MLB Playoff Picture All Set Best-Of-3 Matchups Start Friday
MLB Playoff Picture All Set, Best-Of-3 Matchups Start Friday https://digitalalabamanews.com/mlb-playoff-picture-all-set-best-of-3-matchups-start-friday/
Associated Press
Albert Pujols taking his final swings in October, Julio Rodríguez stepping in for the first time. Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom facing Manny Machado and Juan Soto.
Bryce Harper, back at last. José Ramírez and his Cleveland teammates trying to break a long drought – with a new name.
And Aaron Judge, Mookie Betts and other top stars looming next week.
The entire Major League Baseball playoff picture came into focus Tuesday night. The matchups were finally set, right before the last day of the regular season.
The postseason, expanded from 10 teams last year to 12 this season, begins Friday with a newly created wild-card round. All four series are best two of three – three days in a row, no breaks, with the higher seed hosting every game.
In the National League, it’s Padres-Mets and Phillies-Cardinals. In the American League, it’s Mariners-Blue Jays and Rays-Guardians.
At Citi Field, New York figures to throw aces Scherzer and deGrom at San Diego, featuring big-hitting Machado and Soto. The Mets’ bid to win the NL East ended when they were beaten out by the defending World Series champion Atlanta Braves, so New York wound up as the top NL wild-card team.
“We have to go on the road and play against a tough team and beat some of the best pitchers in the game,” Machado said. “It is about going out there and enjoying the moment.”
At Busch Stadium, soon-to-be retired St. Louis stars Yadier Molina and Pujols host Harper and Philadelphia. The Cardinals won the NL Central, but as the No. 3 seed don’t get the benefit of an early bye.
A two-time champion with the Cardinals, the 42-year-old Pujols has looked like a 24-year-old version of himself down the stretch, topping 700 career home runs and passing Babe Ruth for second place on the all-time RBIs list.
A two-time MVP, Harper makes his first playoff appearance since 2017 with Washington. He missed two months in the middle of the season because of a broken thumb but is ready to swing away for the Phillies.
In Cleveland, Ramírez leads a young team that includes rookie sparkplug Steven Kwan and hard-throwing closer Emmanuel Clase as the AL Central champs host Tampa Bay.
This will be Cleveland’s first postseason appearance as the Guardians. The team hasn’t won the World Series since 1948. Randy Arozarena, already established as a playoff star, will try to boost the Rays to the first championship in franchise history.
The Guardians went 4-2 against the Rays this year, winning two of three last week at Progressive Field. All three games in the series were decided by one run, with two going to extra innings.
“It will be a good environment,” Tampa Bay second baseman Taylor Walls. “It’s a good thing that we just went there. … I know the guys are amped up. We’re ready to be there.”
In Toronto, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the top AL wild-card Blue Jays take on Seattle and its rookie sensation, Rodríguez. The series also matches Robbie Ray, who won the Cy Young Award with Toronto last year, against his former team.
All four matchups are scheduled to end Sunday. The best-of-five Division Series in both leagues begin Oct. 11.
Judge, fresh off hitting his 62nd home run to set the AL record, and the Yankees will host the Tampa Bay-Cleveland winner in Game 1. Justin Verlander and the Houston Astros start at home against the Seattle-Toronto winner.
In the NL, Freddie Freeman, Betts and the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have set a franchise record for wins, host the Mets-San Diego winner in the opener. Ronald Acuña Jr., injured last fall when the Braves won the World Series, will start at home against the St. Louis-Philadelphia winner.
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Happenings Whats Coming Up In Northeast Ohio Starting Oct. 7
Happenings — What’s Coming Up In Northeast Ohio Starting Oct. 7 https://digitalalabamanews.com/happenings-whats-coming-up-in-northeast-ohio-starting-oct-7/
Here is a brief rundown of some coming entertainment options in Northeast Ohio. Make submissions for consideration via email to entertainment@morningjournal.com or entertainment@news-herald.com. You must include a phone number and/or web address for publication.
Art
Beck Center for the Arts: 17801 Detroit Ave., Lakewood, presents “The Cultural Heritage Exhibition & Experience,” a display of visual arts, through Nov. 6. Call 216-521-2540, or visit beckcenter.org.
Canton Museum of Art: 1001 Market Ave. N., Canton, presents Christkindl Market, Nov. 11. Call 330-453-7666 or visit CantonArt.org.
Cleveland Botanical Garden: 11030 East Blvd., presents the conclusion of “Stickwork,” a stickwork art installation,” through Oct. 30; “Nature’s Source,” featuring the work of Kristen Chittock inside the Corning Visitor Center, through Nov. 6. Call 216-721-1600, or visit cbgarden.org.
Cleveland Museum of Art: 11150 East Blvd., presents “Native North America,” through Dec. 4; “Ancient Andean Textiles,” through Dec. 4; “Arts of Africa,” through Dec. 18; “Cycles of Life: The Four Seasons Tapestries,” through Feb. 19; “Creating Urgency: Modern and Contemporary Korean Art,” through Oct. 23; “Escaping to a Better World: Eccentrics and Immortals in Chinese Art,” through Nov. 6; “The Medieval Top Seller: The Book of Hours,” through July 30, 2023; “Text and Image in Southern Asia,” through March 5; “Impressionism to Modernism: The Keithley Collection,” through Jan. 8; “Tales of the City: Drawing in the Netherlands from Bosch to Bruegel,” Oct. 9 through Jan. 8; “China through the Magnifying Glass: Masterpieces in Miniature and Detail,” Dec. 11 through Feb. 26; “Nineteenth-Century French Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art,” Jan. 20 through April 30; “The Tudors: Art and Majesty in Renaissance England,” Feb. 26 through May 14; “Tilman Riemenschneider’s Saint Jerome and Late Medieval Alabaster Sculpture,” March 26 through July 23; “A Splendid Land: Paintings from Royal Udaipur,” June 11 through Sept. 10. Call 216-421-7340 or visit clevelandart.org.
Fairmount Center for the Arts: 8400 Road, Russell Township, presents “Patricia Simmons: A Life of Art,” through Nov. 20. Call 440-338-3171 or visit fairmountcenter.org.
KINK Contemporary: 15515 Waterloo Road, Cleveland, presents “Sculptural Imprints,” featuring the work of artists Patricia Brett, Emmy Bright, Kat Burdine, Leigh Garcia, Susanna Harris, Taryn McMahon, and Maddie McSweeney, Oct. 7 through Dec. 2. Visit kinkcontemporary.com.
Penitentiary Glen Reservation: 8668 Kirtland-Chardon Road, Kirtland, presents the work of An’Angelia Thompson in Lake Metroparks’ fall art show, “Harvest: An Introspective,” through Oct. 9. Call 440-256-1404 or visit lakemetroparks.com/parks-trails/penitentiary-glen-reservation.
Auditions
Euclid Symphony Orchestra: is offering applications for its annual Tom Baker Young Artists Competition, which open to anyone 18 and older who are advanced musicians, with the competition being held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 12 at Shore Cultural Center. Visit euclidsymphonyorchestra.com or email ESOYoungArtists@gmail.com.
Children’s entertainment
Akron Civic Theatre: 182 S. Main St., presents “Blue’s Clues & You! Live on Stage,” 2 p.m. Oct. 15; MadCap Puppets – “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” Oct. 30. Visit AkronCivic.com.
Playhouse Square: 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, presents its “Disney Junior Live on Tour: costume Palooza,” 4 p.m. Oct. 8; 2022-23 Children’s Theater Series — “Grace for President, Oct. 22 and 23 | “Peter Rabbit Tales,” Nov. 5 and 6 | “It’s Okay to Be Different,” Feb. 11 and 12 | “The Gruffalo,” March 4 and 5; PAW Patrol Live! “Heroes Unite,” March 10 through 12. Call 216-241-6000 or visit PlayhouseSquare.org.
Comedy
Agora Theatre & Ballroom: 5000 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, presents JB Smoove, Nov. 19; Noel Miller, March 31; Dan Cummins, Mary Santora, April 7. Visit AgoraCleveland.com.
Cleveland Improv: 1148 Main Ave., Cleveland, presents Rodney Perry, Oct. 7 and 8; Matt Rife, Oct. 14 and 15; Justin Whitehead, Oct. 16; Gary Owen, Oct. 20 to through 23. Call 216-696-4677 or visit ClevelandImprov.com.
Hilarities 4th Street Theatre: 2025 E. Fourth St., Cleveland, presents Dan Soder, Oct. 6 through 8; Josh Gondelman, Oct. 7; Brad Upton, Oct. 8; Chris Franjola, Oct. 14 and 15; Yamaneika Saunders, Oct. 16; Ramy Youssef, Oct. 30; Carmen Lynch, Nov. 10 through 12. Call 216-736-4242 or visit pickwickandfrolic.com.
Playhouse Square: 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, presents “Made in Puerto Rico: An Evening With Comedian Eli Castro,” Oct. 8. Call 216-241-6000 or visit PlayhouseSquare.org.
Wolstein Center: 2000 Prospect Ave., presents Jeff Dunham, Oct. 29. Call 877-468-4946 or visit wolsteincenter.com.
Dance
Cleveland Ballet: presents “Swan Lake,” Oct. 21 and 22 at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace, with a gala event set for 5 p.m. Oct. 21; “The Nutcracker,” Dec. 15 through 18 at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace; “Serenade” and “Spring Collection,” April 21 and 22, 2023 at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace. Visit Clevelandballet.com.
Lorain Palace Theater: 617 Broadway, Lorain, presents North Pointe Ballet’s production of “The Nutcracker,” Dec. 2 through 4. Call 440-245-2323 or visit lorainpalace.com.
MGM Northfield Park: 10777 Northfield Road, Northfield, presents “Dancing With the Stars Live!,” Jan. 22; . Call 330-908-7625 or visit mgmnorthfieldpark.mgmresorts.com.
Verb Ballets Center for Dance: 3558 Lee Road, Shaker Heights, presents “Schubert Melodies,” an evening of dance and music in collaboration with BlueWater Chamber Orchestra, Oct. 15 at Breen Cengter for the Performing Arts, 2008 W. 30th St., Cleveland. Call 216-397-3757 or visit verballets.org.
Film
All Rise — A Festival of Film and Law: hosted by the Cleveland State University School of Film & Media Arts, in partnership with the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, will be Oct. 27 through 20 at Playhouse Square, with screenings in the Westfield Studio Theater and the CSU School of Film & Media Arts and launching Oct. 27 with a keynote event featuring producer, screenwriter and actor Angela Russo-Otstot (“Cherry”). Visit AllRiseFilmFest.org.
Chagrin Documentary Film Festival: featuring in-person screenings, throughout downtown Chagrin Falls, through Oct. 9, and online screenings, Oct. 9 through 16 Call 440-247-1591 or visit chagrinfilmfest.org.
Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque: 11610 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, presents “Velvet Goldmine, 7 p.m. Oct. 7 and 9:10 p.m. Oct. 8; “Riotsville, U.S.A.,” 9:20 p.m. Oct. 7; “Antoine and Colette,” 5 p.m. Oct. 8 and 8:20 p.m. Oct. 9; “Loving Highsmith,” 7:25 p.m. Oct. 8; “The Chase,” 3:30 p.m. Oct. 9; “Bicycle Theieves,” 6:30 p.m. Oct. 9. Call 216-421-7450 or visit CIA.edu/Cinematheque.
Cleveland International Film Festival: presents CIFF47, March 22 through April 1 at Playhouse Square; CIFF47 Streams, April 10 through 17 online. Call 216-623-3456 or visit clevelandfilm.org.
Lorain Palace Theater: 617 Broadway, Lorain, presents “Dark Ether” movie premiere, Oct. 19. Call 440-245-2323 or visit lorainpalace.com.
Playhouse Square: 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, presents a public screening of a film version of Cleveland playwright David Hansen’s one-man show “I Hate This (a play without the baby),” coinciding with World Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day, with a post-show conversation with Hansen, his wife Toni, the play’s director and a representative from University Hospitals, 7 p.m. Oct. 15 in the Westfield Studio Theatre. Call 216-241-6000 or visit PlayhouseSquare.org.
Stocker Arts Center at Lorain County Community College: 1005 N. Abbe Road, Elyria, presents the 2022 Fall Film Series, 7:30 p.m. Fridays in the Hoke Theatre — “Montana’s Story,” Oct. 7 | “Secrets & Lies,” Oct. 14 | “Headhunters,” Oct. 21 | “Oranges and Sunshine,” Nov. 4 | “Mississippi Marsala,” Nov. 18. Call 440-366-4040 or visit StockerArtsCenter.com.
Music
Agora Theatre & Ballroom: 5000 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, presents Lost Dog Street Band, Oct. 7; Within Temptation, Oct. 8; Hippo Campus, CHAI, Oct. 11; King Princess, St. Panther, Oct. 12; SLANDER, Eptic, Wavedash, Oct. 13; Michael Schenker 50th anniversary with Eric Martin, Images of Eden, Oct. 15; Awolnation, Badflower, Oct. 19; Liquid Stranger, Tripp St., Ravenscoon, Oct. 20; The Dollop, Oct. 21; Marcus King, Oct. 23; Mushroomhead Halloween, Oct. 29; Hatebreed, Gatecreeper, Bodysnatcher, Oct. 30; Daniel Howell, Nov. 2; Cannibal Corpse, Dark Funeral, Immolation, Nov. 8; W.A.S.P., I Prevail, Pierce the Veil, Fit for a King, Stand Atlantic, Nov. 11; Armored Saint, Nov. 12; Trevor Wallace, Nov. 13; Mac DeMarco, Nov. 17; Streetlight Manifesto, Nov. 20; Bobby Shmurda, Nov. 27; Foals, Dec. 11; Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd tribute), Jan. 7; Jazz Is Dead, Jan. 22; Angel Olsen, Erin Rae, Feb. 2; Bikini Kill, April 16. Visit AgoraCleveland.com.
Akron Civic Theatre: 182 S. Main St., presents Flamenco en Familia, Oct. 16; Bosom Buddies, a benefit concert featuring Ashley Cooke, Joe Nichols and Lainey Wilson, Oct. 19; Mania (ABBA tribute), Oct. 20; Home Free, Erin Kinsey, Oct. 28; Who’s Bad (Michael Jackson tribute), Nov. 4; The Sixties Show, Nov. 5; Almost Queen, Nov. 19; Straight No Chaser, Dec. 22. Visit AkronCivic.com.
Apollo’s Fire, The Cleveland Baroque Orchestra: presents “Monteverdi Vespers of 1610,” 8 p.m. Oct. 8 at First Baptist Church, Shaker Heights | 4 p.m. Oct. 9 at St. Raphael Catholic Church, Bay Village | 7:30 p.m. Oct. 14 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Akron | 8 p.m. Oct. 15, First Baptist Church, Shaker Heights. Call 216-320-0012 or 800-314-2535, or visit apollosfire.org.
Beachland Ballroom: 15711 Waterloo Road, Cleveland, presents Southern Culture on the Skids, Oct. 7; Kitchen Dwellers, Daniel Donato, Oct. 7; Carnifex, Spite, Oceano, Oct. 8; B...
Good Afternoon News: Two Thorns Execs Fired A Mysterious Police Shooting On Grand And Putin's Ridiculous Annexation Plan
Good Afternoon, News: Two Thorns Execs Fired, A Mysterious Police Shooting On Grand, And Putin's Ridiculous Annexation Plan https://digitalalabamanews.com/good-afternoon-news-two-thorns-execs-fired-a-mysterious-police-shooting-on-grand-and-putins-ridiculous-annexation-plan/
The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!
GOOD AFTERNOON, PORTLAND! Hmmm… you look hungry. So maybe you should rush out to try one of 27 (!) plates of $6 wings (!!) as part of the Mercury‘s absolutely delicious WING WEEK! But hurry, hurry… the fun ends on Sunday! And now, I hope you’re hungry for some NEWS.
IN LOCAL NEWS:
• The local fallout over the NWSL’s report into abuses within women’s soccer continues: Today Thorns/Timbers owner Merritt Paulson announced he’s fired his top two executives after a report uncovered their role in enabling abuse against players. But infuriatingly enough, no word yet on whether he’ll listen to the growing chorus of demands to sell the clubs. Our Abe Asher has the latest!
