AP News Summary at 4:32 p.m. EST
CBC is restoring its live New Year’s Eve celebration. A year after the national broadcaster cancelled the 2024 countdown due to “financial pressures,” it says the special event is back on the TV schedule to mark the dawn of 2025. Festivities begin Dec. 31 with the one-hour “22 Minutes New Year’s Eve Pregame Special,” a satirical reflection on the events of 2024 with the cast of the political comedy series “This Hour Has 22 Minutes.” It will be followed by “Canada Live! Countdown 2025,” a special hosted by news anchor Adrienne Arsenault and singer Jann Arden broadcasting live from Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre, and anchor Ian Hanomansing and comedian Ali Hassan at Vancouver’s VanDusen Botanical Garden. A representative for the CBC says the coast-to-coast show will feature reporters at more than a dozen community events across the country while a countdown to the new year will take place in each of the six time zones. Throughout the seven-and-a-half-hour program, “many Canadian celebrity guests” will appear in live and pre-taped messages. “Canada Live! Countdown 2025” begins at 8 p.m. ET on CBC News Network and CBC Gem with CBC-TV and CBC Radio picking up the feed at 9 p.m. in local markets. Last year, the CBC replaced its live New Year’s Eve programming with a taped Just For Laughs special hosted by comedian Mae Martin. That left Canadians without a homegrown countdown on any of the major networks, which sparked blowback on social media from some viewers. The CBC began its annual specials in 2017 to mark Canada’s sesquicentennial year. Some of the more recent broadcasts were hosted by comedian Rick Mercer and featured fireworks and musical performances in key cities. But when CBC paused those plans last year, it said the show had become “increasingly expensive to produce.” The decision to sideline the program was made shortly after members of Parliament summoned outgoing CBC president Catherine Tait to testify about job cuts and her refusal to rule out bonuses for CBC executives.
Are good savers born that way? Factors influencing our habits
HOUSTON (AP) — Will Levis and the Tennessee Titans were far from perfect Sunday. But they did just enough to outlast the mistake-prone Houston Texans and get their first AFC South win of the season. Levis threw for 278 yards and his 70-yard touchdown pass to Chig Okonkwo put Tennessee on top in the fourth quarter and the Titans held on for the 32-27 victory. “The coolest thing about this game was just the way our team fought,” coach Brian Callahan said. “It was a back-and-forth game. Our guys did a good job of not flinching and keeping the blinders on. We’ve been in games like this before, and we haven’t been able to make a play, but this week, we made a play.” Okonkwo grabbed a short pass and rumbled for the touchdown to put the Titans (3-8) up 30-27 with 91⁄2 minutes remaining. Safety Eric Murray missed a tackle that would have stopped him near midfield. The Texans (7-5) had a chance to tie it with less than two minutes remaining, but Ka’imi Fairbairn’s 28-yard field-goal attempt sailed wide left. He fell to the ground after the miss before getting up and slamming his helmet on the field. Callahan held both hands in the air and smiled after watching the miss that allowed his team to win on a day it had three turnovers. The Texans forced a three-and-out, but couldn’t move the ball after that and Harold Landry sacked C.J. Stroud in the end zone for a safety to make it 32-27 and allow Tennessee to snap a two-game skid. Stroud threw for 247 yards and two touchdowns, but also threw two interceptions as the AFC South-leading Texans lost for the third time in four games. Stroud has thrown five interceptions combined in the past three games to give him more interceptions in 12 games this season (nine) than he had in 15 games as a rookie last season (five). “It’s no secret that I haven’t been playing well... I’ve got to be harder on myself,” he said. “I’m not going to hold my head down. I know I can be a great player, but I’ve got to make better plays.” Jimmie Ward had a 65-yard interception return for a touchdown in the third quarter and the Texans tied a franchise record with eight sacks. Danielle Hunter led the group with a season-high three sacks and Will Anderson Jr. added two in his return after missing two games with an ankle injury. But the offense sputtered for most of the game as Joe Mixon was held to 22 yards on 14 carries. “Just a disappointing loss for us,” coach DeMeco Ryans said. “We didn’t do anything well enough to win this game. Out of all the positives that we did have, there were way too many negatives.” It was Tennessee's first win of the season in a game that Levis both started and finished. The