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An on-field interaction between a UW-Madison Police officer and a Nebraska football assistant coach after Saturday's game was a "misunderstanding" that ended in an apology, a police spokesperson said. Lt. Adam Boardman, one of the UWPD officers escorting University of Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell to the locker room amid fans rushing the field after a 44-25 Huskers victory , turned away to grab Nebraska offensive line coach Donovan Raiola by the arm, video posted to social media showed . Video of postgame encounter between Luke Fickell, Donovan Raiola circulates online That followed an apparent exchange of words between Raiola and Fickell and Badgers assistant offensive line coach Casey Rabach, who were walking in opposite directions. The context of the discussion wasn't apparent from the video, but Fickell and Raiola both pointed at the other, and Rabach later pointed at Raiola. Boardman and Raiola talked for about 15 seconds after Boardman pried Raiola away from a hug with Nebraska running backs coach EJ Barthel. UWPD spokesperson Marc Lovicott said it was a "misunderstanding amid a pretty chaotic scene." He said Boardman made contact with an "unknown individual who had approached" Badgers coaches as they were leaving the field. "Once it was confirmed that the individual was a member of the Nebraska coaching staff, the UWPD officer apologized for the misunderstanding," Lovicott wrote in an email Tuesday. "The interaction concluded cordially with a handshake." Lovicott said UW Police has made contact with counterparts at Nebraska "and they're also considering it a misunderstanding." Raiola played for Wisconsin from 2002 to 2005. "I don't want speculate without knowing, obviously Donny went to Wisconsin, so I don't know if there was some history there with somebody or something," said Nebraska coach Matt Rhule, who said he was shown video of the incident Monday. "When I asked Donny about it, he was like, 'No big deal.' Things happen after games and people are emotional, but he seemed to kinda brush it off." Fickell said he didn't know much about the interaction when he was asked about it at his weekly news conference Monday. "I mean, I don't know if he was talking to Casey, somebody said something, I don't know," Fickell said. "I just said it looked like maybe he said something to me, but I had no idea. And I had no idea that that was even something. So if it was, I didn't spend a whole lot of time thinking about it." BadgerExtra reporter Colten Bartholomew and Lincoln Journal Star reporter Luke Mullin contributed to this report. Get local news delivered to your inbox!There are plenty of ways you can use Gemini — Google's latest AI model — to make everyday tasks easier to accomplish . Provided that you ask it the right questions, you can easily garner all sorts of new information that you didn't know before about topics you're interested in. If you have access to Gemini through your Gmail inbox, it can summarize long emails, suggest replies, find pertinent information from previous messages, and even look through your Google Drive and Google Calendar if you need files or event specifics. Google Gemini can also be an incredibly useful tool to use to plan trips, whether it's done in advance or at the last minute . For instance, you can ask it to come up with a list of places to go to in the summer, or whether a certain month is a good time to travel to a vacation destination. If you need help coming up with a list of activities to do or things to pack, Gemini can formulate a travel itinerary you can further tweak by asking it to consider additional preferences and other requirements. Most importantly, if you need to book a flight , Gemini can help you sift through a potentially long list of options and only show you ones that fit your budget and convenience parameters. To get started, do the following steps first: You can also do this on a mobile device by downloading Gemini for Android or iPhone . Once you launch the app and log in using your Google account, tap on your profile photo, select Extensions, and make sure Google Flights is switched on. Doing so allows Gemini to source real-time flight information based on a number of factors. These include your origin city, your airline, cabin class preference, your price limit, number of stops, the number of passengers in your travel party, the length of your trip, and whether you're booking a one-way or round-trip ticket. After you ensure that the Google Flights extension is turned on for Gemini, you can proceed by asking it your flight-related questions. If you still have Gemini's Extensions page open, here's how you can proceed: Be as precise as possible with your starter prompt. If saving money on airfare is your goal, include words like "cheapest" or "lowest price," in your entry. For instance, if you ask, "Give me a list of the cheapest round-trip flights from Las Vegas to Manila for March 8-21, 2025," Gemini will respond with something like: Underneath it should be a Google Flights table outlining the flights it mentioned. Clicking it will open Google Flights in a new page, with the origin city, destination city, and flight dates you mentioned in your initial prompt already filled in. On this page, you can use Google Flight's various filters to finetune flight results listed. Alternatively, you can go back to the Gemini page that has your original query and type in follow-up questions, such as: Once all your questions have been answered, click the Google Flights link again to see all the suggested flights' corresponding details. All the data you've gleaned from Gemini should help you decide whether to purchase flight tickets now or later. When you're ready to book, select a flight on Google Flights, and the portal will automatically redirect you through the proper channel to finalize your purchase. Since AI tools like Gemini aren't 100% accurate and can be prone to mistakes, but they are a useful jumping off point. Clicking on the Google Flights link it provides is crucial, to ensure that the price listed is the most up-to-date and truly within your budget. In addition, if you need to set up price alerts, want to prioritize flights from a specific airline, and the like, you can't do it on Gemini. You'd have to click the Google Flights table that Gemini provided you with and set it up there. Use the filters to fine-tune flight results and enable the "Track prices" toggle to keep an eye on future prices. If you're planning a flight with coworkers or friends, you can ask Gemini to format the search results to fit in a spreadsheet. Based on testing, doing this request through a computer will show you an option to export the data into Google Sheets. Alternatively, you can ask Gemini to compose a draft email containing all the flights it suggested. Copy and paste it into a new Gmail email and send it to your travel mates. Since flight prices are in constant flux and could change at any time, consider including a link to the Google Flights results page in your email before you send it.
