Month: January 2026

Los Angeles mayoral candidate Austin Beutner’s daughter was found by the side of a highway in Palmdale the night she died, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

A passerby alerted authorities to a woman in a “state of medical distress” shortly after midnight Jan. 6 near Sierra Highway and Technology Drive, said Lt. Michael Modica of the sheriff’s homicide bureau.

Sheriff’s deputies responded to the scene to assist paramedics, who treated Emily Beutner, 22, at the scene, Modica said. He could not say how long Beutner had been by the road, which is surrounded by empty fields.

She was transported to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Sheriff’s homicide detectives have assumed control of the death investigation. Modica said this is typical when a young person is found in such a situation and should not be taken as an indication of the cause of death, which will be determined by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.

Jeff Millman, a spokesperson for Austin Beutner, declined to comment.

Viridiana Aguilar, a spokesperson for the medical examiner, said earlier this month that her agency had not yet made a determination on the cause of death and had requested additional testing.

“Due to the ongoing death investigation, the County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner cannot disclose what testing and/or studies were requested,” Aguilar said. “Deferred cases can take a few months before a cause of death is determined.”

The medical examiner’s website indicates that Emily Beutner died at a hospital and does not list a cause or manner of death.

Beutner, a student at Loyola Marymount University, was the youngest of four children and the only daughter.

Her father, a former Los Angeles Unified school superintendent, is among the challengers seeking to unseat Mayor Karen Bass in the June 2 primary. Others include TV star Spencer Pratt, who lost his home in the Palisades fire, and Rae Huang, a community organizer and housing advocate.

Austin Beutner has sharply criticized Bass’ handling of the fire, which destroyed thousands of homes and left 12 people dead. His own home was seriously damaged in the fire, forcing him to live elsewhere for the past year, and his mother-in-law’s home was destroyed.

Over the course of his career, Beutner did a stint as former Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s “jobs czar.” He also spent roughly a year as publisher and chief executive of The Times.

Beutner has not publicly campaigned since Jan. 5, the day before his daughter’s death.

“My family has experienced the unimaginable loss of our beloved daughter. We ask for privacy and your prayers at this time,” Beutner said earlier this month.

WASHINGTON — The “competitive edge” Lakers coach JJ Redick requested from his players showed itself right away in the form of dominance from Luka Doncic, more outstanding play from LeBron James and an impressive outing from center Deandre Ayton.

By the time Doncic, James and Ayton completed their night, they had combined for 85 points and 27 rebounds in helping the Lakers build a 38-point lead en route to a 142-111 victory over the Washington Wizards on Friday. The Lakers improved to 4-2 on their season-high eight-game trip.

And it centered around the brilliance of Doncic, his triple-double of 37 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds the catalyst for the Lakers winning for the fifth time in their last seven games. He was efficient too, shooting 13 for 21 from the field and six for 13 from three-point range.

Ayton was a tower of strength with 28 points on 12-for-14 shooting, 13 rebounds, three blocked shots and three assists.

James had the crowd engaged all game with his play that led to 20 points and six assists.

The left ankle soreness that had Doncic listed as questionable was not an issue for the All-Star guard, his first half showing that he was playing at another level with a triple-double of 26 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds in 19 minutes against the overmatched Wizards.

LeBron James passes the ball around Wizards guard Bub Carrington during the first half.

(Nick Wass / Associated Press)

Doncic dazzled with no-look and lob passes along with three-pointers that seemed to impress even him, considering he looked over to the Lakers’ bench after several spectacular threes.

The 41-year-old James put on a show, throwing down lobs for dunks, drawing cheers and applause from the fans inside Capital One Arena.

There was the lob from Ayton that James threw down left-handed, making teammates leap off their seats and fans gasp and cheer. For added emphasis, James stared at his left hand as he made his way down the court, a knowing look on his face.

There was the lob from Marcus Smart that James threw down for a reverse dunk, again bringing fans and teammates out of their seats.

There was the moment James drove by Washington’s Alex Sarr and threw down another dunk, causing teammates to jump out of their seats again and fans to cheer even louder.

The Lakers (29-18) lost their previous game in Cleveland on Wednesday night by 30 points, an embarrassing effort that they wanted to rebound from against the Wizards.

In building a 77-48 lead at the half, the Lakers demonstrated that they were listening to Redick’s orders. It was the third time this season the Lakers scored 77 or more in a half.

“Yeah, I think playing with a competitive edge and playing together on both ends of the floor,” Redick said. “We’ve talked a lot recently just about doing your job. If you’re supposed to be the low man, be the low man. These guys all have shown they can do it and I think the theme of our season has been the ups and downs and sort of the consistency that we’re searching for on a night-to-night basis.”

Etc.

Though Austin Reaves (left calf strain) was upgraded to questionable for the game, the Lakers guard did not play. He has missed 18 straight games since suffering the injury on Christmas against the Houston Rockets.

Reaves has been working out as he progresses toward a return. The Lakers play again Sunday at the New York Knicks.

“He continues to progress. He hasn’t had any setbacks,” Redick said. “Yesterday was five weeks from the injury. He’s right on schedule, if not a little bit ahead of schedule. So it’s just him being fully confident in his body. And he continues to get great work on the court.”

Jan. 30 (Asia Today) — South Korea’s presidential office said Friday that financial authorities are in close communication with the U.S. Treasury Department after Washington redesignated South Korea on its foreign exchange monitoring list.

The office said the Treasury reaffirmed in its latest currency report that the recent weakening of the won was not consistent with South Korea’s economic fundamentals.

At the same time, the office said it understood the redesignation was made in a “mechanical” way based on the Treasury’s evaluation criteria.

South Korea was removed from the monitoring list in November 2023 after being listed since April 2016, but was added back in November 2024 and remained on the list in the latest report, according to the office and South Korean media reports.

The Treasury cited South Korea’s sharply larger current account surplus and its expanded goods and services surplus with the United States as reasons it continues to warrant monitoring, the report said.

In the January report, the Treasury said its monitoring list includes 10 economies: China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Germany, Ireland and Switzerland.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.

Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260130010013828

The initial production representative MQ-25 Stingray tanker drone for the U.S. Navy has completed its first low-speed taxi test. The service has said it is now targeting a first flight for the uncrewed aircraft early this year, after missing a self-imposed deadline to reach that milestone before the end of 2025.

The taxi test took place at Boeing’s facility at MidAmerica Airport, situated outside of St. Louis, Missouri, according to social media posts from the company and Naval Air Systems (NAVAIR). Navy personnel from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 23 (VX-23) and Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 24 (UX-24), the latter of which is focused specifically on supporting the development of uncrewed aerial systems, participated in the event, per NAVAIR.

Taxing testing, with the drone moving under its own power, is a critical step toward a first flight. When exactly this milestone was achieved is not immediately clear, and TWZ has reached out to NAVAIR and Boeing for more information.

Boeing had previously announced the start of ground testing of the production representative MQ-25 last summer. A flying MQ-25 demonstrator, also known as T1, has been used in flight and ground testing in support of the Stingray program for years now. However, it is a test article that is not fully reflective of the production-standard aircraft.

