Red

AUGUSTA, Maine — As Republicans dig out from under a midterm landslide, they can point to a single bright spot on the nationwide congressional map. That’s Maine’s 2nd congressional district, the only seat that went from blue to red without the help of redistricting.

It was far from a resounding victory. Even though President Trump won the district by 9 points two years ago, it took a former Republican governor, Paul LePage, to squeak out a victory over Matt Dunlap, the Democratic state auditor.

The Associated Press called the race Thursday after officials finished the ranked choice voting process to determine the winner.

LePage and Dunlap were competing to replace Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat who is retiring from Congress.

The only other seats that went from blue to red are Texas’ 32nd congressional district and Tennessee’ 9th congressional district, but both of those flips were enabled by redistricting efforts that made the electorates far more conservative.

Meanwhile, Democrats have flipped 44 seats, and a handful of races have not yet been called.

Dunlap conceded last week and LePage declared victory, and he’s been in Washington for orientation for new members.

“Paul LePage is already hard at work for the people of Maine,” said Brent Littlefield, a spokesperson for LePage.

Maine has only two congressional districts. The 1st is heavily Democratic and includes Portland and wealthy coastal towns. The 2nd includes a few small cities and vast rural and forested areas, and is home to industries such as logging, potato farming and lobster fishing. It’s more conservative than most of New England.

Golden had found success in the 2nd by running as a moderate Democrat who was willing to break with his party. However, he announced last year that he would not run for a fifth term, saying he had “grown tired of the increasing incivility and plain nastiness that are now common from some elements of our American community.”

As governor from 2010 to 2018, most of LePage’s two terms predated Trump’s presidency, but he aligned himself with the president toward the end of his time in office. The two shared a brand of brash, conservative populism, with LePage once saying he was “Donald Trump before Donald Trump became popular.”

However, LePage also criticized Trump’s tariffs on Canada, a key trading partner for Maine, and expressed support for legal immigration. When he declared victory last week, LePage vowed to make the state’s interests a priority in Washington.

“If it is good for Maine, I will work hard to make it happen. If it is bad for Maine, I will oppose it,” he said.

Whittle writes for the Associated Press.

For the first time, F-35 stealth fighters have operated from Indian soil in an exercise with the Indian Air Force (IAF). Six of the U.S. Air Force jets joined Tarang Shakti 2026 at Jodhpur, in the northwest Indian state of Rajasthan, bringing a fifth-generation combat aircraft to an Indian airbase for the IAF’s biggest multinational air exercise.

Two years ago, the Indian Air Force hosted its first major multinational air exercise in over six decades. The plan to make Tarang Shakti a biennial fixture has held, and from September 26 to October 12, the exercise returned to the international airpower calendar — this time as a single, continuous event centered on Jodhpur and adjoining bases in Rajasthan. Seven foreign air forces sent flying detachments. Of these, France, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States sent fighters. Australia, Bangladesh, Germany, and Sri Lanka provided transport or special mission types.

The headline act, though, was undoubtedly American.

This edition marked the first time F-35s from any nation operated from an Indian airbase in an exercise with the IAF. Past outings for the stealth jet in India have been limited to Aero India displays in 2023 and 2025, and an India-U.K. exercise which saw British F-35Bs operating from their aircraft carrier (and a widely publicized RAF F-35 diversion to the southern city of Kochi).

The F-35 factor

Six F-35As of the 13th Fighter Squadron from Misawa, Japan, along with over 200 airmen and KC-135R support from Kadena, touched down at Jodhpur on September 26. “American airpower has arrived in Jodhpur!” posted U.S. Ambassador Sergio Gor, who later described the deployment as another example of trust between the two countries, noting that the F-35 “does not go just anywhere.”

One 13th FS pilot said that operating with forces from around the world exposed the squadron to new tactics, perspectives, and ways of operating. For the IAF, the payoff was arguably more pointed. Indian crews spent two weeks flying with, and against, a genuine stealth fighter — the closest available proxy for the J-20s and J-35s now fielded by China.

The IAF was understandably tight-lipped about what the F-35s actually did.

The IAF vice-chief, Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, acknowledged the interest at the curtain-raiser in New Delhi on September 22, but declined to discuss specifics. While media commentary quickly cast the jet as a stand-in for the J-20 in mock engagements, Dixit offered a more measured view, arguing that an aircraft’s generation is not the sole arbiter of combat performance — training, networks, and weapons matter as much. He also noted that the IAF is developing its own means of detecting fifth-generation aircraft, alongside its backing for its domestically developed next-generation fighter, the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA).

The IAF and the U.S. Air Force are hardly strangers to one another. Their bilateral Cope India exercises, which began in 2002 and expanded into fighter combat training in 2004, have proved valuable to both sides. Early encounters saw Indian pilots flying Russian-built fighters against American F-15s, with the IAF’s performance prompting the U.S. Air Force to reassess some of its own assumptions about air combat tactics. Subsequent iterations broadened the relationship beyond fighter maneuvers to include large-force employment, airlift, airdrop, and disaster response. The result has been a deeper understanding of each other’s capabilities, procedures, and operating cultures. All this groundwork has helped make larger multinational engagements such as Tarang Shakti possible.

The F-35’s appearance in India comes against the backdrop of a potential, if complicated, future procurement relationship. For years now, some U.S. officials have suggested that the stealth jet could be offered to New Delhi. Most notably, back in 2018, the then-head of U.S. Pacific Command supposedly stated that he supported the sale of the stealth fighter to India. In February 2025, President Donald Trump announced that Washington was paving the way to offer the stealth fighter to India, as part of a broader push to deepen defense ties with New Delhi. The proposal was significant, given India’s longstanding reliance on Russian military equipment, including the S-400 air defense system. No formal sale negotiations have begun, and questions over technology security, Russian equipment, and India’s preference for domestic production remain major hurdles. For now, the deployment at Tarang Shakti represents something more immediate, namely an opportunity for the IAF to work alongside the aircraft, without any commitment to acquiring it.

