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YORBA LINDA — Not all the President’s men were there, but enough to make a strong showing.

Former Cabinet members Henry A. Kissinger and Richard G. Kleindienst were in attendance. So were Watergate figures Maurice Stans, once finance chairman for Nixon’s re-election committee, and G. Gordon Liddy, the convicted mastermind of the bungled burglary.

Former Nixon spokesman Ron Ziegler and Counsel Chuck Colson also paid their respects. Jo Horton Haldeman, the widow of Nixon’s chief of staff, H. R. Haldeman, was in the audience. And so was Rose Mary Woods, the secretary who took responsibility for creating the infamous 18 1/2-minute gap on a critical Watergate tape.

But so was George McGovern, who was among the first named on Nixon’s infamous “enemies list,” and whose presence on the funeral’s exclusive guest list spoke more eloquently of reconciliation than some who eulogized the 37th President.

“This has been a reconciling day for me and, I think, for a lot of other people,” said McGovern, who as the Democratic nominee waged an acrimonious political fight against Nixon for the presidency in 1972 and was buried in a electoral landslide. “I kind of really feel like I’ve lost an old friend, even though we were bitter political enemies through the years.”

Colson, who spent seven months in prison for obstructing justice during the Watergate conspiracy, also spoke of healing.

“I think he achieved in death something he never quite achieved in life–to bring the nation together,” said Colson. “Maybe the wounds of Watergate are now, twenty-some years later, finally healed.”

The guest list for the funeral cut across a broad spectrum of Nixon’s political and private life: Republicans and Democrats, friends and former enemies, family members, entertainers, sports figures, religious leaders and many, many longtime staffers.

At the Yorba Linda Community Center, where many of the guests had gathered before the funeral, the Nixon faithful–wearing either purple or yellow “RN” badges that were their tickets to the funeral–embraced like long-lost friends.

Liddy and Howard H. Baker Jr., the former Tennessee senator and ranking minority member of the Judiciary Committee that held televised hearings on Watergate, rode over to the funeral site together on a shuttle.

Robert H. Finch, who served under Nixon as secretary of health, education and welfare, smiled and shook hands with Donald H. Rumsfeld, the secretary of defense under President Gerald R. Ford.

“I think the Nixon family can feel very, very good about what he accomplished, and who all is here,” Rumsfeld said. “A broad cross-section of the world is recognizing him for what he did.”

From across the Nixon years came Alexander M. Haig Jr., Haldeman’s replacement as chief of staff, and Caspar W. Weinberger, former secretary of health, education and welfare who became Ronald Reagan’s defense secretary. James R. Schlesinger, Nixon’s defense secretary, and William P. Rogers, his secretary of state, joined a few dozen others from the Nixon presidency, including political columnist and presidential aspirant Patrick J. Buchanan, security adviser Brent Scowcroft and former Atty. Gen. Elliot L. Richardson.

Even former Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, who before Nixon’s resignation left office himself in disgrace under a criminal indictment, and his wife, Judy, attended the funeral. Agnew had asked Julie Nixon Eisenhower if he would be welcome at the funeral and was assured that his presence was important. On Wednesday, he was greeted warmly.

“I’m here to pay my respects for (Nixon’s) accomplishments,” said Nixon’s vice president, who resigned in 1973 after pleading no contest to tax evasion. “It’s time to put aside 20 years of resentment, which is what I’m doing at this moment.”

More than 100 members of Congress were on the guest list, including 47 U.S. senators, House Speaker Thomas Foley (D-Wash.), Senate Democratic Leader George Mitchell of Maine and the California congressional delegation.

Representatives from across the globe, from Angola to Argentina and Singapore to Seychelles, also were in force. In all, 86 countries sent dignitaries to pay respects.

But Nixon had other admirers, too, who had little if anything to do with politics. Comedians Bob Hope and Red Skelton and actor Buddy Ebsen attended with their wives. Former Rams star Roosevelt Grier also attended.

“It was a good send-off to Richard Nixon and his future life,” said Ebsen, who also attended Pat Nixon’s funeral last summer. “There was a feeling of togetherness. It stepped across party lines and it was a beautiful happening. We need that to get all of us together.”

Said Hope: “He was a hell of a guy. Playing golf, you learn a lot about a guy’s character. His was a great character.”

The guest list was indeed impressive, with names like Walter Annenberg, George Argyros, Jesse Helms, William Lyon, Ashraf Pahlavi, Bebe Rebozo, Nelson Rockefeller, Henry Segerstrom, Mary Roosevelt and James B. Stockdale sprinkled throughout.