Thousands of protesters marched through Barcelona on Saturday demanding lower rents in Spain's second city. Barcelona, which has already taken action to stop the spread of holiday rental apartments, is the latest Spanish city to see protests for cheaper housing. Backed by left-wing parties and unions, the demonstrators gathered in central Barcelona behind a giant banner declaring "Lower the rents". "Today a new political cycle starts concerning housing," Carme Arcarazo, spokesperson for the Catalan Tenants Union, the main organiser, told reporters. "Investors must not be allowed to come to our cities and play with the apartments like a game of Monopoly," she added. The union would target "profiteers" who are taking "half of our salaries", Arcarazo said. The demonstrators demanded a 50 percent cut in rents, leases with an unlimited term and a ban on "speculative" sales of buildings. They threatened to start a rent strike. An estimated 22,000 people took part in a similar demonstration in Madrid on October 13. Campaigns have been launched in other cities. According to the Idealista specialised website, rental prices per square metre have risen 82 percent across Spain over the past decade. The average salary has gone up by 17 percent in that time, according to the national statistics institute. Facing pressure over a housing crisis, the government in 2023 passed legislation calling for more social housing, greater restrictions on rents in high demand areas and penalties for owners who do not occupy properties. But rents have continued to rise while the government has battled city and regional authorities to get some parts of the law applied. vid-vab/tw/jmWASHINGTON - Donald Trump threatened the United States’s closest neighbours with big tariffs this week, in a move that has reminded many of the unpredictable tactics the president-elect deployed during his first tenure in the White House. Trump said Monday he would use an executive order to impose 25 per cent tariffs on all goods coming from Canada and Mexico until the two countries stop drugs and migrants from illegally crossing the U.S. border. The announcement, made on Truth Social, brought swift responses from officials and industry in both countries who are bracing for chaos during Trump’s second tenure. He has long used the threat of import taxes to pressure other countries to do his bidding, saying this summer that “the most beautiful word in the dictionary is ‘tariff.’” It’s unlikely the move would violate the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement, which was negotiated during the first Trump administration. Laura Dawson, an expert on Canada-U. S. relations and the executive director of the Future Borders Coalition, said the president can impose tariffs under his national security powers. This type of duty has a time limit and can only be made permanent through Congressional approval, but for Trump, national security powers are like a “get out of jail free card,” Dawson said. “This is exactly what happened in the last Trump administration,” Dawson said. “Everyone said, ‘Well, that is ridiculous. Canada is the U.S.‘s best security partner. What do you mean our steel and aluminum imports are somehow a source of insecurity?’” But within the global trade system, she said, no country challenges another’s right to define their own national security imperatives. Trump’s first administration demonstrated how vulnerable Canada is to America’s whims when the former president scrapped the North American Free Trade Agreement. The U.S. is Canada’s closest neighbour and largest trading partner. More than 77 per cent of Canadian exports go to the U.S. Negotiation of CUSMA, commonly dubbed “the new NAFTA,” was a key test for Ottawa following Trump’s first victory. The trilateral agreement is up for review in 2026 and experts suspect this week’s tariff announcement is a negotiating tactic. Scott Bessent, Trump’s pick for treasury secretary, said in a recent op-ed that tariffs are “a useful tool for achieving the president’s foreign policy objectives.” “Whether it is getting allies to spend more on their own defence, opening foreign markets to U.S. exports, securing co-operation on ending illegal immigration and interdicting fentanyl trafficking, or deterring military aggression, tariffs can play a central role.” During the initial CUSMA negotiations in 2018, Trump floated the idea of a 25 per cent tariff on the Canadian auto sector — something that would have been crippling for the industry on both sides of the border. It was never implemented. At the time, he did use his national security powers to impose a 25 per cent tariff on steel and 10 per cent tariff on aluminum imports, casting fear of an all-out trade war that would threaten the global economy. The day after announcing those levies, Trump posted on social media “trade wars are good, and easy to win.” Former U.S. trade representative Robert Lighthizer recounted in his book that the duties sent an “unmistakable signal that business as usual was over.” “The Trump administration was willing to ruffle diplomatic feathers to advance its trade agenda.” It led to a legendary clash between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Trump at the G7 in Quebec. Trudeau said Canada would impose retaliatory measures, saying the argument that tariffs on steel and aluminum were a matter of national security was “kind of insulting.” Trump took to social media, where, in a flurry of posts he called Trudeau “very dishonest and weak.” Canada and other countries brought their own duties against the U.S. in response. They targeted products for political, rather than economic, reasons. Canada hit yogurt with a 10 per cent duty. Most of the product impacted came from one plant in Wisconsin, the home state of then-Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan. The European Union, Mexico and Canada all targeted U.S. whiskey products with tariffs, in a clear signal to then Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his home state of Kentucky’s bourbon industry. Ultimately, Canada and Mexico were able to negotiate exemptions. Carlo Dade, the director of trade and trade infrastructure at the Canada West Foundation, said Trump is returning to the White House with more experience and a plan. But he suspects Americans will not like the blow to their bank accounts. Trump’s new across-the-board tariff strategy would not only disrupt global supply chains, it would also cause a major shakeup to the American economy. It’s unclear if Trump will go through with them, or for how long, after campaigning on making life more affordable and increasing the energy market. “I think it will be short-term,” Dade said. “The U.S. can only inflict damage on itself for so long.” This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 26, 2024. — With files from The Associated Press
