Month: December 2025

While the plentiful bars, restaurants and casinos will keep you occupied late into the night in Las Vegas – there is a new must-see attraction in town: The Las Vegas Sphere

Las Vegas was never short of things to see and do, but in the last couple of years, a new must-visit has emerged to dominate Sin City’s skyline.

Opening in September 2023 with a residency from Irish rockers U2, the Sphere is one of the world’s strangest and most original entertainment venues. As well as now being one of the most in-demand concert stages in the world, the Sphere also acts as a fully immersive, 360-degree cinema.

I watched the 1930s classic, The Wizard of Oz, originally shot for a 4:3 movie screen, transporting its audience back in time and making them feel like they are travelling down the Yellow Brick Road alongside Dorothy and friends.

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The original film’s score was re-recorded with new clarity, capitalising on the Sphere’s ability to direct sound anywhere in the venue. More than 2,000 people worked for over two years to bring the reimagined version to life, giving this classic piece of cinema the most modern feel imaginable.

Despite having seen clips online from inside the Sphere, I was taken aback by the 360-degree nature. Looking directly above your head to follow a movie as well as the screen in front of you feels somewhat odd.

The Sphere’s 160,000 square-foot (1,4864 sq-m) interior display plane is the world’s highest-resolution LED screen. But even more unusual is the 4D nature of the venue, with the visual effects just part of the Sphere experience.

If you’ve managed to miss the Wizard of Oz for the last 86 years, spoiler alert, a tornado causes young Dorothy to be knocked unconscious, which is when her journey to the Emerald City begins. While the tornado happens on the screen in front of you, winds blow through the Sphere while leaves fall onto your lap.

Fog fills the air thanks to 20 units while flying butterflies in Munchkinland and giant winged monkeys soar over the audience at other points during the film. More than 500 apples rain down on the audience from 33 hatches in the ceiling, or from trees if you don’t want to ruin the illusion, while 38 snow machines come into their own during the poppy field scene.

While the show was enjoyable and the technology on display is impressive, I’d like to see a concert at the venue rather than a movie, as I think that is when it would really come into its own.

From the outside, the Sphere is unmistakable. It dominates the Strip, particularly in the evening when it lights up the night sky. Companies pay millions to advertise on its exterior, while it played highlights of the Las Vegas Grand Prix during the race in November.

When Max Verstappen crossed the line to win and keep his title hopes alive, the Sphere transformed into a giant chequered flag fluttering as he took the acclaim of thousands of race fans that had descended on Sin City.

Henry Gabriel Cisneros walks briskly across a 200-acre lot that was once a wooded area infested with rattlesnakes and a few aspiring arsonists. On this blustery afternoon in San Antonio, the wind howls across the freshly razed plain as he heads for a large white tent. Time has not softened his unmistakable oval face and elongated nose. But, at 54, his skin has taken on an ashy hue, and a new wave of gray strands has made its debut in his thinning black hair–helped along, no doubt, by federal prosecutors and the FBI.

Inside the tent, 300 real estate agents stand around buffet tables, primed to see Cisneros. They want to hear how American City Vista, Cisneros’ new low-income housing development company, intends to save this section of south San Antonio.

It’s an exciting project, yet it doesn’t account for the anticipation buzzing through this crowd. No, for that you’ve got to look to Cisneros himself, to the man who rose to national prominence as the mayor of this city and who has returned to Texas after nine years in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. The locals are eager to lay eyes again on the hometown boy who has come back to his roots.

Cisneros ducks into the tent and takes the microphone. He explains that the 600 homes in this new development will be shaded by maple trees, bordered by jogging paths and wired with high-speed Internet lines. “We’ll fix it here in south San Antonio, and we’ll make it right,” he says, sounding an awful lot like a man launching a campaign. He finishes to a standing ovation. Smiles all around. Henry Cisneros, it seems, is back.

Or is he?

When Cisneros returned to San Antonio last year, leaving his lucrative job as chief operating officer at Univision, the country’s largest Spanish-language television network, Democrats around the country salivated at the prospect of his returning to political life. Cisneros, they thought, had finally overcome the “other woman” scandal whose seeds–planted when he was San Antonio mayor–sprouted ignominiously in Washington when Cisneros accepted a Clinton administration Cabinet post in 1992. FBI agents conducting a background check after his nomination had asked Cisneros how much financial support he was providing to her. He lied. From there, the investigation grew, and Cisneros left the capital after one term.

That was four years ago–eons on the political calendar. American politics today requires complete shamelessness. Elected officials breezily put their mistakes behind them and move ahead.

But not Cisneros, and that’s the point. In 2001, Cisneros is the man who would not be king. He says he returned to San Antonio not as a Democrat running for office, but because he liked the security of his hometown, a city where Latinos still hang portraits of him in their living rooms, where he is known simply as Henry. He also says he returned because his ailing parents drew him back, and he mentions the death of his father-in-law last year.

But Cisneros came home to heal. He remains hunkered down, a Roman Catholic trying to forgive himself for behavior he believes has wrought permanent damage on his family, and others. Cisneros isn’t now–and maybe never will be–ready to put himself or his family through the public strip search required of a national candidate.

*

WE ARE SITTING IN THE SUNNY CONFERENCE ROOM OF AMERICAN CITY Vista, an office that occupies one floor of a three-story brick building in downtown San Antonio. Cisneros, dressed in a starched white shirt and dark suit pants, crosses his lanky legs at the ankles. They move like grasshopper limbs.

We have spoken at length about his past and politics, and the conversation has turned to Bill Clinton–his friend and former boss. Cisneros volunteers a story from the height of the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr had just “won a round of some kind” against Clinton in his 1998 investigation into the president’s affair with the White House intern. Cisneros was working in Los Angeles at the time, and he watched on television as Clinton reacted publicly to Starr’s findings. “I didn’t think the president’s response to the press was as humble as it ought to be–as self-effacing as it ought to be,” Cisneros recalls. He thought he should offer some advice, to tell Clinton “that he should just chill a bit and not be so in-your-face.” He wanted to remind Clinton to take a moment to regroup.

That night, the White House operator connected him to Clinton. “He was on the line,” Cisneros says, “and I was about to utter my words, and he said ‘HENRY!’ ” Cisneros booms, imitating Clinton. “ ‘I think we got this son of a bitch where we want him! Don’t you?’ ” Cisneros didn’t think so. In fact, he was “blown away” by Clinton’s moxie.

Cisneros tells the tale with great delight, as if there is nothing wrong with revealing such intimacies about his friend. And there isn’t, because the story isn’t really about the former president. It’s about Cisneros, and the absence of his own combative spirit. It’s a glaring absence.

Bill Richardson, who served as U.N. ambassador and then energy secretary under Clinton, says of his good friend Cisneros: “If I have one criticism of Henry, it’s that he is cautious. His destiny is to become the first Latino governor or possibly president, and I believe that his caution is the only reservation for that achievement. He needs to assume that he is back on track for a subsequent political career–for an Act II. And I believe he is.”

Former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, who lost her seat to George W. Bush in 1994, drove the issue home at an event last winter. “When they write your obituary, you don’t want the top positions to be mayor of San Antonio and secretary of housing,” Cisneros recalls her saying.

Cisneros was once a precocious man of formidable potential. His political career started in 1975 at age 27, when he became the youngest city councilman in San Antonio history. Six years later, he made his first run at the mayor’s office. In speeches to white crowds, he ticked off his degrees from Harvard and George Washington University, promising to lure business to San Antonio. In speeches to Latinos on the city’s west side, he promised to send his wealthy opponent “back to the country club.”

It was 1981, and Cisneros won 63% of the vote to become the first Latino mayor of a large U.S. city. In 1984, Walter Mondale interviewed him as a possible vice presidential running mate. Cisneros was reelected mayor three times.

“It was extraordinary to those of us who followed politics,” says Jim Oberwetter, who ran George Bush senior’s 1992 presidential reelection campaign in Texas. “He had achieved greatly within the Republican community.” Polls showed Cisneros had made significant inroads elsewhere in Texas, even in Republican strongholds. That meant he possessed a rare quality–the magic of a national candidate.

“He had all the attributes needed to appeal to Dallas Republicans–he had a list of accomplishments to point to from being mayor,” Oberwetter continues. “He was a good family man, which appeals to the Republicans.”