Orange County also had a large contingent, including a gathering of state senators and assemblymen. All five Orange County supervisors were also invited. The local Republican Central Committee distributed 100 tickets to elected officials, volunteers and others affiliated with the local party, chairman Thomas A. Fuentes said, and just about everyone who wanted in got in.

“It was dignified, sentimental and memorable,” Supervisor Harriett M. Wieder said. “I think it was Kissinger who said that when you look at the quality of a person and whether they lived well, you look at the entirety of the life. That’s how I remember Richard Nixon.”

Mourners spoke about healing and the inevitability that Nixon, in death, may finally have been absolved of his perceived sins.

Former Vice President Dan Quayle joked that Kissinger had captured it perfectly when he predicted that Nixon “would’ve liked to have read and reread all the favorable reviews that he’s had this last week.”

The Rev. Robert Schuller said he was pleased to see those reviews.

“I’m very grateful to God for the respect that’s been shown (Nixon) this last week,” said Schuller. “Society does not forgive. People tend to hold on to their hurts.”

But since Nixon’s death, Schuller said, the public is beginning to “recognize Nixon’s greatness.”

Times staff writers Alicia DiRado, Doreen Carvajal and Eric Lichtblau contributed to this report.

On the Guest List

The official U.S. delegation, members of Congress and the foreign delegation attending the funeral of Richard Nixon, according to the White House:

U.S. PRESIDENTS AND THEIR WIVES

* Bill and Hillary Clinton

* George and Barbara Bush

* Ronald and Nancy Reagan

* Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter

* Gerald and Betty Ford

NIXON ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS

* Spiro T. Agnew, former vice president

* Peter J. Brennan, former labor secretary

* Frederick B. Dent, former commerce secretary

* Elliot L. Richardson, former attorney general and health, education and welfare secretary

* William P. Rogers, former secretary of state

* Henry A. Kissinger, former secretary of state

* James R. Schlesinger, former defense secretary

* Caspar W. Weinberger, former HEW secretary

* William B. Saxbe, former attorney general

* Alexander M. Haig Jr., former chief of staff

* Brent Scowcroft, former Nixon aide

* Herb Stein, former economic adviser

* James T. Lynn, former HUD secretary

* Charles W. Colson, former special counsel to the President

* Dwight L. Chapin, former deputy assistant to the President

* Kenneth H. Dahlberg, former Midwest finance chairman of the Committee for the Re-election of the President

* Richard G. Kleindienst, former U.S. attorney general

* Ronald L. Ziegler, former press secretary

* G. Gordon Liddy, former White House aide

* Herbert W. Kalmbach, personal attorney to Nixon

* Robert H. Finch, former secretary of health, education and welfare

* Patrick J. Buchanan, speech writer

* Rose Mary Woods, former secretary

* Lyn Nofziger, former staff member

CLINTON ADMINISTRATION OFFICIALS

* Defense Secretary William Perry

* Army Gen. John Shalikashvili, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

* Thomas F. (Mack) McLarty, White House chief of staff

* Strobe Talbott, deputy secretary of state

* Carol Browner, Environmental Protection Agency administrator

* Phil Lader, White House deputy chief of staff

* Dee Dee Myers, White House press secretary

* David Gergen, counselor to the President

* Bruce Lindsey, senior presidential adviser

* W. Anthony Lake, national security adviser

* Lloyd Cutler, White House special counsel

* Robert Rubin, director of National Economic Council

* Mark Gearan, White House communications director

* Pat Griffin, White House congressional affairs lobbyist

MEMBERS OF CONGRESS

More than 100 members were on the list. Among them:

* House Speaker Thomas Foley, D-Wash.

* Senate Democratic Leader George Mitchell, D-Me.

* Sen. Minority Leader Bob Dole, R-Kan.

* Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, D-N.Y.

* Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.

* Sen. John Danforth, R-Mo.

* Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M.

* Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.

* Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Tex.

* Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah

* Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C.

* Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Tex.

* Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind.

* Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

* Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Ga.

* Sen. Bob Packwood, R-Ore.

* Sen. Alan Simpson, R-Wyo.

* Sen. Strom Thurmond, R-S.C.

* House Democratic Leader Richard A. Gephardt, D-Mo.

* House Republican Leader Robert Michel, R-Ill.

* Rep. Newt Gingrich, R-Ga.