Boeing MQ-25 Becomes First Unmanned Aircraft to Refuel Another Aircraft

Testing MQ-25 Aboard an Aircraft Carrier

The footage released today provides new views of the drone’s exotic top-mounted ‘flush’ air inlet and its engine exhaust inset inside the fuselage, as seen at the top of this story and below. TWZ has drawn particular attention to the inlet in the past, which speaks to the design’s other low observable (stealthy) features, as well as its overall design, despite this not being an explicit focus of the MQ-25 program.

Boeing has previously confirmed to us that the MQ-25’s design was influenced by the company’s submission to the Navy’s abortive Unmanned Carrier Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) program. UCLASS envisioned a stealthy carrier-based drone capable of performing kinetic strikes and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions. Despite significant work toward fielding that capability, including ground-breaking flight testing using a pair of X-47B drones built by Northrop Grumman, the Navy subsequently abandoned the UCLASS plans in favor of an uncrewed tanker. That decision, in turn, led to the MQ-25.

The video also offers a new look at the production representative Stingray configuration’s retractable sensor turret under the nose. Turrets like these typically contain a mixture of electro-optical and infrared cameras, and sometimes also have laser range finders, laser spot markers, and laser designators. In addition to its primary role as a pilotless aerial refueling platform, the Navy says the MQ-25 will have a secondary ISR function. The Stingray’s overall design opens up the possibility that it could take on other missions, including kinetic strike, in the future, as TWZ has previously explored in detail.

Boeing has otherwise been working in recent years to deliver nine pre-production Stingrays, five of which will be used for fatigue and other static testing work. The Navy plans to eventually acquire a total of 76 Stingrays, and has been most recently targeting 2027 for reaching initial operational capability (IOC) with the type.

The MQ-25 program has been beset by delays and cost growth in recent years. The original goal had been for the initial batch of pre-production Stingrays to be delivered in 2022 and for the type to reach IOC in 2024. Last year, the Navy repeatedly stressed that it was working hard to finally get to first flight before 2026.

“We will fly MQ-25 in ‘25. You can quote me on that,” Vice Adm. Daniel Cheever, Commander of Naval Air Forces, said in January 2025. “We will fly that platform in ‘25 and get that thing on a carrier in ‘26 and start integrating that thing.”

“There’s a lot of confidence in MQ-25 and [20]25. There is a ton of work to get MQ-25 and ’25,” now-retired Navy Vice Adm. Carl Chebi, then head of Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), had also said last April. “70% of the capability that we deliver, [that] industry delivers to us, is late. So we’re pushing hard.”

Needless to say, the first flight schedule subsequently slipped into 2026.

These hurdles aside, Navy officials continue to be outspoken in their support of the MQ-25 program, which they see as offering critical range extension for current and future aircraft embarked on the service’s carriers. The Navy also wants the Stingrays so it can stop flying crewed F/A-18F Super Hornets in the tanker role, which makes up a significant number of their sorties while deployed, helping free up those aircraft for other missions and reducing the wear and tear on those airframes.

The Navy also regularly talks about the MQ-25 being a “pathfinder” for other future carrier-based uncrewed aviation capabilities. As far back as 2021, the service has been talking about a goal to eventually see 60 percent or more of the aircraft in carrier air wings become uncrewed.

Last year, the Navy announced a new surge in efforts to acquire a fleet of carrier-based Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones, hiring four companies (Anduril, Boeing, General Atomics, and Northrop Grumman) to develop conceptual designs. Lockheed Martin is also now under contract to the Navy to develop an underlying common control architecture. NAVAIR has now also established a CCA-focused Future Advanced Capability (FAC) program office. The Navy previously entered into a formal agreement with the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Marine Corps to work together on CCA developments to ensure interoperability, including the ability to seamlessly exchange control of drones during future operations.

In the meantime, beyond just getting the MQ-25 flying, the Navy still has much work to do in integrating the Stingray into routine operations. As noted, critical command and control architectures, along with related tactics, techniques, and procedures, are still being developed.

The Stingrays will also have to be woven into the existing cadence of flight deck operations, including just figuring out how to move them around amid the hustle and bustle of other activity. Carrier decks are very constrained environments physically, and present very different conditions to operate in compared to bases on land. This is true even for crewed aircraft operations, where individuals onboard can provide additional situational awareness. A wearable glove-like system that personnel could use for deck handling was notably used during testing of the X-47B. A different kind of portable control device has been used in testing of the T1 MQ-25 demonstrator in the past, as well. The video released today does not appear to offer any major new insights into how the Navy plans to maneuver the Stingray around on carrier decks.

The Navy has also been developing new force structures and training pipelines to support the MQ-25 program.

With the start of taxi-testing, the MQ-25 is at least now one step closer to its first flight.

Update: 3:12 PM EST —

Boeing and the Navy have now confirmed to TWZ that the first taxi test occurred yesterday.

“The first U.S. Navy MQ-25A Stingray is in the final stages of ground testing and completed its first taxi test yesterday,” a company spokesperson told us in a statement. “Boeing and the Navy will now conduct additional taxi tests and then complete deliberate systems level testing and review and approve the final airworthiness artifacts needed for a flight clearance. Once that’s complete and we have a suitable weather window, the aircraft will fly.”

“The [MQ-25] aircraft is now in the final stages of ground testing and successfully completed its first low-speed taxi test [on] January 29,” Navy Rear Adm. Tony Rossi, Program Executive Officer for Unmanned Aviation and Strike Weapons (PEO U&W), also told TWZ in a statement. “The team is finalizing systems testing and flight clearance, with the first flight planned once certification is complete and weather permits.”

“The MQ-25A Navy–Boeing team continues to make progress toward first flight,” Rossi added. “Over the last several months, the team has completed MQ-25A Stingray structural testing on a static aircraft, conducted initial engine runs, completed its flight-certified software, and commanded the vehicle from the Unmanned Carrier Aviation Mission Control System (UMCS).”

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

Even the Harry Potter star in the cast failed to save this 1990s film from ridicule

A forgotten period drama based that was slated by viewers has just been made available for free streaming.

Emily Bronte’s classic and controversial novel Wuthering Heights has inspired countless film and TV adaptations, with the most recent starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi hitting cinema screens in a matter of days.

However, years before Emerald Fennell adapted the page-turner for the big-screen in 2026, there was another that released back in the nineties. It starred Ralph Fiennes as the brooding Heathcliff opposite Juliette Binoche as Catherine Earnshaw, while Peter Kosminsky sat in the director’s chair.

Despite the starry cast, the 1992 release struggled to win over critics in particular with one calling it a “failed” adaptation. Meanwhile another described Fiennes’ take on Heathcliff as “demonic”.

“Peter Kosminsky’s Wuthering Heights is a drone, depressing, and exhaustively revolting excuse for entertainment,” another peeved critic penned.

At time of writing, it has a measly 33 per cent critics’ score on review site Rotten Tomatoes, while audiences gave it a more optimistic 66 per cent.

One fan described it as a “masterpiece”, adding: “Very well put together and the chemistry between the actor was awesome!” while another said it was their “favourite adaptation.”

Meanwhile a third shared: “Not a single adaption has ever truly done it justice – but this is my favourite of the adaptions for two reasons. 1) Ralph Fiennes manages to capture the essence of Heathcliff better than any other actor ever has and 2) Ryuichi Sakamoto’s soaring score together with the authentic filming locations really do bring the book’s atmosphere to life.”