Power in Partnership

‘Tarang Shakti’ translates to ‘wave of power,’ evoking both the electromagnetic spectrum and the combined force of cooperation. The 2026 edition leaned on the latter, running under the theme ‘Power in Partnership.’

With fighters from France, the UAE, and the United States sharing the skies with their Indian counterparts, the exercise was as much about testing interoperability as it was about signaling the growing depth of India’s defense partnerships.

The context, however, is very different from 2024. Since Operation Sindoor in May 2025, when the IAF briefly went to war with the Pakistan Air Force, Dixit has listed intelligence-led operations, precision, integrated air and missile defense, and jointness as the lessons that mattered most. The exercise, he said, would let Indian combat experience and that of partners test each other’s assumptions.

The two-phase structure of 2024 was born of convenience, catching European contingents on their way home from Exercise Pitch Black in Australia. No such happy coincidence presented itself this time, and the IAF consolidated everything at Jodhpur, which had hosted the bilateral Veer Guardian 2026 with Japan just four days earlier.

The roster shifted in the run-up. Greece was among eight flying participants named at the curtain-raiser, but had dropped off the list by the time flying began. Bangladesh, which withdrew days before TS24-2 amid the upheaval in Dhaka, made it this time with a C-130J.

The Exercise

Group Captain Manoj Yadav, Chief Operations Officer at Jodhpur, said TS26 “demonstrates the importance of bringing air forces together.” Flying began on September 27 with familiarization and visual-range basic fighter maneuvers, first one-versus-one, then two-versus-one.

From September 30, the large-force employment (LFE) phase took over, with up to 80 aircraft airborne in the most intense missions, set in contested airspace with beyond-visual-range and long-range air defense threats. The IAF fielded examples of its entire fighter inventory — Rafale, Mirage 2000, Jaguar, Tejas, MiG-29 Fulcrum, and Su-30MKI Flanker — and by its count, the exercise logged over 800 sorties and some 600 flying hours.

The IAF also put its recent combat experience on the table. Exercise Director Air Vice Marshal A. Raj Thakur said visitors were keenly interested in Operation Sindoor, and the IAF briefed them on its side of the story. The PACAF Commander, Gen. Kevin Schneider, said Sindoor had also been featured in his own discussions with Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh during a week spent as his guest.

Voices from the Flight Line

France again brought the largest visiting contingent, around 300 personnel under Mission Pégase 26: seven Rafales — four from France and three from a detachment in the UAE — plus three A330 MRTT Phénix tankers and two A400Ms.

“This exercise is quite important for us,” said Julien Sabéné, Deputy Commander of the French Air Defense and Air Operations Command, on arrival. A few days in, he was calling Tarang Shakti the highlight of Pégase 26, and was particularly keen on swapping combat lessons now that both air forces have flown the Rafale in anger. He noted that French and Indian tankers had successfully refueled each other’s fighters, and as a former Mirage 2000 pilot, had a soft spot for the Indian-made Tejas: “It reminds me of the Mirage 2000, which was my aircraft.”

Germany swapped 2024’s Eurofighters for an A400M, but the Luftwaffe made the most of it. Capt. Maurice Berns, an A400M first officer, said his crew was being folded into the large-force engagements — “we, as a transport aircraft, are being involved in big fighter jet exercises.” Lt. Gen. Günter Katz, commander of the German Air Force Forces Command, said his crews had found nothing to separate flying in India from flying at home: “It’s the same setup, the same flow, the same procedures.” France’s Gen. Stéphane Groen made a similar point, crediting years of bilateral exercises with the IAF for how smoothly the multinational drills ran.

For the two South Asian participants, the exercise was a significant step up. The Bangladesh Air Force sent 19 pilots and technicians in what the Indian High Commission in Dhaka described as the BAF’s first multinational air exercise on this scale. Sri Lanka’s King Air 360ER came with a six-member crew, and the SLAF highlighted the value of exposure to unfamiliar tactics and procedures.

Symbolic Finale

An open-house day coinciding with Air Force Day on October 8 drew over 20,000 visitors. Two days later, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh was joined by the Chief of Defense Staff and all three service chiefs for the Distinguished Visitors’ Day. Its set-piece was the ‘Tarang’ formation, an arrowhead led by an IAF Su-30MKI, with an American F-35 flying alongside a Tejas on its left, and a French Rafale paired with an Emirati F-16 on its right.

In his address, Rajnath Singh argued that future military power would depend less on the number of platforms a country fields, and more on the “speed of sensing, understanding, deciding, and acting.”

The final day brought a fitting bookend. On October 12, Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh flew his last fighter sortie in a Tejas, alongside aircraft of the visiting forces and the Suryakiran aerobatic team. He retired on October 31, handing over to Air Marshal Dixit — a neat echo of 2024, when the vice-chief running Tarang Shakti went on to become chief within weeks.

The Future

With its second edition, Tarang Shakti has made the leap from promising debut to established fixture. Dixit summed up the journey well, recalling that for years the IAF had operated with foreign forces bilaterally: “We learned to operate with one partner at a time.” Tarang Shakti, he said, changed that. Gen. Schneider made the case for why it matters: when partners are called on to act together, in a crisis or a disaster, “we don’t do it cold.”

There is room to grow, however. The visiting fighter contingent was thinner than in 2024, even if the debut of the F-35 more than made up for it in interest. The second edition of Tarang Shakti has firmly established the IAF as a host rather than a guest of the world’s air forces, and the force is keen to keep up the momentum toward establishing the exercise as something of a ‘Red Flag of the East.’