* Rep. Carlos Moorhead, R-Glendale

* Rep. Bill Thomas, R-Bakersfield

* Rep. David Dreier, R-San Dimas

* Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-El Cajon

* Rep. Robert K. Dornan, R-Garden Grove

* Rep. Elton Gallegly, R-Simi Valley

* Rep. Wally Herger, R-Rio Oso

* Rep. Christopher Cox, R-Newport Beach

* Rep. Jay C. Kim, R-Diamond Bar

* Rep. Howard P. McKeon, R-Santa Clarita

* Rep. Ed Royce, R-Fullerton

OTHER INVITED GUESTS

* The Rev. Billy Graham, officiant

* Lynda Johnson Robb, daughter of former President Lyndon B. Johnson

* Sen. Charles Robb, D-Va.

* George McGovern, Nixon’s 1972 presidential opponent

* Bob Strauss, chairman of the Democratic National Committee when Nixon was President

* Vernon Jordan, former president of the National Urban League

* Pete Wilson, California governor

* Kenneth M. Duberstein, former White House chief of staff

* Dwayne Andreas, former ambassador to the People’s Republic of China

* Buddy Ebsen, actor

* Bob Hope, comedian

* Red Skelton, comedian

* Rupert Murdoch, media executive

* Thomas F. Riley, O.C. supervisor

* Harriett M. Wieder, O.C. supervisor

* Gaddi H. Vasquez, O.C. supervisor

* William G. Steiner, O.C. supervisor

* Roger R. Stanton, O.C. supervisor

* Thomas A. Fuentes, O.C. Republican Party chairman

* Dan Quayle, former vice president

* Walter F. Mondale, former vice president

* Walter Annenberg, former U.S. ambassador

* George Argyros, O.C. businessman

* Reza and Ashraf Pahlavi, self-proclaimed Shah of Iran and his aunt

* Richard Riordan, L.A. mayor

* Jack Kemp, former secretary of housing and urban development

* Bebe Rebozo, Nixon friend

* Henry Segerstrom, O.C. businessman

* James B. Stockdale, retired vice admiral

* The Rev. Robert H. Schuller

* Howard H. Baker, former Senate minority leader, chief of staff in Reagan Administration and the ranking minority member on the Senate Watergate Committee

* Ji Chaozhu, United Nations undersecretary general from China

* James A. Baker III, former secretary of treasury and state in Reagan and Bush administrations

FOREIGN COUNTRIES REPRESENTED

Angola, Argentina, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brunei, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, India, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Korea, Latvia, Lebanon, Liberia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Maldives, Monaco, Morocco, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Paraguay, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Senegal, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Suriname, Syria, Taiwan, Thailand, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Venezuela, Yemen, Zambia.

Sources: Los Angeles Times, Associated Press

The Chargers are reuniting with a former franchise star to bolster their receivers unit.

Keenan Allen, who racked up more than 10,000 receiving yards during an 11-season stint with the Chargers before being traded away in a salary-cap move, agreed to a deal with the team Tuesday.

The one-year deal is worth $8.52 million, according to NFL Media.

“Obviously, we know how good he’s been throughout his career,” Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz said, “and he’s out there on the market still, and [it was the] chance to bring someone of his caliber back we know can help us win games.”

Allen spent last season in Chicago after the Chargers traded their then-longest tenured player to the Bears in an attempt to become salary-cap compliant after the start of free agency. He caught 70 passes for 744 yards and seven touchdowns in the Caleb Williams-led offense but was not re-signed by Chicago.

Allen worked out with the Chargers on Friday, with coach Jim Harbaugh remarking that Allen did “a lot of Keenan Allen things.” Responding to a viewer on Twitch stream over the weekend, Allen said his meeting with the team “went good, man. The meeting was straight.”

After the sudden retirement of Mike Williams at the start of training camp, the Chargers were in need of a wide receiver, and Allen was among the top options remaining on the free-agent market. At 33, Allen’s best days are probably behind him, but the six-time Pro Bowl selection proved last season he is capable of staying healthy and being productive.

Still, the idea of signing Allen didn’t materialize entirely after Williams retired.

“I think Mike leaving may have opened more opportunity, but … Keenan was an option throughout,” Hortiz said. “We’ve had conversations with him and his agent … and it kind of came to fruition.”

Second only to Hall of Famer Antonio Gates atop the Chargers’ all-time receiving yards list, Allen joins a pass-catching corps led by second-year standout Ladd McConkey and former first-round pick Quentin Johnston, who had a promising sophomore season in 2024 after struggling as a rookie.

Allen will be the graybeard of a Chargers receivers group that has several promising pass-catchers. Jalen Reagor is the only receiver other than Allen on the roster with more than five years of NFL experience. Highly touted rookies Tre’ Harris and KeAndre Lambert-Smith, in addition to Reagor, Derius Davis and Brenden Rice, will be competing with Allen for targets.

As for a potential redundancy with Ladd at slot receiver, Hortiz is confident Allen can adjust to the Chargers’ needs.