• Also, ICYMI:
Portland Thorns & Timbers supporters with @107ist sever ties with front office officials after US Soccer report reveals mgmt lied to them. @abe_asher reports:https://t.co/U5zHnTy4iA
— Portland Mercury (@portlandmercury) October 5, 2022
• At least one Multnomah County Sheriff’s Deputy opened fire and shot a member of the public on Northeast Grand in the Lloyd District this afternoon… but no word yet on what led to the situation, and details are extremely scant.
Here’s what we know so far: https://t.co/pk9UydPnJe
— Alex Zielinski (@alex_zee) October 5, 2022
• Two of the crybaby opponents of charter reform who loudly announced they would not attend an “unfair” City Club debate on the measure have apparently changed their crybaby minds, and WILL debate supporters after organizers convinced them they’d get “a fair shake.” (Who’s supplying the pacifiers?)
• Aminé is playing with the Oregon Symphony, there’s a new round of the super fun Rontoms Sunday Sessions, and… what’s this? Hocus Pocus Drag?? All that and more in the latest edition of Jenni Moore’s HEAR IN PORTLAND!
IN NATIONAL/WORLD NEWS:
• OPEC and Russia are teaming up to cut oil output to the west (to the tune of 2 million barrels a day), which could once again cause gas prices to skyrocket and substantial problems for the upcoming November election.
Hurricane Ian caused widespread damage in Southwest Florida, one of the state’s most politically conservative regions.
Republicans in Lee County are now assessing how the storm will affect voter turnout, with some insisting they’ll do just fine 2022.https://t.co/LBk3duRGEy
— POLITICO (@politico) October 5, 2022
• Meanwhile Putin signed the final papers that he hopes will make everyone believe he’s annexed four regions of Ukraine—even as his own troops are retreating and Ukraine is quickly yoinking their land back from him.
• Whoopsy-daisy! Despite a judge ordering them to be sealed, a log documenting details of 200,000 pages of documents taken from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence by the FBI were publicly (accidentally?) posted on the court’s docket. And they are spicy.
NEWWW : Secret Service had a motorcade accident — with @VP Harris inside — but at first obscured what really happened. Accident disturbed USSS Director and Veep — and revived worries about the @SecretService history of hiding the truthhttps://t.co/xGRCqTgvel
— Carol Leonnig (@CarolLeonnig) October 5, 2022
• In a new court filing, Angelina Jolie accuses ex-hubby Brad Pitt of grabbing her by the head, shaking her, and then striking one of their children during an argument while aboard a 2016 flight.
• And finally… hey, look! It’s concussion ping pong!
Fantastic… pic.twitter.com/cO7ylJyaqe
— Figen… (@TheFigen_) October 5, 2022
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Court Filing Reveals More Details About What FBI Seized From Mar-A-Lago | CNN Politics
Court Filing Reveals More Details About What FBI Seized From Mar-A-Lago | CNN Politics https://digitalalabamanews.com/court-filing-reveals-more-details-about-what-fbi-seized-from-mar-a-lago-cnn-politics/
Washington CNN —
Among the items seized by the FBI at Mar-a-Lago were clemency requests, health care documents, IRS forms and paperwork that appears to be related to the 2020 election, according to a Justice Department list made public this week.
The collection also included apparent communications about former President Donald Trump’s business connections, including what’s described as a confidential settlement agreement between PGA and Trump Golf, as well as an email accepting Trump’s resignation from SAG, or the Screen Actors Guild.
Full details of the documents aren’t available, but taken together, the newly public list offers a glimpse into a handful of the thousands of documents Trump was keeping at his Florida residence and resort after his presidency, and which the FBI removed from the beach club.
On Tuesday night, Bloomberg News made the list public by posting the court record of it online. The news outlet reported that the list was briefly – and apparently inadvertently – posted to the public court docket.
The list was made by a “Privilege Review Team” used by the Justice Department to filter out materials seized at Mar-a-Lago.
In all, the list identified 64 sets of materials, or about 520 pages, that the Justice Department’s privilege reviewers thought may need to be filtered out from the investigation and kept private.
In the items listed that appear to pertain to the 2020 election, the team filtered out emails from a Republican lawyer to the White House regarding a lawsuit in Georgia, as well as a sticky note that said “Joe Digernova Appoint Special Councel [sic],” a possible reference to Joe diGenova, a lawyer assisting Trump in efforts to sow doubt in the 2020 election result.
Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, businessman Ted Suhl and several people only identified by initials are named in the document list regarding the then-President’s consideration of clemency grants.
Several other records on the list pertained to legal work for Trump, lawsuits and other legal disputes.
The privilege review team was the initial bulwark the DOJ put in place so as not to breach attorney-client or presidential privileges, but a federal judge has now appointed a third-party “special master” to go through the documents again alongside the DOJ and Trump’s team.
The team’s list made public by Bloomberg News was submitted to a federal court, marked sealed, and stamped for authenticity. A shorter portion of the record is still publicly available but does not include the inventory list.
Previously, the DOJ had written in its public filings that the privilege review team pulled out from investigators’ access: an email between a baseball coach from the Air Force Academy and the White House; a box of documents that included one paper containing a law firm’s letterhead “comingled with newspapers”; what appeared to be pages of “The President’s Calls”; and a message from a “Rudy,” likely the attorney Rudy Giuliani, that didn’t appear to be legal advice.
A spokesman for the Justice Department, which submitted the entire document to the court on August 30, didn’t immediately have a comment.
Also this week in the Mar-a-Lago document review process, the Justice Department on Wednesday announced in a court filing it and Trump’s team had contracted with third-party vendors to host the thousands of pages of documents seized, so the special master and the Trump team could review them electronically.
This was an expected part of the special master review process, where Trump’s team can try to argue to a third-party appointee that some records should not be able to be used by the Justice Department investigators because they are confidential.
The special master’s work continues, even while the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals considers a challenge from the DOJ to the special master on the whole.
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Trump Says Mar-A-Lago Documents Coverage Has Given The Palm Beach Club '$5 Billion-Worth Of Free Publicity'
Trump Says Mar-A-Lago Documents Coverage Has Given The Palm Beach Club '$5 Billion-Worth Of Free Publicity' https://digitalalabamanews.com/trump-says-mar-a-lago-documents-coverage-has-given-the-palm-beach-club-5-billion-worth-of-free-publicity/
The DOJ is investigating Trump over his post-presidential handling of classified documents.
Trump said the coverage of the FBI’s search of his home provided tons of free publicity.
He called the investigation a “documents hoax” and a “charade.”
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MIAMI, Florida — Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday blasted the FBI’s Mar-a-Lago search for classified documents at his Florida home, but shared that he saw one silver lining in the ordeal.
In a speech at the Intercontinental Miami, Trump said the news “helicopters” flying over Mar-a-Lago since the search only boosted business for the private oceanfront club in Palm Beach, Florida.
“They’ve given us about $5 billion of free publicity,” Trump said at the Hispanic Leadership Conference in Miami, organized by America First Works.
“People say, ‘That’s a nice house,'” he added. “If it weren’t so nice they probably wouldn’t be doing it.”
Mar-a-Lago’s membership is private and paid through annual fees. It’s not clear whether membership has changed since the August raid, given that the club has been closed since Mother’s Day and doesn’t reopen until October 31, Insider previously reported.
Only members and their guests are allowed to use the facilities. It costs $200,000 to join, according to Town and Country, with another $14,000 in annual dues for access to the club’s dining amenities, spas, tennis courts, and other Trump properties.
Trump disclosed last month on his social media platform Truth Social that he’d returned to Mar-a-Lago to survey his home. During the FBI search he was at Trump Tower in New York, though he’d been spending much of the summer at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf course.
During the hourlong speech Wednesday, Trump largely defended himself in the investigation, saying he had done “nothing wrong,” He called the DOJ’s investigation a “document hoax” and a “charade.”
“They are targeting me because they want to silence me, silence you, and silence our amazing MAGA movement,” Trump said.
Federal investigators found dozens of classified and top secret documents at Mar-a-Lago, and are investigating whether Trump violated laws about record keeping and subsequently put national security at risk, according to court filings.
Earlier on Wednesday, a federal appeals court sided with the Justice Department and agreed to fast-track the appointment of a third party to review the seized records.
Trump has fundraised off the FBI search and has often faced scrutiny during his presidency for his business ties. When he was president he frequently stayed at Mar-a-Lago and used other Trump properties for events.
Post-presidency, GOP political hopefuls continue to flock to Mar-a-Lago, holding fundraisers and other events there as they hope to get some face time with Trump and perhaps even land a coveted endorsement.
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Court Declares DACA Program Illegal But Leaves Policy Intact For Nearly 600000 Immigrant
Court Declares DACA Program Illegal, But Leaves Policy Intact For Nearly 600,000 Immigrant https://digitalalabamanews.com/court-declares-daca-program-illegal-but-leaves-policy-intact-for-nearly-600000-immigrant/
A federal appeals court on Wednesday said the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) policy violates U.S. immigration law, dealing a blow to an Obama-era program that provides deportation protection and work permits to nearly 600,000 immigrant “Dreamers” who lack legal status.
A three-judge panel for the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals concluded the Obama administration did not have the legal authority to create DACA in 2012, affirming a July 2021 ruling from a federal judge in Texas who barred the Biden administration from enrolling new immigrants in the decade-old program.
Despite its conclusion, the appeals court did not order the Biden administration to shut down DACA completely or stop processing renewal applications, deciding instead to leave in place an order from U.S. Judge Andrew Hanen that left the policy intact for current beneficiaries. The government, however, will continue to be prohibited from approving first-time DACA applications.
The appeals court sent the case back to Hanen, tasking him with reviewing regulations that the Biden administration unveiled in August to address the legal challenges over the Obama administration’s decision to create DACA through a memo, instead of a rule open to public comments. The regulations are currently slated to go into effect on October 31.
The Justice Department, which represents the federal government in lawsuits, did not immediately say whether it would ask the Supreme Court to pause Wednesday’s ruling. The Biden administration is likely to file a formal appeal, paving the way for the conservative-leaning high court to issue a final decision on DACA’s legality next year.
In its ruling Wednesday, the three-judge panel concluded that DACA had the same legal defects as another Obama-era program that would have offered deportation protection to the unauthorized immigrant parents of U.S. citizens and green card holders. The program, known as the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA), was blocked in court and was never implemented.
“Like DAPA, DACA “is foreclosed by Congress’s careful plan; the program is ‘manifestly contrary to the statute,'” the ruling said.
Like Hanen, the Texas judge who declared DACA unlawful last summer, the appeals court expressed sympathy for immigrants currently enrolled in the program in justifying its decision to allow the government to continue accepting renewal applications.
“We also recognize that DACA has had profound significance to recipients and many others in the ten years since its adoption,” the court said.
As of June 30, 594,120 immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children were enrolled in DACA, half of whom live in California, Texas and Illinois, according to data published by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency that administers the program.
Wednesday’s court ruling stems from a lawsuit filed in 2018 by Texas and other Republican-controlled states that have argued DACA was an overreach of the federal government’s immigration powers.
While DACA allows beneficiaries to live and work in the U.S. legally without fear of deportation, it does not qualify them for permanent legal status or citizenship. Those enrolled in DACA had to prove they arrived in the U.S. by age 16 and before June 2007, studied in a U.S. school or served in the military, and lacked any serious criminal record.
The court ruling could create a renewed sense of urgency in Congress to pass legislation that places the program’s beneficiaries on path to citizenship, a proposal with robust bipartisan support among lawmakers and the American public.
For over two decades, however, proposals to legalize Dreamers have died in Congress amid intense partisan gridlock over other immigration issues. In the current Congress, Democrats would likely need to accept border security measures to secure the necessary number of Republican votes to pass such a legalization bill.
Camilo Montoya-Galvez
Camilo Montoya-Galvez is the immigration reporter at CBS News. Based in Washington, he covers immigration policy and politics.
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Former Uber Security Chief Convicted Of Covering Up 2016 Data Breach
Former Uber Security Chief Convicted Of Covering Up 2016 Data Breach https://digitalalabamanews.com/former-uber-security-chief-convicted-of-covering-up-2016-data-breach/
SAN FRANCISCO — A former chief security officer for Uber was convicted Wednesday of federal charges stemming from payments he quietly authorized to hackers who breached the ride-hailing company in 2016.
Joe Sullivan was found guilty of obstructing justice for keeping the breach from the Federal Trade Commission, which had been probing Uber’s privacy protections at the time, and of actively hiding a felony.
The verdict ended a dramatic case that pitted Sullivan, a prominent security expert who was an early prosecutor of cybercrimes for the San Francisco U.S. attorney’s office, against his former government office. In between prosecuting hackers and being prosecuted, Sullivan served as the top security executive at Facebook, Uber and Cloudflare.
Judge William H. Orrick did not set a date for sentencing. Sullivan may appeal if post-trial motions fail to set the verdict aside.
“Mr. Sullivan’s sole focus — in this incident and throughout his distinguished career — has been ensuring the safety of people’s personal data on the internet,” Sullivan attorney David Angeli said after the 12-member jury rendered its unanimous verdict on the fourth day of deliberations.
Even without Sullivan’s job history, the trial would have been closely watched as the first major criminal case brought against a corporate executive over a breach by outsiders.
It also may be one of the last: In the five years since Sullivan was fired, payoffs to extortionists, including those who steal sensitive data, have become so routine that some security firms and insurance companies specialize in handling the transactions.
“Paying out the ransom I think is more common than we’re led to believe. There is an attitude that’s similar to a fender bender,” said Michael Hamilton, founder of security firm Critical Insight.
FBI leaders, while officially discouraging the practice, have said they will not pursue the people and companies that pay ransoms if they don’t violate sanctions prohibiting payments to named criminal groups especially close to the Russian government.
“This case will certainly make executives, incident responders and anybody else connected with deciding whether to pay or disclose ransom payments think a little harder about their legal obligations. And that’s not a bad thing,” said Brett Callow, who researches ransomware at security firm Emsisoft. “As is, too much happens in shadows, and that lack of transparency can undermine cybersecurity efforts.”
Most security professionals had been anticipating Sullivan’s acquittal, noting that he had kept the CEO and others who were not charged informed of what was happening.
“Personal liability for corporate decisions with executive stakeholder input is a new territory that’s somewhat uncharted for security executives,” said Dave Shackleford, owner of Voodoo Security. “I fear it will lead to a lack of interest in our field, and increased skepticism about infosec overall.”
John Johnson, a “virtual” chief information security officer for multiple companies, agreed. “Your company leadership could make choices that can have very personal repercussions to you and your lifestyle,” he said. “Not saying everything Joe did was right or perfect, but we can’t bury our head and say it will never happen to us.”
Prosecutors argued in Sullivan’s case that his use of a nondisclosure agreement with the hackers was evidence that he participated in a coverup. They said the break-in was a hack that was followed by extortion as the hackers threatened to publish the data they took, and so it should not have qualified for Uber’s bug bounty program to reward friendly security researchers.
But the reality is that as the hacking of corporations has gotten worse, the way companies have dealt with it has moved far past the letter of the law when Sullivan was accused of breaking it.
Bug bounties usually require nondisclosure deals, some of which last forever.
“Bug bounty programs are being misused to hide vulnerability information. In the case of Uber, they were used to cover up a breach,” Katie Moussouris, who established a bug bounty program at Microsoft and now runs her own vulnerability resolution company, said in an interview.
The case against Sullivan started when a hacker emailed Uber anonymously and described a security lapse that allowed him and a partner to download data from one of the company’s Amazon repositories. It emerged that they had used a stray digital key Uber had left exposed to get into the Amazon account, where they found and extracted an unencrypted backup of data on more than 50 million Uber riders and 600,000 drivers.
Sullivan’s team steered them toward Uber’s bounty program and noted that the top payout under it was $10,000. The hackers said they would need six figures and threatened to release the data.
A protracted negotiation ensued that ended with a $100,000 payment and a promise from the hackers that they had destroyed the data and would not disclose what they had done. While that looks like a coverup, testimony showed that Sullivan’s staff used the process to get clues that would lead them to the real identities of the perpetrators, which they felt was necessary leverage to hold them to their word. The two were later arrested and pleaded guilty to hacking charges, and one testified for the prosecution in Sullivan’s trial.
The obstruction charge drew strength from the fact that Uber at the time was nearing the end of a Federal Trade Commission investigation following a major 2014 breach.
A charge of actively hiding a felony, or misprision, could also apply to many of the corporate chiefs who send bitcoin to overseas hackers without telling anyone else what happened. While the number of those hush-ups is impossible to get, it is clearly a large figure. Otherwise, federal officials would not have pressed for recent legislation that will require ransomware notifications from critical infrastructure victims to the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
The Securities and Exchange Commission is also pushing for more disclosure. The conviction stunned corporate security and compliance leaders and will rivet their attention on the details of those rules.
