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'Keep it quiet:' Here's what to know and do if you win the Mega Millions jackpotA West Vancouver non-profit is raising funds to help provide opportunities for urban Indigenous people to succeed. On Giving Tuesday, which is Dec. 3, the Urban Spirit Foundation is hosting a fundraiser event where people can enjoy chili and bannock along with sales of baked goods, raffle prizes and a 50/50 draw. “Without fundraisers like this, it would be less money in the pot to be able to do the good work that we’re doing,” said Lynn White, executive director of the Urban Spirit Foundation. White says urban Indigenous people are those who reside in cities, but also those who may not have status or are not connected to their First Nation. The Urban Spirit Foundation is a charitable organization that provide opportunities for Indigenous people living in the city through education and employment training, secondary and post-secondary scholarships and relief of poverty. The fundraiser began shortly after the foundation launched in 2007. Once the team heard about Giving Tuesday, White said they were inspired to use it as a charity fundraising event. The Urban Spirit Foundation works in partnership with the Aboriginal Community Career Employment Services Society (ACCESS), where White is also the CEO. Some of the raffle prizes include Vancouver Canucks tickets and gift cards for Hype Chocolate and Indigenous owned cosmetic brand Cheekbone Beauty. The money collected helps go back into the programs the foundation and ACCESS offer, White said. Since its creation, the foundation has been able to provide scholarships to Indigenous people within the Vancouver and Surrey school districts, British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) and more. I really take pride in being able to give out some scholarships and support our people who are going back to school and trying to struggle their way out of poverty and into a career,” White said. The two organizations also help provide employment opportunities, including the BladeRunners program, that helps give at-risk young people between ages 19 and 30 work experience, certified health and safety training and social skills development. As the hours lead up to the fundraiser, the team is preparing the chili and bannock. “We welcome anybody who would like to come by and support us and have some chili,” White said. Urban Spirit Foundation fundraiser Where: ACCESS head office, 108-100 Park Royal South, West Vancouver When: Dec. 3, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Admission: $18 Abby Luciano is the Indigenous and civic affairs reporter for the North Shore News. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.DALLAS, Dec. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Beneficient (NASDAQ: BENF) (“Ben” or the “Company”), a technology-enabled platform providing exit opportunities and primary capital solutions and related trust and custody services to holders of alternative assets through its proprietary online platform AltAccess, announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire Mercantile Bank International Corp. (“Mercantile Bank”), a Puerto Rico-based International Financial Entity (“IFE”), in exchange for an aggregate purchase price of $1.5 million, which is payable in up to approximately 2.1 million shares of the Company’s Class A common stock and cash. “We are very excited about the potential avenues for revenue growth that would be facilitated through this acquisition,” said Beneficient. “Acquiring Mercantile Bank would enable the Company to offer an expanded range of companion custody and other fee-based services that complement our existing businesses on a broader scale with the potential to generate additional cash flow in the near term. Our objective is to deliver additional alternative asset custody services to customers with the potential to generate higher fee rates than are generally available for traditional custody services. We also believe the acquisition has the potential to enhance and broaden our current offerings in ways that may open new international opportunities, allowing us to further democratize the market for illiquid alternative assets.” IFEs are licensed and regulated by the Office of the Commissioner of Financial Institutions of Puerto Rico (the “OCIF”) and may provide specific banking and other financial activity from Puerto Rico for persons, entities, and organizations around the globe that are non-residents of Puerto Rico. An IFE’s authorized activities may include custody, clearing, and payments and related traditional and digital products and services and, as approved by the OCIF, traditional banking services, such as deposits, lending, investments, and trusts. Upon closing of the acquisition, the Company, which has primarily focused on meeting the needs of individual investors and small-to-midsized institutions, expects to expand its offering of custody services to also address the current needs of large institutional investors and the growing needs of third-party alternative trading systems and foreign securities exchanges. The acquisition would position Ben to offer alternative asset custody services that include, among other potential items, a companion line of business focused on issuing depositary receipts to assist holders of foreign investments gain access to the capital markets of additional international jurisdictions. The Company believes these alternative asset custody services may yield higher fee assessments than more traditional custody offerings. The Company expects this companion business line to begin generating custody and depositary receipt issuance fee-based revenue and cash flow during calendar year 2025 that it would deploy to fund Ben’s ongoing operations and ultimately our core alternative asset liquidity product offerings. The acquisition reflects Beneficient’s execution on its objective of expanding its