It’s looking more and more likely the Vikings will be without veteran cornerback Stephon Gilmore for a second straight game. He hasn’t played since suffering a hamstring injury against the Arizona Cardinals a couple of weeks ago. ADVERTISEMENT Though he has an extra 24 hours to prepare this week with the Vikings set to host the Chicago Bears on Monday night at U.S. Bank Stadium, the fact that Gilmore still hasn’t practiced in any capacity isn’t a good sign. After not participating in the walkthrough on Thursday afternoon at TCO Performance Center, Gilmore was listed as a non participant in practice on Friday afternoon. It would make sense for the Vikings to be cautious with Gilmore considering how important he’s been to the secondary this season. They want to make sure he’s back at 100 percent for the playoffs. In the absence of Gilmore, veteran cornerback Fabian Moreau has logged more playing time. There also has been more responsibility placed on fellow cornerbacks Byron Murphy Jr. and Shaq Griffin, with safety Josh Metellus also mixing in at nickel. ADVERTISEMENT Jones at full strength It appears that edge rusher Pat Jones II is getting closer to making his return given that he was listed as a full participant in practice on Friday afternoon. He has been working through a knee injury and missed last Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons. Having Jones back would be a major boost for the Vikings on defense, as he has found a role as a situational pass rusher. He has a career high 7.0 sacks this season while showcasing the ability to apply pressure off the edge or up the middle. Bynum honored by NFLPA In response to his philanthropy near and far, safety Cam Bynum has been named the NFLPA Community MVP for Week 15. Not only has Bynum regularly used his platform in the NFL to help with natural disaster relief in the Philippines, he has continued to spread joy in and around the Twin Cities through charitable events hosted by his Bynum Faith Foundation. ADVERTISEMENT The NFLPA will donate $10,000 to his foundation or charity of choice. In turn, Bynum will take part in a special visit to a local school, children’s hospital, or community center. The recognition also makes Bynum eligible for the Alan Page Community Award, the NFLPA’s highest player honor, which includes an additional $100,000 donation to the winner’s charities. Briefly The rest of the injury report was good news for the Vikings as running back Aaron Jones (back), tight end Josh Oliver (wrist/ankle), and edge rusher Andrew Van Ginkel (hip) were all listed as full participants. ADVERTISEMENT ______________________________________________________ This story was written by one of our partner news agencies. Forum Communications Company uses content from agencies such as Reuters, Kaiser Health News, Tribune News Service and others to provide a wider range of news to our readers. Learn more about the news services FCC uses here .OAKLAND — The race to be Oakland’s next mayor may have officially kicked off Monday, but the starting line is eerily quiet — and may continue to be until Rep. Barbara Lee makes up her mind about whether to run. Lee, the longtime East Bay congresswoman and stalwart of progressive politics, said late last week in a social media post that she will announce her decision in early January, noting the decision was “not one I take lightly.” In the meantime, Lee has held numerous private meetings with city officials about the issues affecting Oakland, from the ongoing budget crisis to homelessness to policing, two sources with direct knowledge of those conversations told this news organization. The policy “deep dive,” as a source not authorized to speak publicly put it, might offer reassurance to skeptics who worry that the retiring legislator, who has represented Oakland, Alameda, Berkeley and San Leandro in Congress since 1998, would struggle to adapt to running a city full-time. But the larger consequence of Lee’s decision-making timeline is that the run-up to the April 15 special election to replace Mayor Sheng Thao has largely stalled. Most candidates are holding off until Lee makes a move. Hours after the formal start on Monday of the candidate filing period, which lasts until Jan. 17, only two people had scheduled appointments to pull papers for the office — Peter Liu and Mindy Ruth Pechenuk , a pair of fringe prospects who are unlikely to make a dent in the race. Loren Taylor, the runner-up in the 2022 mayoral election, said Monday he plans to pull papers in the coming days, noting in an interview that his desire to help Oakland grow as a city won’t be affected by whom he’s running against. But others, such as former Councilmember Ignacio De La Fuente and lobbyist Isaac Kos-Read, have said they’re holding off. “To be candid, I’m getting a little restless — but out of respect I have to wait,” De La Fuente said Monday in an interview. “Hopefully, she’ll make a decision soon.” An open letter published last week by numerous Oakland leaders urging Lee to run included sign-offs from City Council members Nikki Fortunato Bas, Treva Reid and Dan Kalb, as well as prospective candidate Kos-Read. The letter included signatures from both labor leaders and local political figures who otherwise have often clashed on issues like crime and public spending. “We need someone who can bring the new ideas, policies, resources and opportunities that the people of Oakland deserve,” the letter read. “That person is Barbara Lee.” There are other examples of weighty political races symbolically put on hold amid “will they, won’t they” tension involving potential candidates, including late Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s