The case against Sullivan was weaker in some respects than one might expect from a trial aimed at setting a precedent.
While he directed the response to the two hackers, many others at the company were in the loop, including a lawyer on Sullivan’s team, Craig Clark. Evidence showed that Sullivan told Uber’s then-chief executive, Travis Kalanick, within hours of learning about the threat himself, and that Kalanick approved Sullivan’s strategy. The company’s chief privacy lawyer, who was overseeing the response to the FTC, was informed, and the head of the company’s communications team had details as well.
Clark, the designated legal lead on breaches, was given immunity to testify against his former boss. On cross-examination, he acknowledged advising the team that the attack would not have to be disclosed if the hackers were identified, agreed to delete what they had taken and could convince the company that they had not spread the data further, all of which eventually came to pass.
Prosecutors were left to challenge “whether Joe Sullivan could have possibly believed that,” as one of them put it in closing arguments Friday.
Sullivan’s attorney Angeli said that the real world functioned differently from bug bounty ideals and the policies laid out in company manuals.
“At the end of the day, Mr. Sullivan led a team that worked tirelessly to protect Uber’s customers,” Angeli told the jury.
After Kalanick was forced out of the company for unrelated scandals, his successor, Dara Khosrowshahi, came in and learned of the breach. Sullivan depicted it to him as a routine payoff, prosecutors said, editing from one email the amount of the payoff and the fact that the hackers had obtained unencrypted data, including phone numbers, on tens of millions of riders. After a later investigation turned up the full story, Khosrowshahi testified, he fired Sullivan for not telling him more, sooner.
Eager to show that it was operating in a new era, the company helped the U.S. attorney’s office build a case against Sullivan. And the prosecutors in turn unsuccessfully pressed Sullivan to implicate Kalanick, who would have been a far bigger prize but was not damned by the surviving written evidence, according to people familiar with the process.
Bug bounties were never meant to offer as much money to hackers as criminals or governments would pay. Instead, they were designed to offer some cash to those already inclined to stay above board.
But the companies are the ones paying the bill even when the programs are run by outside vendors such as HackerOne and Bugcrowd. Disputes between the researchers reporting the security holes and the companies with the holes are now common.
The two sides differ over whether a bug was “in scope,” meaning inside the areas where the company said it wanted help. They differ over how much a bug is worth, or if it is worthless because others had already found it. And they differ over how, or even if, the researcher can disclose the work after the bug has been fixed or the company opts not to change anything.
The bounty platforms have arbitration procedures for those disputes, but since the companies are footing the bill, many hackers see bias. Too much protesting, and they get booted from the platform entirely.
“If you’re hacking on a bug bounty program for the love of hacking and making security better, that’s the wrong reason, because you have no control over whether a company decides to patch in a timely matter or not,” said John Jackson, a researcher who cut back on his bounty work and now sells vulnerability information when he can...
Kamille Cupcake McKinneys Injuries Described In Emotional Day Of Testimony
Kamille ‘Cupcake’ McKinney’s Injuries Described In Emotional Day Of Testimony https://digitalalabamanews.com/kamille-cupcake-mckinneys-injuries-described-in-emotional-day-of-testimony/
Retired FBI agent Stanley Ruffin described the horrific moment he found the decomposing body of 3-year-old Kamille “Cupcake” McKinney in a heap of trash at a Jefferson County landfill.
“I saw what I thought was a doll just laying there,’’ an emotional Ruffin testified. “And I realized it wasn’t doll.”
“I had to close my eyes to think if I was really seeing what I was seeing,’’ Ruffin said. “I took a moment, thought about my own children.”
“When I opened my eyes, I realized I was actually seeing a human body,’’ he said. “A little girl.”
Ruffin said he and other investigators then stopped and raised their hand, a predetermined signal to notify a supervisor that they had found something.
Through tears, Ruffin explained that they then placed Cupcake’s body in a bag.
He was asked what affect the discovery had on him and other law enforcement officers.
“Well, it was hard,’’ he said. “Everyone involved in this was visibly affected.”
“I was involved in 9/11 and I thought that was one of the worst things I would experience in my career, until this,’’ he said. “I had never dealt with a child.”
Ruffin said all involved in the recovery had to receive counseling, and Ruffin retired from the FBI a short time later. He now works for NASCAR.
Ruffin’s testimony came on day three of the federal kidnapping trial of Patrick Stallworth who, along with his girlfriend, are accused in the 2019 deadly abduction.
Stallworth and Derick Irisha Brown, 32, are both charged federally with kidnapping and conspiracy to kidnap a minor.
Brown’s trial is set for Nov. 14 in federal court in Tuscaloosa. The U.S. Department of Justice previously ruled it will not seek the death penalty in the federal charges.
Both still are charged with capital murder in state court. No state trial dates have yet been set.
Patrick Stallworth will go on trial in federal court Monday, Oct. 3, 2022, in the 2019 deadly kidnapping of Kamille “Cupcake” McKinney. (AL.com)
Cupcake vanished from a birthday party at Tom Brown Village public housing community on Oct. 12, 2019. Her body was found at the landfill 10 days later.
Chief U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler is presiding over the trial. Lloyd Peeples, chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Criminal Division, along with assistant U.S.
Attorneys Brittany Byrd and Blake Milner, are prosecuting the case. Stallworth is represented by Birmingham attorney Derrick Collins.
During Ruffin’s testimony, jurors were shown photos of the landfill, and then photos of the discovery of Cupcake’s body.
The photos were not shown to the court spectators, and a barrier screen was placed in front of Cupcake’s family so they could not see the photos on the jurors’ monitors.
At least three of the jurors used tissues to wipe their eyes during the photos and Ruffin’s testimony. Another took a sharp breath.
Earlier Wednesday, Birmingham homicide Det. Jonathan Ross, who led the probe, testified about multiple interviews with Stallworth during the search for Cupcake, and immediately after her body was discovered.
In the first interview, which took place the day after Cupcake vanished, Stallworth denied having anything to do with the child’s disappearance.
“Why would I grab a kid,’’ Stallworth said in a video recorded interview that was shown to the jury. “We didn’t take no child.”
Stallworth described his girlfriend as an “awesome mom,’’ and gave no indication to having taken Cupcake.
Stallworth was interviewed by detectives again on Oct. 15, and Oct. 22 – the latter interview taking place after Cupcake’s body had been discovered.
Again, authorities said, Stallworth claimed to have no knowledge of Cupcake’s disappearance.
On Oct. 23, however, Ross testified that he was notified that Stallworth wanted to talk to detectives.
He and Birmingham homicide Det. Talana Brown went to the Jefferson County Jail to conduct the interview.
Ross said Stallworth waived his Miranda Rights and said he wanted to talk.
He told them his girlfriend had “started talking crazy” and “getting violent.” At some point, he said, he realized there was a little girl – Kamille – in the apartment with them.
Patrick Stallworth, left, and Derick Irisha Brown, right, have been arrested in connection with the disappearance and subsequent death of Kamille “Cupcake” McKinney.
“It kind of shocked me,’’ Stallworth told the detectives. “I just couldn’t understand where the (expletive) the baby come from. She (Derick Brown) said it was her baby.”
Stallworth told detectives that Brown wanted him to “do things to the baby.”
He said Brown had been molested as a child and wanted Stallworth to do the same things to Cupcake.
“We was freaky, you know what I’m saying,’’ Stallworth told the detectives, but said what Brown was suggesting was “too far.”
Stallworth said he repeated told his girlfriend to take the baby and leave.
He said he went to sleep and when he woke up, the baby was gone, and his girlfriend was beside him. They had sex, he told detectives.
Eventually, Stallworth told detectives that his girlfriend killed Cupcake. “I think she choked her. She might have choked her,’’ he said.
Stallworth was crying throughout the interview. “Lord Jesus, Lord Jesus, Lord Jesus,’’ Stallworth said, at times in a whisper. “I didn’t do it.”
Stallworth later told detectives that Brown put her hand over the baby’s nose and mouth.
Under cross examination by Collins, Ross testified they had pictures of Cupcake’s body on the table during the interview with Stallworth. Asked Stallworth’s reaction, Ross said, “He kept pushing them away.”
“Though all these interviews, my client has told you he had no interest sexually in a child and that he would never harm a child, correct?’’ Collins said.
Sgt. Brown also testified Wednesday about interviews with Derick Brown.
A portion of that interview showed Stallworth’s girlfriend saying about her boyfriend, “I’ll lie on him if you want me to. I’m not fixing to sit here and go to jail for nobody.”
Dr. Daniel Dye, a forensic pathologist with the Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiners Office, testified about the decomposed state of Cupcake’s body.
“Decomposition limits the autopsy,’’ Dye said. “The changes can mask some injuries.”
Dye testified that Cupcake had two small abrasions on her back, as well as abrasions on the back of left arm and elbow, which he described as blunt force injuries – either she hit something hard or something hard hit her, he said.
There were also three abrasions on her left buttock and thigh.
The autopsy also showed Cupcake had contusions – or bruises – on the right side of her forehead and face, which he said is consistent with something pushing against the area or being “held down and pressed against a hard object.”
All of those injuries, Dye said, happened while Cupcake was still alive.
Toxicology testing, Dye said, showed Cupcake had Trazodone – an anti-depressant for which Stallworth says he had prescription for sleep – Benadryl and methamphetamine in her system. Benadryl, he said, is used as a “cutting agent” with illicit drugs.
Again, Dye said, evidence indicates Cupcake was alive when she ingested the drugs.
Dye said he could not say what effect the drugs had on Cupcake but concluded, “Methamphetamine and Trazodone are part of the reason she died.”
Under cross examination, Dye acknowledged that there were no genital or anal injuries to Cupcake, nor any evidence found around her mouth area to indicate sexual abuse or trauma.
Testimony will continue Thursday, and the defense is expected to possibly begin presenting their case.
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Russia's Artillery Is Faltering In Some Parts Of Ukraine And Moscow Is Using Iran's Drones To Fill The Gap
Russia's Artillery Is Faltering In Some Parts Of Ukraine, And Moscow Is Using Iran's Drones To Fill The Gap https://digitalalabamanews.com/russias-artillery-is-faltering-in-some-parts-of-ukraine-and-moscow-is-using-irans-drones-to-fill-the-gap/
Russian forces have begun using Iranian-made drones in attacks on Ukrainian forces.
Moscow appears to be using the drones to compensate for shortfalls in artillery and airpower.
Experts say the drones have limited utility but it’s unclear what impact they’ll have on the battlefield.
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With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine faltering, Moscow has turned to an unlikely savior: Iran.
Russian forces in Ukraine are using Iranian-made “kamikaze” drones that have already destroyed precious Ukrainian artillery around Kharkiv, where Kyiv launched a successful counterattack that has driven back Russian troops.
Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones appear to be compensating for Russian airpower that has proven ineffective in combat and for Russian artillery that has concentrated far to the south of Kharkiv.
“In other areas, the Russians have overwhelming artillery firepower, and they manage with that,” a Ukrainian colonel in the Kharkiv region told The Wall Street Journal. “Here, they no longer have that artillery advantage, and so they have started to resort to these drones.”
Aside from the initial shock of encountering Iranian drones 1,200 miles from Tehran, it’s not clear what impact the drones will have on the battlefield.
A Ukrainian military photo of what Kyiv described as an Iranian Shahed drone downed near Kupiansk.
Ukrainian military’s Strategic Communications Directorate via AP
“I think we are at the early stages of assessing their usability,” Samuel Bendett, an expert on Russian drones at the Center for Naval Analyses, told Insider. “They can hit Ukrainian long-range artillery — highly prized Russian targets — as well stationary targets like buildings.”
Ironically, it was Ukraine that initially reaped the advantage of UAVs: Its Turkish-made TB2 Bayraktar attack drones, armed with laser-guided anti-tank missiles, took a surprising toll of Russian armor in the early days of the war.
But the TB-2 is a somewhat large, clumsy drone with a 39-foot wingspan and a maximum speed of just 137 mph.
Iran’s Shahed-136, and its smaller cousin, the Shahed-131, which Russia is also using, are loitering munitions that are a cross between a drone and a missile: With a camera in their nose, they orbit a target like a drone until an operator on the ground smashes them into tanks, howitzers, and bunkers just like a missile.
The delta-winged Shahed-136 has a wingspan of about 8 feet and a cruising speed of about 112 mph, according to the Ukrainian military. Iran claims the UAV has a remarkable range of more than 1,550 miles, which would make it bigger and faster than the backpack-carried Switchblade kamikaze drones that the US has supplied to Ukraine.
TB2 Bayraktar drones at a military base in Hmelnitski, Ukraine in March 2019.
Press Office of the President of Ukraine / Mykola Lararenko / Handout/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Western analysts were quick to point out the Shahed-136’s flaws.
Justin Bronk, an airpower expert at Britain’s Royal United Services Institute think tank, noted several limitations of bargain-basement kamikaze drones: commercial GPS guidance that’s jammable, small warheads of less than 50 pounds, commercial components vulnerable to anti-drone microwave weapons, and difficulty hitting moving targets.
For Ukraine, perhaps the best news is that the Shahed-136 isn’t hard to shoot down.
“They are slow- and low-flying, which significantly limits their utility as responsive weapons against a sudden threat at range and also makes them comparatively easy to intercept with old-fashioned radar-laid anti-aircraft guns,” Bronk wrote, pointing to Germany’s Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft gun, which Berlin has supplied to Kyiv.
But loitering munitions like the Shahed-136 are fairly cheap and easy to operate, which could enable Russia to employ swarm tactics that overwhelm a target with hordes of drones.
“Russia’s Shahed-136s are certainly an increasing problem for Ukraine,” Bronk concluded. “Air defenses cannot intercept them all, and they will cause damage to cities, bases and probably SAM radars. Western partners should increase deliveries of short- and medium-range air defenses to help.”
Ukrainian police officers inspect a downed Russian drone in Kyiv on March 22.
FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images
This suggests an emerging contest between Ukrainian air defenses and large numbers of Iranian-made kamikaze drones. “I think a lot will depend on whether Russian military can field them in large enough numbers to begin overwhelming Ukrainian air defenses,” Bendett said.
One embarrassing question is why Russia — which has invested heavily in drones — can’t field its own cheap loitering munitions. Another is whether Iran will continue to supply Russia with large numbers of drones.
Like Turkey, Iran has emerged as a major player in the world of drones, which are relatively easy for smaller countries to develop and acquire compared to weapons like jets and tanks. Iranian-made drones have been used in attacks on Saudi oil fields, and Tehran has sold them to Venezuela.
Russia and Iran have been in a marriage of convenience for years — in part to spite the US — with Iran buying Russian weapons like the S-300 anti-aircraft system, and Tehran may see support for Moscow now as another way to counter the US.
But Ukraine downgraded its relations with Iran over the drone sales, and with Tehran still facing heavy international sanctions and buffeted by increasing domestic unrest, picking a fight over Ukraine seems risky. Then again, Russia and Iran, already pariahs, may feel they have nothing to lose.
Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds a master’s in political science. Follow him on Twitter and LinkedIn.
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Local School Systems Invest In Narcan In Case Of Possible Fentanyl Exposures
Local School Systems Invest In Narcan In Case Of Possible Fentanyl Exposures https://digitalalabamanews.com/local-school-systems-invest-in-narcan-in-case-of-possible-fentanyl-exposures/
MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – Last week’s incident at Chickasaw High School where a student was originally believed to have suffered a possible fentanyl overdose hit home for Superintendent David Wofford.
“It’s incredibly scary to get a phone call like that. No matter where you’re at or what you’re doing it just stops you in your tracks,” said Superintendent David Wofford.
Fortunately, doctors determined it wasn’t fentanyl, but instead a different type of medical emergency. Even before last week’s incident, the Chickasaw City School System ordered Narcan to keep on campus at the middle and high school. They’ll also train staff members in each school on how to use it.
“Our nurses and our counselors will probably be the ones to be trained first,” said Wofford.
The training, led by lead nurse Vicki Wren, will also include how to recognize the signs of a possible overdose.
“They would be unresponsive,” said Wren. “Their breathing may be slow or shallow. Blue lips, blue fingernails.
It’s a similar setup to the Baldwin County school system which has had Narcan at their high schools since 2019 before expanding it to the middle schools last year.
