Atlanta

ATLANTA — Vice President George Bush and Sen. Bob Dole, chief rivals for the Republican presidential nomination, clashed over trade policy and derided each other’s plans for reduction of the federal deficit at a presidential campaign debate here Sunday.

“I don’t think we should go down the protectionist road,” Bush declared in warning against tougher trade measures now pending in Congress at the debate staged here in Georgia to focus attention on the candidates’ views in advance of the March 8 Super Tuesday Southern primaries.

“The best answer (to the nation’s trade problems) is open markets,” Bush said, adding that he was concerned about “the inevitability of retaliation” against the United States by foreign trading partners.

But Dole, who is supporting stronger trade measures on Capitol Hill, disagreed sharply. “Every time I hear the word retaliation I am reminded that Japan and South Korea and Taiwan already block Florida oranges and Georgia peaches and Alabama melons.” Dole contended that an Alabama melon would cost about $55 in Japan because of that country’s restrictive trade practices.

‘Talking About Jobs’

“Let’s be realistic,” the Kansas lawmaker said. “We’re talking about American jobs, not protectionism.”

On the issue of the budget deficit, Dole dismissed a four-year budget spending freeze advocated by Bush as a “four-year cop-out” because the plan limits only overall spending rather than specific programs.

“He’s just going to freeze bad programs for four years and not do anything about it,” said Dole, who favors a one-year across-the-board ceiling on all spending programs, except aid for the needy. Dole contended that in four years Bush’s plan would leave the nation with a deficit of $153 billion.

But Bush disputed Dole’s figures and argued that the senator’s proposal “would cut into the muscle of defense.”

“How does your plan work?” Bush demanded of Dole.

“How does your plan work?” Dole shot back.

A Spirited Argument

Bush made his most spirited argument for his deficit plan in an exchange with New York Rep. Jack Kemp, who is vying with Pat Robertson, former religious broadcaster, to become the conservative alternative to either of the two front-runners.

Responding to Kemp’s charge that the budget freeze proposals meant that national security would be sacrificed “on the altar of mindless budgeting,” Bush said: “The freeze I’m talking about provides the President with flexibility.”

“The point is, Jack, you don’t care about deficits, you never have. You don’t think they’re important. And they are public enemy No. 1.”

“George Bush is now making my speech,” grumbled Dole, who has sought to depict himself in the campaign as the chief Republican foe of budget deficits.

Although Kemp and Bush argued about budget policy, the two were by and large in agreement in opposing changes in trade policy in contrast with Dole and Robertson. Trade has become a hot issue in the Super Tuesday Republican presidential campaign in large measure because of the impact of textile imports on the economies of South Carolina and other textile-producing states in this region.

Dole and Robertson both support trade legislation, which Bush and Kemp oppose.

‘Sounds Like Gephardt’

“Your trade talk sounds like Dick Gephardt,” Kemp told Dole at one point, referring to Missouri Rep. Richard A. Gephardt, who has based much of his drive for the Democratic presidential nomination on a controversial proposal to give the United States the power to retaliate against unfair foreign trade practices.

Earlier in the debate, Robertson introduced the trade issue into the discussion. “People that I’ve talked to can’t abide the thought that America is going to be No. 2 in the world in the 21st Century,” Robertson said. Decrying the rise of textile imports from China and the Soviet Union, the former broadcaster said: “I don’t believe we can continue to permit the deindustrialization of America.

“I’m for free trade in this country but it’s got to be fair. And I think if those people don’t deal fairly with us, it’s high time we started getting tough with them. I don’t want to preside over Uncle Sucker, I want to preside over Uncle Sam.”

But Kemp promptly took issue with that argument in impassioned terms.

‘Barriers to Imports’

“If we’re going to go to Iowa, Pat and Bob,” he said, addressing Robertson and Dole, “and tell the folks in Iowa we want to boost exports of grain and corn and soybeans and then go to South Carolina, as you both have done, and tell them you’re going to put up barriers to imports, we will be making a mistake under your leadership.”

Kemp charged that such a shift in trade policy would be like “the mistake that was made in 1929 and 1930 when a Republican Congress caused the worst trade war in the history of this world with the Smoot-Hawley tariff act.”

Calling for lower tax rates on labor and capital and stable exchange rates to spur economic growth, the New York congressman warned that putting up trade barriers “is not just protectionist, it is mindless with regard to the fact that we have to compete in an export war.

“So let’s not make the mistake we made in the 1930s.”

Sunday’s debate, like the debate staged here Saturday for Democratic presidential candidates, was sponsored by the Atlanta Constitution-Journal. It brought together all of the 1988 GOP presidential contenders for the first time since the New Hampshire primary on Feb. 16.

Republican Survivors

A prior effort to assemble all the Republican survivors on one platform failed 10 days ago in Dallas when Dole and Robertson refused to participate, charging that the arrangements in Bush’s home state unfairly favored the vice president.

Since winning the New Hampshire primary, Bush has seemed relaxed and confident on the stump, bolstered not only by his victory in the Granite State but also by his financial resources and his reputedly powerful organization in most of the 14 Southern and border Super Tuesday states.

The vice president’s chief rival, Dole, won the South Dakota primary and the Minnesota caucuses last week. But Dole’s satisfaction with those successes was dimmed by evidence of discord within his campaign organization, signaled most notably by the firing of two key advisers, David Keene and Donald Devine, by campaign Chairman William Brock.

Meanwhile Robertson campaign strategists have been concerned about the potential impact on his candidacy of the disclosures of the sexual misadventures of television evangelist Jimmy Swaggart.