second-year player missed three games this year with a sprained AC joint in his throwing shoulder. “I’m really proud of Will,” Callahan said. “He’s done a lot of things to get himself back in the right place, mentally and physically. It was a really good performance.” Levis knows he can be better, but was happy to leave Houston with a victory in this difficult season. “It feels awesome,” he said. “A lot of people have been working really hard to get a win like this. I’m just happy for the organization, top down.” Tennessee extended the lead to 23-17 on a 51-yard field goal by Nick Folk with nine minutes left in the third. Stroud threw his second interception with about 90 seconds left in the third quarter but Ward’s touchdown came three plays later to put the Texans on top 24-23. The Titans fumbled a punt early in the fourth quarter and Houston recovered it. A 54-yard field goal by Fairbairn extended the lead to 27-23 with about 10 minutes to go. Dameon Pierce returned the opening kickoff 80 yards to get the Texans in the red zone. Houston cashed in on the next play when Stroud found rookie Cade Stover on a 19-yard pass for his first touchdown reception. The Titans trailed by four after a field goal by Folk when Nick Westbrook-Ikhine got in front of the defense and was wide open for a 38-yard TD catch that made it 10-7 late in the first quarter. Tennessee extended the lead to 17-7 when Tony Pollard ran 10 yards for a touchdown with about 11 minutes left in the second. Pollard finished with 119 yards and a touchdown. Nico Collins scored on a 5-yard reception with about six minutes left in the second. Levis levis lost a fumble with about 3 1/2 minutes left and the Texans added a 28-yard field goal to tie it at 17-17. Houston forced a punt after that, but rookie Jarvis Brownlee Jr. got his first career interception two plays later to give Tennessee the ball back. Folk’s 56-yard field goal, which tied his career long, put the Titans up 20-17 at halftime. The Titans were without cornerback L’Jarius Sneed, after he was placed on injured reserve with a quadriceps injury, and safety Amani Hooker, who was added to the injury report Sunday morning with an illness. Callahan said Hooker was vomiting “every time he stood up” Sunday. ... Houston S Jalen Pitre injured his shoulder in the second quarter and didn’t return. ... CB Ka’dar Hollman left in the fourth quarter with a knee injury. Titans: Visit the Commanders next Sunday. Texans: Visit Jacksonville next Sunday. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
NoneSkating smiles as Jonas Brodin and Mats Zuccarello return to practiceFabian Hurzeler said Albion did not deserve boos at full-time against Brentford. The head coach felt his side were out of luck as they were held to a 0-0 draw at the Amex . And he pinpointed where they need to improve as they look to end their winless run. The Seagulls are six without a victory after their stalemate with the Bees. Head coach Hurzeler said: “A bit similar to the games before so I think we deserved more. “We played good, we played with a lot of intensity, especially in the first half, we created a lot of chances. “In the end, we don't have the game luck at the moment. We have to work hard for this, we have to use some momentum in the right moments, we have to score. BRIGHTON V BRENTFORD AS IT HAPPENED “We still try to stay positive. I think there were several positive things today. We kept a clean sheet, we created a lot of chances. “I think there were not enough chances for Brentford so keep positive, be honest with each other, be more consistent in the way we attack the box and try to try to improve for the next game. “I wouldn’t say it’s a confidence of belief thing, it's more like the luck. I think we hit the post. “Against us, the goalkeepers, they always get better and better, I have the feeling. “We have to work hard, I'm sure that the momentum will come back and the game luck will come back, but in the end it's our responsibility and our fault and we don't try to search for any excuses. “We have to be honest and critical to ourselves and have to admit that it's not good enough at the moment and that we have to work harder and improve in several things.” There was some mild and short-lived booing at full-time. Hurler said: “I think that the team doesn't deserve that because, like I said, in all the games we had in the last weeks, they were all good, they were all intense, they were all where we thought we deserved more and we try to work hard to satisfy our supporters. “We try to give them also what they deserve, we try to make them proud but in the end it's not a wish concert, the Premier League is tough. “We know that there will be periods where we have to go through, especially with this young squad.”