“We’re not under the impression that middle school students don’t every now and then partake in something they shouldn’t especially an opioid,” said Health Services Coordinator Ashley Barnhill. “So we wanted to make sure we had it for them as well.”
Along with some school resource officers each school has a medical emergency response team that is trained on when and how to use Narcan.
“It depends on the size of the school but we could have anywhere from ten teachers for a smaller school and thirty teachers for a larger school,” added Barnhill.
Both school systems are using the Narcan nasal spray which is a fast-acting method to reverse an opioid overdose. In a situation where seconds matter, having it on hand could make all the difference while they wait for paramedics.
“The faster we can respond and get the Narcan in their system the better chances there are they’re not going to have respiratory distress,” said Barnhill.
The Mobile County Public School System says they also have Narcan at all of their high schools, and they’re working on expanding it to the middle schools.
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Auburn O-Lineman Believes Tigers Can 'demolish' Georgia's Defensive Front
Auburn O-Lineman Believes Tigers Can 'demolish' Georgia's Defensive Front https://digitalalabamanews.com/auburn-o-lineman-believes-tigers-can-demolish-georgias-defensive-front/
Brandon Council isn’t lacking confidence heading into Auburn’s most difficult challenge to date — a road game against No. 2 Georgia. In fact, the Tigers’ new starting center appeared to be brimming with it Wednesday as his team prepares for its first road game of the year.
Fresh off his first start at center during Auburn’s loss to LSU, Council spoke boldly about the outlook of Auburn’s offensive line in its head-to-head matchup with Georgia’s defensive line, which is one of the top-10 units in the nation.
“If you start off fast, run the ball on them and keep them out of their third-down packages, really, we could demolish them, I believe personally, up front,” Council said.
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That’s surely easier said than done against the defending national champion and in a stadium that has caused Auburn headaches during its last seven trips between the hedges. Auburn hasn’t won in Athens, Ga., since 2005, losing seven straight games on the road in The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry.
That fact isn’t lost on Council, who brought up the Tigers’ last road win against the Bulldogs during his interview Wednesday, but it’s also not curbing his expectations for Auburn this weekend. He also mentioned perceived lack of depth along the line for Georgia as an advantage for Auburn. The Bulldogs will be without preseason All-American Jalen Carter, who injured his knee in last weekend’s game against Missouri.
Even with Carter sidelined, though, Georgia’s two-deep features nine blue-chip players along the defensive line.
“Right now, they don’t have that much depth due to injuries in the interior D-line,” Council said. “The guys that do come out, I don’t think they trust them. If we keep them out of third down where they can’t bring packages and have to keep their main guys on the field, we’re just going to run the ball on them all day because they’re going to get tired.”
Georgia has been one of the nation’s best defenses on third downs this season, with opponents converting just 27.69 percent of their third-down opportunities.
Auburn has struggled to run the ball consistently this season. Against Power 5 teams — Penn State, Missouri and LSU — Auburn has averaged just 100.7 yards per game on the ground and 2.7 yards per carry. According to Football Outsiders, Auburn’s offensive line is 121st nationally in stuff rate (the percentage of carries stopped at or behind the line of scrimmage) this season.
Auburn is coming off a 21-17 loss to LSU in which it managed just 109 sack-adjusted rushing yards and fewer than 4 yards per carry. That performance came with a new-look offensive line, featuring Council at center, Kam Stutts at left guard and Alec Jackson at right guard. Auburn had its most productive game of the season in terms of yardage, but it faltered again after halftime while squandering a 17-point second-quarter lead.
“I think we did great, and the last game could speak for itself, as you could see the push and the line actually playing past the line of scrimmage instead of being pushed back,” Council said. “That was just a big piece. It also goes back to the communication and everybody knowing what they’re doing on the line, so you don’t have to overcome anything. You can just fire straight off the ball.”
The numbers don’t necessarily back up Council’s overflowing confidence, but Auburn hopes it can take some of the positives from last week’s performance and spin it forward into success on the road against Georgia.
“We have the chance to go out there and do something that hasn’t been done in a long time, that’s beat Georgia at Georgia,” Council said. “…That would be a big thing. Our goal is to go in there like a SWAT team, in and out and quiet the noise and beat their behinds and get out.”
Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.
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Court Agrees To Expedite Justice Department Appeal In Trump Special Master Case Mountain Top Media
Court Agrees To Expedite Justice Department Appeal In Trump Special Master Case – Mountain Top Media https://digitalalabamanews.com/court-agrees-to-expedite-justice-department-appeal-in-trump-special-master-case-mountain-top-media/
Court agrees to expedite Justice Department appeal in Trump special master case
mountain top media
Article Updated: October 5, 2022
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A federal appeals court agreed to fast-track the Justice Department’s appeal of a lower court order requiring a third-party special master review hundreds of documents seized from former President Donald Trump’s home.
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Trump Forced Aide To Play Fox News Clip Where He Was Called 'the Most Masculine Person' Over And Over: Book
Trump Forced Aide To Play Fox News Clip Where He Was Called 'the Most Masculine Person' Over And Over: Book https://digitalalabamanews.com/trump-forced-aide-to-play-fox-news-clip-where-he-was-called-the-most-masculine-person-over-and-over-book/
New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman released her new book “Confidence Man,” a 600-plus-page volume of the decades she spent reporting on former President Donald Trump.
MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace, speaking to Haberman, noted that there were several anecdotes in the book.
One Haberman recalled was an illustration of Trump’s obsession with his manliness and his intelligence. She explained that Trump gets mad when people talk about how much he watches television because he interprets it as a slight on his intellect.
In another incident, she recalled Trump obsessing over his virility, as the accusation by adult film star Stormy Daniels about the appearance of his genitals was a serious issue to him.
READ MORE: ‘No other president has been harassed and persecuted!’ Trump delivers angry rant at Hispanic Leadership Conference
Trump’s obsession with manliness cropped up again after the January 6th Capitol riots when Fox News asked spokesman Hogan Gidley if he felt “emasculated” after having his Twitter account suspended.
“I wouldn’t say emasculated,” Gidley replied. “The most masculine person, I think, to ever hold the White House is the president of the United States.”
According to Haberman, this thrilled Trump.
“Trump called his former adviser to tell him he was correct, and had aides play the video of Gidley speaking several times,” Haberman writes.
Another incident in the book recalls Trump’s obsessive display of manhood on full display as he would “him brandishing photos of scantily clad women with whom he claimed to have been involved,” former employees told Haberman. “He appeared to keep the photos on hand to illustrate his boastful rendering of masculinity.”
See Haberman’s take below and read more about Haberman’s book here.
Trump’s obsession with masculinity www.youtube.com
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Here's How The Postseason Pitching Staffs Rank https://digitalalabamanews.com/heres-how-the-postseason-pitching-staffs-rank/
5:19 PM UTC
The postseason is all about the starters. Except when it’s about the bullpens. Except when it’s about the starters. Except when it’s …
Well, you get the idea. The postseason is all about PITCHING, whatever the role, whatever the form.
So how do the 12 October teams rank in terms of their pitching staffs? Let’s take a look.
*All stats are through Monday’s games
Bottom line: This is the most pitching-rich team in baseball right now. Luis Garcia, Cristian Javier and José Urquidy give Houston the luxury of terrific starting depth beyond the top three listed here, and any of them could be a bullpen weapon. Same goes for hard-throwing prospect Hunter Brown if he gets rostered. And it’s not as if the bullpen is starved for help. It had the lowest relief ERA in MLB.
Bottom line: Statistically, the Dodgers had the best pitching staff in MLB this year, and they’ve got a franchise-record win total to show for it. Their October outlook is fascinating, though, because late-season injuries affecting Tony Gonsolin and Dustin May and the struggles of Craig Kimbrel that led to his demotion from the closer role leave a lot up in the air. Urías is the Dodgers’ top starter … and yet he would also be an intriguing candidate to close out games in a pinch. Starter Andrew Heaney could be used in the ‘pen. This will be a very fluid staff, is the point.
Bottom line: Rookie sensation Spencer Strider hasn’t pitched since Sept. 18 because of an oblique injury, which is the only reason why he isn’t listed above (for now). But whether Strider is ready, Fried, Wright and Morton are capable of picking up the starting slack. The Braves’ bullpen might be the club’s biggest weapon. With the additions of Jansen and Iglesias this year, it runs deeper than the group Atlanta rode to the 2021 World Series title.
Bottom line: Though the young, fun lineup has been a 2022 revelation, pitching remains the backbone of this organization. Cleveland has a true ace in Bieber, a true anchor in Clase and has benefited from a big breakout from McKenzie. The midseason return of Karinchak from a shoulder issue helped the bullpen post the best second-half ERA in MLB.
Bottom line: You know how it is with the Rays. They could pick names out of a hat and get outs. They’ve had 18 pitchers make a start and 11 pitchers record a save. They could use openers or piggybackers (particularly for Glasnow, who only recently returned from Tommy John surgery and will have his workload limited) or do whatever mixing and matching it takes to maintain a matchup advantage.
Bottom line: We can (and often do) wax poetic about what it means to have two Hall of Fame-caliber arms atop a playoff rotation in Scherzer and deGrom. That said, Scherzer’s multiple IL stints with a left oblique issue hampered him slightly this season, while deGrom only recently returned from a year-long injury absence and wasn’t his usual dominant self down the stretch of the regular season. They’ll have to step up, as will the go-to arms in a bullpen that has been very effective despite depth concerns and the lack of a reliable lefty presence.
Bottom line: While the Yankees’ arms as a group have put up terrific numbers this year, there is no denying that a number of question marks exist here, from Cole’s troubles with the long ball to Holmes’ second-half regression and its effect on the bullpen. It will be particularly interesting to see how Cortes handles his first October assignment, given how vital he has been to this rotation.
Bottom line: You could say no team made a bigger addition at the Trade Deadline than the Mariners did in adding Castillo to what now rates as a fantastic rotation (strike-throwing rookie George Kirby is another rotation option). The bullpen has been an underrated strength the past two years. It has the fifth-best strikeout-minus-walk rate (17.9%) and left-on-base percentage in MLB (75.2%). Seattle has the sixth-best ERA in MLB since the start of August, so there is an argument to move them higher on this list.
Bottom line: The in-season acquisitions of Quintana and lefty Jordan Montgomery and the late-season return to prominence after a lengthy injury ordeal for Flaherty gives the Cards solid rotation depth going into October (veteran Adam Wainwright is, of course, another option for a start in a short series). Some of that depth — in the form of Hudson and Steven Matz — spills into what has been a good bullpen anchored by All-Star closer Helsley and his triple-digit heat.
Bottom line: Few will be forecasting a deep run for the Phillies, but the dynamic combo of Wheeler and Nola atop the rotation gives them a legit chance, and Suárez has been fantastic since the start of July (2.33 ERA in 13 starts). The bullpen has been boosted by Eflin’s recent seamless transition to relief work and the midseason return of Robertson in a trade.
Bottom line: Because of a season-ending injury to Hyun Jin Ryu and the surprising struggles of José Berríos, this season has not played out as expected for the Toronto pitching staff. But the veteran Stripling stepped up to preserve the rotation behind the excellent Manoah and Gausman, and Berríos could be an interesting option in a very solid bullpen in the Wild Card Series if he doesn’t get a start over Stripling.
Bottom line: The thing about this list is that all of these pitching staffs are inherently good, otherwise these wouldn’t be postseason teams. Somebody had to be last, and the Padres’ essentially average ERA+ puts them here. But after enduring midseason consistency, this staff seems to be hitting its stride at the right time. Snell’s fantastic finish (1.76 ERA in his last seven starts) adds shine to this starting group. And though much was made about Hader’s colossal struggles at the start of his San Diego tenure, he has settled into a bullpen that also benefits from the recent injury returns for Pierce Johnson and Craig Stammen.
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Believe It Or Not..Slavery Is Still Legal In Parts Of The US.
Believe It Or Not…..Slavery Is Still Legal In Parts Of The US. https://digitalalabamanews.com/believe-it-or-not-slavery-is-still-legal-in-parts-of-the-us/
Whoa…….before you start yelling at the screen and telling me I’m full of #$^%……..let me explain.
Our 16th President, considered to be the greatest in our Nation’s history, Abraham Lincoln opened the path to abolish slavery on the first day of 1863 with the Emancipation Proclamation.
Photo by Caleb Fisher on Unsplash
Photo by Caleb Fisher on Unsplash
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It paved the way for the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution (which was passed by Congress before Lincoln’s assassination in 1865 but ratified after) that would abolish slavery and involuntary servitude in the United States except…………
The 13th Amendment had a carve out, considered by many to be an exemption clause, that stated prisoners convicted of crimes could be forced to do labor or face punishment while in custody.
This exemption is still in place in roughly 10 states, but a number are placing initiatives or amendments to their State Constitutions on the ballot for voters to decide whether or not to keep the provision.
While many would argue that forced labor in a prison setting is not slavery, those that are pushing for prison reform would citethe definition of slavery itself as descriptive of forced labor in prisons.
While Washington State has no mention of slavery or involuntary servitude in it’s Constitution our neighbors to the south, Oregon, does.
Article I Section 34 of the Oregon Constitution states: “There shall be neither slavery, nor involuntary servitude in the State, otherwise than as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted”
There is a Measure on the November ballot in the Beaver State, Measure 112, that would remove that language from the State Constitution for good. Four other States, Alabama, Louisiana, Vermont (the first State to abolish slavery in 1777), and Tennessee are also looking at removing the language on their ballots as well this year.
LOOK: What major laws were passed the year you were born?
Data for this list was acquired from trusted online sources and news outlets. Read on to discover what major law was passed the year you were born and learn its name, the vote count (where relevant), and its impact and significance.
The Bands 10 Infamous Serial Killers Loved
The favorite musicians and songs of infamous serial killers.
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S&P 500 Closes Lower Wednesday After Two Days Of Strong Gains
S&P 500 Closes Lower Wednesday After Two Days Of Strong Gains https://digitalalabamanews.com/sp-500-closes-lower-wednesday-after-two-days-of-strong-gains/
Stocks slip in final minutes of trading to close at a loss
The major averages made a late-day comeback from the lows to briefly trade in positive territory, but all three ended the session down.
The S&P 500 closed the day down 0.2% to close at 3,783.28. The Nasdaq Composite shed 0.25% to end at 11,148.64. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which came back from a loss of more than 400 points, closed lower by 0.14% at 30,273.87.
-Darla Mercado
Fed’s Bostic says these are just the ‘early days’ of the inflation fight
Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic talked tough on inflation in a speech Wednesday, saying the central bank still has a lot of work to do before it can declare victory.
“We must remain vigilant because this inflation battle is likely still in early days if the projections of my [Federal Open Market Committee] colleagues are correct,” Bostic said in a speech to Northwestern University’s Institute for Policy Research.
Bostic added that it likely “will take some time” to get inflation back to the Fed’s 2% target as “we are still decidedly in the inflationary woods, not out of them.”
From a rates perspective, Bostic said he envisions the Fed’s benchmark levy rising to a 4%-4.5% before policymakers can take a step back to evaluate progress. The fed funds rate currently sits in a range of 3%-3.25%; projections the FOMC released in September foresee rates rising to 4.6% in 2023, putting Bostic slightly to the dovish side of the committee.
However, he added that he would say to anyone expecting the Fed to cut rates next year, “Not so fast.”
Bostic is not a voting member of the FOMC either this year or next, though he does get to voice his policy stance during meetings.
—Jeff Cox
Stocks stage a late-day rally
U.S. stocks staged a big reversal in the final hour of trading Wednesday after being in the red for most of the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 105 points, or 0.3%. Earlier in the day, the Dow was down as much as 429.88 points. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.2%.
— Tanaya Macheel
CNBC Pro Talks: Katie Stockton on finding “pockets of strength” in a losing market
As investors deliberate where stocks will go after this week’s two-day rally, Fairlead Strategies’ founder Katie Stockton told CNBC Pro how investors can position their portfolios for a volatile market.
The chart analyst said she expects that markets will remain in a downtrend, pointing to poor technical indicators. She advised investors to remain underexposed to stocks.
Still, there are some “pockets of strength” that investors can look to.
Watch the full CNBC Pro Talks interview here.