alternative asset custody fee-based service offerings to third parties and institutional investors. Closing of the acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including, among other things, approval by OCIF, and is anticipated to be completed in the second calendar quarter of 2025. About Beneficient Beneficient (Nasdaq: BENF) – Ben, for short – is on a mission to democratize the global alternative asset investment market by providing traditionally underserved investors − mid-to-high net worth individuals, small-to-midsized institutions and General Partners seeking exit options, anchor commitments and valued-added services for their funds− with solutions that could help them unlock the value in their alternative assets. Ben’s AltQuoteTM tool provides customers with a range of potential exit options within minutes, while customers can log on to the AltAccess® portal to explore opportunities and receive proposals in a secure online environment. Its subsidiary, Beneficient Fiduciary Financial, L.L.C., received its charter under the State of Kansas’ Technology-Enabled Fiduciary Financial Institution (TEFFI) Act and is subject to regulatory oversight by the Office of the State Bank Commissioner. For more information, visit www.trustben.com or follow us on LinkedIn. Contacts Matt Kreps: 214-597-8200, mkreps@darrowir.com Michael Wetherington: 214-284-1199, mwetherington@darrowir.com Investor Relations: investors@beneficient.com Disclaimer and Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Certain of the statements contained in this press release are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements can be generally identified by the use of words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “will,” “would,” and, in each case, their negative or other various or comparable terminology. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release include, without limitation, statements relating to the anticipated timing of closing the acquisition, benefits of the acquisition and the Company’s anticipated product and service offerings following the closing of the acquisition. These forward-looking statements reflect our views with respect to future events as of the date of this document and are based on our management’s current expectations, estimates, forecasts, projections, assumptions, beliefs and information. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to have been correct. All such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside of our control, and could cause future events or results to be materially different from those stated or implied in this document. It is not possible to predict or identify all such risks. These risks include, but are not limited to, the ultimate outcome of the acquisition; the Company’s ability to consummate the acquisition in a timely manner or at all; the ability of the parties to satisfy the closing conditions to the acquisition; the possibility that the Company may be unable to successfully integrate Mercantile Bank’s operations with those of the Company or realize the expected benefits of the acquisition; the possibility that such integration may be more difficult, time-consuming, or costly than expected; the risk that operating costs, customer loss, and business disruption (including, without limitation, difficulties in maintaining relationships with employees, contractors, and customers) may be greater than expected following the acquisition or the public announcement of the acquisition; the Company’s ability to retain certain key employees of Mercantile Bank; the ability to launch and receive market acceptance for new products and services; and risks related to the entry into a new line of business; the risk factors that are described under the section titled “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). These factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included in this document and in our SEC filings. We expressly disclaim any obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.
Back in time, /PRNewswire/ -- SOLVIT System, a recognized leader in innovative technology, will participate in CES 2025, taking place January 7–10 in . The company's iSARTM (intelligent Search and Rescue) has been honored with the prestigious CES Innovation Award in the "Smart Cities" category. At CES, SOLVIT System will showcase its groundbreaking technology to dramatically reduce search areas for individuals lost in radio shadow zones. Mobile communication shadow areas, often called "rescue dead zones" in current E911 services, pose significant challenges for locating missing individuals due to the absence of technology capable of identifying or narrowing these shadow zones. Wide-area searches without actionable clues often result in unsuccessful rescue attempts despite substantial investments of time and resources. Powered by advanced algorithms, the SOLVIT-iSARTM system reduces the search area to as little as 1/25 the size required by traditional methods. At CES, SOLVIT System will demonstrate iSARTM's functionality and the innovative algorithms behind its success. The solution leverages advanced mobile communication forensic technologies and intelligent inference, including: These fully automated processes enable rescue operators to complete professional-grade analyses within just 10 minutes, a significant improvement over the three hours typically required by radio forensic experts. The company will highlight its front-end applications for command-and-control centers and mobile devices. These tools enhance operational efficiency, allowing rescue teams to work quickly and effectively in the field. SOLVIT System's iSARTM has been celebrated for its groundbreaking contributions to public safety, improving the likelihood of rescuing individuals while ensuring the safety of rescue personnel. Before earning the CES Innovation Award, iSARTM was recognized as an "Excellent Research and Development Innovation