How Trump’s bet on voters electing him managed to silence some of his legal woesNever one to mince words, President-elect Donald Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton blasted his decision to re-appoint firebrand political commentator Seb Gorka as a senior director for counterterrorism. Speaking with CNN’s The Source host Kaitlan Collins on Friday night, Bolton–who has become a fierce Trump critic after a brief stint in his first administration–called Gorka a “con-man” with minimal qualifications. “I wouldn’t have him in any U.S. government,” Bolton said. “I don’t think it’s going to bode well for counterterrorism efforts when the NSC senior director is somebody like that.” ADVERTISEMENT When pressed by Collins on why exactly Gorka is a “con man,” the former Trump adviser said “he needs a full field FBI background investigation about his educational claims and things like that.” Bolton said Gorka is the “perfect example of somebody who owes his position purely to Donald Trump.” “He doesn’t display loyalty, he displays fealty, and that’s what Trump wants. He doesn’t want Gorka’s opinions, he wants Gorka to say, ‘Yes sir,’” said Bolton. “I’m fully confident that’s exactly what will happen no matter what it is that Trump says.” Gorka has been described as an Islamophobe. The former national security affairs editor for Breitbart News, Gorka previously said he believes that violence is a “fundamental” part of the Muslim way of life, and his self-proclaimed expertise in Islamic extremism and jihadism was what pipped him a spot in Trump’s first administration. However, it wasn’t long before Gorka came under fire for his lack of actual expertise. It came to light that the two of the people who’d reportedly endorsed his PhD weren’t even academics, and the third person was a far-right Hungarian MEP with ties to Gorka’s family. “It’s not even remotely something that I would consider scholarship,” as one academic previously described Gorka’s thesis to CNN . “It does not deploy evidence that would satisfy the most basic methodological requirements for a PhD in the U.S.” Speaking with the outlet, more experts further pointed out Gorka’s lack of expertise on the Middle East, including that he does not speak Arabic, has not undertaken extensive travel to the Middle East, and had not prior to his White House appointment ever served in either a military or intelligence role.
WASHINGTON (AP) — One year after the Jan. 6, 2021 , U.S. Capitol attack, Attorney General Merrick Garland said the Justice Department was committed to holding accountable all perpetrators “at any level” for “the assault on our democracy.” That bold declaration won't apply to at least one person: Donald Trump. Special counsel Jack Smith's move on Monday to abandon the federal election interference case against Trump means jurors will likely never decide whether the president-elect is criminally responsible for his attempts to cling to power after losing the 2020 campaign. The decision to walk away from the election charges and the separate classified documents case against Trump marks an abrupt end of the Justice Department’s unprecedented legal effort that once threatened his liberty but appears only to have galvanized his supporters. The abandonment of the cases accusing Trump of endangering American democracy and national security does away with the most serious legal threats he was facing as he returns to the White House. It was the culmination of a monthslong defense effort to delay the proceedings at every step and use the criminal allegations to Trump's political advantage, putting the final word in the hands of voters instead of jurors. “We always knew that the rich and powerful had an advantage, but I don’t think we would have ever believed that somebody could walk away from everything,” said Stephen Saltzburg, a George Washington University law professor and former Justice Department official. “If there ever was a Teflon defendant, that’s Donald Trump.” While prosecutors left the door open to the possibility that federal charges could be re-filed against Trump after he leaves office, that seems unlikely. Meanwhile, Trump's presidential victory has thrown into question the future of the two state criminal cases against him in New York and Georgia. Trump was supposed to be sentenced on Tuesday after his conviction on 34 felony counts in his New York hush money case , but it's possible the sentencing could be delayed until after Trump leaves office, and the defense is pushing to dismiss the case altogether. Smith's team stressed that their decision to abandon the federal cases was not a reflection of the merit of the charges, but an acknowledgement that they could not move forward under longstanding Justice Department policy that says sitting presidents cannot face criminal prosecution. Trump's presidential victory set “at odds two fundamental and compelling national interests: On the one hand, the Constitution’s requirement that the President must not be unduly encumbered in fulfilling his weighty responsibilities . . . and on the other hand, the Nation’s commitment to the rule of law,” prosecutors wrote in court papers. The move just weeks after Trump's victory over Vice President Kamala Harris underscores the immense personal stake Trump had in the campaign in which he turned his legal woes into a political rallying cry. Trump accused prosecutors of bringing the charges in a bid to keep him out of the White House, and he promised revenge on his perceived enemies if he won a second term. “If Donald J. Trump had lost an election, he may very well have spent the rest of his life in prison,” Vice President-elect JD Vance, wrote in a social media post on Monday. “These prosecutions were always political. Now it’s time to ensure what happened to President Trump never happens in this country again.” After the Jan. 6 attack by Trump supporters that left more than 100 police officers injured, Republican leader Mitch McConnell and several other Republicans who voted to acquit Trump during his Senate impeachment trial said it was up to the justice system to hold Trump accountable. The Jan. 6 case brought last year in Washington alleged an increasingly desperate criminal conspiracy to subvert the will of voters after Trump's 2020 loss, accusing Trump of using the angry mob of supporters that attacked the Capitol as “a tool” in his campaign to pressure then-Vice President Mike Pence and obstruct the certification of Democrat Joe Biden's victory. Hundreds of Jan. 6 rioters — many of whom have said they felt called to Washington by Trump — have pleaded guilty or been convicted by juries of federal charges at the same courthouse where Trump was supposed to stand trial last year. As the trial date neared, officials at the courthouse that sits within view of the Capitol were busy making plans for the crush of reporters expected to cover the historic case. But Trump's argument that he enjoyed absolute immunity from prosecution quickly tied up the case in appeals all the way up to the Supreme Court. The high court ruled in July that former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution , and sent the case back to the trial court to decide which allegations could move forward. But the case was dismissed before the trial court could got a chance to do so. The other indictment brought in Florida accused Trump of improperly storing at his Mar-a-Lago estate sensitive documents on nuclear capabilities, enlisting aides and lawyers to help him hide records demanded by investigators and cavalierly showing off a Pentagon “plan of attack” and classified map. But U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the case in July it on grounds that Smith was illegally appointed . Smith appealed to the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, but abandoned that appeal on Monday. Smith's team said it would continue its fight in the appeals court to revive charges against Trump's two co-defendants because “no principle of temporary immunity applies to them.” In New York, jurors spent weeks last spring hearing evidence in a state case alleging a Trump scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex. New York prosecutors recently expressed openness to delaying sentencing until after Trump's second term, while Trump's lawyers are fighting to have the conviction dismissed altogether. In Georgia, a trial while Trump is in office seems unlikely in a state case charging him and more than a dozen others with conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state. The case has been on hold since an