In reality, Cisneros’ marriage to his high school sweetheart, Mary Alice, was threadbare. As mayor and an assistant professor at the University of Texas, San Antonio, he clocked 16-hour days. The elected post paid only $60 a week, and the teaching job couldn’t support his family. Cisneros traveled anywhere in the country where speaking fees were offered. Friends say the opportunities for relationships outside his marriage were plentiful. His charisma inspired a line of men’s toiletries, “Henry C,” that rolled out in 1986.

In 1987 he fell for Linda Medlar, a political fund-raiser who was also married. Mary Alice was pregnant with the Cisneroses’ third child. On June 10, 1987, doctors delivered a boy, whom they named John Paul in honor of the pope’s visit to San Antonio. The elated young mayor went out to talk to reporters, but when he walked back into the hospital, he learned that the chances of his son living past childhood were slim.

Doctors believed John Paul’s body would quickly outgrow his heart’s ability to bring him oxygen. By age 6, they said, his lips would turn blue often, and he wouldn’t be able to keep up with the other kids. The tips of his fingers would become clubby, and some of his appendages would simply stop growing. By age 8, he would probably be dying.

“Part of the reason I could not do what other people might have done in that circumstance–get divorced, remarry–was this situation,” Cisneros says as we sit in his office. “I just couldn’t. I couldn’t let Mary Alice deal with that by herself.”

But 16 months later, on Oct. 14, 1988, his hand was forced when thousands of readers of the San Antonio-Express News awoke to a front-page column about the affair. In response, Cisneros told reporters gathered on his front lawn: “I guess human beings just aren’t made of plastic and wiring and metal. They’re made of flesh and blood and feelings.”

He said he would serve out the remainder of his term but would not run for reelection. Cisneros left his devoutly Roman Catholic wife and, according to court documents, he lived periodically with Medlar, who reclaimed her maiden name of Jones after her husband filed for divorce.

But by the time Mary Alice filed divorce papers in late 1991, claiming acts of cruelty and adultery, Cisneros was determined to reconcile. He would not fail at marriage. The high school sweethearts got back together. Jones was quickly ostracized by the community, but Cisneros privately agreed to continue sending her financial support, to assuage his own conscience as much as anything. He had no idea that in 1990, she had begun taping–and editing–their phone calls. It’s unclear if she wanted the tapes as insurance that he would continue the payments, or if she planned all along to make them public.

In 1992 Cisneros worked on “Adelante Con Clinton,” a Latino voter outreach project that helped propel Clinton to office. When Clinton asked him to become secretary of housing, Cisneros feared his financial agreement with Jones would be exposed, so he alerted the president-elect to the arrangement. Then he did something that altered his political career–he lied to the FBI agents. For reasons that he still doesn’t explain, Cisneros told investigators he paid her less than $10,000 a year. And then he cut off communication with her.

In July 1994, she sued him for reneging on a deal to send her $4,000 a month. She also sold the tapes of the phone conversations to the syndicated television show “Inside Edition” for $15,000. Naively, she thought that investigators would only look at Cisneros. Instead, they also followed the money trail into her own investments.

During the next few years, authorities unearthed lies on her home mortgage application, in which Jones relied on money and signatures from her sister and brother-in-law to close the deal. She was convicted of money laundering, bank fraud and making false statements. Initially sentenced to 42 months, her lawyer got it trimmed to 18 months in federal prison.

David Guinn Jr., a former assistant federal public defender who represented her, says Jones now lives with her mother in Lubbock, Texas, and they depend on a stipend from her siblings. Cisneros no longer sends her money. She fights chronic depression, Guinn says, and did not want to comment for this article.

For Cisneros, the FBI investigation had ripped back the curtain on the confession booth. His San Antonio indiscretion had now been revisited, this time as the subject of a full-blown federal investigation. By 1995, Cisneros was inundated with bills that would eventually total $4 million. He owed tuition for one daughter at law school and another at college. John Paul, whose heart was repaired by a Philadelphia surgeon, still incurred significant medical costs.

Financially, Cisneros needed out of Washington. “The president would have been perfectly happy to have him stay,” says former White House Chief of Staff Leon E. Panetta. “But Henry felt he really did need to deal with [the investigation] and try to resolve it so it wouldn’t destroy him.”

In January 1997, at nearly 1:30 on the morning of Clinton’s second inauguration, Cisneros’ final act was to help Clinton rehearse his inaugural address. At noon he and Mary Alice sat behind Clinton as he delivered it. The president then walked inside for the traditional inaugural lunch, and Cisneros and Mary Alice went to a nearby Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Not long after, they moved to Bel-Air Crest, a gated community in Los Angeles, and he assumed the title of chief operating officer at Univision, a Spanish-language network that reaches more than 80% of all Latino households in the country. His job at the network was to represent the face of Univision, to sell its brand, even though the network caters to recently arrived immigrants.

The network boomed while he was there. Soon Univision had the fifth-largest viewership of any U.S. television network, English or Spanish. The surge solved Cisneros’ financial woes. During his first year, he pulled down $400,000 in salary, not including bonuses and Univision stock options, from which he derives the majority of his personal wealth today. When Cisneros arrived at Univision, a share of its stock was valued at $18.50. On the day he left last year, it was $122. Cisneros traded in $10.8 million in company stock last year, and he still owns stock options worth more than $6 million.

By September 1999, Cisneros was a wealthy man with a court date. He appeared before a U.S. district judge in Washington and pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of lying to the FBI. He was fined $10,000.

For all his financial success at Univision, Cisneros seemed miscast as a television executive. Sometimes the clash was painful to behold. At the last Univision annual meeting he attended, advertisers sat in gilded chairs at round tables. Up on the enormous stage, Cisneros stood with the network’s stars, including Alicia Machado, a former Miss Venezuela. Just for good measure, Spanish mega-crooner Julio Iglesias was up there, too, looking tanned and rested. There wasn’t a wonk in sight, except Cisneros– the former politician rented out to a media corporation so he could pay legal bills stemming from an affair 13 years earlier.

*

MARY ALICE CISNEROS IS IMMACULATELY GROOMED AT A BIRDLIKE 5-foot-2 and 100 pounds, with black hair and small pieces of gold and diamond jewelry on her wrists and fingers. When she recalls a conversation she’s had with her husband of 32 years, she cranes her neck, looks up to his imaginary face and pretends she’s speaking to him. But when they’re together, he consistently cuts her off in mid-sentence if she begins to speak about anything other than their family.

She has considered herself a public figure in San Antonio since childhood, when she and her eight siblings worked at her father’s bakery and grocery store. In front of their house on West Houston Street, she points out her relatives’ homes that are within shouting distance. “I liked L.A.–all the glamour and the art–but this is home.”

Henry’s family is close by, as well. His uncle Ruben Mungu’a, 81, runs the print shop that created all of Cisneros’ mayoral propaganda. As a “good way” to recover from open-heart surgery he had last November, Mungu’a showed up at the shop for a five-day workweek in early February. He is feisty and optimistic–convinced that his nephew should run for the U.S. Senate in several years.

“Now’s not the time. He’s got to pay his bills. He’s got to work a new generation of voters who don’t know him, since he’s been away. He’s got to build up a new image,” Mungu’a says. Then he broaches the subject of politicians and peccadilloes. “Little Baby Jesus–that’s Lyndon B. Johnson–had his own affairs, and, of course, he came in to replace JFK. Eisenhower was also accused of doing certain things when it was cold in Europe. Finally, little Billy comes along. The people have all forgotten this. So, Henry’s thing is not going to pull support from him. That period of his life is totally resolved.”

But Cisneros knows better. Unlike so many politicians who seek redemption and live off the energy of a new political race, Cisneros can feel the Republicans ready to whack him, and it makes him cringe. Susan Weddington, chair of the Texas Republican Party, would have no qualms about taking the first swing. “His potential to be resuscitated as a candidate would require complete memory loss of the electorate. His indiscretion was embarrassing to Texans, especially to Hispanic Texas. I believe that kind of memory loss is highly unlikely.”

It is partisan talk, but it is exactly this kind of contact sport that Cisneros says he’s not willing to play–at least not now. Instead, he wants order and discipline. He doesn’t smoke, and he rarely drinks even a glass of wine with dinner. In his wallet he carries two neatly typed lists, one of nonfiction books and one of the great novels. “I keep a list because when I go to the bookstore I know what to buy,” he says. “I’m trying to read important books that give a person depth.”

When Cisneros grudgingly agrees to talk about the possibility of his running for office, he takes his time. He uncrosses his legs, tilts his head and runs his fingers along the edge of the conference table. Then, in measured statements, he talks about his aversion to both the campaign and the possible bad consequences. It’s clear. He no longer views the political game as he once did.

