In shutdowns past — including during Trump’s first term — presidents normally scaled back their schedules. With staffers deemed “non-essential” sent home, the White House often sought to appear sympathetic to Americans affected by disruptions to healthcare, veterans benefits and other key services.
Nonetheless, it’s been mostly business as usual for Trump over the last 29 days.
“It’s like that country song: ‘Sometimes falling feels like flying for a little while,’” said Paul Begala, a Democratic strategist and former advisor to President Clinton, who presided over two shutdowns between 1995 and 1996. “They seem to be like, ‘So far, so good, man.’ ”
Ballroom, golf and trips
Trump was on a six-day swing through Asia, after a recent, whirlwind Middle East visit. He hosted a White House fundraiser for major donors to his $300-million ballroom that has seen construction crews tear down the East Wing, and held another fundraiser at his Florida estate.
Members of the Cabinet have similarly hit the road. Vice President JD Vance traveled to Israel, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem went to Oregon and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth toured Topgun, the U.S. Navy’s elite fighter weapons school in Nevada.
Only 32% of staff in the Executive Office of the President were set to be furloughed during the current shutdown, according to a White House budget office contingency report. That’s down from 61% during the last shutdown in 2018-19, in Trump’s first term. About half of the Executive Mansion’s team that includes housekeepers, ushers, valets and butlers are currently working. Last time, more than 70% were furloughed.
It’s often been hard to tell a shutdown is happening with so many staffers remaining at their desks.
“I don’t even know if they’re supposed to be working, but they wouldn’t miss a day,” Trump said during an event last week.
It’s a departure from Trump’s first term, when he cut out golf and canceled a planned trip to Florida for Christmas during the 2018 shutdown, which stretched into the new year. He made a surprise visit to troops in Iraq then, but nixed plans to go to the Swiss Alps for the World Economic Forum.
When hosting Clemson University football players celebrating their NCAA football championship, Trump brought in burgers and fries from McDonald’s and Domino’s pizza because of White House staff furloughs.
This time, the president had Republican senators over for a lunch that featured burgers, too. But staff made them. “They do great food at the White House,” Trump said.
‘A smarter approach’
Some say barreling ahead like there’s no shutdown has some political advantages for Trump, allowing him to look presidential while avoiding congressional bickering.
“It’s a much smarter approach,” said Marc Short, chief of staff to former Vice President Mike Pence.
In Trump’s first-term shutdown, he rejected a congressional compromise to force the government to close — an attempt to win funding to wall off the U.S.-Mexico border. Then, he named Pence as lead negotiator to end the shutdown while involving his son-in-law Jared Kushner — creating the visual of them having to go to Capitol Hill.
“The first go-around, he was pretty clear with cameras rolling: He said he wanted the shutdown. He claimed ownership,” Short said. This time? “The White House has been clear about not owning it.”
Back in 1995, Begala recalled talking strategy with Clinton during a sweaty summer run at Fort McNair in Washington, and telling the president that Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich and his party “think they can roll you,” forcing cuts to Medicare by threatening a shutdown.
Clinton responded: “‘My favorite movie’s ‘High Noon,’ ” Begala recalled, meaning the western in which a marshal stands up to outlaws. ”They do that — then I just have a Gary Cooper, ‘High Noon’ moment. That’s easy.”
When Gingrich later came to the White House to negotiate, Begala said Clinton wouldn’t budge, even though some advisors urged him to cut a deal. Voters ultimately blamed congressional Republicans more than the White House for the government closing, and Clinton was easily reelected in 1996.
“That could have really gone badly for Clinton,” Begala said. “But he did understand that standing strong, and having a Gary Cooper moment, would be really good for him.”
Trump could probably find a way to end the current shutdown if he wanted to prioritize it, said Leon Panetta, who worked to end past government closures as Clinton’s chief of staff. But Trump’s “attention is focused on everything but sitting down and getting both parties together to resolve this issue,” Panetta said.
‘Continuing to work night and day’
During the 16-day government shutdown of 2013, President Obama scrapped a four-country Asia trip and skipped the Congressional Hispanic Caucus gala. His schedule featured events meant to show the shutdown’s effects, including visiting a Maryland construction firm that benefited from the kind of federal loans jeopardized with the government shuttered.
In 2019, as that shutdown dragged on, Trump’s White House officials acknowledged feeling pressure to end it. This time, the administration’s approach has been to blame the Democrats, while signaling that it’s prepared to wait — even warning of coming travel delays during the Thanksgiving holidays.
“President Trump is continuing to work night and day on behalf of American people,” said White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson. “The entire administration, including the president, will continue highlighting the workers and families who are suffering because of the Democrats’ decision to shut down the government.”
Bill Daley, a White House chief of staff to Obama before the 2013 shutdown, said Trump isn’t acting like he’s feeling political heat to reopen the government, even before next Tuesday’s gubernatorial elections in Virginia and New Jersey — both home to sizable federal workforces.
“My guess is, he thinks it helps him,” Daley said, “until — and I don’t know if it will — the bottom falls out.”
Democrats are demanding an extension of expiring tax credits that have helped millions of people afford health insurance, while Republicans say they won’t negotiate until the government is reopened.
Trump has said the shutdown must end, but also used it to cut federal positions and target programs Democrats favor, while redirecting funds to his own priorities — like covering military paychecks. The president has even said of closed museums, “We should probably just open them.”
Americans, meanwhile, are divided on who’s to blame.
Roughly 6 in 10 say Trump and congressional Republicans have “a great deal” or “quite a bit” of responsibility for the shutdown, while 54% say the same about Democrats in Congress, according to a recent poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
Mike McCurry, a White House press secretary under Clinton, said Democrats have yet to settle on a clear shutdown message that has resonated. Trump has the presidency to deliver his take, but McCurry noted he has been “mercurial.”
“It is not likely we’re going to have clear winners or losers after this,” McCurry said. “It’s going to be a bit of a muddle.”
Paramount Chairman David Ellison’s latest offer to buy Warner Bros. Discovery contained a twist:
Should Paramount, backed by tech billionaire Larry Ellison, pull off the purchase, Warner Bros. Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav could stay on to help lead the combined enterprise.
“They’re sweetening the pot,” Paul Hardart, a professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, said of the Ellison family. “It just shows all the little arrows in their quiver they’re using to try to push this deal.”
David Ellison’ unexpected olive branch to Zaslav was contained in a letter this month to Warner Bros. Discovery’s board that offered $58 billion in cash and stock for the entire company. The move underscores the family’s determination to win the entertainment company that includes HBO, CNN and Warner Bros. film and television studios — and an obstacle in their path.
After hustling for decades to get to the big stage, Zaslav, 65, isn’t ready to relinquish the reins. He’s eager to prove critics wrong and complete a turnaround after three painful years of setbacks and cost cuts to reduce the company’s mountain of debt.
Warner Bros. Discovery board members, including Zaslav, have unanimously voted to reject Paramount’s three bids, viewing them as too low and not in the best interest of shareholders, according to two people close to the company who were not authorized to comment.
The board supports Zaslav’s desire to forge ahead with a planned split of the company next spring. But it also has opened the auction to other potential suitors, which is expected to lead to the firm changing hands for the third time in a decade.
Representatives of Zaslav, Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount declined to comment.
David Ellison’s audacious offer is being guaranteed by his father, Larry Ellison, the world’s second richest man with a net worth that exceeds $340 billion. The Ellisons’ proposal includes paying 80% cash to Warner shareholders and the rest in stock, according to two people familiar with the matter who weren’t authorized to comment. The most recent offer was $23.50 a share.
The Ellisons began their campaign last month, just weeks after David Ellison’s Skydance Media, along with RedBird Capital Partners, picked up the keys to Paramount, which includes CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon and the Melrose Avenue film studio, which has been depleted by decades of underinvestment.
The proposed addition of the more vibrant Warner Bros. would give the Ellisons an unparalleled entertainment portfolio with DC Comics including Superman, “Top Gun,” Scooby-Doo, Harry Potter, “The Matrix” and “The Gilded Age.”
The family would control streaming services HBO Max and Paramount+, nearly three dozen cable channels, including HGTV, Food Network and TBS, and two legacy news operations — CNN and CBS News.
It would also accelerate the trend of uber billionaires, including Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and SpaceX’s Elon Musk, of owning prominent news, entertainment and social media platforms. Larry Ellison also is part of a U.S.-based consortium lined up by President Trump to buy TikTok from its Chinese owners.
“If a trade deal with China is imminent, and TikTok would be aligned, then it would create a new media colossus, the likes of which we haven’t seen,” said veteran executive Jonathan Miller, chief executive of the investment firm Integrated Media Co.
Paramount is in talks to merge with Warner Bros. Discovery.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times; Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
The drama is unfolding as Paramount on Wednesday slashed 1,000 workers in the first round of cuts since Ellison took over. A second wave of layoffs — affecting another 1,000 workers — is expected in the coming weeks, helping fulfill a promise made to Wall Street by Ellison and Redbird to reduce expenses by more than $2 billion.
Combining with Warner Bros. would bring more layoffs, analysts said, and a potential hollowing out of a historic studio.
“Merger after merger in the media industry has harmed workers, diminished competition and free speech, and wasted hundreds of billions of dollars better invested in organic growth,” the Writers Guild of America West, said last week in a statement in opposition to the proposed unification. “Combining Warner Bros. with Paramount or another major studio or streamer would be a disaster for writers, for consumers, and for competition.”
Critics point to a long list of media merger misfires, including the disastrous AOL Time Warner merger a quarter century ago. Some critics contend Walt Disney Co.’s $71-billion purchase of much of Rupert Murdoch’s entertainment holdings didn’t live up to expectations, and AT&T whiffed its $85-billion deal for Time Warner, handing it to Zaslav’s Discovery four years later for $43 billion.
The New York native, a descendant of Jewish immigrants from Poland and Ukraine, had spent 16 years running the Discovery cable channel group, a respectable business, but one that lacked Hollywood flash.
Zaslav grew up on the fringe of New York City, in Ramapo, N.Y., where he’d been a promising tennis player who proudly wore his athletic gear to middle school. Tennis was his identity — until he started getting beat by players he used to whip.
Zaslav’s coach sat him down, bluntly saying he wasn’t putting in the work.
“I vowed that day I would never be outworked again,” Zaslav said during a 2023 commencement address to Boston University graduates. Underlings have long marveled at his indefatigable work ethic.