— Sarah Min
Stocks driving the afternoon comeback
Major averages jumped off the lows in afternoon trading Wednesday, led by energy names Exxon Mobil and Halliburton, which both rallied more than 4%. Semiconductors, the industry that came under pressure earlier, traded off their lows. Qualcomm rose 1.5%, driving the comeback in the sector. Meanwhile, Nike jumped 2% in afternoon trading, leading consumer stocks higher
— Yun Li
Dow turns positive as Wall Street tries to keep this week’s rally going
The Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly turned positive Wednesday afternoon as Wall Street fought to get the index back in the green, following its two-day 1,500-point gain earlier this week.
The blue chip index added 15 points, or 0.1%, after being down as much as 429.88 points earlier in the day, or more than 1%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite were also well off their intraday lows, last down 0.2% and 0.4%, respectively.
— Tanaya Macheel
Art Cashin doesn’t trust the market’s two-day rally
NYSE decliners lead advancers 3-1
As of 1:09 p.m. ET, 2,250 New York Stock Exchange-listed stocks traded lower, while just 738 advanced, as a sharp market rally cooled off. Put another way, roughly three stocks declined for every one advancer.
— Fred Imbert
Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Carnival, Enphase and more
These companies are making headlines before the bell:
Carnival — Cruise line stocks declined as a group. Shares of Carnival fell 7%, Royal Caribbean Group dropped 3.5%, and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings declined 3.4%. The group got a boost a day earlier, after Norwegian said it would end all Covid-19 testing and vaccination requirements.
Enphase Energy, Sunrun — Solar stocks declined Wednesday after their rally earlier this week. Shares of Enphase Energy declined 13%, and Sunrun tumbled 9.5%.
Lamb Weston Holdings — Shares of the food products company climbed 4.7% after Lamb Weston reported large increases in net sales and net income for its fiscal first quarter. The Idaho-based company also maintained its full-year outlook despite seeing a volume decline in the quarter.
Check out more midday movers here.
— Tanaya Macheel
Oil stocks rise after OPEC+ decision
The decision by OPEC+ to cut production has boosted oil prices and energy stocks.
The group of oil-producing nations announced on Wednesday that it would reduce daily production by 2 million barrels, ignoring pressure from the U.S. to keep pumping.
As a result, energy is the only sector moving higher in the S&P 500 on Wednesday. Shares of Schlumberger are up more than 6%, while Exxon Mobil and Halliburton have gained 3.8% and 2.9%, respectively.
Futures for U.S. benchmark West Texas intermediate crude were last at $88.25 per barrel, up 2% for the day.
— Jesse Pound
Lumen shares drop as Wells Fargo downgrades stock
Lumen is down more than 10% after Wells Fargo downgraded the tech company’s rating to equal weight from overweight.
Analyst Eric Luebchow said its mass market segment, referred to as RemainCo, was struggling and warned downsides could put dividends at risk. He cut earnings before debt, interest, taxes and amortization forecasts for RemainCo to $5.9 billion, about $600 million below Wall Street estimates.
He cut the stock’s price target to $8, which is about 0.5% below where the stock closed Tuesday but more than 56% less than its previous target of $12.50.
Lumen shares are down about 42.3% this year. The stock hit a 52-week low during day trading Wednesday.
— Alex Harring
Higher rates expose market fragilities, TS Lombard says
The recent jump in yields and higher rates from central banks around the world are making fragile spots in the market more apparent, TS Lombard said.
“After a decade of perma low rates and QE, stress is building up, exposing market fragilities that can feed into the real economy,” wrote the firm’s Skylar Montgomery Koning. “The risk of an accident is increasing, and it will likely be from a vulnerability we are unaware of (because we can protect only against the known risks).”
In all, this has led to investors pulling money away from fixed income and equities in favor of cash, Koning said.
U.S. stocks were under pressure once again Wednesday, with the Dow losing roughly 400 points.
—Fred Imbert
Solar stocks under pressure
Clean energy stocks are some of the worst performers on Wednesday morning, as investors shed risk after the sharp rally to start the week.
The iShares Global Clean Energy ETF (ICLN) and Invesco Solar ETF (TAN) are both down more than 5% for the day. The Clean Energy ETF is on track for its worst day since June 13.
The ETFs are being weighed down by shares of Sunrun and Enphase Energy in particular, which are each down more than 9%.
— Jesse Pound, Gina Francolla
Services measure shows economy is holding up
The services sector grew at a solid pace last month, as gains in employment and orders and a decline in prices pointing to a resilient U.S. economy.
September’s ISM services index registered a 56.7% reading, indicating the level of companies reporting expansion for the month. Employment rose 2.8 points to 53% while the prices index fell 2.8 points to 68.7%, still a robust reading but continuing to move lower.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for a reading of 56%, so the report was slightly better than expectations and just below the August reading of 56.9%.
Services account for about 45% of U.S. gross domestic product.
—Jeff Cox
Stocks open lower, Dow drops 300 points
U.S. stocks opened lower on Wednesday, following a big two-day gain for all of the major averages.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped about 300 points to start the day, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite dipped 1.1% and 1.3%, respectively.
A rebound in in Treasury yields, with the 10-year rate up 10 basis points higher at 3.713% added pressure to stocks.
— Tanaya Macheel
Trade deficit fell more than expected in August
The U.S. trade deficit fell slightly more than expected in August to its lowest level in more than a year, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Wednesday.
The trade shortfall declined to $67.4 billion, a $3.1 billion drop from the previous month that was a bit better than the Dow Jones estimate of $67.7 billion. That marked the lowest level since May 2021. In March 2022, the deficit had hit a record $106.9 billion.
A drop in the goods deficit of $3.4 billion helped account for most of the decline as the economy shifts back to higher demand for services.
—Jeff Cox
U.S. labor market showed strength in September, ADP jobs report shows
Businesses added 208,000 jobs for the month of September, payroll services firm ADP reported Wednesday. That number is better than the 200,000 Dow Jones estimate and ahead of the upwardly revised 185,000 in August, according to ADP.
Trade, transportation and utilities saw a jobs gain of 147,000, while professional and business services and education and health services also posted large increases.
ADP’s report comes two days before the closely watched nonfarm payrolls report issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Federal Reserve officia...
Biden Administration Steps Up Protection Against Student Loan Forgiveness Scams
Biden Administration Steps Up Protection Against Student Loan Forgiveness Scams https://digitalalabamanews.com/biden-administration-steps-up-protection-against-student-loan-forgiveness-scams/
The Biden administration is increasing its efforts to fight scams aimed at taking advantage of borrowers applying for its expansive student loan forgiveness plan, senior administration officials announced Wednesday.
The administration’s forgiveness program will cancel up to $20,000 in student loan debt for borrowers making less than $125,000 or $250,000 for households. The plan, which is projected to cost $400 billion, could benefit as many as 40 million Americans.
Since the relief was announced in August, the administration has released very little concrete information about what the application will look like or when it will be released. That vacuum has created an opportunity for scammers: As NPR reported last month, some borrowers have already encountered student loan relief scams and misinformation in text messages, phone calls and emails, and experts say it’s getting worse.
“This Biden forgiveness thing is Christmas, Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July all rolled into one for the scammers,” says Betsy Mayotte, the president of the Institute of Student Loan Advisors, a nonprofit that offers free counseling to borrowers.
“The release they did today is a great step,” Mayotte added. “There’s only two things we can do as a community [to prevent fraud]. One is to educate borrowers and the other is enforcement.”
The administration is aiming to do both.
In order to hold scammers accountable, the administration plans to increase collaboration between the Department of Education and other federal agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The administration will also share scam complaints with states more frequently, so state attorneys general can act faster to stop scams in their own jurisdictions, and plans to partner with social media influencers on a public awareness campaign.
“It’s an all-government approach, because what we know is it’s already happening, that there are evil people who will be trying to use a program like this, that’s trying to help people, and run their own frauds and scams to somehow get money or personal information about people,” says Richard Cordray, the chief operating officer of Federal Student Aid, a branch of the Education Department.
“What we’re trying to do here is to get as much relief as possible to the hard working former students who deserve this relief,” Cordray added. “We’re moving at warp speed to get the application and the process going here.”
Student loan forgiveness was ripe for fraud well before the Biden administration’s sweeping plans to cancel debt. According to a July report from the Tech Transparency Project, more than 10% of Google ads that popped up in searches related to student loan forgiveness were fraudulent. And in the last year and a half, the FTC has reached nearly $30 million in settlements for borrowers who were falsely promised relief on their student loan payments.
The administration’s efforts to stop these types of scams fall heavily on the shoulders of borrowers themselves: Much of the announced plans focus on increasing efforts to educate the public on how to catch and report scams on their own.
“You are your own best protection against scammers,” says Cordray, who was also formerly the director of the CFPB.
The White House also released a “Do’s and Don’ts” tip sheet. Among the tips included:
Don’t pay anyone who promises loan forgiveness. The application will be free.
Don’t give anyone personal account information for the Federal Student Aid website. The Education Department and federal student loan servicers will not call or email asking for that information.
Don’t give personal or financial information over the phone to a caller that’s unfamiliar. When in doubt, borrowers should hang up and call their loan servicer directly.
The administration urged borrowers to sign up to be notified when the application is available, to make sure their loan servicers have their current contact information and to report any scams they encounter to the FTC.
This month, the application window for student debt relief will open.
Learn more about the steps you should take ahead of time, and how to avoid student debt relief scams. pic.twitter.com/76ERkrvEAr
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) October 5, 2022
One way to avoid scam vulnerability in the first place would be to release more specific information on what the forgiveness application will look like or when to expect it.
“One of the most critical ways to prevent scams and protect borrowers from being taken advantage of is developing a clear, simple, and secure site for borrowers to apply for debt relief and have the most up to date information from trusted sources,” the administration wrote in a fact sheet outlining their efforts to combat scams.
But in a briefing Wednesday, senior administration officials would not provide any more concrete details on when the application will go live or what the process will look like.
Mayotte says releasing the application might not actually be all that helpful in preventing bad actors.
“In one way, it’ll help,” she says. “But if I know the scammers, they’ll use that as an opportunity too: ‘The application’s out. You have to hurry. Time is short. Now that the applications are out, let us help you to make sure you don’t miss it.’ So it’s a catch-22.”
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Brian Robinson Jr. Enjoys a Beautiful Day At Practice
Brian Robinson Jr. Enjoys ‘a Beautiful Day’ At Practice https://digitalalabamanews.com/brian-robinson-jr-enjoys-a-beautiful-day-at-practice/
Brian Robinson Jr. ran through a drill with the Washington Commanders’ running backs on Wednesday, then gratefully pointed to the sky.
“I was forced to do a few movements and cuts in that drill that I wasn’t completely confident in before walking out on the field,” Robinson said. “During the drill, it just helped me gain more confidence in myself, so by the time I finished the drill I knew that I was at least where I needed to be if not further as far as the progress I’ve made.”
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The former Alabama ball-carrier returned to practice as a full participant on Wednesday for the first time since being shot twice on Aug. 29 during an attempted carjacking in Washington.
“It was beautiful,” Robinson told reporters after practice. “Just getting back on the field, being around my coaches and team again. It was just a beautiful day for me. …
“I was just so happy to be back out there. I was excited. I’m a high football energy person. I’m excited when I’m on the football field regardless of if I was coming off an injury or whatnot. I was just excited to be back out there. I just wanted to do a little bit more just to prove to myself that I can do it and just continue to gain the confidence I need to step back out on that field.”
Robinson has recovered from gunshot wounds to his knee and hip.
Washington has had Robinson on reserve/non-football injury. By returning him to practice, the NFL team started a three-week window to restore the rookie to its active roster.
“It was good to have him out there, and he looked solid,” Commanders coach Ron Rivera said. “He’s got a little bit of a ways to go. Conditioning will be a question, that’s for sure. But just watching him, his retention, his recall looked pretty good, and we did some of the things that he does well. He was out there doing them, so it looked good. It was all promising. …
“The biggest thing is we’ll take a look at how he handled today tomorrow morning. Come in, see where he is, see how he feels. That’s always a good indicator when I guy gets his first real workout — how he’s reacting the next day.”
Rivera said Washington limited Robinson to “eight, maybe 10 reps” with the offense during the padded practice.
“He did pop in and take a couple of reps for the show team,” Rivera said, “and we had to tell him, ‘No, no, no.’ You got to keep an eye on him. He was having a lot of fun. …
“I think his mental frame of mind is really good. One of the things we talked about was how fortunate he was. And he understands that, and I think it’s kind of given him a little more insight as to, ‘You know what? Every moment is precious.’ Being back out here on the field today, you could see the joy with which he was running around. He wanted to do more. We had to slow him down a little bit.”
Robinson didn’t want to rehash what happened on the day he was shot.
“I don’t really want to get too much into what’s the past,” Robinson said. “I just plan on moving forward and looking for what’s ahead of us and try to help this team make some progress.”
Robinson did recall one detail of his ordeal specifically, though – when he was in the hospital for surgery immediately after being shot.
“That was probably the lowest point I ever been in my life,” Robinson said. “The only thing I remember from being in the hospital was just receiving all the love. Everybody reaching out to me, speading the love. That was all I needed at the time.”
Robinson doesn’t have a timetable for his NFL debut after missing the first four games of the season. He said he would take his continued recovery “one day at a time.”
Under the NFL’s reserve/NFI rules, Wednesday was the soonest that Robinson could return to practicing with his teammates.
“It’s been a long five weeks,” Robinson said. “It’s a lot of work. We put in a lot of work over that time. I can say I did everything I needed to do over that time period to make sure I was here today.”
A prep star at Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa, Robinson joined the Commanders in the third round of the NFL Draft on April 29 after running for 1,343 yards and 14 touchdowns and catching 35 passes for 296 yards for Alabama during the 2021 season.
Robinson referred to himself as “the king of adversity.”
“This is just another situation where I got to be stronger than what I’m up against,” Robinson said. “… When you face new adversity, you already got the mindset to overcome — whatever it takes to overcome whatever you’re up against. This was by far the worst I’ve ever dealt with. But mentally just being strong and just knowing how to battle through adversity and overcome whatever you’re up against, it’s just a similar situation mentally. Just having to be stronger than what I’m up against.”
FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
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Putin Seizes Europe https://digitalalabamanews.com/putin-seizes-europe/
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree Wednesday claiming ownership of the beleaguered Zaporizhzhia power plant, even as the director of Ukraine’s nuclear power company said he would assume operations of the plant, which is Europe’s largest nuclear facility.
The announcement came hours after Putin signed laws annexing the Zaporizhzhia region. Earlier in the day, Energoatom chief Petro Kotin said he would be running the Russian-held plant from the capital, Kyiv.
The plant has been the focus of deep global concern. Both sides blame each other for bombings that have damaged parts of the plant and threaten to trigger a catastrophe, international nuclear experts warn.
“The need for a Nuclear Safety and Security Protection Zone (NSSPZ) around #Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant is now more urgent than ever,” tweeted Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The plant’s Ukrainian director was kidnapped Friday and released this week by Russian forces who occupy the facility. Ukrainian workers continue to operate the plant, which halted power generation last month.
TURNING POINT?: As Russia admits defeat in Kharkiv, Ukraine regains land, confidence
Other developments:
►A former Russian state TV journalist charged with spreading false information after staging an on-air protest against the war said in a Facebook post Wednesday that she has released herself from house arrest. Marina Ovsyannikova’s ex-husband says she fled with her young daughter.
►Russian troops used six Iranian drones to strike the town of Bila Tserkva in the Kyiv region, leaving one person wounded, Ukraine’s presidential office said. The strikes were the first on the town since March, when the Russians retreated from the area around the Ukrainian capital.
UKRAINE DRIVES RUSSIANS FROM MORE VILLAGES:Elon Musk peace plan sparks outrage; Biden, Zelenskyy talk:
Putin signs law annexing Ukraine land despite military setbacks
Putin, ignoring international outrage and the struggles of his military, signed laws Wednesday ratifying the annexation of four Ukraine regions, including two that make up the crucial Donbas region he has targeted since the war began.
“I want the Kyiv authorities and their real masters in the West to hear me, so that everyone remembers this – people living in Luhansk and Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia become our citizens forever,” Putin said.
The paperwork is vague on the boundaries of the land Russia is claiming, but Russian media said Putin annexed about 43,000 square miles. Ukraine, almost the size of Texas, estimates about 15% of its territory was annexed.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters the land grab might not be done, saying “certain territories will be reclaimed, and we will keep consulting residents who would be eager to embrace Russia.”
Some of the territory has already been retaken by Ukrainian forces in recent weeks, and most of the world does not recognize the annexations.