appeals court agreed to review whether to remove Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over her romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she had hired to lead the case. ____ Associated Press reporter Lisa Mascaro in Washington contributed. Alanna Durkin Richer, The Associated PressAt launch events for both the and , Apple made much of its new Apple Intelligence software features: a collection of AI tools and features intended to help you get more from your iPhone. Now, those features are starting to roll out—though we’re still waiting for certain upgrades. Here’s everything you can do at the moment in Apple Intelligence on iOS 18.2, in the parts of the world where it has launched (including the US and Canada). You’ll also need an iPhone 15 Pro, an iPhone 15 Pro Max, or any of the iPhone 16 models to access these AI functions. You’ll be prompted to set up Apple Intelligence right after upgrading to iOS 18, but if you need to set it up later, head to Settings in iOS: Tap , and then . You’ll get an explanation of some of the AI upgrades you can use, and a short demo of how they work. You can also choose to enable notification summaries as you work through the setup process. The feature will be explained on screen, but it’s basically exactly what it sounds like: Apple Intelligence will attempt to summarize multiple notifications from the same apps, so you don’t have to waste time wading through each one. iOS will give you the option of choosing particular categories for summaries (you can change this later if needed): , , and . Some trial and error will probably be needed to figure out how you want to use it—it doesn’t necessarily work great . The AI image creation capabilities need to be downloaded and installed separately. The easiest way to trigger this is to find the new Image Playground app on your phone. Once you’ve launched this, and followed the prompts on screen, the image creation setup process is initiated (you’ll get a notification when it’s ready to use). This setup process covers the Image Playground app (for general AI image creation), Genmoji (emoji made from your text prompts), and the Image Wand (which lets you turn rough sketches into AI images through the Notes app). If you try to use these apps ahead of time, you’ll see a message saying the necessary files are still being downloaded. Finally, you can set up ChatGPT inside Siri. If you choose from iOS Settings then tap on , you can give Siri access to ChatGPT for longer or more complex answers. You can connect an existing ChatGPT account to Siri, but you don’t need to (if you’ve got a ChatGPT Plus account, connecting this will mean you “can use advanced ChatGPT capabilities more often” ). The menu in Settings gives you access to most of the settings you’ll need to manage AI on your iPhone. You can enable or disable the AI features on your handset, for example, as well as control which apps have access to these tools (you might not want every app infused with some extra AI). Right now, you can split Apple Intelligence features on the iPhone into three sections. The first is Writing Tools, which show up in any app with a text box: Select the text you’re composing, then tap on the toolbar that pops up. You can have the text rewritten in a certain style or tone, or proofread it for errors. You can also expand or shorten blocks of text, and compose new text with ChatGPT. You can also use Writing Tools to summarize existing blocks of text. For example: Highlight text on a webpage, then choose , and you can pick from , , , or to get a more digestible breakdown. You can use it on long emails, long documents, or anywhere else summaries are useful. These summaries are presented in a separate overlay on screen. The second group of tools covers image creation, and we’ve already mentioned the three key components in the setup section. Launch the Image Playground app, and you can start prompting: Ask for a cabin in the woods, or a cosy winter scene, or a cat heading off to space on a rocketship. Whatever you can imagine, Image Playground can create. You can also add to prompts using suggested themes, costumes, and other tweaks. Genmoji is similar, but for emojis: Look for the Genmoji symbol on the right of the emoji keyboard in any app. There’s also the Image Wand, which you can find in the drawing tools inside any note in Notes: Tap the pen icon then the wand (which looks like a magic wand), and you’re able to start creating images with a combination of AI and your own drawing. Finally, there’s ChatGPT in Siri. Whenever you launch Siri by saying “hey Siri” or by pressing and holding the power button, you’ll see a suggestion to use ChatGPT for certain prompts and questions. You can also specify that ChatGPT gets used in your requests—so you could say “hey Siri, use ChatGPT to plan out a birthday party for a 5-year-old that lasts an hour” for example. ChatGPT can also lend a hand in a feature called Visual Intelligence, though this is an iPhone 16 exclusive. Launch the iPhone Camera app, get something in shot, then press and hold the Camera Control button on the side of your phone. Tap the speech bubble button on screen, and ChatGPT will give you a description of what you’re looking at, and any more information you need about it. There are more features on the way too: More advanced and personalized Siri responses are expected for iOS 18.4, and it’s thought Apple is working on its own ChatGPT competitor so that eventually Siri won’t need any extra help. More picture styles are for Image Playground too.
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Among elites across the ideological spectrum, there's one point of unifying agreement: Americans are bitterly divided. What if that's wrong? What if elites are the ones who are bitterly divided while most Americans are fairly unified? History rarely lines up perfectly with the calendar (the "sixties" didn't really start until the decade was almost over). But politically, the 21st century neatly began in 2000, when the election ended in a tie and the color coding of electoral maps became enshrined as a kind of permanent tribal color war of "red vs. blue." Elite understanding of politics has been stuck in this framework ever since. Politicians and voters have leaned into this alleged political reality, making it seem all the more real in the process. I loathe the phrase "perception is reality," but in politics it has the reifying power of self-fulfilling prophecy. Like rival noble families in medieval Europe, elites have been vying for power and dominance on the arrogant assumption that their subjects share their concern for who rules rather than what the rulers can deliver. In 2018, the group More in Common published a massive report on the "hidden tribes" of American politics. The wealthiest and whitest groups were "devoted conservatives" (6%) and "progressive activists" (8%). These tribes dominate the media, the parties and higher education, and they dictate the competing narratives of red vs. blue, particularly on cable news and social media. Meanwhile, the overwhelming majority of Americans resided in, or were adjacent to, the "exhausted majority." These people, however, "have no narrative," as David Brooks wrote at the time. "They have no coherent philosophic worldview to organize their thinking and compel action." Lacking a narrative might seem like a very postmodern problem, but in a postmodern elite culture, postmodern problems are real problems. It's worth noting that red vs. blue