The speech was meant to be his triumphant return to his alma mater. Zaslav had finally made it to Hollywood, where he was now holding court in an exquisite corner office that had belonged to studio founder Jack Warner.
Zaslav had big plans to turn around Warner Bros. But, in Boston, he suffered a beatdown.
The Writers Guild of America had just gone on strike against his and other Hollywood studios. Protesters heckled Zaslav. Students booed. A plane flew overhead, waving a banner that read: “David Zaslav Pay Your Writers.”
He had assumed control a year earlier, in April 2022, just as Wall Street soured on media companies that were spending wildly to build streaming services to compete with Netflix.
Zaslav inherited a venture bleeding billions of dollars to get into streaming. The merger itself saddled the company with $55 billion of debt. Warner’s stock plummeted.
He and his team spent the first few years slashing divisions, canceling TV programs and contracts, and shelving movies. To further reduce expenses, the company laid off thousands of workers. Hollywood soon viewed Zaslav with derision.
It didn’t help that Zaslav has long been one of the most handsomely compensated executives in America.
There were high-profile stumbles, including jettisoning staff of the tiny Turner Classic Movies channel and an ill-conceived rebrand of its streamer to “Max” before changing the name back to HBO Max.
“The Warner Bros. Discovery merger was a well-intended failure,” Hardart said. “The cable subscriber base shrank at a faster rate than most people had forecast. … Thousands have lost their jobs, the HBO brand has been reimagined and reimagined, films have been mothballed and the future of the Warner Bros. studio is today uncertain.”
Warner Bros. Discovery paid down $20 billion in debt, but $35 billion remains. The debt load has nearly suffocated the company, making it a vulnerable target.
“There was a lot of fixing that David Zaslav and his team had to do,” Bank of America media analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich said in a recent interview. “It’s been three years of incredibly heavy lifting — but that’s pretty much done now.”
In a note to investors last week, Ehrlich wrote Warner’s strong franchises, including DC Comics, and its voluminous library make it “an extremely attractive potential acquisition target,” one that could fetch $30 a share. Her firm carries a “buy” rating on the stock.
Warner Bros. Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav and AT&T Chief Executive John Stankey shake hands on May 17, 2021, in New York City.
(Preston Bradford / Discovery)
Last summer, Zaslav announced plans to split the company in two halves.
Zaslav would run Warner Bros., which would consist of the Burbank studios, HBO and the HBO Max streaming service. Longtime lieutenant Gunnar Wiedenfels would helm Discovery Global, made up of the firm’s international businesses and basic cable channels, which face an uncertain future in the streaming era.
Those who know Zaslav believe he’s working to stave off the Ellison takeover, in part, because he wants the chance to bring the company back to its glory, which would ultimately make it more valuable for its investors and prospective buyers.
For Warner management, that’s part of the rub. The Ellisons showed up just as the company was displaying signs of a turnaround, including a hot streak by Warner Bros. that includes “A Minecraft Movie,” Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners,” James Gunn’s “Superman,” Formula One adventure “F1: The Movie,” and horror flick “Weapons.”
Larry, from left, Megan and David Ellison attend the premiere of Paramount Pictures’ “Terminator Genisys” at Dolby Theatre on June 28, 2015.
(Lester Cohen / WireImage)
Ellison’s bidding was designed to thwart Warner’s planned corporate breakup.
For now, analysts said, Zaslav and the Warner board’s current strategy is solid because they have effectively driven up the stock price, which has doubled to $21 a share since the Ellison’s interest became known in mid-September.
“They are doing the right thing,” Hardart said. “In any sale, you try to beat the bushes and get as many people interested. But at some point the board is going to have to make a decision.”
Added one investor: “They’ve gotten Paramount-Skydance to bid against itself, and that only goes so far.”
Analysts expect Philadelphia giant Comcast, owner of NBCUniversal, and potentially Netflix, Apple or Amazon to take a look at the company’s studio, library and streaming assets.
But many see the Ellison’s Skydance as having the edge.
Paramount, in its recent letter to the Warner board, argued that it was the best and most logical buyer.
“What Skydance offers WBD, in many ways, is what it offered Paramount: The ability to be aggressive and push all aspects of the business in a way that most people or companies that have less capital just can’t do,” Miller said. “They are deploying real capital, and they are being the most aggressive folks in the industry right now.”
Good morning, and welcome to L.A. on the Record — our City Hall newsletter. It’s Rebecca Ellis, with an assist from David Zahniser, Noah Goldberg and Matt Hamilton, giving you the latest on city and county government.
There is no shortage of budget-busting costs facing Los Angeles County, Supervisor Lindsey Horvath recently told guests at this week’s Los Angeles Current Affairs Forum luncheon.
There’s the costly fire recovery effort. And the deep cuts from the federal government. And a continuing homeless crisis.
As Horvath wrapped up her remarks, Emma Schafer, the host of the clubby luncheon, asked about yet another expenditure: What was up with that $2-million settlement to the county’s chief executive officer Fesia Davenport?
“We were faced with two bad options,” Horvath told the crowd dining on skewered shrimp.
Horvath said she disagreed with Davenport’s demand for $2 million, but also believed “that we have to focus on a functional county government and saving taxpayer money.”
Three months ago, all five supervisors quietly voted behind closed doors to pay Davenport $2 million, after she sought damages due to professional fallout from Measure G, the voter-approved ballot measure that will eventually eliminate her job.
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Measure G, which voters passed in November, reshaped the government, in part, turning the county’s chief executive into an elected position — not one selected by the board. The elected county executive, who would manage the county government and oversee its budget, will be in place by 2028. Davenport, a longtime county employee, had been in her post since 2021.
Davenport, as part of her financial demand, said Measure G caused her “reputational harm, embarrassment, and physical, emotional and mental distress.”
Critics contend unpleasant job changes happen all the time — and without the employee securing a multimillion dollar payout.
“Los Angeles County residents should be outraged,” said Morgan Miller, who worked on the Measure G campaign and called the board’s decision a “blatant misuse of public money.”
Horvath, who crafted Measure G, promised during the campaign it would not cost taxpayers additional money. More recently, she voiced dissatisfaction with Davenport’s settlement, saying the agreement should have had additional language to avoid “future risk.”
Horvath said in a statement she considered having the settlement agreement include language to have Davenport and the county part ways — to avoid the risk of litigating additional claims down the road.
Supervisor Janice Hahn, who pushed for Measure G alongside Horvath, said she voted for the settlement based on the advice of county lawyers.
“In the years I worked to expand the board and create an elected county executive, I never disparaged our current CEO in any way,” she said in a statement. “I always envisioned the CEO team working alongside the new elected county executive.”
Davenport has been on medical leave since earlier this month and did not return a request for comment. She has told the staff she plans to return at the start of next year.
It’s not unusual for county department heads to get large payouts. But they usually get them when they’re on their way out.
Bobby Cagle, the former Department of Children and Family Services head who resigned in 2021, received $175,301. Former county counsel Rodrigo Castro-Silva got $213,199. Adolfo Gonzales, the former probation head, took in $172,521. Mary Wickham, the former county counsel, received $449,577.
The county said those severance payments, all of which were obtained through a records request by The Times, were outlined in the department heads’ contracts and therefore did not need to be voted on by the board.
Sachi Hamai, Davenport’s predecessor, also received $1.5 million after saying she faced “unrelenting and brutal” harassment from former Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
Davenport’s settlement was voted on, but not made public, until an inquiry from LAist, which first reported on the settlement.
David Loy, legal director for the First Amendment Coalition, says the county is required under the Brown Act to immediately report out a vote taken on a settlement if the deal is finalized and all parties have approved it. But if it’s not, he says, they don’t need to publicly report it — they just need to provide information when asked.
“You don’t have to proactively report it out in that meeting. You still have to disclose it on request,” said Loy. “ I don’t think that’s a good thing — don’t get me wrong. I’m telling you what the Brown Act says.”
State of play
— DEMANDING DOCUMENTS: Two U.S. senators intensified their investigation into the Palisades fire this week, asking the city for an enormous trove of records on Fire Department staffing, reservoir repairs and other issues. In their letter to Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Sens. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) showed much less interest in the Eaton fire, which devastated Altadena but did not burn in the city of Los Angeles. An aide to County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who represents Altadena, said neither she nor other county offices had received such a document request.
— BUMPY BEGINNING: The campaign of City Council candidate Jose Ugarte is off to a rocky start. Ugarte, who is backed by his boss, Councilmember Curren Price, recently agreed to pay a $17,500 fine from the Ethics Commission for failing to mention his outside consulting work on his financial disclosure forms, But on Wednesday, two ethics commissioners blocked the deal, saying they think his fine should be bigger. (Ugarte has called the violation “an unintentional clerical error.”) Stay tuned!
— A NEW CHIEF: Mayor Karen Bass announced Friday that she has selected Jaime Moore, a 30-year LAFD veteran, to serve as the city’s newest fire chief. He comes to the department as it grapples with the continuing fallout over the city’s response to Palisades fire.
— LAWSUIT EN ROUTE: Meanwhile, the head of the city’s firefighter union has accused Bass of retaliating against him after he publicly voiced alarm over department staffing during the January fires. Freddy Escobar, president of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City Local 112, said he’s preparing a lawsuit against the city. Escobar was suspended from his union position earlier this year, after an audit found that more than 70% of the transactions he made on his union credit card had no supporting documentation.
— HE’S BACK! (KINDA): Former Mayor Eric Garcetti returned to City Hall for the first time since leaving office in 2022, appearing alongside Councilmember Nithya Raman in the council chamber for a celebration of Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights. Garcetti, a former U.S. ambassador to India, described Diwali as a “reawakening,” saying it may be “the longest continuous human holiday on earth.”
— GENERATIONS OF GALPIN: The San Fernando Valley auto dealership known as Galpin Motors has had a long history with the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners, the civilian oversight panel at the LAPD. On Wednesday, the council approved the nomination of Galpin vice president Jeffrey Skobin, to serve on the commission — making him the third executive with the dealership to serve over the past 40 years.
— AIRPORT OVERHAUL: Los Angeles World Airports is temporarily closing Terminal 5 at Los Angeles International Airport, carrying out a “complete demolition” and renovation of the space in the run-up to the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. During construction, JetBlue will be operating out of Terminal 1, Spirit shifts to Terminal 2 and American Airlines lands in Terminal 4, the airport agency said.