“I think he can help us in multiple roles. I really believe that,” Hortiz said.”I think he’s been that way his whole career, and don’t see that being any different now. … You guys know how Keenan has been used everywhere he’s been, you’ll see the same thing. A lot of versatility.”

The wild card in all of this might rest on how well Allen can reestablish chemistry with quarterback Justin Herbert. In four seasons together, Allen caught 380 passes for 4,125 yards and 25 touchdowns.

If Allen can get close to the numbers he posted in 2023 (108 catches, 1,243 yards, seven touchdowns), the rest of the AFC West should be wary.

“This is where he grew up. This is where he became Keenan Allen,” Hortiz said.

Writer Benjamin Royer contributed to this report.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris closed a big door when she announced Wednesday that she would not run for California governor. But she left open a heap of others.

Departing presidents, vice presidents, first ladies and failed presidential candidates have pursued a wide variety of paths in the past. Empowered with name recognition and influence but with no official role to fill, they possess the freedom to choose their next adventure.

Al Gore took up a cause in global warming, while George W. Bush took up painting. John Kerry and Hillary Clinton went on to become secretary of State, while Donald Trump fought off prosecutors, launched new business ventures and plotted his return to power. Barack and Michelle Obama grew their foundation, wrote books and started a production company — and both have done podcasts, too — while remaining prominent voices within the Democratic Party.

Of course, Harris could focus all her energy on another run for president in 2028. But how would she do that, and what would she do to remain politically relevant in the meantime? Which other paths might she choose instead?

“She just finished writing a book. She’s finally decided she’s not running for governor. But to be prescriptive about what role she’s going to play next and how it’s going to look would be premature,” said Harris senior advisor Kirsten Allen.

Experts in power and political leadership expect Harris’ next move to be something in the public eye, given she is relatively young at 60 and no doubt wants her last chapter in the spotlight to be something other than her humbling loss to Trump in the 2024 presidential election.

“Even if it isn’t the governorship of California, the idea of wanting something else other than the 2024 election to be the last thing Kamala Harris ever did would be very appealing,” said Gregory H. Winger, an assistant professor of public and international affairs at the University of Cincinnati who has studied former presidents’ lingering influence.

Winger said his research showed those “most active in trying to be influential” in their post-White House years were those whose time in office ended on a sour note, such as failing to win reelection.

“It’s kind of a frustrated ambition that then leads into higher activity,” Winger said — and Harris has that.

In her announcement about not running for governor, Harris was careful to leave her options open — framing her hopes for the future around ideals such as “fighting for the American people.”

She said she is a “devout public servant” who has long believed the best way to make a difference was to “improve the system from within.” But she also said “our politics, our government, and our institutions have too often failed the American people,” and that “we must be willing to pursue change through new methods and fresh thinking — committed to our same values and principles, but not bound by the same playbook.”

Harris said she looked forward talking to more Americans while helping to elect other Democrats.

Within 24 hours, she had announced a book deal for her forthcoming memoir, “107 Days,” which will chronicle her whirlwind 2024 presidential campaign, and her first interview since the election on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” on Thursday night.

Nathanael Fast, director of the Neely Center for Ethical Leadership and Decision Making at the USC Marshall School of Business, said Harris’ talk of “getting back out and listening” is consistent with her wanting to reclaim a prominent national role. That could mean another presidential run, he said, but it could also mean something else — particularly in the short term, where she has work to do recasting people’s perceptions of her.

“If she can create a compelling narrative about who she is, what she’s done, what happened in the last election and where she’s headed next,” Fast said, “she’ll be more likely to succeed.”

Fast said his bet is that she runs for president, but he could also see her going the route of Gore — who, after losing the presidential election, decided to move in a different direction to have worldwide impact by addressing climate change.

“I can imagine someone like Harris taking on artificial intelligence and saying, ‘My whole thing is trying to influence the national conversation around what’s going to happen with AI,’” Fast said.

Artificial intelligence was part of her portfolio as vice president and is a topic Harris cares deeply about, said a source familiar with her thinking who asked for anonymity to speak candidly about her next steps.

Harris also will have to tread carefully as she works to reassert her influence in the Democratic Party, which is still reeling from a second loss to Trump, experts said.

Democrats have struggled to unify the disparate elements of their party and settle on kitchen-table messaging that appeals to voters about the everyday challenges they face, said Sara Sadhwani, a politics professor at Pomona College.

After she lost to Trump, a convicted felon targeted with several other criminal investigations, “Harris exemplifies the inability to thread that needle.”

Whatever Harris does to break through, it won’t be easy in today’s saturated media and political marketplace, which is so vastly different from what other former White House occupants faced.