A fourth, not convinced by the film, said: “Absolutely unwatchable. Could not make it 20 minutes in, terrible acting, strange casting. Don’t waste your time.”

Fans wanting to give it a go can now do so entirely for free, as the film has just been added to Pluto TV. The streaming service has also added three extra adaptations of the story to its library if the nineties flick doesn’t hit the spot.

Wuthering Heights (1970) starring Timothy Dalton and Anna Calder-Marshall; Wuthering Heights (1998) starring Robert Cavanah, Orla Brady, and Sarah Smart; and Wuthering Heights (2011) starring James Howson and Kaya Scodelario are all available to watch now.

Wuthering Heights (1992) is now streaming for free on Pluto TV. For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new ** Everything Gossip ** website.

A sun-drenched island in the Ionian Sea that boasts “sugar-white beaches” and “turquoise waters” could be accessible for as little as £23 and has beers for just £1.75

A Greek “delight” that draws comparisons to the sun-kissed Caribbean could be accessible for as little as £23, with beers for just £1.75. A snorkelling hotspot with lush forests, mountains, vineyards, and coves, the Ionian island of Kefalonia has reportedly gained in popularity and boasts “sugar-white beaches” and “turquoise waters”.

Indeed, the sun-drenched island lies between the popular destinations of Lefkada and Zakynthos and offers curious visitors spectacular scenery, along with the much-loved Mediterranean climate.

If you choose to travel during certain months, you could also find some tranquillity. According to Metro’s Charlie Sawyer, April and May tend to be less crowded, and by late April, temperatures can reach up to 20°C.

Charlie wrote: “The cost of flying to Kefalonia depends on how flexible you are, but there are several deals available. For example, flying with easyJet from London Gatwick on Thursday, April 9, for a week-long trip, would right now set you back £88.

“Or if you’re happy to ditch a checked bag and seat reservation, you could fly easyJet out from any London airport one-way to Kefalonia on Wednesday, April 15, for just £23.

“Once you’ve arrived, grab a local beer, which will only set you back £1.75.”

Some of the local highlights include the capital, Argostolion; the brightly coloured village of Fiscardo; the Melissani and Drogarati caves; the picturesque village of Assos; and Ainos National Park.

Despite its many attributes, Kefalonia sees less than half the number of tourists that visit Santorini each year—755,929 international guests compared to Santorini’s 1,543,796, according to data from Fraport Greece.

It’s reportedly also loved by celebrities and royals, with famous visitors including The Prince and Princess of Wales, along with their three young children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.

Last year, the Waleses were said to have spent time sailing around western Greece, stopping at a number of local destinations, but are believed to have enjoyed most of their time in Kefalonia.

Travel experts at Iglu Cruise said: “Kefalonia is a fantastic holiday destination, often regarded as a hidden gem of Greece. During the summer, you’ll find fewer crowds compared to popular islands such as Santorini, Crete, Rhodes, or Corfu, making it perfect for those looking to unwind and relax.”

Notably, the Nicolas Cage and Penélope Cruz film Captain Corelli’s Mandolin was filmed on the Ionian island, with other celebrities reported to have visited, including Demi Moore, Tom Hanks, and Madonna.

A popular area for yachting, another famous name linked to the island is Kylie Jenner (known from Keeping Up with the Kardashians), who, in July 2025, brought her family to Kefalonia on a superyacht while visiting islands around Greece.

WASHINGTON — The House, with Rep. Norman Y. Mineta (D-San Jose) emotionally recalling his own experiences in a camp for Japanese-American internees during World War II, today gave final congressional approval to a bill expressing a national apology and providing a $20,000 tax-free payment to every surviving internee.

The bill, whose total price tag is $1.25 billion, passed by a vote of 257 to 156 and now goes to President Reagan, who has already promised to sign it and “close a sad chapter in American history.”

The bill provides for the tax-free payments to an estimated 62,000 former internees who are still living.

It acknowledges “the fundamental injustice of the evacuation, relocation, and internment” of the 120,000 men, women and children, mostly West Coast residents of Japanese ancestry, in the months after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in December, 1941, propelling the United States into the war.

‘A Monumental Injustice’

Mineta was 10 years old when he and his family were taken in 1942 from their home in San Jose to a prison camp established at the Santa Anita race track. Today he presided as Speaker pro tem as the House took final action on the compensation bill.

“This legislation touches all of us because it goes to the very core of our nation,” Mineta said in a speech closing debate. “I am deeply honored to serve in this body as it takes the great step of admitting and redressing a monumental injustice.”

But the bill was opposed by a number of members who, although they agreed the evacuation order was wrong, said cash payments were not appropriate.

Rep. Norman D. Shumway (R-Stockton) said: “There was a serious wrong done to many good American citizens. . . . But I do not see the remedy, the payment of $20,000, as the right answer.”

Nothing for Families

The Senate approved the measure by voice vote last week. The bill authorizes $1.25 billion for the payments, but the money will be provided over time with no more than $500 million to be appropriated in any one year.

The measure does not provide compensation to families of internees now dead; only those living when the bill becomes law will be eligible for the $20,000 payments.

The Japanese-Americans were rounded up and sent to the internment camps in the Rocky Mountains and the South under a 1942 executive order signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Despite arguments that the order violated the constitutional rights of those sent to the camps without any charge or trial, the Supreme Court ruled in 1944 the action was within the President’s powers as commander in chief in wartime.

In 1980, a special commission was created to examine the issue. It recommended that compensation be paid, concluding that the evacuation order was based on war hysteria and racial prejudice. No similar action was taken against Americans of German or Italian ancestry, although the United States also was at war with those two countries.

Aleutian Islanders

The bill directs the Justice Department to identify and locate eligible individuals, who will be notified and then have 18 months to accept payment.

It also provides restitution payments of $12,000 to residents of the Aleutian Islands who were relocated by the government during the war. In addition, the bill provides $5-million compensation for the Aleuts for destruction of their villages and community property, plus $1.4 million for destroyed church property.

Another $15 million is provided to compensate the Aleuts for the loss of Attu Island, which was turned into a national wildlife refuge following the war.

Dublin offers partying, parks and pints galore which make it a perfect place to visit for 48 hours from the UK

Whenever I have been to Dublin I find there’s always a buzz of excitement in the air. There are so many places to visit with a warm and friendly atmosphere, and it’s all created by the locals. Whether it be music or museums, Guinness or gourmet food, it is a great location for a 48-hour break.

Our base was the Ruby Molly Hotel, fewer than 10 minutes away from the main action. Our room offered a calm haven away from all the hustle and bustle, and if you get back and still have the energy for a nightcap or some food, the bar is open late and the signature cocktails are recommended!

There are a lot of great pubs and bars in Dublin but perhaps the best place to start for a pint is The Guinness Storehouse, which is both a museum and the place where the black stuff is brewed in the city.

Anyone who has watched House Of Guinness on Netflix will know there is a lot of history and drama behind the dark drink. The Storehouse goes through the legacy of the Guinness family, the brewing innovations and the extraordinary advertising around the brand. At the end of your seven-floor tour you are rewarded at the top in the Gravity Bar with a pint and a chance to take in an incredible 360-degree view of the famous city.