Farage: Badenoch must apologise for ‘crazy conspiracy theory’ on Reform numbers
Nigel Farage said he is weighing up what action to take if the Conservatives do not apologise for accusing Reform UK of “fakery” over its membership numbers. The Reform UK leader pushed back against reports suggesting that legal action would be the next step, saying he would make a decision in the next couple of days about his response if there is no apology for the “crazy conspiracy theory”. Mr Farage also said the party has “opened up our systems” to media outlets, including The Daily Telegraph and The Financial Times, in the interests of “full transparency to verify that our numbers are correct”. His remarks came after Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch accused Mr Farage of “fakery” in response to Reform claiming they had surpassed the Tories in signed-up members. Mrs Badenoch said Reform’s counter was “coded to tick up automatically”. A digital counter on the Reform website showed a membership tally before lunchtime on Boxing Day ticking past the 131,680 figure declared by the Conservative Party during its leadership election earlier this year. Mr Farage, on whether he was threatening legal action or not, told the PA news agency: “I haven’t threatened anything. I’ve just said that unless I get an apology, I will take some action. “I haven’t said whether it’s legal or anything.” He added: “All I’ve said is I want an apology. If I don’t get an apology, I will take action. “I will decide in the next couple of days what that is. So I’ve not specified what it is.” Mr Farage, on the move to make membership data available to media organisations, said: “We feel our arguments are fully validated. “She (Mrs Badenoch) has put out this crazy conspiracy theory and she needs to apologise.” The accusations of fraud and dishonesty made against me yesterday were disgraceful. Today we opened up our systems to The Telegraph, Spectator, Sky News & FT in the interests of full transparency to verify that our data is correct. I am now demanding @KemiBadenoch apologises. — Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) December 27, 2024 On why Mrs Badenoch had reacted as she did, Mr Farage said: “I would imagine she was at home without anybody advising her and was just angry.” Mr Farage, in a statement issued on social media site X, also said: “The accusations of fraud and dishonesty made against me yesterday were disgraceful. “Today we opened up our systems to The Telegraph, Spectator, Sky News and FT in the interests of full transparency to verify that our data is correct. “I am now demanding Kemi Badenoch apologises.” A Conservative Party source claimed Mr Farage was “rattled” that his Boxing Day “publicity stunt is facing serious questions”. They added: “Like most normal people around the UK, Kemi is enjoying Christmas with her family and looking forward to taking on the challenges of renewing the Conservative Party in the New Year.” Mrs Badenoch, in a series of messages posted on X on Thursday, said: “Farage doesn’t understand the digital age. This kind of fakery gets found out pretty quickly, although not before many are fooled.” There were 131,680 Conservative members eligible to vote during the party’s leadership election to replace Rishi Sunak in the autumn. Mrs Badenoch claimed in her thread that “the Conservative Party has gained thousands of new members since the leadership election”. Elsewhere, Mr Farage described Elon Musk as a “bloody hero” and said he believes the US billionaire can help attract younger voters to Reform. Tech entrepreneur Mr Musk met Mr Farage earlier this month at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, amid rumours of a possible donation to either Mr Farage or Reform. Mr Farage told The Daily Telegraph newspaper: “The shades, the bomber jacket, the whole vibe. Elon makes us cool – Elon is a huge help to us with the young generation, and that will be the case going on and, frankly, that’s only just starting. “Reform only wins the next election if it gets the youth vote. The youth vote is the key. Of course, you need voters of all ages, but if you get a wave of youth enthusiasm you can change everything. “And I think we’re beginning to get into that zone – we were anyway, but Elon makes the whole task much, much easier. And the idea that politics can be cool, politics can be fun, politics can be real – Elon helps us with that mission enormously.”
Whether on the left or the right, regardless of how long they’ve been in power, sitting governments around the world have been drubbed this year by disgruntled voters in what has been called the “super year” for elections. Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election was just the latest in a long line of losses for incumbent parties in 2024, with people in some 70 countries accounting for about half the world's population going to the polls. Issues driving voter discontent have varied widely, though there has been almost universal malaise since the COVID-19 pandemic as people and businesses struggle to get back on their feet while facing stubbornly high prices, cash-strapped governments and a surge in migration. “There’s an overall sense of frustration with political elites, viewing them as out of touch, that cuts across ideological lines,” said Richard Wike, director of global attitudes research at the Pew Research Center. He noted that a Pew poll of 24 countries found that the appeal of democracy itself was slipping as voters reported increasing economic distress and a sense that no political faction truly represents them. “Lots of factors are driving this,” Wike said, “but certainly feelings about the economy and inflation are a big factor.” Since the pandemic hit in 2020, incumbents have been removed from office in 40 of 54 elections in Western democracies, said Steven Levitsky, a political scientist at Harvard University, revealing "a huge incumbent disadvantage.” In Britain, the right-of-center Conservatives suffered their worst result since 1832 in July’s election, which returned the center-left Labour Party to power after 