Mark McKinnon, a media consultant who took on his first Republican client last year when George W. Bush asked him to be his media director, describes Cisneros as someone who is “as smooth and deft and agile as anyone who’s ever been in this business.”

“And there’s an enormous redemptive well open to him, whenever he wants to tap into it,” McKin-non says. “I think he’s much harder on himself than anyone else.”

In Cisneros, Democrats see a handsome, vigorous Latino with national name recognition and a limitless future. Democrats have pushed him to run for the U.S. Senate in 2002, or for Texas governor, a post held until this year by Bush. Instead, Cisneros remains in a cramped fetal position, and while he does, his party is struggling, especially in Texas. Terry McAuliffe, a political fund-raiser and head of the Democratic National Committee, appealed to Cisneros last August at the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles. “Texas is a big seat for us,” McAuliffe says. “Winning that governorship for us is critical, more than ever. When you really want to win, you get a big player, and Henry’s as big as you get.”

Less than 20 years ago, every statewide seat in Texas belonged to a Democrat. Republicans now hold all the statewide titles in Texas. That includes, for example, every spot on the Supreme Court, the court of criminal appeals, and on down to the railroad commission. More important, it also means that both U.S. senators and the governor are Republicans.

With Cisneros out, things look daunting for the party of inclusion in a large, increasingly Latino state. This winter, Democrats began circling the wagons for A.R. “Tony” Sanchez Jr., a Latino oil magnate who has never held public office. Although a Democrat, he pulled in more than $100,000 in hard money for Bush last year because he believed in the governor.

None of this is to say, however, that Cisneros doesn’t still enjoy the parlor game of politics. He keeps the public intrigued by denying he’s running, while refusing to say if he ever will. He jokes that the door is closed, but not locked. He also dips a helping hand into select races. Last year, for instance, he and L.A. County Supervisor Gloria Molina met secretly with L.A.’s two Latino mayoral candidates in an unsuccessful attempt to persuade one of them to drop out. (“I know it’s popular to say that that’s an older paradigm of ethnic politics, and that it shouldn’t be that way,” he acknowledges of the message he and Molina carried.)

Cisneros also campaigned for former Vice President Al Gore, kicking off “Rally in the Valley” in the Rio Grande Valley, and he raised funds for the San Antonio mayoral campaign of Ed Garza, a 32-year-old city councilman who won last month. But that’s as far as he goes. Instead of political life, he’s thrown himself into American City Vista, a hybrid of politics and commerce intended to revitalize neighborhoods. It’s known as “infill,” where large clusters of Craftsmen and Victorian homes are built on swaths of abandoned or blighted city land.

His first project is Lago Vista. American City Vista is also overseeing similar developments in Southern California, both in the northeast San Fernando Valley.

In April, on Good Friday, we meet at the impressive Sylmar development, which is ringed by mountains and sits next to the Angeles National Forest. It’s unseasonably hot on this afternoon, and hang gliders float silently above us. We are in a car, with Mary Alice in the back seat talking to their daughter by cell phone about a recipe for Easter dinner. Cisneros tells me it will be difficult for anyone to make Jell-O mold like Mary Alice does.

The homes he has invested in here are larger and more indulgent than the Lago Vista homes in south San Antonio. Cisneros spreads his arms and asks: “Where else in L.A. could you get a 2,138-square-foot home for $260,000 with this view?”

*

IF THERE IS ANY EVIDENCE THAT Cisneros can’t seem to get the legal glop of this past decade off of his hands, one only needs to look at the events of this year’s inaugural weekend.

Among the dozens of people Clinton pardoned on his final day in office were Cisneros and Jones. Cisneros learned about the pardon the day before, when his attorney reached him moments before he was about to deliver a speech to 1,000 people in Silicon Valley. The attorney said the White House had called to see if it was “OK” to put him on the pardon list.

“I heard nothing more until noon the next day. We started getting telephone calls from the press that I was on the list,” Cisneros says, explaining that he had been meeting with Tony Sanchez in Laredo when the news broke. The next week, he spoke with Clinton by phone about the surprise pardon.

“He just felt the independent counsel statute had been abused and that, as much as possible, the wrongs created by it needed to be wiped away. He has always felt that the greatest reason they came after me was to get to him,” Cisneros says. “I don’t think that’s completely true. I think I made mistakes and gave them reason to come after me, but he has felt that way.”

In the weeks that followed, the list of recipients became an example of what many people dislike most about Clinton–the bending of laws to suit his own needs. The shakiest pardons were for Marc Rich, a fugitive financier whose wife donated significant sums of money to the Clinton library and the Democratic Party, and for Carlos Vignali, whose father donated heavily to California Democrats. For Cisneros, the association with this latest political scandal was bruising.

“It just reopened old wounds and raised questions with people about the seriousness of the offenses and why they needed to be included in a pardon list,” he says.

Asked if he’s forgiven himself for the pain he caused, Cisneros looks out the window.

“I suppose not.”

It gnaws at him, though–the fear that he will never get out from under his own issues and run for office again.

As time goes on, it will become increasingly difficult for him to justify staying away so long, and if he forgets that fact, Ann Richards and others will remind him. “There are a lot of other things I’d like to do and, hopefully, by the time it’s time to write an obituary, they’ll be other accomplishments under my belt, not necessarily related to holding office, because I think there are many, many ways to contribute substantially in our society, even more than holding office for 6 to 12 years,” he says. His words are emphatic, but his tone isn’t entirely convincing.

“There’s a lot of water under the bridge for me,” he says slowly. “And some of these things I have to sort out for myself.”

NEW YORK — An embarrassed CBS fired a contrite Jimmy (The Greek) Snyder Saturday after the sports commentator said in a much-criticized television interview that blacks were “bred” to be better athletes than whites.

Snyder, who outraged civil rights leaders with this and other remarks about blacks in sports, reiterated a “heart-felt apology” he made after the interview was televised Friday, but raised the possibility he may sue CBS for dropping him.

He said that CBS executives wanted him to resign, but he refused and was fired by Neal Pilson, president of CBS Sports, who called Snyder from Hawaii.

Snyder said in a statement read by a CBS spokesman that he has “referred this matter” to his lawyer, former Republican Sen. Paul Laxalt of Nevada, “who is looking into it. Accordingly, I will have no further comment at this time.”

However, speaking from his Washington hotel in a brief phone interview, Snyder, for 12 years a commentator on the “NFL Today” pregame show, seemed willing to answer questions. But he was prevented from doing so by CBS spokesman Doug Richardson.

Asked if he may sue CBS, Snyder, 70, vaguely replied, “We just want to be protected. We shouldn’t say anything . . . .” He was interrupted by Richardson, who had read Snyder’s statement to a reporter.

Asked why he made his controversial remarks Friday, Snyder again tried to respond, only to be interrupted again by Richardson, who was sharing the same phone. “He’s a good guy–he wants to talk and he shouldn’t,” Richardson said.

“I’ll talk to you later, OK?” Snyder told the reporter. CBS, in a separate statement Saturday, said CBS Sports had “ended its relationship” with Snyder following his remarks. It said the remarks in no way “reflect the views of CBS Sports.”

Snyder, known for his predictions, was in Washington with “NFL Today” colleagues Brent Musburger and Irv Cross for today’s National Football Conference championship game between the Washington Redskins and the Minnesota Vikings.

He has been dropped from today’s telecast.

Snyder’s one-year contract, reportedly worth about $750,000, was due to expire soon.

Snyder made his comments in a lunchtime interview Friday at Duke Zeibert’s, a Washington restaurant.

His interviewer was Ed Hotaling, a black producer-reporter for NBC-owned WRC-TV. Hotaling said Saturday he had just come from covering a memorial to slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., where a tape of King’s famous “I have a dream” speech was played.

Hotaling said he’d been doing interviews with various people in the restaurant, asking what they thought the next step in civil rights progress for blacks should be. He put the question to Snyder.

“It was all on the occasion of Martin Luther King’s birthday,” Hotaling said. “So I thought it was an appropriate, forward-looking question, and got a backward-looking answer.”

In the interview, Snyder, whose remarks were termed “reprehensible” by CBS, said that the only sports realm in which whites now dominate is coaching, and if blacks “take coaching, as I think everyone wants them to, there is not going to be anything left for the white people.”

Snyder, who during his remarks emphasized he was not meaning to be “derogatory,” said the only thing now that “whites control are the coaching jobs–the black talent is beautiful, it’s great, it’s out there. The only thing left for the whites is a couple of coaching jobs.”