Product" by Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy. Since its deployment in at the Korea National Fire & Disaster Headquarters, the system has demonstrated exceptional efficiency and reliability. "We are proud to be honored with the CES Innovation Award for iSARTM that saves lives," said , Founder and CEO of SOLVIT System. "Driven by our commitment to saving lives, we have applied our expertise to the search and rescue field." The company's participation in CES 2025 goes beyond showcasing its product. Mr Kim aims to connect with a wide range of people, agencies, companies, and institutions to explore opportunities for collaboration and the localization of iSARTM in different countries. He also hinted at the development of the next version of iSARTM, promising further groundbreaking innovations. He also hopes that iSARTM's CES Award will serve as a stepping-stone toward establishing legal and institutional frameworks for public access to radio resource information and time-series data. Special thanks go to KCA for providing refined radio resource information, ATDI for supplying a proven radio analysis engine, and the institutions that supported technical validation. For more information, visit SOLVIT System at CES 2025 in , to experience the award-winning SOLVIT-iSARTM — a revolutionary step forward in rescue operations designed to save lives and resources through advanced technology. Since its establishment as a corporation in 2007, SOLVIT System has grown into a small but strong enterprise that provides military communication Modeling & Simulation (M&S), radio analysis, digital twin technology, edge AI, and security solutions. It supplies these solutions to defense research institutions such as the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) and the Korea Research Institute for Defense Technology (KRIT) and defense companies like Hanwha Systems and LIG Nex1. The company has been recognized by Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) as a "Defense Industry Innovation Company." CES 2025: ( Website: Youtube: SOLVIT System: , +82-2-6241-6667, , ; View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE SOLVIT System
“The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few metres from where we were — and the runway were damaged,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on the social media platform X. He added that he and UN colleagues were safe. “We will need to wait for the damage to the airport to be repaired before we can leave,” he said. UN spokesperson Stephanie Tremblay later said the injured person was with the UN Humanitarian Air Service. Israel’s army later told The Associated Press it was not aware that the WHO chief was at the location in Yemen. The Israeli strikes followed several days of Houthi launches setting off sirens in Israel. The Israeli military in a statement said it attacked infrastructure used by the Iran-backed Houthis at the international airport in Sanaa and ports in Hodeida, Al-Salif and Ras Qantib, along with power stations, asserting they were used to smuggle in Iranian weapons and for the entry of senior Iranian officials. Israel’s military added it had “capabilities to strike very far from Israel’s territory — precisely, powerfully, and repetitively”. The strikes, carried out over 1,000 miles from Jerusalem, came a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “the Houthis, too, will learn what Hamas and Hezbollah and Assad’s regime and others learned” as his military has battled those more powerful proxies of Iran. The Houthi-controlled satellite channel al-Masirah reported multiple deaths and showed broken windows, collapsed ceilings and a bloodstained floor and vehicle. Iran’s foreign ministry condemned the strikes. The US military has also targeted the Houthis in recent days. The UN has said the targeted ports are important entry points for humanitarian aid for Yemen, the poorest Arab nation that plunged into a civil war in 2014. Over the weekend, 16 people were wounded when a Houthi missile hit a playground in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, while other missiles and drones have been shot down. Last week, Israeli jets struck Sanaa and Hodeida, killing nine people, calling it a response to previous Houthi attacks. The Houthis also have been targeting shipping on the Red Sea corridor in what it says is an act of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. The UN Security Council has an emergency meeting on Monday in response to an Israeli request that it condemn the Houthi attacks and Iran for supplying them with weapons.Was Luigi Mangione Missing Before Brian Thompson Shooting? What We Know
Delaware judge reaffirms ruling that invalidated massive Tesla pay package for Elon MuskNEW YORK (AP) — Matías Tarnopolsky will become president and CEO of the New York Philharmonic on Jan. 1 after six years heading the Philadelphia Orchestra, a hiring boosted by his long friendship with incoming music director Gustavo Dudamel . Tarnopolsky's appointment was announced Monday. The 54-year-old, who has American, British and Argentine citizenship, fills a void created when Gary Ginstling quit in July just one season into the job. “He’s done a really wonderful job with Philadelphia, and one of the most important issues was that he has a very close relationship with Gustavo Dudamel,” philharmonic co-chairman Peter W. May said. “That was really the most important factor for us.” Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Tarnopolsky played clarinet and received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music and musicology from King's College, London. A performance of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony by Leonard Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic at the 1987 BBC Proms had an especially memorable impact. He was the New York Philharmonic's vice president of artistic planning from December 2005 until August 2009, then spent nine years as executive director of Cal Performances at Berkeley until moving to Philadelphia in 2018. Cal hosted Dudamel and the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra in several residencies. He called his return to the New York Philharmonic along with Dudamel a “full circle moment,” recalling hitting it off with the conductor during a work visit to Caracas. “I watched him work with the kids of the Simón Bolivar and was just blown away, and so we invited him to conduct the New York Philharmonic. So this is a story almost two decades in the making,” Tarnopolsky said in an interview. Ginstling joined the New York Philharmonic as executive director from Washington's National Symphony Orchestra. “Frankly, it just wasn’t a good fit from both Gary's perspective and our perspective," May told The Associated Press. "Matías clearly had significantly more experience than Gary has had in terms of leading one of the top orchestras in the country and we're quite confident that this is the right guy for the job.” Philharmonic co-chairman Oscar L. Tang said Tarnopolsky is aligned with the vision held by Dudamel and the board. “Gustavo says that he feels classical music is a human right and he wants to view classical music as a force for social development, social good,” Tang said. “These are some of the aspirations that Peter and I have for the New York Phil in terms of extending its role in the cultural and civic life of New York City and really the country and the world.” The New York Philharmonic returned to a renovated Geffen Hall in October 2022, announced Dudamel’s hiring four months later . Borda said guest conductors have been engaged and a tour has been arranged for Dudamel's first season, with his approval, but much of the 2026-27 programming remains open. “Here’s a chance that comes along maybe once in a lifetime to author a completely new chapter for a great musical institution,” Tarnopolsky said. “The commitment here is to rededicate ourselves to ensuring the philharmonic’s place in the civic, cultural, musical, educational life of contemporary New York.” Ryan Fleur, the Philadelphia Orchestra's executive director, will become its interim president on Jan. 1, a role he held for eight months in 2018 between Allison Vulgamore's departure and Tarnopolsky's arrival. This story corrects that Matías Tarnopolsky headed Philadelphia Orchestra six years.A new round of Israeli air strikes in Yemen have targeted the Houthi rebel-held capital and multiple ports while the World Health Organisation’s director-general said the bombardment occurred nearby as he prepared to board a flight. “The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few metres from where we were — and the runway were damaged,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on the social media platform X. He added that he and UN colleagues were safe. “We will need to wait for the damage to the airport to be repaired before we can leave,” he said. UN spokesperson Stephanie Tremblay later said the injured person was with the UN Humanitarian Air Service. Our mission to negotiate the release of staff detainees and to assess the health and humanitarian situation in concluded today. We continue to call for the detainees' immediate release. As we were about to board our flight from Sana’a, about two hours ago, the airport... — Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) Israel’s army later told The Associated Press it was not aware that the WHO chief was at the location in Yemen. The Israeli strikes followed several days of Houthi launches setting off sirens in Israel. The Israeli military in a statement said it attacked infrastructure used by the Iran-backed Houthis at the international airport in Sanaa and ports in Hodeida, Al-Salif and Ras Qantib, along with power stations, asserting they were used to smuggle in Iranian weapons and for the entry of senior Iranian officials. Israel’s military added it had “capabilities to strike very far from Israel’s territory — precisely, powerfully, and repetitively”. The strikes, carried out over 1,000 miles from Jerusalem, came a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “the Houthis, too, will learn what Hamas and Hezbollah and Assad’s regime and others learned” as his military has battled those more powerful proxies of Iran. The Houthi-controlled satellite channel al-Masirah reported multiple deaths and showed broken windows, collapsed ceilings and a bloodstained floor and vehicle. Iran’s foreign ministry condemned the strikes. The US military has also targeted the Houthis in recent days. The UN has said the targeted ports are important entry points for humanitarian aid for Yemen, the poorest Arab nation that plunged into a civil war in 2014. Over the weekend, 16 people were wounded when a Houthi missile hit a playground in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, while other missiles and drones have been shot down. Last week, Israeli jets struck Sanaa and Hodeida, killing nine people, calling it a response to previous Houthi attacks. The Houthis also have been targeting shipping on the Red Sea corridor in what it says is an act of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. The UN Security Council has an emergency meeting on Monday in response to an Israeli request that it condemn the Houthi attacks and Iran for supplying them with weapons.