After he declined to run for reelection in 1928, former President Coolidge wrote a nationally syndicated newspaper column. Today, Harris would be more likely to launch a podcast — but whether it will catch on nationally is anyone’s guess.

Winger said Harris does have massive name recognition, and Fast said she has many of the important forms of “capital” for a leader to continue being successful and influential — including financial and social.

Still, “it’s tough,” Winger said. “It’s a very different media ecosystem just because of how crowded and how fractured it has become.”

Kyle Lierman, who worked for more than six years in the Obama White House, is now chief executive of Civic Nation, a nonpartisan nonprofit that houses several education, gender equity and voter initiatives — including When We All Vote, the voter initiative Michelle Obama launched in 2018.

Lierman said he is excited to see what Harris does next, as it’s likely to show her “best side.”

“When you’re at the White House, you are working on a dozen different topics every day, and you are trying to make as big an impact as possible before the clock runs out,” Lierman said. “And when you leave, you have an opportunity to step back, think longer term, and go deeper on a few issues that you’re particularly passionate about. And I think that’s liberating in some ways.”

Former Sen. Laphonza Butler, a longtime friend of Harris’, said the former vice president might draw from the blueprints laid out by her recent predecessors.

“Whether you’re talking about the Clinton Global Initiative or When We All Vote … or the work that’s happening at the Obama Foundation, I think there’s plenty of examples,” Butler said.

Many former presidents have leveraged their experience in foreign affairs — and existing relationships with foreign leaders — to continue holding sway in international relations, particularly when members of their own party return to power. President Clinton, for instance, used President Carter in that way.

Andra Gillespie, a political scientist at Emory University, said Harris could be “really effective” in bolstering organizations that work for racial justice and to elect women, but said “that’s not what she was organizing her political career around” before the 2024 election and it may not be the path she chooses now.

Gillespie said she read Harris’ statement as indicating that she was most interested in finding a way to force change outside of government. She said she could see Harris — who is already in California, and whose husband Doug Emhoff is an entertainment lawyer — moving into production and podcasts like the Obamas.

Gillespie said she also could see Harris working closely with Howard University, her alma mater in Washington, D.C., on fundraising or building out a new center of study, as Joe Biden did at the University of Delaware.

“She’s still relatively young, and still could have a good 15 to 20 years of active engagement ahead of her,” Gillespie said, “in whatever form she wants that to take.”

The administration of United States President Donald Trump has unveiled its new artificial intelligence action plan, which includes a strategy it says will boost the US standing in AI as it competes with China for dominance in the rapidly growing sector.

The White House released the 25-page “America’s AI Action Plan” on Wednesday.

It includes 90 different policy proposals that the administration says will increase AI tools for allies around the globe. It will also promote production of new data centres around the US. It will scrap federal regulations that “hinder AI development”, although it is not clear which regulations are in question.

In a statement, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the plan will “ensure America sets the technological gold standard worldwide, and that the world continues to run on American technology”.

The president is expected to announce a series of executive orders which will outline key parts of the plan around 5pm in New York (21:00 GMT).

“We believe we’re in an AI race … and we want the United States to win that race,” White House AI czar David Sacks told reporters on Wednesday.

The White House says the plan will “counter Chinese influence in international governance bodies” and also will give the US more control over exports of AI technology.

However, the administration did not offer any details on how it plans to do that.

The plan outlined by the Trump administration will also include a framework to analyse models built by China to assess “alignment with Chinese Communist Party talking points and censorship”.

Free speech in the spotlight 

The plan says that it will also uphold free speech in models that will allow systems to be “objective and free from top-down ideological bias” for organisations wanting to do business with the federal government.

A senior White House official said the main target was AI models that consider diversity and inclusion, according to The Wall Street Journal, which, experts say, signals the concern is the government’s perceived liberal bias as opposed to an overall bias.

“The government should not be acting as a Ministry of AI Truth or insisting that AI models hew to its preferred interpretation of reality,” Samir Jain, vice president of policy at the Center for Democracy & Technology, said in a statement provided to Al Jazeera.

“The plan is highly unbalanced, focusing too much on promoting the technology while largely failing to address the ways in which it could potentially harm people.”

Conservatives have long accused AI chatbots of having a liberal bias, comparable to their comments on legacy media for providing critical coverage of the administration. However, it comes as users of GrokAI, former Trump ally and right-wing tycoon Elon Musk’s AI platform, have accused it of having a right-wing lean. Musk’s X AI is part of a $200m package with the Pentagon that has other AI companies, including OpenAI.