Contact the editor: thomas@thewarzone.com

KYLIE Jenner revealed rather more than a glamorous dress while attending her latest red carpet event on Saturday evening.

The TV personality, 29, took centre stage in a sweeping animal print dress as the Los Angeles County Museum of Modern Art hosted its annual Art+Film Gala.

But onlookers went wild for something entirely different as Jenner, 29, modelled the elegant gown, a new creation from French fashion house Ashi Studio, for waiting photographers.

Visible beneath her left breast, a prominent scar – thought to be the result of an unspecified cosmetic surgery procedure – stood out during her latest red carpet appearance.

Jenner appeared to be unaware that her backless dress had inadvertantly exposed the blemish as she made her debut at the event, held annually in Beverly Hills.

The TV personality, a self-made billionaire through her own hugely successful make-up brand, has previously admitted to a string of cosmetic procedures – including breast augmentation.

While Jenner has been open with social media followers about her various enhancements, there appear to be other procedures she may have had done that she has not yet been open about. 

Speaking exclusively to The U.S. Sun in 2025, RealSelf verified plastic surgeon Dr. Vivek Bansal, MD, said: “While only Kylie can confirm specifics, her evolving facial structure suggests she may have had dermal fillers, lip enhancement, possible rhinoplasty, and non-surgical contouring. 

“Her body changes may also reflect fat transfer procedures or body sculpting, which are common among celebrities.”

Fellow RealSelf Plastic Surgeon Dr. Yannis Alexandrides, MD, added: “Kylie is a very attractive lady, it’s my impression that in addition to the Breast Augmentation that she might have had a Rhinoplasty to refine the nose to reduce the appearance of the tip. 

“It’s possible that she’s also had fillers to her lips and possibly the zygomatic prominence.

“As well as chin and jaw remodeling either surgically or with dermal fillers to give her a more V-shaped appearance.”

A curious female fan had previously asked Jenner to share her plastic surgery details – because she ‘aspired’ to look like the reality star.

To the astonishment of many, the reality star saw and commented on the video, writing: “445 cc, moderate profile, half under the muscle!!! silicone!!! garth fisher!!! hope this helps lol.”

According to Dr. Bansal, a 445 cc implant “generally equates to roughly a 1.5 to 2-cup size increase.”

The size change is dependent on the patient’s body frame and existing breast tissue. 

Stockport goalkeeper Luca Ashby-Hammond is given a straight red card after a challenge on the edge of the box and from the subsequent free-kick Alex Hernandez doubles Cray Wanderers’ lead with a fantastic free-kick.

WATCH MORE: FA Cup first round action

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RIHANNA has given fans an early Christmas present by stripping down to racy red lingerie for a sizzling holiday photo shoot.

The superstar, 38, left little to the imagination as she flaunted her famous curves in a daring floral lace bodysuit and thigh-high stockings for her Savage X Fenty campaign.

And the cheeky singer made it clear she was the ultimate Christmas treat, with the Instagram caption declaring: “when being naughty makes you the gift!”

Rihanna posed among a line of Christmas trees decorated with pink, red and striped bows, with stacks of shiny silver presents scattered around her.

In one particularly revealing snap, the mom of three turned her back to the camera and pulled at her stockings, flashing her butt in the skimpy thong-style outfit.

Another showed her stretched out across the floor in black stockings and towering heels, with an enormous pink and burgundy striped bow draped across her legs.

JINGLE BUNS

Rihanna makes naughty list in thong lingerie & stockings for racy Xmas range

PURPLE SLAIN

Rihanna stuns in bra, thong and garters for steamy new lingerie shoot

The Diamonds singer also posed beneath the giant bow, sitting on the floor and staring straight into the camera as she showed off the plunging neckline of her floral lingerie.

Other shots captured Rihanna standing in front of the festive display, with the sheer red and black material showing off her figure.

She completed the look with glamorous dark waves, smoky eye makeup and a glossy lip, while her tattoos were also on display.

And her lingerie brand was quick to join in with the holiday fun, commenting beneath the Instagram post: “Being on the nice list is overrated.”

Fans were equally delighted by the racy snaps, with one writing: “Santa is going to have a hard time competing with this gift…”

Another joked: “Naughty NEVER nice,” while the photographs quickly racked up more than a million likes.

The Christmas campaign is the latest eye-catching promotion for Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty lingerie empire, which she launched in 2018.

A world record of 51 red cards were shown during a chaotic under-20s game in Brazil.

The semi-final first leg of the Minas Gerais Under-20 Championship tie between Uberlandia and Mamore was marred by scenes that led to 43 players and eight members of coaching staff being sent off.

The previous record was 36, in a 2011 fifth-division game between Club Atletico Claypole and Victoriano Arenas in Argentina.

Brazilian news outlet O Tempo reported the military police were called, external because of extensive damage to the Parque do Sabia Stadium.

According to the referee’s report, a brawl broke out in the second half after Mamores’ Davi taunted the opposition bench during celebrations when his side went 3-1 up.

Uberlandia goalkeeping coach Paulo Sergio Dias Dos Santos ran on to the pitch to confront him, sparking clashes and the subsequent dismissals, with three players having already been sent off earlier.

The police report referenced 14 broken doors, damaged shower facilities, broken windows and that benches, tables and chairs had been destroyed.

The game was paused for approximately 40 minutes and then abandoned by referee Fernando Patrick Drosghic Modesto.

Uberlandia have since confirmed, external that they have conceded the second leg of the semi-final because Mamore only have seven players available as a result of all the red cards.

They described their move as a “gesture of fair play” as Mamore would progress through to the final, and Uberlandia will instead focus on the third-place match.

While United’s victory was certainly well received, it will not mask wider issues.

‘Green and gold’ protests against the ownership took place before kick-off and during a first-half when the home side were abysmal.