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On Dec. 2, Wichita State University’s National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) announced a new strategic partnership with SNC, the global aerospace and national security company. The partnership is part of the U.S. Air Force’s Survivable Airborne Operations Center (SAOC) contract. In support of the SAOC program, one of two 747-8i aircraft recently arrived in Wichita from SNC’s Aviation Innovation and Technology Center (AITC) in Dayton, Ohio. Delivery of the aircraft signifies the next phase of SAOC engineering and manufacturing development since the contract award in April 2024. Under the USAF’s SAOC award, SNC will modernize and deliver a replacement for the current fleet of E-4B “Nightwatch” aircraft, which entered service in 1974. This highly specialized aircraft serves as an airborne command center for the president of the United States, secretary of defense, and chairs of the joint chiefs of staff to ensure continued critical command, control and communication during national emergencies. NIAR’s experience in composites and advanced materials, digital twin, advanced manufacturing technologies such as additive manufacturing, aircraft and component testing, and certification will enhance SNC’s ability to deliver a cutting-edge, innovative solution to the USAF. “SAOC is a critical program that will ensure our nation is adequately prepared to ensure unfaltering communication during a national emergency,” said John Tomblin, WSU executive vice president for WSU Research and Industry and Defense Programs and NIAR executive director. “This is the most significant industry contract in the history of the university.” “The partnership between NIAR and SNC will modernize and replace outdated aircraft that are vital to the operations of the United States Air Force,” said U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran. “I look forward to seeing NIAR’s experience in advanced, cutting-edge technology enhance the design of SNC’s innovative aircraft remodeling as these two companies work to make our country more secure.”Numerology Horoscope 2025 for Root Number 9
CHICAGO — Efforts to transfer a parcel of land in Chinatown from the state to the city were hitting a wall in the spring of 2018, and much of it had to do with a political cold war going on between then-state Sen. Martin Sandoval and Chicago Ald. Daniel Solis, who had backed the opponent of Sandoval’s daughter for county commissioner. Lobbyist Nancy Kimme, a Republican with connections in the administration of then-Gov. Bruce Rauner, called a longtime confidant of Democratic House Speaker Michael Michael Madigan to talk it through. Kimme told Michael McClain that Sandoval was putting the brick on the plan to transfer the land, which was owned by the Illinois Department of Transportation, by amending an existing real estate bill, and it may be because of the blood with Solis. “I believe that Sandoval is just mad at Solis,” Kimme said on the April 2018 call played in Madigan’s corruption trial Thursday. “Kinda makes sense what’s happening,” McClain responded. “Sandoval’s a small man.” The call was one of nearly a dozen played for jurors during Kimme’s testimony so far that have painted a detailed picture of the political mechanizations, power plays, and bruised egos that unfolded in 2018 over the tiny 2 1/2-acre parking lot along Wentworth Avenue that a group of deep-pocketed Chinatown developers wanted to turn into a hotel. Prosecutors allege Madigan agreed to help Solis, whose 25th Ward included the land, with the transfer in return for an introduction to the developers so he could pitch his private real estate firm to do their property tax appeals. But Madigan knew Rauner, his arch political enemy, would never let the land transfer go through if he knew the speaker’s fingerprints were on it. So Madigan enlisted the help of his friend, retired lobbyist McClain, who in turn went to Kimme to try and seal the deal. That’s when the problems with Sandoval, a Democrat who headed the powerful Senate Transportation Committee, reared their head. In call after call, Kimme and McClain commiserated over Sandoval’s boorishness, and also lamented the behavior of his colleague, state Sen. Tony Munoz, who at the time was vying to be the next Senate president. In one call played for the jury, Kimme told McClain, I don’t know why (Sandoval) goes out of his way to piss off the speaker...That’s short-sighted. Madigan could take him out pretty easily.” McClain responded that all Madigan has to do is put up a Latino in Cicero to beat him. A few days later, Kimme and McClain talked about ways to get Sandoval and Munoz to “settle down.” Munoz, Kimme said seemed to be consumed with becoming the Senate president and was “not gonna want to piss off Marty,” “I’m sure that’s why he got involved (in blocking the Chinatown deal) in the first place...Sandoval’s so crazy,” Kimme said. “I don’t believe there is any way for Solis to make peace now,” McClain responded. He said Sandoval “had a rally or something several months ago where Sandoval announced that Alex Acevedo is the next alderman.” Kimme said after a long pause, said, “We’re in the middle of some kind of range war.” On the stand, Kimme was asked by Assistant U.S. Attorney Julia Schwartz what she meant by that statement. “That they were all shootin’ at each other for different reasons,” Kimme testified. You mean for political reasons? Schwartz asked. “Yes.” McClain said suppose they got the Chinese Chamber of Commerce involved to show Munoz “there is a political consequence.” Kimme said Munoz probably wouldn’t care. “He knows that Marty is a bad enemy to have because he reacts so much.” At the end of the call, Kimme asked, Who is close to Sandoval? “Victor Reyes,” McClain said, the longtime Democratic political consultant and fundraiser. “Who is Reyes close to?” McClain paused for several seconds. “Well...Victor Reyes is close to Victor Reyes,” he said, “But um I got him you know a lot of business over the years.” A few weeks later, Kimme again asked McClain how they could solve the Sandoval issue, maybe “try and get Victor (Reyes) to go after Sandoval and quiet him down?” “I think I ought to call somebody and let ’em know that Sandoval is blowing it up,” McClain responded. “So why don’t you give me a day or two?” Kimme later told McClain that she’d found out Munoz was angry about a city-owned property on Damen Avenue that he’d wanted Solis to sign off on for development, but the alderman was dragging