Building out data centres

A key focus of the new plan will be to build out new data centers for AI technology as the industry rapidly expands. The administration said that will include streamlining permits for new centre development and the energy production facilities used to power these data centres.

The plan sidesteps environmental concerns that have been a major criticism of the AI industry. AI “challenges America to build vastly greater energy generation than we have today”, the plan said.

AI data centres have been tied to increased power consumption and, in turn, greenhouse gas emissions. According Google’s 2024 sustainability report, there was a 48 percent increase in power greenhouse gas emissions since 2019 which, it says, will only become more prevalent.

“This result was primarily due to increases in data center energy consumption and supply chain emissions. As we further integrate AI into our products, reducing emissions may be challenging due to increasing energy demands from the greater intensity of AI compute, and the emissions associated with the expected increases in our technical infrastructure investment,’ the report said.

The streamlining of permits also comes as the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) plans to reverse its scientific determination that greenhouse gas emissions endanger public health. That change would remove the legal framework that climate regulations are based on, the Reuters news agency has reported, citing two unnamed sources.

The reversal would remove the “endangerment finding”, making it easier for the EPA to undo legislation limiting greenhouse gas emissions on energy-producing facilities, including those used to power AI data centres.

The administration has created environmental review exceptions for data centre construction and will allow expanding access to federal lands for AI development.

“AI will improve the lives of Americans by complementing their work — not replacing it,” the plan says.

It, however, comes as employers across the country scrap jobs because of AI. Earlier this month, Recruit Holdings, the parent company of Indeed and Glassdoor, cut 1300 jobs which it directly attributed to AI.

In June, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said that AI is doing 30 to 50 percent of the company’s workload. In February, the tech giant laid off 1,000 employees.

Analysts say the plan looks promising for investors in the AI sector.

“This is a watershed moment in the AI revolution, and Trump recognises this AI arms race between the US and China. A big step forward,” Dan Ives, analyst at Wedbush Securities, told Al Jazeera.

As of 4pm in New York (20:00 GMT), stocks of AI-focused companies had mixed results. NVIDIA was up 2.1 percent; Palantir up 3.6 percent, Oracle up 1.5 percent and Microsoft was up 0.3 percent. On the other hand, Google’s parent company Alphabet was down 0.5 percent.

Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. My name is Eric Sondheimer. Let’s take a sneak peek at receivers and tight ends to watch this fall.

Receiving position is loaded

Kayden Dixon-Wyatt of Mater Dei goes airborne against Servite.

(Craig Weston)

If a college team was able to sign the receivers from Mater Dei and St. John Bosco, there would certainly be some future pros in that group. Those two schools have great depth this season with quality receiver after quality receiver.

Ohio State commit Chris Henry Jr. is supposed to be back from injury for Mater Dei. He’ll be joined by another Ohio State commit Kayden Dixon-Wyatt. Gavin Honore is a Georgia commit. Add tight end Mark Bowman, a USC commit, and you have a special group.

St. John Bosco has Texas A&M commit Madden Williams, Oklahoma commit Daniel Odom, San Jose State commit Carson Clark and super sophomore DJ Tubbs, among others.

Junior Quentin Gates and senior Jalen Ross are top targets for quarterback Jaden Jefferson at Cathedral. Mission Viejo has Miami commit Vance Spafford joined by Santa Margarita transfer Jack Junker. Santa Margarita has the Mosley brothers, Trent, a USC commit, and sophomore Grant. Orange Lutheran returns Chris Flores Jr., who caught 60 passes last season, and promising junior Nico Bland. Also available is Loyola transfer Markus Kier, a Princeton commit.

USC commit Luc Weaver of Sherman Oaks Notre Dame has improved his strength and speed and is set for a big senior season. Sierra Canyon has USC commit Ja’Myron Baker.

Troy Foster of Huntington Beach is coming off a junior season in which he caught 65 passes, 15 for touchdowns. James Leicester of Dana Hills had 13 TD catches. Damani Porras of Downey will be a key weapon for quarterback Oscar Rios after catching 15 TDs as a sophomore. Alijah Royster of Oxnard Pacifica made a huge impact as a sophomore with 13 touchdowns. Jordan Slye of Salesian is a talented two-way player entering his sophomore season. Long Beach Poly returns Kamarie Smith.

Jaylen Stokes from St. Pius-St. Matthias had 16 TD catches. Jack Cunningham returns as Ventura’s go-to receiver. Blake Wong has 40 receptions as a sophomore for Norco.

In the City Section, Paul Turner, a transfer from Palmdale, joins Birmingham and could provide a lift for the Patriots after 15 TD receptions last season. Palisades has picked up one of the fastest athletes in the state in Bishop Alemany transfer Demare Dezeurn.