— OUT THE DOOR: Two of the five citizen commissioners who oversee the Department of Water and Power have submitted their resignations. DWP Commissioner George McGraw, appointed by Bass two years ago, told The Times he’d been laying the groundwork for a departure for six months. McGraw said he found he could no longer balance the needs of the commission, where he sometimes put in 30 to 40 hours per week, with the other parts of his life. “I needed extra capacity,” he said.
— NO MORE MIA: DWP Commissioner Mia Lehrer was a little more blunt, telling Bass in her Sept. 29 resignation letter that her stint on the board was negatively affecting her work at Studio-MLA, her L.A.-based design studio. Lehrer said the firm has been disqualified from city projects based on “misinterpretations” of her role on the commission.
“As a result, I am experiencing unanticipated limitations on my professional opportunities that were neither expected nor justified under existing ethical frameworks,” she wrote. “These constraints not only affect my own business endeavors but also carry significant consequences for the forty-five professional and their families who rely on the continued success of our work.”
QUICK HITS
Where is Inside Safe? The mayor’s signature program to address homelessness went to Cotner Avenue near the 405 Freeway in Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky’s Westside district.
On the docket next week: The board votes Tuesday on an $828-million payout to victims who say they were sexually abused in county facilities as children. The vote comes months after agreeing to the largest sex abuse settlement in U.S. history.
That’s it for this week! Send your questions, comments and gossip to [email protected]. Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up here to get it in your inbox every Saturday morning.
Airbnb Inc. Chief Executive Officer Brian Chesky said he didn’t integrate his company’s online travel app with OpenAI’s ChatGPT because the startup’s connective tools aren’t “quite ready” yet.
Airbnb will monitor the development of ChatGPT’s app integrations and may consider a tie-up in the future similar to those of its peers Booking Holdings Inc. and Expedia Group Inc., Chesky said in an interview.
“I didn’t think it was quite ready,” he said of ChatGPT’s integration abilities.
Because Airbnb is a community with verified members, OpenAI will have to build a platform so robust that Airbnb’s app can work within the ChatGPT chatbot in an “almost self-contained” manner, Chesky said.
Chesky, who is close friends with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, said he advised the AI company on its new capability for third-party developers to make their apps available within the ChatGPT chatbot. The AI company announced those features earlier this month. Airbnb wasn’t among the first apps that are available on the popular chatbot.
An OpenAI spokesperson declined to comment on Chesky’s remarks, but referred to the company’s blog post earlier this month that described the app integration technology as a developer preview, with more features coming soon.
While Airbnb has set aside a possible integration with ChatGPT, the company Tuesday announced that it had updated its in-app artificial intelligence tools to let customers take more actions without the need of a live representative.
The company’s AI customer service agent, which it rolled out to all US users in English in May, now displays action buttons and links that can help people complete, say, a reservation change or cancellation.
That has led to a 15% reduction in users needing a live representative, cutting average resolution time to six seconds from nearly three hours, Airbnb said. The company plans to add Spanish and French language support this fall, and 56 more languages next year.
The agent is built upon 13 different AI models, including those from OpenAI, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Alphabet Inc.’s Google and open source providers, Chesky said.
“We’re relying a lot on Alibaba’s Qwen model. It’s very good. It’s also fast and cheap,” he said. “We use OpenAI’s latest models, but we typically don’t use them that much in production because there are faster and cheaper models.”
Airbnb, which expanded its business beyond accommodations into tours and individual services earlier this year, also is adding new social features to encourage user connections and eventually make better travel recommendations within the app.
The company unveiled an option for guests to share their Airbnb profile with other travelers after they book an experience. Users who have gone on the same tours can also now directly message one another — privacy safeguards are implemented where the conversation can only continue if the recipient accepts a message request, Airbnb said.
More social features are coming next year, and Chesky said that longer term these features could lend themselves to user-generated content on the app, where people can seek travel inspiration without leaving the Airbnb site.
“I think the social features, the community, that’s probably the most differentiated part of Airbnb,” he said. “People are the reason why I think Airbnb is such a sticky service.”
Kelly Reichardt’s watchful cinema is one of the indie world’s most exquisite bounties, a space for pioneers (“Meek’s Cutoff,”“First Cow”), artists (“Showing Up”) and wanderers (“Old Joy,” “Wendy and Lucy”) who command your attention the way an ER waiting room does, lingering tensely.
One might not consider a heist film in such anthropological terms. And yet “The Mastermind,” Reichardt’s latest and one of her best, while set in motion by a daylight art grab orchestrated by Josh O’Connor’s middle-class Massachusetts suburbanite, is another precisely turned Reichardt movie: honest, sad, funny and inherently philosophical about our engagement with the world. As you might expect, it’s really about the crime’s aftermath, our cut from this robbery being a deft, fascinating character study rooted in an apathy that’s starkly juxtaposed with the restive year it’s set in: 1970.
By the look of things, preppy, soft-spoken James Mooney (O’Connor), an unemployed carpenter, isn’t obvious criminal material, no matter what composer Ray Mazurek’s propulsive, horn-forward jazz score might imply. James cases his local art museum, often with his unwitting wife, Teri (Alana Haim), and two young boys in tow. Otherwise, James is just a distracted dad, checked-out husband and disappointing son living off the status and largesse of his parents, an esteemed judge (Bill Camp) and a society mother (Hope Davis).
Still, based solely on the error-prone heist — it’s been ages since pantyhose masks seemed so ridiculous — thievery isn’t this spoiled man’s strong suit either. (You didn’t think that title was respectful, did you?) When he’s stashing the stolen paintings later in a farmhouse’s hayloft and accidentally knocks the ladder out from under him, the moment is amusing and appropriately metaphorical.
Reichardt is laying bare a privileged man’s half-assed delinquency, especially with O’Connor so hypnotic at conveying self-absorbed cluelessness with his woeful eyes, posture and movement. As the movie then hits the road for his escape, the early fall colors of Christopher Blauvelt’s cinematography shift to gray tones and darker interiors, and James’ vibe is less rebel eluding capture — even if a pal he visits (John Magaro) expresses admiration — than alienated loser leaving behind a mess, an assessment radiating from Gaby Hoffmann as Magaro’s wife. The bebop groove abandons James, too, slowing into jagged drum solos.
The last contextual indignity are the details of the period itself: Nixon posters, anti-war signs, Vietnam footage on televisions, a protest march. Unforced but ever-present in Reichardt’s mise-en-scène, they remind us that this bored aesthete’s misadventure is an especially empty way to buck conformity. When good trouble beckons, why pick the bad kind?
One can even detect, in this brilliant, captivating Reichardt gem about fortune and fate, a what-if attached to her disaffected male protagonist: Would today’s version of James, just as adrift and arrogant, steal art to assuage his emptiness? Or, thanks to the internet, succeed at something much worse? “The Mastermind” may be an ironic title as heists go. But it also hints at the male-pattern badness still to come.
Hedda Felin, boss of the Norwegian firm, has raised concerns about the rapid growth of the cruise industry and has issued a warning of what could happen if changes aren’t made
The Hurtigruten boss has issued a warnign about the future of the industry(Image: 3440932)
The cruise industry has to change or it faces being banned out of existence, the CEO of Hurtigruten has warned.
Hedda Felin, boss of the Norwegian firm, has raised concerns about the rapid growth of the cruise industry in an interview with the Mirror. She says more must be demanded of passengers visiting ports, while calling for dirty fuels to be scrapped to ease the significant environmental impact of the industry.
Hedda is particularly worried about the size of cruise ships and the burden their vast numbers of passengers are placing on coastal towns. If restrictions are not put in, anti-cruise ship protests such as those that have broken out in Barcelona and Venice will spread, she predicts.
“I am very concerned about the future. Local communities will react (if we don’t act). We will see more ‘cruise ships go home’ mentality. There will be no future if you don’t leave behind more than you take,” Hedda said.
Milo Boyd
Milo Boyd
Hedda spoke to the Mirror at a moment of unprecedented growth in the cruise industry. This year, the world’s largest cruise ship set sail after the industry brought in just shy of $80 billion in a year. That figure will hit $171 billion by 2035, according to one study.
Norway, where Hurtigruten is based, has seen a 70% increase in cruise traffic since 2019 – growth that Hedda calls “kind of overwhelming”.
“I am concerned, I am worried for Norway. It is a long coast, but it has small communities. The communities are overwhelmed by the size of the cruise and the number of visits every day. Local communities are more and more skeptical. 5,000 passengers are trying to fit into villages of 300 people.”
A major gripe among those living and working in busy cruise ship ports is how little passengers spend. Often they visit for a short period of time, see the public sights and then return to their all-inclusive ship.
“We (Norwegians) as a nation demand too little of the visitors and how much they leave behind. There are so many things you could do easily. We could ban heavy oil fuel along the coast. (Hurtigruten) banned it 15 years ago. There could be more restrictions on NOx emissions.
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“Hurtigruten has chosen to only use local suppliers. We get the local expertise, as well as quality food and drink. It is possible to impose requirements that, for example, 30% of the supplies must come from the nation you’re visiting.
“We have our own seaweed farm, which we use to make protein for food, soup and socks. It is a huge contrast to all-inclusive, vacuum-packed food.”
Hedda argues that the issue isn’t about growth generally but the wrong kind. Hurtigruten’s fleet has grown from seven to 10 ships over the last two years. In the future, the CEO hopes it can become less environmentally damaging. She also backs size limits on future ships.
“We want to create the world’s most energy-efficient product, as close to zero as possible. We want energy-efficient sails, solar panels powered by the midnight sun. My dream is that it will be ready by 2030,” Hedda said.
“We, clearly, need to restrict and reduce the building and size of new ships. We do not need more of the big cruise ships. They need to be a completely different environmental standard. If we managed that, it can be a good way of travelling. It has to be local value creation. If growth continues, it will be some years and then it will be completely banned. It will meet huge resistance.”
Not everyone is so pessimistic about the future of the cruise industry, however. Jonny Peat, head of cruise for Advantage Travel Partnership, is enthusiastic about the growth predicted for the coming years.
“The most striking number is that less than 3% of the leisure travel market is made up of cruise passengers. We’ve not even scratched the surface.”