He also said that black athletes perform better than white athletes for reasons that went back to slave times.

“The slave owner would breed his big black (man) to his big woman so that he could have a big black kid . . . . That’s where it all started,” he said.

While Hotaling said he was “stunned” and appalled by Snyder’s remarks, he thought it “outrageous they (CBS) fired him.” He said there should be far more reporting on civil rights in sports, and with Snyder participating in the coverage.

“I think it (the interview) was about the best possible Martin Luther King Day story you could have because it brings everything out in the open,” Hotaling said in a phone interview from Washington.

“And I think maybe one of the few people who might have agreed with me that Jimmy the Greek should not be fired would have been Martin Luther King.

“I think you have to think a little more broadly than firing a sports commentator for expressing stupid comments about civil rights. You should start covering the story and let him learn something.”

One way, he suggested, would be to put Snyder on today’s “NFL Today” broadcast and discuss his remarks, and civil rights, with black and white athletes.

“His views would be expressed a little more adequately, I think,” Hotaling said. “He wouldn’t come out to be such a bad guy. They’d have the thing resolved in a positive way instead of a negative way.”

Snyder was quoted by the Washington Post as saying: “I told (Pilson) I wanted to face everyone (on today’s program). He told me, ‘I can’t let you do that.’ ”

Hotaling was quoted by the Associated Press as saying: “I saw no liquor or wine on his table. He did not seem drunk or even tipsy to me. He was articulate in what he was saying. His point of view was made very articulately.”

Hotaling said that at one point in the interview, Snyder “turned to me and said, ‘I don’t want this on.’

“The reason we kept rolling was because he kept right on talking about the same issue. He is a professional sports commentator and he kept on talking even though he knew the lights were on. I think he knew he was on.”

Snyder, who was born Emetrios Snyodinos in Steubenville, Ohio, also made news in 1980, but on a lesser scale, when he and Musburger got into a brief fist fight at a midtown New York bar after the two argued over the amount of air time that Snyder was getting.

Musburger said Saturday he “was stunned” by Snyder’s remarks.

“I don’t know what he was thinking about,” Musburger said.

At Des Moines, Iowa, Democratic presidential hopeful Jesse Jackson, appearing at a conference marking Martin Luther King Day, said that Snyder’s “obviously regrettable and racially offensive” comments were less important than the lack of black managers and coaches in professional and college sports.

The Los Angeles branch of the NAACP sent a telegram to Pilson commending CBS for firing Snyder. Raymond Johnson, president of the L.A. group, said at a press conference Saturday: “The NAACP is outraged at the racist and insensitive remarks made by Jimmy Snyder.”

Jim (Mudcat) Grant, a former major league pitcher who is an NAACP chairperson, said: “Even though (Snyder’s) comments may seem comical to some, the seriousness of it all is that Americans must work harder to open the closed doors and provide equal opportunities for minorities of color.”

Harry Edwards, head of major league baseball’s minority hiring program, expressed outrage.

“Some of his explanations as to why blacks have emerged to a point of near dominance in sports make it clear the man is abysmally ignorant,” he said.

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,

US president says ‘deadly strike’ in Nigeria targeted ISIL fighters who had killed ‘primarily, innocent Christians’.

The United ‍States ‍has carried out an air strike against ISIL (ISIS) fighters in northwest Nigeria, US ⁠President Donald Trump ​said.

“Tonight, ⁠at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and ​deadly strike ‌against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria,” ‌Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform on Thursday evening.

Trump said ISIL fighters had “‌targeted and viciously” killed “primarily, innocent Christians, at ⁠levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!”

“I have previously warned these Terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughtering of Christians, there would be hell to pay, and tonight, there was,” Trump said.

The US military’s Africa Command (AFRICOM), which is responsible for operations in Africa, said in a post on X that the air strike was carried out “at the request of Nigerian authorities” and had killed “multiple ISIS terrorists”.

“Grateful for Nigerian government support & cooperation,” US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on social media, warning also of “more to come”, without providing details.

In a statement, AFRICOM said the strike occurred in “Soboto state,” an apparent reference to Nigeria’s Sokoto state.

The US military action comes weeks after Trump said he had ordered the Pentagon to begin planning for potential military action in Nigeria following claims of Christian persecution in the country.

Nigeria’s government has said armed groups target both Muslim and Christian communities in the country, and US claims that Christians face persecution ‌do not represent a complex security situation and ignore efforts by Nigerian authorities to safeguard religious freedom.

Al Jazeera’s Shihab Rattansi, reporting from Washington DC, said the threat of US military action in Nigeria had been “percolating for some time” and Donald Trump had accused Nigeria of not doing enough to protect its Christian community in his first term as president.

“But in the last two months or so, with congressional pressure and the State Department, they declared Nigeria a particular country of concern when it came to the rights of Christians and we had heard that the US had begun overflight surveillance of Nigeria from an airbase in Accra, in Ghana, over the last several weeks. And now we have this,” Rattansi said.

“On Christmas day, the Trump administration acts. This will go down very well with Trump’s Christian evangelical base, I am sure,” he said.

Trump issued his attack statement on Christmas Day while he was at ‌his Palm Beach, Florida, Mar-a-Lago Club, where he has been spending the holiday.

Lionsgate

Lionsgate

Lionsgate

‘Getting the tone right’

Lionsgate

A federal judge in San Francisco on Wednesday barred Immigration and Customs Enforcement and its Justice Department counterpart from “sweeping” civil arrests at immigration courthouses across Northern California, teeing up an appellate challenge to one of the Trump administration’s most controversial deportation tactics.

“This circumstance presents noncitizens in removal proceedings with a Hobson’s choice between two irreparable harms,” Judge P. Casey Pitts wrote in his Christmas Eve decision.

“First, they may appear in immigration court and face likely arrest and detention,” the judge wrote. “Alternatively, noncitizens may choose not to appear and instead to forego their opportunity to pursue their claims for asylum or other relief from removal.”

Wednesday’s decision blocks ICE and the Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review from lying in wait for asylum seekers and other noncitizens at routine hearings throughout the region — a move that would effectively restore pre-Trump prohibition on such arrests.

“Here, ICE and EOIR’s prior policies governing courthouse arrests and detention in holding facilities provide a standard,” the judge said.

Authorities have long curbed arrests at “sensitive locations”— such as hospitals, houses of worship and schools — putting them out of reach of most civil immigration enforcement.

The designation was first established decades ago under ICE’s predecessor agency, Immigration and Naturalization Services. ICE absorbed the prohibitions when the agency was formed in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Courts were added to the list under President Obama. The policy prohibiting most courthouse arrests was suspended during the first Trump administration and reinstated by President Biden.

Internal ICE guidance from the Biden era found “[e]xecuting civil immigration enforcement actions in or near a courthouse may chill individuals’ access to courthouses and, as a result, impair the fair administration of justice.”

Nevertheless, the agency’s courthouse policy was reversed again earlier this year, leading to a surge in arrests, and a staggering drop in court appearances, court records show.

Most who do not show up are ordered removed in absentia.

Monthly removal in absentia orders more than doubled this year, to 4,177 from fewer than 1,600 in 2024, justice department data show.

More than 50,000 asylum seekers have been ordered removed after failing to appear in court hearings since January — more than were ordered removed in absentia in the previous five years combined.

“ICE cannot choose to ignore the ‘costs’ of its new policies—chilling the participation of noncitizens in their removal proceedings —and consider only the policies’ purported ‘benefits’ for immigration enforcement,” Pitts wrote in his stay order.

That ruling likely sets the San Francisco case on a collision course with other lawsuits seeking to curb ICE’s incursions into spaces previously considered off-limits. This suit was brought by a group of asylum seekers who braved the risk and were detained when they showed up to court.

One, a 24-year-old Guatemalan asylum seeker named Yulisa Alvarado Ambrocio, was spared detention only because her breastfeeding 11-month-old was with her in court, records show. Administration lawyers told the court ICE would almost certainly pick her up at her next hearing.

Such arrests appear arbitrary and capricious, and are unlikely to survive scrutiny by the courts, Judge Pitts ruled Wednesday.

“That widespread civil arrests at immigration courts could have a chilling effect on noncitizens’ attendance at removal proceedings (as common sense, the prior guidance, and the actual experience in immigration court since May 2025 make clear) and thereby undermine this central purpose is thus ‘an important aspect of the problem’ that ICE was required, but failed, to consider,” Pitts wrote.