For his part, Kemp, short on money and lacking the sort of Southern base Robertson can rely on among evangelical Christians, must win the backing of hard-core conservatives to stay in the race. His first objective is to finish ahead of either Bush or Robertson in the South Carolina Republican primary next Saturday, the results of which are expected to have considerable symbolic impact on the March 8 vote.

Oct. 20 (UPI) — A Georgia man was arrested Monday inside a terminal at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport after allegedly threatening on social media to “shoot it up.”

Atlanta Police arrested Billy Cagle, 49, at the airport and found an AR-15 assault rifle with 27 rounds of ammunition inside his pickup truck, which was parked at the airport, according to police chief Darin Schierbaum. Schierbaum said it was Cagle’s family who alerted officers that he had been making threats on social media and had a gun.

Cartersville Police Capt. Greg Sparacio told reporters the family alerted them Monday morning that the suspect was “en route to somewhere in the Atlanta area,” likely the airport, and he “had the intention to do harm to as many people as he could.”

The family provided information about the vehicle Cagle was traveling in, as well as a photo. Cagle was taken into custody after entering the airport terminal at 9:31 a.m. EDT. He did not have any weapons on him, but police found the rifle in his truck.

“I do believe he was likely to use that weapon inside the crowded terminal,” Schierbaum told reporters. “Because of the community — in this case, the family — as well as the joint collaboration of law enforcement, a tragedy was indeed averted.”

Cagle is facing multiple charges, including terroristic threats, criminal attempt to commit aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and possession of a firearm by a felon. He was convicted of possession of marijuana 20 years ago, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections.

Oct. 16 (UPI) — A Fulton County, Ga., grand jury has indicted Kelvin Lanier Evans for allegedly breaking into a vehicle rented by Beyonce‘s choreographer and stealing two suitcases during the summer.

Evans, 40, is accused of breaking into choreographer Christopher Grant’s rented 2024 Jeep Wagoneer on July 8 while Beyonce’s Cowboy Carter tour made a stop in Atlanta, CBS News reported.

Local prosecutors on Thursday confirmed that a grand jury indicted Evans on charges that accuse him of breaking a window to access the vehicle and stealing two suitcases.

One or both of the suitcases contained the hard drives on which unreleased music, plans for tour video footage and set lists for respective tour dates were stored.

They also contained jewelry, clothing and other valuables that have not been recovered.

Officers with the Atlanta Police Department arrested Evans on Aug. 26 and held him at the Fulton County Jail, according to Newsweek and local police records.

Evans has remained jailed in lieu of a $20,000 bond.

Grant reported the theft upon discovering the vehicle’s rear window was broken and the two suitcases were missing.

“They have my computers, and it’s really, really important information in there,” he said while reporting the theft to 911.

“I work with someone who’s of a high status,” he added. “I really need my computer and everything.”

The grand jury indicted Evans on Monday, and he is charged with criminal trespass and entering a vehicle with intent to commit theft, ABC News reported.

A preliminary hearing initially was scheduled for Thursday but was canceled after the grand jury indicted Evans.

Evans has a local arrest record dating to January 2002, with several more since, according to the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office.

His prior arrests include several for theft, armed robbery, assault, drug possession and other criminal violations.

Beyonce won a 2025 Grammy Award for Album of the Year for her Cowboy Carter release.

In Monday night’s other game, a last-gasp 38-yard Jake Moody field goal with three seconds left gave the Chicago Bears a thrilling 25-24 victory at the Washington Commanders.

The San Francisco 49ers took Moody with a rare pick on a kicker in round three of the 2023 draft but they then cut him a poor week one performance this season.

He signed to the Bears practice squad and was activated for Monday’s game after an injury to Cairo Santos.

“It feels amazing,” said Moody. “To get all that support from all my team-mates after the game, it was an amazing feeling.”

Two Moody field goals and a rushing touchdown from quarterback Caleb Williams put Chicago 13-0 up before Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels found Chris Moore to reduce the deficit to six points at Northwest Stadium.

Matt Gay and Moody traded field goals before Daniels threw to Luke McCaffrey and Zach Ertz for touchdowns as Washington opened up a 24-16 lead.

A 55-yard D’Andre Swift receiving touchdown gave the Bears a chance to tie the game but they missed a two-point conversion, leaving the Commanders 24-22 ahead.

But a Daniels fumble gave possession back to the Bears, who drove down the field to set up Moody’s winning kick with three seconds left, leaving the Commaneders with a 3-3 record.

“That’s who we are. We fight,” said Williams, who threw for one touchdown and 252 yards as his team moved to 3-2.

“We’re 3-2 because of our fight, because of how we face adversity and come together.”

Messi’s dominant performance against Atlanta came after he briefly left international duty with Argentina during the FIFA window.

Lionel Messi scored two goals and assisted on another by Jordi Alba to lead Inter Miami to a 4-0 home victory over Atlanta United on Saturday night in Major League Soccer (MLS) at Chase Stadium in Florida.

Messi, who sat out his home nation, Argentina’s, friendly against Venezuela that was held in Miami one night earlier, started and helped Inter Miami (18-7-8, 62 points) guarantee itself at least the No 3 seed in the Eastern Conference with the victory.

The Herons still have a chance to secure the No 2 seed if they can finish with more points than FC Cincinnati, which also has 62 points. If the teams finish with the same number of points, Cincinnati would clinch the higher seed by virtue of the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Atlanta United (5-16-12, 27 points), which eliminated Inter Miami from the MLS playoffs in the first round last season, lost its third match in a row and is winless in its past five.

Both teams were short-handed due to the FIFA international window this week. But Messi, who chose to play for club over country this weekend, now leads the MLS in goals, with 26, and his 18th assist tied San Diego’s Anders Dreyer for the league lead.