Right now, 37 million passengers set sail on cruise ships worldwide each year. By 2028, that will hit 42 million. “Despite the fact that some people think there are too many ships, leisure cruise liners make up 1% of the overall maritime industry. Cruise isn’t going anywhere,” Jonny said.
Both cruise ship size and total number have rocketed in recent years. According to a Transport & Environment report, the number of cruise ships has increased more than twentyfold, from only 21 in 1970 to 515 vessels today.
The question caused Lakers coach JJ Redick to say he was “not being combative” with his answer.
Asked if the Lakers are missing opportunities to practice more and build on-court chemistry because of their busy six-game preseason slate, Redick was quick to wonder why reporters were so concerned about the situation.
“You guys are really harping on this,” Redick responded.
So, Redick was asked, is it a thing or is it not a thing?
“I’m not being combative right now,” Redick said. “I just want to acknowledge that you guys, like the last four days, like it’s becoming a little bit obsessive with all these questions about opportunities lost. So, I will answer it again. These are the cards that we were dealt. I sure would like everybody to be healthy.”
Making the most out of the situation, the Lakers held off the Golden State Warriors 126-116 Sunday night at Crypto.com Arena despite not playing with LeBron James (sciatica), Luka Doncic and Marcus Smart (Achilles tendinopathy).
Redick said the plan is for Smart to “get two games [in] this week.”
The Lakers have three remaining preseason games: Tuesday at Phoenix, Wednesday at Las Vegas against the Dallas Mavericks and Friday against the visiting Sacramento Kings — four games over a six-day span.
Redick was reminded that the Lakers as an organization have chosen to play six preseason games — the maximum allowed by the NBA.
“It’s something to be discussed I think going forward,” Redick said. “I think it’s awesome. I really do because we got to play in Palm Springs and I think it’s awesome that we get to play in Vegas and I recognize that there’s Lakers fans all over the world that maybe don’t get the chance to see us play.
“You hope that we can find some sort of balance in the future to get more practice time, less travel time. I’m sure at some point we’ll be one of the teams going overseas, so then that adds another scenario.”
Lakers guard Bronny James, front, and Golden State forward Trayce Jackson-Davis battle for a rebound in the first half Sunday of the Lakers’ 126-116 preseason win at Crypto.com Arena.
(Jae C. Hong / Associated Press)
Redick did say for training camp purposes, practice tends to be more helpful in team building than preseason games.
“I think more practices would be beneficial,” Redick said. “I do think the exposure to a game situation and playing against an opponent is very beneficial. You don’t have a lot of days anymore and to try to cram six games in there [and] four games in six nights, it’s significantly difficult.”
For Ayton, who was six for eight from the field and had a blocked shot, his joy came from the fans cheering him on. Sure, it was only a preseason game, but Ayton loved the vibe and the positive energy he felt.
It was Ayton’s first time playing at Crypto.com Arena since he signed a two-year, $16.6-million deal with the Lakers.
“It hit me in the whole arena today just hearing the fans and everybody cheering,” Ayton said. “It was kind of an unusual sound other than boos. … It was everybody showing love and welcoming me to L.A. I played so freely and I had a lot of fun.”
A British woman who recently moved her family to Florida in the US has shared the top 10 things they don’t like about living in the sunshine state. There are certain things they seem to hate
13:03, 08 Oct 2025Updated 13:04, 08 Oct 2025
They don’t like everything about Florida (stock image)(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
A British family have relocated to America, but they’ve confessed there are certain aspects of life in the US they’re struggling to adjust to, and she’s not the first expat to be shocked by the differences. The woman who documents their experience under the username brits.inthesunshinestate on TikTok has revealed the 10 things the family dislike about living in Florida.
Despite only residing in the US for a matter of months, there are certain things they simply cannot get used to, and they’ve now laid them all bare. Emily posted her thoughts in a recent video, and her opinions have certainly sparked considerable debate.
In the footage, she revealed: “Number one, the public bathroom stalls. The doors have a gap, probably like that either side. You can see straight through them.
“If you are sat on the toilet or, if you are washing your hands, you can see the reflection in the mirror. You can see people moving, you can see people’s clothes. I don’t like it, I don’t like the lack of privacy.
“Number two, WhatsApp does not really exist much out here. It’s all about texting and, to me, that is old school.
“Three, Florida drivers. They are wild, they are aggressive. In time, I will get used to it but, for now, it’s still a little bit crazy.
“Four. Since we’ve been here, we have had multiple people soliciting at our door, trying to sell their business, because they happen to be in the neighbourhood or going door to door. Don’t like that. We can stop it by putting a ‘no soliciting’ thing on our door. We can get that fixed.”
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In the clip, Emily also pointed out the family aren’t keen on sluggish pumps at petrol stations either. According to her, filling up can “take forever.”
She also highlighted that post can take ages to turn up, unless you’re ordering from Amazon Prime. Based on her experience, she said her mail can take anything from a week to 10 days to arrive.
Insects can also be “relentless” during the evening when you go for a stroll, she added. As soon as the sun goes down, she said they appear everywhere, and she finds it really annoying.
Snakes have also been a problem for her, though she admitted one she spotted was “fine.” Emily explained they have found a cottonmouth snake in the garden, and she didn’t like this as they can be dangerous.
Last but not least, she also admitted she thinks the healthcare system is “confusing.” Even though she likes how it’s run, she doesn’t like how tricky it is to understand.
She said there’s a lot of paperwork, and it’s something they’ll have to learn to get used to. Emily admitted it’s up to them to learn all they need to know about the system. Despite listing the downsides, she insisted that moving was still the best decision they’ve ever made.
The family are over the moon with their new life and adore living in the States. The video has racked up thousands of views since it was posted, sparking a flurry of comments, and opinions were decidedly split.
One viewer remarked: “As an American, we don’t like our stalls either. Might as well leave the door open wide.”
Another commented: “That’s exactly what I thought when I went to the USA years ago. I couldn’t live there because of the public toilets.”
A third responded: “I’ve lived in America for five years and I’ve never seen snakes.” Meanwhile, a fourth added: “All my bills come by email.”
Another person chimed in with: “Most drivers aren’t from Florida. They are either tourists or live here but moved from another state. It does make driving tricky though.”
There were more than 17,000 high school sports transfers recorded last school year in California, and one of the most bizarre involved Chaminade offensive lineman Harout Agazaryan.
On a Monday in January, he checked out of Chaminade. On Tuesday, he began classes and football practice at Burbank High. By Tuesday afternoon, when his mother picked him up after football practice, he told her, “I don’t think it’s the right place for me.”
“You’re probably right,” she said. “How do you feel? Do you want to go back to Chaminade?”
“Yes,” he said.
On Wednesday morning at Starbucks, he met with Chaminade football coach David Machuca and asked to return.
By Thursday, he was back at Chaminade in the same classes. He felt awkward, but his teachers joked, “You missed me already?”
It took courage to ask for a second chance, and what a decision it has turned out to be. Five times this season, Agazaryan has been named a team captain by his coach. The 6-foot-3, 255-pound senior been a standout offensive tackle and defensive lineman.
“He’s been amazing,” Machuca said. “You talk about a kid that did a 360. He’s representing what I believe is important to being a captain — dedication, holding people accountable. He’s doing everything right.”
There’s so many lessons to be learned from Agazaryan’s experiences.
“The grass isn’t always greener where you go,” he said. “I discovered there’s not many places better than Chaminade.”
It was his parents who gave him the green light to transfer even though they wanted him to stay.
“Honestly, at the time, I had a lot of friends [at Burbank],” he said. “They were texting me every day. I wasn’t doing very good academically here. I thought I needed a restart.”
He quickly determined he was wrong. But would he have a chance to return to his old school?
One of the most important decisions he made was to have a conversation with Machuca before he left. So many times, students and their parents don’t even inform the coach they are leaving.
“I feel you have to leave on good terms because I know teammates that left last year that didn’t talk to coach Machuca at all,” he said. “I felt as a man, I had to talk to him.”
That earlier discussion made Machuca open to welcoming Agazaryan’s return as long as parameters were followed.
“I actually told him when he was leaving I’m really happy we’re at the point of having a conversation,” Machuca said.
The second chance has not been wasted.
“It’s been way better,” Agazaryan said. “I feel when I came back, my head switched. I was a way better person, better in the classroom, better on the field. I felt I was controlling my emotions more.”
Coaches have been complaining that it’s harder to coach players these days, because they know if someone takes something they say the wrong way, they immediately think about transferring to another school.
Agazaryan warns, “Don’t ever burn your bridges because you never know what will happen. Just because one thing bad happens doesn’t mean you should take your stuff off and leave. You have to build a relationship with everyone on the campus, then you’ll really be happy.”
Taylor Swift is “shockingly” offended by the idea that “The Life of a Showgirl” could be — given her recent engagement to Travis Kelce — her final album.
“It is not the last album. That’s not why people get married,” the singer told BBC Radio 2 on Monday.
“They love to panic sometimes,” she said, talking about conspiracy theorists in the Swifty-verse, “but it’s like, I love the person I am with because he loves what I do and he loves how much I am fulfilled by making art and making music.”
Rumors started to make their rounds after the couple announced their engagement in August through a joint Instagram post. Fans speculated that after she said “I do,” she would have children and move on from music — or so BBC host Scott Mills had informed his guest.
Wait, mothers can’t have careers? Swift called that a “shockingly offensive thing to say.”
Weeks earlier, the Grammy-winning singer announced the impending arrival of her 12th album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” on her now-fiancé’s podcast hosted along with brother Jason Kelce. Since the release last week, the rumors grew louder and louder, with some fans predicting this album would be it for the pop artist.
To which Swift pushed back:
“That’s the coolest thing about Travis, he is so passionate about what he does that me being passionate about what I do, it connects us,” Swift said.
Their passions in life aren’t so different, according to the singer.
“We both, as a living, as a job, as a passion, perform for 3½ hours in NFL stadiums,” the showgirl said. “We both do 3½-hour shows to entertain people.”
When she’s touring, she gets a dressing room, Swift said, but when he’s playing in the same space, they call it a locker room.
“It’s a very similar thing and we’re both competitive in fun ways, not in ways that eat away at us,” she added.
Over the weekend, while Kelce prepared for the Kansas City Chiefs’ “Monday Night Football” game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the future Mrs. Tight End released “Taylor Swift: The Official Release Party of a Showgirl” in theaters. The experience earned $33 million over the weekend, topping the box office, according to Box Office Mojo.