his feet. So she negotiated a plan with Munoz to put both properties in the same bill. “I think that’s a good deal,” McClain said. “That’s why you’re the master.” In May 2018, with the session deadline looming, Kimme reached out to Democratic state Rep. Theresa Mah to make her a sponsor of the land transfer. But the deal was later tabled due to pressure from the community that caused other political heavyweights to oppose it, including then-Secretary of State Jesse White, according to evidence the jury has heard. Sandoval later pleaded guilty to an arrange of bribery schemes unrelated to the Chinatown parcel and was cooperating with investigators when he died of COVID-19 in December 2020. Kimme’s testimony will continue after a lunch break. Madigan, 82, of Chicago, who served for decades as speaker of the Illinois House and the head of the state Democratic Party, faces racketeering charges alleging he ran his state and political operations like a criminal enterprise. He is charged alongside his longtime confidant McClain, 77, a former ComEd contract lobbyist from downstate Quincy. Both men have pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing. Prosecutors could rest their case in chief as early as next week. Before the jury took their seats Thursday, prosecutors said they want to call former state Rep. Eddie Acevedo as a witness next week. But Acevedo’s attorney signaled that she would try to keep him off the stand on grounds that he is not competent to testify, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Amarjeet Bhachu. In addition, Bhachu said, Acevedo has invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to testify, meaning prosecutors must jump through administrative hoops in order to compel him to the stand. Acevedo, a Chicago Democrat, pleaded guilty in 2021 to a relatively minor tax charge stemming from the federal probe into ComEd’s lobbying practices. He was sentenced to six months in prison. Before his sentencing, his attorneys filed a memo from his doctor on the public docket saying he had “mild cognitive impairment,” gout, hypertension, high cholesterol and depression and anxiety. Acevedo has not testified in any of the Madigan-related trials so far. One of the conspiracy counts against Madigan and McClain alleges that AT&T Illinois boss Paul La Schiazza agreed to pay $22,500 to Acevedo for a do-nothing consulting job in exchange for Madigan’s help passing a bill to end mandated landline service. Acevedo also allegedly was hired by ComEd as a favor to Madigan, one of many people whom prosecutors say were given jobs as part of a bribery scheme. Jurors last month saw a memorable email in which then-ComEd executive Fidel Marquez seemingly lost his cool after Acevedo asked for a job for a friend. “Geez...he has a son and a nephew at ComEd. He’s got a contract at ComEd. Has he no limit?” Marquez emailed McClain. McClain responded using his frequent euphemism for Madigan, saying that Marquez’s rant “sounded like our Friend.” Also Thursday, jurors heard a series of phone calls meant to emphasize Madigan’s influence over state board appointments. “Think about Carrie to go to the Illinois Commerce Commission,” then-state Rep. Michael J. Zalewski told McClain in a November 2018 call, referring to his wife. “Pritzker gets two picks in January and the pay is the same, so it wouldn’t get us a story for bumping her pay, he could say she gets the same amount of money,” Zalewski said. Madigan ended up successfully recommending that Pritzker put Carrie Zalewski on the commission. Madigan and McClain are accused of getting ComEd to hire Michael J. Zalewski’s father, former 23rd Ward Ald. Michael Zalewski, as a no-work subcontractor, in order to sway Madigan’s support for utility-friendly legislation. Jurors also heard Madigan tell McClain about a meeting he had with Pritzker in December 2018. Madigan’s former chief of staff testified Wednesday that at that meeting, Madigan suggested Pritzker could reconstitute boards and commissions and appoint all new members. “You can wipe out the board too ... So I put that idea in his head,” Madigan told McClain on the recording jurors heard Thursday. Madigan’s sway over board seats is crucial to prosecutors’ allegations that he was planning to recommend Solis to a lucrative position on a board. Solis has testified he was not actually interested in a seat, but the FBI directed him to ask about it. Jurors last week saw undercover video from an August 2018 meeting in which Solis asked Madigan about a board seat appointment, and emphasized all the business he could bring in for Madigan’s firm. Moments later, Madigan asked Solis to put in a good word with the nonprofit Resurrection Project on behalf of his son Andrew, who worked at an insurance broker. The CEO and co-founder of the Resurrection Project, Raul Raymundo, testified Thursday that Solis had reached out to him in 2018 and asked him to consider meeting with Andrew Madigan. Raymundo subsequently connected Andrew Madigan with the Resurrection Project’s chief financial officer, who ultimately decided to start working with Andrew Madigan’s firm. ©2024 Chicago Tribune. Visit at chicagotribune.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.Meeza strengthens Qatar’s AI readiness at World AI Summit 2024