14 years. But just across the English Channel, the far right rocked the governing parties of France and Germany, the European Union's biggest and most powerful members, in June elections for the parliament of the 27-nation bloc. The results pushed French President Emmanuel Macron to call a parliamentary election in hope of stemming a far-right surge at home. The anti-immigration National Rally party won the first round, but alliances and tactical voting knocked it down to third place in the second round, producing a fragile government atop a divided legislature. In Asia, a group of South Korean liberal opposition parties, led by the Democratic Party, defeated the ruling conservative People Power Party in April’s parliamentary elections. India’s Narendra Modi, meanwhile, had been widely expected to easily sweep to a third straight term in June but instead voters turned away from his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party in droves, costing it its majority in parliament, though it was able to remain in power with the help of allies. Likewise, Japanese voters in October punished the Liberal Democratic Party, which has governed the country nearly without interruption since 1955. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will stay in power, but the greater-than-expected loss ended the LDP’s one-sided rule, giving the opposition a chance to achieve policy changes long opposed by the conservatives. “If you were to ask me to explain Japan in a vacuum, that’s not too difficult,” said Paul Nadeau, an adjunct assistant professor at Temple University’s Japan campus in Tokyo. “Voters were punishing an incumbent party for a corruption scandal, and this gave them a chance to express a lot more frustrations that they already had.” Globally, however, it's harder to draw conclusions. “This is pretty consistent across different situations, different countries, different elections — incumbents are getting a crack on the shins,” he said. “And I don’t have any good big picture explanations for why that is.” Rob Ford, professor of political science at the University of Manchester, said inflation has been a major driver of "the greatest wave of anti-incumbent voting ever seen” — though the reasons behind the backlash may also be “broader and more diffuse.” “It could be something directly to do with the long-term effects of the COVID pandemic — a big wave of ill health, disrupted education, disrupted workplace experiences and so forth making people less happy everywhere, and they are taking it out on governments,” he said. "A kind of electoral long COVID.” In South Africa, high unemployment and inequality helped drive a dramatic loss of support for the African National Congress, which had governed for three decades since the end of the apartheid system of white minority rule. The party once led by Nelson Mandela lost its parliamentary majority in May’s election and was forced to go into coalition with opposition parties. Other elections in Africa presented a mixed picture, said Alex Vines, director of the African Program at the international affairs think tank Chatham House, partially clouded by countries with authoritarian leaders whose reelections were not in doubt, like Rwanda’s long-serving President Paul Kagame who got 99% of the vote. In African countries with strong democratic institutions, however, the pattern of incumbents being punished holds, Vines said. “The countries with stronger institutions — South Africa, Senegal, Botswana — have witnessed either a government of national unity or change of party of government,” he said. In Botswana, voters unexpectedly ejected a party that had ruled for 58 years since independence from Britain in an October election. Vines said that across the continent, “you’ve got this electorate now who have no memory of decolonization or the end of apartheid and so have different priorities, who are also feeling the cost-of-living pressures.” In Latin America, one major country stands out for bucking the anti-incumbent wave – Mexico. Andrés Manuel López Obrador, limited to a single term, selected Claudia Sheinbaum, a member of his party, to succeed him. Sheinbaum easily won the presidency in June’s election. Wike noted that Mexico is one of the few countries in Pew’s survey where voters reported satisfaction with economic conditions. Some newcomers to office have already found that the honeymoon following their victories has been short, as people have rapidly turned on them. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has seen his approval ratings plummet from a jaded electorate that wants lower prices and better public services — but is deeply skeptical of politicians’ intention and ability to deliver change. Ford, of the University of Manchester, said it's a problem for democracy when voters, whose task is to hold governments to account, are so quick to pass judgment. “If voters are the electoral equivalent of a hanging judge, putting politicians to the gallows whether they be guilty or innocent, then what incentive is there for governments to try?” he asked. "The angels and the devils get chucked out alike, but being an angel is harder.” Trump first came to power as a challenger in the 2016 election, and then lost as an incumbent in the 2020 election to Joe Biden. This year, he defeated Biden's vice president, Kamala Harris, who stepped in late in the race when the president unexpectedly dropped out. Trump's win is one of the conservative populist movement's highest-profile triumphs. But another icon of the cause, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, saw his own party suffer its worst showing in decades in this year's European Union election, demonstrating that no movement is safe from backlash. Nadeau, of Temple University, suggested that perhaps analysts had previously misunderstood global electoral trends — parsing them as ideological shifts — “when all along it was actually an anti-incumbent mood.” “Maybe it has always been anti-incumbent, and we were just misdiagnosing it,” he said.
Janet Yellen tells Congress US could hit debt limit in mid-January