Chants against the Glazer family, minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe and director of football Jason Wilcox will not stop just because of this victory, no matter how thrilling.

The sober assessment should also recall United came from behind to beat Atalanta 3-2 at Old Trafford during Solskjaer’s time. They lost 5-0 at home to Liverpool four days later. Within a month, the Norwegian had been sacked.

In October 2018, Jose Mourinho was on the brink of dismissal before a Premier League encounter with Newcastle. United trailed 2-0 after 10 minutes but fought back to win. Mourinho lasted 13 more games.

No-one can know how much time Carrick has bought himself with this victory.

“I don’t have a crystal ball to know what happens next,” he told Amazon Prime. “We move on to the weekend. We’ve got a really important game here against Aston Villa, which we need to prepare for.”

Chief executive Omar Berrada and Wilcox certainly looked much happier at the final whistle than they had done midway through the first half.

Suddenly United look like they can qualify for the next phase of the Champions League. For the first time since September, Carrick’s players are enjoying the winning feeling.

But it will mean little unless they can maintain the momentum against Villa, who were getting beaten heavily by Barcelona as Old Trafford was in tumult.

Asked if he will sleep better thanks to the win, Carrick was honest enough to admit that would not be the case.

“Genuinely, no. I don’t. Really, I don’t,” he said. “Whether that’s right or wrong, or normal or not, I don’t know, but I didn’t feel relief. It was more I was genuinely pleased for the players.

“I know how much they care, I know what they’re giving. Sometimes it looks like that, sometimes it doesn’t, sometimes we play well, sometimes we haven’t, and I understand that.

“But I could feel their willingness to do well, and so for them to have to dig really deep, and to see everybody having that feeling that we all crave, that’s why we’re all here.”

MARTIN Scorsese’s daughter Francesca turned heads this weekend with her VERY sexy look on the red carpet.

The 26-year-old actress showed off her dangerous curves in see-through blue lingerie at Heidi Klum’s Halloween party in New York on Saturday.

Francesca – the youngest daughter of iconic filmmaker Martin, 84 – arrived to the big bash in a plunging blue nightie and nude fishnet tights.

She completed the look with a sparkly cape, silver heels and a round purse.

Francesca proudly reposted her most glam photos to her Instagram page on Monday.

Heidi hosted other big names at her famous annual bash, including Ice-T and wife Coco Austin as a sexy burglar, Neil Patrick Harris and his husband David Burtka, Questlove, and Taylor Momsen.

Francesca has appeared in a number of her father’s films over the years, including The Departed and The Aviator.

She has defended being a nepo-baby, insisting it’s “natural” for kids to follow in their parents’ footsteps.

 “It just became like a word that everyone started throwing around,” she said in July.

“And the funniest thing is I used to think it was a good thing.

“If my dad was a doctor, I’d probably be a doctor, you know what I mean? I think kids just look up to their parents naturally.”

Despite her nepo-baby pride, Francesca is carving her own path in Hollywood.

She has become an influencer with nearly half a million TikTok followers, and even directed miniseries Family Blend starring her famous father.

RHIAN Sugden looked red hot in a plunging bodysuit as fans branded her ‘so gorgeous’.

The model, 40, almost burst out of her lingerie as she posed up a storm in front of the camera.

Rhian left little to the imagination in the red polka dot mesh one-piece with a frill edge.

The star opted for a glam face of make-up and loose curls.

Rhian shared the stunning picture on her Instagram and fans rushed to the comments section to share the love.

One said: “Gorgeous as always.”

PURR-FECT

Rhian Sugden, 40, goes wild in daring leopard print corset & thigh high PVC boots

SEXY SUGDEN

Rhian Sugden shows off her stunning figure in purple lingerie and sequins

Another wrote: “Stunning.”

“Wow,” a third simply added.

A fourth commented: “I think red may be your colour.”

A fifth said: “Unbelievable.”

It comes just days after Rhian went wild in a VERY daring leopard print corset and thigh high PVC boots.

The former glamour model, who recently celebrated her 40th birthday, looked incredible in the sizzling clothes.

She took to social media and shared the snap on Instagram, with the caption: “Happy Hour.”

While Mitchell will undoubtedly take positives – Holly Aitchison’s play-making and Maud Muir’s all-action performance among them – he has plenty on his to-do list.

Top will be to tune up his team’s set-piece solidity and attacking fluency.

England suffered at the line-out early on, unable to fire up their rolling maul from two promising attacking positions before being shoved back over their own line, only for Kathryn Treder’s try to be ruled out for a obstruction call.

The scrum was also, initially at least, more closely contested than expected.

Muir was pinged as the experienced Hope Rogers grappled for set-piece supremacy.

And, all the while, the hosts were making headway at the gainline, buying territory with brute physicality – an aspect of the game which is usually England’s trademark.

The United States got their reward as Rogers burrowed beneath Maddie Feaunati for a short-range score that sparked lasting celebrations.

Jones went over after full-back Emma Sing hit a good line to restore a 10-point lead by the break, but the stats below the scoreboard favoured the United States with the hosts enjoying more territory and possession and making more metres with the ball in hand at the interval.

Moloney-MacDonald’s third and fourth scores soon after the restart put England 20 points clear and the outcome out of doubt.

The United States, who came into the match on the back of five-match winning run that includes successes over Ireland and South Africa, hung tough however.

While England’s endurance and depth told, with Hannah Botterman impressing off the bench, Ellie Kildunne weaving up from backfield on her introduction, the tide turning in the scrum and four tries scored in the final quarter, the hosts’ energy was impressive.

Even with replacement prop Mona Lisa Tupou being sent to the sin bin for a scrum infringement, their resistance and physicality stayed high and was rewarded with Zackary’s late score.