America didn't emerge ex nihilo. The 1990s were a time when the economy and government seemed to be working, at home and abroad. As a result, elites leaned into the narcissism of small differences to gain political and cultural advantage. They remain obsessed with competing, often apocalyptic, narratives. That leaves out most Americans. The gladiatorial combatants of cable news, editorial pages and academia, and their superfan spectators, can afford these fights. Members of the exhausted majority are more interested in mere competence. I think that's the hidden unity elites are missing. This is why we keep throwing incumbent parties out of power: They get elected promising competence but get derailed -- or seduced -- by fan service to, or trolling of, the elites who dominate the national conversation. There's a difference between competence and expertise. One of the most profound political changes in recent years has been the separation of notions of credentialed expertise from real-world competence. This isn't a new theme in American life, but the pandemic and the lurch toward identity politics amplified distrust of experts in unprecedented ways. This is a particular problem for the left because it is far more invested in credentialism than the right. Indeed, some progressives are suddenly realizing they invested too much in the authority of experts and too little in the ability of experts to provide what people want from government, such as affordable housing, decent education and low crime. The New York Times' Ezra Klein says he's tired of defending the authority of government institutions. Rather, "I want them to work." One of the reasons progressives find Trump so offensive is his absolute inability to speak the language of expertise -- which is full of coded elite shibboleths. But Trump veritably shouts the language of competence. I don't mean he is actually competent at governing. But he is effectively blunt about calling leaders, experts and elites -- of both parties -- stupid, ineffective, weak and incompetent. He lost in 2020 because voters didn't believe he was actually good at governing. He won in 2024 because the exhausted majority concluded the Biden administration was bad at it. Nostalgia for the low-inflation pre-pandemic economy was enough to convince voters that Trumpian drama is the tolerable price to pay for a good economy. About 3 out of 4 Americans who experienced "severe hardship" because of inflation voted for Trump. The genius of Trump's most effective ad -- "Kamala is for they/them, President Trump is for you" -- was that it was simultaneously culture-war red meat and an argument that Harris was more concerned about boutique elite concerns than everyday ones. If Trump can actually deliver competent government, he could make the Republican Party the majority party for a generation. For myriad reasons, that's an if so big it's visible from space. But the opportunity is there -- and has been there all along.After more than five years of waiting in some cases, wildfire survivors across the West will be relieved of paying federal income taxes on their recovery settlements and lawyers fees. The Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2023 passed the Senate on Wednesday night, about six months after it was approved by the U.S. House of Representatives nearly unanimously. It had been stalled for months, tucked into opposing tax packages from Senate Republicans and Democrats. The bill, which is likely to be signed by President Joe Biden, would exempt people who have survived a wildfire between 2016 and 2026 from paying federal income taxes on disaster recovery settlements and fees paid to lawyers that were received or paid between 2020 and 2026. Victims elsewhere are also likely to benefit. The bill applies to the survivors of the East Palestine train derailment that occurred in Ohio in 2023, though they’ve largely been exempted from federal income tax on payments from Norfolk Southern due to intervention from the Internal Revenue Service. The disaster act would also provide relief for natural disaster survivors since 2020 in the form of a casualty loss deduction. That means that those who only received partial payments from insurers on home damage and other residential property damage could deduct those uncovered losses on their federal income taxes without itemization. Passage of the bill, introduced last year by a Florida Republican Rep. W. Gregory Steube, follows a public plea last month by a political action committee. American Disaster Survivors sponsored billboards asking for help in Idaho and Oregon to grab the attention of the two leaders of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee where the bill sat. Oregon’s senior U.S. senator, Democrat Ron Wyden, chairs the committee, and Idaho’s U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo is its ranking Republican member. The disaster PAC was founded by survivors of fires that burned towns in California during 2017 and 2018 and which are still only partially rebuilt. The bill would sunset in 2026, according to Wyden spokesperson Hank Stern, because federal tax codes are coming up for negotiation in 2025 and there is not a lot of political will among Republicans to do long-term tax policy in the lame duck session before a new Congress and administration comes to power in January. Wyden said in a speech following the bill’s passage that it was necessary and long overdue. “Their homes and their businesses are burned, their possessions and livelihoods gone, and finally, the federal government is showing some common sense,” he said. He and California House and Senate Democrats and Republicans who championed the bill said despite working in a bipartisan way to get it passed in the Republican-controlled House, Senate Republicans stalled progress. “We’re going to be able to say to Westerners who’ve been hit by these big fires that they’re going to be able to go to bed tonight in the Western United States with a little relief that the federal government has finally come to its senses and made sure that they’re not going to have this additional tax burden,” Wyden said in his speech. Spokespersons for the American Disaster Relief PAC said it would impact survivors of wildfire in many states. “This has given a much needed glimmer of hope to millions of Americans across California, Oregon, Hawaii, Washington and Idaho who have been devastated by tragedy.” Oregon Republicans also welcomed the bill, including state Rep. Christine Goodwin of Canyonville, who worked on a similar bill passed by Oregon’s Legislature. “ When I first wrote Oregon’s framework for wildfire disaster tax relief, I did so with the belief that government should not profit from the misfortune of its citizens. It took Rep. Jami Cate and I many years to get the bill over the line here in Oregon; I’m happy to see similar efforts happen so swiftly at the federal level. ” The state bill passed unanimously in the spring of 2024, ending state income taxation on settlements and lawyer fees for wildfire victims. That bill, Senate Bill 1520 , was championed by survivors of the 2020 Labor Day Fires, including Sam Drevo, who survived the Santiam Canyon fire that burned down much of the city of Gates in the heart of the Santiam State Forest. “On behalf of fire survivors everywhere, I am deeply grateful that this passed. I’m not super thrilled about the sunset, but it’s a huge step forward for fire survivors,” Drevo said. He and his mom are still sorting out how much she was taxed on the settlement she received to help her rebuild her home in Gates that was completely wiped out by the fires. “I know it’s going to be helpful, and to other people it’s going to be helpful. In general, it’s a huge thing to have this type of tax relief, especially in a situation where you lose everything,” he said. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE UPDATED at 3:58 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2024 with more reaction.Hospitals were 'hours from running out of PPE' during early months of Covid, Hancock says