“The worthless decisions of the terrorist country are not worth the paper they are signed on,” Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukraine President’s Office, said on Telegram.
Reduced oil production by OPEC+ benefits Russia
Wednesday’s decision by an alliance of oil-exporting countries to significantly reduce production could boost Russia’s war efforts, as the expected rise in oil prices helps replenish the country’s coffers and blunts the impact of efforts by the U.S. and its allies to cut into the Kremlin’s leading source of revenue.
The move by OPEC+ will also make it easier for member Russia to withstand a European ban on most of Moscow’s oil due to start in December, though only to a certain extent because countries in the oil cartel already can’t meet their quotas.
President Joe Biden called the decision “short-sighted’’ in light of the negative effects Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has had on the global economy, according to White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who added: “It’s clear that OPEC+ is aligning with Russia with today’s announcement.”
The European Union agreed Wednesday on new sanctions that are expected to include a price cap on Russian oil, meant to diminish the funding President Vladimir Putin has available for his war machine. But with tighter oil supplies on the market, major buyers like China and India could be less likely to join the effort, limiting its impact.
Increasing signs of torture in liberated towns
The continued liberation of towns in the east and south of the country is reason to celebrate for Ukrainian troops. What they find is not.
Retreating Russian troops are not only leaving behind barren, destroyed communities, but also disturbing signs of abuse and torture.
Serhiy Bolvinov, who heads the investigative department of the national police in the northeastern Kharkiv region, said authorities are investigating an alleged Russian torture chamber in the village of Pisky-Radkivski. He posted a photo of a box with what looked like teeth and dentures, presumably extracted from those held at the site.
Andriy Kostin, Ukraine’s prosecutor general, told The Associated Press four bodies had been found in Kharkiv towns with signs of torture. Authorities were trying to confirm whether they were civilians. All four had their hands bound or linked by handcuffs. Kostin also said the bodies of 24 civilians, including 13 children and one pregnant woman, were found in six cars near Kupiansk, also in Kharkiv.
Russian military struggles could topple Belarusian leader
Belarus’ opposition leader says she believes that Russian military setbacks in Ukraine could shake Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s hold on power. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said Wednesday at a security conference in Warsaw that Russia appears to be “about to lose this war.” That could make it impossible for Putin to prop up Lukashenko, Putin’s closest global ally, she said.
Tsikhanouskaya fled to Lithuania after Lukashenko claimed victory in August 2020 elections that were decried in the West as fraudulent.
In annexed Luhansk, Ukrainian leader says de-occupation has begun
Ukrainian troops have begun driving Russian troops out of the Luhansk region and are “raising the Ukrainian flag” in some settlements, regional Gov. governor Serhiy Haidai announced on social media. Russia had taken almost complete control of the crucial province and had seized half of neighboring Donetsk before the Ukrainian counteroffensive began a month ago. About one-third of Luhansk was controlled by Russian-backed militias before the war began. Militia leaders tried to form the Luhansk People’s Republic, but only Russia and a few other nations recognized the republic.
EU approves 8th round of Russian sanctions
The European Union, citing the annexations, agreed Wednesday to impose new sanctions on Russia, including an expected price cap on Russian oil. Details of the sanctions were expected to be released as soon as Thursday, but curbs on EU exports of aircraft components to Russia and limits on Russian steel imports are expected to be included in the package.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the eighth round of sanctions, saying Europe is “determined to continue making the Kremlin pay” for invading Ukraine.
Contributing: The Associated Press
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Previewing The Biggest Games On The College Football Schedule: On The Line
Previewing The Biggest Games On The College Football Schedule: On The Line https://digitalalabamanews.com/previewing-the-biggest-games-on-the-college-football-schedule-on-the-line/
Never before has a team moved from the back of the rafters to center stage as quickly and as dramatically as these Kansas Jayhawks. On Saturday, College GameDay heads on the road for the 433rd time, to its 79th college campus, and its first to Kansas. KU was beaten by schools such as Amherst College, the University of Pennsylvania, and Williams College. GameDay went to Times Square, Augusta National, and the USS San Diego before it went to Lawrence.
But now it’s here. A team that hadn’t won more than three games for 12 straight seasons has won five in a row, vaulting to No. 19 in the AP poll. Even after a game in which it gained just 213 yards and scored 14 points, KU ranks sixth nationally in yards per play (7.29) and 12th in points per game (41.6). What Lance Leipold, Jalon Daniels and the rest of the Jayhawks have accomplished in such a short amount of time is nothing short of remarkable.
And yet, this stat from Brian Fremeau of Football Outsiders floored me.
At 5-0 and ranked within the top 20, Kansas has a 1-in-5 chance of not winning another game. That’s a statement that, as good as KU has been, the depth issues the program has been fighting for more than a decade now are likely to exact a toll as the climb gets steeper. It’s a statement on the unprecedented depth of the 10-team Big 12, which has seven teams in the top 25 of Fremeau’s FEI — five of them still ahead of KU. (FEI ranks Kansas at No. 62.)
That includes TCU, which brings a No. 17 AP ranking to Lawrence on Saturday (noon ET, FS1). Following a 668-yard, 55-point outburst against Oklahoma, the Frogs lead the nation in yards per play (8.33), quarterback Max Duggan leads the nation in passing efficiency (74.5 percent completions, 10.6 yards per attempt, 11 touchdowns against no interceptions), and the offense is a hair behind Ohio State for the national lead in scoring. Kansas is 82nd in pass efficiency defense.
It’s a great thing that GameDay is finally going to Lawrence, and it’s an especially great thing that GameDay is finally going now.
Master v. Pupil on a Wednesday in Orlando. What a week and a half it’s been for Rhett Lashlee, who faced off against his former boss in Sonny Dykes, and now gets his coaching mentor tonight.
Lashlee and Gus Malzahn’s relationship dates back to 1996, when Lashlee was in seventh grade. Malzahn coached Lashlee to a record-breaking career at Shiloh Christian School, then lifted him up the ladder in coaching. The pair were together at Springdale High School, at Arkansas, at Auburn, at Arkansas State, and then at Auburn again. The only reason they didn’t work together for 13 straight seasons from 2004 to ’16 was because Lashlee left coaching for two years while Gus was at Tulsa.
Malzahn was new to Shiloh Christian, a small private school in Springdale, Ark., after serving a five-year stint at Hughes High in the northeast corner of the state. The first-year coach took an interest in Lashlee and started coaching him in seventh grade football in the mornings. From AL.com in 2013:
Malzahn was new to Shiloh Christian, a small private school in Springdale, Ark., after serving a five-year stint at Hughes High in the northeast corner of the state. The first-year coach took an interest in Lashlee and started coaching him in seventh grade football in the mornings.
From AL.com before the 2013 BCS title game:
“It’s honestly like a married couple fighting sometimes.”
That’s how Auburn tight end C.J. Uzomah describes the Lashlee-Malzahn relationship, according to Kevin Scarbinsky of AL.com. Their bickering, yin-and-yang dynamic plays out like a “Good Cop-Bad Cop” interrogation.
“Coach Malzahn will freak out,” Uzomah said about how each handles mistakes on the field. “Coach Lashlee’s like…’We got you.'”
And now here they are. If we can accept the destiny of Malzahn rocketing from small-school Arkansas high school football to the SEC, it was only a matter of time before Lashlee landed his own head coaching job and met Malzahn (7 p.m. ET Wednesday, ESPN2). Neither coach said much of anything, but you can bet Lashlee’s internal motor will be churning to beat his old master, while Malzahn’s will be working overtime not to lose to his protege.
A different kind of Master v. Pupil game in Tuscaloosa on Saturday night. Saturday night marks the first time in college football history that a coach who called a press conference specifically to rip another coach* squares off against that coach.
* Some highlights: “Go look into how God did his deal.” “Maybe somebody should’ve slapped him.” “When you walk on water I guess it doesn’t matter.”
In May, this shaped up to be the most anticipated regular season game in years: A&M entered the season ranked sixth, Alabama first, with “best team ever” hype building. CBS used its one primetime selection for the season on this game, for the second year in a row.
In October, it shapes up to be a blowout. Alabama is once again No. 1, while A&M is unranked and a shaky 3-2. Neither side will likely play the quarterback they planned on.
A fact both coaches are sure to remind their sides of, for wildly different reasons: Last October, Alabama was No. 1, A&M was unranked, playing a backup QB, coming off a loss to Mississippi State, a 20-point underdog, and won anyway.
How good is UCLA really? Since the start of the 2021 season, three teams are tied for the best win-loss record in the Pac-12. Utah and Oregon are both 14-5, but percentage points ahead of the Utes and Ducks are Chip Kelly’s UCLA Bruins, at 13-4.
Two of those four Bruins losses came to Utah and Oregon, and so it’s No. 18 UCLA that hosts No. 11 Utah (3:30 p.m. ET, Fox) with something to prove.
Utah has torn through its four opponents since losing at Florida (average margin of victory: 35 points), while UCLA looked shaky as all get out in surviving 32-31 against South Alabama, but dominant against then-No. 15 Washington last Friday.
UCLA’s Dorian Thompson-Robinson is the Pac-12’s most efficient passer thus far (171.45), while Utah’s Cameron Rising is percentage points out of second place. Both guys are fifth-year seniors, so expect a game with high execution that remains in the balance until late in the fourth quarter.
The intrigue in Red River is the lack of intrigue. For the first time since 2009, Texas will take the Cotton Bowl field expected by bettors to defeat Oklahoma (noon ET, ABC). For the first time since 1998, both teams will take the field unranked.
Counting only conference games, Oklahoma is 108th in the nation in yards per play defense (7.45), 114th of 116 in rushing defense, and 82nd in passing efficiency defense. Either quarterback Dillon Gabriel returns to action a week after suffering a concussion and without going through a full practice, or the Sooners play backup quarterback Davis Beville (7-of-16 for 50 yards against TCU), or they play a third quarterback with no major college experience. On the other side, Texas is expected to get Quinn Ewers back, last season torching Alabama’s defense (9-of-12 for 134 yards before leaving with an injured shoulder.)
In terms of #vibes, the closest game the 2022 edition of Red River resembles is 2015, when Oklahoma was in the top 10, Texas was fresh off a 50-7 loss to TCU, and Texas led the entire game en route to a 24-17 win.
Additional Games:
— Nebraska at Rutgers (7 p.m. ET Friday, FS1): Two things that are simultaneously true: Nebraska is tied for first in the Big Ten West, and Nebraska, a 35-21 winner over Indiana, hasn’t won back-to-back Big Ten games since Nov. 10-17, 2018.
— Colorado State at Nevada (10:30 p.m. ET Friday, FS1): Jay Norvell went 33-26 over five seasons at Nevada, and now returns to Reno with one of the worst teams in FBS. The locals will be ready.
— UNLV at San Jose State (10:30 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network): A battle for first place in the MW West Division.
— No. 4 Michigan at Indiana (noon ET, Fox): On Nov. 7, 2020, Indiana snapped a 24-game losing streak to Michigan, winning 38-21. Ranked 13th at the time, IU improved to 3-0 en route to a 6-2 season. Michigan would finish 2-4. In the past season and a half, Michigan is 17-2 while IU is 5-12, so things have returned to normal.
— No. 8 Tennessee at No. 25 LSU (noon ET, ESPN): We could talk about LSU’s 68th-ranked passing offense squaring off with Tennessee’s 128th-ranked passing defense, but that’s boring football stuff. Let’s have some fun. Let’s look back at how Tennessee’s last trip to Tiger Stadium ended.
My favorite part is LSU center T-Bob Hebert ripping his helmet off twice in a row, for entirely different reasons each time.
— Buffalo at Bowling Green (noon ET, ESPN+): Admittedly it’s early, but this is a battle for first place in the MAC East.
— Eastern Michigan at Western Michigan (noon ET, CBS Sports Network): You know we love our 3-way trophies here. Eastern, Central and Western Michigans play for the Michigan MAC Trophy, won by Central last season after Western had taken six of the previous seven. After WMU won five straight from 2014-18, EMU has won three in a row.
— Georgia Southern at Georgia State (2 p.m. ET, ESPN3): Another rivalry game, the fantastically-named Modern Day Hate, a reference to the Georgia-Georgia Tech Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate rivalry. State leads 5-3, having won the last two.
— Auburn at No. 2 Georgia (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS): On the same day as Modern Day Hate, we also get the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry. Auburn and Georgia met for the first time in 1892, a year before the first UGA-GT and the first Iron Bowl. Georgia leads 62-56-8 and 6-1 since Kirby Smart returned to town.
— Wisconsin at Northwestern (3:30 p.m. ET, BTN): Considering what happened earlier this week, this may be the most important game in terms of shaping the upcoming coaching carousel. Jim Leonhard...
After 2020 Drama Experts Call On State Canvassers To Do Their Job After Nov. 8 Election Michigan Advance
After 2020 Drama, Experts Call On State Canvassers To Do Their Job After Nov. 8 Election ⋆ Michigan Advance https://digitalalabamanews.com/after-2020-drama-experts-call-on-state-canvassers-to-do-their-job-after-nov-8-election-%e2%8b%86-michigan-advance/
The nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Michigan and longtime election experts hosted a press conference Wednesday as a reminder before the Nov. 8 election that certifying results doesn’t need to be complicated — despite what we’ve seen since the 2020 election.
In Michigan, election results are certified by county boards and the State Board of Canvassers gives final approval.
“We’re sort of the last step in the process, and we sort of say if everything’s done well,” said Julie Matuzak, former Democratic member of the Board of State Canvassers. “And if the numbers add up, and the poll books add up and the votes add up, then we should certify. That’s how it worked until the last one. The last one was more difficult.”
The “last one” Matuzak is referring to is the 2020 presidential election, with drama dragging on long past the official results were tallied and President Joe Biden was declared the winner over former President Donald Trump. The results were challenged in every key state in the country, with lengthy hearings, audits, protests and eventually the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol after Trump stoked fears of election fraud.
Despite Biden winning 154,000 more votes in Michigan than Trump did, Trump’s claims of election fraud gained traction among Republicans and created months of chaos.
The Board of State Canvassers did certify results after a long meeting in late November, but one GOP member, Norm Shinkle, abstained. Shinkle has resigned and is now running as a Republican for the 73rd House District against Rep. Julie Brixie (D-Meridian Twp.).
Trump’s campaign directed 16 fake Electoral College delegates in Michigan to submit a false certificate at the state Capitol on Dec. 14, when the Electoral College met to certify the state’s election results for Biden. The false delegates were denied entrance to the Capitol building by security and their plan ultimately failed.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer at the Electoral College vote, Dec. 14, 2020 | Whitmer office photo
Looking ahead to how future elections, including the one on Nov. 8, will play out, former Republican state canvasser Jeff Timmer said his “crystal ball is dark and cloudy.”
“I think that we are in for … more of what we saw in 2020. I think what we saw in 2020 was a planned effort to throw a wrench into the certification outcome process,” Timmer said. “Especially when we look at the positions, platforms and the declarations that many candidates here in Michigan and across the country have made.”
Timmer is now a consultant with the anti-Trump Lincoln Project and Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel’s campaign.
GOP gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon, Secretary of State nominee Kristina Karamo and Attorney General nominee Matt DePerno, the top Republicans on the ballot next month, have all questioned or denied the results of the 2020 election.
“I think we have to take them at their word that they’re approaching this from a different philosophy, a different reality, with the intent of undermining the faith in the outcome. It’s toxic. It’s dangerous to the very foundations of democracy, and that’s not hyperbolic,” Timmer added.
Dixon faces Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer; DePerno is running against Nessel and Karamo is up against Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson.
Matuzak said if far-right election deniers weren’t organized for the 2020 election, they are now.
“[Partisan groups] have specifically recruited people to be on the board of canvassers locally and they’re specifically training poll workers. It’s not the clerk training the poll workers, but it’s the local party organizations or sub-organizations within parties that are training poll workers,” she said before adding that she is concerned about how this will play out in the upcoming election.
Prior to 2020, Chris Thomas, a current fellow with the Bipartisan Policy Center and former Michigan Director of Elections, said partisanship would interfere with some parts of the election process, like challenging petition language or rejecting signatures.
“But the only time where I ever felt chastened or uncomfortable was when … members of our own partisan tribes put pressure on us to do something that we knew wouldn’t ultimately fly,” Thomas said.
Panelists called on the Board of State Canvassers to move away from partisanship and focus on the ministerial position of the board.