The music video for the album’s opening track, “The Fate of Ophelia,” premiered along with the release-party movie. Swift wrote and directed it.
“[The music video] is very, like, big and glitzy and it’s so fun and it’s supposed to be like the day in the life of a showgirl,” she said.
Multitasking has become a norm for the “Cruel Summer” singer, who juggled her last tour with the recording of the album.
Swift said she flew to Sweden on multiple occasions during the Eras Tour to record the album. Her loyal inner circle did not leak any information.
“My friends don’t rat, they do not rat and you can tell by the amount of stories about me that are out there that are absolutely not true,” she said.
OK, Swifties, you can breathe now. You can stop looking for clues into whether this is it for Tay-tay’s music career. Shake it off until her next release.
BBC Breakfast presenters Sally Nugent and Jon Kay were left emotional on Tuesday’s show as they spoke to a grieving mum who is still fighting for answers after her son died
08:38, 30 Sep 2025Updated 08:41, 30 Sep 2025
BBC Breakfast presenters Sally Nugent and Jon Kay shared some heartbreaking news on Tuesday’s programme following the tragic death of a young lad.
Kicking off the devastating segment, Jon explained: “Now, from today, social media sites and tech companies will have to preserve data relating to the online activity of a child who has died if requested to do so by a coroner.”
Sally added: “Yes, it’s the latest part of the Online Safety Act to be rolled out, but some parents who’ve lost their children say the measures simply don’t go far enough.”
Following some footage of Jools before his passing, Jon and Sally welcomed Jools’ mother, Ellen, who made a gut-wrenching appeal, according to the Express.
Jon observed, “So it’s an important day. It’s a change. But for you, it’s not a change enough, just explain.”
Ellen responded: “So as of today, there’s something called data preservation notices, which gives the coroner the right to preserve the data. So they’d have to go to Ofcom to preserve online social media data.
“I spoke to two new bereaved parents last night who are in this position. The police are… what happens when an inquest happens is that the inquest is opened and usually suspended and handed back to the police for investigation.
“The problem is the police are then saying, ‘well, we don’t have the power to do that’, then the coroner is not in control, so they can’t use that law. So it seems ridiculous, unless it’s automatic, then the coroners can’t use that law, and then we’re waiting months or potentially years.”
She continued, “The thing that bothers me is that there’s not enough training for police and coroners as well, so the coroner needs to understand what information to ask for. Do all coroners know how TikTok works, or other apps that kids are using, or what information to ask from Snapchat, and so Ofcom needs to help the coroner understand what information to request.”
Ellen went on to reveal that she remains “planning to go to the High Court” in an attempt to “piece together what information was missing” surrounding Jools’ death.
The devastated mum became visibly emotional as she declared, “I think I’m three and a half years down the line. I could get emotional now, but I don’t know why my child’s not here, and I want to try for answers.
“And I think as a parent, I should have the right to try to look at social media, and I get we may be too late now, and this law will help other parents, which is great, but I want to try to understand what happened to my son.”
In order to attract global investors, AstraZeneca said it will directly list its ordinary shares on the New York Stock Exchange, in addition to its shares trading in the UK and Sweden.
To do so, the Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical giant needs to replace its existing US listing of AstraZeneca American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) on the Nasdaq.
The company said that the move aims to harmonise its listing structure “while remaining headquartered in the UK”.
“The Board of AstraZeneca is recommending to shareholders a Harmonised Listing Structure for the Company’s ordinary shares across the London Stock Exchange (LSE), Nasdaq Stockholm (STO) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE),” the company said in a statement.
The announcement follows increased speculation that the pharma company may move its shares entirely from the London Stock Exchange, where it is one of the largest companies traded. And according to analysts, the current announcement doesn’t exclude this possibility in the future.
“While there is logic to shifting to a direct listing in the US rather than American Depositary Receipts beyond setting up for any longer-term moves, it does at least hint at the possibility of a more dramatic shift at some point in the future,” said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
The US has the world’s largest and most liquid public markets by capitalisation. A direct listing makes it easier for US investors to buy AstraZeneca shares directly without going through ADRs.
Compared to ordinary shares, American Depositary Receipts come with additional costs and extra steps. ADR investors may be subject to fees and double taxation, and ADRs come through a custodian bank.
“Enabling a global listing structure will allow us to reach a broader mix of global investors and will make it even more attractive for all our shareholders to have the opportunity to participate in AstraZeneca’s exciting future,” said Michel Demaré, Chair of AstraZeneca.
In response to the announcement, AstraZeneca’s shares listed on the FTSE 100 rose 0.71% at around 11.30 CEST.
The Domino’s playbook for growth will keep it going for many more years.
Domino’s Pizza(DPZ -0.60%) may be best known for late-night delivery, but for investors it represents something bigger. One of the most durable growth stories in the restaurant industry. Over the past two decades, Domino’s has outpaced the S&P 500, delivering close to 3,000% in stock return to investors.
Now, with more than 21,000 stores worldwide, the question is what keeps Domino’s compounding from here. The answer lies in three powerful forces: International expansion, digital leadership, and menu innovation.
Image source: Getty Images.
1. International expansion, and particularly China
One of the biggest issues with Domino’s is the sheer size of its U.S. store count (7,031 as of March 23), which limits its future growth potential. While the bears are not wrong in saying that, they are missing the bigger picture, wherein the real growth engine is from overseas. For perspective, Domino’s now operates more international stores than domestic ones, and global markets (with more than 14,000 stores) are providing both scale and profitability.
The most significant growth opportunity here is China. Domino’s master franchisee there, DPC Dash, ended June 2025 with about 1,198 stores across 48 Chinese cities. Same-store sales have grown for more than 30 straight quarters, and management expects to add about 300 stores in 2025 and 350 more in 2026. It also has 30 million customers on its loyalty program there, up from 19 million a year ago.
Importantly, DPC’s growing scale is translating into profitability. In the first half of 2025, Domino’s China generated $362.7 million in revenue and a fivefold increase in net profit year over year, with adjusted EBITDA margins climbing to 12.4%. Those numbers highlight a rare combination: Rapid revenue growth alongside improving margins.
While impressive, the growth in China is likely to be in the early days. With a population of 1.4 billion, the country can certainly accommodate many more thousands of stores. For investors, that’s a blueprint that could extend to other emerging markets as Domino’s replicates the model in emerging markets like India or Southeast Asia.
2. Ongoing investment in digital and technology
Domino’s has long differentiated itself through technology. It was one of the first pizza chains to roll out mobile ordering, and today, digital accounts for a large share of its sales base. In the U.S., more than 85% of sales now come through digital channels.
That’s more than just a convenience metric. Digital orders typically carry higher average tickets and lower error rates, and foster customer loyalty through push notifications and rewards. By steering customers to its own app, Domino’s also collects valuable data, enabling upselling and targeted marketing.
The company is also partnering with other tech companies. Its DoorDash deal, announced in May 2025, allows Domino’s stores to appear on DoorDash’s marketplace while still using Domino’s drivers for fulfillment. This hybrid model expands customer reach without compromising the delivery experience for customers.
Looking ahead, Domino’s ongoing investment in the latest technology and innovations could further enhance the customer experience while making its operation leaner and better. Both will add to the bottom line over the long run.
3. Menu and value innovation
People crave variety, even in a category as simple as pizza. Domino’s continually updates its menu with new toppings, sides, and limited-time offers that encourage repeat visits from loyal customers while attracting new demographics.
Internationally, Domino’s adapts to local tastes — paneer pizzas in India, durian pizzas in China — to ensure cultural relevance while still leveraging its global brand. That balance of localization and consistency is a significant strength as it expands into new markets.
Value remains just as crucial as novelty. Domino’s has consistently positioned itself as an affordable option in quick-service dining, offering carryout deals, bundles, and promotional pricing that appeal to price-sensitive consumers. This approach has helped Domino’s not only sustain demand through economic cycles, but also gain market share during more challenging times.
The combination of menu variety and value pricing has cemented Domino’s position as the largest pizza chain in the world, and it gives the company multiple levers to drive growth even when broader consumer spending slows.
What does it mean for investors?
Domino’s isn’t just a restaurant chain anymore — it’s a global platform powered by scale, technology, and relentless customer focus.
International expansion, particularly in China, offers a long runway for store growth. Its digital leadership strengthens customer loyalty and operational efficiency. And menu and value innovation keep the brand relevant and affordable across markets.
That’s why, even after two decades of outperformance, Domino’s story may just be getting started. Investors should keep the company on their radar.
MAFS icon Emma Barnes’ warning for couples(Image: Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty I)
The autumn chill is settling in, and what better way to celebrate than with a dose of wedding chaos!
Luckily, we have Married At First Sight legend Emma Barnes here to give her verdict for the Mirror on all the weekly tears and madness the E4 show…
Firstly… Welcome to my weekly column! Honoured to pen my thoughts on, let’s face it, the UK’s welcome to Autumn. Darker nights, drama-filled dinner parties and clinging onto the hope of some happy endings while our dating life is in tatters: MAFS IS BACK PEOPLE!
What a first couple of episodes! The series will fly by with this new format, switching between weddings and honeymoons. We all get a bit bored of the often repetitive nuptials and personally I’d send Mel, Charlene and Paul to the honeymoons, some of these couples need them.
The cast seem a kind, calmer collective than the previous couple of series (for now, we all know!). I think I’d totally fit in with this group had I not made it into last series. Love that there’s two same sex couples, and I want to be bezzies with Nelly immediately.
This week Davide and Keye hitched in a classy, emotional day (round of applause on their guest’s pure style please!). Sarah’s asked for a bad boy and her new husband pre-wrote an acapella number that went down like a lead balloon, and we all learnt some lessons in feminism from Grace’s protective pal.
If you go into this experiment expecting the full package, you’re going to be disappointed, and emotions were running high. Types come up every year, two brides had tears after their vows. Sarah’s never dated someone like Dean. She likes a flirt, a cheeky wink and someone to through her down on the bed and rip her clothes off. Dean with the dimples is a kind, gentle, poet, and that’s not helping his sex appeal.