BOSTON (AP) — Forty years ago, Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie rolled to his right and threw a pass that has become one of college football’s most iconic moments. With Boston College trailing defending champion Miami, Flutie threw the Hail Mary and found receiver Gerard Phalen , who made the grab while falling into the end zone behind a pair of defenders for a game-winning 48-yard TD. Flutie and many of his 1984 teammates were honored on the field during BC’s game against North Carolina before the second quarter on Saturday afternoon, the anniversary of the Eagles’ Miracle in Miami. “There’s no way its been 40 years,” Flutie told The Associated Press on the sideline a few minutes before he walked out with some of his former teammates to be recognized after a video of The Play was shown on the scoreboards. It’s a moment and highlight that’s not only played throughout decades of BC students and fans, but around the college football world. “What is really so humbling is that the kids 40 years later are wearing 22 jerseys, still,” Flutie said of his old number. “That amazes me.” That game was played on national TV the Friday after Thanksgiving. The ironic thing is it was originally scheduled for earlier in the season before CBS paid Rutgers to move its game against Miami, thus setting up the BC-Miami post-holiday matchup. “It shows you how random some things are, that the game was moved,” Flutie said. “The game got moved to the Friday after Thanksgiving, which was the most watched game of the year. We both end up being nationally ranked and up there. All those things lent to how big the game itself was, and made the pass and the catch that much more relevant and remembered because so many people were watching.” There’s a statue of Flutie winding up to make The Pass outside the north gates at Alumni Stadium. Fans and visitors can often be seen taking photos there. “In casual conversation, it comes up every day,” Flutie said, when asked how many times people bring it up. “It brings a smile to my face every time we talk about it.” A week after the game-ending Flutie pass, the Eagles beat Holy Cross and before he flew off to New York to accept the Heisman. They went on to win the 49th Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Day. “Forty years seem almost like incomprehensible,” said Phalen, also standing on the sideline a few minutes after the game started. “I always say to Doug: ‘Thank God for social media. It’s kept it alive for us.”’ Earlier this week, current BC coach Bill O’Brien, 55, was asked if he remembered where he was 40 years ago. “We were eating Thanksgiving leftovers in my family room,” he said. “My mom was saying a Rosary in the kitchen because she didn’t like Miami and wanted BC to win. My dad, my brother and I were watching the game. “It was unbelievable,” he said. “Everybody remembers where they were for the Hail Mary, Flutie pass.” Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-footballUnderdog Fantasy Promo Code BETFPB for Arizona vs. Duke: $1,000 bonus for Nov. 22 college basketball
50 EH/s expansion accelerated to H1 2025 Focused on alternative funding instruments Potential for investor distributions in 2025 Transition to U.S. domestic issuer SYDNEY, Nov. 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- IREN (NASDAQ: IREN ) (together with its subsidiaries, “IREN” or “the Company”), today reported its financial results for the first quarter ended September 30, 2024. All $ amounts are in United States Dollars (“USD”) unless otherwise stated. “We are pleased to report our Q1 FY25 results and reiterate our focus on low-cost Bitcoin mining, operating cashflows and shareholder returns,” said Daniel Roberts, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of IREN. “We are just weeks away from achieving our 31 EH/s milestone and are excited to announce the acceleration of our growth trajectory to 50 EH/s in H1 2025, which was previously H2 2025. Our funding program is focused on alternative funding instruments and the strong operating cashflows we expect to generate enhances our flexibility to support potential distributions in 2025.” Business Update Bitcoin Mining 21 EH/s installed, on-track for 31 EH/s next month Accelerating expansion to 50 EH/s in H1 2025 Previously H2 2025 Single site expansion at Childress S21 Pro miners previously secured (fixed price, $18.9/TH) Institutional-grade mining exposure Vertically integrated, large scale and low-cost producer ~$29k all-in cash cost per Bitcoin 1 Non-HODL approach and prudent capital stewardship through the cycle Commitment to 100% renewable energy, supporting energy grids and local communities AI/HPC Update AI Cloud Services 1,896 NVIDIA H100 & H200 GPUs Focus on measured growth, only in response to customer demand Other Continuing to advance negotiations with parties on a range of structures in relation to IREN sites – any transaction would need to reflect strategic value of IREN assets Installing liquid cooling infrastructure at Childress and Prince George to support NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs Power & Land IREN 1.4GW Sweetwater site located 60 miles from Abilene, Texas Procurement underway to support IREN-owned 1.4GW substation energization by April 2026 Construction planning for multiple pathways Continuing to prioritize development activities for >1GW pipeline Corporate & Funding Focused on alternative funding instruments Strong operating cashflows to support potential investor distributions in 2025 Transition to U.S. domestic issuer status in 2025 (including U.S. GAAP reporting) The Q1 FY25 Results webcast will be recorded, and the replay will be accessible shortly after the event at https://iren.com/investor/events-and-presentations First Quarter FY25 Results Bitcoin mining revenue of $49.6 million, as compared to $54.3 million in Q4 FY24, driven by increase in network difficulty and lower Bitcoin prices, offset by growth in operating hashrate during the month of September 2024 28% increase in AI Cloud Services revenue of $3.2 million, as compared to $2.5 million in Q4 FY24, driven by revenue for additional GPU’s commissioned in April 2024 Adjusted EBITDA of $2.6 million, as compared to $12.2 million in Q4 FY24 2 813 Bitcoin mined, as compared to 821 Bitcoin in Q4 FY24, driven primarily by increase in network difficulty and halving event in Q4 FY24 Net electricity costs 3 of $28.7 million, as compared to $24.1 million in Q4 FY24, primarily driven by an increase in operating capacity Successful transition to spot electricity pricing at Childress from August 1, 2024 One-off cost of $7.2 million to close out August and September 2024 hedges Other costs of $21.4 million, as compared to $20.5 million in Q4 FY24 4 Reflects a business today that is delivering significant growth, and projecting continued expansion over the coming years Includes $2.7 million provision for Canadian non-refundable sales tax, as compared to $2.0 million in Q4 