Messi’s first goal came in the 39th minute when he controlled a crossing pass from Baltasar Rodriguez and curled in a shot to the far top corner to break a scoreless deadlock. His second goal capped the scoring in the 87th minute off an assist from Alba.

In the 52nd minute, Messi created the chance that led to Miami’s second score, when he looped a long ball across the field to Alba as he surged towards Atlanta’s goal. Alba did the rest, lobbing the ball over Atlanta keeper Jayden Hibbert.

Luis Suarez added to the tally in the 61st minute, when he timed a shot perfectly off a high clearance attempt by Atlanta into the back of the net, curling the ball past Hibbert. Inter Miami’s Rocco Rios Novo started in goal and recorded the clean sheet.

Atlanta United, which has been riddled with injuries to key players this season, had to deal with another when, in the 14th minute, Stian Gregersen was forced to leave the game with what appeared to be a potential hamstring issue.

Saturday’s fixture was the final MLS regular-season match at Chase Stadium for Inter, with the team relocating to Miami Freedom Park in 2026.

WASHINGTON — President Trump appealed to the Supreme Court on Thursday seeking to fire Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook from the independent board that can raise or lower interest rates.

The appeal “involves yet another case of improper judicial interference with the President’s removal authority — here, interference with the President’s authority to remove members of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors for cause,” wrote Solicitor Gen. D. John Sauer.

The appeal is the second this month asking the court to give Trump broad new power over the economy.

The first, to be heard in November, will decide if the president to free to impose large import taxes on products coming into this country.

The new case could determine if he is free to remake the Federal Reserve Board by removing a Democratic appointee who he says may have broken the law.

Trump’s lawyers argue that a Fed governor has no legal right to challenge the president’s decision to fire her.

“Put simply, the President may reasonably determine that interest rates paid by the American people should not be set by a Governor who appears to have lied about facts material to the interest rates she secured for herself—and refuses to explain the apparent misrepresentations,” Trump’s lawyer said.

Trump has chafed at the Federal Reserve board for keeping interest rates high to fight inflation, and he threatened to fire board chairman Jay Powell, even though he appointed him to that post in 2018.

But last month, Trump turned his attention to Cook and said he had cause to fire her.

Congress wrote the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 intending to give the central bank board some independence from politics and the current president.

Its seven members are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, and they serve staggered terms of 14 years, unless “removed for cause by the president.”

The law does not define what amounts to cause.

President Biden appointed Cook in 2023 and she was confirmed to a full term.

In August, however, Bill Pulte, Trump’s director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, alleged Cook committed mortgage fraud when she took out two housing loans in 2021. One was for $203,000 for a house in Ann Arbor, Mich., and the second was for $540,000 for a condo in Atlanta. In both instances, she signed a loan document saying the property would be her primary residence.

Typically, borrowers obtain a better interest rate for a primary residence. But lawyers say charges of mortgage fraud are extremely rare if the borrower makes the required regular payments on the loan.

About 30 minutes after Pulte posted his allegations, Trump posted on his social media site: “Cook must resign. Now!!!”

Cook has not responded directly to the allegations, but her attorneys pointed to news reports which said she told the lender her Atlanta condo would be a vacation home.

Trump, however, sent Cook a letter on Aug. 25. “You may be removed, at my discretion, for cause,” citing the law and Pulte’s referrral. “I have determined that there is sufficient cause to remove you from your position,” he wrote.

Cook filed a suit to challenge the decision. She argued the allegations did not amount to cause under the law, and she had not been given a hearing to contest the charges.

U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb, a Biden appointee, agreed she made a “strong showing” the firing was illegal and blocked her removal.

She said Congress wrote the “for cause” provision to punish “malfeasance in office,” not conduct that pre-dated her appointment. She also said Cook had been denied “due process of law” because she was not given a hearing.

The U.S. appeals court in Washington, by a 2-1 vote, refused to lift her order on Monday.

Judges Bradley Garcia and J. Michelle Childs, both Biden appointees, said Cook had been denied “even minimal process — that is, notice of the allegation against her and a meaningful opportunity to respond — before she was purportedly removed.”

Judge Gregory Katsas, a Trump appointee, dissented. He said “for cause” removal provision was broader than misconduct in office. It means the president may remove an officer for “some cause relating to” their “ability, fitness, or competence” to hold the office, he said.

And because a government position is not the property of office holders, they do not have a “due process” right to contest their firing, he said.

Sept. 13 (UPI) — Federal Reserve Gov. Lisa Cook might not have committed fraud when obtaining a mortgage loan on at least one property for which she is accused of fraud.

Cook in 2021 described the Atlanta condominium that she bought as a second home or a vacation home in documents reviewed by The Washington Post and The New York Times.

A document from May 2021 described the Atlanta property’s use as a “vacation home, and a December 2021 form that she provided to the Biden administration called the condo a second home, according to The Washington Post.

She submitted the December document for review after President Joe Biden nominated her to join the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors.

A similar review by The New York Times reaches the same conclusions but says the documents are not legal documents and do not disprove claims that she committed fraud by claiming the Atlanta property and another home in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Federal Housing Agency Director Bill Pulte initially raised concern that Cook might have committed fraud and said the newly released documents do not disprove fraud allegations.

“If Dr. Cook solicited estimates as a vacation home and then entered into a mortgage agreement as a primary residence, that is extremely concerning and … evidence of further intent to defraud,” Pulte said, told The New York Times.

Pulte has referred the issue to the Department of Justice, which is investigating the matter.