It’s also a terrific year for tight ends with Mater Dei’s Bowman and Servite’s Luke Sorensen, a Nebraska commit, leading the way.

Long Beach Poly tight end Jaden Hernandez makes catch.

(Craig Weston)

There’s also 6-5, 230-pound Keawe Browne of Corona Centennial and 6-3, 235-pound Jaden Hernandez of Long Beach Poly. Andre Nickerson of Inglewood and Beckham Hofland of Los Alamitos are committed to Southern Methodist and Boise State, respectively.

Bishop Montgomery’s Caleb Tafua is a Texas A&M commit. Freshman Austin Miller of Bellflower is 6-4 and an impact first-year player.

Mira Costa special teams

Mira Costa kicker Nico Talbott (left) and punter Jackson Shevin.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

When it comes to special teams, Mira Costa is feeling it has a trio to turn to. Kicker Nico Talbott, punter/holder Jackson Shevin and long snapper Jackson Reach offer experience and talent for coach Don Morrow, who’s going into his 37th season as a varsity head coach, 33 years at Mira Costa.

Here’s the report.

Raul Lara visits LB Poly

Mater Dei football coach Raul Lara returned to his alma mater, Long Beach Poly, on Saturday for a passing tournament.

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Mater Dei football coach Raul Lara had his team participate in the Long Beach Poly passing tournament Saturday. He was asked if he remembered how to get to Poly. “No,” he joked.

It was a homecoming for Lara, who graduated from Poly and was football coach for 13 years, winning five Division 1 titles.

Here’s the report.

Notes . . .

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame had two former players taken in the MLB draft, making it 29 players since 1993 chosen during the Tom Dill coaching era. The Knights have had more players selected before that, including Cy Young Award winner Jack McDowell and Tim Foli, who was the No. 1 pick in 1968. . . .

Corona ended up with four players taken in the draft after Ethin Bingaman was taken in the 20th round by the Diamondbacks. . . .

Mira Costa senior pitcher Garrett Jacobs has committed to UCLA. . . .

USA Baseball announced the 88 players invited to its 18U national team training camp. Here’s the list.

Ontario Christian girls basketball standouts Kaleena Smith and Tatiana Griffin will compete in August in the Overtime Select women’s basketball league. Both will be captains. . . .

Former Villa Park principal Dr. Kenneth Miller is the new executive director of athletics at Mater Dei. Here’s a release from the school. . . .

The Southern Section announced its final transfer totals for the 2024-25 school year, and there were a record 7,099 transfers. That provides a strong indication that when the final state transfer total is released, it will exceed 17,000 for the second straight year. The CIF continues to debate whether there needs to be changes to its transfer rules, such as a one-time free transfer. But a proposal is months, if not years, away from from being introduced. . . . .

Orange Lutheran’s baseball team has added two big-time LSU commits as transfer students in 6-foot-5 pitcher Cooper Sides from Red Buff and infielder CJ Weinstein from Huntington Beach. . . .

CIF Executive Director Ron Nocetti is set to become president this school year of the National Federation of State High School Assns. . . . .

The AAU Beach Volleyball Player of the Year is Mira Costa sophomore Christian Chow. His sister, London, won the same award in 2012. . . .

Kenneth Bell is the new boys basketball coach at Arleta. . . .

Mike Minjares is returning for a second stint as baseball coach at St. Bonaventure. . . .

Windward girls basketball coach Rachel Schrote has resigned to pursue other coaching opportunities, according to athletic director Tyrone Powell. She will be replaced by assistant Dante Dixon on an interim basis for the upcoming system. It’s a difficult coaching position dealing with parents and expectations. . . .

SoFi Stadium will be the site for several high school football games the week of Aug. 21-22. South Hills has confirmed it will face El Rancho on Aug. 22. Mayfair and Yorba Linda are also expected to play in one of the scheduled games. . . .

From the archives: Cody Schrier

Former JSerra and UCLA shortstop Cody Schrier

(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)

Former JSerra and UCLA Cody Schrier is performing well in the minor leagues for the Miami Marlins.

The 13th round draft pick in 2024 is batting .270 this season having played for two teams and has 22 stolen bases.

Here’s a story from 2019 about the Schrier brothers facing off in high school.

Recommendations

From the Washington Post, a story on a travel basketball team that’s a social media sensation.

From UWHuskieswire, a story on former Gardena Serra and UCLA tight end Caleb Wilson.

From MLB.com, a story on former Corona High standout Brady Ebel taking batting practice at Dodger Stadium as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers organization.

Tweets you might have missed

Until next time…

Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at [email protected], and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.

