THE GRAPES AND THE WINE INDUSTRY IS THE LIFEBLOOD OF THE COMMUNITY, AND WE WANT TO PROMOTE THAT THE BEST WE CAN. MARK ARMSTRONG IS THE CEO OF THE LODI GRAPE FESTIVAL. I’VE BEEN THE MANAGER 34 YEARS. I’M STILL THE NEW GUY. HE SAYS HE’S PROUD TO PUT THE FOUR DAY EVENT ON FOR THE TENS OF THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WHO COME EVERY YEAR. IT’S LIKE HOMECOMING FOR EVERYBODY. IT’S A CELEBRATION OF THE GRAPE HARVEST AND SOMETHING FOR LODI FAMILIES TO LOOK FORWARD TO. EVERY YEAR. AND IT IS A FOUR DAY FESTIVAL, SO YOU CAN STILL COME IF YOU PLAN TO. THEY RECOMMEND BUYING YOUR TICKETS ONLINE. THAT WAY YOU CAN GET THE BEST DEAL IN LODI, PEYTON HEADLEE KCRA THREE NEWS. IT RUNS FROM NOON TO MIDNIGHT TOMORROW AND SATURDAY NOON TO 11 ON SUNDAY. THERE’S LIVE MUS

‘It’s like a homecoming for everybody’: Lodi Grape Festival celebrates decades of tradition

The Lodi Grape Festival in Northern California kicks off its four-day celebration, drawing thousands to enjoy food, wine, and entertainment.

Updated: 11:22 PM PDT Sep 11, 2025

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The Lodi Grape Festival in Northern California has begun its four-day celebration, marking the harvest season for wine grapes and drawing thousands of attendees to enjoy the festivities.The festival is filled with entertainment, food, vendors, grape murals, wine tasting, and so much more.”It’s actually a family tradition. I’ve been going here since I was little,” Monica Izaguirre said. “It’s just something that, like, truly means a lot to us.”For many families, the outing is a tradition that dates back decades. “It used to be when we were growing up, you got as far as the beer booths, and that’s where all the parents stopped,” Karen Brown Anderson said. “We’d get ride tickets and they go, okay, you’ve got a half hour and then come back here.”While many drink the wine that the festival offers, one booth will teach you how to make it.”Since we’re in the middle of 100,000 acres of California’s nicest grapes, it’s a good idea that you should make some wine,” Randy Savig with the Lodi Amateur Vintners Association said. “We make wine amateurish to start out with, and then some get very good at it. We have over, I think it’s 18 wineries in our Lodi area that they have started with our club and now they are a commercial winery.”Mark Armstrong, CEO of the Lodi Grape Festival, said the festival dates back to the 1930s. He emphasized the importance of the grape and wine industry to the community. “The grapes and the wine industry is the lifeblood of the community. And we want to promote that the best we can,” he said. Armstrong, who has managed the festival for 34 years, expressed pride in hosting the event for tens of thousands of attendees. “It’s like a homecoming for everybody,” he said.Tickets are still available. Armstrong said he recommends you buy tickets online for the best deals. The festival runs from noon to midnight on Friday and Saturday, and noon to 11 p.m. on Sunday, featuring live music acts including Tyler Rich and “We the Kings.”See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

LODI, Calif. —

The Lodi Grape Festival in Northern California has begun its four-day celebration, marking the harvest season for wine grapes and drawing thousands of attendees to enjoy the festivities.

The festival is filled with entertainment, food, vendors, grape murals, wine tasting, and so much more.

“It’s actually a family tradition. I’ve been going here since I was little,” Monica Izaguirre said. “It’s just something that, like, truly means a lot to us.”

For many families, the outing is a tradition that dates back decades.

“It used to be when we were growing up, you got as far as the beer booths, and that’s where all the parents stopped,” Karen Brown Anderson said. “We’d get ride tickets and they go, okay, you’ve got a half hour and then come back here.”

While many drink the wine that the festival offers, one booth will teach you how to make it.

“Since we’re in the middle of 100,000 acres of California’s nicest grapes, it’s a good idea that you should make some wine,” Randy Savig with the Lodi Amateur Vintners Association said. “We make wine amateurish to start out with, and then some get very good at it. We have over, I think it’s 18 wineries in our Lodi area that they have started with our club and now they are a commercial winery.”

Mark Armstrong, CEO of the Lodi Grape Festival, said the festival dates back to the 1930s. He emphasized the importance of the grape and wine industry to the community.

“The grapes and the wine industry is the lifeblood of the community. And we want to promote that the best we can,” he said.

Armstrong, who has managed the festival for 34 years, expressed pride in hosting the event for tens of thousands of attendees.

“It’s like a homecoming for everybody,” he said.

Tickets are still available. Armstrong said he recommends you buy tickets online for the best deals.

The festival runs from noon to midnight on Friday and Saturday, and noon to 11 p.m. on Sunday, featuring live music acts including Tyler Rich and “We the Kings.”

See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

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September 11, 2025