“This is really an accounting procedure. Certifying an election is an accounting procedure. How many people signed or how many ballots were cast, It adds up or it doesn’t add up. That’s sort of the bottom line. And I hope that members of local boards of canvassers know that and honor that,” Matuzak said.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our web site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of photos and graphics.
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Daphne Man Charged With Manslaughter In January Fentanyl Overdose Death Of 39-Year-Old Woman
Daphne Man Charged With Manslaughter In January Fentanyl Overdose Death Of 39-Year-Old Woman https://digitalalabamanews.com/daphne-man-charged-with-manslaughter-in-january-fentanyl-overdose-death-of-39-year-old-woman/
Mobile Real-Time News
Updated: Oct. 05, 2022, 2:45 p.m.|
Published: Oct. 05, 2022, 2:44 p.m.
A Daphne man is facing manslaughter and other charges in connection with the death of a 39-year-old woman who overdosed on fentanyl, authorities said Wednesday.
The arrest of the suspect, 32-year-old Jourdan Solis, marks the first time an arrest was made on manslaughter charges for a case involving a Jan. 1 drug overdose in Baldwin County, according to Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack.
Mack said Solis’ arrest was the culmination of a four-year effort between law enforcement agencies in Baldwin County and the Baldwin County Commission, which allocated funds in 2019 for a drug testing option that helps authorities identify the type of drug responsible and the quantity of the drug responsible for fatal overdoses in 48 hours as opposed to the 90 days it previously took.
“We are very pleased that we have been able to get to this point today that we can announce such an arrest,” Mack told reporters. “While we hope that there are no other deaths, we also hope that there will be more arrests.”
The Baldwin County Drug Task Force has also been sending agents to every overdose death that occurs in the county to expedite potential criminal cases.
In addition to reckless manslaughter, Solis is also facing drug possession charges in connection with the overdose of the 39-year-old female victim. She was not named by authorities.
Solis’ bond was set at $100,000 on the manslaughter charge and $5,000 on the possession charge, said Baldwin County District Attorney Robert Wilters. His bond was also revoked in three trafficking cases Solis was charged in after the overdose death.
Wilters called Solis’ arrest a “momentous occasion.”
“The number of overdose deaths in Baldwin County is way too high, and with the new investigative procedures we have in place … we’ve been able to make this arrest,” the DA said.
About three in four overdose deaths in Baldwin County involve fentanyl, which is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, Mack said.
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Louisiana Republican AG Jeff Landry Launches Bid For Gov
Louisiana Republican AG Jeff Landry Launches Bid For Gov https://digitalalabamanews.com/louisiana-republican-ag-jeff-landry-launches-bid-for-gov/
BATON ROUGE (AP) — Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry has officially launched his bid for governor in a highly-anticipated gubernatorial race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards next year.
Landry, a conservative Republican and staunch supporter of former President Donald Trump, tweeted a nearly seven-minute long video Wednesday, in which he details his background and addresses several campaign issues — most notably, crime in urban areas, “liberal school boards and radical school leaders forcing political philosophy into the classroom” and a “complete crisis of leadership.”
“I’m tired of people leaving our state and I’m angry that our children’s education is not a priority. I’m sick of our big cities being run like third world nations. We can fix our broken tax system and we can modernize our outdated constitution,” Landry said in the video. “We can have a state government that fixes problems and delivers solutions. It’s not going to be easy but we can put our state on a new course, because the path we’re on is even harder.”
Landry has raised the profile of attorney general, since being elected in 2015, using his office to champion Republican policy positions. He’s clashed repeatedly with Edwards — the only Democratic governor in the Deep South — over LGBTQ rights, state finances and the death penalty. In addition, the former congressman has repeatedly put Louisiana in national fights including over President Joe Biden’s policies that limit oil and gas production and COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
Most recently Landry, 51, has been in the spotlight over Louisiana’s abortion ban, which only has exceptions if there is substantial risk of death or impairment to the patient if they continue with the pregnancy and in the case of “medically futile” pregnancies — when the fetus has a fatal abnormality. The attorney general urged the Louisiana Bond Commission to withhold approval of a $39 million future line of credit for a critical New Orleans area power plant project over city leaders opposition to enforce the ban. Landry, who vehemently opposes abortions, has said that people who disagree with the abortion laws “can go to another state.”
Though Landry’s official announcement of his gubernatorial bid came this week, it has long been speculated. The Advocate reported last month that the Republican raised funds for the race at his annual alligator hunt, where he passed out “Landry for governor” shirts and hats. Speakers at the event included Donald Trump Jr. and his girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle.
Louisiana is the rare conservative state to have a Democratic governor. The moderate Edwards won hard-fought races in 2015 and 2019, but is unable to seek a third consecutive term due to term limits. That means 2023 is a huge opportunity for Republicans to take control of the state, which voted for Donald Trump by wide margins in the past two presidential contests.
While the gubernatorial race is a year away, a list of politicians interested in the position is slowly growing.
In August, Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, a Republican, confirmed during a press availability that he plans to join the race, hitting the campaign trail in 2023. Louisiana Republican Treasurer John Schroder told supporters in January he plans on running for governor.
Among other Republicans who have indicated that they are considering running for the state’s highest position are U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy, Congressman Garret Graves, state Rep. Richard Nelson, and state Sen. Sharon Hewitt.
It remains unclear who will emerge as a Democratic candidate.
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Here Are The Nuclear Weapons Russia Has In Its Arsenal
Here Are The Nuclear Weapons Russia Has In Its Arsenal https://digitalalabamanews.com/here-are-the-nuclear-weapons-russia-has-in-its-arsenal/
October 5, 2022 at 12:57 p.m. EDT
Video released by Russia in early 2022 shows drills by its strategic nuclear forces including intercontinental ballistic missiles and cruise missile tests. (Video: The Washington Post)
As Russia’s military retreats on the battlefield, Vladimir Putin’s rhetoric about using nuclear weapons is escalating.
Russia’s president has been warning of nuclear consequences with increasing intensity since the first week of his war in Ukraine — when he put his arsenal on higher alert. Now he is threatening to use nuclear weapons to defend the Ukrainian territory that Russia has illegally annexed.
“This is not a bluff,” he warned the West. “And those who try to blackmail us with nuclear weapons should know that the weather vane can turn and point toward them.”
What if Putin isn’t bluffing? What sort of nuclear strike is Russia, the country with the world’s largest stockpile of nuclear weapons, capable of — and what kind of destruction might it wreak in Ukraine and beyond?
“Nuclear weapons, they’re unlike any other weapon,” said Joe Cirincione, a nuclear weapons expert who previously served as president of the Ploughshares Fund. “And that’s just the explosive part — not to mention the thermal effects and the temperatures that are produced.”
It is very unlikely that Russia would use its most powerful nuclear weapons to settle scores with Kyiv; Moscow is far more likely, experts agree, to use a smaller nuclear weapon in the hopes of achieving a specific battlefield objective. But, those same experts caution, once a nuclear weapon is unleashed, controlling what happens next is difficult.
“Once you start talking nukes, all bets are off,” said Hans Kristensen, the director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists. “So it’s not clear how far this will go.”
The first and most basic question about the Russian nuclear arsenal is: How many of the weapons does Russia have? It is a difficult one to answer.
Nuclear weapons are commonly divided into two categories: strategic weapons — those being the longer-range missiles that can cross oceans and threaten rival superpowers — and tactical weapons, those that have a more limited capacity and arguably could serve a more limited function.
The United States has a good count of Russia’s strategic weapons, because Washington and Moscow are required to disclose this under the terms of New START, the last remaining arms control treaty. That count of strategic weapons is split among those deployed on intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) and those launched from bombers.
But when it comes to the tactical weapons, the U.S. intelligence community can only offer its best guess, and different agencies have differing estimates. The ballpark figure they have settled on is between 1,000 and 2,000 tactical weapons (which, it should be noted, can be launched from ground launchers, ships and bombers but are not pre-deployed). After careful study, the Federation of American Scientists put its estimate at 1,912 — although it cautions that this could include weapons being retired or taken offline.
How powerful are these weapons?
The power of a nuclear weapon is its yield, and yield is measured as a TNT equivalent. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that the American bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki had yields of 15 and 21 kilotons, respectively — so equivalent to 15,000 tons and 21,000 tons of TNT.
Modern strategic nuclear weapons have enormous power. Standard ones can have yields of 500 kilotons, 800 kilotons and even 1 megaton — equivalent to 1 million tons of TNT. Russia holds the record for the most powerful weapon ever exploded: In 1961, it tested a bomb of at least 50 megatons, nicknamed “Tsar Bomba” — or the tsar of all bombs.
In 2020, Russia released classified footage of the world’s largest nuclear explosion, caused when the Soviet Union detonated the “Tsar Bomba” in October 1961. (Video: Reuters)
Modern tactical weapons usually have a capacity of 10 to 100 kilotons, which still makes the average tactical weapon potentially more destructive than the bombs used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Russia and the United States also have “low-yield” nuclear weapons that pack a “light” punch, even dipping below 1 kiloton. But even the least-powerful nuclear bomb — with a yield of about 0.3 kilotons — has about the same explosive power as the 2020 Beirut port explosion.
What weapons would Russia be most likely to use?
Russia has various kinds of tactical nuclear weapons. Some are designed for use by the navy, some to be used by the air force and others to be used by the army, either in surface-to-surface short-range missiles or in surface-to-air air defenses. The yield varies by purpose, since it takes more power to penetrate, say, an underground bunker than it does to stop an incoming warplane.
Russia has different-size stocks of all these weapons. For example, the Federation of American Scientists believes Russia has about 500 tactical air force nuclear weapons, a figure that includes gravity bombs and air-to-surface cruise missiles. Many of those would be delivered by aircraft that we have seen on conventional bombing missions in Ukraine. These planes include the Tu-22 “Backfire” bomber that Russia has used to strike Ukraine and the Su-34 “Fullback,” one of which Ukraine claimed to have shot down last month. But experts do not think the Russians are necessarily going to use those.
The Russian Defense Ministry released footage on June 14 it says shows an Iskander missile system engaged in conventional battle in Ukraine. (Video: Associated Press)
A far more likely candidate is the 9K720 Iskander missile system, classified by NATO as the SS-26, which is a ground-based ballistic missile. But according to Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists, there are far fewer of these in Russia’s arsenal — only about 100 weapons. So why would Iskander be the nuclear delivery system of choice?
“Simply because it’s the most reliable, and the one that would have the best chance of making it to its target,” Kristensen said. “Not being shot down, not failing.”
A ‘small’ nuclear missile
The 9K720 Iskander missile system, known to NATO forces as the SS-26, is capable
of delivering “tactical” nuclear weapons
as well as standard explosive warheads.
The Russians appear to have Iskanders deployed in Ukraine.
MZKT launch/support truck
Sources: Federation of American Scientists;
U.S. Department of Defense; GlobalSecurity.org
A ‘small’ nuclear missile
The 9K720 Iskander missile system, known to NATO forces as the SS-26, is capable of delivering “tactical” nuclear weapons as well as standard explosive warheads. The Russians appear to have Iskanders deployed in Ukraine.
9M723 Ballistic Missile
Range: Approx. 300 miles
The booster rocket stage
and the warhead are both maneuverable in flight
for precise targeting
MZKT launch/support truck
Sources: Federation of American Scientists;
U.S. Department of Defense; GlobalSecurity.org
A ‘small’ nuclear missile
A ‘small’ nuclear missile
The 9K720 Iskander missile system, known to NATO forces as the SS-26, is capable of delivering “tactical” nuclear weapons as well as standard explosive warheads. The Russians appear to have Iskanders deployed in Ukraine.
The 9K720 Iskander missile system, known to NATO forces as the SS-26, is capable of delivering “tactical” nuclear weapons as well as standard explosive warheads. The Russians appear to have Iskanders deployed in Ukraine.
9M723 Ballistic Missile
Range: Approx. 300 miles
The booster rocket stage and the warhead
are both maneuverable in flight for precise targeting
MZKT launch/support truck
Sources: Federation of American Scientists;U.S. Department of Defense; GlobalSecurity.org;
Alex Wellerstein’s “Nukemap” simulator at nuclearsecrecy.com
How much destruction can these weapons cause?
The first metric to pay attention to when estimating the destructive capacity of a nuclear weapon is its yield. If the kilotons number is bigger, the blast is going to be bigger, all else being equal. But all else is usually not equal. Terrain can be a factor — if there are hills in the area of the blast, they can buffer some of the radiating effects of the blast. If the target and the blast occur underground, the ground itself can absorb some of the blow. And whether the weapon is detonated on a surface or a just above the surface can also make a huge difference.
‘Tactical’ nuke could still
wreak grievous destruction
Using the District of Columbia as a rough guide, comparing the blast radius of a hypothetical tactical nuclear strike centered on the National Mall with the blast of an atomic bomb the size of the one used on
the city of Hiroshima in World War II.
Heavy damage/
casualties radius
for a 16-kiloton (Hiroshima-bomb-size) nuclear detonation
Heavy damage/
casualties radius for a 5-kiloton (“tactical”) nuclear detonation
Note: A target’s weather, terrain and other factors can affect the radius and damage of a blast in ways this diagram does not reflect.
Sources: Federation of American Scientists;U.S. Department of Defense;
GlobalSecurity.org; Alex Wellerstein’s “Nukemap” simulator
at nuclearsecrecy.com
WILLIAM NEFF/THE WASHINGTON POST
‘Tactical’ nuke could still
wreak grievous destruction
Using the District of Columbia as a rough guide, comparing the blast radius of a hypothetical tactical nuclear strike centered on the National Mall with
the blast of an atomic bomb the size of the one
used on the city of Hiroshima in World War II.
Heavy damage/
casualties radius for a 16-kiloton (Hiroshima-bomb-size)
nuclear detonation
Heavy damage/
casualties radius for a 5-kiloton (“tactical”) nuclear detonation
...
A Student Was Killed In A Purdue University Residence Hall. His Roommate Has Been Arrested.
A Student Was Killed In A Purdue University Residence Hall. His Roommate Has Been Arrested. https://digitalalabamanews.com/a-student-was-killed-in-a-purdue-university-residence-hall-his-roommate-has-been-arrested/
A Purdue University student was arrested on a murder charge Wednesday after he allegedly killed his roommate in a residence hall on the Indiana campus, according to the school’s police chief.
Ji Min “Jimmy” Sha, a junior cybersecurity major and international student from Korea, called 911 around 12:45 a.m. to alert police about the death, Purdue University Police Chief Lesley Wiete said during a news conference Wednesday morning.
Details of that call were not disclosed, but authorities said the incident unfolded in a room on the first floor of McCutcheon Hall.
The police chief and the Tippecanoe County Coroner’s Office identified the slain student as Varun Manish Chheda, a 20-year-old senior from Indianapolis who was studying data science.
Chheda died of “multiple sharp force traumatic injuries” and the manner of death was a homicide, according to preliminary autopsy results.
McCutcheon Hall, where a Purdue University student is alleged to have killed his roommate.Noe Padilla / USA Today Network
The final autopsy findings are pending toxicology, the coroner’s office said.
Wiete said Sha, 22, was taken into custody minutes after the 911 call and transported to the police station for further investigation. He was in the Tippecanoe County Jail on Wednesday afternoon on a murder charge, according to jail records. There was no bond set for him, records said.
Following Chheda’s death, school officials said there was no threat to the community.
Wiete did not discuss a motive or details about potential weapons, but said that the 911 call came from the room and only Chheda and Sha were in it at the time.
“I believe this was unprovoked and senseless,” she said, noting neither roommate was asleep when the incident happened.
School in mourning
Chheda’s death marked Purdue’s first on-campus homicide in more than eight years, police said.
Andrew F. Boldt, 21, of West Bend, Wisconsin, was fatally shot Jan. 21, 2014, in the basement area of the electrical engineering building, according to a statement the school released after the incident. A student was arrested in connection with the shooting.
Purdue President Mitch Daniels called Chedda’s death “as tragic an event as we can imagine happening on our campus and our hearts and thoughts go out to all of those affected by this terrible event.”
Purdue has about 50,000 undergraduate and graduate students enrolled for the fall semester, according to its website.
Staff at residence halls and clinicians with the school’s counseling and psychological services are providing support to students in need, he said in a statement Wednesday morning.
Daniels assured everyone that the campus is a safe. “Compared with cities of Purdue’s population (approximately 60,000 in all), we experience a tiny fraction of violent and property crime that occurs elsewhere,” he said.