KIM RICE There will be plenty of palace intrigue at the State House Wednesday with former House Speaker Pro Tem Kim Rice, R-Hudson, deciding to try and deny incumbent Rep. Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, a third term as leader of the New Hampshire House of Representatives. Voters returned Rice, 58, to a seat in the House last month, this time representing both Hudson and Litchfield, after she voluntarily took a two-year hiatus from the Legislature. From 2014-22, Rice held one of the six seats that voters in Hudson and Pelham elected to the House. Rice had no public comment about her campaign. “I just don’t want this to play out in the press,” she said Monday. Rice did take to social media last week to fire back at some who’ve anonymously been critical of her bold challenge. “If people want to lie about me, have the courage to put your name next to your quote. You’re a coward,” Rice posted Nov. 30 on X. This move likely means the 400 elected to the House will get to choose for speaker between 17-term Rep. Packard, new House Democratic Leader Alexis Simpson of Exeter and Rice. Before that first meeting of the new House, Republicans and Democrats an hour earlier will separately caucus in private. The self-anointed campaign manager for Rice's effort, three-term Rep. Aidan Ankarberg, I-Rochester, has had plenty to say about the effort on social media. Ankarberg claimed on Facebook that he talked Rice into becoming the candidate after Packard won the nomination of his party over Rep. Leonard Turcotte, R-Barrington, who got more than 40% of the vote during a secret ballot GOP caucus last month. “Kim Rice isn't doing anything here. I recruited her, I've done the work of contacting the Democrats and I have been whipping votes amongst the Republican caucus to ensure Sherm Packard and (Majority Leader) Jason Osborne never again hold leadership positions in the New Hampshire House,” Ankarberg said on Facebook. In a statement Monday, Osborne said after growing the GOP majority last month that Packard has more than earned another term as House speaker. “Speaker Packard is the Republican nominee for Speaker. As a proven and tested leader of our diverse membership through many historic challenges, he has earned our commitment to secure his victory on Wednesday,” Osborne said. Rice has made no public invitation to win over House Democrats. Simpson, former House Democratic Leader Matt Wilhelm and the House Democratic staff did not respond to a request for comment Monday. Rice has long been a GOP loyalist, having served as House GOP policy leader and chairman of the House Children and Family Law Committee before Republicans took back control of the House in 2020. In this election cycle, Rice was an early supporter of Republican presidential contender and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and a fixture at many of Haley’s grassroots events. Early on in 2024, Rice got behind former U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte of Nashua to become the next elected governor, replacing Chris Sununu who did not seek a historic, fifth term. In March 2023, Ankarberg resigned a position in the House GOP leadership team citing conflicts with undisclosed members of Packard’s group. Then after winning a third term to his House seat on Nov. 5, Ankarberg became the first House member to change his party affiliation to independent. This leaves the House makeup with 221 Republicans, 178 Democrats and one independent. Rice, 58, will try to duplicate an outside-the-box feat that two Republicans did in their own speakership coup victories, 10 years apart. In 2004, then House Speaker Gene Chandler, R-Bartlett stepped aside and after pleading guilty to a single misdemeanor that he had failed to report $64,000 in donations to an annual “corn roast” fundraiser on his behalf. Chandler endorsed Majority Leader Mike Whalley, R-Alton, who had the majority of Republicans on his side. But former Speaker Doug Scamman, R-Stratham, returned to power with the help of Democrats and a small band of Republicans. In the next election, Republicans lost control of the House with Portsmouth Rep. Terie Norelli becoming the first Democratic speaker chosen in 84 years. In 2014, firebrand conservative Speaker Bill O’Brien, R-Mont Vernon, failed to win a majority vote before the full House. House Speaker Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, was the choice of House Republicans to remain as its leader for a third term but former House Speaker Pro Tem Kim Rice, R-Hudson, has agreed to put her name forward as an alternative when the full House meets on Wednesday. House Democratic Leader Alexis Simpson of Exeter is also likely to permit her name to come forward as well though Republicans outnumber Democrats, 228-178 with one independent. Hudson Republican Rep. Shawn Jasper quickly stepped up and took the gavel from O’Brien by getting all the Democrats along with a group of dissident Republicans. In 2017, a GOP-divided House failed to pass a state budget, and Jasper lashed out at 32 House Republicans who rejected the leadership’s spending plan. Months later, Sununu nominated Jasper to be state agriculture commissioner, and the House chose Chandler to serve as a caretaker speaker until the next election when Democrats again took back control. Privately, there’s some resentment in Packard’s inner circle that this challenge is coming from Rice, who Packard had kept on as the third-ranking Republican. Rice did have one notable policy break with Packard in 2022. She refused to support a parental rights bill after the Attorney General’s office civil rights division raised concerns it could conflict with the state’s anti-discrimination laws. “There are a lot of great parents out there,” Rice said, declaring she could not reconcile the problems with the bill at such a late juncture. “Unfortunately, there are also some not-so-great parents out there and those are the kids that are the most vulnerable, and that I am deeply concerned about.” A week before this election, Rice said voters were turning to Republican women leaders who remained true to their values, but could forge consensus. “Ultimately, Republican women exemplify the balance between traditional values and modern leadership, unafraid to make difficult decisions that protect the nation’s core principles while advocating for progress within the bounds of conservative ideology,” Rice wrote in a Union Leader op-ed. klandrigan@unionleader.comName: Fear of God Athletics II Basketball Colorways: Night Brown/Night Brown/Night Brown and Night Brown/Night Brown/Cream White SKUs: JS0977 and JQ8482 MSRP: $180 USD