Grace expected an instant spark, (Ashley is going to have queues at his door if this doesn’t work out, he’s totally a bit of me!) but here’s the thing; from my experience women are more open to getting to know the person if the spark isn’t there. It will be a refreshing twist on blokes wanting fit birds and nothing else. Mark my words I predict one of these couples will go some distance with a sprinkling of expert help.
This is why we get hooked, the twists, turns, feedback and growth. The happiest couples on their wedding day face rocks in the road, while what starts off Grace’s tears after the ceremony could turn in a river of love by Christmas. Plenty of weddings to go so strap in, get hitched onto that sofa and get a wine and crisp in hand.
P.S I hate taking out the bins – totally a blue job if I had a boyfriend…
These 3 companies offer huge dividend payouts, but even bigger worries. Luckily, there’s a better stock you can buy.
Stocks that pay big dividends can give your portfolio a big boost, but beware! Some high dividends could be … traps!
A yield trap is a type of dividend stock offering a very high yield. But the only reason its yield is so high is that the share price dropped significantly over a relatively short time (and is likely to stay down for a while), increasing the odds that the dividend will need to be cut (or even suspended altogether). Investors who buy in chasing the high yield can get hit with the double whammy of a dividend cut and a sharp share price drop as investors dump the stock.
Here are three stocks paying high dividends that look very risky right now, and one high-yielding stock that’s a much safer pick.
Industrial chemical and materials companies like LyondellBasell (LYB -1.76%) have had a rough few years. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, these companies could count on steady, if slow-growing, demand for their products, which include construction materials, lubricants for industrial machinery, automobile coatings, consumer packaging, and other industrial products.
Usually, this diversified customer base would prevent a slowdown in one sector from affecting a company like LyondellBasell’s bottom line too much. However, the sectors that rely on these products the most — automotive, construction, and manufacturing — are in a multi-year slump.
This has hurt LyondellBasell’s bottom line. Trailing 12-month net income has collapsed by 96.7% over the past three years and free cash flow has dropped by 91.6% to $453 million. Considering that dividends are paid out of free cash flow, and the company’s current dividend payouts add up to $1.72 billion per year, investors should be concerned about dividend sustainability.
The company is clearly hoping it can power through. It has launched a “Cash Improvement Plan” and sold some assets in an effort to “support shareholder returns.” But with just $1.7 billion in cash left on its balance sheet, it won’t be long before the company has to either turn to borrowing to support its dividend — which isn’t sustainable over the long term — or cut it, like…
At-Risk Dividend No. 2: Dow (current yield: 5.8%)
LyondellBasell’s fellow chemical companyDow (DOW -1.36%) is facing the same headwinds, but has fared even worse, with earnings and free cash flow that both turned sharply negative in the most recent quarter.
Like LyondellBasell, Dow’s dividend yield crept above 10% as its share price dropped by more than 60% from its highs. However, with negative cash flow eating into the company’s balance sheet, Dow ripped off the bandage and cut its quarterly dividend in half, from $0.70/share to $0.35/share.
It’s ironic that even after that major cut, Dow still has a higher yield than most other companies. But if the industry doesn’t pull out of the slump it’s currently in, further cuts could be coming.
At-Risk Dividend No. 3: UPS (current yield: 7.8%)
In a case of “same song, different beat,” shipping and logistics giant UPS (UPS 0.43%) has seen a post-pandemic collapse in net income (down 50% in the last three years) and free cash flow (down 65%), as the pandemic-era delivery boom — for which UPS made major capacity upgrades — fizzled. Investors responded by sending shares down 57% from their highs.
With dividend payouts of $5.4 billion outstripping the company’s trailing cash flow of $3.5 billion, and tariffs expected to reduce shipping and delivery volume even further in the near term, the company’s $6.3 billion cash hoard may not last long enough to avoid a cut, although CEO Carol Tome is trying to. “You have our commitment to a stable and growing dividend,” she said on the most recent earnings call, but investors should remember that dividend policy can change without warning.
Safe Dividend: MPLX (current yield: 7.6%)
If high dividends are what you’re after, why pick UPS’ risky 7.8% yield when you could get a nearly identical 7.6% yield that’s much more secure? Midstream energy company MPLX (MPLX -0.48%) offers just such a payout.
MPLX operates pipelines, storage units, and shipping terminals for the oil and gas industry. As a master limited partnership (MLP), it gets favorable tax treatment in exchange for paying out almost all of its cash flow as dividends to investors. The only drawback to MLP ownership is some increased reporting at tax time if you hold your MLP shares in certain types of accounts.
Unlike the other three companies listed here, MPLX’s net income and free cash flow have only been growing over the past three years. Better yet, so has its dividend payout. But it still has plenty of dividend coverage, with its distributable cash flow currently 1.5x higher than its payouts, meaning MPLX has ample room to address a potential business slump without cutting its dividend.
That’s the kind of peace of mind you won’t get from LyondellBasell, Dow, or UPS right now, and why MPLX is a better choice for most dividend investors.
THE saying goes, ‘less is more’, but celebrities are taking that a little too literally as flashing thongs return.
The trend was big in the noughties with the ‘it’ girls of the day, Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, showing the tops of their G-Strings.
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Margot Robbie attends the “A Big Bold Beautiful Journey” UK Premiere at the Odeon Luxe Leicester SquareCredit: Getty
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Myleene Klass makes a cheeky exit at Sky Arts Awards as she flashes her underwear beneath a sheer panelled dressCredit: BackGrid
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Dakota Johnson flaunted a similar look while attending an eventCredit: Splash
And TV royalty, Gillian Anderson flashed hers on the red-carpet at the Oscars in 2001 but later was killed off by fashion notoriety – along with tramp stamps.
Flashing your thongs had a resurgence in 2020 with the likes of Jennifer Lopez and Kim Kardashian flashing their underwear, but now the trend is more than just peeking above your jeans.
It’s about basically doing a moony, but getting away with it because you’re in couture.
At the premier of her new film, A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, the 35-year-old undoubtedly looked incredible in the see-through gown with plunging back that showed she was only wearing a thong.
Just a couple of days later fellow actress Dakota Johnson, 35, wore a similar look.
A high neck, long sleeved, floor length dress made from lace that also flashed her bum in a black thong.
Her Gucci gown for a charity dinner in New York, again, looked incredible on her.
But we need to think about their consequences.
Thongs, a piece of fabric that connects from the front to the back and no more than a few centimetres thick. And that connection of fabric goes via your, erm, bum.
Olivia Attwood makes cryptic comment as she strips off to thong and bra before jetting to Vegas without husband Bradley
When it’s in black and white it sounds vulgar, and not to mention uncomfortable.
And I don’t want to see that when I’m in a bar sipping my glass of Sauvignon, because let’s face it where celebs lead – we all follow.
When you’re a Hollywood A-lister with the pristine figure good enough to better the world’s best supermodels, sure flash away – you look sensational.
But let’s not make this trend grip the nation or we’ll be faced with fleshy, droopy, white bottoms on the loose up and down the country.
Pants for a charity fundraiser? No thank you.
Clemmie Fieldsend
And if you shudder at the sight of a ‘builders bum’ then don’t, please don’t, let this trend catch on – because your Friday night in your local ‘Spoons will be overrun with bums.
And it’s not just Margot and Dakota that could lead us into the cringe fashion flop.
Actress Helen Flannagan celebrated her 35th birthday by wearing a gold dress with a thong-bodysuit underneath.
Whilst on holiday the Corrie star went for a more toned down version of the trend wearing something similar to a thong cossie under a beach dress.
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Helen Flanagan wows in golden thong bodysuit as she celebrates 35th birthdayCredit: Instagram / hjgflanagan
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Earlier this year Maya Jama showed off her thong in a sheer dressCredit: Instagram
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Charli XCX attends The BRIT Awards 2025 at Intercontinental Hotel on March 01, 2025Credit: Getty
Singer Dua Lipa, 30, hit the streets of New York for the Charlie Chaplin Gala this April in a beautiful black knitted dress with a fine weave that revealed her underwear.
Another modest style of the trend but nevertheless, pants for a charity fundraiser? No thank you.
In May at the premier for the Ocean With David Attenborough documentary in London she flashed her thong, and the rest of her body all within spitting distance of our national treasure, Sir David.
There’s no escaping the fact that if we copy you we’ll become the butt of every joke
Clemmie Fieldsend
Complete with plunging neckline, the 33-year-olds chainmail grown might have been a bit too risque for such an occasion and a bit too chilly.
In the same month, Britney Spears did her one of her usual dancing around on Instagram videos, but this time just in thread-bare underwear.
The 43-year-old chose to wear just her bra and knickers for the video and black leather knee high boots.
Now, I’m all for doing what you like in your own home, but maybe the rest of us don’t need to see it.
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Dua Lipa at the 50th Chaplin Gala Honoring Pedro Almodóvar held at Lincoln Center on April 28, 2025Credit: Getty
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Britney Spears shows off her bare bottom in see-through thong then talks Colin Farrell fling as she dances in lingerieCredit: Instagram/britneyspears
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Singer Tyla Laura Seethal a.k.a. Tyla attends the Jacquemus Menswear Fall-Winter 2025/2026 show as part of Paris Fashion WeekCredit: Getty
Love Island host Maya Jama was reviving the noughties trend way back in January.
For the All Stars series she headed back to the villa wearing a Norma Kamali see-though, ruched gown with off-the-shoulder straps with nothing but black underwear underneath.
With the warm temperatures of South Africa, she may have felt hot and wanted something cool to wear, and if anyone is going to look amazing in this trend it’s Maya, but let’s save it for private holidays.
For high days and holidays maybe, but come on ladies.
There’s no escaping the fact that if we copy you we’ll become the butt of every joke.
So let’s leave this trend, and cracks, in the past.
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Julia Fox attends the 67th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com ArenaCredit: Getty
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Nikki Glaser attends the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards at UBS ArenaCredit: Getty
Pigs are flying and Satan has on a puffer jacket. I know these things because the impossible is happening — I am writing about why Marjorie Taylor Greene,Nancy Mace and Lauren Boebert are right.
And why California’s Republican congressional representatives should be ashamed and shamed.
You may know these women as beacons of the far right, maybe even the fringe-right, in Congress. Hailing from Georgia, South Carolina and Colorado, respectively, they have dabbled in QAnon conspiracy theories, including about sex trafficking and powerful pedophiles, among other questionable actions.