President Donald Trump announced he is firing Cook, but she challenged her dismissal in a lawsuit and remains a Federal Reserve governor at least until the legal matter is resolved.

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s president said Thursday that Korean companies probably will hesitate to make further investments in the United States unless Washington improves its visa system for their employees, as U.S. authorities released hundreds of workers who were detained at a Georgia factory site last week.

In a news conference marking 100 days in office, Lee Jae Myung called for improvements in the U.S. visa system as he spoke about the Sept. 4 immigration raid that resulted in the arrest of more than 300 South Korean workers at a battery factory under construction at Hyundai’s sprawling auto plant west of Savannah.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry later confirmed that U.S. authorities had released the 330 detainees — 316 of them South Koreans — and that they were being transported by buses to Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport, where they will board a charter flight scheduled to arrive in South Korea on Friday afternoon. The group also includes 10 Chinese nationals, three Japanese nationals and one Indonesian.

The massive roundup and U.S. authorities’ release of video showing some workers being chained and taken away sparked widespread anger and a sense of betrayal in South Korea. The raid came less than two weeks after a summit between President Trump and Lee, and just weeks after the countries reached a July agreement that spared South Korea from the Trump administration’s highest tariffs — but only after Seoul pledged $350 billion in new U.S. investments, against the backdrop of a decaying job market at home.

Lawmakers from both Lee’s Liberal Democratic Party and the conservative opposition decried the detentions as outrageous and heavy-handed, while South Korea’s biggest newspaper compared the raid to a “rabbit hunt” executed by U.S. immigration authorities in a zeal to meet an alleged White House goal of 3,000 arrests a day.

During the news conference, Lee said South Korean and U.S. officials are discussing a possible improvement to the U.S. visa system, adding that under the current system South Korean companies “can’t help hesitating a lot” about making direct investments in the U.S.

Lee: ‘It’s not like these are long-term workers’

U.S. authorities said some of the detained workers had illegally crossed the U.S. border, while others entered legally but had expired visas or entered on visa waivers that prohibited them from working.

But South Korean officials expressed frustration that Washington has yet to act on Seoul’s years-long demand to ensure a visa system to accommodate skilled Korean workers, though it has been pressing South Korea to expand U.S. industrial investments.

South Korean companies have been mostly relying on short-term visitor visas or Electronic System for Travel Authorization to send workers who are needed to launch manufacturing sites and handle other setup tasks, a practice that had been largely tolerated for years.

Lee said that whether Washington establishes a visa system allowing South Korean companies to send skilled workers to industrial sites will have a “major impact” on future South Korean investments in America.

“It’s not like these are long-term workers. When you build a factory or install equipment at a factory, you need technicians, but the United States doesn’t have that workforce and yet they won’t issue visas to let our people stay and do the work,” he said.

“If that’s not possible, then establishing a local factory in the United States will either come with severe disadvantages or become very difficult for our companies. They will wonder whether they should even do it,” Lee added.

Lee said the raid showed a “cultural difference” between the two countries in how they handle immigration issues.

“In South Korea, we see Americans coming on tourist visas to teach English at private cram schools — they do it all the time, and we don’t think much of it, it’s just something you accept,” Lee said.

“But the United States clearly doesn’t see things that way. On top of that, U.S. immigration authorities pledge to strictly forbid illegal immigration and employment and carry out deportations in various aggressive ways, and our people happened to be caught in one of those cases,” he added.

South Korea, U.S. agree on working group to settle visa issues

After a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said Wednesday that U.S. officials have agreed to allow the workers detained in Georgia to later return to finish their work at the site. He added that the countries agreed to set up a joint working group for discussions on creating a new visa category to make it easier for South Korean companies to send their staff to work in the United States.

Before leaving for the U.S. on Monday, Cho said more South Korean workers in the U.S. could be vulnerable to future crackdowns if the visa issue isn’t resolved, but said Seoul does not yet have an estimate of how many might be at risk.

The State Department announced Thursday that Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau would visit Seoul this weekend as part of a three-nation Asia-Pacific trip that will also include Papua New Guinea and the Marshall Islands.

The Georgia battery plant is one of more than 20 major industrial sites that South Korean companies are building in the United States. They include other battery factories in Georgia and several other states, a semiconductor plant in Texas and a shipbuilding project in Philadelphia, a sector that Trump has frequently highlighted in relation to South Korea.

Min Jeonghun, a professor at South Korea’s National Diplomatic Academy, said it’s chiefly up to the United States to resolve the issue, either through legislation or by taking administrative steps to expand short-term work visas for training purposes.

Without an update in U.S. visa policies, Min said, “Korean companies will no longer be able to send their workers to the United States, causing inevitable delays in the expansion of facilities and other production activities, and the harm will boomerang back to the U.S. economy.”

Hyung-jin and Tong-Hyung write for the Associated Press. Tong-Hyung reported from Seoul.

COLLEGE PARK, Ga. — The Sparks inched closer to playoff elimination on Friday night.

Rhyne Howard tied the WNBA record with nine 3-pointers and finished with 37 points, Atlanta tied the team record with 19 3s and the Dream beat the Sparks 104-85.

Howard had three attempts at the record, which she already shared with Kelsey Mitchell (2019), Jewell Loyd (2023) and Arike Ogunbowale (2024). She is the first two accomplish the feat twice, both this season.

Atlanta (28-14), which clinched home-court advantage for the first round of the playoffs, tied the team record on Jordin Canada’s shot with 1:44 to play. New York hit 19 3-pointers twice this season and Las Vegas had 23 3s in a playoff game.