A district judge in Manhattan ruled the opposite way on a similar case this fall, setting up a possible circuit split and even a Supreme Court challenge to courthouse arrests in 2026.

For now, the Christmas Eve decision only applies to ICE’s San Francisco Area of Responsibility, a region encompassing all of Northern and Central California, as far south as Bakersfield.

The geographic limit comes in response to the Supreme Court’s emergency decision earlier this year stripping district judges of the power to block federal policies outside narrowly-tailored circumstances.

The administration told the court it intends to appeal to the 9th Circuit, where Trump-appointed judges have swung the bench far to the right of its longtime liberal reputation.

NEW YORK — Jalen Brunson scored 34 points, reserve Jordan Clarkson had 25 and the New York Knicks came from 17 down in the fourth quarter to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 126-124 on Thursday and win on Christmas Day for the third straight year.

Reserves Tyler Kolek and Mitchell Robinson sparked the comeback after the Cavaliers led 103-86 early in the final period. Kolek had 16 points and nine assists, and had fans chanting his name after a late block on Donovan Mitchell that originally was called a foul but was overturned on review. Robinson hustled after offensive rebounds to keep possessions alive and finished with 13 boards.

Brunson made the go-ahead three-pointer with 1:05 remaining, after he, Kolek and Clarkson all hit from behind the arc in a 13-2 run that cut Cleveland’s 12-point lead to 111-110.

Mitchell had 34 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Darius Garland added 20 points and 10 assists, but the Cavaliers blew their chance at a third straight win.

Evan Mobley finished with 14 points and nine rebounds after missing five games with a strained left calf.

The Cavs raced to an 18-3 lead behind 10 points from Mitchell and led 38-23 after one quarter. But Clarkson opened the second with consecutive 3-pointers, and after a Cavs three-pointer, the Knicks ripped off an 18-0 burst to take a 47-41 lead.

The Knicks made 12 of their first 14 shots in the second, before Mobley had Cleveland’s final four baskets as New York took a 60-58 edge into the break.

Cleveland quickly regained control in the third. Mitchell slammed down a lob pass that Garland threw from beyond halfcourt to cap a 10-3 burst to open the period, and Mitchell later hit a three-pointer to cap an 18-4 spurt that turned a 71-all tie into an 89-75 advantage for the Cavs.

Dec. 25 (UPI) — Up to 350 Louisiana National Guard members began deploying this week in New Orleans and will stay through February to help maintain peace and safety during New Year’s and special events.

The deployment also comes amid efforts to locate and deport those who illegally are in the United States.

“These National Guard troops will support federal law enforcement partners, including the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, as they enforce federal law and counter high rates of violent crime in New Orleans and other metropolitan areas in Louisiana,” Defense Department spokesman Sean Parnell said in a prepared statement on Tuesday.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry maintains his command and control of the state’s National Guard, whose mission is to enhance safety.

He said the troops will be fully deployed ahead of New Year’s Eve and will stay in New Orleans at least through February.

The deployment was announced after the Supreme Court on Tuesday struck down President Donald Trump’s effort to deploy the Illinois National Guard in Chicago over the protests of Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.

The troops will be tasked with ensuring safety in the French Quarter during New Year’s celebrations and during the Sugar Bowl and Mardi Gras.

“We know how to make cities safe, and the National Guard complements cities that are experiencing high crime,” Landry said during an appearance on The Will Cain Show.

He cited President Donald Trump’s National Guard deployment in Washington, D.C., as an example of how the troops can make cities safer for residents and visitors.

“When he wanted to send the National Guard into Washington, D.C., Louisiana was one of the first to raise its hand and say our troops will go there,” Landry said. “And the city is so much better.”

We had a feeling we would be in for another round of weapons ‘reveals’ out of China this Christmas, following last year’s ‘leaks’ of not just one, but two tailless stealth tactical jet designs, among other developments. It appears we are getting at least one installment of this in the form of a medium-sized cargo ship packed full of containerized vertical launchers, along with sensors and self defense systems. The message is clear, China is making it known that it could, and likely will, turn ships from its behemoth of a commercial fleet into not just shooters, but arsenal ships.

The vessel has containers packed on its deck, both used for containing weapons and for mounting them, along with sensors. In other words, the layout appears to be designed as something of an improvised superstructure in order to turn the cargo ship into a heavily-armed surface combatant of sorts. This includes the mounting of a large rotating phased-array radar forward of the bridge atop three containers, as well as another domed radar or communications system across the deck from it mounted on two containers.

Near the bow of the vessel, high-up mounted on above two containers, we see an Type 1130 30mm close-in-weapon system (CIWS) for last-ditch defense against incoming threats, especially cruise missiles. One container lower, on both sides, we see Type 726 decoy launchers mounted on top of another pair of containers. The large cylindrical pods appear to be emergency life rafts, likely required because of the expanded crew size to make a concept like this work.

Then we get to the real eyebrow raiser, a deck literally covered with containerized vertical launchers. Installed five wide and three deep, each packing four large launch tubes, this arrangement gives the vessel a whopping 60 vertical large launch cells. This is two-thirds the VLS capacity of a Arleigh Burke class Flight I or II destroyer.

Due to the large radar installation, it appears this ship’s mission is something of a picket ship, rather than just an arsenal ship, providing area air defense, but that doesn’t mean its containerized launchers couldn’t pack other weapons. Still, something like this could be useful for persistently providing air defense over a given area.

Regardless, it’s an impressive display and there have been rumors about China going this route as it races to advance its goal of naval supremacy. We have already seen Chinese commercial ships leveraged at improvised helicopter carriers and ferries being shifted to the island invasion mission during exercises. It’s also worth noting that containerized weapon systems have moved from controversial oddity to the mainstream over the last decade, and it’s an area the U.S. continues to pursue heavily for all sorts of applications.

The images of China’s cargo ship turned floating missile farm offer a lot to look at, but the question has to be raised just how real this configuration is? It very much looks like it was made photo ready for these images. Is this a proof of concept demonstrator or just a mockup? How sturdy are the radar and CIWS installations, for instance? On closer examination of the images, the radar installation looks relatively robust, but takeaways are limited at this time. The radar would have an issue with being close to inline with the ship’s actual aft superstructure, although there are ways to mitigate this. And just because you can bolt all this to a commercial ship, it doesn’t mean it can employ these sensors and weapons effectively. What combat information system exists on the ship to integrate all these systems and effectively use them in combat?

We just don’t know at this time.

WASHINGTON — The national Republican Party leadership, spurred by chairman Lee Atwater, today cut all ties to former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke, the newly elected Louisiana Republican state lawmaker.

Party spokeswoman Leslie Goodman said 28 voting members of the party’s executive committee unanimously repudiated during a telephone vote Duke’s racist and anti-Semitic views and barred financial or other assistance for him.

Duke, 38, a former klan grand wizard, was elected to the Legislature Saturday from a suburban New Orleans district in a narrow victory over builder John Treen, 63, who was backed by President Bush and former President Ronald Reagan.

The resolution adopted by the national Republicans in effect “excommunicates” Duke, according to Atwater, who said Duke is neither a Republican nor a Democrat but “a charlatan and a faker” using Republicans to promote his racist agenda.

St James’ was once the second-biggest club stadium in the country, behind Old Trafford, but Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool, West Ham United, Arsenal, Manchester City and Everton have all since leapfrogged Newcastle‘s 52,335-seater ground in terms of capacity.

In that time, a huge revenue gap has opened up between the established order and Newcastle, with Manchester United generating £87m more in match-day income and £219.3m more in commercial income in 2023-24.

Newcastle‘s training ground has been modernised in recent years, including hydrotherapy and plunge pools, a new canteen, a players’ lounge and bigger dressing rooms – but it remains some way off the best in the country.

Howe was keen to stress that the “ambition is there from everyone to make that happen”.

But the Newcastle head coach said there needs to be a “bit of patience” with the club’s infrastructure plans to “make sure it’s the right solution for everybody”.

He added: “If there is extra time taken to make the right decisions so the stadium project is correct, and it’s the right one for Newcastle for how ever many years the club are there, then take the extra time.

“It’s the same with the training ground. You need the right site and designs. I would rather it was correct than rushed.

“I know that there’s a 99.9% chance that I’m not going to see either in my position, but I’m still passionate about making sure it’s there for the future generations of Newcastle, whether that’s supporters or players.”

Families celebrate Christmas releases while calling for full freedom of detainees.