But I’ll say this for the trio — they’ve stayed true to their beliefs, even under direct pressure from the White House. So a (limited) shout-out to Greene, Mace and Boebert.
What am I talking about? Jeffrey Edward Epstein, of course (I think he committed enough crimes to earn his middle name included, serial killer style).
Boebert, Mace and Greene are three of only four Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives who have signed a discharge petition (a kind of work-around to bypass leadership) to release the full Epstein files, supposedly containing a trove of information on men who bought and sold sex with teenage girls.
“These are some of the richest, most powerful people in the world that could sue these women into poverty and homelessness,” Greene said at a recent news conference with some of the victims. “Yeah, it’s a scary thing to name names, but I will tell you, I’m not afraid to name names, and so if they want to give me a list, I will walk in that Capitol on the House floor, and I’ll say every damn name that abused these women. I can do that for them.”
And, to my immense shock at having something in common with Greene, I say — that is how it’s done, lady. You go.
Not a single Republican House member from California has backed releasing the Epstein files. Every California Democratic representative has signed. So let’s talk about that.
I am sick of Epstein. Why are you writing this?
Like most of you, I too am tired of hearing endless political chatter about Epstein.
For the blessedly uniformed among you, Epstein was an extremely rich dude. No one is quite sure where all that money came from, but he apparently used a great deal of it to buy influence with powerful men, and sex traffic underage girls — allegedly children as young as 11 .
He died by suicide while in jail in 2019 (lots of conspiracy theories on whether it was in fact suicide) but in 2021 his paramour-partner Ghislaine Noelle Maxwell was also convicted of child sex trafficking and other offenses.
Epstein and Maxwell have ties to Donald Trump, including a much-discussed “birthday book” that honestly I do not care about other than to say, “Ick.” That has made the whole thing an endless political brouhaha.
But many of the many victims of Epstein and Maxwell have called for their information to be released by the Justice Department, which holds more than 100,000 pages of the investigation. They, like survivors of sexual assault everywhere, want accountability, if justice remains elusive. They want names named. They want to stop being afraid, stop being stuck by their pain and their past, and allow the world to decide, if courts won’t, just how much truth they are telling.
These are brave women who were brutalized as children for the pleasure of men with money. They have a right to have their stories known if that’s what they choose.
This is not politics. This is decency.
The California problem
Like Greene, I’m willing to name some names. Here they are — California’s GOP representatives in the House:
Releasing the Epstein files requires only one of them to sign the discharge petition. Just one of these fine representatives from the Golden State could do the right thing, stand for a bipartisan value that Californians of both parties hold — sex trafficking is bad — and show what real leadership looks like.
Anyone? Anyone?
“If Epstein survivors want this information released, it should be released. These women have had the courage to speak out and it’s infuriating that Congress would block release of information — they’d rather help with a cover-up than stand with survivors,” state Assemblymember Maggy Krell (D-Sacramento) told me.
She’s a former state Justice Department prosecutor who specialized in trafficking, and has worked on controversial bipartisan legislation at the Capitol with Republican Sen. Shannon Grove of Bakersfield. That legislation earned her the ire of her own party, but on an issue this important, she did what she believed was right over what was easy.
“Protecting kids and standing up for survivors of human trafficking should not be a partisan issue and in California, we’ve shown it doesn’t have to be,” Krell said.
In fact, the discharge petition in the House is a bipartisan effort — introduced by Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and our own Ro Khanna of California, a Democrat.
In particular, I’d like to call out Kiley for his hypocrisy. Recently, he introduced a bipartisan sex trafficking bill in Congress that’s a smart idea — the National Human Trafficking Database Act, which would create a database at the Department of Justice that tracks cases across the country. He did it with Reps. Harriet Hageman (R-Wyo) and Hank Johnson (D-Ga). Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) are carrying the bill in the Senate.
“We must do everything we can to prevent human trafficking and having the necessary tools at our disposal will bring us closer to stopping this awful crime,” Kiley said in a press release.
Huh.
Seems like Kiley gets the issue. Seems like he’s saying the right things. And for a guy about to be gerrymandered out of his own district — with his own party not seeming to care — he doesn’t have much to lose by doing the right thing and signing the discharge petition. My email to his office on the topic remains unanswered.
Liz Stein, an Epstein and Maxwell survivor who spoke at the news conference, said (as reported by the 19th News) that her life has never been the same since the abuse started. Since then, it has “felt like someone shut off the lights to my soul.”
There. Is. No. Excuse.
“This is not a partisan issue, but an American issue,” New Mexico Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, chair of the Democratic Women’s Caucus, said in a press release. “To my Republican colleagues, if these heartbreaking stories aren’t enough, sign the petition for your daughters and for all the women in your lives that you would want protected from pedophiles. Because it’s not just about Epstein, but about all the women and children who are trafficked, abused, sexually assaulted, and ignored in their pain. The survivors today told their stories to not only push for the Epstein files to be released, but for a better future where women and girls are believed and supported, and abusers are held accountable.”
I can’t say it any more directly. Hiding behind politics on this one is the act of a coward.
If you won’t stand up against the rape of children, what do you stand for?
Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy.
With the current growing tensions between Venezuela and the United States, it’s worth recalling a little-known aerial mission that the U.S. military launched to interdict narcotics coming out of Central and South America back in the 1990s. Most notably, the announcement earlier this week that 10 F-35s will deploy to Puerto Rico startled some, but it is actually far from unprecedented. In fact, something similar was happening for years, decades ago. This was Coronet Nighthawk, which employed U.S. Air Force fighters to patrol against suspected drug traffickers.
Starting with the current situation, the deployment of F-35s has been taken by some as evidence that the United States is planning to go to war directly with Venezuela. However, as we have previously pointed out, these stealth jets could also be used for a range of other relevant tasks. In particular, their advanced sensors make them ideal intelligence-gathering platforms. You can read more about that here.
Four F-16s taxi to the parking apron upon their arrival at Howard Air Force Base, Panama, for Exercise Kindle Liberty in 1983. This was some years prior to the start of Coronet Nighthawk at the same location. U.S. Department of Defense SSGT R. BANDY
We are still waiting to hear more about the F-35 deployment. Currently, it remains unclear where they will come from, when they arrive, and what they will do once they get there.
However, the deployment does have some parallels with Coronet Nighthawk, a counterdrug operation that began in the early 1990s and employed fighter aircraft to patrol the skies of Central America and the Caribbean and detect suspected drug-running aircraft. This was at a time of huge concern around drug trafficking and smuggling into the United States, which had begun to peak during the era of the Reagan administration in the mid-1980s.
The main facility for Coronet Nighthawk was Howard Air Force Base in Panama, although assets would eventually also be rotated into other airfields in the Caribbean and Central America.
A Delaware Air National Guard C-130 and two North Dakota Air National Guard F-16 escorts over the Panama Canal in 1999. In the lower right foreground are several small vessels at anchor, and in the background is the Bridge of the Americas, which spans the Panama Canal. U.S. Department of Defense SSGT Gary Cappage
This mission was initially undertaken by Air Combat Command before transitioning from the active-duty component to the Air National Guard. Fighters were on 24/7 alert to intercept possible drug-trafficking aircraft and to provide overwatch to dissuade such flights. On receiving coordinates of a suspect flight, fighters were expected to scramble within 15 minutes and would then go and investigate them.
F-15s and F-16s were involved, with an example of the former pictured at the top of this story. Dated 1993, the original caption describes it as an F-15 sent to identify an aircraft that was possibly hauling drugs as detected by the Southern Regional Operations Center.
A Washington Post article from 2000, detailing the 113th Wing’s activities in Curaçaoprovides an idea of how the mission worked:
“The fast, agile F-16s would quickly intercept the suspect planes in international airspace as they flew over open water. The aircraft would be identified and tracked along their route and then followed again after making suspected deliveries. Information on the planes’ actions and location would be passed on to law enforcement agencies and local civil authorities for possible arrests and seizures.”
Another view of an F-16 deployed to Howard Air Force Base during Exercise Kindle Liberty in 1983. U.S. Department of Defense SSGT R. BANDY
It appears the U.S. Air Force fighters flew their missions unarmed, serving as the ‘eyes in the sky’ to locate suspect aircraft as well as to dissuade them from being in the airspace in the first instance.
However, intercepting ‘slow-movers’ was and remains a challenge for a jet fighter.
“The drug runners aren’t running at high noon,” Col. Mike Redman, the 113th Wing vice commander, told the Washington Post. “They’re doing it very early in the morning, and they’re flying low over the water.” Typically, the drug-runners would try and fly at low speed, just below the clouds.
The Coronet Nighthawk mission was wound up in 2001, due to the implementation of the Panama Canal Treaty, which handed the canal back to the Panamanian government at the end of December 1999, together with U.S. military bases in the country. (In 2002, the Coronet Nighthawk name would be resurrected for the deployment to Europe of Air Force F-117 stealth fighters).
U.S. troops stand by as the Southern Command’s headquarters staff, including its new head Gen. Charles Wilhelm (right), prepare to board a C-9B Skytrain II at Howard Air Force Base in Panama, bound for Miami, Florida, in September 1999. This was part of the transfer of the base to Panama, under the implementation of the Panama Canal Treaty, which called for the termination of all U.S. military presence in Panama by the end of December 1999. AFP PHOTO/Eliana APONTE ELIANA APONTE
Clearly, however, the mission had been successful in terms of its original remit.
As of the early 1990s, 75 percent of the drugs in the region were assessed to be transported by air, according to an official history from the 142nd Wing, one of the units that provided fighter jets. By the time the mission ended, the percentage of drugs transported in the region by air had been reduced to 25 percent, as the drug traffickers changed their approach accordingly.
According to one publicly available account, between September 1994 and the end of the decade, Coronet Nighthawk fighters were credited with ensuring the disruption or seizure of over 33,000 metric tons of cocaine.
“We didn’t go over there expecting to completely stop the flow of cocaine coming into the country,” Maj. Conal J. Brady III, a 199th Fighter Squadron F-15 pilot, said in one contemporary account. “But we did make a dent in it and made it a lot harder for the drug runners.”
As far as the 142nd Wing and its F-15s were concerned, they made six deployments to Panama for Coronet Nighthawk, first in 1992, twice in 1993, again in 1994, over the New Year 1995–96, and lastly in 1999. A typical deployment involved five F-15s and around 50 airmen, with personnel rotating every two weeks.