With both the attendance and the playing surface appearing patchy at the 25,000-capacity Sports Illustrated Stadium, organisers will hope to have a more impressive platform in place by the time the Women’s Rugby World Cup is held stateside in 2033.

WASHINGTON — In the final days before an election that will decide control of Congress, President Trump’s closing argument — buoyant, digressive and characteristically off-script — is at times running headlong into the economic anxieties of the voters Republicans most need.

With a war in Iran driving up gas prices for Americans, Trump is boasting to supporters that the conflict is making the country rich. At a rally in Georgia, he said his aides had urged him not to brag about the billions of dollars the United States was earning on oil from the war, since Americans are “paying a little higher” in costs because of it. But he did it anyway.

“I said, I don’t give a damn,” Trump said. “We are making a freaking fortune. Our country is getting stronger and stronger all the time. And those pump prices are going to come down.”

The moment underscores the gamble at the core of Trump’s final pitch to voters. With polls showing an overwhelming majority of Americans unhappy with the economy, the president is offering a portrait of national prosperity that many voters do not recognize, and pairing it with jokes and digressions that can seem to make light of their struggles.

Tuesday’s results will be the clearest test yet of whether that message still moves his base, or whether the president has become a liability for a party at risk of losing Congress in part because of his sinking popularity.

Signs of GOP anxiety are reflected in where Trump is spending his final days campaigning. Rather than courting swing voters in battleground states, he is leading rallies in Mississippi, Texas, Ohio, South Carolina and Kansas — states that have long been Republican strongholds but where the party now worries its voters may stay home.

Still, the president is insisting to voters that the country is succeeding, and he is making the election a referendum on his agenda.

“The world is falling apart, and we are doing better than we’ve ever done,” he told a crowd in Mississippi on Monday. The next day, during a stop in Texas, he joked that the $5,000 he has promised Americans if Republicans win would not be enough for his supporters to eat a meal at Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Palm Beach, Fla.

“You will be my guest at Mar-a-Lago. The problem is that for $5,000 the most you’ll be able to buy is a hamburger and maybe a small dessert,” Trump said, laughing. “I’m not even sure you could buy that.”

Democrats have criticized the president’s remarks, calling them dismissive of voters’ concerns. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said Trump boasting that the country was making money out of the Iran war was a “fitting” slogan for Trump’s White House.

Trump’s personal oil and gas holdings are now estimated to be worth between $22.5 million and $81.6 million, up from $12.6 million to $46 million at the end of last year, according to a report released this week by congressional Democrats.

Joe Gruters, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, rejected the idea that the president has dismissed voters’ financial pain.

“The president, I think, shows empathy about what we’re going through, and he is fighting like hell,” Gruters said in an interview.

Asked to sum up Trump’s closing message, Gruters framed it as a choice between “common sense vs. crazy.” When pressed on the economy, Gruters pointed to Trump’s push to limit federal taxes on tips and overtime pay, to create investment accounts for children and to bring back manufacturing jobs.

“He has transformed the Republican Party into the workingman’s party,” Gruters said. “He is all about trying to bring back jobs that will bring up real wages across the board.”

But that message can be overshadowed with the off-script riffs that have long defined Trump’s rallies. During a rally in Ohio, while praising Sen. Jon Husted, Trump detoured into remarks about the Republican senator’s backside as well as rapper Nicki Minaj’s.

“I looked at his ass and I’ve never done that with a man before. It’s true. Off the record: Women, yes, men, no, OK?” Trump said. “By the way, I looked at one hell of a beautiful ass before, Nicki Minaj.”

At a separate rally, Trump turned his attention to Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate nominee in Michigan, saying that if elected, El-Sayed should be forced to pass through a metal detector before entering the U.S. Senate chamber.

“Anyone with that record of support for jihadists would be screened and unable to get a seat on an airplane,” Trump said of El-Sayed. “They certainly should not give him a seat in the United States Senate.”

In those moments, the message is aimed squarely at his base, which over the last decade has celebrated his unfiltered style. And it is that base, more than swing voters, that Trump has spent his precious time courting in the final stretch of the campaign.

On Monday, Trump rallied supporters in Mississippi, a state he carried by 23 points two years ago. On Tuesday, he went to Texas for the fourth time this month to make the case for Ken Paxton, the Republican Senate nominee trying to stave off what could be the first statewide Democratic victory there in three decades. Then on Wednesday, Trump was in Ohio for the third time this month, playing defense in a state he has won every time he’s been on the ballot. And on Saturday, Trump is heading to Kansas, a state that has not elected a Democrat to the U.S. Senate since 1932.

Gruters said the red state swing reflects the need to get Republicans to the polls.

“You can’t take anything for granted. You have to fight hard in every single state, and remind people why they need to go vote,” he said. “This is a turnout, turnout, turnout race. And we’re doing everything we can as a party.”

Don Haider-Markel, a political science professor at the University of Kansas, said it is still surprising to see the party deploy the president in Republican strongholds so close to the election.

“It really reflects, not just the tilt toward Democrats, but also the lack of enthusiasm among Republican voters for this election,” Haider-Markel said.

Republicans outnumber Democrats in Kansas, but there is a possibility that Democrats can win if Republicans stay home, he said. One of the biggest assets the party has to mobilize the MAGA base is having Trump talk to them in person, he argued. But so far, it is unclear whether his closing message will resonate.

“I don’t think that he’s really speaking to the issues that voters care about, but I don’t think he’s coming to change people’s minds,” Haider-Markel said. “He’s looking for lines that get him applause and praise.”

In rally after rally, Trump has turned the event into a show about himself. In Iowa, congressional candidate Joe Mitchell presented Trump with a “man of the century” certificate. In Texas, Trump bemoaned that he was not awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last year. And in several events, he has shown the crowd a video of a CNN analyst saying that among GOP voters, Trump is more popular than Ronald Reagan or Abraham Lincoln.