“Such statistics are of no consolation on a day like this,” he added. “A death on our campus and among our Purdue family affects each of us deeply.”
Remembering Chheda
Sumeeth Guda, a senior studying mathematics and statistics at Purdue University, told NBC News he wasn’t close to Chheda but worked with him on a final group project during the spring 2022 semester.
He remembered him as “a serious student, definitely had an eye for detail and was determined to produce the best deliverable.”
“Aside from that, he was a good guy, friendly, and open to helping the rest of us teammates,” Guda said.
“I’m just still a bit shocked that this incident happened,” he said. “And more importantly, I feel extremely sad for his parents, especially his mother.”
Guda said it’s been encouraging to see the school community come together and support each other, but many questions as to what happened remain.
“Honestly, I think everyone is just waiting for the official police statements to come out to get the truth straight from the source about what actually happened,” he said. “And the motives of the suspect.”
Chheda graduated from Park Tudor School, a private school in Indianapolis, Dennis Bisgaard, the school’s interim head, confirmed.
“The entire Park Tudor community is incredibly saddened by the tragic loss of Varun Chheda, Park Tudor class of 2020. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this difficult time,” he said.
Marlene Lenthang
Marlene Lenthang is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.
Rania Soetirto
Rania Soetirto is a researcher for NBC News’ social newsgathering team
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EVENT ALERT: Celebrate Space One Eleven's 35th ARTiversary On Saturday Oct. 15
EVENT ALERT: Celebrate Space One Eleven's 35th ARTiversary On Saturday, Oct. 15 https://digitalalabamanews.com/event-alert-celebrate-space-one-elevens-35th-artiversary-on-saturday-oct-15/
A great way to celebrate art with the whole family. (Space One Eleven)
This arts extravaganza is an invitation to all who enjoy the vibrant energy and excitement of live performances and visual art. They have an amazing lineup of fun all day for everyone in the family to come and enjoy.
1:30-1:40PM: Welcome By SOE & Emcee Elias Hendricks — Birmingham native and a singer of multiple genres: performing opera, musical theater and soul music.
1:40-2PM: Dala Tribal Bellydance — a community collective that teaches and performs FatChanceBellyDance® Style Bellydance
2-2:45PM: Alabama School of Fine Arts Jazz Band — a Big Band instrumental ensemble comprised of a rhythm and horn section.
2:45-4:15PM: Teenage Daddy — a collaboration of Southeastern musicians who play a wide variety of 80s, 90s, Classic Rock, Top 40, Hip Hop, Motown, Funk, Jazz and R&B.
4:25-4:45PM: Magic City Disco — a performance and parading krewe inspired by a love of funk and groove of 1970s and 1980s disco.
4:45-5PM: Aliens, Immigrants & Other Evildoers performance by José Torres-Tama — published poet, playwright, journalist, photographer and performer.
5-6:30PM: Dominique Posey — shined singer who starred on Season 16 of American Idol.
All the deets
Space One Eleven Arts Center
What: The Happening on 2nd
When: Saturday, October 15 | 1-7PM
Where: Space One Eleven Arts Center | 2409 Second Ave. N., Birmingham, AL 35203
Tickets: $20 each | Children 12 & under are free
The history of Space One Eleven
@BhamNow on socials.
Previous Post COMING SOON: new innovative apartments near completion in downtown Birmingham
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The FIVE Shows Streaming This Weekend On FloMarching October 8 & 9 FloMarching
The FIVE Shows Streaming This Weekend On FloMarching – October 8 & 9 – FloMarching https://digitalalabamanews.com/the-five-shows-streaming-this-weekend-on-flomarching-october-8-9-flomarching/
The Fall marching band season is out in full force this weekend. From Texas to New Jersey, California to Alabama, stream these FIVE band competitions right here on FloMarching this weekend – October 8th and 9th. Here’s everything you need to know about the shows and how you can watch them.
Streaming on October 8th
The Ludwig Musser Classic
October 8 | East Rutherford, NJ
Start Time: 8:30am ET
WATCH LIVE
The Ludwig Musser Classic will take place on October 8th at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. A slate of over fifty competitors is set to kick off at 8:30am with Weehawken High School (IA) and continue throughout the day in earnest, with the last group set to take the field at 10:49pm. I – V A classes will be fully represented in addition to a handful of I, II, IV, and V Open programs. Fans can expect to see performances from Long Branch High School (IA), Hackettstown High School (IIA), Vernon Township High School (IIIA), Somerville High School (IVA), New Hartford High School (VA), and many more in the A Class. Open Class competitors will include South Brunswick High School (V Open), Liverpool High School (IV Open), Fair Lawn High School (II Open) and more. The competing groups at the Ludwig Musser Classic will only compete once, so be sure to tune in early so you don’t miss your favorite ensembles take the field!
The Ludwig Musser Classic – Texas Edition
October 8 | Converse, TX
Start time: 9:30am CT
WATCH LIVE
The Ludwig Musser Classic – Texas Edition will take place on October 8th at D.W. Rutledge Stadium in Converse, TX. A group of over twenty competitors will take the field for Prelims competition beginning at 9:30am with La Pryor High School (IA), with the last Prelims performance beginning at 3:45pm. Following the Prelims Awards, the announcement of the Finalist groups, and a short break, Finals competition will start back up at 7:00pm. FInals performances will conclude with the last group at 9:30pm and the Finals awards ceremony will begin at 10:00pm. Audiences can look forward to performances from Byron P. Steele High School (VA), John Marshall High School (IVA), Earl Warren High School (III), and many more.
Texas Marching Classic
October 8 | Round Rock, TX
Start Time: 9:30am CT
WATCH LIVE
Twenty programs will be heading to Round Rock this weekend as they look to make an impact on their 2022 season with a big win against some of the top competitors in Texas. Prelims competition will kick off at 9:30am with Hutto High School and will conclude following Vandegrift High School’s performance at 3:45pm. Prelims awards will be handed out at 4:30pm, and a short break will follow before the Finals performances start back up at 7:00pm.
WBA Ayala Music in Motion Tournament
October 8 | Chino Hills, CA
Start Time: 2:00pm PT
WATCH LIVE
WBA action begins this weekend with the Ayala Music in Motion Tournament in Chino Hills, CA. The competition will take place on October 8th at Bulldog Stadium in Chino Hills, and the first performance will begin at 2:00pm with Orange High School. There will be a short break at 5:55pm to announce the I/II/IIIA Awards and a dinner break, and action will resume at 6:45pm with South Pasadena High School. The Ayala Music in Motion Tournament will conclude following Ayala High School’s performance at 8:40pm, and the IV/VA Class Awards will begin at 9:15pm.
Streaming on October 9th
USBands Southeast Showdown
October 9 | Montgomery, AL
Start Time: 9:00am CT
WATCH LIVE
The USBands Southeast Showdown will take place on October 9th at the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, AL. Fourteen programs will be competing for top honors, with the first group stepping off at 9:00am. Fans can look forward to performances from Memphis Central High School (VA), G.W. Carver High School (IVA), Pleasant Grove High School (IIIA), and many more. In addition to the competitive performances, there will be three exhibition performances from three college programs: Huntington College Marching Band, Alabama State University Drum Majors and Drumline, and the Talladega College Marching Band.
Missed the Show? No Problem – Watch the Rebroadcast!
FloMarching is able to provide rebroadcasts with sound for many of our live-streamed shows this Fall marching band season! Rebroadcast info and links can be found below.
Texas Marching Classic
Rebroadcast Date/Time: October 9, 10am ET
WATCH HERE
Ludwig Musser Classic – Texas Edition
Rebroadcast Date/Time: October 9, 10am ET
WATCH HERE
WBA Ayala Music in Motion Tournament
Rebroadcast Date/Time: October 9, 10am ET
WATCH HERE
Ludwig Musser Classic
Rebroadcast Date/Time: October 9, 10am ET
WATCH HERE
USBands Southeast Showdown
Rebroadcast Date/Time: October 10, 10am ET
WATCH HERE
Read More…
Alabama Football villains? 10 People Players And Things Tide Fans Love To Root Against
Alabama Football ‘villains’? 10 People, Players And Things Tide Fans Love To Root Against https://digitalalabamanews.com/alabama-football-villains-10-people-players-and-things-tide-fans-love-to-root-against/
Are there really “villains” in college football? I suppose it depends on your perspective and memory, how you perceive your rivals and how you remember how certain games and moments went down when the stakes were at their highest.
When Scott Hall and the nWo polled WCW crowds during the late 1990s and “The Bad Guy” said “Another one for the good guys,” did that mean the rebellious pro wrestling faction really had everyone’s best interests at heart, or really just their own?
We know Nick Saban has the utmost respect for his opponents, be they players or coaches, so we know he doesn’t see anyone on the opposite sideline as a villain, even arch-rivals. Alabama fans, on the other hand, bring a different perspective to college football. They invest different emotions and will not hesitate to label themselves the heroes and everyone else the heroes of their stories each season.
Below are coaches, players and moments from the Nick Saban era we know Alabama football fans love to root against.
FILE – Texas A&M head coach Jimbo Fisher speaks to reporters during the NCAA college football Southeastern Conference Media Days in Hoover, Ala., July 21, 2021. No. 25 Texas A&M won’t play in the Gator Bowl against No. 17 Wake Forest on Dec. 31 because of COVID-19 issues and season-ending injuries, the team announced Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2021. “It is unfortunate, but we just don’t have enough scholarship players available to field a team,” Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher said in a news release. (AP Photo/Butch Dill, File)AP
Jimbo Fisher
In May, the Texas A&M head coach lit the college football world on fire when he unloaded on his former boss and current SEC West rival, even calling the Alabama coach a “narcissist” for what Saban said about Texas A&M’s recruiting practices. “It’s despicable that a reputable head coach can come out and say this when he doesn’t get his way or things don’t go his way,” Fisher said. “The narcissist in him doesn’t allow those things to happen. It’s ridiculous when he’s not on top. And the parity in college football that he’s been talking about? Go talk to coaches who’ve coached for him. You’ll find out all the parity. Go dig into wherever he’s been. You can find out anything.
“Some people think they’re God. Well go dig into how God did his deal, you might find out about a guy who … a lot of things you don’t want to know. We build him up to be the czar of football. Go dig into his past or anybody who’s ever coached for him. You can find out anything you want to find out. What he does and how he does it. It’s despicable. It really is.” When asked if he had talked to Saban prior to the presser, Fisher said no and that he wasn’t planning to take any calls. “We’re done,” Fisher said. “He showed you who he is.” Since then, Fisher has insisted he and Saban are “great” and just two competitive guys speaking their minds. Fisher became the first-ever former Saban assistant to defeat his former boss head-to-head when the Aggies upset Alabama in 2021. Tide fans would love nothing more than to not only avenge that loss but give Fisher plenty to think over after his tirade set up an SEC showdown most thought would be a boat-race anyway.
Tim Tebow on set the Friday prior to gameday. “SEC Nation” return to Tuscaloosa for its first of two visits in 2018, this time ahead of the Texas A&M game. (Ben Flanagan / AL.com)
Tim Tebow
Tim Tebow? A villain? No way. We know the legendary Florida Gator quarterback to be one of the good guys in college football history, still beloved in his role as an SEC Network analyst and adored when he rolls through Tuscaloosa with “SEC Nation.” Then why did Alabama fans relish “Tebow tears” when the emotional QB shed a few after Alabama dominated Florida in the 2009 SEC Championship Game? Anytime a fan base rubs it in that much, even frequently sharing photoshopped image of the teary Tebow on to a fake cover of the NCAA Football video game, it means beating him meant a lot. In fact, Tebow had bested the Tide twice, once as a backup to Chris Leak in 2007 and then again in a huge conference title game in 2008, before the Gators would go on to win the national championship against Oklahoma. A Heisman winner and one of the best players in college football history, Tebow was an unstoppable force until Bama managed to do it as they emerged as the new top dog in the sport. They just had to beat the man to be the man, as Ric Flair would say.
Alabama football coach Nick Saban speaks with the media at Alabama’s NFL Pro Day, Wednesday, March 30, 2022, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Vasha Hunt)AP
The Media
Rat poison! Surely, nobody in sports media really hates Alabama football. They’re paid to give their opinion. And if they believe what they say on TV or what they write online, shouldn’t we accept that as professional and objective observation? No. OK, so why do the media hate Alabama? For a decade in the Nick Saban era in Tuscaloosa, a fraction of the Crimson Tide fan base remains convinced that members of the national media have a vendetta against Alabama football. Fans take aim at guys like Colin Cowherd, Joel Klatt, Gary Danielson, Danny Kanell and even Paul Finebaum who dare to opine on the Tide, for better or worse. There is a strong media bias against their favorite team in the minds of some fans, but is that only because they don’t always hear what they want to from sports broadcasters and writers who are paid to share their opinions, even if they’re critical of a given team? And they can’t win, because when they fawn over or merely highlight success his teams have during a given season, Nick Saban dubs it “rat poison” that can have a negative effect on their performance. He has his reasons for that messaging so players don’t let success go to their heads, but still, don’t you feel sorry for the poor media just trying to do our jobs?
Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn during the Iron Bowl in Bryant-Denny Stadium Saturday, Nov. 24, 2018. (Ben Flanagan / AL.com)
Gus Malzahn
Why did Auburn fire Gus Malzahn? Was he the most consistent head coach in terms of having Auburn within striking distance of a national championship annually? No. But he was the architect behind the Auburn offense that won a national title, he coached the team to the iconic Kick Six victory, he fell one play short of winning another BCS championship, he had the Tigers in College Football Playoff contention at various points and he beat Nick Saban more than anyone else did during his Alabama tenure. So, what more do you want? Alabama fans should thank Auburn for firing Malzahn because they dreaded every Iron Bowl he coached regardless of the season the Tigers had leading up to it. His tricky spread offenses flustered Saban and had influence in Alabama tweaking their own offensive identity in the modern era. Alabama went 5-3 against Malzahn, but you knew he always had something up his sleeve.
Then-Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze celebrates in Bryant-Denny Stadium after beating Alabama, 43-37 in 2015. (Vasha Hunt)AP
Hugh Freeze
The former Ole Miss coach had Alabama’s number for two straight seasons (and nearly three), with offensive schemes giving Nick Saban and Kirby Smart’s defenses absolute fits when run by quarterbacks like Bo Wallace and Ryan Kelly. Saban has often referenced Freeze’s five-year tenure in Oxford as a key turning point in his offensive philosophy at Alabama, as AL.com’s Mike Rodak reported. “We were struggling with pace of play, we were struggling with RPOs, we were struggling with sort of this new age of football,” Saban said in 2020. “That’s when we started to figure out, hey, if you can’t beat them, you got to join them.” The no-huddle offenses, spread formations and run-pass options you’ve seen from Alabama the last near-decade were used against them to unforeseen success by many teams, none more so than Freeze’s Rebels in 2014 and 2015. Alabama would still make the inaugural College Football Playoff and win the national title in those years, respectively, but they learned important lessons in those losses, that they better change with college football, in directions already traversed by coaches like Freeze. So does that make him more of a hero than a villain?
Utah’s Sean Smith, bottom, and Paul Kruger, top, sandwich Alabama quarterback John Parker Wilson as they watch Wilson’s fumble roll away during action in the fourth quarter of the Sugar Bowl Friday, Jan. 2, 2009, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, La. Utah recovered the fumble in Alabama territory. Utah won, 31-17. (Press-Register, G.M. Andrews)PRESS-REGISTER
‘Meaningless’ Sugar Bowl games
I say “meaningless,” and plenty will disagree the way Bama fans tend to retroactively frame losses in postseason games that weren’t for all the marbles. “Alabama lost interest,” “Why would they care if the national title wasn’t on the line?” After tough losses to Utah in 2008 and Oklahoma in 2013, after the Tide played their way out of contention, fans needed to cope somehow. Had Alabama won (as they did in Capital One bowl against Michigan State and the Citrus Bowl against Michigan), you’d hear a bit more crowing. They’re only “meaningless” when you lose the games you’re supposed to win. To be fair, the reason the games felt like letdown experiences even before kickoff, is because Alabama fans didn’t want to play in a non-national title Sugar Bowl. Their expectation was BCS or bust and is now CFP or nothing. Was it a letdown for the teams? Perhaps. We won’t know until the players or coaches say so, but for teams like Utah and Oklahoma — who finally got their shot at the top program in the country on the national stage — it was anything but.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban offers words of encouragement to Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel ...