Authorities in Venezuela have released at least 60 people arrested during protests against President Nicolas Maduro’s re-election, according to a human rights advocacy group, though campaigners say hundreds remain behind bars.

The releases began early on Thursday, over Christmas, according to the Committee for the Freedom of Political Prisoners, a group of rights activists and relatives of detainees arrested during unrest that followed July’s presidential election.

“We celebrate the release of more than 60 Venezuelans, who should never have been arbitrarily detained,” committee head Andreina Baduel told the AFP news agency.

“Although they are not entirely free, we will continue working for their full freedom and that of all political prisoners.”

Maduro secured a third term in office in the July 2024 vote, a result rejected by parts of the opposition amid allegations of fraud. The disputed outcome triggered weeks of demonstrations, during which authorities arrested about 2,400 people. Nearly 2,000 have since been released, according to rights groups.

Despite the latest releases, Venezuela still holds at least 902 political prisoners, according to Foro Penal, an NGO that monitors detentions.

Relatives said many of those freed had been held at Tocoron prison, a maximum-security facility in Aragua state, roughly 134km (83 miles) from the capital Caracas. Officials have not publicly clarified the conditions under which detainees were released.

“We must remember that there are more than 1,000 families with political prisoners,” Baduel said. Her father, Raul Isaias Baduel, a former defence minister and once an ally of the late president, Hugo Chavez, died in custody in 2021.

A suicide explosion occurred at Al-Adum Jummat Mosque in Gamboru Market area of Maiduguri, northeastern Nigeria, on Wednesday, Dec. 24. 

The bomb went off around 6:00 p.m., shortly after residents and traders began observing the evening prayers.

The Borno State Police Command confirmed that 5 persons lost their lives while 35 others sustained varying degrees of injuries. 

“Preliminary investigations further suggest that the incident may have been a suicide bombing, based on the recovery of fragments of a suspected suicide vest and witness statements recorded, while investigations are ongoing to establish the exact cause and circumstances,” said ASP Nahum Kenneth Daso, Police Public Relations Officer of the Borno State Police Command.

People praying outside the mosque were also wounded after debris and shattered glass were scattered across the area.

Security personnel and emergency responders arrived to evacuate victims and sealed off the site.

The explosion marks the most serious incident reported in Maiduguri in recent times. Since the Boko Haram insurgency began over a decade ago in the city, suicide bombings like this one have been recorded across major cities in public places like worship areas and motor parks. The insurgency has killed over 35,000 people directly so far. 

HumAngle observed several ambulances transporting the injured and the deceased to hospitals, while the police and military personnel maintained guard around the site of the explosion.

While some of the victims were taken to the Maiduguri Specialist Hospital, others were taken to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital. At the Specialist Hospital, HumAngle counted 17 victims, with injuries on the arms and legs, admitted at the Weapon Wound Ward.

A trader at Gamboru Market said, “I was performing ablution when the blast occurred, and I ran away.” He confirmed that the explosion came from inside the mosque.

Gamboru Market is one of Maiduguri’s busiest commercial hubs, drawing traders and shoppers from Borno State and neighbouring countries like Chad, Cameroon, and Niger. The market hosts a variety of businesses, including stalls for fresh produce, textiles, clothing, household goods, and other everyday commodities. 

It also serves as a centre for small-scale services like tailoring, food vending, and transport, making it a key economic lifeline for the local market, operating long into the night, sometimes until 9:00 p.m., even after the main market closes at 6:00 p.m.

ASP Nahum Kenneth Daso also stated that “Police EOD personnel have cordoned off the area to ensure public safety, while investigations are ongoing.”

He urged members to remain calm and vigilant as security operations are ongoing.

EastEnders fans rejoiced as the Witches of Walford reunited in explosive scenes that played out in the BBC soap’s famous pub on Christmas Day as various truths were outed

EastEnders fans rejoiced as the Witches of Walford reunited in explosive scenes that aired on Christmas Day. The BBC soap aired its festive special on Thursday evening, and it was revealed exactly who had been tormenting Zoe Slater with threatening letters over the past few months.

Zoe made a much-anticipated comeback to the serial earlier this year, and it emerged later that she had twins almost 20 years ago. At the time, it was believed that the little girl had died and she had given her son away for adoption. Having been searching for her son for months, Zoe finally believed her son was about to turn up on Christmas Day, but it was all a wicked plot set up by a mysterious figure.

Earlier in the day, Zoe got into an altercation with Antony Trueman, the biological father of her children, at the top of the stairs in the Queen Vic which ended with her knocked out cold. In a surprise twist though, it was revealed that Zoe had woken up relatively unharmed and Anthony was dead.

READ MORE: EastEnders’ Jasmine’s link to Cindy ‘explained’ as Chrissie’s secret family ‘revealed’READ MORE: EastEnders’ Tracy-Ann Oberman breaks silence on ‘obsession’ amid Zoe stalker hell

After Kat discovered them, she cleared out the pub and they were greeted by Chrissie Watts, who was last seen in 2024 driving away from the square following a long spell in prison for the murder of her husband Den. Chrissie, who had broken into the pub and fired up a karaoke microphone, said: “Ladies. Both of you. What a treat! Zoe pleaded: “Where’s my son?” as Chrissie confirmed: “He’s not coming I’m afraid…”

She added: “Torturing? With a few harmless games? I thought it was time we’d have a little reunion. It’s been so long. You’re not a drippy little girl anymore. Life has really toughened you up.” Zoe demanded to know why Chrissie was back on the scene, but she wouldn’t say anything without having a drink first.

It was then that Jasmine Fisher stepped into the pub and Chrissie confirmed that they knew each other. Zoe worked out that Jasmine was her daughter, even though she thought she had died several years ago. Jasmine said: “Only because you couldn’t be bothered to stick around the hospital long enough to hear me cry.” Through tears, Zoe pleased: “They took you away! You weren’t breathing,” but Jasmin continued: “Maybe I should be flattered because at least you didn’t just abandon me like you did my brother.”

“We’ve known each other a while, haven’t we, Jas? I was back in London seeing my parole officers. They can’t get enough of me, I’m a popular girl. Anyway, I bring up my phone, and there’s a picture of my old pal Zoe. You’d been through the wars. I thought it was a sign and decided to bring flowers. But when I got there, they wouldn’t let anyone near you and that’s when I bumped into this lovely one.”

“We both hate you. We wanted to teach you a lesson.” Jasmine raged that Zoe had never tried to find her once she knew she was alive but Kat reasoned: “We only found out today!” Chrissie twisted the knife further and brought up the fact that Zoe had slept with her husband Den several years ago.

Coldly, she added: “I pay for my crimes. And now you’re gonna pay for yours. But your punishment is gonna be in here. You’ve got a lovely little girl and you’re never gonna get to know her.”

Kat told Jasmine: “Look at her, she has really suffered, she has spent her whole life regretting this and yes, she makes bad decisions but she’s not a bad person. This here, Chrissie, she’s the evil one.” There was then another twist for fans as Sam Mitchell made her grand return to the soap by stepping out from behind the bar.

She said: “It’s not often that I side with Kat Slater. But she’s right. Chrissie Watts is evil.” Fans of the long-running BBC soap, which celebrated its 40th anniversary earlier this year, will know that Chrissie, Sam and Zoe formed the trio known as The Witches of Walford during their 2000s heyday.

At the time, an iconic storyline saw Chrissie instigating a revenge plot against her husband Den, and persuading Sam and Zoe to go along with her before she tried to frame them for Den’s murder.

Chrissie said: “The three of us. Back again. Who’s gonna turn up next? The ghost of Den?” Sam then asked Chrissie if she was related to Jasmine, and even though Zoe protested that she was the mother, Chrissie cut in to say: “She could’ve been mine! She’s the same age as the baby I lost in prison.”

Kat then demanded the three of them leave but Zoe, now in tears, tried to make her long-lost daughter see that Chrissie had simply goaded her into another revenge plot. Sam then brought up Chrissie’s manipulative ways to try to make Jasmin see sense.

Outside, Jasmine tried to get rid of Chrissie and insisted that she would be “better off” alone. Chrissie then warned Jasmine against mentioning her name to any law authorities, and walked back out of Albert Square. Jasmin and Zoe had a heart-to-heart, and when the police did arrive, Zoe stopped Kat from trying to cover for her and handed herself in as her mother wept.

Fans were quick to react to the reunion, with one fan writing on X: “Hahaha chrissie appearing like that in the Vic,” and a second added: “Kat, meet one of your first grandchildren!”