and $200 USD Release Date: December 6 Where to Buy: Fear of God and adidas Update: It’s nearly time for Fear of God Athletics to drop its second performance-oriented basketball sneaker as the II Basketball gears up in mid and high-top form. The team tapped Derrick Rose to star in the shoe’s debut campaign, which sees both iterations of the shoe dressed in a fall-ready “Night Brown.” Its build, as initially described below, features an inner bootie that ensures a snug fit while resting atop a Lightstrike-backed midsole. It also utilizes a TPU shank for dynamic propulsion, as well as a multidirectional traction system delivered via the durable rubber outsole. Release takes place tomorrow, December 6, via Fear of God, adidas and select retailers at prices of $180 USD and $200 USD for the mid and high-top versions respectively. Original Story: Fear of God Athletics — the sport-focused footwear and apparel line created by Fear of God and adidas — is gearing up to release its second basketball silhouette, the aptly-named Fear of God Athletics II Basketball . Debuting in a “Night Brown” colorway and made available in both high-top and mid-cut versions, the II Basketball seems to offer an amalgamation of influences ranging from FoG founder Jerry Lorenzo ‘s past footwear design language to the bold branding of the adidas Sobakov and even (dare we say it) a sprinkling of YEEZY . Adidas Adidas Adidas Adidas Adidas Adidas Adidas Adidas Uppers offer a monochromatic brown shade, with the high-top iteration adding extra detail via a collar strap, while the mid-cut version offers a slightly sleeker look. Both sit atop thick, semi-translucent midsoles that may contain adidas cushioning technology like BOOST or Lightstrike and tie off their look with co-branded hits on the heel and toe. This new FoG Athletics model will look to both expand on the Fear of God Athletics hoops lexicon and enhance its performance bona fides as well. The label’s inagural shoe, the Fear of God Athletics I , received generally positive reviews for its design language but was panned for its on-court performance due to its weight and lack of modern performance technology. However, the follow-up has already hit the NBA hardwood via Gabe Vincent of the Los Angeles Lakers — and weekend warriors will have a shot at it when it drops this December. Stay tuned for info on an exact release date as it’s made available.
US equities are stuck in a holding pattern as trading volumes dry up following the holiday break, and Europe is largely absent from the action. Liquidity remains razor-thin, and market moves appear more about year-end housekeeping than aggressive positioning. With the calendar year winding down and little in the way of tier-one , the market is content mainly to drift until something shakes it from its slumber—likely a late-year squeeze or perhaps a Trump-driven shift in global economic sentiment. In the meantime, key rates tied to the US overnight funding market are creeping higher, despite the Federal Reserve’s best efforts to tame volatility. The Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR), a key benchmark for one-day lending in the repo market, surged to 4.40% on December 24, up from 4.31%, according to the New York Fed. This move brings SOFR into alignment with the interest on reserve balances rate (IORB) of 4.40%, signalling that year-end balance sheet constraints are starting to weigh on overnight funding costs. But here’s the kicker—this isn’t just your typical holiday bump. Funding costs are climbing due to this year’s ever-expanding US equity and derivative positions on banks' balance sheets. With these positions sitting at record highs, banks are struggling to fund them into year-end, putting added strain on the repo market. In a recent interview, New York President John Williams cautioned that repo market volatility could mirror what was seen in late September, when funding costs surged, making it significantly more expensive for financial institutions to borrow cash for short-term liquidity needs. As this funding noise fills the backdrop, investors are left to parse the mixed signals coming from the US labor market. Initial jobless claims dipped below 220,000 for the first time in a month, a potential sign of resilience in the labor market. However, the continuing claims—tracking those receiving ongoing unemployment benefits—rose by 46,000 to 1.91 million for the week ending December 14, significantly above expectations and the highest since November 2021, when the labour market was still working through the pandemic-induced downturn. The rise in continuing claims and the uptick in long-term unemployment (those searching for jobs for 15 weeks or more) suggests that while the labour market is holding up, it’s far from as bulletproof as some headline numbers might imply. The long-term jobless rate is still hovering above 40%, the highest level outside of a recession, underscoring the ongoing structural issues in the US labour market. This mixed bag of data sets the stage for a volatile data-driven push and pull on the Fed’s policy stance well into Q1 2025 as the market assesses whether the economy is truly on solid footing or just treading water. With year-end positioning ramping up and the pressure on the repo market intensifying, this is a pivotal stretch for markets. Investors will watch closely as the jobs data continues to inform the Fed’s next moves. At the same time, the broader market contemplates whether the tightening liquidity environment will lead to another liquidity crunch—much like the one seen in September—or whether the market can ride the coattails of a potential year-end rally. Sometimes, it’s better to cut and run than face the dread of year-end funding, especially as the market waits for the next trigger—a Trump tariff tweet or a late-year squeeze.Logan Paul Agrees to Boxing Fight With One of The Sport's Biggest Characters
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