The Sparks’ Dearica Hamby shoots the ball under pressure from the Dream’s Brittney Griner during the second quarter at Gateway Center Arena in College Park, Ga., on Friday.

(Paras Griffin / Getty Images)

Maya Caldwell hit five 3s and scored 19 points for Atlanta and Brionna Jones added 12. The Dream were 19 for 39 from the arc. Howard was 9 for 17 and Caldwell 5 for 7.

Dearica Hamby scored 26 points on 11-for-15 shooting for the Sparks (19-22), who are 2 1/2 games behind Indiana in seventh place in the standings and Seattle in eighth. The Fever and Storm have an easier remaining schedules as they push to become one of the league’s eight playoff teams.

Kelsey Plum added 20 points and Rickea Jackson 17 for the Sparks.

The Sparks tied the score at 64 on Hamby’s layup in the middle of the third quarter but then the Dream reeled off 13 straight, which included back-to-back 3s by Caldwell and Howard’s eighth 3.

Howard’s record-tying 3, with 28.7 seconds left, made it 85-71. Caldwell had 11 points in the third quarter and Atlanta led 85-72.

Howard made five 3s in the first quarter, seven in the first half when she had 29 points and the Dream led 56-52.

The Sparks are home against Dallas on Sunday.

Philadelphia slugger Kyle Schwarber hit four home runs Thursday night against Atlanta to become the fourth Phillies player and 21st major leaguer to accomplish the feat.

Schwarber was four for six with a franchise record nine RBIs in the 19-4 victory. He broke a tie with Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani for the National League homer lead with 49 and moved within one of Seattle’s Cal Raleigh for the major league lead. Schwarber leads the majors with 119 RBIs.

Mike Schmidt was the last Philadelphia player to hit four homers in a game, doing so against the Chicago Cubs in April 1976. Schwarber had the third four-homer game of the season, following Eugenio Suárez and Nick Kurtz.

Kyle Schwarber high-five teammates after hitting a two-run home run in the fourth inning Thursday.

(Matt Slocum / Associated Press)

The Philadelphia star started the power surge with a solo shot in the first off Cal Quantrill, sending a 2-1 curveball into the seats in right field. Scharber hit a flyout to center in the second.

After Quantrill was lifted with one out and a runner on base in the fourth, Schwarber greeted lefty Austin Cox by sending a 3-2 curveball over the wall in right for his fourth multi-homer game of the season.

With “M-V-P! M-V-P!” chants ringing down from Phillies fans in the fifth, Schwarber launched a three-run, opposite-field drive off Cox to put Philadelphia ahead 15-3. In the eighth, Schwarber hit a three-run shot to right off Wander Suero to make it 18-4.

Schwarber popped out in the eighth.

Aug. 28 (UPI) — The Atlanta Journal-Constitution announced Thursday it would no longer be printing paper editions of the newspaper and will instead focus only on its digital product, which is expected to see double-digit growth this year.

The newspaper, which has existed under various flags since 1868, will become a purely digital platform beginning Jan. 1, 2026, the AJC announced. President and Publisher Andrew Morse said the change will eliminate 30 full- and part-time jobs involved in producing the the physical newspaper.

The AJC reported it has invested “millions” in technology and new reporting techniques in an effort to modernize its product. As part of that investment, the AJC moved its offices back into Midtown Atlanta after operating for years in the suburbs and based reporters in Athens, Macon and Savannah.

The newspaper said it’s on track to increase digital subscriptions by 25% to 35% this year.

“We will begin the new year as a fully digital organization, committed, as always to being the most essential and engaging news source for the people of Atlanta, Georgia and the South,” Morse said in a letter to subscribers Thursday.

A Pew Research Center survey published in 2023 found that U.S. adults aren’t following the news as closely as previous years, and they’re increasingly eschewing traditional forms of media such as print newspapers, local TV news and public radio. Daily circulation rates in 2022 were less than 21 million across the country, down from a height of more than 60 million in the 1960s to 1990s.

Morse said the digital move was not enforced by the newspaper’s owner, Cox Enterprises.

Cox CEO Alex Taylor said the news organization is critical to the community.

“This change will allow us to reduce the use of trees, plastic, water and carbon, while at the same time increasing our focus on news gathering and public accountability,” Taylor said. “I’m proud of our team for making these decisions, as much as I will miss the nostalgia of seeing the paper in my driveway every morning.”

Brent Hinds, who sang and played guitar in the Grammy-winning metal band Mastodon until he left the group this year, died Wednesday night in a motorcycle crash in Atlanta. He was 51.

His death was reported by Atlanta’s WANF, which cited a police report that said Hinds was riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle when he was struck by an SUV whose driver had failed to yield while making a turn. Hinds was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

In an Instagram post, Hinds’ former bandmates said they were “in a state of unfathomable sadness and grief” and that they were “still trying to process the loss of this creative force with whom we’ve shared so many triumphs, milestones, and the creation of music that has touched the hearts of so many.”

Known for its complicated riffs and its high-concept storytelling, Mastodon built a large and devoted audience with intricately plotted albums about illness, suicide and “Moby-Dick.” The band’s music drew clear inspiration from Black Sabbath and Slayer and influenced subsequent metal acts like Baroness and Pallbearer.

Yet Bill Kelliher, Mastodon’s other guitarist, said, “We’re not really a metal band,” during an interview with The Times in 2017. “I feel we’re more like a really heavy, groovy rock band with some prog elements and some pretty deep emotional lyrics. They’re loosely based on tragedy and things that really shake up human beings in real life.”