Another said: “This is vintage” and a fourth added: “Sam, Zoe and Chrissie in the same room in 20 years [crying emoji],” whilst another dramatically exclaimed: “THIS IS A HUGE SHOWDOWN!”

EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

WASHINGTON — Congressional investigators on Friday interviewed Edwin P. Wilson, the convicted former CIA official, at a maximum-security prison as part of their investigation into the Iran- contra affair, officials said.

Bob Havel, a spokesman for the House Iran-contra committee, said congressional staffers flew to Marion, Ill., to talk to Wilson, who knew some of the figures in the affair.

“I understand he wanted to talk with them,” Havel said.

Paul Blumenthal, an attorney for Wilson, identified the three as Cameron Holmes and David Faulkner of the Senate committee and Allan Hobron of the House committee.

Wilson, who is serving a 52-year sentence for illegally selling explosives to Libya and plotting to kill federal prosecutors and witnesses, has claimed in television and newspaper interviews that he was a one-time business partner of retired Maj. Gen. Richard V. Secord.

Denies Business Ties

Secord said he knew Wilson but has denied that he had any business association with the former CIA official.

Secord is under investigation by independent counsel Lawrence E. Walsh for his role in helping former National Security Council aide Lt. Col. Oliver L. North sell weapons to Iran and divert the profits to the Nicaraguan contras.

Havel said one of the issues investigators wanted to question Wilson about was a Feb. 16, 1984, cashier’s check for $33,000 that Secord made out to Thomas Clines, another former CIA official who was once associated with Wilson. A copy of the check was introduced at the hearings.

Testimony in the public Iran-contra hearings, which ended Aug. 3, showed that Clines worked with Secord in supplying weapons to the contras.

Purpose of Check

Secord has said the check represented a loan to Clines and had nothing to do with a fine that Clines’ company had to pay in 1984 for overbilling the U.S. government on shipping costs.

Clines was involved in the Egyptian-American Transport & Service Co., a now-defunct firm that pleaded guilty to filing false statements with the U.S. government. Eatsco was created to ship U.S. military equipment to Egypt.

Wilson, whose estate is tied up in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, has filed papers seeking to pursue financial claims against Clines, Secord and several Egyptians who he says were involved in Eatsco.

Wilson contends that he provided start-up money for Eatsco, but never received a promised return on his investment.

LANDOVER, Md. — Dak Prescott threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dallas Cowboys blew most of an 18-point lead before squeezing past the Washington Commanders 30-23 Thursday.

Dallas (7-8-1) scored touchdowns on its first three possessions to go up 21-3. Although the Commanders (4-12) cut the gap to a touchdown on three different occasions, they couldn’t complete the comeback and absorbed their 10th loss in 11 games.

Both teams were previously eliminated from playoff contention, which severely lessened the significance of this matchup between longtime NFC East rivals.

Prescott completed 19 of 37 passes and helped Dallas convert all six of its fourth-down tries. His two TD passes gave him 30, tying Tony Romo’s franchise record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown throws.

Prescott shrugged off six sacks, including three by Jer’Zhan Newton.

Playing without injured quarterbacks Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington turned to 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. Making his 10th career start and first since 2021, Johnson went 15 for 23 for 198 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.

Jacory Croskey-Merritt scored on runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The latter touchdown got the Commanders to 24-17 in the third quarter, but Dallas restored its double-digit lead with a 52-yard field by Brandon Aubrey.

Aubrey added a 51-yarder to make it 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.

After Prescott threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jake Ferguson on the game’s opening drive, Johnson went 3 for 3 for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. The key play was a 41-yard completion to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s longest since 2018. Samuel finished by running into Donovan Wilson, knocking the safety’s helmet off.

On their second possession, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a 17-play march that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then made it three TDs in three drives with an 86-yard scoring pass to KaVontae Turpin.

Dec. 25 (UPI) — The National Capital Planning Commission has added the East Wing Modernization Project at the White House to its Jan. 8 agenda to review construction of a new ballroom and other improvements.

Trump administration officials will provide the commission with an informational presentation on the ballroom construction and other planned improvements, according to The Hill.

No public testimony will be heard and no vote taken on the project during the meeting, according to the NCPC.

“This is an opportunity for the project applicant to present the project and for commissioners to ask questions and provide general observations prior to formal review, which we anticipate this spring,” the NCPC said in a FAQ published on the commission’s website.

The NPC has no authority over White House demolitions or site preparations and only reviews building exteriors, per the National Capital Planning Act, but it does review proposed new construction or permanent site improvements.

The National Environmental Policy Act does give the NCPC the authority to review projects within the District of Columbia to ensure compliance with the NEPA.

The National Historic Preservation Act, though, does not apply in the matter as the White House and its grounds are excluded from its provisions.

The Trump administration initially said the construction of a new ballroom in the East Wing of the White House would cost $200 million, and said that the project will be funded by private donations.

President Donald Trump last week said the project could cost twice that amount but that donors would cover all additional costs, too.

The president earlier announced the ballroom construction, which he said is needed to provide a modern event space inside the White House.

Officials with the National Trust for Historic Preservation challenged the construction in federal court and sought an injunction to halt all work.

A federal judge denied the injunction request but ordered the Trump administration to undergo a review process for the project.

Fourteen countries, including France, Britain, Canada, Germany and Japan, condemned on Wednesday Israel’s recent decision to approve new Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. They called on the Israeli government to reverse the decision and to stop expanding settlements. 

In a joint statement published by the French Foreign Ministry, the countries said: “We, States of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the United Kingdom condemn the approval by the Israeli security cabinet of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank.”      

The statement added: “We recall our clear opposition to any form of annexation and to the expansion of settlement policies.”   

Earlier, the Israeli government’s security cabinet approved the establishment of 19 new settlements in the occupied West Bank. This brings the total number of settlements approved over the past three years to 69.

READ: Shtayyeh: Settler population in West Bank and Jerusalem hits 881,000

As a child, Clara Spars, who grew up in Charles M. Schulz’s adoptive hometown of Santa Rosa, assumed that every city had life-size “Peanuts” statues dotting its streets.

After all, Spars saw the sculptures everywhere she went — in the Santa Rosa Plaza, at Montgomery Village, outside downtown’s Empire Cleaners. When she and her family inevitably left town and didn’t stumble upon Charlie Brown and his motley crew, she was perplexed.

Whatever void she felt then is long gone, since the beagle has become a pop culture darling, adorning all manner of merchandise — from pimple patches to luxury handbags. Spars herself is the proud owner of a Baggu x Peanuts earbuds case and is regularly gifted Snoopy apparel and accessories.

“It’s so funny to see him everywhere because I’m like, ‘Oh, finally!’” Spars said.

The spike in Snoopy products has been especially pronounced this year with the 75th anniversary of “Peanuts,” a.k.a. Snoopy’s 75th birthday. But the grip Snoopy currently has on pop culture and the retail industry runs deeper than anniversary buzz. According to Sony, which last week acquired majority ownership of the “Peanuts” franchise, the IP is worth half a billion dollars.

To be clear, Snoopy has always been popular. Despite his owner being the “Peanuts” strip’s main character and the namesake for most of the franchise’s adaptations, Snoopy was inarguably its breakout star. He was the winner of a 2001 New York Times poll about readers’ favorite “Peanuts” characters, with 35% of the vote.

This year, the Charles M. Schulz Museum celebrated the 75th anniversary of the “Peanuts” comic strip’s debut.

(Brennan Spark / Charles M. Schulz Museum)

But the veritable Snoopymania possessing today’s consumers really exploded with the social media boom of the early 2010s, said Melissa Menta, senior vice president of global brand and communications for Peanuts Worldwide.

That’s also when the company saw the first signs of uncharacteristically high brand engagement, Menta said. She largely attributed the success of “Peanuts” on social media to the comic strip’s suitability to visual platforms like Instagram.

“No one reads the comic strips in newspapers anymore,” Menta said, “but if you think about it, a four-panel comic strip, it’s actually an Instagram carousel.”

Then, in 2023, Peanuts Worldwide launched the campaign that made Snoopy truly viral.

That year, the brand partnered with the American Red Cross to create a graphic tee as a gift for blood donors. The shirt, which featured Snoopy’s alter ego Joe Cool and the message “Be Cool. Give Blood,” unexpectedly became internet-famous. In the first week of the collaboration, the Red Cross saw a 40% increase in donation appointments, with 75% of donors under the age of 34.

“People went crazy over it,” Menta said, and journalists started asking her, “Why?”