But in the end, he also tried to appeal to his base with nostalgia.

“We’ve been doing this together for 11 years, and there’s never been anything like it and there probably never will be anything like it again politically or otherwise,” he said. “So let’s go out and do what we do best and that is win on Nov. 3. We gotta win!”

Burkina Faso international Kabore spent last season on loan with Wrexham but made his move from Manchester City permanent in the summer.

He returned to the Racecourse Ground on the eve of the contest with Birmingham, signing a three-year deal with the north Wales side.

The 25-year-old has featured 10 times in the Championship so far this season.

O’Hare also put pen to paper on a three-year contract with Wrexham in the summer after opting to leave Sheffield United.

Wrexham – currently 17th in the second tier after 12 games – are understood to be actively improving measures at the club to avoid future issues.

They are thought to be hiring a club secretary in addition to improving administrative training.

A club official told BBC Sport Wales that the incidents involving Kabore and O’Hare were no fault of boss Phil Parkinson, the club’s coaching staff or new sporting director Steve Nickson – who was not officially appointed to his role until 7 September.

The Wrexham statement added: “The club is taking the appropriate steps to prevent such issues occurring in the future.”

Despite Wrexham’s slow start to the campaign, they have the same number of points now as they did at the same stage last term.

Parkinson’s team are bidding to respond to last weekend’s 2-0 loss at Blackburn Rovers when they return to action against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on Friday (20:00 GMT).

The Blades fixture comes almost exactly five years on from the day co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac attended their first Wrexham match.

The Hollywood pair watched on as Parkinson’s side – then in the National League – were beaten 3-2 at Maidenhead United in October 2021.

Having masterminded three promotions and the club’s highest-ever league finish since being appointed in the summer of 2021, Parkinson stated that Wrexham’s upcoming opponents serve as a reminder of the immense progress made during his tenure.

“I think this week alone, it’s Sheffield United, Middlesbrough and Wolves – what a week for everyone connected with the club to look forward to,” he added.

“Five years ago, when Rob and Ryan came to Maidenhead away, that was an eventful game to say the least.

“It was a great introduction for them into the world of the National League. Then they came up at the weekend [for a draw with Torquay], which was a fantastic occasion for them to be at the Racecourse.”

The surprising loss to Fleetwood, a team 84 places below Arsenal in the football pyramid, was made even worse by the fact that the Gunners’ under-21 team had beaten AFC Wimbledon, a side in a division higher than the hosts, on the same night in the EFL trophy.

The first incident of the match came with under two minutes on the clock when the game was stopped for more than eight minutes when a drown was flown above the pitch.

Perhaps Arsenal should have taken that as a warning.

Arteta named an experimental side and gave a debut to 18-year-old Ceadach O’Neill, started 17-year-old Marli Salmon at centre back, 16-year-old Dowman on the wing while goalkeepr Illan Meslier was making his first start for the club too.

But the Gunners boss surrounded that inexperience with seasoned internationals such as Jurrien Timber, Piero Hincapie, World Cup winner Martin Zubimendi, Champions League winner Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres.

All of those players played a huge part in the Gunners winning the Premier League title last season.

However, even after introducing captain Martin Odegaard and £75m signing Bruno Guimaraes from the bench, Arsenal produced a poor performance.

“First of all, congratulations to Fleetwood for going through the next round. The manner that they have done it, and for us a very sad day.” Arteta said of the result.

“There is nothing to criticise the players for their attitude, their application. The determination – you could see that was there from the start.

“Even with 10 men, we conceded a really poor goal to start with that gave them some momentum.”

The loss in this competition is not the Gunners’ first, but it does mean they have not won the League Cup for 33 years.

In 2012, Arsenal lost to League Two side Bradford City on penalties and they were also beaten by Championship side Sheffield Wednesday in 2015 at the same stage too.

With Dowman now suspended, Saka out for around six weeks, Tzolis working to return and Arteta revealing after the match that Madueke was unavailable with an injury, their options in the wide areas for the match with Liverpool on Sunday are looking slim.

WXV Global Series

Canada (12) 31

Tries: Omokhuale, De Goede 3, Bauder Cons: De Goede 3

England (7) 22

Tries: Feaunati, Cokayne, Sing Cons: Harrison, Sing Pens: Harrison

England suffered back-to-back defeats for the first time in a decade as Canada won 31-22 in the WXV Series in Ottawa.

The hosts ran in five tries to England’s three, including a hat-trick for captain Sophie de Goede, as they backed up last weekend’s 24-21 win in Toronto, which ended the Red Roses’ 41-match unbeaten streak, with another statement victory.

It completes a 2-0 series win for Canada after the two sides also shared a 26-26 draw in Exeter in September.

After losing multiple matches in a calendar year for the first time since 2016, world champions England head into their meeting with the USA in New Jersey next Friday (21:15 GMT) hoping to avoid three consecutive losses for the first time since 2013.

England made a promising start, Maddie Feaunati crashing over from close range inside 10 minutes, but Canada led 12-7 at the break.

Gabrielle Senft pounced on a bouncing ball and broke down the left wing with De Goede on her shoulder to score, only four minutes after Julia Omokhuale had brought the Maple Leafs level.

Zoe Harrison kicked a penalty early in the second half before England turned to their driving maul to overturn the deficit, Amy Cokayne walking in their second score.

However, De Goede restored her side’s lead three minutes later and completed her hat-trick just after the hour-mark, before Savannah Bauder danced down the left wing to put Canada out of sight.

Emma Sing added a consolation try for England in the 80th minute.

Liev Schreiber appeared to be scolding an interviewer Tuesday during the red-carpet premiere for his new Apple TV series, “Nocturne.”