Mastodon formed in 2000 and made two albums for the respected indie label Relapse Records — including 2004’s “Moby-Dick”-steeped “Leviathan,” which Hinds told the New York Times allegorized “the struggle between man and music” — before signing to the Warner Music imprint Reprise for 2006’s “Blood Mountain,” which earned a Grammy nomination for best metal performance.

The band — in which Hinds, bassist Troy Sanders and drummer Brann Dailor took turns as lead singer — made five more LPs for Reprise; “Sultan’s Curse,” from 2017’s “Emperor of Sand,” won a Grammy for best metal performance. Mastodon’s most recent album, “Hushed and Grim,” came out in 2021.

Hinds grew up in Birmingham, Ala., where he learned to play the banjo before turning to guitar. In a 2009 interview with the Guardian, he described his younger self as “a total hellion” and said he was “very dysfunctional at school.” He added that he would “take LSD and come to class still tripping. I was too creative, never doing my homework, just filling my notepad up with drawings of skulls.”

He met Sanders when the latter came to Birmingham to play with an earlier band; Hinds soon moved to Atlanta to make music with Sanders, then the two formed Mastodon with Kelliher and Dailor. In 2009, Mastodon played the Coachella festival and toured with Metallica; six years later, Hinds appeared as an extra in an episode of HBO’s “Game of Thrones.”

In March, Mastodon announced that Hinds had left the band in a statement that said they’d “mutually decided to part ways.” Yet Hinds later wrote on Instagram that his former bandmates, whom he called “horrible humans,” had fired him “for embarrassing them for being who I am.” He went on to accuse them of using Auto-Tune in the studio and said he had “never met three people that were so full of themselves.”

Information on Hinds’ survivors wasn’t immediately available.

YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul will face off against Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis in an exhibition bout at State Farm Arena on November 14.

Jake Paul will fight the unbeaten Gervonta Davis on November 14, at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, in an exhibition bout that will be streamed live on Netflix, promoters said on Wednesday.

Davis has been the WBA lightweight champion since Devin Haney vacated the belt in 2023, but the American’s title will not be on the line against YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul due to the size difference between the two boxers.

Paul, a cruiserweight, weighed in at 199.4 pounds (90.45kg) ahead of his win over Mexican Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in June, while Davis fought Lamont Roach at 133.8 pounds (60.7kg) in March.

No details have been provided on the weight limit for the fight.

“Yes, he’s one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world, but my motto is, anyone, anytime, anyplace, against all odds. And I like my odds,” Paul wrote on X.

Davis is undefeated in 31 fights as a professional, winning 30 and drawing one, while Paul has a record of 12 wins and one defeat.

Before Wednesday’s announcement, Paul had been tipped to fight Anthony Joshua, a former two-time unified heavyweight world champion and Olympic gold medallist, and the sides had been holding discussions.

Paul’s most famous boxing match was against former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson, which took place on November 15, 2024.

https://t.co/HUb2Bsw2cG

— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) August 20, 2025

The shooting death of 33-year-old rapper T-Hood at his residence in Georgia is being investigated as a possible self-defense case, according to police in Gwinnett County, northeast of Atlanta.

Police have identified the alleged shooter as Ky Lasheed Frost, 24, the son of “Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta” stars Rasheeda and Kirk Frost. Ky Frost was detained at the scene of the shooting and interviewed, but no charges have been filed against him.

A representative for Rasheeda did not reply immediately to The Times’ request for comment Friday.

Authorities responded to a domestic dispute at approximately 7 p.m. on Aug. 8 and discovered the rapper — real name Tevin Hood — suffering from a gunshot wound. He was transported to a local hospital, where he died from his injuries.

Hood was dating Ky Frost’s sister, Kelsie Frost, according to TMZ. The entertainment news site also published surveillance video recorded earlier this year in their apartment that showed them in a physical altercation. In the video, Hood walks around the bedroom while Kelsie Frost is lying on the bed. The video appears to show Hood as he leaps toward her and begins to choke her.

Ky Frost and a witness, Ariel Miranda Hutchinson, 25, remained on the scene of the shooting last Friday and cooperated with investigators, police said.

Meanwhile, a female victim sustained physical injuries, police said. Kelsie Frost posted a carousel of photos of herself and Hood last Saturday on Instagram with the caption, “Just come get me baby please….. I can’t even type this. I love you papa. I can’t wait to hold you again.”

The investigation is ongoing.

Aug. 13 (UPI) — The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention told employees about the dangers of misinformation, four days after a suspected gunman shot at the agency’s headquarters in Atlanta, claiming the COVID-19 vaccine made him sick.

On Tuesday, Susan Monarez met with staffers virtually and then sent a note to all 10,000 employees nationwide, obtained by ABC News. Staffers at the headquarters have been working remotely since the attack on Friday.

“The dangers of misinformation and its promulgation has now led to deadly consequences,” she wrote. “I will work to restore trust in public health to those who have lost it — through science, evidence and clarity of purpose. I will need your help.”

The comments were slightly different than those during her staff meeting in which she said: “Public health should never be under attack. We know that misinformation can be dangerous.”

She said the health agency can rebuild trust with “rational evidence-based discourse” with “compassion and understanding.”

Dr. Paul Offit, the director of the Vaccine Education Center at Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania, told NBC News: “The irony is her boss is the biggest spreader of misinformation.”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is secretary of the Health and Human Services, which oversees the CDC.

In 2021, during the pandemic, Kennedy described the shot as the “deadliest vaccine ever made” after he filed a citizens’ petition requesting that the Food and Drug Administration end emergency authorization.

Last week, Kennedy announced that HHS was moving to terminate $500 million in contracts to develop vaccines using mRNA technology, which was used to develop the COVID-19 vaccine in 2020.