If you get a taste for this kind of thing, there are also whiskey distilleries dotted around, including the famous Jameson Distillery, where you can also do a tour and sample more booze.

READ MORE: ‘I’ve visited Disney World more than 50 times – there’s one huge mistake everyone makes’READ MORE: ‘I travelled to mysterious UK island removed from maps and what I found was horrifying’

For those short on time, The Little Museum of Dublin is famous for its 29-minute guided tour celebrating the art of great Irish storytelling, with history, comedy and some of the friendliest people in Ireland.

The city’s Trinity College is also a place to visit with many landmarks, including a breathtaking library known as The Long Room which is home to more than 200,000 books.

Dublin is a great city to tour on foot, and while you’re there you’ll also be able to see a number of landmarks, including Dublin Castle, the Ha’penny Bridge and The Spire sculpture.

The city offers a Do Dublin Freedom Pass which includes public transport and the Hop-On Hop-Off Sightseeing Bus Tour, a great way to get around if you want to relax and learn about the history of the city at the same time, with many of the drivers adding in their own jokes or songs. Of course, all of this exploring can help you build up an appetite.

The Woollen Mills is a must-visit for literary fans, given that author James Joyce once worked in this very location. Expect hearty fare with plenty of Irish beef on the menu alongside long ray and chips.

Meanwhile, The Church Bar & Restaurant is, as the name suggests, set in a former church, with Taylor Swift as a recent guest when she dined there during the Eras Tour. The food is quintessentially Irish, and very tasty, and if you don’t have time to eat here, it’s worth a stop for a drink at the bar, where there is traditional Irish music and dancing in the evenings.

For something that feels a bit more decadent, Dublin’s newest rooftop experience, DÍON offers a wonderful way to spend an evening. The food and cocktails – as well as the amazing views – made it a perfect place for a romantic date. Dishes included Irish crab soldiers, dover sole, king prawns and fillet steak.

In terms of places to drink, there are far too many to mention. The pubs and bars seem to continue to thrive here, with live music in many of the bars. The Temple Bar area is considered to be for tourists only and you will pay more for pints there, but the pubs will be busy and the atmosphere is always good.

Recommendations from locals for the best pints include The Lord Edward, The Long Hall, The Cobblestone and Mulligan’s. I can also vouch for the odd-sounding Darkey Kelly’s and the oldest pub in Dublin, The Brazen Head. And if you want a change from Guinness and pubs, you could try the cocktails at Bar 1661 instead.

Book it

Rooms at the Ruby Molly Hotel start from €96 (approximately £83). Dublin hosts a brilliant series events around New Year’s Eve which are the climax of a winter programme. For more information on the city and further afield too head to ireland.com

World number one Judd Trump will take on Ali Carter in the semi-finals of the German Masters after a 5-3 victory over Xiao Guodong in which the pair shared four centuries.

Trump compiled breaks of 107 and 105 open a 2-0 lead and then finished strongly after Guodong recovered with contributions of 104 and 120 before edging ahead by taking the fifth frame.

The world number one, however, would not be denied and took three in a row, with his Chinese opponent failing to score in two of those frames.

Jan. 30 (UPI) — The federal government mostly will go unfunded at least through Monday after the Senate on Friday approved a bill package to fully fund all but the Department of Homeland Security.

Five budget bills would fund the majority of the federal government through the 2026 fiscal year, which ends on Sept. 30, but Homeland Security only is funded through Feb. 13 in a sixth bill.

The two-week extension enables lawmakers to debate proposed changes regarding Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection enforcement activities.

The six measures must be approved by the House of Representatives, which will take them up on Monday and send them to President Donald Trump for signing if House members concur with the changes made in the Senate.

The Senate voted 71-29 to approve House Resolution 7148 early Friday evening.

While the measure awaits approval in the House and eventual signing by the president, the federal government mostly will shut down at 12:01 a.m. EST on Saturday, but lawmakers expect that lull to be short and over by Tuesday.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., on Friday told media that he expects to fast-track the voting by suspending the House floor rules and immediately approve the budget measures, which only require a simple majority in the House versus at least 60 votes in the Senate.

The vote to suspend the rules, though, requires a two-thirds vote of House members.

The Homeland Security budget still would need to be debated and could lapse if it is not approved and signed into law by the end of the day on Feb. 13.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., told media he does not expect Homeland Security to be funded by Feb. 13.

“I believe this is a horrible bill,” he said on Friday. “I can’t believe we’re not funding ICE.”

He said he doesn’t believe it will be funded in two weeks, either.

Congressional Democrats are demanding an end to sweeps through targeted cities, want ICE and CBP officers unmasked and wearing body cameras, and want judicial warrants instead of administrative warrants issued to target and arrest individuals.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., was unhappy that the Senate removed a provision approved by the House that would have enabled him and others to sue the Department of Justice for seizing his phone records during the Biden administration’s Operation Arctic Frost.

Graham was among eight Republican senators whose phone records were accessed by the DOJ, which he called illegal.

“Every Senator should make sure this never happens again,” he told media on Thursday.

Congressional Democrats generally were happy that the Homeland Security funding was separated from a six-bill package to fund the entire government.

They also successfully rejected an effort to reduce the maximum Pell Grant amount by $1,000 and blocked the president’s proposal to lower rental assistance funding and reduce the National Institutes of Health budget.

Democrats were especially pleased that measures approved by the Senate give the Low Income Home Energy Assistance program $20 million more in funding, while the Child Care and Development Block Grant and Head Start each get another $85 million.

Welcome to Bunker Talk. This is a weekend open discussion post for the best commenting crew on the net, in which we can chat about all the stuff that went on this week that we didn’t cover. We can also talk about the stuff we did or whatever else grabs your interest. In other words, it’s an off-topic thread.

This week’s second caption reads:

The Launch Control Center, with blast door at left, underground at the Oscar-1 Minuteman Missile Alert Facility on Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri, June 18, 2020. The Oscar-01 MAF was constructed in 1963 and determined to be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) by Missouri SHPO in 1998. The facility consists of a one-story surface structure, assembled as a Launch Control Support Building (LCSB), and two sub-surface, re-enforced concrete encapsulated steel pods- a Launch Control Center (LCC) and Launch Control Equipment Building (LCEB). These two sub-surface wings are connected by a Tunnel Junction and accessed by an elevator. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Alexander W. Riedel) 

Also, a reminder:

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• If you want to talk politics, do so respectfully and know that there’s always somebody that isn’t going to agree with you. 
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• No drive-by garbage political memes. No conspiracy theory rants. Links to crackpot sites will be axed, too. Trolling and shitposting will not be tolerated. No obsessive behavior about other users. Just don’t interact with folks you don’t like. 
• Do not be a sucker and feed trolls! That’s as much on you as on them. Use the mute button if you don’t like what you see.  
• So unless you have something of quality to say, know how to treat people with respect, understand that everyone isn’t going to subscribe to your exact same worldview, and have come to terms with the reality that there is no perfect solution when it comes to moderation of a community like this, it’s probably best to just move on. 
• Finally, as always, report offenders, please. This doesn’t mean reporting people who don’t share your political views, but we really need your help in this regard.