indecision to run for California governor in 1998. But the upcoming special election in Oakland is unique in how strongly some local leaders seem to be thinking past the election entirely in their overtures to Lee, said political expert Dan Schnur. “These communities and business and labor leaders aren’t begging her to run because they think she’s the only one who can win,” Schnur said. “They think she’s the only one who can govern.” The clearest sign of how many in the city view Lee — who has often weighed in on local affairs to oppose Thao’s recall or support striking teachers or chastise the departing A’s — might be a billboard that popped up in recent weeks along Interstate 880 in East Oakland. “Thank You, Barbara Lee,” it reads, “for bringing over half a billion dollars of federal funds into Oakland in 2024!” The billboard, hoisted near the highway’s High Street exit, also links to a website, thankyoubarbaralee.com, which lists some of Lee’s accomplishments and includes a sign-up form “to add your name to our letter of gratitude!” Both the physical and digital ads were created by the East Oakland Youth Development Center. Selena Wilson, the nonprofit’s CEO, said the gesture had nothing to do with the upcoming special election and was solely intended to honor the congresswoman for her longtime support of the center. Nationally, Lee is perhaps best known for being the only member of Congress to oppose the use of military force following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Her entry into the race would bring a layer of gravitas to the top political office in Oakland, a city whose reputation took a hit after crime rose and the economy declined during the pandemic. But it may also bring back memories of the mayoral tenure of the late Rep. Ron Delllums, whose decorated legacy was hurt by the perception that he was an absentee leader during the Great Recession, or former Gov. Jerry Brown, whose time as mayor coincided with the infamous Riders police brutality scandal. Taylor, meanwhile, is steadfast about wanting to lead, an ambition that has not diminished in the two years since his loss to Thao by fewer than 700 ranked-choice votes. “I think the fact that the others are playing a game of political calculus,” he said, “is indicative of where their leadership commitment is and how confident they are in what they’re bringing to the table.” Shomik Mukherjee is a reporter covering Oakland. Call or text him at 510-905-5495 or email him at shomik@bayareanewsgroup.com.
Moni scores 25 in North Dakota State's 91-62 win against Wisconsin-Stout
590 donations made to Highland News and Media blood appeal - so far!
Trump wants to turn the clock on daylight saving time
Moni scores 25 in North Dakota State's 91-62 win against Wisconsin-StoutIs Jets owner Woody Johnson listening? Because former NFL players are doing everything but fly a plane over the facility in Florham Park tugging a banner that says, “Kiss Aaron Rodgers goodbye when the season ends. Don’t exercise an option. Don’t agree to a pay cut. Dump him.” OK, maybe that’s too much for a single $1,500 banner, but you get the idea. The latest NFL alumnus who has taken a shot (or more) at the aging-before-our-eyes Rodgers is former Pittsburgh Steelers star and Super Bowl champion Ryan Clark , who has been embroiled in a slow-burning feud with the diminshed Rodgers. The most recent episode began when Clark called Rodgers “a fraud” for criticizing players who leverage their popularity on social media and in the media. Clark pointed out that Rodgers has a standing paid gig to appear on The Pat McAfee Show , one of the most popular platforms for sports personalities, hosted by a former NFL punter. “To call out former players, while on a former player’s show? Yes, that made you a fraud to me,” Clark said. Rodgers responded (on McAfee’s show) by insisting that anyone who criticizes him must declare their vaccine status, because, in his mind, any criticism of him, as a celebrated anti-vaxxer, must come from being a pawn in the pharmaceutical industry’s push of Covid vaccines and others. Clark, who is vaccinated, has sickle cell trait, has had his spleen removed, and is immunodeficient, he says. So getting vaccinated against Covid is possibly life-saving for him, not political. Widespread criticism of Rodgers couldn’t have anything to do with his play during a 4-11 season — which has led to the head coach’s firing, the offensive coordinator’s demotion and just one 300-yard passing game, could it? By making any criticism about vaccines and political issues, Rodgers is trying to shield himself from legitimate raps from NFL analysts, who say that he isn’t the quarterback he once was, Clark said on The Stephen A. Smith Show . “I said a million times to you on your show, I think he’s the best quarterback I’ve ever played against,” Clark said. “But that doesn’t in any way negate what we’re seeing from him now — and the arrogance, the smugness, the entitlement he displays as a person when it comes to people who object or people who see things differently than him ... I mean, I’m just tired of it. “And I’m tired of people allowing him to say whatever the hell he wants to say, whenever the hell he wants to say it, without in any way pushing back.” (That final line was Clark firing at McAfee, an ESPN colleague who chuckled at Rogers’ comments.) Clark insists he doesn’t have the luxury of getting personal or using “vaccination, partisanship, or whatever to try to ignore the facts,” as Rodgers has. Clark added that he felt compelled to respond again because Rodgers used ESPN — which produces McAfee’s show — to attack an ESPN employee. “I am an NFL analyst, so in responding to Aaron Rodgers, I need to be able to respond with facts,” Clark said. “I can’t just come out and insult his fashion, I can’t just come out and say things that make zero sense like, ‘State your vaccination status.’ I don’t get to do that. I have to be factual. “Instead of saying ‘Ryan Clark is wrong about me being hypocritical because of X, Y and Z,’ [or] ‘Ryan Clark is wrong to call me arrogant because of X, Y and Z’ ... that is what athletes will do now. They don’t have to combat you with facts, because ... [they are] more popular than I am,” Clark said. Clark’s criticism followed an attack by former Jets star Bart Scott, who called Rodgers record-chasing “despicable.” Rodgers admitted he tried to get his buddy Davante Adams (who caught Rodgers’ 200th and 400th career touchdown passes) to catch Rodgers’ 500th TD pass in the second quarter of Sunday’s 19-9 loss to the L.A. Rams . “Wish he would have caught it,” Rodgers said. Rodgers was 28-for-42 for 256 yards and a TD pass, but couldn’t muster points in the fourth quarter as the Rams rallied to win. Said Scott: “To have a 10-minute drive and end up with nothing. And it’s because you’re going for records, right? Sentimental records. And you’re deciding who gets your record. And I think that’s — that’s despicable.” Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting us with a subscription.
St. Thomas defeats Montana 88-81 behind 22 points each from Kendall Blue and Nolan Minessale
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An online spat between factions of supporters over immigration and the tech industry has thrown internal divisions in his political movement into public display, previewing the fissures and contradictory views his coalition could bring to the White House. The rift laid bare the tensions between the newest flank of Trump’s movement — wealthy members of the tech world including billionaire and fellow entrepreneur and their call for more highly skilled workers in their industry — and people in Trump’s Make America Great Again base who championed his hardline immigration policies. The debate touched off this week when , a right-wing provocateur with a history of racist and conspiratorial comments, criticized Trump’s selection of as an adviser on artificial intelligence policy in his coming administration. Krishnan favors the ability to bring more skilled immigrants into the U.S. Loomer declared the stance to be “not America First policy” and said were doing so to enrich themselves. Much of the debate played out on the social media network X, which Musk owns. Loomer’s comments sparked a back-and-forth with venture capitalist and former , whom Trump has tapped to be the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar.” Musk and Ramaswamy, , weighed in, defending the tech industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. It bloomed into a larger debate with more figures from the hard-right weighing in about the need to hire U.S. workers, whether values in American culture can produce the best engineers, free speech on the internet, the newfound influence tech figures have in Trump’s world and what his political movement stands for. Trump has not yet weighed in on the rift, and his presidential transition team did not respond to a message seeking comment. Musk, the world’s richest man who has , was a central figure in the debate, not only for his stature in Trump’s movement but his stance on the tech industry’s hiring of foreign workers. Technology companies say H-1B visas for skilled workers, used by software engineers and others in the tech industry, are critical for hard-to-fill positions. But critics have said they undercut U.S. citizens who could take those jobs. Some on the right have called for the program to be eliminated, not expanded. Born in South Africa, Musk was once on an a H-1B visa himself and defended the industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. “There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent,” he said in a post. “It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley.” Related Articles Trump’s own positions over the years have reflected the divide in his movement. His tough immigration policies, including his pledge for a mass deportation, were central to his winning presidential campaign. He has focused on immigrants who come into the U.S. illegally but he has also , including family-based visas. As a presidential candidate in 2016, Trump called the H-1B visa program “very bad” and “unfair” for U.S. workers. After he became president, Trump in 2017 issued a “Buy American and Hire American” , which directed Cabinet members to suggest changes to ensure H-1B visas were awarded to the highest-paid or most-skilled applicants to protect American workers. Trump’s businesses, however, have hired foreign workers, including , and his social media company behind his Truth Social app for highly skilled workers. During his 2024 campaign for president, as he made immigration his signature issue, Trump said immigrants in the country illegally are “poisoning the blood of our country” and promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. But in a sharp departure from his usual alarmist message around immigration generally, Trump this year that he wants to give automatic green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges. “I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country,” he told the “All-In” podcast with people from the venture capital and technology world. Those comments came on the cusp of Trump’s budding alliance with tech industry figures, but he did not make the idea a regular part of his campaign message or detail any plans to pursue such changes.