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The Chargers were the first team in the NFL to open training camp, but the focus Thursday quickly shifted to who didn’t join them.

Wide receiver Mike Williams is retiring, the Chargers confirmed Thursday as the team began camp. Just as a hole opened in the receivers room, the Chargers also signed rookie receiver Tre’ Harris, the team announced, ending the second-round pick’s contract holdout.

The news of Williams’ sudden retirement broke on social media as Chargers players went through some of the first team drills of training camp. Williams, 30, was just months removed from his feel-good homecoming to the franchise that drafted him seventh overall in 2017. The free agent was optimistic about revitalizing his career in familiar territory. A wide smile split his face when he was asked in March about reuniting with quarterback Justin Herbert.

On Thursday, Herbert still smiled at the jaw-dropping plays they made together.

“I want what’s best for Mike,” said Herbert, who propelled Williams to a career season in 2021 with 86 catches and 1,146 yards receiving. “He’s always been there for us and we’re going to be there for him. It’s obviously a tough situation and I got so much respect for him as a teammate, as a friend, as a receiver, as a player and the man that he is. … Football at the end of the day is a game. There’s more to life than just football and I’m just hoping for the best for him.”

Williams, who was two years removed from his torn anterior cruciate ligament with the Chargers, was set to begin camp on the physically unable to perform list after suffering an undisclosed injury during the offseason training program. Speaking to reporters Wednesday afternoon, general manager Joe Hortiz expected Williams could return to practice soon.

Later that day, Williams’ agent, Tory Dandy, dropped the news, a person with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly confirmed.

Williams caught 309 passes for 4,806 yards and 31 touchdowns for the Chargers. Coming off the season-ending knee injury, the 30-year-old was released in a salary-saving move in 2024. It was the beginning of what Williams called a “terrible” season. He caught only 21 passes for 298 yards for the New York Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

He returned to the Chargers as a free agent hoping to recapture the magic he had with Herbert.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert passes during the first day of training camp practice Thursday.

(Luke Johnson / Los Angeles Times)

Since being drafted by the Chargers in 2020, Herbert found comfort with the 6-foot-4 Williams, who always seemed to tilt the odds in his favor on 50-50 balls. Williams’ presence, especially in the red zone, demanded the defense’s attention. Herbert fondly recalled the receiver’s twisting, one-handed catch against the Rams as one of his favorite plays, but noted there are too many to recite the whole list.

“You can’t really replace a guy like that,” Herbert said. “But thankfully we’ve got a receiver room that’s continuing to push each other. They compete and they want to be the best.”

With Williams, the Chargers hoped to add another outside receiving threat to complement budding star Ladd McConkey and bring veteran leadership to a position in flux.

Harris can now rejoin the competition as he agreed to terms with the team. The 55th pick in the draft was stuck in an unprecedented 30-player standstill this week as second-round picks and teams negotiated for guaranteed money. The logjam began to loosen Thursday as several teams wrapped up deals, including the Chicago Bears, who signed the 56th pick Ozzy Trapilo early Thursday.

Harris still participated in rookie minicamp, voluntary workouts and the team’s mandatory minicamp before his holdout officially began Saturday. Herbert believed the previous reps would help Harris jump back in seamlessly.

Chargers fans take photos with owner Dean Spanos during the first day of training camp at the team’s headquarters in El Segundo on Thursday.

(Luke Johnson / Los Angeles Times)

“No one’s going to fault him for doing what he’s doing,” Herbert said. “He’s a teammate. We respect him and we’ve got his back no matter what. … Whenever that deal gets done and he comes back, I know he’s not going to miss a beat.”

During the spring, Harris started moving up the depth chart, taking some team reps with Herbert in place of Jalen Reagor. Reagor, a 2021 first-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles, had the standout play of Thursday’s practice, diving for a fingertip catch on a 50-yard touchdown pass from Herbert.

Fans cheered when Reagor tucked the ball away and rolled into the pylon. The temporary stands at the Chargers’ training facility were packed as fans were eager for their first look at the team since January. Days after launching new gold-and-navy alternate jerseys, the team set up a shop to sell merchandise.

As Chargers players broke the final huddle, a group of fans started chanting “Bring back Keenan!”

Keenan Allen, another long-term Herbert target, remains unsigned after 70 catches for 744 yards receiving and seven touchdowns for the Bears last year.

Etc.

The Chargers placed running back Najee Harris on the active/non-football injury list Thursday. The recent free agent signing suffered a minor eye injury in a Fourth of July fireworks accident. … Quarterback Taylor Heinicke was the only player on the active roster who did not appear on the field during Thursday’s roughly 75-minute practice.