She portrayed a spoiled socialite turned impoverished rural motel manager in “Schitt’s Creek.” She played a self-centered stepmom who, when possessed by an evil entity, channeled Harry Belafonte’s voice singing “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)” in 1988’s “Beetlejuice.” She was the harried, forgetful mom who left her son behind in “Home Alone,” a goofy ‘90s comedy that would become a Christmas classic.

Catherine O’Hara, who died Friday at the age of 71, brought to life dozens of characters over her 50-year career across film and television, and no two of her performances were alike. She might play an eccentric artist one moment, an insufferable snob the next, then a deceptively “normal” housewife, animating each with their own personality, quirks and ticks.

Though a comedic performer at heart, O’Hara, as they say, had range. From her recurring role as a grieving therapist in Season 2 of HBO’s dystopian drama “The Last of Us” to voicing and acting a plethora of bizarre characters in Tim Burton‘s films, O’Hara made her mark. Here are 10 of her most memorable roles.

WASHINGTON — A budget impasse in Congress is poised to halt large swaths of federal operations early Saturday as lawmakers in Capitol Hill turn to the next flashpoint in negotiations to reopen the government: whether to impose new limits on federal immigration authorities carrying out President Trump’s deportation campaign.

Over the next two weeks, Democrats and Republicans will weigh competing demands on how the Department of Homeland Security should carry out arrests, detention and deportations after the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal immigration agents this month in Minnesota.

Seeking to rein in the federal agency, Senate Democrats late on Thursday were able to strike a deal with the White House that would temporarily fund the Department of Homeland Security but fund the Pentagon, the State Department, as well as the health, education, labor and transportation agencies through Sept. 30.

The agreement is intended to give lawmakers more time to address Democratic demands to curb ICE tactics while averting a partial government shutdown.

The Senate finalized the deal Friday evening on a 71-29 vote, hours before a midnight deadline to avert a government shutdown. Passage of the deal was delayed by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who objected to parts of the package.

The House expected to take up the legislation as early as Monday. The partial government shutdown will occur until the measure clears the House and Trump signs it into law.

The president supports the deal, which came after Senate Democrats said they would not vote to fund Homeland Security unless reforms for the agency were approved. Among the demands: banning federal agents from wearing masks, requiring use of body cameras and requiring use of judicial warrants prior to searching homes and making arrests.

Democrats have also demanded that local and state law enforcement officials be given the ability to conduct independent investigations in cases where federal agents are accused of wrongdoing.

The deal, however, does not include any of those reforms; it includes only the promise of more time to negotiate with no guarantee that the new restrictions will be agreed to.

Both of California’s Democratic senators, Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla, voted against the Senate deal. They both opposed giving more funding to Homeland Security without reforms in a vote Thursday.

Schiff voted no because he said he promised to not “give another dime for ICE until we saw real reforms — and not just promised reforms but statutory requirements.”

“I want to see those reforms before I am prepared to support any more funding for these agencies,” Schiff said in a video message posted on X, and added that he did not see the White House acting in “good faith. “I want it in writing and statute.”

After voting against the measure, Padilla said in a statement: “I’ve been clear from the beginning: No more money for ICE and CBP without real oversight and accountability.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) told reporters Friday morning that Democrats will find out whether two weeks is enough time to reach a compromise.

“We will evaluate whether that is sufficient time,” Jeffries said. “But there is urgency to dealing with this issue because ICE as we have seen is out of control.”

Meanwhile, the absence of reforms in the Senate deal has already drawn concerns from some progressives, who argue the deal falls short of what is needed to rein in federal immigration enforcement.

“First of all, I’m actually disappointed that Senate leadership is not right now demanding more,” Rep. Robert Garcia, a top-ranking House Democrat from Long Beach, told reporters Friday. “This idea that we’re somehow going to continue to fund this agency and somehow just extend the pain, I think is absolutely wrong.”

Garcia said it was “outrageous” that the Senate deal would extend funding for Homeland Security for two weeks without any new requirements.

“This idea that we’re somehow not demanding immediately the removal of masks and body cameras and all the other reforms while eliminating this agency that’s causing harm, I think, is outrageous,” Garcia said.

Democratic Rep. Judy Chu of Pasadena said in a statement that she had not yet decided whether to support the Senate deal once it reaches the House floor.

But, Chu added: “I cannot support legislation that increases funding to this agency while delivering no accountability measures.”

Rep. Kevin Calvert (R-Corona) said in a statement that it is “critical” for lawmakers to pass the bipartisan spending package, in part because it included funding for the U.S. military.

“As Chairman of the [House] Defense Appropriation Subcommittee, I’m especially concerned about the negative impacts of a shutdown at a time when we have a buildup of American military assets in the Middle East,” Calvert said.

Calvert added that Homeland Security operations will continue even in the shutdown because lawmakers provided an influx of funding for the agency in last year’s “One Big Beautiful Bill.” But he said he worried that any lapse in funding would affect other operations by the agency, including disaster funding and security assistance for major events, such as the upcoming World Cup.

“We need to get these priorities funded,” he said.

Other Republican lawmakers have already signaled the possible hurdles Democrats will face as they try to rein in ICE.

Graham held up consideration of the Senate deal, in part because he wanted the Senate to vote to criminalize local and state officials in sanctuary cities — a term that has no strict definition but that generally describes local jurisdictions that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

“You can convince me that ICE can be better, but I don’t think I will ever convince you to abandon sanctuary cities because you’re wedded to it on the Democratic side,” Graham said.

Graham also delayed passage of the deal because it included a repeal of a law that would have allowed senators — including himself — to sue the government if federal investigators gained access to their phones without notifying them. The law required senators to be notified if that were to happen and sue for up to $50,000 in damages per incident.

“We’ll fix the $500,000 — count me in — but you took the notification out,” Graham said. “I am demanding a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.”

Other Senate Republicans also expressed concern with Democrats’ demands, even as Trump seemed to try appease them.

Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) said the demand for federal agents to remove their masks during operations was a “clear and obvious attempt to intimidate and put our federal agents in harm’s way.”

“When enforcement becomes dangerous for enforcers, enforcement does not survive,” Schmitt said in a Senate floor speech. “What emerges is not reform, it is amnesty by default.”

Despite the GOP opposition, most Senate Republicans were poised to join Democrats on Friday and vote for the deal. But there is no certainty that they will join the minority party when negotiations resume in the coming weeks.

Recent history suggests that bipartisan support at the outset does not guarantee a lasting deal, particularly when unresolved policy disputes remain. The last government shutdown tied to a debate over healthcare exposed how quickly negotiations can collapse when no agreement is reached.

In November, a small group of Democrats voted with Republicans to end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history with the promise of negotiating an extension to healthcare tax credits that were set to expire in the new year.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), a former House speaker, reminded the public on Friday that Democrats were unable to get Republican support for extending the tax credits, resulting in increasing healthcare costs for millions of Americans.

“House Democrats passed a bipartisan fix, yet Senate Republicans continue to block this critical relief for millions of Americans,” Pelosi wrote in a post on X.

Times staff writer Seema Mehta contributed to this report.