Pictured here in a post-flight debrief after a mission over the Pacific Ocean are, from left to right, Maj. Jeffrey M. Silver, Staff Sgt. Tracy Everett, and 1st Lt. Duke A. Pirak, during the last Coronet Nighthawk deployment to Panama for the 142nd Fighter Wing, and also the last F-15 deployment for this mission. U.S. Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Elena O’Bryan, from 142nd Wing History Archive
Once the U.S. military vacated Panama, the mission was moved to Curaçao and Aruba near the Netherlands Antilles, in the Caribbean. In one of the last Coronet Nighthawk deployments, in 2000, the D.C. Air National Guard’s 113th Wing sent six F-16s and 270 airmen to Curaçao to conduct anti-drugs missions from this Dutch protectorate, which sits just a few dozen miles off the coast of Venezuela.
For the crews involved, this also appears to have been a notably popular mission assignment.
“It’s a real-world mission, but at least the weather’s nice and you’re working under the palm trees near white sand beaches,” Redman explained to the Washington Post.
It should be recalled that, during the same timeframe, an overseas F-16 assignment might otherwise take airmen to a desert base in the Middle East, to fly long-duration ‘no-fly’ zone missions over Iraq.
The current F-35 deployment is a fairly clear indication that the situation in the region is currently heating up.
Back in the 1990s, most of the narcotics traffic was underway in the air. The pulse-Doppler lookdown radars on the F-15s and F-16s were key to finding aerial targets, which were mainly active at night.
Now, most of the drugs in the region are moved on the surface of the water. Modern fighters have even more powerful radars paired with electro-optical systems that can detect and investigate targets on the surface and do so very quickly. With the U.S. military now also engaging suspected drug traffickers at sea, fighters would also be able to attack those targets themselves. The air threat from Venezuela is also not nonexistent. While the token fleet of aging F-16s is not a huge concern, Venezuela does have 21 more potent Su-30MK2V Flanker multirole fighters.
For the time being, at least, it seems that the favored option for counter-narcotics missions involves the MQ-9 Reaper drone, at least two of which have recently been noted in Puerto Rico. Although these are among a number of different aircraft now involved, MQ-9s can carry a variety of missiles as well as sensors for surveillance and can loiter for more than 24 hours over a target, making them an ideal platform for these missions. What they cannot do is respond anywhere near as rapidly as a fighter.
📸 Reuters published a photo of a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone with Hellfire missiles and an ELINT system at Rafael Hernández Airport, Puerto Rico.
The drone was likely involved in the September 3 strike on the “Tren de Aragua” gang’s boat near Venezuela. pic.twitter.com/WTPzBZisyu
Meanwhile, although Coronet Nighthawk was just one of many military efforts by the U.S. government to try to stop the flow of drugs into the country from Central and South America, it appears to have been one of the more successful ones.
EastEnders made an announcement just days ago confirming why Wednesday’s episode isn’t on iPlayer and what time fans can watch it on BBC One as Zoe Slater’s secret is revealed
06:00, 03 Sep 2025Updated 06:18, 03 Sep 2025
EastEnders made an announcement just days ago confirming why Wednesday’s episode isn’t on iPlayer(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/Jack Barnes)
In a twist to the usual proceedings, EastEnders will air on both BBCiPlayer and BBC One at 7:30pm on Wednesday and will not drop on iPlayer in the morning.
Normally the episode drops each morning on the streaming platform ahead of it airing that same evening on TV. But to preserve some big twists, bosses have made the decision not to release it on iPlayer so that everyone sees it that evening at the same time.
The decision was announced over the weekend, with it revealed the episode would see returning character Zoe Slater’s secrets finally exposed. Not only that, but Tuesday’s episode ended with a deadly cliffhanger as a gun was fired.
Fans will find out who was shot in Wednesday’s episode, after Jack Branning and Ravi Gulati accidentally fired the gun during a struggle. It’s set to be a huge episode as we also find out what has gone on in Zoe Slater’s life for the past 20 years.
In a twist to the usual proceedings, EastEnders will air on both BBC iPlayer and BBC One at 7:30pm on Wednesday and will not drop on iPlayer(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/Jack Barns/Kieron McCarron)
Zoe made her big comeback to Walford for the first time in two decades this week. Michelle Ryan reprised the role, and Zoe’s first scenes with mum Kat Moon, played by Jessie Wallace, aired across Monday and Tuesday.
Viewers praised this week’s episodes, and were left excited for what was to come. Soon, fans were sharing their theories about what would happen on Wednesday knowing there was a long wait until they knew the full details.
The BBC soap confirmed the episode would explore Zoe’s past, with her return sending “shockwaves through the Slaters and Walford”. EastEnders Executive Producer Ben Wadey teased “dramatic” scenes ahead, and said she had more than one secret.
He said: “As Zoe makes her dramatic return to Walford next week, more than one secret in her past will come to light as we look to explore the reasons behind her return, and what has happened in the past twenty years to make her the person she is today.”
Fans will find out who was shot in Wednesday’s episode(Image: BBC)
It comes as fans feared over who would be shot in the episode, as other fans predicted Zoe’s secrets. Fans are convinced she is the mother of troubled teen Joel Marshall after some apparent hints in recent months.
Other fans think it will be revealed that she is married to Max Branning who is returning to the BBC soap. As for the shooting victim, fans have named Sharon Watts, Kat, Zoe, Howie Danes and Oscar as potential victims.
In a sad twist fans are also guessing Kat’s nan Mo Harris is the one who gets shot, and that she might be killed off in a tragedy. Fans will just have to tune in on Wednesday evening to find out.
The president “doesn’t play by a different set of rules — he doesn’t believe in the rules,” the governor told a roaring crowd packed with Democratic heavyweights last week at the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo. “And as a consequence, we need to disabuse ourselves of the way things have been done. It’s not good enough to just hold hands, have a candlelight vigil and talk about the way the world should be. … We have got to meet fire with fire.”
California Republicans are responding to this the way a kid reacts if you take away their Pikachu.
“An absolutely ridiculous gerrymander!” whined Rep. Doug LaMalfa, who represents the state’s rural northeast corner, on social media. Under the Democratic plan, his district would swing all the way down to ultra-liberal Marin County.
The California Republican Party deemed the new maps a “MASTERCLASS IN CORRUPTION” (Trumpian caps in the original). National Republican Congressional Committee spokesperson Christian Martinez said “Newscum” was giving “a giant middle finger to every Californian.”
Intelligent minds can disagree on whether countering an extreme political move with an extreme political move is the right thing. The new maps would supersede the ones devised just four years ago by an independent redistricting commission established to keep politics out of the process, which typically occurs once a decade after the latest census.
Good government types, from the League of Women Voters to Charles Munger Jr. — the billionaire who bankrolled the 2010 proposition that created independent redistricting for California congressional races — have criticized Newsom’s so-called Election Rigging Response Act. So has former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a fierce Trump critic who posted a photo of himself on social media working out in a T-shirt that read, “F*** the Politicians / Terminate Gerrymandering.”
I’m not fully convinced that Newsom’s plan is the MAGA killer he thinks it is. If the economy somehow rebounds next year, Republicans would most likely keep Congress anyway, and Newsom would have upended California politics for nothing.
I also don’t discount the moderate streak in California voters that pops up from time to time to quash what seem like liberal gimmes, like the failed attempt via ballot measure to repeal affirmative action in 2020 and the passage last year of Proposition 36, which increased penalties for theft and drug crimes. Nearly two-thirds of California voters want to keep redistricting away from the Legislature, according to a POLITICO-Citrin Center-Possibility Lab poll released last week.
If Californians reject Newsom’s plan, that would torpedo his presidential ambitions and leave egg on the face of state Democratic leaders for years, if not a generation.
For now, though, I’m going to enjoy all the tears that California Republicans are shedding. As they face the prospect of even fewer congressional seats than the paltry nine they now hold, they suddenly care about rescuing American democracy?
In this image from video, Republican Rep. Doug LaMalfa speaks at the U.S. Capitol in 2020.
Now they care about political decency? What about when LaMalfa and fellow California GOP House members Ken Calvert and Darrell Issa — whose seats the Newsom maps would also eliminate — voted against certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 victory? When the state Republican Party backed a ridiculous recall against Newsom that cost taxpayers $200 million? Or when the Republican congressional delegation unanimously voted to pass Trump’s Big Bloated Bill, even though it’s expected to gut healthcare and food programs for millions of Californians in red counties? Or even when Trump first pushed Abbott to pursue the very gerrymandering Newsom is now emulating?
We’re supposed to believe them when they proclaim Newsom is a pompadoured potentate who threatens all Californians, just because he wants to redo congressional maps?
Pot, meet black hole.
If these GOPers had even an iota of decency or genuine care for the Golden State, they would back a bill by one of their own that I actually support. Rep. Kevin Kiley, whose seat is also targeted for elimination by the Newsom maps, wants to ban all mid-decade congressional redistricting. He stated via a press release that this would “stop a damaging redistricting war from breaking out across the country.”
That’s an effort that any believer in liberty can and should back. But Kiley’s bill has no co-sponsors so far. And Kevin: Why can’t you say that your man Trump created this fiasco in the first place?
We live in scary times for our democracy. If you don’t believe it, consider that a bunch of masked Border Patrol agents just happened to show up outside the Japanese American National Museum — situated on a historic site where citizens of Japanese ancestry boarded buses to incarceration camps during World War II — at the same time Newsom was delivering his redistricting remarks. Sector Chief Gregory Bovino was there, migra cameramen documenting his every smirk, including when he told a reporter that his agents were there to make “Los Angeles a safer place, since we won’t have politicians that’ll do that, we do that ourselves.”
The show of force was so obviously an authoritarian flex that Newsom filed a Freedom of Information Act request demanding to know who authorized what and why. Meanwhile, referring to Trump, he described the action on X as “an attempt to advance a playbook from the despots he admires in Russia and North Korea.”
Newsom is not everyone’s cup of horchata, myself included. Whether you support it or not, watching him rip up the California Constitution’s redistricting section and assuring us it’s OK, because he’s the one doing it, is discomfiting.
But you know what’s worse? Trump anything. And even worse? The California GOP leaders who have loudly cheered him on, damn the consequences to the state they supposedly love.
History will castigate their cultish devotion to Trump far worse than any of Newsom’s attempts to counter that scourge.