“After reviewing the science and consulting top experts at NIH [National Institutes of Health] and FDA, HHS has determined that mRNA technology poses more risks than benefits for these respiratory viruses,”

The American Medical Association backs mRNA vaccine research and the CDC still says on its website: “During the COVID-19 pandemic, COVID-19 vaccines underwent the most intensive safety analysis in U.S. history.”

Health officials have denounced skepticism of the research, noting the COVID-19 vaccine saved millions of lives in the United States.

“The Covid pandemic showed us what’s possible when science moves fast,” Rick Bright, who directed the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development from 2016 to 2020, told NBC News. “Dismantling that momentum now is like disbanding the fire department because the fire’s out.”

As head of the HHS, he has updated COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for the fall to be restricted to older adults and those with underlying health conditions. He also doesn’t want children to get the shots.

On Monday, Kennedy toured the CDC campus in Atlanta and met with the widow of the one person slain in the attack, DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose. He toured with Monarez and HHS Deputy Secretary Jim O’Neill.

“He offered his deepest condolences and reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to honoring officer Rose’s bravery, sacrifice and service to the nation,” HHS said.

Since the attack, the union representing CDC workers condemned the lack of support from top officials.

“This leadership is critical in reinforcing public trust and ensuring that accurate, science-based information prevails,” the union said Sunday. “This condemnation is necessary to help prevent violence against scientists that may be incited by such disinformation.”

The American Federation of Government Employees Local 2883, which represents more than 2,000 CDC workers, said in a statement Sunday that the attack “was not random and it compounds months of mistreatment, neglect and vilification that CDC staff have endured.”

The union also said: “The deliberate targeting of CDC through this violent act is deeply disturbing, completely unacceptable and an attack on every public servant.”

The father of the suspected gunman, 30-year-old Patrick Joseph White, reportedly told authorities he targeted the CDC over health problems he blamed on the COVID-19 vaccine. He said the shot made him depressed and suicidal.

He was fatally shot by police after around 200 bullets struck the six buildings. Five firearms were recovered.

“All indications are that this was an isolated event involving one individual,” Jeff Williams, the deputy secretary of the CDC’s Office of Safety, Security and Asset Management, said during the staff meeting Tuesday.

Aug. 13 (UPI) — Travelers from Seoul to Atlanta soon will be able to more-quickly travel through security and perhaps make their connections more easily, thanks to a new partnership with the United States.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced a collaboration with the Republic of Korea and aviation security authorities at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

The partnership expands CBP’s International Remote Baggage Screening program, which allows passengers traveling from Incheon International Airport to enter the United States faster, a press release said.

“By leveraging advanced technology and enhancing our processes, we are driving innovation in air travel that adds an extra layer of security while streamlining the entry process for international travel,” said Acting Executive Assistant Commissioner of CBP’s Office of Field Operations Diane J. Sabatino in a statement.

The new IRBS system X-rays travelers’ luggage and transmits the scans to Atlanta so CBP can see them while the passengers are in flight. This prevents the passengers from having to re-check their bags when they land in Atlanta, which can take significant time.

But CBP can still refer a passenger and their luggage for further inspection after landing.

The program was first announced in April 2025 and began operations at the Los Angeles International Airport for flights arriving from Sydney International Airport, in Australia.

Sabatino said in April that the program will eventually roll out to other airports and countries.

As authorities identified the shooter in the deadly attack on CDC headquarters as a Georgia man who blamed the COVID-19 vaccine for making him depressed and suicidal, a union representing workers at the agency is demanding that federal officials condemn vaccine misinformation, saying it was putting scientists at risk.

The union said that Friday’s shooting at the Atlanta offices of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which left a police officer dead, was not a random incident and that it “compounds months of mistreatment, neglect, and vilification that CDC staff have endured.”

The American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2883, said the CDC and leadership of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services must provide a “clear and unequivocal stance in condemning vaccine disinformation.”

The 30-year-old gunman, who died during the event, had also tried to get into the CDC’s headquarters in Atlanta but was stopped by guards before driving to a pharmacy across the street and opening fire, a law enforcement official told the Associated Press on Saturday.

The man, identified as Patrick Joseph White, was armed with five guns, including at least one long gun, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.

Here’s what to know about the shooting and the continuing investigation:

An attack on a public health institution

Police say White opened fire outside the CDC headquarters in Atlanta on Friday, leaving bullet marks in windows across the sprawling campus. At least four CDC buildings were hit, agency Director Susan Monarez said on X.

DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose was mortally wounded while responding. Rose, 33, a former Marine who served in Afghanistan, had graduated from the police academy in March.

White was found on the second floor of a building across the street from the CDC campus and died at the scene, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said. “We do not know at this time whether that was from officers or if it was self-inflicted,” he said.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said the crime scene was “complex” and the investigation would take “an extended period of time.”

CDC union’s call

The American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2883, is calling for a statement condemning vaccine misinformation from the Department of Health and Human Services. The agency is led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who rose to public prominence on healthcare issues as a leading vaccine skeptic, sometimes advancing false information.

A public statement by federal officials condemning misinformation is needed to help prevent violence against scientists, the union said in a news release.

“Their leadership is critical in reinforcing public trust and ensuring that accurate, science-based information prevails,” the union said.

Fired But Fighting, a group of laid-off CDC employees, has said Kennedy is directly responsible for the villainization of the CDC’s workforce through “his continuous lies about science and vaccine safety, which have fueled a climate of hostility and mistrust.”

Kennedy reached out to staff on Saturday, saying that “no one should face violence while working to protect the health of others.”