Heading into one of the most critical games of the season, UCLA women’s basketball coach Cori Close believes the adversity her team overcame during an 80-67 win at Illinois on Wednesday will help the mindset going into Sunday’s home contest against No. 8 Iowa.

UCLA (20-1 overall, 10-0 Big Ten) is on a 14-game winning streak and moved up a spot to No. 2 in this week’s polls behind unbeaten Connecticut. All-American center Lauren Betts had 23 points and nine rebounds despite early foul trouble versus the Illini, and the Bruins won despite shooting one for 10 from three-point range.

“Illinois was a tight game and I actually thought there was some great value in that we were challenged,” Close said after practice Friday at Mo Ostin Basketball Center. “They cut it to five in the second half and we had to practice poise and make some adjustments to how they were playing. They’re the first team that’s played us one-on-one in the post. We had to make some adjustments in our defense in the second half.

“I could’ve coached better. I could’ve made adjustments in the first half to disrupt their rhythm. We got challenged, we had to respond with less margin for error and had to do it quick in a pressurized, hostile environment. That’ll be a lesson that bodes well for us as we go down the stretch to possibly a more contested game against Iowa.”

Senior guard Kiki Rice reflected on the Illinois game: “They had a great crowd. Everything’s not going to be easy. Illinois has a really good young core and is going to be really good in coming years. They made it difficult for us.”

Iowa (18-3, 9-1) lost 81-69 to unranked USC on Thursday night to fall into a second-place tie with No. 9 Michigan in the conference. The Hawkeyes will be the ninth ranked opponent UCLA has faced and the highest since its lone defeat to Texas in Las Vegas on Nov. 26. Iowa had won eight straight before being upset by the Trojans.

“I like the trajectory, the coachable spirit and the desire to put winning first from this group,” Close said. “Illinois was probably our worst execution of a scouting report in awhile. We did not play with the same urgency, focus and connectivity that we had been leading up to that. Every game teaches us something different and that one had some painful lessons. We did not take care of things under our control and we did not have the same level of urgency to execute the game plan.”

What was the coach’s message to her team?

“Get better,” Close said matter-of-factly. “That’s the answer to every question — find ways to improve, to use every day’s experiences to make improvements in your game.”

Guard Charlisse Leger-Walker, a graduate student who played four years at Washington State and hails from New Zealand, anticipated a difficult game at Illinois.

“That’s what we expect from most teams — they’re going to take a good swing at us,” she said. “They threw some different things at us that we haven’t necessarily seen this season. We can learn from that. It helps prepare us for what other teams may try to do to us.”

Close expects a competitive game Sunday.

“Both teams have arguably been playing the most consistent basketball in the conference,” she said. “They stumbled last night against USC, but I have so much respect for the job Jan [Jensen] has done with that group. They’re disciplined, they know their identity and they play to their strengths really well.

“I shouldn’t have to motivate too much for Sunday’s game. It’s pretty much the top two teams in the conference having the chance to battle it out on our home court. It’s two very different styles of play. Who can assert their will and play the game the way they want to play it? This is another opportunity to develop more consistency and get closer to where we want to go.”

If the teams’ last meeting is any indication, Sunday’s game at Pauley Pavilion could be decided on the final possession. The third-ranked Bruins edged unranked Iowa, 67-65, in Iowa City last February behind 22 points and 12 rebounds from Betts and 12 points from Rice.

“Iowa is a really good team,” Leger-Walker added. “Everyone in the Big Ten is really strong. It’s on us to be prepared and to make sure we’re locked in to what we want to do in terms of scouting and our own strategy. They’re going to come hard and we have to be ready for that.”

Iowa freshman Journey Houston scored a career-high 16 points and Ava Heiden added 13 against USC. The Hawkeyes have won 17 of their last 20 regular-season Big Ten games.

Close cited Rice and Leger-Walker as examples of players who have valued loyalty.

“Kiki and Charlisse are both absolutely committed to work ethic and growing and it is a joy to coach them,” Close said. “Kiki stayed four years and paid her dues but so did Charlisse. She stayed four years and then happened to have a COVID year and an injury situation she responded to. Two kids who were committed and loyal and stayed the course, and I want to honor them because less and less people are doing that.

“The reality is that we are not going to have as many four-year players as we used to. I can’t build only from the freshmen out anymore. I don’t like that. I wouldn’t prefer that, but my job is to lead in the landscape I’ve been given. Instant gratification is something you’re always trying to battle. The way we’ve chosen to attack entitlement or instant gratification is to practice gratitude and to serve selflessly. I want players to maximize their opportunities, but there’s also a lot of value in having to work long and hard for what you want.”

A man has been arrested by police in Spain after they recovered a stolen statue of the late golfer Seve Ballesteros.

A ‌statue of the late golfer Seve Ballesteros, which ‍had vanished ‍from his hometown of Pedrena in northern Spain’s Cantabria region, was found chopped into pieces as the alleged thief prepared to sell it for its ⁠bronze, police have said.

Valued at about 30,000 euros ($35,820) ​but holding significant sentimental importance for locals and ‍fans, the statue was discovered in a storage room in Santander. It had been cut in half at the waist.

While the ‍torso and ⁠head remained intact, the arms were broken into several pieces.

A 22-year-old man with a criminal record for copper theft was arrested on Thursday, police revealed on Friday, adding that more individuals could be involved.

Police had focused their investigation on metal trading centres, suspecting the ​thieves planned to sell the bronze ‌for profit.

The 100kg (220.46-pound) statue, depicting Ballesteros in a signature pose celebrating his 1984 British Open win at St Andrews in Scotland, ‌was torn from its base in La Barqueria Park earlier this month before being ‌dragged across grass and dismembered for ⁠transport.

Created in 2009 by sculptor Salvador Garcia Ceballos, it was permanently installed in Pedrena in 2017.

Ballesteros, who won five major titles during his ‌career and became a fan favourite for his capacity for digging himself out of trouble on the golf course, ‍died in 2011 aged 54 after a battle with cancer.

I was just getting settled in my seat for the first showing of “Melania” at the Grove cineplex when Melania Trump walked in.

OK, it wasn’t the Melania Trump, as in the first lady. But it was a reasonable facsimile.

The impersonator, followed by a man filming with his phone, strode in like a model, flinging her hair back and smiling as she addressed the six people — many of them critics from various press outlets — in the auditorium who were among the first in Los Angeles to see “Melania,” the controversial documentary that features the first lady as star and producer.

“Hi, everybody. I want to welcome you all to my movie,” the impersonator said in a Slovenian accent. She wore a stylish dark pantsuit and high heels, a frequent motif in the film which chronicles the real Melania Trump in the 20 days leading up to the second presidential inauguration of her husband, Donald Trump.

After a few more words of greeting, the impostor Melania flashed another smile as she exited.

I was stunned and extremely frustrated that I didn’t have time to capture the moment. It’s rare to find yourself in the presence of a first lady —even a fake one.

During the film, my fellow viewers were mostly silent, although there were a few murmurs of laughter as Melania Trump outlined the burdens of coordinating the correct outfit and decor for her re-entry to the White House.

“My creative vision is always clear, and it’s my responsibility to share my ideas with my team so they can bring it to life,” she says at one point.