A bystander captured a behind-the-scenes snippet of the 59-year-old, who was seen speaking to a female reporter, likely part of the Apple TV team.

“Talk to people like they value what they do,” Schreiber said in the clip. “It’s not a f— sound bite, especially when we’re doing it in-house for our own people.”

The Tony Award winner added, “We’re trying to make the show compelling” and suggested that the reporter “engage” with the individuals involved in the project.

It is unclear what question was asked in the lead-up to the awkward interaction, although the “Ray Donovan” actor followed up with: “Three words isn’t gonna do anything for anybody and the monkey who f— thought of that is shooting themselves in the foot.”

The woman, who was holding an Apple TV microphone, continued to smile, telling someone in the background, “I hope you’re rolling on this.”

“What I’m trying to say is,” Schreiber continued, “if you wanna give them something that they can use, talk to people like they’re humans, not like they’re social media.”

The woman then appeared to reframe her question, to which the “Spotlight” actor agreed to respond on camera, adding, “That’s a real question; let’s talk about that.”

The Times reached out to Schreiber’s representatives and Apple TV but did not hear back.

Schreiber is both executive producer and star of “Nocturne,” which is set to premiere Oct. 30.

The drama is based on the Lars Kepler crime novels, including “The Sandman” and “Lazarus.” The series follows Jonah Lynn (played by Schreiber), an ex-soldier turned homicide detective who moves from Philadelphia to western Pennsylvania for a quieter life. But the town is shaken up by an imprisoned serial killer, Jurek Walter (“Adolescence” actor Stephen Graham), which prompts FBI agent Saga Bauer (“Atlanta’s” Zazie Beetz) to go undercover.

Emma Sing comes in at full-back in Kildunne’s place for Saturday’s rematch (00:00 BST) against Canada in Ottawa, while Tatyana Heard and Claudia Moloney-MacDonald – backline starters in the defeat – drop out of the matchday squad entirely.

Helena Rowland and Mia Venner replace Heard and Moloney-MacDonald at inside centre and wing respectively.

In the fourth change to the starting line-up, Sadia Kabeya, who appeared off the bench last week on her comeback from a leg injury, starts with Alex Matthews, two-time Rugby World Cup winner, dropping to the bench.

Exeter’s Flo Robinson and Sale’s Hollie Aitchison are included on the bench as a new-look set of half-back replacements.

Sing, a rangy runner who can also kick goals, started two matches at full-back during England’s Six Nations campaign, with Kildunne switching to a different position on the wing on each occasion.

Sing’s Gloucester-Hartpury team-mate Venner made her England debut in 2020 aged just 17.

Venner has won only another four caps since but was putting pressure on England’s more established back three at the start of this year, appearing in wins over Scotland and Italy.

The 24-year-old finished as the PWR’s joint top try-scorer last season, crossing 12 times.

Moloney-MacDonald cost her side an early try in the defeat by Canada when, after doing superbly to pick Jess Breach’s pass off her toes, she spilled the ball over the line in the sixth minute.

“We’ve earned a strong period but nothing about it is owed to us going forward,” said Mitchell.

“Friday [Saturday 00:00 BST] is an opportunity to apply sustained pressure, learn from what we missed and come out the other side better than we went in.”

In a year chock-full of museum galas, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ Saturday night soiree was especially star-studded.

The sixth annual fundraiser honored Oscar winner Charlize Theron with the Icon Award, filmmaker and composer John Carpenter with the Luminary Award and Academy Award nominee Colman Domingo with the Vantage Award. Theron, who starred this year in presumed best picture frontrunner “The Odyssey,” and Domingo, who appeared in “Disclosure Day” and “Michael,” stole the red carpet spotlight. Other red carpet standouts included Kendall Jenner, Jessica Biel and Teyana Taylor.

The gala, which raised over $14 million for the Academy Museum’s exhibitions, screenings and education programs, also tapped one of the biggest entertainers in the world to perform: Taylor Swift.

Swift’s country ballad “I Knew It, I Knew You” from “Toy Story 5” is an Oscar contender for original song.

The gala was co-chaired by Tom Ford, Robert Rodriguez, Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw. The host committee included Jessica Alba; Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann; Autumn Durald Arkapaw; Adrien Brody and Georgina Chapman; Jon M. Chu; Kirsten Dunst; Nicholas Galitzine; Ludwig and Serena Göransson; Regina Hall; Kate Hudson; Jessica Lange; Greta Lee; John Legend and Chrissy Teigen; Rami Malek; Demi Moore; Olivia Munn; Gina Prince-Bythewood; Questlove; Da’Vine Joy Randolph; Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller Rogen; Bird Runningwater; and Teyana Taylor. Chu was a co-chair for last year’s event.

Here are the 10 best looks from the red carpet.

Kendall Jenner

Kendall Jenner was decidedly absent from Sunday’s Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, but commanded the Academy Museum Gala on Saturday in a black-and-white polka-dotted Valentino gown.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Sabrina Carpenter

Sabrina Carpenter brought a pop of color to the beige carpet in a custom Giorgio Armani Privé gown with side cutouts and crystal tassels cascading down the back.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Jessica Biel

Jessica Biel brought sexy back in a black velvet halter gown with a thigh-high slit.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Alexa Demie

Alexa Demie is a goddess in another standout feather-trimmed look: a mint green custom Chanel gown.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Eiza Gonzalez

Eiza Gonzalez looked timeless in Ralph Lauren.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Kate Hudson

No one does Old Hollywood glamour quite like Kate Hudson, who was radiant in custom Armani Privé.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift dazzled in Dior — her best look to date.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Colman Domingo

Honoree Colman Domingo sparkled in a Valentino sequin blazer.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Teyana Taylor

Teyana Taylor turned heads in a robin’s egg blue Schiaparelli bustier dress.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Adria Arjona

Adria Arjona looked elegant in a strapless black dress with a white neckline.