Thousands of people who work on critical disease research are employed on the campus. The union said some staff members were huddled in various buildings until late at night, including more than 90 young children who were locked down inside the CDC’s Clifton School.

The union said CDC staff should not be required to immediately return to work after experiencing such a traumatic event. In a statement released Saturday, it said windows and buildings should first be fixed and made “completely secure.”

“Staff should not be required to work next to bullet holes,” the union said. “Forcing a return under these conditions risks re-traumatizing staff by exposing them to the reminders of the horrific shooting they endured.”

The union also called for “perimeter security on all campuses” until the investigation is fully completed and shared with staff.

Shooter’s focus on COVID-19 vaccine

White’s father, who contacted police and identified his son as the possible shooter, said White had been upset over the death of his dog and had become fixated on the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a law enforcement official.

A neighbor of White told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that White “seemed like a good guy” but spoke with her multiple times about his distrust of COVID-19 vaccines in unrelated conversations.

“He was very unsettled, and he very deeply believed that vaccines hurt him and were hurting other people,” Nancy Hoalst told the newspaper. “He emphatically believed that.”

But Hoalst said she never believed White would be violent: “I had no idea he thought he would take it out on the CDC.”

Haigh writes for the Associated Press.

Aug. 8 (UPI) — Officials in Atlanta announced Friday that the man suspected to have shot two transit police officers in the city’s downtown area has been captured.

A Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority, or MARTA, spokesperson has confirmed the alleged shooter was arrested in Guntersville, Ala.

The suspect, who has not yet been publicly named, allegedly shot two MARTA officers at the Five Points station Thursday evening.

The officers reportedly spotted the man urinating near a platform inside the station. Police said he pulled out a gun and fired several times when they tried to arrest him..

One of the arresting officers was shot in the arm, while the other was grazed in the knee and suffered to some hearing loss due to gunfire close to the ear, MARTA Police Chief M. Scott Kreher said.

Police were able to spot the suspect exiting at train at the West End MARTA station, and investigators have since recovered a gun believed to have been thrown by him onto the station’s roof.

It is unclear how the suspect traveled from Alabama.

Aug. 8 (UPI) — The suspected shooter on Emory University’s campus and near the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters is dead and a DeKalb County officer responding to the incident was killed Friday, authorities said.

The shooting occurred before 5 p.m. EDT at Emory Point CVS, which is part of a shopping center of restaurants, shops and apartments where some students live, CNN reported. No civilians were injured, police said.

Police believe the unnamed suspect targeted the CDC because of unhappiness with the Covid-19 vaccine, CNN reported. He reportedly was wearing a surgical mask, and possessed two handguns, one rifle and a shotgun.

Late Friday, the officer was identified as 33-year-old David Rose, married and the father of two, interim DeKalb County Police Department Chief Greg Padrick said in a news conference.

“It is with profound sadness that we announce the loss of the life of one of our very own DeKalb County police officers,” Padrick said. “This officer responded to the call as he was trained to do, and during that incident, he received gunfire and he lost his life in this incident. He was committed to serving the community.”

He started with the agency in September 2024 after graduating from the police academy.

“This evening there is a wife without a husband,” DeKalb County CEO Lorraine Cochran-Johnson said. “There are three children, one unborn, without a father.

“There is a mother and a father, as well as siblings, who also share in this traumatic loss.”

The Atlanta Police Department can’t confirm why the police officer was present in its jurisdiction.

“It’s not uncommon for patrol patterns to cross multiple jurisdictions that may share the space,” Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum told reporters. “Was he going to work? Was he coming home from work? We don’t know if he was on patrol.”

Schierbaum said multiple rounds struck four nearby CDC buildings, including windows.

The police chief said 911 calls about an active shooting were received around 4:50 p.m. in front of the CDC campus.

Responding officers found the critically injured DeKalb County officer.

The suspect died on the second floor of the CVS of gunshot wounds, police said. An official told CNN that the shooter fired at an officer’s cruiser.

“We do not know at this time if it was an officer’s or if it was self-inflicted,” Schierbaum said.

A shelter-in-place was lifted late Friday at the CDC with CDC buildings closed until further notice, according to a message to employees.

“We at CDC are heartbroken by today’s attack on our Roybal Campus, which remains on lockdown as authorities investigate the shooting,” CDC Director Susan Monarez posted on X.

She said the CDC is cooperating with law enforcement in the investigation.

At 5:31 p.m., Emory’s Office of Critical Events Preparedness and Response instructed people to shelter in place on the private college’s campus.

About one hour later, a DeKalb County official said the situation was contained and there was no active threat, NBC News reported. But county residents should remain indoors as a precaution during the investigation.

Police said there was a single shooter.

The father of the alleged shooter’s father called law enforcement before the shooting to report that he believed his son was suicidal, a law enforcement official told CNN.

A CDC employee told CNN a man approached the steps of a building at the agency’s campus, put a backpack down, pulled out a rifle, and shot at the building.

Chris Weaver told WXIA that he believed he heard the shots.

“I was stunned at first,” he said, adding he thought he was safe.

The FBI sent agents to assist local law enforcement. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation.

This was the second shooting in Georgia this week.

On Wednesday, an active-duty soldier opened fire at Fort Stewart, injuring five service members. The suspected shooter was taken into custody.

Fort Stewart, which is part of the Savannah metropolitan area, is 243 miles southeast from Emory.

Gov. Brian Kemp posted on X: “Twice this week, deranged criminals have targeted innocent Georgians. Each time, brave first responders rushed toward the danger to subdue the shooter and save lives, reminding us of just how crucial they are.”

Emory is a liberal arts research university with enrollment of 5,727.