Later in the film, when Donald Trump was formally introduced at the inauguration as the 47th president, one older woman sitting near the front of the theater applauded. And I could see her smiling as, onscreen, the first couple made their way through the White House following the ceremony.

“Being hand in hand with my husband at this moment is very emotional,” she says. “Nobody has endured what he has over the past few years. People tried to murder him, incarcerate him, slander him. But here he is. I’m so very proud.”

I hoped that Melania would be around in the lobby as we left the theater to ask us how we liked the film. But I was disappointed. Melania had left the building.

For years at CNN, Don Lemon had been a thorn in the side of President Trump, frequently taking him to task during his first term over his comments about immigrants and other matters.

On Friday, the former CNN anchor — now an independent journalist who hosts his own YouTube show — was in a Los Angeles federal courtroom and charged with conspiracy and interfering with the First Amendment rights of worshippers during the Jan. 18 protest at the Cities Church in St. Paul.

Lemon was arrested by federal agents in Los Angeles on Friday, along with a second journalist and two of the participants in the protest of the federal government’s immigration enforcement tactics in Minneapolis.

Lemon identified himself at the protest as a journalist. His attorney said in a statement Lemon’s work was “constitutionally protected.”

“I have spent my entire career covering the news,” Lemon told reporters after he was released on his own recognizance Friday afternoon. “I will not stop now. There is no more important time than right now, this very moment, for a free and independent media that shines a light on the truth and holds those in power accountable. Again, I will not stop now. I will not stop, ever.”

The scene of a reporter standing before a judge and facing federal charges for doing his job once seemed unimaginable in the U.S.

The arrest marked an extraordinary escalation in the Trump administration’s frayed relations with the news media and journalists.

Earlier this month, the FBI seized the devices of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson in a pre-dawn raid as part of an investigation into a contractor who has been charged with sharing classified information. Such a seizure is a very rare occurrence in the U.S.

Last spring, the Associated Press was banned from the White House. The AP sued White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt and two other administration officials, demanding reinstatement.

Even the Committee to Protect Journalists, an organization that monitors and honors reporters imprisoned by authoritarian government regimes overseas, felt compelled to weigh in on Lemon’s arrest.

“As an international organization, we know that the treatment of journalists is a leading indicator of the condition of a country’s democracy,” CPJ CEO Jodie Ginsberg said in a statement. “These arrests are just the latest in a string of egregious and escalating threats to the press in the United States — and an attack on people’s right to know.”

For Lemon, 59, it’s another chapter in a career that has undergone a major reinvention in the last 10 years, largely due to his harsh takes on Trump and the boundary-pushing moves of his administration. His journey has been fraught, occasionally making him the center of the stories he covers.

“He has a finely honed sense of what people are talking about and where the action is, and he heads straight for it in a good way,” said Jonathan Wald, a veteran TV producer who has worked with Lemon over the years.

A Louisiana native, Lemon began his career in local TV news, working at the Fox-owned station in New York and then NBC’s WMAQ in Chicago where he got into trouble with management. Robert Feder, a longtime media columnist in Chicago, recalled how Lemon was suspended by his station for refusing to cover a crime story which he felt was beneath him.

“A memorable headline from that era was ‘Lemon in Hot Water,’ ” Feder said.

But Lemon’s good looks and smooth delivery helped him move to CNN in 2006, where his work was not always well-received. He took over the prime time program “CNN Tonight” in 2014 and became part of the network’s almost obsessive coverage of the missing Malaysian Airlines Flight 370. (Lemon was ridiculed for asking an aviation analyst if the plane might have been sucked into a black hole).

Like a number of other TV journalists, Lemon found his voice after Trump’s ascension to the White House. He injected more commentary into “CNN Tonight,” calling Trump a racist after the president made a remark in the Oval Office about immigrants coming from “shit hole countries” to the U.S.

After George Floyd was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis in May 2020, Lemon’s status as the lone Black prime time anchor on cable news made his program a gathering place for the national discussion about race. His ratings surged, giving CNN its largest 10 p.m. audience in history with 2.4 million viewers that month.

Lemon’s candid talk about race relations and criticism of Trump made him a target of the president’s social media missives. In a 2020 interview, Lemon told the Times that he had to learn to live with threats on his life from Trump supporters.

“It’s garnered me a lot of enemies,” he said. “A lot of them in person as well. I have to watch my back over it.”

Lemon never let up, but CNN management had other ideas. After Warner Bros. Discovery took control of CNN in 2022, Chief Executive David Zaslav said the network had moved too far to the political left in its coverage and called for more representation of conservative voices.

Following the takeover, Lemon was moved out of prime time and onto a new morning program — a format where CNN has never been successful over its four decade-plus history.

Lemon’s “CNN Tonight” program was built around his scripted commentaries and like-minded guests. Delivering off-the-cuff banter in reaction to news of the moment — a requirement for morning TV news — was not his strong suit.

Lemon had a poor relationship with his co-anchors Poppy Harlow and Kaitlin Collins. The tensions came to a head in Feb. 2023 after an ill-advised remark he made about then Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley.

Lemon attempted to critique Haley’s statements that political leaders over the age of 75 should undergo competency testing.

“All the talk about age makes me uncomfortable — I think it’s a wrong road to go down,” Lemon began. “She says politicians, or something, are not in their prime. Nikki Haley isn’t in her prime — sorry — when a woman is considered to be in her prime in her 20s and 30s, maybe 40s.”

Harlow quickly interjected, repeatedly asking Lemon a couple of times, “Prime for what?” Lemon told his female co-anchors to “Google it.” It was one of several sexist remarks he made on the program.

Lemon was pulled from the air and forced to apologize to colleagues, some of whom had called for his dismissal. He was fired in April 2023 on the same day Fox News removed Tucker Carlson .

Lemon was paid out his lucrative CNN contract and went on to become one of the first traditional TV journalists to go independent and produce his own program for distribution on social media platforms.

“Others might have cowered or taken time to regroup and figure out what they should do,” said Wald. “He had little choice but to toil ahead.”

Lemon first signed with X in 2024 to distribute his program as the platform made a push into longer form video. The business relationship ended shortly after new X owner Elon Musk sat down for an interview with Lemon.

Musk agreed to the high-profile chat with no restrictions, but was unhappy with the line of questioning. “His approach was basically ‘CNN but on social media,’ which doesn’t work, as evidenced by the fact that CNN is dying,” Musk wrote.

An unfazed Lemon forged ahead and made his daily program available on YouTube, where it has 1.3 million subscribers, and other platforms. He has a small staff that handles production and online audience engagement. In addition to ad revenue from YouTube, the program has signed its own sponsors.

While legacy media outlets have become more conscious of running afoul of Trump, who has threatened the broadcast TV licenses of networks that make him unhappy with their coverage, independent journalists such as Lemon and his former CNN colleague Jim Acosta, have doubled down in their aggressive analysis of the administration.

Friends describe Lemon as relentless, channeling every attempt to hold him back into motivation to push harder. “You tell him ‘you can’t do it,’ he just wants to do it more,” said one close associate.

Wald said independent conservative journalists should be wary of Lemon’s arrest.

“If I’m a conservative blogger, influencer, or YouTube creator type, I would be worried that when the administration changes, they can be next,” Wald said. “So people should be careful what they wish for here.”