(Emma McIntyre / Getty Images for Academy Museum)

Eight areas in Spain remain under lockdown as Storm Adam continues to wreak havoc

Eight areas in Spain remain under lockdown after restrictions were lifted for some 137 municipalities earlier on Monday, October 19.

Large swathes of the country were ordered to stay indoors as Storm Adam wreaked catastrophic havoc across eastern Spain. Initially, the emergency lockdown covered 78 municipalities in Valencia province and 67 in Alicante. However, according to the Olive Press: “Restrictions have ended for 137 of 145 municipalities, but eight towns in La Safor and La Marina Alta remain under lockdown.

“Please be aware that the following areas are still confined: Bellreguard, Daimús, Oliva, Xàbia, Pego, Miramar, Piles, and Els Poblets. Stay safe and always check local guidelines before travelling through these areas.”

Two fatalities have been confirmed, with a third potential victim of the storm discovered on Monday afternoon when Military Emergency Unit (UME) personnel uncovered the body of an elderly woman in her flood-ravaged home in Oliva, Valencia province. Authorities are yet to officially confirm whether the death was a direct result of drowning or natural causes.

According to the Majorca Daily Bulletin, rainfall totals surpassed 600 litres per square metre, rivers burst their banks and residents were left stranded on rooftops. Helicopters were deployed to rescue those trapped as torrential downpours swept through eastern Spain on Monday, triggering devastating floods that claimed at least two lives and prompted authorities to issue shelter-in-place orders for more than 800,000 residents.

Football’s global governing body is expected to change a rule that allowed a red card for USA forward Folarin Balogun to be controversially overturned during the World Cup, according to media reports on the agenda for Thursday’s FIFA council meeting in Zurich.

The decision-making body is convening for the first time since this year’s tournament, and a ⁠⁠motion to prohibit such actions in the future will be top of the agenda. Members will also discuss the organisation’s funding, rules and other matters amid a turbulent time in the sport.

During the World Cup’s round-of-32 match, Balogun received a red card for stepping awkwardly on the right ankle of Tarik Muharemovic of Bosnia in a 2-0 win for the home team. It triggered an automatic one-game suspension.

However, United States President Donald Trump urged FIFA President Gianni Infantino to review the case, and Balogun’s red card was overturned, allowing him to play in the USA’s round-of-16 match against Belgium.

The decision to overturn Balogun’s red card ignited one of the tournament’s biggest controversies, with widespread criticism from football federations, former FIFA officials, experts and coaches.

The 37-member FIFA council is expected to vote on whether to prohibit disciplinary committees from overturning automatic match suspensions at the World Cup, but the Balogun controversy is unlikely to go away.

FIFA Vice President Debbie Hewitt is among the sport’s leaders who have asked ‌‌‌‌Infantino to release all documents related to the case.

Thursday’s FIFA council meeting is the first since Infantino came ‌‌‌‌under ‌‌‌‌fire earlier this year for a now-shelved plan to sell a 20 percent stake in the World Cup’s commercial business to private investors.

Infantino has faced calls to resign from the leaders of three regional football confederations – UEFA (Europe), AFC (Asia) ⁠⁠⁠⁠and CONCACAF (North and Central America and the Caribbean) – and their representatives will be present in Zurich for the FIFA meeting.

They will be joined by their counterparts from Africa, South America and Oceania.

On the agenda will be a discussion of the failed FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) scheme, which Infantino was forced to abandon ⁠⁠⁠⁠within days of announcing it in July.

Under the plan, Infantino proposed selling a minority stake in a FIFA commercial subsidiary to private investors, with a company launched by Joshua Kushner, the brother of Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, identified as the proposed lead investor.

The council will also address FIFA’s governance, with some of the sport’s most powerful figures determined to limit Infantino’s powers if they cannot force him out of office.

Infantino, 56, will stand for re-election in March 2027, with a ‌‌‌‌November 18 deadline looming for potential candidates to submit their nominations.

MARTIN Freeman looked happier than ever as he made a rare red carpet appearance alongside his girlfriend Rachel Benaissa.

The Sherlock actor, 55, was joined by the French actress, 31, at the premiere of his new film A Long Winter during the BFI London Film Festival on Wednesday evening.

The couple, who have been dating since 2020, shared a giggle as they posed together for photographers at the glamorous event.

Martin looked dapper in a dark suit with a patterned shirt and white T-shirt underneath, while Rachel opted for a blue striped shirt tucked into high-waisted black trousers and chunky heels.

The pair stood close together on the red carpet, with Rachel showing off her voluminous curly hair as they smiled for the cameras.

Martin stars alongside Outlander actress Caitríona Balfe and Fred Hechinger in A Long Winter, which follows a family preparing for the harsh winter months in the American mountains.

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The actor previously spent 16 years with his former partner Amanda Abbington, with whom he shares two children, Grace, 21, and Joe, 18, before their split in 2016.

Rachel, who has appeared in Normal People, This Way Up and Netflix film Irish Wish, has since become a familiar presence in Martin’s family life.

The actress previously appeared in a TikTok video shared by his daughter Grace, dancing alongside the family to a song from Martin’s festive film Nativity.

Martin has also offered a rare insight into their relationship, revealing on Jessie and Lennie Ware’s Table Manners podcast that the couple enjoy cooking together.

Speaking about Rachel’s love of food, he said: “She’s not a Cordon Bleu… she’s a massive cheese and wine w****,” before adding: “That’s what she would say about herself.”

He continued: “She says that about herself, ‘I’m a cheese and wine w****’. It’s not all she is, but no, she loves all that stuff. We like cooking.”