Her answer? “Snoopy is cute and cool. He’s everything you want to be.”

“Charles Schulz said the only goal he had in all that he created was to make people laugh, and I think he’s still doing that 75 years later,” Schulz Museum director Gina Huntsinger said.

(Brennan Spark / Charles M. Schulz Museum)

The Red Cross collaboration was so popular that Peanuts Worldwide brought it back this year, releasing four new shirt designs. Again, the Snoopy fandom — plus some Woodstock enthusiasts — responded, with 250,000 blood donation appointments made nationwide in the month after the collection’s launch.

In addition to the Red Cross partnership, Peanuts Worldwide this year has rolled out collaborations with all kinds of retailers, from luxury brands like Coach and Kith to mass-market powerhouses like Krispy Kreme and Starbucks. Menta said licensed product volume is greater than ever, estimating that the brand currently has more than 1,200 licensees in “almost every territory around the world,” which is approximately four times the number it had 40 years ago.

Then again, at that time, Schulz enjoyed and regularly executed veto power when it came to product proposals, and licensing rules were laid out in what former Times staff writer Carla Lazzareschi called the “Bible.”

“The five-pound, 12-inch-by-18-inch binder given every new licensee establishes accepted poses for each character and painstakingly details their personalities,” Lazzareschi wrote in a 1987 Times story. “Snoopy, for example, is said to be an ‘extrovert beagle with a Walter Mitty complex.’ The guidelines cover even such matters as Snoopy’s grip on a tennis racquet.”

Although licensing has expanded greatly since then, Menta said she and her retail development associates “try hard not to just slap a character onto a T-shirt.” Their goal is to honor Schulz’s storytelling, she added, and with 18,000 “Peanuts” strips in the archive, licensees have plenty of material to pull from.

Rick Vargas, the senior vice president of merchandising and marketing at specialty retailer BoxLunch, said his team regularly returns to the Schulz archives to mine material that could resonate with customers.

“As long as you have a fresh look at what that IP has to offer, there’s always something to find. There’s always a new product to build,” Vargas said.

Indeed, this has been one of BoxLunch’s strongest years in terms of sales of “Peanuts” products, and Snoopy merchandise specifically, the executive said.

BaubleBar co-founder Daniella Yacobovsky said the brand’s “Peanuts” collaboration was one of its most beloved yet.

(BaubleBar)

Daniella Yacobovsky, co-founder of the celebrity-favorite accessory retailer BaubleBar, reported similar high sales for the brand’s recent “Peanuts” collection.

“Especially for people who are consistent BaubleBar fans, every time we introduce new character IP, there is this huge excitement from that fandom that we are bringing their favorite characters to life,” Yacobovsky said.

The bestselling item in the collection, the Peanuts Friends Forever Charm Bracelet, sold out in one day. Plus, customers have reached out with new ideas for products linked to specific “Peanuts” storylines.

More recently, Peanuts Worldwide has focused on marketing to younger costumers in response to unprecedented brand engagement from Gen Z. In November, it launched a collaboration with Starface, whose cult-favorite pimple patches are a staple for teens and young adults. The Snoopy stickers have already sold out on Ulta.com, Starface founder Julie Schott said in an emailed statement, adding that the brand is fielding requests for restocks.

“We know it’s a certified hit when resale on Depop and EBay starts to spike,” Schott said.

The same thing happened in 2023, when a CVS plush of Snoopy in a puffer jacket (possibly the dog’s most internet-famous iteration to date) sold out in-store and started cropping up on EBay — for more than triple the original price.

The culprits were Gen-Zers fawning over how cute cozy Snoopy was, often on social media.

“People who love Snoopy adore Snoopy, whether you grew up with ‘Peanuts’ or connect with Snoopy as a meme and cultural icon today,” said Starface founder Julie Schott.

(Starface World Inc.)

Hannah Guy Casey, senior director of brand and marketing at Peanuts Worldwide, said in 2024, the official Snoopy TikTok account gained 1.1 million followers, and attracted 85.4 million video views and 17.6 million engagements. This year, the account has gained another 1.2 million followers, and racked up 106.5 million video views and 23.2 million engagements.

Guy Casey noted that TikTok is where the brand experiences much of its engagement among Gen Z fans.

Indeed, the platform is a hot spot for fan-created Snoopy content, from memes featuring the puffer jacket to compilations of his most relatable moments. Several Snoopy fan accounts, including one dedicated to a music-loving Snoopy plushie, boast well over half a million followers.

Caryn Iwakiri, a speech and language pathologist at Sunnyvale’s Lakewood Tech EQ Elementary School whose classroom is Snoopy-themed, recently took an impromptu trip to the Charles M. Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa after seeing its welcome center decked out with Snoopy decor on TikTok. Once she arrived, she realized the museum was celebrating the “Peanuts” 75th anniversary.

Last year, the Schulz Museum saw its highest-ever attendance, driven in large part by its increased visibility on social media.

(Brennan Spark / Charles M. Schulz Museum)

It’s a familiar story for Schulz Museum director Gina Huntsinger.

“Last December, we were packed, and I was at the front talking to people, and I just randomly asked this group, ‘Why are you here?’”

It turned out that the friends had traveled from Washington, D.C., and Las Vegas to meet in Santa Rosa and visit the museum after seeing it on TikTok.

According to Stephanie King, marketing director at the Schulz Museum, the establishment is experiencing its highest-ever admissions since opening in 2002. In the 2024–2025 season, the museum increased its attendance by nearly 45% from the previous year.

Huntsinger said she’s enjoyed watching young visitors experience the museum in new ways.

In the museum’s education room, where visitors typically trace characters from the original Schulz comics or fill out “Peanuts” coloring pages, Gen Z museumgoers are sketching pop culture renditions of Snoopy — Snoopy as rock band Pierce the Veil, Snoopy as pop star Charli XCX.

“When our social media team puts them up [online], there’s these comments among this generation that gets this, and they’re having conversations about it,” Huntsinger said. “It’s dynamic, it’s fun, it’s creative. It makes me feel like there’s hope in the world.”

The Schulz Museum’s “Passport to Peanuts” exhibition emphasizes the comic’s global reach.

(Brennan Spark / Charles M. Schulz Museum)

Laurel Roxas felt similarly when they first discovered “Peanuts” as a kid while playing the “Snoopy vs. the Red Baron” video game on their PlayStation Portable. For Roxas, who is Filipino, it was Snoopy and not the “Peanuts” children who resonated most.

“Nobody was Asian. I was like, ‘Oh, I’m not even in the story,’” they said.

Because Snoopy was so simply drawn, Roxas added, he was easy to project onto. They felt similarly about Hello Kitty; with little identifying features or dialogue of their own, the characters were blank canvases for their own personification.

Roxas visited Snoopy Museum Tokyo with their brother last year. They purchased so much Snoopy merchandise — “everything I could get my hands on” — that they had to buy additional luggage to bring it home.

For some Snoopy enthusiasts, the high volume of Snoopy products borders on oversaturation, threatening to cheapen the spirit of the character.

Growing up, Bella Shingledecker loved the holiday season because it meant that the “Peanuts” animated specials would be back on the air. It was that sense of impermanence, she believes, that made the films special.

Now, when she sees stacks of Snoopy cookie jars or other trend-driven products at big-box stores like T.J. Maxx, it strikes her as a bit sad.

“It just feels very unwanted,” she said. For those who buy such objects, she said she can’t help but wonder, “Will this pass your aesthetic test next year?”

Lina Jeong, for one, isn’t worried that Snoopy’s star will fade.

“[Snoopy is] always able to show what he feels, but it’s never through words, and I think there’s something really poetic in that,” said Lina Jeong.

(Brennan Spark / Charles M. Schulz Museum)

Jeong’s affinity for the whimsical beagle was passed down to her from her parents, who furnished their home with commemorative “Peanuts” coffee table books. But she fell in love with Snoopy the first time she saw “Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown,” which she rewatches every Valentine’s Day.

This past year, she was fresh out of a relationship when the holiday rolled around and she found herself tearing up during scenes of Snoopy making Valentine’s crafts for his friends.

“Maybe I was hyper-emotional from everything that had happened, but I remember being so struck,” that the special celebrated platonic love over romantic love, Jeong said.

It was a great comfort to her at the time, she said, and she knows many others have felt that same solace from “Peanuts” media — especially from its dear dog.

“Snoopy is such a cultural pillar that I feel like fads can’t just wash it off,” she said.

Soon, she added, she plans to move those “Peanuts” coffee table books into her own apartment in L.A.