The WNBA and the players union will meet Monday in New York for the first time in weeks to try to move the stalled collective bargaining negotiations forward.

Kelsey Plum, who is vice president of the players union, mentioned the meeting to reporters Friday while preparing for a game in Philadelphia with the Unrivaled three-on-three league.

“We’ll learn a lot from this meeting. I’m not trying to put it on the meeting, but this is a meeting that I think everyone understands what’s at stake,” Plum said. “The league has their timelines; we as players understand what’s at stake. I always come into anything that I do with a great attitude, and I’m going to see the best in this.”

Plum, the former Sparks guard who is an unrestricted free agent, will be joined by other members of the executive council, including Nneka Ogwumike and Napheesa Collier, as well as union leadership.

The league will have its regular negotiating team, including commissioner Cathy Engelbert, the labor relations committee and a few other owners, according to a person familiar with the situation. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations.

The person said the league had been asking for the meeting for weeks and it was agreed upon by the union Thursday.

Players said union leadership had been chatting with them frequently.

“Both sides want to get something done, we just got to make moves to get there,” Chicago guard Rachel Banham said. ”It’s got to be an actual negotiation with compromise.”

New York guard Natasha Cloud took a more hardened stance.

“It would be the worst business decision of any business to not literally pay the players that make your business go. Without us, there is no W season,” she said.

Talks to reach a new CBA haven’t had much traction over the last few weeks, as the union says it is waiting for a response to a proposal it sent around Christmas that included a 30% gross revenue share for the players. According to another person familiar with the negotiations, the league didn’t feel that proposal was much different than the previous one the union sent.

That person spoke on condition of anonymity also because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations.

The league’s most recent offer last month would guarantee a maximum base salary of $1 million that could reach $1.3 million through revenue sharing. That’s up from the current $249,000 and could grow to nearly $2 million over the life of the agreement, the person told the Associated Press.

The two sides have been in a “status quo” period after the latest extension of the CBA ran out Jan. 9. They agreed to a moratorium a few days later that halted the initial stages of free agency in which teams would seek to deliver qualifying offers and franchise tag designations to players.

If a new CBA isn’t agreed upon soon, it could delay the start of the season. It’s already delayed the expansion draft for Toronto and Portland. The league did release its schedule last week with the regular season set to begin May 8.

The last CBA was announced in the middle of January 2020, a month after it was agreed to. It easily could take two months from when a new CBA is reached to get to the start of free agency, which was supposed to begin Sunday.

Feinberg writes for the Associated Press.

Jan. 30 (UPI) — While Russia and Ukraine continue targeting each other’s energy infrastructure amid their war, the International Atomic Energy Agency leader said backup systems are critical for ensuring safety.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi on Friday told the agency’s board of governors the war in Ukraine is nearing its fifth year and poses the world’s greatest risk for a nuclear accident.

Ukraine has 15 nuclear reactors that generate about half of the nation’s electricity, and Russia has 36 operable reactors that generate up to 20% of its electricity, according to the World Nuclear Association.

The number of reactors in the two warring nations highlights the need for backup systems in those nations and all others that contain nuclear reactors to prevent accidents and ensure reliable off-site power, Grossi said.

“There must be secure off-site power from the grid for all nuclear sites,” he told the board of governors.

Grossi cited Russia’s control of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant in southeastern Ukraine as especially troubling, saying “all efforts should be made to ensure off-site power remains available and secure at all times.”

The nuclear power plant is Europe’s largest and was reconnected to its last active power backup system on Jan. 19 after undergoing repairs amid a temporary cease-fire between the two nations.

The backup system helps to ensure the reactor is cooled and supports other important safety systems, which Grossi said must remain “available and secure at all times” to prevent a nuclear accident.

It went offline after being damaged on Jan. 2 due to military actions, which forced the facility to rely on its main power line to cool its six shutdown reactors and spent-fuel pools.

The IAEA also is monitoring the facility’s ability to operate during the winter months, including ensuring water does not freeze its respective cooling and sprinkler ponds.

Grossi also warned of a potential calamity if some or all of Ukraine’s electrical substations were to go offline.

“Damage to them undermines nuclear safety and must be avoided,” Grossi said, adding that a group of agency experts are examining 10 substations amid Russian military strikes on Ukraine’s power infrastructure.

Other nuclear facilities that pose significant concerns include Ukraine’s Chernobyl site, which recently relied on diesel-powered generators to supply backup power until repairs were completed on its damaged substation power lines.

While the IAEA and others have managed to prevent a nuclear accident amid the ongoing war, Grossi said the “best way to ensure nuclear safety and security is to bring this conflict to an end.”

Iran’s foreign minister says missile programme not up for negotiation as Trump says he’s sending more ships to the region.

Iran’s foreign minister says the country is ready for “fair and equitable” talks with the United States amid soaring tensions, as US President Donald Trump refused to rule out taking military action against Tehran.

On a visit to Turkiye on Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters that, “Iran has no problem with negotiations, but negotiations cannot take place under the shadow of threats”.

“I should also state unequivocally that Iran’s defensive and missile capabilities – and Iran’s missiles – will never be the subject of any negotiations,” Araghchi said during a news conference alongside his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan.

“The security of the Iranian people is no one else’s business, and we will preserve and expand our defensive capabilities to whatever extent is necessary to defend the country.”

Tensions have been rising for weeks between Tehran and Washington amid Trump’s repeated threats to attack Iran over a recent crackdown on antigovernment protests and his push to curtail the Iranian nuclear programme.

Earlier this week, the US president said a “massive armada” – led by the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier – was moving towards Iran and was ready to use “violence, if necessary” if Iranian leaders did not agree to negotiate a nuclear deal.

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Friday, Trump said his administration was sending “a larger number of ships” to Iran.

“And hopefully we’ll make a deal,” he said. “If we do make a deal, that’s good. If we don’t make a deal, we’ll see what happens.”

Reporting from Washington, DC, Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett noted that Trump said he gave Iran a deadline, but “only Iran knows what that deadline is”.

“So he’s left the world in waiting, trying to determine what the next steps will be,” Halkett said.

Trump, who in 2018 unilaterally withdrew from a previous deal that saw Iran agree to curb its nuclear programme in exchange for a lifting of international sanctions, has been pressuring Iran to halt all uranium enrichment.

Washington has accused Tehran of seeking a nuclear weapon – a claim Iranian leaders have repeatedly denied.

Amid the latest tensions, senior officials in Tehran have repeatedly said they are open to negotiations, but only once Trump ends his military threats against the country.

They also have stressed that Iran’s armed forces are ready to respond if attacked.

Meanwhile, regional allies including Turkiye, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have been engaging in diplomatic efforts to try to prevent a military confrontation between Washington and Tehran.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan earlier on Friday told his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian in a call that Ankara was ready to play a “facilitator” role between the two sides.

Fidan, the Turkish foreign minister, also said he had long discussions on the issue with US special envoy Steve Witkoff on Thursday and would keep lines open with Washington.

Speaking alongside Araghchi on Friday, Fidan said US-Iran nuclear negotiations must restart and would pave the way to lifting sanctions on Iran.

“We call the parties to the negotiating table” to address the issues “one by one”, he said.