FY24. Net loss after income tax of $51.7 million, as compared to a loss of $27.1 million in Q4 FY24 Q1 FY25 Operating cash outflow of $3.8 million, as compared to cash inflow of $4.8 million in Q4 FY24 Cash and cash equivalents of $98.6 million as of September 30, 2024 and no debt facilities, increasing to $182.4 million as of October 31, 2024 5 Assumptions and Notes All-in cash cost per Bitcoin at 31 EH/s reflects total net electricity costs, overheads and Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) cash costs and includes benefit of $32m illustrative contribution from AI Cloud Services, on a per Bitcoin mined basis. Calculations assume hardware operates at 100% uptime, nameplate fleet efficiency of 15 J/TH, weighted average power cost of $0.036, overheads of $81m, REC costs of $9m, power consumption of 484MW, network hashrate of 732 EH/s, block reward of 3.125 BTC per block, transaction fees of 0.1 BTC per block, pool fees of 0.15%. $32m illustrative contribution from AI Cloud Services calculated as illustrative revenue less assumed electricity costs (excludes all other site, overhead and REC costs) and assumes hardware is fully utilized by customers and operating at 100% uptime, 1.25kW power draw per GPU, $0.045/kWh electricity costs and $2.00 per GPU hour revenue assumption. REC costs at 31 EH/s assume $3/MWh pricing based on historical purchases. Weighted average power cost assumption reflects $0.045/kWh costs in British Columbia and $0.0325/kWh costs in Texas - latter in line with actual net electricity costs of $0.031, $0.032 and $0.0306 in Aug, Sep and Oct 2024, respectively. Historical power prices achieved and power price assumptions may or may not materialize in the future. This press release should be read strictly in conjunction with the forward-looking statements disclaimer on page 6. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are non-IFRS metrics. See page 4 for a reconciliation to the nearest IFRS metric. Net electricity cost is a non-IFRS metric. See page 5 for a reconciliation to the nearest IFRS metric. Other costs exclude one-off other expense items. See page 4 for a reconciliation to the nearest IFRS metric. Reflects USD equivalent, unaudited cash and cash equivalents as of September 30, 2024 and October 31, 2024 respectively. Non-IFRS metric reconciliation Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or IREN’s future financial or operating performance. For example, forward-looking statements include but are not limited to the Company’s business strategy, expected operational and financial results, and expected increase in power capacity and hashrate. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “may,” “can,” “should,” “could,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “project,” “strive,” “budget,” “forecast,” “expect,” “intend,” “target”, “will,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” “continue,” “scheduled” or the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar terminology, but the absence of these words does not mean that statement is not forward-looking. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In addition, any statements or information that refer to expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, performance or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause IREN’s actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward looking statements, including, but not limited to: Bitcoin price and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations; IREN’s ability to obtain additional capital on commercially reasonable terms and in a timely manner to meet its capital needs and facilitate its expansion plans; the terms of any future financing or any refinancing, restructuring or modification to the terms of any future financing, which could require IREN to comply with onerous covenants or restrictions, and its ability to service its debt obligations, any of which could restrict its business operations and adversely impact its financial condition, cash flows and results of operations; IREN’s ability to successfully execute on its growth strategies and operating plans, including its ability to continue to develop its existing data center sites and to diversify and expand into the market for high performance computing (“HPC”) solutions it may offer (including the market for AI Cloud Services); IREN’s limited experience with respect to new markets it has entered or may seek to enter, including the market for HPC solutions (including AI Cloud Services); expectations with respect to the ongoing profitability, viability, operability, security, popularity and public perceptions of the Bitcoin network; expectations with respect to the profitability, viability, operability, security, popularity and public perceptions of any current and future HPC solutions (including AI Cloud Services) that IREN offers; IREN’s ability to secure and retain customers on commercially reasonable terms or at all, particularly as it relates to its strategy to expand into markets for HPC solutions (including AI Cloud Services); IREN’s ability to manage counterparty risk (including credit risk) associated with any current or future customers, including customers of its HPC solutions (including AI Cloud Services) and other counterparties; the risk that any current or future customers, including customers of its HPC solutions (including AI Cloud Services), or other counterparties may terminate, default on or underperform their contractual obligations; Bitcoin global hashrate fluctuations; IREN’s ability to secure renewable energy, renewable energy certificates, power capacity, facilities and sites on commercially reasonable terms or at all; delays associated with, or failure to obtain or complete, permitting approvals, grid connections and other development activities customary for greenfield or brownfield infrastructure projects; IREN’s reliance on power and utilities providers, third party mining pools, exchanges, banks, insurance providers and its ability to maintain relationships with such parties; expectations regarding availability and pricing of electricity; IREN’s participation and ability to successfully participate in demand response products and services and other load management programs run, operated or offered by electricity network operators, regulators or electricity market operators; the availability, reliability and/or cost of electricity supply, hardware and electrical and data center infrastructure, including with respect to any electricity outages and any laws and regulations that may restrict the electricity supply available to IREN; any variance between the actual operating performance of IREN’s miner hardware achieved compared to the nameplate performance including hashrate; IREN’s ability to curtail its electricity consumption and/or monetize electricity depending on market conditions, including changes in Bitcoin mining economics and prevailing electricity prices; actions undertaken by electricity network and market operators, regulators, governments or communities in the regions in which IREN operates; the availability, suitability, reliability and cost of internet connections at IREN’s facilities; IREN’s ability to secure additional hardware, including hardware for Bitcoin mining and any current or future HPC solutions (including AI Cloud Services) it offers, on commercially reasonable terms or at all, and any delays or reductions in the supply of such hardware or increases in the cost of procuring such hardware; expectations with respect to the useful life and obsolescence of hardware (including hardware for Bitcoin mining as well as hardware for other applications, including any current or future HPC solutions (including AI Cloud Services) IREN offers); delays, increases in costs or reductions in the supply of equipment used in IREN’s operations; IREN’s ability to operate in an evolving regulatory environment; IREN’s ability to successfully operate and maintain its property and infrastructure; reliability and performance of IREN’s infrastructure compared to expectations; malicious attacks on IREN’s property, infrastructure or IT systems; IREN’s ability to maintain in good standing the operating and other permits and licenses required for its operations and business; IREN’s ability to obtain, maintain, protect and enforce its intellectual property rights and confidential information; any intellectual property infringement and product liability claims; whether the secular trends IREN expects to drive growth in its business materialize to the degree it expects them to, or at all; any pending or future acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures or other strategic transactions; the occurrence of any environmental, health and safety incidents at IREN’s sites, and any material costs relating to environmental, health and safety requirements or liabilities; damage to IREN’s property and infrastructure and the risk that any insurance IREN maintains may not fully cover all potential exposures; ongoing proceedings relating in part to the default, and any future litigation, claims and/or regulatory investigations, and the costs, expenses, use of resources, diversion of management time and efforts, liability and damages that may result therefrom; IREN's failure to comply with any laws including the anti-corruption laws of the United States and various international jurisdictions; any failure of IREN's compliance and risk management methods; any laws, regulations and ethical standards that may relate to IREN’s business, including those that relate to Bitcoin and the Bitcoin mining industry and those that relate to any other services it offers, including laws and regulations related to data privacy, cybersecurity and the storage, use or processing of information and consumer laws; IREN’s ability to attract, motivate and retain senior management and qualified employees; increased risks to IREN’s global operations including, but not limited to, political instability, acts of terrorism, theft and vandalism, cyberattacks and other cybersecurity incidents and unexpected regulatory and economic sanctions changes, among other things; climate change, severe weather conditions and natural and man-made disasters that may materially adversely affect IREN’s business, financial condition and results of operations; public health crises, including an outbreak of an infectious disease (such as COVID-19) and any governmental or industry measures taken in response; IREN’s ability to remain competitive in dynamic and rapidly evolving industries; damage to IREN’s brand and reputation; expectations relating to Environmental, Social or Governance issues or reporting; the costs of being a public company; the increased regulatory and compliance costs of IREN ceasing to be a foreign private issuer and an emerging growth company, as a result of which we will be required, among other things, to file periodic reports and registration statements on U.S. domestic issuer forms with the SEC commencing with our next fiscal year, prepare our financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP rather than IFRS, and to modify certain of our policies to comply with corporate governance practices required of U.S. domestic issuers; and other important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in IREN’s annual report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC on August 28, 2024 as such factors may be updated from time to time in its other filings with the SEC, accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov and the Investor Relations section of IREN’s website at https://investors.iren.com. These and other important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this investor update. Any forward-looking statement that IREN makes in this investor update speaks only as of the date of such statement. Except as required by law, IREN disclaims any obligation to update or revise, or to publicly announce any update or revision to, any of the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Non-IFRS Financial Measures This press release includes non-IFRS financial measures, including Net electricity costs, Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin. We provide these measures in addition to, and not as a substitute for, measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. There are a number of limitations related to the use of Net electricity costs, Adjusted EBTIDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin. For example, other companies, including companies in our industry, may calculate these measures differently. The Company believes that these measures are important and supplement discussions and analysis of its results of operations and enhances an understanding of its operating performance. EBITDA is calculated as our IFRS profit/(loss) after income tax expense, excluding interest income, finance expense and non-cash fair value loss and interest expense on hybrid financial instruments, income tax expense, depreciation and amortization, which are important components of our IFRS profit/(loss) after income tax expense. Further, “Adjusted EBITDA” also excludes share-based payments expense, which is an important component of our IFRS profit/(loss) after income tax expense, foreign exchange gains and losses, impairment of assets, certain other non-recurring income, loss on disposal of property, plant and equipment, gain on disposal of subsidiaries, unrealized fair value gains and losses on financial assets and certain other expense items. Net electricity costs is calculated as our IFRS Electricity charges net of Realized gain/(loss) on financial asset, ERS revenue (included in Other income) and ERS fees (included in Other operating expenses), and excludes the cost of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs). About IREN IREN is a leading data center business powering the future of Bitcoin, AI and beyond utilizing 100% renewable energy. Bitcoin Mining: providing security to the Bitcoin network, expanding to 50 EH/s in H1 2025. Operations since 2019. AI Cloud Services: providing cloud compute to AI customers, 1,896 NVIDIA H100 & H200 GPUs. Operations since 2024. Next-Generation Data Centers : 360MW of operating data centers, expanding to 810MW in H1 2025. Specifically designed and purpose-built infrastructure for high-performance and power-dense computing applications. Technology : technology stack for performance optimization of AI Cloud Services and Bitcoin Mining operations. Development Portfolio: 2,310MW of grid-connected power secured across North America, >1,000 acre property portfolio and additional development pipeline. 100% Renewable Energy (from clean or renewable energy sources or through the purchase of RECs) : targets sites with low-cost & underutilized renewable energy, and supports electrical grids and local communities. Contacts To keep updated on IREN’s news releases and SEC filings, please subscribe to email alerts at https://iren.com/investor/ir-resources/email-alerts .